Should we rethink the Death Penalty?

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
A story like this is a good example of why the government shouldn't be trusted with the death penalty. After an mistake like this is allowed to happen how can the system be trusted?



It's not just Illinois that has a terrible record of injustice. The system is corrupt, and not necessarily intentionally.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 41
    alcimedesalcimedes Posts: 5,486member
    as a concept i have no problem with the death penalty. in reality? it has serious problems that are inherent to the system. the entire justice system probably needs to be reworked, starting with the incarcaration side of things.
  • Reply 2 of 41
    aquafireaquafire Posts: 2,758member
    Instead of "Death" as such, perhaps the government could put medical science to more humane use by inducing a death-like coma.

    It would be a dreamless sleep from which Executed coma prisoners could be retrieved, if it turned out they were innocent..



    Maybe this is too Frankensteinian in its implications.....but it would surely beat actually killing someone & then finding they were truly innocent..think of the legal compensation that would follow for wrongful death..deprivation of life..family, trauma, income etc etc....Death-Coma would cost less even if it has untested legal ramifications..... I am open to pursuasion.\
  • Reply 3 of 41
    haraldharald Posts: 2,152member
    Here we go again.



    The death penalty, whenever analysed in rigorous academic ways, is shown not to work. There is in fact fairly good reason to believe that it is counterproductive.



    We also know for a fact that it is discriminatory against the poor and that innocents get killed.



    Not to mention that it is a bad precedent for The State to kill its own citizens.



    It should be stopped.
  • Reply 4 of 41
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    What alcimedes said; except I'd spell "incarceration" correctly and capitalize the first letter of the first word of every sentence.







    To quote Dennis Miller:

    "They call it 'capital punishment' is that it's a capital idea."
  • Reply 5 of 41
    haraldharald Posts: 2,152member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by groverat

    What alcimedes said; except I'd spell "incarceration" correctly and capitalize the first letter of the first word of every sentence.







    To quote Dennis Miller:

    "They call it 'capital punishment' is that it's a capital idea."




    So the fact that it doesn't work doesn't phase you?
  • Reply 6 of 41
    naderfannaderfan Posts: 156member
    I'm pretty much following the same vein as everyone else. In theory, I'm usually for the death penalty, but it's scary how often things go wrong. Texas has had some horrible problems, like defense attorneys (state appointed ones) falling asleep during the trial, or being high on crack, etc. Also, for the really horrible murderers/rapists/etc., I think death is too good for them sometimes. Something needs to be done, but I doubt anything will be.
  • Reply 7 of 41
    stunnedstunned Posts: 1,096member
    I am supportive of the death penalty.



    As an old chinese saying goes: Kill one, warn a hundred.
  • Reply 8 of 41
    murbotmurbot Posts: 5,262member
    The death penalty is great, but only if they have the right guy.



  • Reply 9 of 41
    brbr Posts: 8,395member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by bunge

    A story like this is a good example of why the government shouldn't be trusted with the death penalty. After an mistake like this is allowed to happen how can the system be trusted?



    It's not just Illinois that has a terrible record of injustice. The system is corrupt, and not necessarily intentionally.




    No, thinking is unpatriotic.
  • Reply 10 of 41
    thuh freakthuh freak Posts: 2,664member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by stunned

    I am supportive of the death penalty.



    As an old chinese saying goes: Kill one, warn a hundred.




    i dont think its necessarily true. i haven't really investigated it too much, but i wouldn't be surprised if most people were not dissuaded as much by the totality of the punishment, but by the horridness of the crime. the reason i don't murder or rape (or commit other dp-crimes) is because those crimes are very wrong, and I can't live with those on my conscience. If all we have to keep people in line is fear, then we are in a sad state of society; and while i think society is in a sad state, i dont think most people avoid crimes because of the penalty. I wouldn't be surprised if capital crime rates have been shown to be unaffected by states' legalizing or illegalizing the death penalty.



    but even if people are living in fear of the death penalty, and not committing crimes because of it, the government should not have this power over its citizens. as has already been shown, the government can't handle this power (they execute innocent people). i dont like the fact that any, any innocent people can die for someone else's crime. i really don't want to be that innocent person, and i dont want the government to have the power to put me in that position. it leaves them the possibility of later becoming fascist or oppressive and then taking down political prisoners. i'd rather a government that feared the people (ie, liberty), than people that feared the government (ie, tyrrany) (borrowed and deformed t. jefferson quote).
  • Reply 11 of 41
    trumptmantrumptman Posts: 16,464member
    This is terrible. We can't insure the guilt of someone getting the death penalty. It is likely everyone in jail is innocent. The government just made up stuff to keep them in there and then hired sleeping (likely drugged though just to be certain) D.A.'s to defend them.



    Let everyone out of jail.... run free my brothers and compatriots!







    Or it could be that someone with a grudge is trying to blow up some technicality that has already been reviewed and found irrelevent, stayed the execution a month to insure everything was okay, and then killed the bastard.



    Sorry for offending all the fatherless children like myself.



    Nick
  • Reply 12 of 41
    thttht Posts: 5,452member
    Question to ponder: is the death penalty big government or small government?



    If the former, does that mean conservative ideology isn't about small government?
  • Reply 13 of 41
    brbr Posts: 8,395member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by trumptman

    Let everyone out of jail.... run free my brothers and compatriots!

    Nick




    Not everyone. Just half. You know which half I'm talking about.
  • Reply 14 of 41
    brbr Posts: 8,395member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by THT

    Question to ponder: is the death penalty big government or small government?



    If the former, does that mean conservative ideology isn't about small government?




    Both Liberal and Conservative ideologies are self-contradictory. Let's not start up this pointless debate.
  • Reply 15 of 41
    trumptmantrumptman Posts: 16,464member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BR

    Not everyone. Just half. You know which half I'm talking about.



    Leave my family out of this



    Geesh you can take the trash out of the trailer...but....



    Nick
  • Reply 16 of 41
    fellowshipfellowship Posts: 5,038member
    I am against the death penalty.



    Fellowship
  • Reply 17 of 41
    brbr Posts: 8,395member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by FellowshipChurch iBook

    I am against the death penalty.



    Fellowship




    BAD REPUBLICAN!
  • Reply 18 of 41
    thttht Posts: 5,452member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BR

    Both Liberal and Conservative ideologies are self-contradictory. Let's not start up this pointless debate.



    Perhaps they are self-contradictory, but I think the main thing is that they are not honest with themselves. In other words, they pretend to be something they are not, and can't admit it.
  • Reply 19 of 41
    brbr Posts: 8,395member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by THT

    Perhaps they are self-contradictory, but I think the main thing is that they are not honest with themselves. In other words, they pretend to be something they are not, and can't admit it.



    It has nothing to do with not being able to admit it. It's done on purpose. Both parties are trying to appeal to too many people with too many conflicting ideas at the same time. Self-contradiction is the end (and intended) result.
  • Reply 20 of 41
    fellowshipfellowship Posts: 5,038member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by BR

    It has nothing to do with not being able to admit it. It's done on purpose. Both parties are trying to appeal to too many people with too many conflicting ideas at the same time. Self-contradiction is the end (and intended) result.



    While I disagree with BR that the parties are the same what is said above is correct.



    Fellowship
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