By: Isa T.
When it comes to the death
penalty there are many different views about whether it is right or wrong. Some
people believe that it is humane and it punishes those who need to be punished.
The other side of this debate is that killing someone even if they are guilty
is cruel and inhumane.
People
argue that the bible teaches in Exodus 21:24 “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”,
as there backup for justifying the death penalty. This may be true that the
bible says this but if we abide by this then who is to say who should murder
the murderer? Who amongst us has not sinned and has the right to take away
another humans life? In the bible when people wanted to stone a woman who had
committed adultery, Jesus says in John 8:7 “Let him who is without sin among
you be the first to throw a stone”.
If people are killed how are they going
to change and feel remorse for what they have done? Anyone who believes in the
death penalty is basically a hypocrite, because they are saying that killing
people is illegal, so those people who kill people should be killed. But based
off of that theory those people who sentence the guilty to death, should also
be killed for doing the same thing as the murderer. If someone kills the killer
then that person should, based off this theory, also be killed. This starts an
ongoing cycle of death or forgiveness.
This graph shows the
majority of the people in the U.S are against the death penalty, yet nothing
has truly been done, because 33 states still have the death penalty. Wisconsin is still one of the few states that
is against the death penalty, but it should be completely abolished in all of
the U.S. Even when the states vote to
eliminate the death penalty people can still be killed if they were already put
on death row. This should also be changed because it defeats part of the
purpose of diminishing the death penalty.
On this website,
it states that “In March 2009, New Mexico voted to abolish the death penalty.
However, the repeal was not retroactive, leaving two people on the state’s
death” the same site says “In April 2012, Connecticut voted to abolish the
death penalty. However, the repeal was not retroactive, leaving 11 people on
the state's death row”. This goes to show that even if people do stand up and
vote against the death penalty, it still will leave people on death row being
murdered.
Many people who are
innocent can also be sentenced to death row.
People can be wrongly convicted due to poor representation by a lawyer, prejudice,
or because the community is pressuring to solve the case. If these people are killed no one will ever
know or find out if they were innocent. Even if someone is guilty it doesn’t mean
that they shouldn’t be given a second chance.
People make mistakes, and
some need to be put in rehabilitation centers, but they should be given second
chances. The death penalty is an inhumane act that doesn’t actually fix any
problems, and it only really creates more killers, and puts those who support
the death penalty on the same level as the murderers.
I completely agree with you, and I think the death penalty should be abolished everywhere. There is nothing humane about it, and like you said it makes killers out of everyone because it starts an ongoing cycle. It was surprising to see that 33% of the people polled about the death penalty agreed with it, which really doesn’t make sense because it doesn’t necessarily promote justice. It is important for everyone to see both sides of this issue and to understand why each side either agrees with the death penalty or is against it. Then, maybe, we can all come to an understanding of why it is not (or if people still agree with it, then it is) a humane act.
ReplyDeleteYou can't just look at this topic from a religious point of view, or always act upon the consensus of the nation. It is important to look at this topic from the economic stand point. Throwing someone in prison for life is not cheap for the tax payers of this country. To keep a person in prison for a year is over 22,000 dollars, over a life time sentence that becomes very expensive.
ReplyDeleteJordan I agree with you on this topic. Don't get me wrong I think murder is wrong and everything but some people have done truly unspeakable things and in my eyes deserve the death penalty. Like Jordan said it is an expensive process to keep someone in jail for a lifetime sentence and as we all know our country is swamped in debt. While the death penalty alone will not put much of a dent in our debt it would help lower taxes, and prevent murders from spreading their word to other members of the jail who will get out and potentially do more harm.
ReplyDeleteYou bring up really good points. Though I do agree with Jordan about the economic stand point. Why should we have to pay for them to live in jail? Why does keeping someone in jail for a year cost so much? We as innocent citizens should not pay the way for criminals. They should have to be doing something to pay for their own life. Them killing someone or committing a crime should not give them a free life, even if it is behind bars. Our country is in enough debt as it is, and completely eliminating the death penalty could potentially raise our current debt to an even higher amount. If we can't afford to get out of our current debt why would we do something that adds to that debt?
ReplyDeleteHonestly, even after reading the column you wrote I still don't have an opinion on the death penalty and I want to keep it that way. There are certain things not worth the energy to protest. Murderers can get out of jail in 15 to 20 years, but there are also innocent people who are executed. Neither are right, but it happens every day. God tells us to forgive and let go even if it's hard for us to do. That's why I try not to have an opinion on topics that are out of my control. I believe whether there is a death penalty or not they will get what they deserve. I'm happy with or without a death penalty.
ReplyDeleteThe death penalty was made to take care of those that choose to kill. In a religious standpoint yes we should not use it, but the truth is that if we don't get rid of them then how are we going to look in a few years with every jail filled to its max and we are stuck paying for it. Every person that commits murder or other unspeakable crimes such as rape deserve to be put to death by any means necessary. That is not just my southern believes talking.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, how does killing someone via death penalty create more killers? Second of all you're talking about extreme situations, if you have tried to rehabilitate a murderer and they are just not changing, you can not just continue to waste time on a hopeless cause. I think that if you commit a crime that is extreme enough, then you deserve the death penalty. The phrase eye for an eye is a good one to use in this situation, because if you do something you deserve it back. If someone murdered one of your best friends you wouldn't just be like, oh cool, go ahead and kill my other friends too, ill give you a second chance. If I were in that situation i would want to see that person on death row, not because I am an evil person but it is what they deserve.
ReplyDelete- The real Kelby
Everyone is saying how expensive it is to keep someone in jail for life, but the death penalty is much more expensive than life without parole because the Constitution requires a long and complex judicial process for capital punishment cases. This process is needed in order to ensure that innocent men and woman are not executed for crimes they did not commit, and even with these protections the risk of executing an innocent person cannot be completely eliminated. It can cost almost an extra $90,000 per inmate to imprison someone sentenced to death when the cost of appeals, trial attorneys, court appearances are factored in.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on some points but i agree with Jordan too why should we pay for them to sit in jail, if someone gets sentenced for life in jail we are paying for them to sit in jail and get fed and do normal things that we do. I understand what you are saying Luke that it could cost that much more money for us to figure out if they are innocent or not. If we know that they are going to be in jail for the rest of their lives why should we have to pay for that. I don't think that everyone deserves the death penalty but if its what they deserve then I would agree to put them on the death penalty. Everyone deserves a second chance but if its a repeat of things they have done we should not pay for them over and over again.
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ReplyDeleteGrowing up in a very conservative and religious country, I believe that death penalty is a cruel, inhumane form of punishment. I see where Isa is coming from based on a religious view. I do think everyone deserves a second chance. If we are so willing to give those who have hurt us a second chance, why can’t we give those who have committed crimes a second chance? I’m not saying what they did was right. We are all humans we commit mistakes and we are always bound to make one. I also do understand where Jordan and everyone else are coming from that economically putting someone in jail for a long time might be costly. I think it’s important that we see and better understand both sides of the issue. Why they are for and against it, then, maybe we can all come to a consensus on how to approach the situation.
I'm not strongly against or strongly for the death penalty, but if I had to choose one I would choose against it. I would say this because two wrongs don't make a right! If we kill someone that has killed others there is no difference between that and the murderer doing what he did. Then it would be a never ending cycle of killing. Although innocent people are put on death row there are policies for that. With the death row they usually postpone it so they have enough time for appeals and have the newer technology review the evidence and maybe change the outcome.
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