| Subject: Re: The Death Penalty |
Author:
anon
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Date Posted: 11:49:26 06/09/01 Sat
In reply to:
Vivien
's message, "The Death Penalty – the most controversial of subjects" on 09:57:34 06/07/01 Thu
>However, is institutionalised
>murder, because that is what it is, acceptable in a
>‘civilised’ society?
>
How would you categorize someone who kills someone in self-defense? The law says that that specific act of killing is permissible act under certain circumstances. Law enforcement officers can use deadly force under certain
circumstances. Are those two acts of killing institutionalized murder?"
The idea that the Death Penalty should not be imposed because a mistake may be made is an old argument. No society or set of laws is perfect. Mistakes are always being made. Do we just shrug our shoulders and say "that's the way it goes?" Of course not, we work to improve those laws and the system.
If a police officer is found to have used deadly force when it wasn't necessary there are procedures to follow and possible punishments. We don't say "Please, never use deadly force again."
We need to do the same with the death penalty. If a mistake is made and "deadly force" in this case is an execution, than those who made the mistake need to be held accountable just as in any "deadly force" case.
If you want to argue the Death Penalty is wrong on the moral issue that ALL killing is wrong, that's fine. But don't bring in the "what if a mistake is made issue" because no "Civilized" Society can ever run without making mistakes.
The Death Penalty is a legal killing under the law. We as a society decide what is or isn't a legal killing. Right now, the Death Penalty is legal on a federal level and on many state levels. It's a punishment that a society imposes to defend itself from what it sees as a heinous crime. That self-defense may emcompass the idea of revenge or justice or setting an example, in addition to punishing the invididual who committed it.
If all killing is murder, than the Death Penalty is "institutionalized murder", as is killing in self defense, use of deadly force, hitting someone with your car, being a soldier in a war. Killing is killing, murder is murder. Of course not, we as a society define what is and isn't murder. We do agree that killing is possible and legal and at times necessary. We don't rejoice in that fact but we accept that it happens and is at times permissible and necessary.
The Death Penalty extends from that concept, that under the law, killing is at times acceptable. We can alter that as we can all our laws but it needs to be done with more reasoning than "institutionalised murder" or "how barbaric" which seem to be emotional catch phrases to incite or put down a specific society rather than words intended for a back and forth discussion of ideas.
anon -
because I'm kicking myself for even getting involved in this thread
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