By sentencing a person to death, it is tantamount to putting a stop to his life journey. His life and death lie in the hands of the judge and miscarriages of justice are irreversible. Any error in the decision-making can cause the wrongly accused to lose his head. I feel that humans should not play God by governing any thing that has to do with the taking of lives such as abortion and animal rights. Moreover, as stated by Voltaire, a French philosopher in the seventeenth century, “it is better to risk saving a guilty person than to condemn an innocent one.” In addition, death row can take years and are very costly especially to taxpayers. It is definitely unfair as they are indirectly getting punished for a crime they are not guilty of. Capital punishment may also encourage copycat crimes if the prisoner is seen as a martyr for example Mr Cho from Korea. Thus we can see that not only the individual is affected, the public is not let off either. More problems are being created instead of being solved.
Two wrongs do not make a right. Thus, I believe that rehabilitation should be favoured over the death penalty. Felons will be made to reenact the crime they committed. By seeing themselves as the third party, many would suddenly realize their grave mistake and willingly turn over a new leaf. After all, to err is human. Nobody is perfect and I am sure everyone deserves a second chance.
However, should there not be the existence of capital punishment, the national security will be at stake. With no fear of putting their heads on the chopper board, criminals such as terrorists, murderers and revolutionaries will roam the streets and strike terror in many innocent people’s hearts. Only with the death penalty put in place, can the national security be preserved and the public assured that their peace is not threatened. Moreover, it is technically sound to execute the prisoners than to keep them in life incarceration for they will be living off taxpayers dollars. Death is quick and causes less suffering than a long jail term as freedom is restricted. Hence capital punishment acts as a deterrent warning to others against the consequence of crime and also to prevent repeat offenses.
In conclusion, I disagree that death penalty is murder and should be abolished. Murder is defined as the unlawful killing of one human by another. Certainly capital punishment is lawful. We all know that the anticipation of death is definitely more fearful and painful than death itself. Therefore, my stand is that so long as the methods of execution are not cruel and humane, for example pulling the trigger of a pistol pointed at the back of the head (death is quick and the likelihood of human error is very minimal), the death penalty should not be abolished. I personally feel that all criminals should be given a chance to reform. Only those that crossed the line of moral/conscious, those that show no sign of remorse nor a single tinge of regret, should face the death penalty.
Two wrongs do not make a right. Thus, I believe that rehabilitation should be favoured over the death penalty. Felons will be made to reenact the crime they committed. By seeing themselves as the third party, many would suddenly realize their grave mistake and willingly turn over a new leaf. After all, to err is human. Nobody is perfect and I am sure everyone deserves a second chance.
However, should there not be the existence of capital punishment, the national security will be at stake. With no fear of putting their heads on the chopper board, criminals such as terrorists, murderers and revolutionaries will roam the streets and strike terror in many innocent people’s hearts. Only with the death penalty put in place, can the national security be preserved and the public assured that their peace is not threatened. Moreover, it is technically sound to execute the prisoners than to keep them in life incarceration for they will be living off taxpayers dollars. Death is quick and causes less suffering than a long jail term as freedom is restricted. Hence capital punishment acts as a deterrent warning to others against the consequence of crime and also to prevent repeat offenses.
In conclusion, I disagree that death penalty is murder and should be abolished. Murder is defined as the unlawful killing of one human by another. Certainly capital punishment is lawful. We all know that the anticipation of death is definitely more fearful and painful than death itself. Therefore, my stand is that so long as the methods of execution are not cruel and humane, for example pulling the trigger of a pistol pointed at the back of the head (death is quick and the likelihood of human error is very minimal), the death penalty should not be abolished. I personally feel that all criminals should be given a chance to reform. Only those that crossed the line of moral/conscious, those that show no sign of remorse nor a single tinge of regret, should face the death penalty.
1 comment:
a thoughtful entry, but you could explore the issues discussed in class a little further, trace.
Grade: B-
mdm l
btw this is the 3rd task. you still owe me one on media censorship.
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