Almighty state? How about in the name of justice?
First, I believe those who are tried, convicted and sentenced to death under our judicial system have been given justice. There are exceptions, but you should not make laws based on exceptions to the rule. Further, provides justice for the victim of the murderer and his survivors.
Heres an idea for you, why dont you pose your question, face to face, to the survivors of the murder victims now that Gov. Ryan just took their murderess off death row? Im sure youd find some of them happy to talk to you.
Second, Id rather see the limited resources of our taxpayer supported Government (and yes, contrary to popular belief, resources are limited) go toward training a doctor or preserving a natural area than keeping a vile and evil creature behind bars.
Third, contrary to what you probably believe, the death penalty is a deterrent to murder. If you have any doubt, look at this easy to understand graph. If you cant see a cause and effect relationship, look at it again.
If you still cant see a cause and effect relationship, look at it again.
Those murderers dont want to die. The threat of death is all that keeps many from carrying out their heinous imaginings. In Illinois the worse they can now expect is three square meals a day in a climate-controlled environment, access to weight training and a library and television entertainment. They can even get illegal drugs behind bars.
There are cretins living such a miserable existence on the streets, theyd be happy to commit a crime just to get those benefits.
But, they dont want to die.
Forth, I am subject to the same laws that I advocate applied to others. Ill gladly take my chances of wrongful conviction as an individual, so that justice will be served for the many.
Now, if youre going to try the old, But, if it will save just one child. logic. Save it. That logic (or lack there of) doesnt work on me. When youre saying, But, if it will save just one brutal murderer. It has even less appeal.
Heres an idea, rather than make all of us pay to keep those animals alive, why dont you start a volunteer fund for people who think like youYou can promote it like a membership to a local zoo. That way, you take the $30,000 per year burden of incarcerating a maximum-security prisoner off the backs of taxpayers.
Your friends can sponsor the brutal murderer of their choice. And, as long as they keep sending checks, he stays alive. Priority members even get visitation rights. You can get all warm and fuzzy with him. Become good friends, and he might even show you how to kill a man with a folded piece of paper.
Come on, youve got nothing to lose with your morally superior attitude. Put you money where your mouth is.
Regarding the controversy surrounding the death penalty, much like the issue of abortion, this will be a contentious issue for many years to come. And it doesn't help that there is a certain political dynamic involved. Sigh, well, you know what I'm talking about...I'm talking about peeplow.
Two words: BABY BOOM
It began with a sudden surge of births in 1946 and ended with a long decline in births in the 1960's.
There is a certain age range when young men are statistically prone to committing crimes than other ages, usually from around 16 through their mid 20's.
Take a look at that chart again with that in mind - the first wave of 1946 Baby Boomers would have turned 16 in 1962, right where the murder rate begins to rise. The last of them, born in the early to mid 1960's, would have turned 25 in the late '80s and early 90's, when the murder rate began to fall.
Correlation does not imply causation in either case, of course, but there's more to this issue than the simplistic picture that this chart paints. Some people are claiming the murder surge occurred because of leaded gasoline.