I understand why the death penalty is used in certain cases, and I do not actively fight or debate against it.
However, for personal, incredibly subjective reasons, I do not like it, and I wish our society would be rid of it.
I don't find it justified to ever take a life unless in cases of immediate self-defense when someone else's life is in jeopardy. And even if I were in such a situation myself, I would only aim to wound, never kill. I place a lot of value on life, and I do not see taking the life of someone who took another person's life as a fitting punishment. The only thing that results is another life being lost.
Also, what does a prisoner learn from being killed? What is the benefit of that? To me, forcing a person to spend the rest of the only life they have in a prison cell is a greater torment than just letting them die. That doesn't teach them any lesson. Allowing them to live also harbors a chance at some form of redemption, no matter how remote or unlikely that chance might be. And I believe that every criminal should have the chance to understand why their actions were wrong.
Now, I know these are not logical points to debate the rightness or wrongness of the death penalty. I'm not seeking to do that. These are all just my personal feelings.
However, for personal, incredibly subjective reasons, I do not like it, and I wish our society would be rid of it.
I don't find it justified to ever take a life unless in cases of immediate self-defense when someone else's life is in jeopardy. And even if I were in such a situation myself, I would only aim to wound, never kill. I place a lot of value on life, and I do not see taking the life of someone who took another person's life as a fitting punishment. The only thing that results is another life being lost.
Also, what does a prisoner learn from being killed? What is the benefit of that? To me, forcing a person to spend the rest of the only life they have in a prison cell is a greater torment than just letting them die. That doesn't teach them any lesson. Allowing them to live also harbors a chance at some form of redemption, no matter how remote or unlikely that chance might be. And I believe that every criminal should have the chance to understand why their actions were wrong.
Now, I know these are not logical points to debate the rightness or wrongness of the death penalty. I'm not seeking to do that. These are all just my personal feelings.