The death penalty makes no sense.

[Minimalist]

This morning at 10 AM CDT, the State of Nebraska is set to execute Carey Dean Moore, who says that he is "ready to die".  His victims' families approve of his upcoming execution.  But, when Mr. Moore dies a (hopefully) peaceful death, he will cease to exist, and hence, no longer suffer the punishments of prison.  In fact, if he experiences what I experienced a few days ago when I fainted while on my feet due to a brief illness (probably, mono), he will never even experience death.  Instead, he will go to sleep and then die.

In this sense, how can the death penalty be said to be "punishment"; isn't it just better to leave Mr. Moore in prison for the rest of his life if you wish to see him be punished for his heinous crimes?  Instead, Mr. Moore gets to end his life on the World stage, on the front pages of major newspapers across the Globe.

Then why do most all of them keep appealing and delaying the execution?

Probably to annoy assholes like you!

[Jehanne]

1) Overcrowded jails make it worth it
2) Burden on society is lessened
3) Punishment to those that fear death is still a punishment.
4) He took a life, he can give a life.

#1: Since the first hanging at Jamestown, there have only been 16,000 or so executions in all of North America. Your despotic vision of mass executions will never be realized. So far, there have been 15 or 16 executions this year in the US.

#2: How?

#3: The scientific evidence does not support this.

#4: The wrongly condemned may not agree with your sentiments.

[Anomalocaris]

1) Overcrowded jails make it worth it
2) Burden on society is lessened
3) Punishment to those that fear death is still a punishment.
4) He took a life, he can give a life.

1. Total us prison capacity is about 2.4 million. Total overcrowding by pretty strict definition is about 4%. You need to execute 100,000 inmates to address the overcrowding. If there is something that would make the US greater than China, executing 100,000 people would be it. Those authoritarian communist losers only execute a pathetic ~2000 people a year.

2. Yeah? the total cost to the US society for each execution is $1.26 million. For each life imprison it is $0.7 million.

3. Making desperados think they have nothing to lose is a punishment to the society.

4. Yeah, you can bring the victim back by squandering twice as much on the criminal than if you just locked him up for life.

[Javaman]

This morning at 10 AM CDT, the State of Nebraska is set to execute Carey Dean Moore, who says that he is "ready to die".  His victims' families approve of his upcoming execution.  But, when Mr. Moore dies a (hopefully) peaceful death, he will cease to exist, and hence, no longer suffer the punishments of prison.  In fact, if he experiences what I experienced a few days ago when I fainted while on my feet due to a brief illness (probably, mono), he will never even experience death.  Instead, he will go to sleep and then die.

In this sense, how can the death penalty be said to be "punishment"; isn't it just better to leave Mr. Moore in prison for the rest of his life if you wish to see him be punished for his heinous crimes?  Instead, Mr. Moore gets to end his life on the World stage, on the front pages of major newspapers across the Globe.f

If it's wrong to kill a human being, then what makes it okay when the state decides to do it? What's the rationale for murdering another human being?

In short, I agree with the OP. The death penalty makes no sense.

[vulcanlogician]

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/murder-rate...tate#MRord


Here is a link that gives the murder rates by state based on statistics compiled by the FBI. Quite handily, states where the death penalty is abolished are highlighted in yellow. One notices immediately that there seems to be no correlation between the implementation of the death penalty and murder. To the contrary, states that implement the death penalty tend to have higher murder rates (on average). Eight of the ten states with the lowest murder rate have no death penalty. Thus arguments that value capital punishment as a deterrent have this to contend with.

Once you take deterrence out of the equation, the arguments in favor of the death penalty are pretty slim. Mooney said in an earlier post "you took a life so you can give one." That reasoning doesn't quite add up. First off, it's "revenge thinking." Second of all, not everyone who is executed is guilty of the crime. If someone is wrongly executed for the crime of murder, should their surviving family members have the right to pick a couple of members of the jury to be executed?

[brewer]

If you're going to kill the convicted I don't care all that much, except for the expense and method.

If it costs more to kill than punish them for the rest of their life, then lock them up until they die. 

And for god's sake stop lethal injection. Making it look aesthetically pleasing (not cruel/unusual, they just go to sleep forever) is not helping anyone. It's stupid and not what medical procedures were ever meant for. If the state insists on killing then man up, don't sugar coat taking a criminals life.

[vulcanlogician]

Then why do most all of them keep appealing and delaying the execution?

Because they don't want to die.

My turn:

Why is murder ever committed in states that enforce the death penalty?

[Chad32]

I'm not for lethal injection either. Just put a bullet or two in their head, and dispose of the body. Maybe it's not as pretty, but it's a lot cheaper and easier.

[Minimalist]

It isn't supposed to make sense.  It's supposed to make assholes feel better.

[Javaman]

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/murder-rate...tate#MRord


Here is a link that gives the murder rates by state based on statistics compiled by the FBI. Quite handily, states where the death penalty is abolished are highlighted in yellow. One notices immediately that there seems to be no correlation between the implementation of the death penalty and murder. To the contrary, states that implement the death penalty tend to have higher murder rates (on average). Eight of the ten states with the lowest murder rate have no death penalty. Thus arguments that value capital punishment as a deterrent have this to contend with.

Once you take deterrence out of the equation, the arguments in favor of the death penalty are pretty slim. Mooney said in an earlier post "you took a life so you can give one." That reasoning doesn't quite add up. First off, it's "revenge thinking." Second of all, not everyone who is executed is guilty of the crime. If someone is wrongly executed for the crime of murder, should their surviving family members have the right to pick a couple of members of the jury to be executed?

I have an idea. How about whenever someone is found to be wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death, we randomly pull a name from the pool of prosecutors and have them executed?