Originally Posted By: IvyLeague
Originally Posted By: Lilo
If the state is going to kill someone they need to get it right.


This is the crux of it right here. If somebody says they can accept the death penalty as long as it's certain the state gets it right, and the person's guilt is incontestable, I can accept that.

But again, I get the feeling certain people are more against the death penalty in general than just because of the risk an innocent person could be put to death. But they're hesitant to make that argument because it doesn't look too good when you're advocating the right for murderers to live.


There are various honorable reasons to be against the death penalty. It's arbitrary; most first degree murderers won't face it. It's applied unequally for class and race. It's more expensive than life imprisonment. It doesn't act as a deterrent. And yes there are some people who really do take the "Sermon on the Mount" seriously/literally and are fiercely opposed to the death penalty for religious and/or moral reasons. The Catholic Church in particular has some powerful writings and arguments against it. I'm not bothered by the concept of fair retribution but I'm leery of giving this society (particularly the State of Texas) the ability to kill people.

"When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives."
Winter is Coming

Now this is the Law of the Jungle—as old and as true as the sky; And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.
As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk, the Law runneth forward and back; For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack.