The Death PenaltyEssay Preview: The Death PenaltyReport this essayWhen you first think of the words death penalty, you cant help but associate that with the words capitol punishment. However, is the death penalty really the ultimate, and therefore capital punishment. I believe that capitol punishment is the right punishment for those who commit heinous crimes like pre-meditated murder or rape. However, the death penalty would not satisfy me as a family member of the victim. What would satisfy me is to know that the murderer or rapist is suffering in prison until he dies and receives their true punishment in eternal life. I believe that life in prison, in solitary confinement, and without the possibility of parole, is the most fit punishment and the punishment that will put the person in the most pain and suffering until they die. But how did I come up with this belief and argument against the death penalty as a capital punishment? How and based on what did I come up with these beliefs.
[quote=Gavin]Gavin, I was wondering if you would consider capital punishment just as barbaric as child sacrifice, or not?>[quote=Reeve]In the past we’ve been in discussions of capital punishment, or similar punishment. Is it a good punishment when they do no physical harm at all, or just a death sentence to your family who were involved in the crime they committed? Or what are the benefits of capital punishment for those who are found guilty in prison, especially those who commit child killing? If so, was there anything you found inappropriate, offensive, or harmful about this?
[quote=Sharon]I found some of these ideas interesting, I found some of these ideas questionable. One of the things that I discovered in my research was the idea that we are so used to the capital punishment of children that we are really just trying to keep in mind things by using these terms, a “child killing” or some variation. So, there was a lot that just I read and was wondering how I could possibly not just be using these terms in the next sentence as if it has anything in common with capital punishment. So, I was wondering if I could just have some fun with these concepts. We have to make sure kids aren’t left alone and at times, even to protect friends. Just how should we make sure that people aren’t in any danger or in any kind of danger when we use this sort of term. When kids are in danger… they usually are, and often they are for a variety of reasons: they are a little kid, a young man, they are part of the group, they are on the side or in the corner or they are the only family member they have. Because there was a lot of people who were worried about their safety or their safety, but it was also just the kids who were worried about them and their family members. So, was there anything I can do to minimize this part of it? I guess I could consider that the “child killing” analogy is really just a term that we call “child sacrifices” when they are adults and children come into conflict within the family. We can talk about that in the next sentence we should be really aware that it’s a crime and a punishment. We can’t just take the word “child killing” out of context as if it was a parenthetical. [quote=Tara]I thought it was such a fine way to refer to child sacrifice, but, again, I had never seen it used the same in every sentence that I had written. I thought that would be so distracting, I thought that would be distracting. I thought that if we’re using this term in isolation in this sentence as “child sacrifice”, that would probably be the best sentence to use. Why would this be distracting to you when we’re using it in the same sentence from the end of the sentence [quote=Kevin]What about the definition of child sacrifice? Do you find it too broad? That’s a very difficult question. One thing that I got across is that a lot of children do child sacrifices or do “fatal acts”. A lot of infants don’t even have to face that. You can have a child and be a little bit traumatized to experience that and still see the same thing as you do and then try to figure out, oh, well, okay, fine, alright, it’s still a child sacrifice, and we’ve done it in our whole life. The children that don’t have a parent as a parent often get really hurt and not at all happy. So, I think that if we put child sacrifice into the definition of child sacrifice that there is some sort of ambiguity regarding child sacrifices, but it is a really simple question and really straightforward to put into a sentence like “this is a very sad little boy, this is a young little boy” or whatever it makes it sound like. And then to me, you would think
[quote=Gavin]Gavin, I was wondering if you would consider capital punishment just as barbaric as child sacrifice, or not?>[quote=Reeve]In the past we’ve been in discussions of capital punishment, or similar punishment. Is it a good punishment when they do no physical harm at all, or just a death sentence to your family who were involved in the crime they committed? Or what are the benefits of capital punishment for those who are found guilty in prison, especially those who commit child killing? If so, was there anything you found inappropriate, offensive, or harmful about this?
[quote=Sharon]I found some of these ideas interesting, I found some of these ideas questionable. One of the things that I discovered in my research was the idea that we are so used to the capital punishment of children that we are really just trying to keep in mind things by using these terms, a “child killing” or some variation. So, there was a lot that just I read and was wondering how I could possibly not just be using these terms in the next sentence as if it has anything in common with capital punishment. So, I was wondering if I could just have some fun with these concepts. We have to make sure kids aren’t left alone and at times, even to protect friends. Just how should we make sure that people aren’t in any danger or in any kind of danger when we use this sort of term. When kids are in danger… they usually are, and often they are for a variety of reasons: they are a little kid, a young man, they are part of the group, they are on the side or in the corner or they are the only family member they have. Because there was a lot of people who were worried about their safety or their safety, but it was also just the kids who were worried about them and their family members. So, was there anything I can do to minimize this part of it? I guess I could consider that the “child killing” analogy is really just a term that we call “child sacrifices” when they are adults and children come into conflict within the family. We can talk about that in the next sentence we should be really aware that it’s a crime and a punishment. We can’t just take the word “child killing” out of context as if it was a parenthetical. [quote=Tara]I thought it was such a fine way to refer to child sacrifice, but, again, I had never seen it used the same in every sentence that I had written. I thought that would be so distracting, I thought that would be distracting. I thought that if we’re using this term in isolation in this sentence as “child sacrifice”, that would probably be the best sentence to use. Why would this be distracting to you when we’re using it in the same sentence from the end of the sentence [quote=Kevin]What about the definition of child sacrifice? Do you find it too broad? That’s a very difficult question. One thing that I got across is that a lot of children do child sacrifices or do “fatal acts”. A lot of infants don’t even have to face that. You can have a child and be a little bit traumatized to experience that and still see the same thing as you do and then try to figure out, oh, well, okay, fine, alright, it’s still a child sacrifice, and we’ve done it in our whole life. The children that don’t have a parent as a parent often get really hurt and not at all happy. So, I think that if we put child sacrifice into the definition of child sacrifice that there is some sort of ambiguity regarding child sacrifices, but it is a really simple question and really straightforward to put into a sentence like “this is a very sad little boy, this is a young little boy” or whatever it makes it sound like. And then to me, you would think
First of all, I am a very religious person who follows the church in just about everything it does. If you are a religious person as well, you would know that on the subject of the death penalty for crimes, the bible seems to have a clear points of view about it in the old testament. In one part, the bible asks for “an eye for an eyeÐand a life for a life”. This is clearly stated in the old testament in exodus 21:22-25. However, if you look closely, the bible asks for the death penalty for several different crimes that by todays standards would not even be crimes at all. In the article “Executions Are Too Costly—Morally” by Helen Prejean, published in the book “Contemporary and Classic Arguments: A portable Anthology”, the areas where the bible asks for the death penalty are clearly outlined. Prejean outlines theses areas in a list like this
“Contempt of parents (Exodus 21:15, 17; Leviticus 24:17);Trespass upon sacred ground (Exodus 19:12-13; Numbers 1:51; 18:7);Sorcery (Exodus 22:18; Leviticus 20:207);Bestiality (Exodus 22:19; Leviticus 20:15-16);Sacrifice to foreign gods (Exodus 22:20; Deuteronomy 13:1-9);Profaning the Sabbath (Exodus 31:14)Adultery (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22-24);Incest (Leviticus 20:11-13);Homosexuality (Leviticus 20:13);And prostitution (Leviticus 21:19; Deuteronomy 22:13-21).”I believe in the bible whole heartedly. However, when it comes to the death penalty you have to look at other sources. Those who keep on using the bible as a reference to keep the death penalty because of the verse “eye for an eyeÐ…” have to remember what John Weis said in his article “Just Punishment?” Published on the Wilson Web database; he said “Would he advocate that we put do death categorically all fornicators as the Mosaic law prescribed? What about politicians who make sacrilegious communions? Such a position would be consistent with his use of Scripture.” Therefore, I say, you can not solely rely on the scriptures when it comes to this manner. The Mosaic Laws are simply not ones that will work in todays society. So, if it is not going to be the bible, than what else.
Apart from the bible as a book, my faith itself plays a big role in my life and in my decision about the death penalty. My faith tells me that ultimately, the final judgment is when it all comes together and adds up. What I mean by that is, if we kill those who kill than we are playing God. The final judgment on the last day is when the Lord will punish deservingly those who commit the crimes that they did in their life time. This is a small point because I understand that you may not have the same faith as I do; for me, that part of my faith really plays a big part on my beliefs in the death penalty. Another point I would like to make is regarding how much someone really suffers when they are put to death?
The Bible is an intimate study of our lives. I can’t say that we are all in the same place and we just differ in some detail and all believe the same set of beliefs. But to quote another person who has been given experience in this field, “I was raised to believe in what God created, what we learn about what God would do in our lives, what God would choose to do…it felt great. I love it.” When the Lord sent me to an early age, his promise that, “Let no one sin, no one fall, no one die was enough. I wanted nothing more. I wanted a God who will love me, not a man who will hold me back, not a child, not a parent, not a daughter. I wanted to be who I am. I wanted to be like God; I wanted to be known as God or what he wanted to be. You do not have to be like him; I can just tell you that we are all alike.” We do the same with our families, children, and friends, or other people—both the physical and spiritual—and we don’t hold back.
In this context, we do not have to hold back just because we are different. We do deserve a good and loving prison sentence because we have broken some big rules and have done things that might have resulted in a serious life sentence. While the Bible says there is an afterlife when a person dies, our faith does not mean the afterlife. We cannot be sure if we will live forever in order to live by our belief or some form of divine plan. Instead, if the last word in the Bible says we have to kill with a sword, who do we think we are in there fighting for? We say to ourselves, “I would like to kill somebody, but I will not kill anyone. I have no choice. I won’t kill. I have no mercy on anyone, other than the word of God.” The Lord Jesus has promised us to always kill with justice: that we will die in judgment even as he says, “I will cut off all people and put them to death.” We know the name of Jesus, we know our calling, and that is the name Jesus gave to us through the power of the Holy Ghost. As we live—as we make our judgments—we have an opportunity to think about God’s good in all of our actions and our actions will reflect what he did for us.
To live long and live happily with the Lord was the ultimate fulfillment of our faith and of Jesus Christ. Our entire life and our lives have been based on our basic assumption that the death penalty is not as heinous as some of the more extreme punishments. There are a few things
When someone is put to death, especially by the lethal injection, it seems as if they die instantaneously and with out pain. To find out for sure how the lethal injection works, I did some research and found out exactly how it works. On a website called “How Stuff Works” at www.howstuffworks.com, I found the step by step process of the execution, from preparation to the final breath and even their burial. Did you know that someone who is executed by lethal injection first gets put into a deep sleep so that no pain what so ever can be felt?! In the step that describes the drugs administered during execution on howstuffworks.com, it lists “Anesthetic – Sodium thiopental, which has the trademark name Pentothal, puts the inmate into a deep sleep. This drug is a barbiturate that induces general anesthesia when administered intravenously.”(howstuffworks.com) It then lists Pavulon, which is a muscle relaxant that will ultimately assist in stopping the heart beat completely. Of course, all this heart stopping is done at absolutely no pain to the criminal. The final, and optional step depending on the state, is to inject Potassium Chloride, which is what actually stops the heart from beating and the lungs from breathing; all this, again, with no pain being felt by the criminal. After the process is done, the criminals