the Californian governor broke Austrian law by allowing Donald Beardslee’s death…
That’s kinda funny…
I’m no gropenfuhrer fan (how do I add the umlaut?), but Ahnold is still better than Grey Davis, the previous governor, on this issue. Mr.l Davis never even considered pardoning anyone, and unilaterally refused to grant parole to convicted killers. I am disappointed in the governator, now, though.
well well well, who’s a naughty Austrian…
another instalment of the soap opera that is american politics.
That’s aawful, how dare he allow a convicted murderer’s sentence to be carried out. How dare he allow the legal process to go it’s course.
Is that?.. wait a minute… yes it is… sarcasm!
manure?!?
Capital Punishment…What a capital idea! I mean really, what a great way of doling out justice. It shows how much above the murderer we are, I mean we wouldn’t stoop to…heaven forbid killing people. And our justice system is so absolutely flawless that of course there are never mistakes made…Sarcasm mode disengaged.
Seriously though, if someone killed a relative of mine I’d far rather they spent the rest of their life in prison thinking over what they’d done and letting the nightmares torment them. By killing the murder you’re just giving them the easy way out. How many murderers commit, or attempt to commit suicide? Most people who are mentally fit enough to stand trial will know what they’ve done is wrong and seek to kill themselves. I’d rather deprive them of the luxury.
I recently was shocked into having to think very hard about my thoughts on punishment after my sister was sexually attacked. And I still believe that people who commit terrible crimes should not be killed…Except perhaps George Bush, I’d love to give him a good crack in the nuts and perhaps hobble him.
In short, capital punishment is never right. It deprives a person of their first fundamental human right, their right to life. Thus making the perpetrators of the execution Human rights abusers. Leaving them in no place to preach to anybody about human rights, Freedom or democracy…Rant mode disengaged.
Kit
It does seems strange that the USA is the only country left in the so called civilized western world that still has capital punishment.
Not that a life sentence is ideal as there are cases of murderers being freed and then go on to kill again. But there have been too many miscariages of justice (certainly in the UK) for the death sentence to be a viable option.
“Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed.”-Genesis 9:6
End of discussion for anyone here who considers himself or herself a Christian.
Actually no, considering current events and history…
Quotes from the bible can be used to justify pretty much any immoral or moral action.
I don’t care about the bible or anything like that. If you kill someone, you should die. You don’t deserve the oppurtunity to become a productive member of society again.
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…End of discussion for anyone here who considers himself or herself a christian.
The bible’s so full of contradictions…dontcha just love it?
Kit
Just found this quote:
“As I read the New Testament, I don’t see anywhere in there that killing bad people is a very high calling for Christians. I see an awful lot about redemption and forgiveness.” James W.L. Park, former execution officer, San Quentin, California
bullet
And who shall kill the killer? By that logic we would all be dead murderers.
That is a stupid response and you know it. Obviously those who kill in the name of justice (as decided by a court) are exempt from my rule.
:: Pelvic Thrust ::
That’s true. Those of us who are Christians must forgive those who sin against us. Nevertheless, that does not remove the calling of the magistrate to execute the murderer. It is possible to forgive someone, and still have them executed.
By quoting that text I was not intending to start a flamewar, just pointing out something to the Christians who are reading this. The rest of you, just ignore my posts. If this develops into a long-drawn out flame war, I’m sorry.
If I read the rear of a dollar bill I read
“In god we trust”
Maybe this should be:
“In god* we** trust***”
Hmmm, fuzzy logic there methinks. Here’s a few interesting facts about capital punishment in the US:
As of 2002-JAN-1: From 1976, when executions were resumed, until 2002-JUL-1, there have been 784 executions in the US. About 30 to 60 prisoners are currently killed annually, most by lethal injection. About two out of three executions (65.6%) are conducted in five states: Texas, Virginia, Missouri, Florida and Oklahoma. Texas leads the other states in number of killings (256 killings; 34% of the national total). There were about 3,690 prisoners sentenced to death in 37 state death rows, and 31 being held by the U.S. government and military. 4 About 1.5% are women. Recent laws have expanded the number of crimes for which capital punishment can be applied. Other legislation has reduced some of the appeal mechanisms available to those on death row.
An interesting one: About 90% of those executed could not afford a lawyer when they went to trial. They had to rely upon a court-appointed lawyer.
The homicide rate in those states with the death penalty is almost double the rate in states without the death penalty. It is not known whether this is due to:
bullet People in high-homicide states demanding the death penalty as a perceived deterrent, or
bullet Use of the death penalty by the state cheapens the value of life, and causes a higher homicide rate.
Canada does not have a death penalty. In most cases, the most serious sentence for murder is life imprisonment with no possibility of parole for 25 years. However, if a person has a long history of violent crime, then they can be declared a “dangerous offender.” With this classification they are given an indefinite sentence with little chance of ever being paroled.
Public opinion polls show that over 70% of the adult population would like to see a return of hanging for first degree murder. The Roman Catholic Church and liberal churches wish to continue the present status; conservative Protestant denominations are overwhelmingly in favor of a return to capital punishment. The homicide rate in Canada has been gradually dropping since executions were stopped. This phenomenon has been observed in many other countries who have abandoned the death penalty
Relatively few other developed countries in the world impose the death penalty. Japan and South Korea are the only established democracies in the world, other than the U.S., which still conduct executions. The execution rate in Japan is a small fraction of that in the U.S.
bullet Some countries, such as Italy, routinely refuse to extradite accused murderers to the US because of the possibility that they might be executed. Canada originally refused to extradite suspected mass murderer Charles Ng to California for a trial. The government ruling was later overturned by Canada’s Supreme Court.
There are 7 main methods of execution in current use worldwide: 2
bullet Hanging: if properly conducted, this is a humane method. The neck is broken and death comes quickly. However, if the free-fall distance is inadequate, the prisoner ends up slowly being strangled to death. If it is too great, the rope will tear his/her head off.
bullet Electric chair: Nobody knows how quickly a person dies from the electric shock, or what they experience. The ACLU describes two cases where prisoners apparently lived for 4 to 10 minutes before finally expiring.
bullet Firing squad: The prisoner is bound and shot through the heart by multiple marksmen. Death appears to be quick, assuming the killers don’t miss. In the U.S., only Utah used this method. It was abandoned in favor of lethal injection on 2004-MAR-15, except for four convicted killers on death row who had previously chosen death by firing squad.
bullet Poison gas: Cyanide is dropped into acid producing Hydrogen Cyanide, a deadly gas. This takes many minutes of agony before a person dies.
bullet Lethal injection: Lethal drugs are injected into the prisoner while he lays strapped down to a table. If properly conducted, the prisoner fades quickly into unconsciousness. If the dosage of drugs is too low, the person may linger for many minutes, experiencing paralysis. Executions in the U.S. are gradually shifting to this method.
bullet Guillotine: A famous French invention, not used in North America. It severs the neck. Death comes very quickly.
bullet Stoning: The prisoner is often buried up to her or his neck and pelted with rocks until they eventually die. The rocks are chosen so that they are large enough to cause significant injury to the victim, but are not so large that a single rock will kill the prisoner. Not used in North America. Used in some Muslim countries as a penalty for murder, adultery and other crimes.
2000-JAN: IL: Temporary moratorium: Recent DNA tests on inmates on Illinois’ death row proved that 13 were innocent. Governor G.H. Ryan of Illinois announced a moratorium on executions in that state until after an administration review of the death penalty.
bullet
2002-APR: AZ: 100th inmate on death row declared not guilty: DNA evidence proved that former postman Ray Krone did not kill an Arizona bartender. The evidence proved that a convicted sex offender was actually guilty. Krone is the 100th inmate to be declared not guilty in the U.S. since 1973.
There’s so much overwhelming evidence against capital punishment I could keep going for hours…But I shan’t, need to get to the pub…
Kit
‘my rule’ You a joking aren’t you?
I pitch my responses as necessary.