Capital Punishment, Revisited

[Huggie Smiles]

Re: Capital Punishment, Revisited

on a slightly more serious note - a brief review reveals a continous drop in murder rates in Illinois since 1990 - from 1300 to 766 per year in 2005 - so clearly the moratorium cannot be the only variable in play

http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/ilcrime.htm

[WaveSculptor]

Re: Capital Punishment, Revisited

Problem, though, is that I know I would have a tough time personally sitting upon some moral high ground and putting someone to death, so I think it's inconsistent of me to be totally OK with someone else doing it as long as I don't have to be involved.

This represents the crux of the argument to me: Can we democratically pool together and decide that certain people are a detriment to the wellbeing of society in general and should be *ahem* removed?...Absolutely. Does any person have the authority or ability to remove them without soiling his own hands? Absolutely not.

In the past when offenders were shipped off into exile, removal by banishment was an alternative. Although today society and life are inextricably linked, I would still argue that society makes a mockery of itself by declaring authority over biological processes.

[WaveSculptor]

Re: Capital Punishment, Revisited

And if we're going to take statistics seriously, here are a few that reinforce my position:

A 1998 research study conducted for the United Nations concluded: "This research has failed to provide scientific proof that executions have a greater deterrent effect than life imprisonment. Such proof is unlikely to be forthcoming. The evidence as a whole still gives no positive support to the deterrent hypothesis."

In 1996, those states which had the death penalty had an average murder rate of 7.1 per 100,000 population; those states which do not execute people had a homicide rate of 3.6.

The FBI Uniform Crime Reports Division publication Crime in the US for 1995 reports thatthere were 4.9 murders per 100,000 people in states that have abolished the death penalty, compared with 9.2 murders in those states which still have the death penalty. "In no state has the number of murders diminished after legalizing the death penalty."

on a slightly more serious note - a brief review reveals a continous drop in murder rates in Illinois since 1990 - from 1300 to 766 per year in 2005 - so clearly the moratorium cannot be the only variable in play

http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/ilcrime.htm

Nice! now if I can just determine the 44 variables in order of importance we'll have the empirical formula for homicide prediction/prevention..

[WaveSculptor]

Re: Capital Punishment, Revisited

Still, there's no reason why I should be so confrontational on the issue; both sides are looking for ways to improve our quality of life and that should be commended. I often forget that while I'm philosophizing and speechwriting, pragmatic decisions have to be made in the real world. The pluralistic nature of the social sciences makes them among the most fascinating to discuss, as we will always have new perspectives emerging from old arguments, incorporating fresh information and insights. Thanks for the topic, hope to spar with you more in the future.