There are four main reasons why I believe that the death penalty is a just punishment.
1. First, capital punishment is right because it is taught in the Bible.
You will understand that this is not an acceptable reason for a non-believer like me. There are also quite a few other books that proclaim that the death penalty is not a good idea.
Genesis 9:6 "Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood is shed..."
This doesn´t sound like advice or a law but more like a description.
If however we consider it a law it commands a never ending spiral of violence.
2. Next, it is reasonable. - If someone takes the life of another, they should be put to death! I read this article that talked about a victim and how everyone pitied the murderer more then the victim. The victim had hopes and dreams also, a loving family possibly, an entire future ahead of them, and then on one day, it was ripped out of their hands. If someone plays God and takes their life away, then the government, as God's avenger has the right to do the same.
You started this paragraph by stating the death penalty is reasonable. I was expecting an explanation how it is reasonable, but don´t seem to see any. I merely see apodictic ideological claims that basically repeat the religious argument from (1).
3. Capital Punishment is right because it acts as an effective deterrent to further crimes. - If the predator is dead, they can not kill...
"Deterrent" in the common use of the word talks about preventing living persons from doing something undesirable. It does not include killing people so that they can´t do what we don´t want them to do.
It has yet to be shown that the death penalty is an effective deterrent. As long as many countries without the death penalty have significantly lower capital crime rates than countries with the death penalty, I see no basis for this claim.
The death penalty as an effective way of preventing people from doing what we don´t want them to do: granted. However, it also keeps them from doing what we want them to do. And it also keeps persons from doing things that we assume they want to do but were never going to do in the first place.
You are assuming that a person who has killed once is likely to kill another time (more likely than someone who hasn´t killed yet). Please substantiate this view. If you can´t, you have just provided an argument for killing everyone in order to prevent them from killing others.
The death penalty would also be an effective means to keep children who have stolen sweeties from doing it again. Since you don´t seem to advocate the death penalty for this purpose, you seem to agree with me that your argument is not valid in itself, but that the actual question is one of appropriateness.
This needs to be discussed.
4. Capital Punishment protects the innocent.
Needs to be substantiated.
Besides the question would have to be investigated whether there are less drastic (and maybe even - in the big picture - more effective means to protect the innocent.
Very rarily will you find capital punishment given to an innocent person, because there are many procedures to go through, I think sometimes to many in some cases.
For me only one case would be one too many.
It protects society a whole lot more....
This would have to be substantiated (see my response to (2).
For me there are two simple reasons against the death penalty:
1. I am against the killing of humans, and I do not want my government to kill in my name.
2. The death penalty sends a counterproductive message. It is meant to establish killing as a no-no, and in trying to get this message across it uses killing for its method itself.
I have an interest in having society protected. There are rare cases of persons who murder compulsory and for whom it is safe to say they will kill again. If your arguments have any merits at all, then only in regards to such persons. Since I think that - besides killing them - there are reasonably reliable means available to protect society from these persons, in view of my points above I would always prefer these means.
