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The Death Penalty
I recently heard this conversation on a newscast Do you think the prisoner should receive life without the possibility of parole? No way! He killed someone. He deserves more punishment than that. He should be put to death.
This person was deadly serious. He (or she, I don't remember the person, but it doesn't matter) really thought the person should be put to death as a form of punishment. I wanted to scream at him/her, "You idiot! You can't punish someone by putting them to death. Don't you know that when you kill someone all punishment ends? What do you think they do, lie there in their graves and moan, "Oh, God! I am dead. I am being punished. Golly, I wish I had been a better person when I was alive. Oh, Woe is Me! I am dead!" Ted Kacynski (?) offered the DA a deal. He would plead guilty if they wouldn't execute him. He would spend the rest of his life behind bars, without the possibility of parole, rather than being put to death. The DA refused the deal, but if he had been halfway intelligent, he would have accepted the deal. There is no greater punishment than spending the rest of your life in prison. Think of it. You are dead. You cannot procreate. You cannot be with the opposite sex. You cannot do productive work. You cannot do anything a normal person wants to do. And the rottenest part is that none of the good things will ever happen. You are doomed. Of course, there are things you may learn to enjoy in prison, but for all practical purposes, you are dead.
So, if you ever serve on the jury, and find yourself having to decide if the death penalty is appropriate, remember: you cannot punish someone by killing them. Killing them ends all punishment.
