Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Thiel College-The Death Penalty


Thiel College-Comment Project No. 1

Why is there a death penalty?

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

Student # 6.
The death penalty has been around for forever. The death penalty has always been and most likely will not disappear. The three major reasons why we have the death penalty is for Incapacitation (killing the killer), deterrence, and retribution. Many people want justice for their loved one and the death penalty can provide that justice,

Anonymous said...

Student #1,
The reason why there is a death penalty is so we have good deterrence. The death penalty is used to make the decision easier on people to not commit a crime. Another reason for the death penalty is incapacitation and this is when people do not commit crime. The last reason is the subject of retribution. Retribution is when a person is punished for doing something wrong. Probation would be a good example of retribution.
We have this death penalty to make it known that if someone does something wrong they will be punished for it in some way. We also have it because what some might say is "an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth," the famous Hammarabi Code. What you take from me should be taken from you.

Anonymous said...

Student # 3,
As we discussed in class there are three main reasons the Death Penalty exists. The first is for deterrence. The death penalty helps people not commit certain crimes. The second reason is for incapacitation. If we kill the people who have already hurt or murdered people then they can not proceed to do it again. The third reason is Retribution. Retribution is punishing someone for doing something wrong. Punishing these people allows the families of victims have peace.
The death penalty exists because we have to make it known that if you do something wrong you will be punished in one way or another.

Anonymous said...

Student #18.

The Death Penalty exists for three vital reasons. One is incapacitation, basically to kill the person who has done killing. The second is retribution, for taking one's life, they should be treated the same. And the last is deterrence, to make sure that this person does not commit the same act ever again. The Death Penalty exists because there are certain cases in which an end to one's life needs to be given since they have caused such harm to others.

Anonymous said...

Student #26 There is a death penalty for many reasons. First is deterrence, to prove the point that if someone commits a crime and are given the death penalty then people will get the same punishment if they do the same crime. Secondly, Incapacitation for example when someone is involved with a murder for example in a robbery and the person robbing the store kills the clerk, the person involved with the crime won't be able to commit crimes again. Another reason why the death penalty is good because it will get the criminals such as pedophiles, rapists, and 1st degree murderers off the streets and prove a point to people that if you do something very serious then one could get the death penalty.

Anonymous said...

Student # 14,
There is a death penalty because people have been given a second chance by society for committing a violent crime and continue to commit violent crimes after the second chance given.
A life sentence in prison is no longer a life time in prison. A life sentence is 25 years in prison. People can serve more then one life sentence though. But of you have a record of violent crime and have been placed back into society there needs to be a harasser punishment for the second and third offenders of violent crimes.
There is a death penalty for the people that need to think about what was done to the victim. Also for the family even though there are some that think it is an easy way out compared to their family member. The death penalty is there for those that have been given the second and third chance and are not going to receive another chance in society.

Anonymous said...

Student #8

The reason why there is a death penalty is because there are people who commit crimes regardless of punishment. That applies to those who commit heinous crimes such as murder, where in the past it has shown that criminals who are let out of jail on their count of murder kill again soon after their release.
Those are usually the criminals who are sentenced to a life in prison as well, rather than being put on death row. Most criminals who are in jail for murder of any sort are out after years in jail.
Basically, the death penalty is a way to make sure that dangerous people who have committed those crimes don't commit them again.

Anonymous said...

Student number 16

The death penalty exists for three reasons: incapacitation, retribution, and to act as a deterrent to prospective violators of the law. The easiest of these to justify is incapacitation as it deals with the killer directly and prevents them from killing again. The easiest to understand on a human and emotional level is retribution. This idea is that by taking the life of a killer we are giving the victims family some measure of comfort and justice. However, who is to say that in doing so we, as a society, are not committing an equal crime in the interest of justice. I believe it was Ghandi that said "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind" Is the death penalty this kind of thinking?

The final reason that we have the death penalty is the idea of deterrence. This is where we execute someone for a crime to set an example so others don't follow suit. In the modern era it is just used for cases of first degree murder, but the tool of deterrence has been used for thousands of years to dissuade all manner of undesirable elements(to those societies) from commiting acts against their fellow man, or state, or church.

The fact that it has been used for thousands of years is powerful evidence in favor of the death penalty as a deterrent, but the question remains has the presence of the death penalty in a society prevented people from continuing to murder one another, speak out against governments, or the church?

The challenge for justice moving forward is deciding if there is no better way than execution to prevent crimes from occurring.

Anonymous said...

Student No. 21

I believe we have the death penalty in the United States for a few different reason. First, it acts as a deterrent to future criminals. Like we mentioned in class, I believe it will often stop people from actually firing their gun at someone else. Someone in a dispute or robbing a store will have the fear of the death penalty in the back of their mind before they decide to kill someone. Second, I think that someone that murders another human deserves the same treatment. Life in prison for a lot of these murders is nothing but an easy way out. A lot of them have been in and out of jail their whole life, so life in jail isn't a big deal to them. For them to get life in jail means nothing and is only an easy way of the streets. Lastly, I believe that it is necessary because a lot of murders will commit the crime more than once. Putting these people in jail with other humans is just asking for something bad to happen. Just because murders are put in jail doesn't mean they will never kill again. It is not fair to the guards and other criminals there for less serious crimes to be put in harms way every day. The only way to stop these people from killing again is to put them to their own death.

Anonymous said...

Student #28,

The death penalty is still being used to this day for a number of reasons. As we reviewed in class, one reason is the concept of incapacitation. This term means killing the killer so he or she cannot commit the same heinous crime again. The death penalty also acts as a deterrence for other soon to be or future criminals. Knowing that the consequence of their crime, if carried out, would result in death, can deter many from ever committing the crime. Lastly, the death penalty is used to bring about retribution, which is punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong doing or criminal act. When a criminal murders someone the only fair retribution for that criminal is death, or better yet "eye for an eye." The victim's family will want justice, and giving the criminal a bed, three meals a day, and maybe even recreational time is definitely not justice. The death penalty brings reassurance to the victims' families knowing that that particular will never commit another crime again.

Anonymous said...

Student No. 17

The death penalty exists for three main reasons; incapacitation, retribution, and deterrence. Incapacitation makes the person incapable of committing the crime again. In the case of the death penalty, not only by being incarcerated but by being executed. Retribution helps those that were harmed by the persons actions. Retribution is more of a benefit for the community, knowing that the person is being punished for what they have done. Deterrence is a way of setting an example for others. If they know that a person has committed this crime and will be executed for doing so, they will be less likely to follow suit.

Anonymous said...

Student No. 23

The death penalty is a very controversial topic in society today. It has been around for some time now, and the main reason for this is incapacitation, deterrence, and retribution. I believe that if someone murders another person then he or she should be removed from life. The death penalty may make people think a little more before they act. The death penalty is to deter people away from committing murder. That the thought of the death penalty may change ones mind of committing such a crime. It also serves as a relief to the victims family as well as society as a whole. Knowing that the murderer is off the streets can be a relief in the minds of many.

Anonymous said...

Student # 27

The death penalty is still around for two reasons. The first one is deterrence. When you fear the death penalty you most likely will not commit a crime that will lead you to a death sentence.

The second reason is for those people who don't care about their life or others. The death penalty does not intimidate them. When those type of people commit those crimes we put them to death.

Anonymous said...

Student #20
The death penalty has many pros and cons, you cannot deny that is an effective deterrent towards crime. All it takes is one execution to make thousands of murderers second guess their decision. As for why we have it, i think there is a multiple reasons to why the death penalty is still in affect. I believe it is cheaper to kill these horrible people than to keep them in prison for the rest of their life, also do they even deserve to be on this planet with some of the crimes the committed. I believe we have the death penalty because some of the crimes these people commit there is no other way to handle them going forward than to execute them.

I believe the death penalty will not be around forever, as one can already tell it is already fading. I do believe in the death penalty, i do think there needs to be more clarification on the rules of when the death penalty is necessary. For instance the ptsd case, where the executed a man having a flashback, or those who are mentally challenged. So for these reasons i believe we have the death penalty.

Anonymous said...

Student # 11
One reason for the death penalty is retribution. Retribution is punishing someone for a wrong or criminal act such as murder etc. If we don't implement severe punishment to those who commit violent crimes, they will continuously commit the same acts.

Another reason for the death penalty is deterrence, if people know they will receive the death penalty to for committing a crime, they will more than likely stray away from doing them. Of course it does not work with all people, which is why there are serial killers etc. , but it works to a good extent.

Anonymous said...

Student #24
There are countless reasons as to why there is a death penalty. The most basic answer could be that the court system deemed it to be a plausible solution to a permanent problem. The criminal killed someone. That is an irreversible action. It destroys not only the victim’s family, but the criminal’s as well. The death penalty aims to provide closure for the victim’s families; however it only causes more pain and more death.

Anonymous said...

Student no. 9

The best way to explain why we have the death penalty is for retribution. If we did not have a severe consequence for murder, more people would probably commit the crime. Knowing that if you kill someone, you have a chance of being placed on death row, should make you think twice and hopefully hold back from doing so. Not only do you have yourself to think about, but your family as well. Who would want their family to observe their execution? I feel that the death penalty is a way to make people think twice about their actions. Also, by doing that, it helps keep our communities slightly safer. Although you can never completely eliminate crime, the death penalty is a great way to help keep down murder crimes.

Anonymous said...

Student No. 25


There are many reasons why we have a death penalty in the United States, the old eye for an eye argument, money issues, or even the fact that morally it makes sense. But one of the main reasons for me is that the death penalty is a great deterrence for crime. It is proven that humans think about the positives and negatives before every action. So when the negatives out weigh the positives, any mentally stable person will not do that action. So if that negative is the death penalty, no matter what the positives of killing someone would do, it out weighs the fact that you will most likely get the death penalty. I am sure that the death penalty has saved lives and should remain a law.

Anonymous said...

student no 15
I suppose there is many reasons we still have the death penalty today. One of those reasons being for deterrence, many people believe that the death penalty will scare or put fear into other criminals and they will not commit the same crimes. Another reason is retribution, people see the death penalty as something the criminal just deserves for committing their crime(s). And lastly people believe that the death penalty works as incapacitation. Which means removing the ability for a criminal to commit future crimes. There are many forms of incapacitation, many just believe the death penalty works the best.

Anonymous said...

#12: Why is there a death penalty?
In class, we discussed the reasons for the death penalty being deterrence, incapacitation and retribution. Personally, I do not agree that these are rational, but I can understand how other people could justify them. The threat of being killed is definitely dissuasion for committing those crimes punishable by death. While I do agree that a portion of the population is discouraged by this punishment, I also think that such violent crimes often occur in times of irrationality, where people do not always consider the consequences of their actions. Incapacitation is definitely an effective method of stopping someone from repeating a crime; however it is completely permanent and also incapacitates that person from any type of reparation or rehabilitation; a life sentence can be reversible, an execution cannot be. I can see how people could think taking someone’s life as retribution for them taking another person’s life makes sense, however I completely disagree with it. Killing someone because they killed someone solves nothing. I don't know if I would feel the same way if someone I care about was the victim of one of these crimes, but from a distant perspective, I do not think it is just.
I think there is a death penalty because the idea of justice is so paramount in the American judicial system. People want punishments to “fit” crimes, but by murdering someone who murdered someone, we are simply continuing the cycle of violence. I do not think the Supreme Court should have the right to take a life, but as of now they obviously do. I think by allowing the government the right to kill, it asserts that killing is an adequate solution to a problem, thus encouraging violence. The death penalty exists now for ideas such as justice, deterrence, incapacitation, and retribution, but I think these could be reached by methods other than death.

Anonymous said...

Student #10
There are three main reasons for having the death penalty, the first is it acts as a deterrence. The fear of being put on death row usually is enough to deter criminals from committing 1st degree murder. The second reason is incapacitation. When a criminal does commit 1st degree murder the death penalty ensures that this person will never again physically harm another human being. The third reason is retribution. Usually the family and friends of the victim want to see justice done and sometimes life in prison isn't good enough.

Anonymous said...

Student #22
The Death Penalty has a three-pronged purpose. First, It serves as a warning to other criminals who are contemplating committing capital crimes. This is otherwise known as deterrence. Secondly, it serves to ensure that the individual that committed the capital crime can no longer harm anyone else. This is known as incapacitation. The third reason for the death penalty is to enact justice on the criminal for his/her crimes. This reasoning is called retribution.

Anonymous said...

STOP

Anonymous said...

Student No. 1
There are many different reasons that the death penalty is allowed in America. One of the first reasons is that the death penalty is a long standing social tradition that dates back to the Biblical era and beyond. The Code of Hammurabi mentions the death penalty in the first law that is listed. For centuries after that, until we have reached a more modern era, you could be put to death for almost anything. At one time in England you could be put to death for more than 200 crimes. Moving forward from the past as a reason for the death penalty, the death penalty exists because we use it as a deterrence method. If you know you are going to be killed for something, chances are you won't commit those crimes. I would say that we still have the death penalty because deterrence works. If deterrence didn’t work, the penalty would have been abolished. Personally, I would not kill anyone for two reasons; one, it is morally wrong, and two, I know if I were to kill that I would be killed. I agree with this aspect of the death penalty. If you have decided to take someone's life, then you have given up the right to live. I also think the death penalty exists because it is a fair and just punishment for certain crimes. The crime should equal the punishment. Some may argue that years in a jail cell is much worse than death, but for some it is not. Also, the death penalty exists because people believe that it should exist. If the people of the United States of America did not believe that there should be a death penalty, then it would have been deemed unconstitutional. The fact that a majority of people believe in the death penalty will keep it in existence until we decide it is wrong.

Anonymous said...

Student #7

One main factor for the death penalty is deterrence. By assessing the risks of a crime before committing it a criminal might re think their actions in order to avoid facing the death penalty. The death penalty is also used as a form of justice for the victims. Some think that the victims and or their families have the right to see this person die for their crimes. But some can argue if more death is really justice.

Law and Justice Policy said...

END

Anonymous said...

Student #19

The death penalty exists for one reason, and that is deterrence. It is used to scare people from committing serious crimes. By having the death penalty most people will fear taking the life of others if their life is on the line as well. That is the main reason why the death penalty exists today.

Anonymous said...

student #5
The death penalty is around for the lone fact of deterrence. we use the death penalty to stop people from being part of serious crimes. This is why there is a death penalty.

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