I agree with you on the death penalty.
Another factor is the inconsistency with which it is applied. It is essentially a rigged lottery. I don't like death being dealt by the state in a lottery rigged by economics, and other factors. It is rigged. And irrevocable.
I wouldn't mind the irrevocable part so much if every time somebody was found to have been unjustly executed, all those involved in the process that killed him were executed. I figure they'd have all signed a contract agreeing to this arrangement so won't complain.
And look at the company we keep. It doesn't fill one with pride.
While the death penalty has been abolished in Canada, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, France, the Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Costa Rica, Sweden, the UK and many others....
It is retained in
AFGHANISTAN
ALGERIA
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
ARMENIA
BAHAMAS
BAHRAIN
BANGLADESH
BARBADOS
BELARUS
BELIZE
BENIN
BOTSWANA
BURKINA FASO
BURUNDI
CAMEROON
CHAD
CHILE
CHINA
COMOROS
CONGO
CUBA
DOMINICA
EGYPT
EQUATORIAL GUINEA
ERITREA
ETHIOPIA
GABON
GHANA
GUATEMALA
GUINEA
GUYANA
INDIA
INDONESIA
IRAN
IRAQ
JAMAICA
JAPAN
JORDAN
KAZAKSTAN
KENYA
KUWAIT
KYRGYZSTAN
LAOS
LEBANON
LESOTHO
LIBERIA
LIBYA
MALAWI
MALAYSIA
MAURITANIA
MONGOLIA
MOROCCO
MYANMAR
NIGERIA
NORTH KOREA
OMAN
PAKISTAN
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY
PHILIPPINES
QATAR
RUSSIAN FEDERATION
RWANDA
SAINT CHRISTOPHER AND NEVIS
SAINT LUCIA
SAINT VINCENT AND GRENADINES
SAUDI ARABIA
SIERRA LEONE
SINGAPORE
SOMALIA
SOUTH KOREA
SUDAN
SWAZILAND
SYRIA
TAIWAN
TAJIKISTAN
TANZANIA
THAILAND
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
TUNISIA
TURKMENISTAN
UGANDA
UKRAINE
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
UZBEKISTAN
VIET NAM
YEMEN
YUGOSLAVIA (Federal Republic)
ZAMBIA
ZIMBABWE
It looks kind of like a Sesame Street question: "Which of those lists does the United States of America belong on?
I really have to turn off this computer. My addiction to SI has flared up again. |
