The Death Penalty?

[sa11y69]

ok seriously now

i know some people dont believe in any God...but why do you think its right to just 'take' someones life? and i'll pick on crinks when i say, if you pull the lever, then arent you just as bad?? arent you committing murder? you can say 'yeah but its different coz i got a reason' but then so cud the fella that you're killing he might've killed because he's an aggressive idiot who thinks he's rambo...he might have an obsession for killing a certain type of person...but he still has a reason.
if you kill him...surely you are just as bad?

[CaptainSandy]

Originally Posted by sa11y69

ok seriously now

i know some people dont believe in any God...but why do you think its right to just 'take' someones life? and i'll pick on crinks when i say, if you pull the lever, then arent you just as bad?? arent you committing murder? you can say 'yeah but its different coz i got a reason' but then so cud the fella that you're killing he might've killed because he's an aggressive idiot who thinks he's rambo...he might have an obsession for killing a certain type of person...but he still has a reason.
if you kill him...surely you are just as bad?

But Sally, if you use that arguement then if you send someone to prison aren't you committing a crime by holding them against their will?

[ChineseIrish]

Sally I respect you a lot,but feel i must disagree.
A government sanctioned execution cant be compared to the crime committed.

people must follow laws,without laws there is chaos. laws are in place for different reasons, and if people dont abide by them, they must face whatever sanctions are in place

[sa11y69]

Originally Posted by CaptainSandy

But Sally, if you use that arguement then if you send someone to prison aren't you committing a crime by holding them against their will?

mmm yeah, good point...but is holding someone against their will a sin? even if its to protect others? rather that than actually ending a life...its ending a life and as a bible basher i will say that the life is no ones to take other than the man upstairs

[ChineseIrish]

Sally,although I dont believe in God, I am sure he condoned it,going by his book anyway

[white_wizard]

if i was pulling the lever then its a job just a job like the judge the jury and anyone else involved,and yes its still the punishment should fit the crime eye for a eye

[sa11y69]

Originally Posted by ChineseIrish

Sally I respect you a lot,but feel i must disagree.
A government sanctioned execution cant be compared to the crime committed.

people must follow laws,without laws there is chaos. laws are in place for different reasons, and if people dont abide by them, they must face whatever sanctions are in place

feel free to disagree...thats what its all about...if we all had the same view then the world wud be a very boring place
but i'm not talking sanctions...i'm talking about the very act of KILLING SOMEONE..actually taking the life that was given to them by God...if you dont believe in Him then i guess you wudnt have the same morals as those who do...which is where most people will clash. i read jim goldwings answer...and it made me smile...i fully agree with his answer, but he mentions the word 'Christian' which probably means that we will always see eye to eye on this subject. i wonder how many Christians agree with the death penalty? ooohhhh so it depends on how you were christened? ok i'm waffling...so just because a judges parents didnt make him a christian, he goes along with the death penalty?
i'm gunna get shot here arent i?
but i wud be interested to know, how many of the judges in these hearings were actually Christian...there, waffle over

[sa11y69]

Originally Posted by ChineseIrish

Sally,although I dont believe in God, I am sure he condoned it,going by his book anyway

EXPLAIN!

[CaptainSandy]

A good thought provoking thread; I'm trying to work out my views.
Funnily enough (bad choice of words), two days ago my uncle was arrested for murder - a fued, fight and bad fall.
So, I disagree with a life for a life.
This may sound like a cop out, but I'm quite happy for the Government to decide whether we should have capital punishment. At the moment we don't and I'm happy with that; if that changes in the future I will also happily accept that too.

[sa11y69]

Originally Posted by CaptainSandy

Funnily enough (bad choice of words), two days ago my uncle was arrested for murder - a fued, fight and bad fall.
.

sorry to hear that...hope all works out ok

but luckily enuf, crinkle and whitewizard wont be on the jury so at least there's a light at the end of the tunnel

[ChineseIrish]

sorry to hear that buddy.

takes me back to my original idea: certain murders should have executions,not something like what happened with your uncle

[telboy]

if i thought religon would work on our youth i would go with it,but i dont think our drug mad youngsters think nothing of carrying knifes and guns around and are not in the least concerned about using them on anyone,we need a bigger deterent than prison ,a life for a life i say and yes there would circumstances which could be life in prison

[jimggoldwing]

Funny enough, Sally, I will often (correctly) be pigeon-holed as "right of center", and those who are, more often than not, SUPPORT, not oppose, capital punishment, whereas often those who are "left of center" are often on the side of anti-death-penalty. Strange bedfellows, sometimes.

Also... as far as the 'christian' viewpoint... this'll be a very slippery slope... there are some (ok, Catholic) who adamantly teach AGAINST the death penalty, while others (some Protestant, for example) that espouse the death penalty as 'acceptable', touting specific bible verses to support their view. Yet, those within those circles (e.g., Catholic) will often disagree with the official teaching of their Church --- I personally know many Catholics who support it adamantly, and funny enough, to a person, they are all "right of center" (that bed fellows thing again).

I hate to keep coming back to it... but personal experience can have a lot of weight in how one views this topic... in my 'younger' years, I admit that I waffled... always struggled though when it came to a question of "could I pull the trigger or lever, etc", and it used to bother me that I couldn't answer that question, yet waver on whether I support/oppose capital punishment. It wasn't until several years later, confronted with a very personal experience, that my views were cemented... I could've vigorously pushed prosecution at the time (on behalf of the family), and perhaps there would've been a different outcome (one will never know). I couldn't live with myself on that one...

My .02 worth...

--goldwing

[sa11y69]

this takes me back to the old 'Christianity' thread by theJeb (i think?)

i believe no one has the right to take anothers life. if i hadnt been brought up in the manner i was, or if i was born in a different country etc, then maybe i wud see things differently...but as i stand, God gives life, and God takes it away. i will never agree with any man having the audacity to think that he has the right to decide who lives and who dies...

[crinkle62]

sally, love ya to bits.......

i too have been on the end of many bad bad things done to a fellow human being by another in my many years of nursing in casualty etc.
i can honestly say, hand on heart, that with 100% DNA backing on a person i will glady dish out their death sentence!!!!!!

[toptim999]

Originally Posted by sa11y69

i wonder how many Christians agree with the death penalty?

In my line of work (a Christian development worker in Africa) I rub shoulders with Christians from a wide range of nationalities and backgrounds.

In my experience European Christians will generally be against capital punishment, whereas those from the USA are far more likely to support it. For those that do support it, it is often a world view thing, i.e. for them it's obvious that capital punishment is a good thing and how can anyone else think differently. (The Europeans are often equally astounded that a Christian could support capital punishment)

My own opinion is that capital punishment is wrong, not so much from the pratical miscarriage of justice problems, but rather that someone should always be given the maximum opportunity to turn their lives around.

[toptim999]

I'm Britsh by the way

[telboy]

i believe no one has the right to take anothers life.
exactly sal so what do we do with those that do,give them a pat on the back and say dont do it again please,

[ChineseIrish]

NOw this,my friends,is a good debate.

:et me talk about Ireland. Not 100% sure of the uk,but most Irish laws are based on that system.

When someone does the sick act of rape, they usually get 4-7 years in prison. More than 50% of rapists re-offend. surely if they were executed,lives would be spared,money saved, and one less crowded cell in prison.

This is just one example.

Slightly off topic, but I lost faith in christianity when I discovered that they are against condoms. I have served in Africa and seen the affect aids has.

Anyway,back on topic. I deeply and sincerely believe that some crimes go beyond a prison sentence. Lets face it, with the ways things are in many countries now, its not exactly a deterrent

[daddyspoon]

if you abuse another persons human rights you lose all rights. murder, rape pedofiles in my world would be lambs to the slaughter. people argue that a innocent person might be wrongly convicted. pros out way the cons in my eyes. life in prison is to easy, why should we pay to feed a rapist?

on a interesting foot note, my grandad used to deliver the rope for hangings.