I. don't have a source handy, but I'm sure you can find several that will contend that people who commit murder are not thinking at all about punishment. Murder is a crime of passion, spur of the moment, usually. A robber is threatened by the store clerk and fires in fear. A wife is livid with her husband and grabs the gun. Unless it's a gangland-type hit, it is a spur of the moment crime in MOST cases. Does punishment deter murderers?
The "eye for an eye" argument comes from the Old Testament of the Bible. It is countered by passages in the New Testament, especially The Book of Matthew, if you want to get into that kind of argument.
And you can certainly argue that even one innocent person executed is just as bad as the murder of an innocent victim by a criminal.
By the way, you are not "backfiring," you are making a counter-argument or posing a rebuttal. An internal combustion engine can backfire.
The death penalty
Lets say someone says that the death penalty killed over 3000 people but only 3 of them were innocent and they provide examples and evidence, and say that it toke away the lives of people who commited crime so it should be favored. How can i backfire this? Should i say that life in prison is a worse punishment and a more effective deterrent and talk about how the eye for an eye mentality sends the wrong message and legitimizes violence therefore increasing crime? What else can i add
5 answers
Oh, I must say that your arguments stated in your question are valid, but make sure you can back them up with some research or philosophical references, etc.
Also -- there's a lot of evidence that the death penalty costs much more than a life sentence.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2011/09/22/death-and-taxes-the-real-cost-of-the-death-penalty/
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2011/09/22/death-and-taxes-the-real-cost-of-the-death-penalty/
Very true, Ms. Sue. The cost to the state for all the appeals that are allowed under law is enormous. The counterargument is that appeals should not be allowed, even if the original verdict was wrong.
Thank you so much :)))