Quantact Wrote:Well, we can't anticipate crimes that haven't been committed yet, all we can do is catch the criminal and punish him for what he HAS done. Punishment is society's revenge for the crime. Therefore, revenge is the whole point of the criminal justice system.
Revenge and hatred should be considered base emotions ranking on about the same level as greed and envy. Such emotions need to be kept under the control of rational thought processes. The death penalty doesn't deter crime and murder, so what does it do? Like Frank Castle once said, "IT'S NOT REVENGE... IT'S PUNISHMENT."
Of course, society needs to protect itself from criminals. This is done by improving law-enforcement methods, correcting social conditions that contribute to crime, incarcerating those who are a danger to society, rehabilitating criminals who aren't incorrigible, and deterring people from becoming lawbreakers. The death penalty is not a solution to anything. Instead, it's a violent and hateful act that makes the world worse. Really, anyone who's pro-death penalty just wants to see someone die for what they did, or they just flat-out don't care.