One thing that i cant understand about the united states of america

Question

it calls itself the champion of the free world. It has lots of human rights organisations and always talks about human rights , but still hold onto the barbaric and primitve/cruel idea and executes criminals.

i am not condoning the actions of these criminals , but how can a Great humane nation such as america still carry out executions in prisons?

Answer 1

Alot of americans believe in revenge.  For me, I just don't think its right to use my tax dollars to support these horrific criminals for the rest of their lives.  Perhaps life in prison is a worse punishment than death but it is extremely expensive and it comes out of the pockets of american taxpayers - money I would rather see go to education and other more positive ends.  It costs $40+ thousand dollars per year for each one of these criminals in prison.  The concept is based on the fact that the individual so heinously violated the human rights of another that they have forfeited their right to life.

Answer 2

Executing the worst criminals is not a "barbaric" or a "primitive" idea. It's an idea that is fully in accord with the natural laws that relate creatures to their world. Every kind of animal kills its enemies, if it can. A human being who thinks that this is an immoral way to behave does not have a loftier mind than most men do; rather, it means that there is something wrong in the mind he has. You dare not become more noble than you can afford to be, and nobody can afford to coddle large numbers of people who like to kill other people. Execution makes sense. The death penalty is more than righteous -- it is practical.

The only reason it costs so much money to apply is lawyer's fees and the dozen or so appeals the killer gets before he's executed. These are not costs intrinsic to the application of the death penalty. Ostensibly, they're legal safeguards. Actually, they are ways for unscrupulous and corrupt law apparatchiks to take money from the taxpayers. Once upon a time, a man convicted of murder on Friday was hanged Saturday morning. Where was the cost then? Let's have that kind of death penalty once more, and then you will see low-cost crime deterrence again.

Answer 3

A lot of it is probably fear. Or thinking they are honestly doing what's best for society. The people getting executed are usually ones who committed unimaginable heinous crimes. Or repeat offenders. So they believe if the person is executed, well they are guaranteed to never commit the crime again. Some people who weren't executed will get out of prison, only to commit these crimes again. Probably some pressure from the public too, who don't want these criminals on the streets so they have to live in fear. Plus I'm sure people think, these criminals knew what they were doing. An eye for an eye. (for the conservative Bible believers who take everything from the Bible literally) They kinda have a choice in their death, because they should have known the crime could lead to execution. But the victim had no choice. So why should we take pity on them? These are not my opinions of executions. Just what I think society believes.

I just don't think executions work at all as a deterrent. And the cost is incredibly high.

Answer 4

I do appreciate you.  Out of all the mess that is America, you managed to fish one out.

Answer 5

As a Canadian, I can't understand the stance of America either. We're so close geographically, physically...but in many many other ways we are worlds apart. A nation that claims itself to be humane and a champion of the free world is hypocritical if it acts in the ways the US does. It's called saying one thing and doing another. It's called lip service. It's called talking the talk but not walking the walk. I am thankful and proud to be Canadian. Though I do worry about our priorities becoming more American-ized if you will.  

Answer 6

When you commit a horrible crime, your rights are taken away from you and rightfully so. You no longer have any right to life if your crime was that bad. The government needs the power to control people who cannot control themselves. Besides, executions are done humanely as possible. Compare today's executions with some of the famous executions throughout history. I myself would like to see the worst and most unrepentant criminals suffer a few beatings before they die.

Answer 7

the horrific crimes that are made here...we have to have it like that...

there is alot of idiots that feel they can just kill anyone..

i have lived here 44 years, the things i have seen and heard make me sick...i dont wake up in the morning with a hitler attitude, i hate people like that...

Answer 8

I cant understand anything what America does.

Answer 9

I'm from Italy, so there are many things I can't understand about America. This isn't one of them though. It's not "barbaric...primit[i]ve / cruel' to execute people who deserve it. I'd rather be executed than spend my life in prison as a victim of cruel inmates and guards. Executions are done humanely. Study history, and you'll find some brutal ones.

Answer 10

If you're guilty, you're guilty. We still practice habeus corpus (innocent until proven guilty) and our prisons are a luxury compared to other prison systems you'll find around the world. Yes, like with most things in life, there is a dualistic nature to the prison system. Although we support human rights, we still take them away, if one were to commit a crime.

Think of execution as a gift to those who abide by the standard law. We pay, in taxes, for the prisoners to continue living when they already forfeitted the right to be a free citizen in one of the nations that charishes freedom, mainly freedom of expression, above all else.

Although, if Americans (like myself) claim to be 'champions of the free world', it would seem hypocritical, it really isn't. It's all relative.

At least we're not beheading our prisoners or subjecting them to overally cruel treatment. They live in buildings free from many of the responsibilities us free people have to deal with such as, taxes, mortgage's, etc.

Death row is for the deserving. The iconic statement 'An eye for an eye' has been around a while before America started executing people. This is a worldly phenomenon and, as hard as we try, Americans are still human.

Before you make an outlandish statement like that, be realistic. Stop living in this hopeful, utopian state of mind. Jeez.

Answer 11

Execution can be the most benevolent thing to do for murderers. It's a powerful lesson and a human attempt to show that we reap as we sow. We come back again with the deep knowing that we need to be different.

Answer 12

because politicians are hypocrites.