A Logical and Unemotional Justification of Capital Punishment :: Argumentative Persuasive Argument Essays

A Logical and Unemotional Justification of Capital Punishment Just as the Pied Piper of Hamlin was paid to destroy the rat population, the state prisons are being forced to perform a similar action with what is an overflow of vermin. Taking either a "pro" or an "anti" stance is not something to be done lightly. Most people decide which side they are to take based on purely emotional reasons. Those who support capital punishment do so based on a hatred of the crimes committed, and a fear of similar crimes happening to them. This is not the way to reach a logical decision. Others abhor violence, and feel that two wrongs, namely murder and execution, do not make a right. (although in science, the language of logic, two negatives do make a positive.) Morality, fear, hatred, and ignorance often play a large part in important decisions, dooming society to enforce ridiculous laws, and leaving itself susceptible to rotting from the inside, out. First and foremost, it is important to put our version of capital punishment in an accurate, historical context. Since that dawn of civilization, through the laws of Moses, and the laws of Hammurabi, what you did, was done to you. The advancement of civilization is peppered with this same prevalent idea of reciprocity. To argue against these historic beliefs is to argue against the growth and development inherent in history. If at anytime this law of reciprocation had been ignored, chaos would have been re-introduced into society, creating a premature, and quick, decadence. In comparison, our law of capital punishment is a cake-walk. We do not hack off your hand when we think you take an apple. We do not burn out your eyes when you lust after another man's wife. We do not cut your tongue out and feed it to the lions if you verbalize the name of God. We offer you a trial by your peers, in which you must be proven without a doubt to be guilty. Then, you are locked in a penitentiary, where you can easily be granted an appeal. You exist incarcerated usually for many years, until your appeals have been defeated, the proof against you has been confirmed, and your crimes against humanity are of such a heinous nature that you have condemned yourself to a painless, quick, and easy death.