Capital punishment – is it required?

Nowadays this is a very hot topic of discussion all over the world.  There are differences of opinion about its relevance. 

Some people argue that capital punishment is a must in society where evil is on the rise everyday and this type of punishments give a warning signal to criminals.  Moreover we kill wild animals when they are a threat to us.  A rapist, terrorist or serial killer is like a wild animal who has no right to live among us. So death penalty is the way to go.  In the case of a terrorist who killed a lot of poor people has no right to live and even if we keep him in a person his friends outside may  hijack a plane to release him at the cost of  innocent people.  Should we wait for that?

While others disagree on the need for capital punishment.  According to them nobody has the right to take away the life given by God.  It is not the person but his criminal mentality which needs to be cured.  So he has to be kept in a prison and give him a chance to live.  If we kill somebody based on a wrong judgment we can’t give life back to that person.   There is no “undo” in real life.

Where do you stand in this debate?

Capital punishment has it's role though where people volunteer to blow themselves up (suicide bombers) may not find it a big deal. Nevertheless, it does keep certain emerging criminals in check and once in a while a reminder isn't a bad thing.

That is a very hot topic in my country right now. In my opinion, the only benefit from capital punishment would be to put a decline on the growing population. I don't believe it serves any good purpose and it is just an extra way to sin. Why should one be judged by man. I understand imprisonment but when you take it to the point of killing the person, what exactly are you proving. I don't think it will act as a detergent for criminals thinking of doing their bad deeds as I'm pretty sure most crime is only premeditated to the point of action. I always think it would be better if the government took the criminals they have locked up and sent them to fight the wars going on in the world since they like to kill or whatever they like doing.

I am in favor of capital punishment in certain cases. I know people talk against it as they consider it against human rights but the criminals will also know the importance of human rights before committing heinous crime like murder or brutal rape etc.

That is a very hot topic in my country right now. In my opinion, the only benefit from capital punishment would be to put a decline on the growing population. I don't believe it serves any good purpose and it is just an extra way to sin. Why should one be judged by man. I understand imprisonment but when you take it to the point of killing the person, what exactly are you proving. I don't think it will act as a detergent for criminals thinking of doing their bad deeds as I'm pretty sure most crime is only premeditated to the point of action. I always think it would be better if the government took the criminals they have locked up and sent them to fight the wars going on in the world since they like to kill or whatever they like doing.

Beg your pardon I don't think it is a good idea to send people with criminal mindset to war fields.  They may even use that an opportunity to take revenge with the ammunition they got.  Keeping them in prison is a good idea but history says something else.  We have a number of incidents before us where people hijack planes to free their counterparts from cells. So we would be invitiing more trouble by doing so.

I think capital punishment should not be abolished altogether.  If the person is a danger to society like a terrorist, serial killer or rapist there is no other way.  Yes it is not a remedy for all crimes but at least we can save lives of innocent people.

Yes, I believe it is required. Everyone needs to take responsibility for their actions and if they do not want to do so, then someone else will have to force it on them. In this case, government and corresponding laws will do just that. We need capital punishment to deter and also punish those who have done wrong. Many people dislike this punishment claiming it is immoral to take away lives of people. However, I think it is justified. It has already been made known that if you break a law and commit a serious crime, you are liable for death penalty. If you know this and still went ahead to do it, then you ought to be punished, without excuses.

That is a very hot topic in my country right now. In my opinion, the only benefit from capital punishment would be to put a decline on the growing population. I don't believe it serves any good purpose and it is just an extra way to sin. Why should one be judged by man. I understand imprisonment but when you take it to the point of killing the person, what exactly are you proving. I don't think it will act as a detergent for criminals thinking of doing their bad deeds as I'm pretty sure most crime is only premeditated to the point of action. I always think it would be better if the government took the criminals they have locked up and sent them to fight the wars going on in the world since they like to kill or whatever they like doing.

Beg your pardon I don't think it is a good idea to send people with criminal mindset to war fields.  They may even use that an opportunity to take revenge with the ammunition they got.  Keeping them in prison is a good idea but history says something else.  We have a number of incidents before us where people hijack planes to free their counterparts from cells. So we would be invitiing more trouble by doing so.

I think capital punishment should not be abolished altogether.  If the person is a danger to society like a terrorist, serial killer or rapist there is no other way.  Yes it is not a remedy for all crimes but at least we can save lives of innocent people.

I did say it was my opinion, didn't I? What revenge exactly would they be taking? They will be forced to fight for their country and actually give back to the community and somewhat pay for their sins instead of being killed in in what you will call 'justice'. That is no justice and that is just an easy way out. If I had to choose death or life imprisonment, I would obviously choose death.

I am not in support of capital punishment especially in crimes where no life is lost. In cases of homicide or murder I think those should be critically examined. I think life imprisonment may serve as a better punishment where the person would spend the rest of his/her life dealing with the crime he/she committed.

In some cases yes, it is required. Sometimes the crime committed is so gruesome that there is no other punishment that comes to mind other than Capital Punishment.