> Behalf Of Reggie Bautista
>
> I went back and re-read some of the UN documents from earlier in this
> thread, and they speak of the death penalty in terms of "civil
> rights" and
> "political rights," but never specifically in terms of "human rights." I
> also found this interesting document. It's the UN Covenant on Civil and
> Political Rights.
snip
>
> The UN states that "sentence of death may be imposed" based on the
> restrictions that follow. So the UN encourages countries to not have the
> death penalty, but has a set of circumstances under which to
> carry out that
> sentence correctly...
Most likely you'll find that the clause allowing enactment of the death
penalty, and codifying the method, was strongly sponsored/required by the US
and maybe Japan, ie the two most powerful nations who still apply the death
penalty. Not a real coincidence that it basically matches US practise.
I understand the temptation to classify some people as deserving the death
penalty for the extent of the crimes committed, but the same reason was used
in the past for applying it to crimes that we nowadays do not consider so
bad. For example, "highway robbery" and armed robbery were punished by death
into at least the late 19th century (Britain), even where noone was actually
physically hurt. Nowadays, generally a punishment of a few years, and some
chance of reforming the perpetrator.
The vast majority of murders are committed in "heat of the moment", usually
by family members/close acquaintances. In most cases, the likelihood of the
perpetrator committing another murder is extremely small, which is part of
the reason most nations have done away with the death penalty. Again boils
down to the role of the courts and prisons: are they to punish or to reform?
And for McVeigh, you have someone who actively wants to be a martyr. So why
indulge him with a State execution? Let him live and suffer in ignominy
instead. Who knows, he MAY eventually come to repent his action, which means
an apology to the friends/relatives of the victims rather than an empty
bitterness.
Brett
