The Death Penalty: Is it Reasonable?

As an American citizen, I have no trouble acknowledging how controversial U.S. policies generally are. When compared to many other countries in the free-world (such as it’s neighboring country; Canada) it’s clear that the United States has some policies that are often perceived as bizarre or even inhumane, and one of them has to do with how the U.S. government often treats criminals.

Capital punishment (the death penalty) has existed since the earliest forms of government. Whenever an individual committed a crime that was perceived as being exceptionally heinous, they would be sentenced to an often brutal death, as punishment for their actions. This is a law that still exists in many countries today, including the United States. Given how much the world has changed since the days of old however, this begs the question, does the death penalty have any place in the modern world? Is it still reasonable to arrange for a person’s death, or is capital punishment a dated relic from a darker era in human-history?

Like many aspects of U.S. politics(and politics in general) there is no easy argument for or against the death penalty. On one hand, the idea of killing a human being through premediated processes such as electrocution or lethal injections does sound like a rather cruel way to treat someone, even if that person is considered a vicious psychopath. On the other hand, many would argue that some people commit actions that are so revolting, that death is a justifiable punishment for them. After all, of these people are perfectly contempt with ruining or taking the lives of other people, do they truly deserve to be treated fairly?

I myself am rather conflicted on the use of the death penalty. While I do sometimes view it as somewhat barbaric, I also cannot truly gauge whether or not it there should be cases for it. People who commit truly vile crimes do indeed deserve to be punished (as we all can agree), so how do we determine whether or not sentencing a criminal to death is going too far? Whatsmore, from a certain point of view, couldn’t sentencing a person to death actually be considered a more merciful alternative to a life in prison? At the same time, what if a person who is sentenced to death is actually innocent of the crime? Why should that person have to die through some painful method, just because the law says that the death penalty is okay?

While I certainly don’t want to necessarily say that I am for the death penalty, at the same time, I am not sure if I can truly make a strong enough case against it. Needless to say, it’s clear that debates over the death penalty will continue to persist, especially in the United States, where it is still very much an active law. Like all aspects of politics, different viewpoints will always exist, so it’s just a matter of which one will ultimately win over the other.

Will the death penalty continue to exist, and should it still exist? That’s ultimately for the government to decide.