Most excellent comments, justifierone. Countries and states without government killing for punishment have it right. Executions have been conducted for thousands of years (for a variety of reasons) but killing, adultery, blasphemy, etc are not diminished. If a medicine is not effective, why keep taking it - unless it is just to "feel" good? The cost, ethics, distraction, and example do not justify capital punishment. Think about this a little more, Ann.

Since it has been brought up, maybe someone can explain how allowing a woman to make the wrong choice about giving birth justifies the state killing to solve a problem when that problem is aggravated by the process and can be solved in another manner (life in prison). Maybe the state making a better choice regarding the handling of capital crime would have a positive influence on handling the problem of abortion. And for Teuflhunden, you have asked twice: "Captain of what". I'll answer again, Captain of Marines with 4 trips into combat. See under my post at 1:00pm yesterday

I love Dr Sowell and respect his intellect but he falls short here. Certainly murder and capital punishment have differences but there is an important similarity: they both involve taking a life with the taker of that life usually feeling justified. There is a difference between a child hitting his sibling and a parent hitting the child as punishment for that. But the result in the child's mind is that hitting is ok, especially if you have the power to get away with it. That is not the lesson our society needs and it does us no good. Thankfully, both of those punishments are decreasing.

For those Christians who advocate the ritualized killing by the state (executions), what did Jesus do or say to indicate this was in accordance with Christianity? Who should cast the first stone (primitive capital punishment)? Love your enemies, forgive, overcome evil with good. Evil is not people, evil is what misguided people do. Many murders think they are protecting themselves by killing. Protection comes from doing good. Executions are not good. Executions have been going on for centuries and murder still persists but in states and countries where capital punishment is gone, murders have decreased. The teachings of Jesus do not support executions.

Captain of Marines, sweetheart. I pay plenty in taxes for others who choose to provide the care and cleaning of our criminals. I base my beliefs on substantial life experience and education. I have given career service in the U.S. Marine Corps including 4 trips into combat over several years. I have put up - how about you? And I might shut up, but don't count on it.

It costs more to keep a prisoner on death row until exonerated or killed than it does for life w/o parole. Check it out on google.

The substance of this argument is the advocacy and wisdom of capital punishment. How does killing solve the problem of killing? (Kind of like solving the problem of too much spending by more spending – both of which Obama supports.) Many, if not most, killers are motivated by thinking that killing will solve a problem (real or imagined). Is that not the same when the state kills? And in this process it makes the original killer a celebrity. Good leadership is by example – how is killing a good example? And it is especially questionable when the process is tedious, litigious, expensive, ritualized and condemned by most other "first world" countries. Basically, it is a most unenlightened, inefficient and counterproductive solution