I do agree to the death penalty, humanely is ok, too.

I would agree with it if the persons arms and legs were tore off in public....

Yes most definatly!I think it was the biggest mastake dropping the death penalty,they should bring it back! especially for the peodofiles and murderers.I think too many criminals get let off too lightly these days.

What is a humane way to kill a person, and what gives you the right to decide if he/she should die? On another note. Why not bring back gladiatorial battle? Let all the dudes on death row) and the polititions waging war at the moment) sort it out themselfs. You'd have entertainment and could make money from the thing!?! ...And the Winner!: Can battle it out with problem animals like bears or lions or so. :):P

Only if they had unwavering evidence that that person was guilty.

No. It is a very final punishment and you can't go back if you are wrong - and it is well documented that juries and courts are wrong on enough occasions to warrant skepticism of the validity and integrity of the system.

If it had to be done humanely, I suppose so . But given my choice, I would make the punishment fit the crime, humane or not.

No, I think we ought to get more creative.

humane? were the murderers thinking about the victims dieing humanely? I don't think so. I believe the criminals should suffer as much as possible and as slowly as possible. Victims didn't get a choice.

No, I'd agree with the death penalty if it was done in public and really inhumanly.

I would agree with it either way. Humanely or not.

I sort of hate to answer these kinds of questions, but I feel like an intellectual and moral coward when I don't. Almost everyone on all sides of the spectrum disagrees with some part of my rather strange position and I respect their right to disagree with me. As to society's right to exercise such a penalty, I would be hard put to dispute that. My ethics are biblically based and the New Testament gives states a considerable amoount of leeway not afforded to the church. It gets tricky when one considers that we have no king and that the government is not OVER us, but we are OVER the government. As to whether or not it is either a deterent or the best choice, that is a matter for debate. Whether it helps the victims find closure, I believe that is a false promise we give to people and is a cruel joke to tell them that it will bring them healing. Healing for victims is the last thing that the criminal justice system has time for. Victims are largely incidental in most trials and restitution is not a corporate value in most places. Victims must seek healing outside that process because except as showpieces, they are not highly regarded. Whether or not they advocate for the death penalty is about their quest for justice - not healing of their broken hearts and unspeakable sorrow. In some cases, they feel that the life of their loved one has been validated. As to justice, there have been many injustices with wrongful executions. We have lowered the standards for executions from biblical times for instance where two provisions were in place: 1) The necessity of two eye-witnesses who ... 2) Testified under the potential of death sentences for them if they did so falsely. Today, we can convict on circumstantial evidence. We have very low penalties for perjury and no penalties for malicious prosecution. Those who work within the system are basically untouchable if they hide evidence or impede defense. I find courts to be places, where from observation, justice is for sale to those who can afford the best counsel. This is not because they are dishonest or because the people in the system are not good, honest, decent public servants. They are. It is because the system is broken and our courts are not set up for truth-quest. They are extremely overloaded and overworked. They are largely about moving dockets and resolving as many issues in a day as possible. There is more effort in major cases, but it is largely antisceptic and human beings get lost in the process. The system is broken. That being said, many people get fair trials and justice somehow - but not all and our pledge says, "with liberty and justice for all." All that being said, society does have the right to determine its penalties for murder, but as a Christian, I am under a different set of orders and I cannot in good conscience, with the lingering questions I have, participate in any way in that process. And I will not. I don't fault, malign, or question the ethics/morality/faith of those who disagree with me, but I must obey conscience as I believe I have received it from God. I could change my mind at some point because I do not believe I have a direct line from God on this. In fact, it is with a sense of ambiguity that I must follow the "last orders that I received/perceived." If called to testify in any trial, I will tell the truth. If asked to help apprehend a criminal, I will. If asked to vote for capital punishment, I will not. I will be honest about that up front and will most likely be eliminated from service on a jury. I will not do so because of a reluctance to serve, but out of the need to be honest. If society believes this is right, they can find those who agree with them. Some will suggest that one of the oldest commands from the Noahic law mandated the death penalty, but I believe that Jesus commanded His own disciples to follow a different path. Some suggest grotesque public executions. These have happened in times past in times when life was generally devalued, drunkenesswas was rampant, immorality prevelant, and spirituality at low ebbs. People forced children to watch and be traumatized. It sounds good to say we want to do it that way, but it dehumanizes us - not the condemned. As a matter of public policy, I don't think what I think matters. It is almost impossible to get elected to any high office if one opposes the death penalty. Ironically, some of the greatest compassion, dignity, respect, and humanity is shown to condemned prisoners by those who actually work with them in the prisons and carry out their sentences. I think we place a great burden on some of these men and women, but they generally do their jobs with great professionalism and integrity. As to humane executions, I think we can refine the process we have a bit, but there is very little more humane than a correctly administered lethal injection. Actually, the death penalty is applied almost every day in America - by prison gangs on fellow prisoners who break the rulesand it is in place in most states. I believe that the current issues around its administration will soon be addressed and it will be practiced with great consistency in the future.