Against Motion - This House Believes That The Death Penalty Should Be Reintroduced Into Britain?
Mr. Chairman, Ladies and gentleman of the floor,
" Murder and capital punishment are not opposites that cancel one another, but similars that breed their kind." These famous words were written by George Bernard Shaw, one of the greatest playwrights and thinkers of all time.
The fact of the matter is simple: the death penalty does not deter but dehumanises. Scientific studies have continuously shown that there is no evidence that the death penalty is a more effective deterrent then life imprisonment. Yet life imprisonment is more morally acceptable, equally fair and just as harsh.
We are all going to die eventually, and surely it is better that a murderer rots away in a jail cell, rather then takes the easy escape of the death penalty. At least the families of the victims can take some relief that the murderer will have to suffer the slow humiliation of dying in prison, rather then being granted an honoury execution over the television, and causing more agony to the traumatised families.
You have talked about morality and what is right; the idea that if you murder, you should be executed. I ask you, what type of example are we setting to future generations if we allow the death penalty to infest our society? The death penalty is an open acceptance of violence and revenge. Are these really values which we will want our children to learn? By killing those who kill, we teach that killing is right and acceptable.
If we were to effectively reintroduce the barbarities of the death penalty, it would only be the punishment for a few select murders. For example, around 20,000 murders occur in America every year. However, only about 200 are selected as death penalty cases. Is it not obvious that the death penalty is just there to please the savages who demand blood?
The death penalty serves the sole purpose to entertain the bloodthirsty and satisfy the feelings of revenge. It does...
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