The Death Penalty:
Not Immoral and Serves Society’s Interests

Ariko Inoue

Lewis & Clark College
AES 220-01
December 13th, 2006

Abstract

In recent years, the issue of the death penalty has been debated around the world. As the acceptance of the death penalty is different from country to country, people’s opinions are also extremely divided. Some people disagree with the death penalty arguing that there is the potential to kill innocent people if they are mistakenly convicted. However, this argument cannot be a reason to abolish the death penalty because what executes innocent people is not the death penalty, but is the mistaken judge or jury, or a careless investigation. In addition, recent DNA technology can help minimizing such mistakes and make trial fairer. Therefore, there is no need to abolish the death penalty. Moreover, the death penalty is effective to prevent potential murderers from committing crimes. There is no adequate substitute for the death penalty because life imprisonment, which opponents favor as an alternative, provides unacceptable advantages for the murderer. In terms of whether the penalty fits the crime, the death penalty is just for some serious crimes and murderers have to accept it as retribution for the victim and the victim’s family.

In recent years, the death penalty has been a significant controversial issue around the world. The death penalty, often called capital punishment, is the most extreme punishment and is most commonly used in convictions for murder. Because the death penalty allows the government to kill a human being, which may not be moral, this issue divides people’s opinion into pro and con. The acceptance of the death penalty is also different from country to country; about eighty countries, including the United States and many African and Asian countries, permit the death penalty, most European and Latin American countries have abolished it, and some have never practiced it (Taylor, 2006, p. 193). As the use of the death penalty in many parts of the world declined during the 1990’s, people’s views on it are changing and many voices are raised against it. People who oppose the death penalty often tend to believe that it is cruel and not an effective way of dealing with crime. However, it goes without saying that a murderer, who takes human life, is far more cruel and inhumane. Do we need to pity them? Moreover, it is not convincing that the death penalty is not an effective punishment because it is actually an effective deterrence of crime (Lowe, 2006). What is most important is that the punishment is just when we think about the seriousness of the crime and the rights of the victim and the survivors (Cauthen, 1997). The death penalty is a rational punishment which should be implemented for certain crimes.

Heated public debate on capital punishment often centers on questions of the execution of innocent people. Opponents of the death penalty warn that innocent people could be executed if they are mistakenly convicted or unfairly sentenced. Certainly, we cannot affirm that there is no potential of killing innocent people in such cases. It is true that the judicial system sometimes makes mistakes and eighty-seven death row inmates have been released since 1976 because new pieces of evidence were found (Lee, 2004). This is an intolerable fact because they might have been executed if the new evidence had not been found. However, even though there are such risks, it is not true that they can be blamed on the system of the death penalty. What executes innocent people is not the death penalty, but is the mistaken judge or jury, or a careless investigation. Therefore, the responsibility is to have more sufficient investigation and a more effective and impartial judicial system. The need for reform is not a reason to abolish the death penalty. Indeed it could be argued that the possibility of a death sentence could be a motivating factor in improving the investigation and judicial problem.

In addition, recent use of advanced DNA technology has contributed to minimizing the risk of executing innocent people. Since the mid-1980’s, DNA testing in the criminal justice system has been available and the present-day method has become more effective and more reliable allowing for the use of smaller samples and a shorter time for returning results (Logli, 2006). It is reported that there have been 111 people who were released from custody while awaiting the death penalty because DNA evidence proved their mistaken convictions and their innocence (Montaldo, 2006). Increasingly, the use of DNA technologies has resulted in eliminating suspects and releasing innocent people. Because there is a powerful weapon for preventing mistaken convictions, there is no need to abolish the death penalty. While DNA evidence can save innocent people, the death penalty can execute true offenders. Therefore, the justice system can become fairer and more effective with both DNA evidence and the death penalty.

As mentioned before, some people against the death penalty disagree that the death penalty is an effective way of dealing with crime. However, such a view is wrong. The truth is that the practice of the death penalty is not only a punishment against the murderer but also becomes a threat against any person who is planning to kill someone. Statistics in the U.S. show that the number of murders has increased in inverse proportion to the number of executions (Lowe, 2006). According to these statistics, there were 56 executions and 9,140 murders in 1960. By 1964, there were only 15 executions and 9,250 murders. Between 1965 and 1980, when executions had been suspended, the number of murders increased dramatically from 9,960 to 23,040 (Lowe, 2006). From these statistics, it is clear that when more executions were implemented, fewer murders occurred. It was highly possible that the deterrent effect had worked well before the death penalty was suspended.

According to Ernest van den Haag, a Professor of Jurisprudence at Fordham University, who has continued the close study of the impacts of deterrence, the death penalty could act as deterrence more than other punishments because what people fear most is death (cited in Michigan State University and Death Penalty Information Center, 2000). He says, “whatever people fear most is likely to deter most” (cited in Michigan State University and Death Penalty Information Center, 2000). When people face a threat of death, they naturally avoid whatever dangerous environments or situations exist, whether it be a furious storm, hoodlums in the street or disordered places. Like this, people will be dissuaded from engaging in dangerous activities or from murdering someone, which might cause them the death penalty. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the death penalty prevents future crimes (Lowe, 2006).

Moreover, even if a generalized deterrence does not occur, the death penalty surely deters the one person, the murderer, who is executed (Sharp, 2006). Society cannot be certain that the person who killed someone will not always do the same thing again. Actually, there are many murderers who would kill their next targets if they were given the opportunity to do so. In order to prevent them from murdering again, any possible opportunity must be eliminated from them. Therefore, the death penalty is the most effective way to prevent them from repeating their crimes.

Another reason to support the death penalty is that there is no effective alternative. Life imprisonment, which is often raised as an alternative to the death penalty, cannot be an adequate substitution. First, there is a great difference between the death penalty and life imprisonment, that is, death and life. This means that life imprisonment gives prisoners some hope for the future. Though most of their rights and freedom are restricted in prison, it is possible for them to find someone with whom they share the pain of life or even something fun or happy within its limitations if they adjust themselves to the life in prison (Montaldo, 2006). This is not fair given that they have taken there same opportunities away from their victims. This is possible as long as they live; therefore, it can never be an adequate substitution for the death penalty.

Funding is another issue that arises when comparing the death penalty and life imprisonment. It has to be kept in mind that the money to take care of a murderer comes from taxes. If the murderer receives life imprisonment as punishment, money is necessary to support their living in prison until they die. On the other hand, once a murderer is executed, there are no further maintenance costs that society has to pay. Though it also costs money to implement the death penalty and research shows it might even be more expensive than life imprisonment (Freedman, 2004), the death penalty still makes sense because the money is not used for the life of the murderers but for their punishment. Murderers never deserve to be supported for life with the nation’s money.

The death penalty is appropriate and just when viewed in terms of the seriousness of the crime. Dennis, one of America's most respected radio talk show hosts, has stated that it is absolutely unjust to allow murderers who steal a life deliberately to keep their own life (as cited in Death penalty guards what is valued most, 2001). Though opponents of the death penalty say that every human has rights and the nation has no right to take their lives with the power of law, it is doubtful that the human who kills others deserves to have this right. Because murderers do not understand the value of life, they do not qualify to claim rights for themselves.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, the rights of the victim or the survivors should be respected more than that of murderers. Though there is no alternative which can compensate the survivors for the loss of their loved one, the death penalty should be implemented because the survivor cannot get peace mind until the murderer dies. It is apparent that the murderer would benefit from life in prison because his punishment is not equal to his crime. As mentioned before, murderers will find someone with whom to share the pain of punishment or something joyful or happy if they adjust to their life in prison. However, the victim never gets such opportunities (Montaldo, 2006). In order to make the punishment just, it is important to respect the rights of the victims and the survivors.

To conclude, the death penalty is a rational punishment and should be implemented for certain crimes. Though opponents argue that innocent people will be executed if they are mistakenly convicted, what needs to be reformed is not the system of the death penalty but mistaken judgments or insufficient investigations. In addition, recent DNA technology has a great contribution to prevent such risks and makes the justice system fairer. Moreover, the death penalty has a deterrent effect to prevent future crimes by threatening potential offenders. Because life imprisonment will permit murderers to have some hope for the future and live by society’s taxes, it cannot be an alternative to the death penalty. Most importantly, the death penalty is just because it fits the perpetrator’s crimes for which it is imposed and the rights of the victims can be respected.

References

Cauthen, K. (1997). Capital punishment. Boston: University Press of America.

Lee, R. and Freedman, E. (2004). Issue 18: Is capital punishment justified? In K. Finsterbusch (Twelfth ed.), Taking sides: Clashing views on controversial social issues. Guilford: McGraw-Hill/Dushkin.

Logli, P. A. (2006). DNA evidence will make the death penalty more fair. In D. Andrews (ed.), The death penalty: Opposing view points. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven Press.

Lowe, W. (2006). The deterrent effect of capital punishment. Retrieved November 13, 2006, from http://www.wesleylowe.com/cp.html

Michigan State University and Death Penalty Information Center. (2000). The death penalty. Retrieved November 30, 2006, from http://deathpenaltyinfo.msu.edu/

Montaldo, C. (2006). Death Penalty: The Only Justice for Killers? Retrieved November 28, 2006, from http://crime.about.com/od/death/i/dpissue1.htm

Prager, D. (2001). Death penalty guards what is valued most. Retrieved December 11,
2006, from http://www2.jsonline.com/news/editorials/jun01/prager10060901.asp

Sharp, D. (2006). The death penalty must be maintained. In D. Andrews (ed.),
The death penalty: Opposing view points. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven Press.

Taylor, R. (2006). Capital punishment. In the World book encyclopedia. (V.3., p193-194).
Chicago: World Book, Inc.

☆★THANKSGIVING★☆

On November 24th, I went to my friendship family’s house to have Thanksgiving meals with them. This Thanksgiving holiday is very traditional and has been celebrated for as many as 300 years since the Pilgrims came to America. I did not know much about Thanksgiving, but I realized that the holiday was really important for American people because families and friends gather for meals and give thanks once a year. There were many surprises for me in this big event and I enjoyed the day very much.

In my friendship family’s house, most of their relatives gathered. Because I thought that just each family had meal individually in each house, I was so surprised that 15 people came to their house!!! The second surprise was that the house was decorated very nicely!!! I found many cute flowers and lighted candles around the house. Moreover, what I was impressed most was the name plates which were put on the table. When I found my name plates, I was so happy because it’s like I was also one of their families!!! I was appreciated them so much. The foods were also very nice!!! The number of foods was many and the amount of foods was huge. Because all of foods were so delicious, I ate everything on my plate!!:p After the dinner, we also ate cakes and ice cream☆ It was surprising that there were as many as eight big cakes and huge ice creams!!!! Because all of them looked so good, it was really difficult for me to choose my cake among them.

After we finish dinner, little cute children gave me a piece of small paper whose shape was like a leaf. When I asked them “What” this? ”, they said that “Write here who you thanks to.” Yes, it was a day to give thanks to someone!! It was a chance to tell our sincere thanks!!:D Then, I wrote “Thanks to everyone!” It might seem kind of uninteresting, but whom I wanted to say “thanks!” was everyone around me!! My friendship family, my friends here and in Japan, my teachers and my family in Japan!!!

According to the children, the shape of the paper was a leaf because they were going to decorate them on the paper cup and create turkey!! The paper I write down “thanks” became one of turkey’s feathers!! How nice!!! How cute!!!

I was really appreciated their invitation to thanksgiving meals on such a special day!!! I was very happy because I experienced American traditional holiday!!!!!!!
★Thanks☆

Teaching Japanese

Since September, I have the weekly meeting session with my friends who are studying Japanese. I am their Japanese conversation partner and help their homework of Japanese class. In this session, I always answer some easy questions in Japanese and teach some Japanese words to them. Because my friends use Japanese mostly and also I can use Japanese, the time of this meeting is very easy and fun for me.

This time, I taught them some Japanese words such as “hirune”, which means “nap.”
In addition to usual homework, I helped their Japanese journal. They wrote a short diary whose title was “Watashi no yume no ichinichi”, which means “My ideal day.” While I was reading their journals, I felt happy because their Japanese were so good than I had expected!! I didn’t know that they could write such long Japanese sentences!!!! I could see clearly that their Japanese was getting better!!!! I was a kind of impressed to see their improvement because they were just beginners of Japanese!!!! Though there were some mistakes in their Japanese, they were just little grammatical mistakes and their journals were enough to understand. It was certain that their Japanese was getting better compared to the first time.

I think studying another language, including Japanese is very difficult for everyone. When I started to study Chinese from the beginning in University, I found how difficult Chinese was and gave up learning Chinese as a second language. Though both Chinese and Japanese use “kanji”, most of them are a little different. From grammar to pronunciation, almost everything was different. Because it seemed impossible for me to learn such a new language, I did not feel like to study Chinese hard and actually I didn’t study at all. As a result, I couldn’t get used to Chinese though I had studied it for a year. And now, I forgot almost everything…!!! :(

So what I thought when I taught them Japanese was that their sincere efforts in Japanese was marvelous!! Though I gave up Chinese immediately before making efforts, they are trying to learn Japanese eagerly and show improvement little by little!!!! They are really awesome!!! I have to follow their diligence so that I can improve my English more and more.

I want to support their Japanese more and see more improvement★

AES Advined Writing 220-01

Argument Paper

The Death Penalty Should Be Continued

In recent years, the issue of the death penalty has often come up in many countries. The death penalty is the most extreme penalty and is used most often against those accused of murders. Because the death penalty allows the government to kill a human being, which may not be moral, this issue divides people’s opinion extremely into pro and con. The acceptance of the death penalty is also different from country to country; some countries practice the death penalty, some have abolished it, and some have never practiced it. Though there are various views on the death penalty, what is important is that the punishment must be just when we think about the seriousness of the crime and the rights of the victim and the survivors. The death penalty is a rational punishment which the murderer must accept so that the rights of the survivors are respected.

One argument against the death penalty is that it violates human rights. Opponents of the death penalty say that every human has rights and the nation has no right to take their lives with the power of law. According to them, the lives of all people have to be protected under the law and it is never permitted for the government to take the life of any person in any situation. Though such a view on the death penalty seems to make sense in terms of human rights, it is doubtful that the human who kills others deserves to have this right. Because murderers do not understand the value of life and the significance of other’s rights, they do not qualify to claim rights for themselves. In addition, if the nation respects human rights, it should consider the invasion of the right seriously. The protection of murderers would mean that the nation does not regard a killer’s invasion of the victim’s rights as a serious problem. If the nation respects human rights, it should take strict measures against the person who violates human rights.

One of the reasons in support of the death penalty is that practice of this penalty is not only a punishment against the murderer but also becomes a threat against any person who is planning to kill someone. For preventing future crimes, it is effective to announce the existence of the death penalty to the world. Because there is a great difference between the death penalty and life imprisonment, that is, death and life, the effectiveness of the former seems stronger than that of the latter. If people know about the death penalty, they will be dissuaded to commit a crime and the crime rate will decrease.

Another reason to continue the death penalty is that the money to take care of the murderer comes from our taxes. If the murderer receive life imprisonment as punishment, money is necessary to support them living in prison until they die. Because the murderer cannot make money, they cannot pay the cost of incarceration. Therefore, this means that the citizens, including the family of the victim, have to pay a huge amount of money for the life of the murderer, though he can never pay back the cost nor can he do anything for society. In other words, the life of the murderer is assured by the money from the citizens. It is doubtful that a nation’s important resources should be used for the murderer. Though it also costs money to implement the death penalty, it makes sense because the money is not used for the life of the murderers but for their punishment and the cost of capital punishment is much less than for life imprisonment. Murderers never deserve to be supported for life with the nation’s money.

Lastly, the death penalty should be implemented because the family of the victim, who often hopes for the death of the murderer, should be respected most. Though there is no alternative which can compensate the survivors for the loss of their loved one, the death penalty should be implemented because the survivor cannot get peace mind until the murderer dies. As long as the murderer lives, the survivor can never be satisfied because life imprisonment does not compensate for the loss of the victim. It is apparent that murderer benefits from life in prison because his punishment is not equal to his crime. It is unfair that the murderer’s life is respected more than the victim or the survivors. Therefore, in order to respect their rights most, the death penalty should be implemented.

To conclude, the death penalty should be continued and applied for the most serious crimes. Though some people argue that it is an invasion of human rights, murderers do not deserve to have the right because they do not know the value of life. Also when there is a death penalty, it leads to the prevention of future crimes by threatening potential offenders. Moreover, it is not acceptable that the nation’s money be used for taking care of murderers because it is the same thing as assuring their life. What should have priority is not the right of the murderer but the rights of the victim or the survivors. The death penalty should be continued so that murderers should receive the punishment which fits their crime.

The rainy days have continued these days and it became difficult for us to go out. Though we cannot play outside, I think watching movies is a good way to spend our time when we have nothing to do on the rainy days.

So I would like to introduce some of good movies I have ever seen!

Among the love story, I recommend “The Notebook” most. I think it’s just a common, pure love story, but this movie hit my hearts so much because the story was very beautiful and perfect!!
Every day in the hospital, a man visits a lady, who has dementia, and read to her the love story of a poor man and a rich girl; this is the real story about the man and the lady when they were young. Though the two young loved each other, the parents of her did not permit their relationship because he did not match her. They broke up once, but they could not forget each other. Accidentally, they meet again and marry eventually!! Though the lady does not remember the story, nor recognize that the man is her husband, his everyday effort to tell a story gives a miracle and she recalls her memory for a short time!!

I cannot explain the story well, but it is certain that the movie is really impressive!! I could not help crying in the end!! I like this movie so much and I have watched it three times so far.
This movie will never disappoint you, so do watch it if you have not watched yet !!

The other movie is “Patch Adams”, which is a human drama and the real story. A man who tried to commit suicide and went to the mental hospital, realizes that “laugh” can heal people’s illness and becomes a doctor. He feels a doubt about the way of medical treatment and provides the patients with “laugh” in his unique ways.

This movie is very warm story and makes me laugh many times and feel happy : ) !! I recommend this movie strongly!!

Watching movies on a cool day is very comfortable.
So if you have time, please watch these movies★

“If the world population was reduced to 100…,” I remember that the book about this fact came up to the subject in Japan at one time. Though several years has already passed since the book was released to the world, it seems that the situation mentioned in the book and the film "the miniature earth" has not changed at all even now.

If we turn the population of the earth into 100, we can know easily how many of them belong to each group of living condition as well as which group we belong to. The movie made me realize that I am one of 7 people who receive secondary education and also one of12 people who have computers, while there are as many as 18 people who struggle for living with $1.00 and 53 people who struggle with $2.00 everyday. Besides, I am one of 6 people who own 59% of wealth of the entire community.

This movie told me how advantaged I am in the world and how indifferent I am to other people who are suffered from poverty and disease. Because we are in the community where there is no worry about how to get food or how to take primary education, we tend to forget about the people who have those problems; rather, sometimes we even do not notice such people.

“Appreciate what you have.”

The massage the movie left last was really impressive and made me reconsider my life. While there are huge numbers of people who face to the death everyday, I forget the heart to appreciate my fortunate living condition. However, what we have to do at least is to “appreciate what we have” indeed. This is the minimum which we have to keep in mind everyday. Also, we should never look away from the problems happening to other people outside where we are. Because those problems have often been related with us or even been caused by us, we have responsibility to solve them together. Then, we have to consider what we can do for the people who are suffered from those problems around the world. I think there are many things which we can do for those suffered people if we try to help them. If all of us cooperate together and start something for that, it will be a great power. First of all, therefore, it is necessary for all of us to know this fact and tell others, then consider what we can do for them.

The commercial we watched in the class was the story that a man who is swimming in the ocean encounters a shark. It is really dangerous situation for him because he might be eaten by the shark…!!! However, I do not expect that the ending will be like that. The commercial advertised “arena”, which is a sportswear brand. They do not advertise the swimwear which is useless when a man encounter a shark and unattractive for people watching the CM. So, I think the man will survive in the end. Successfully, he will be able to escape from the shark because he is really good at swimming. There might be rock near from him, and he can rush into there. The shark will be surprised at his swimming, and come back under the sea eventually. Actually he is not a good swimmer, but he is different from usual on the day because he wears arena’s swimwear.

I would like to introduce one of my exciting experiences since I came to Oregon.

Last month, I went backpacking to Mt. St Helens with my friend, Natsuko and some students in LC. This backpacking was one of the College Outdoors in my college. It was the first time for me to go hiking, so I was really excited and had many new experiences during the three days.

When we prepared for backpacking, I was really surprised at the size of my backpack; it was almost as large as my upper half of the body…!! Before we went hiking, I already felt anxious and thought that I would not be able to follow other members…!!!!

Indeed, it was really tough for me to go up the mountain with such a heavy backpack. Because I had to watch my step all the times and keep up with other members without late, I could not afford to speak with others. However, the more I got tired, the more I felt that foods were delicious. For lunch, we ate some bagle sandwiches and cookies. I was very impressed because they were my favorite foods and they were sooooo good!!!! It was comfortable time for me to have them seeing the beautiful scene of mountain.

From place to place, there were some weird mash rooms and some kind of berries. Some berries were edible and sweet, so I tried them as my snack :D On the way, we met an unexpected inhabitant in the mountain. We encountered a BEAR…..!!!!!!! What an exciting thing it is!!!! Oregon is wonderful!!! So in order not to meet with bear anymore, we sang a song ♫

At night, we cooked dinner together. The menu was pasta, garlic toast and cookies. Despite we cooked outside, the amount of foods were enough and they were perfect!! I was really satisfied!!

After we saw beautiful sunset, we could watch tremendous number of stars!!!! I was almost unbelievable at the fact that people could watch such many stars with the naked eye. I cannot explain how beautiful the night sky was, but it was really like a planetarium. The stars were too beautiful to make me forget uncomfortable bed on the rough ground.

Actually my feet and shoulders were completely exhausted on our third day. However, when we got to the goal, I was really impressed!!! yahoo!! The three days when I spent at the mountain was very precious time for me. I will never forget everything I experienced there. Also, I cannot forget the hard night to finish all of the assignments after I came back to the college. haha…!!

Hello, everyone!!

My name is Ariko. I am an overseas student studying at Lewis & Clark College in Portland. I came from Waseda University in Japan and there are as many as 20 students who are from Waseda and are studying together at LC this year. By the end of this month, we will have been living in America for two months. During these two months, I have already experienced a lot of things! I tried backpacking and went to a homecoming party for the first time!! Also I went on a trip to Seattle for 3 days last week!! Everything I undergo in America is really exciting and I enjoy myself everyday!! Though I have been getting used to the American life and culture recently, I still have difficulty with my English on many occasions everyday…!!!!! So, by writing in this blog, I want to develop my English skills from now on!! Probably, you will find a lot of mistakes in my English in the blog, but please overlook them…!!

Anyway, I’m really excited to start my blog in America!!!!