[MikeSz]

Im afraid this is one of my big issues.

There is simply no excuse for the death penalty in a civilised society. Absolutely none. In all the hours of debating this I am yet to be given a pro argument that doesnt have vengeance at its root.

"Society has a right to protect itself, but it doesnt have the right to be vengeful. It has a right to punish, but it doesnt have the right to kill" (West Wing - Take this Sabbath day)

Lets not forget that the justice system is there to administer justice, not revenge and the only supporting argument for the death penalty is that it would make everyone feel better for a while. If anyone thinks it acts as a deterrent, then look at the USA, where drug kingpins and the like live their lives under the constant threat of execution, and their executions are a lot less pleasant and tend to take place without the bother and expense of due process.

One murder isnt any better than the other, and in fact, the death penalty is worse. A Murder of passion, whilst unforgivable, at least has a reason behind it - i.e. a person is unstable, acted on overwhelming emotion or pressure etc. The death penalty has none of those mitigating circumstances, its the pre-meditated ending of another human being's life - people actually sitting around in suits deciding whether to kill someone. Plainly put, state sanctioned murder.

You also lose the moral high ground. Our justice system SHOULD be tough and SHOULD set an example, it should provide genuine deterrents but it shouldnt be there to dole out vengeance and retribution.

I also dont buy this argument of "why should we pay to keep them" - the fact that our justice system is a little short sighted is no justification - there are plenty of things I could think of to do with them that will be cost neutral to the tax payer.