Murder Is Murder - Isn't It ?

The above picture asks a very good question. Even though I have spent most of my working life in some form of law enforcement, I have never been comfortable with the idea of the death penalty -- the concept that we as a society should put ourselves down to the level of those horrible beings willing to take a human life. And the recent executions of people in Texas, Georgia, and Alabama have brought this issue back to mind again. I have been thinking of doing another post on the death penalty, but Mike over at If I Were King has beat me to it -- and he lays it out very well in only a few words. Here's what he had to say:

I never could understand how two wrongs make a right.  Remember when you were a kid and some other kid did something stupid – and you did the same thing.  Your mother probably said something like “if Johnny jumps off a bridge, I guess you would jump off the bridge too.”  Well, it turns out old mom was pretty smart.

Think about it.  The police are supposed to stamp out corruption – not be corrupt.  You wouldn’t expect firemen set fires.   How many people would go to a doctor if he purposely made the patent sicker?  All of these are obviously absurd scenarios.   

Yet, our states and national government make it illegal to murder someone, but have no problem committing murder themselves.  Yes, I am talking about the death penalty.  Why does the government feel they should be exempt from this crime?  Maybe it’s because of religious views, in which case I glad I am an atheist.  Maybe it’s because it make you feel safer – even though there is no evidence that the death penalty serves as a deterrent to murder.  No, I just think people like the idea of revenge. 

My problem is that we sometimes get it wrong.  Innocent people on death row have been cleared by DNA in recent years.  There’s no telling how many innocent people were killed before this technology.  Georgia recently executed a man who had seven of his nine witnesses recant their testimony.  After a while, it appears expediency is more important than due process and mercy.

Two wrongs don’t make a right.  Murder is murder.