The simplicity of my day to day. |
On this day in 1982, the first execution by lethal injection took place at the state penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. Charles Brooks, Jr., convicted of murdering an auto mechanic, received an intravenous injection of sodium pentothal, the barbiturate that is known as a “truth serum” when administered in lesser doses. What are your thoughts on executions? Are you in favor or against and why? This subject is one which tests one’s moral/value compass. Australia and the UK no longer have the death penalty. There are definitely times when I feel the death penalty is called for, especially when there is no doubt about the guilt of the person. But could I be the one who administers the punishment? No, I couldn’t. No matter the mode of death, be it hanging, electric chair, gas chamber, or lethal injection, I personally couldn’t do it. So what right have I to expect someone else to pull the lever, turn on the gas, or administer the poison? There would always be that lingering doubt in my mind, the accused may yet be innocent. I know the bible asks for an eye for an eye, but by killing a murderer aren’t we perpetuating the crime and what the accused has done? Have we the right to take a person’s life? Who decided that it was okay? For some people being incarcerated for the rest of their lives is worth than death. So let them suffer in jail, deny them their freedom, and let them think about their crime until they die a natural death in prison. |