Paul remixing Nancy's Narrative

Capital punishment is legally ending a person's life as punishment for a serious crime. Each state in the U.S. has its own law regarding capital punishment, choosing whether or not to us it and if so, by what means. Most states have abolished the practice as cruel and unusual punishment.

Capital punishment is far from a new idea. We are all familiar with images of traitors under the guillotine in medieval Europe. The Salem witch-hunts of 1692 saw women thought to be witches executed by horrifying means, most popularly burning at the stake.

The scripture in Exodus 21, 23-24, reads “eye for eye, tooth for tooth” and “life for life”, possible convincing supporters of capital punishment that the practice is acceptable in God’s eyes. While using this passage for justification, the fact remains, an eye for an eye leaves a room full of blind men.

The U.S. is faced with a rising violent-crime rate, and governments in favor of capital punishment use it to deter would-be murderers. Supporters say those that oppose capital punishment would change their mind if it were one of their family members that were murdered.

Those opposing the penalty say that God also commands us at Deuteronomy 5:17 to not kill. Should this biblical commandment apply just as much to the government as to the individual?

According to the U.S. Constitution, capital punishment is cruel and unusual punishment, regardless of the means. Electrocution can take up to 15 minutes, and lethal injection can take more than 30 minutes, causing excruciating coughing spasms. Keeping our equal rights in mind some people argue that someone may be wrongly convicted and executed. Since 1973, many death-row inmates have been released upon further investigation. How can the government justify taking a person's life as part of a legal system that is obviously flawed?

What I think:

To many, life without parole is much worse than the death penalty, because the permanent incarceration is dreaded more than death.

Both those who support and oppose the penalty feel strongly about their views. In all fairness, each side has a valid point of view, but in our society there are many areas in which we have little say. Is capital punishment one of these areas?

This is more of a revision than a remix, because I basically just edited it. One thing that stood out to me is that there is not much information to back up the main ideas.

It says the U.S. is faces with a rising violent-crime rate. What kind of rise?

It says many people have been released from death row after their cases are reviewed. How many? One example would really make that point stand out, especially if you put a name and a face to that person.

I agree with your viewpoint, and that's one of the reasons I decided to remix this one. If you put some real-life examples in there, you could really hit home with the reader better. It's a great argument that you make, especially with the conflicting biblical passages, but with a little more detail, you could convince a lot more people.

Nancy's original narrative

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