Capital Punishment Forum
Instructions
You are going to discuss capital punishment in terms of a current event.
Part I (Original Post)
Find a current event that deals with capital punishment and discuss it here. Be sure to bring one of this week’s readings to bear on the discussion.
Should We Abolish Capital Punishment?
Overview
Does the State have the right/duty to take a life in the name of “justice?” There is a multitude of risks and benefits associated with the death penalty, but despite increased costs, erroneous executions, and problems of distribution, 63% of Americans are in favor of the practice. The moral questions pertaining to the death penalty focus on what the duty to punish permits, whether proportionality requires strict matching of crimes to punishments (after all, we don’t rape rapists), and whether humans have a right against their government to not be executed.
There are several readings in this module, so schedule your time accordingly.
Read
ACLU Position Paper
Van den Haag
Links to an external site.Van den Haag Notes
Kant’s Retributive Theory
Kant Notes
Complete
Contribute your original (first) post and peer reply to the Capital Punishment Forum
Write your Capital Punishment Case Analysis
