THE DEATH PENALTY SHOULD BE ABOLISHED

         JEFF  AI （艾杰夫，16岁）

                                                                       （老师布置的辩论题）

Murdering a person – it’s one of the most cruel and morally wrong thing a human being can do to another. So what difference does it make when it comes to the highest institutions of social order? The death penalty, also known as capital punishment is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for serious crimes. Today, many countries such as Canada have abolished the death penalty. If some countries can, why can’t the rest? 

Executing a person whether if they have done nothing wrong, or went on a rampage in the middle of New York City can never be a “good thing”. More critically, is that it does not deter crime. It is merely an example of double standards where the legal system tells citizens that taking a person’s life is wrong and illegal when they claim they kill simply because it’s a legal punishment. No one should have the right to take someone’s life. A good example of how death penalty cannot reduce crime would be comparing a country that has it banned and one that has not. Let’s take our neighboring country United States for example. The homicide rate in Canada is 1.62 per 100,000 inhabitants. In the United States, the rate is 4.8. Not one of the highest, but still pretty high compared to Canada. Now having this proved, what good is the US doing taking the lives of people? 

Execution is a really poor and inhumane way to punish criminals. It goes against many religions, and leaves families of the criminals deeply upset. However, that may not be the biggest concern, especially to the tax paying citizens of the country. Many studies show that keeping the death penalty costs enormous amounts of money- way more than the much better option, life imprisonment. The costs are for the complicated legal process, with the largest costs at the pre-trial and trial stages. Basically, the important point is to avoid executing innocent people. Would you actually want to pay more tax, just so the legal system can execute someone? How does that make you feel?

Not everyone is perfect in this world. Everyone makes mistakes. Everyone- which also includes those that are in the legal system. One of those really horrible mistakes would be sentencing an innocent person to death.

Sadly, things like that did happen in the history of death penalty in the US. In 2004, the state of Texas executed Cameron Todd Willingham for starting the fire that killed his own children. How do you think that person felt before he died in vain? What if that person was you? As of now, more than 130 wrongly convicted people on death row have been exonerated. With the abolishment of the death penalty, tragic mistakes like these would not occur. All the innocent lives would be saved. Nobody has to worry about being accused and getting executed because of it. Nobody would have to die in vain. 

If someone committed a very serious crime such as murder, don’t you think an instant death with a bullet for that person would not be good enough? Do you think that person had enough time to deeply reflect on what he or she did and to feel regret and remorse? Imagine staying in one place locked up for the rest of your life. No family, no friends, no fun. You are treated like trash and probably get beat up or even raped once in a while if you are really unlucky. It can be a very scary thought for some people. Wouldn't you go crazy? Let's think back to when Osama Bin Laden was killed during firefight with the US Seal Team 6. The moment that the very bullet pierced through his chest, his whole life ended right on the spot. Right there, after 10 years of manhunt, was America's most wanted terrorist, dead. If you think about it, for all that he has done, all the crime he committed, in the end, he left this world experiencing not even half a second of pain and suffering. In this case, life imprisonment would be a better solution. Let the individual live forever, a life where he or she cannot see the beautiful daylight, a life without freedom, something that person has taken away from the individual who was murdered. Let the individual plead for a second chance in life.  This kind of mental suffering is more suitable for the serious criminals and they might finally come to realize what they have done. 

When we were little, many of us were taught that two wrongs do not make a right. So how does the execution of a criminal be right at all? It does not change what the criminal did was wrong. It does not bring back the life the criminal took. Let's think for a moment. When you kill another human being, you are not only affecting that one person. You are also affecting everyone around them. You are not only taking the life of that person. You may be taking away a mother or father, a brother or sister, or any close family member. Most importantly, always keep in mind that violence only begins violence, and an eye for an eye makes the world go blind.

                      死刑应当废除

           艾望华 译

    诛杀一人——这是一个人对另一个人所能作出的最残暴、最缺德的事。那么，社会的最高层机构也做了同样的事会有什么差别呢？死刑亦称极刑，是一个国家欲致重罪刑徒于死地的惩罚。今天，许多国家已经废除了死刑。如果某些国家可以这么做，为何其它国家不可为？

    处决一个无辜者或者是一个曾在纽约闹事中心制造暴乱的罪犯都不能算是什么“好事”。更确切地说，这不能起到阻止犯罪的作用。这恰恰是一种双重标准的典范：一方面法律机关告诫公民，害人性命是践踏法律的罪恶行径；另一方面，法律机关又声称它们诛杀罪犯只是在履行法律的惩治功能。事实上，任何人都无权剥夺他人性命。有个好的例子可以证明死刑不能减少犯罪，那就是将取消了死刑的国家和保留死刑的国家进行比较。让我们以邻邦美国为例吧，加拿大每十万居民谋杀案为1.62件，而美国的统计是4.8件。美国的统计值虽非最高，但却比加拿大高出很多。现已证明的事实得出的质问是，美国保留死刑何益之有？

    用处死刑来惩罚罪犯实在是个蹩脚的和不人道的方式。它违背了许多宗教的教义，还留给了罪犯们的家庭成员深深的苦恼。不过，那可能还不是最大问题所在，尤其是对有死刑国家的纳税人而言。许多研究表明，保留死刑比采用终身监禁要花费更加庞大的财金。（这些研究是针对民主国家而言。译者注）这些开支是由于司法过程的繁文缛节造成，其中最大部分花在了审讯前期和审讯阶段。基本而言，这些法律程序的重点是避免错杀无辜。你会因为法制机关可以处决犯人而多付税项，这件事让你感觉如何？

    这世界没有人是完美的，每个人都会犯错，包括那些法制机关的人士。实为可怕的错误之一就是将一个无辜者判了死刑。

    可悲的是，这样的事在美国的历史上确有发生。2004年，德克萨斯州就以纵火烧死了自己的孩子的罪名处死了喀麦隆移民托德 ·威廉汉姆。你能想象此人冤死前的感受吗？如果此人是你又如何？迄今为止，已有超过130桩误判的死刑犯得以沉冤昭雪。如果死刑被取消，类似悲剧性的错误势必不再出现。所有无辜的生命将被挽救。没有人会因死刑的存在而担心被处决，没有人会含冤死去。

    如果某人犯下诸如谋杀这种非常严重的罪行，你难道不认为让罪犯瞬间死于一颗子弹并不是太好的方式？你认为罪犯还有时间去深刻地反省自己的所作所为并为之忏悔吗？设想一下，如果将罪犯关押起来终其余生，没有家庭、没有朋友、没有娱乐的处境会是怎样的惩罚。他会被当作垃圾一样对待，运气不好时有可能遭到殴打或强暴。对某些人来说，这是想象中非常糟糕的境况。若你受此刑，难道还不会疯狂？让我们回顾宾·拉登在与美国第六海豹队交火时被击毙的情景。那时刻，正是一颗子弹穿透他的胸膛致其当场毙命。就这样，在经过十年的通缉后，美国的头号恐怖分子死了。思考一下，就他所做的一切和所犯下的全部罪行，到头来他却享受了一颗子弹而未受半秒的痛苦就离开了人世！照这件案子来看，终身监禁本应是个更佳的结果。让这类罪犯永远过着暗无天日的生活，一种没有自由、没有一切美好事物的生活，这一切正如他剥夺了别人的一样；让这类罪犯活在终日都在祈求第二次机遇的日子里。这种心灵折磨更适合那些重罪之人，可使其最终认清他们到底做了些什么。

    在我们很小时，我们中很多人被教导“两个错误的事情不可能产生一个正确的事情来”。处罪犯以死刑怎可能在根本上是正确的呢？它对罪犯所作的恶不能有丝毫改变；它不能挽回那些被罪犯夺走的生命。让我们静静地思考片刻，当你杀害了另外一个人，你不仅影响了一个人，也影响了他周围的每一个人。你不仅夺走了这个人的生命，也实际上夺走的是一个母亲或父亲、一个兄弟或姐妹的生命，或者是一个家庭所有成员的至亲。不过，更为重要的是，永远记住暴力来自于暴力，以暴制暴只能使世界变得黑暗！