New senator Nick Xenophon is right to oppose the execution of the Bali bombers. Capital punishment is always wrong because it is barbaric and it is state-endorsed murder. Capital punishment does not change the past or right any wrong. It simply perpetuates a self-defeating eye for an eye mentality. In this case, capital punishment is particularly futile given that the bombers crave martyrdom. Capital punishment will not deter terrorists, most of whom seem to accept their own violent deaths as inevitable anyway. Instead, capital punishment gives support to the argument that violence is legitimate.
The six countries which executed more than any others in 2007 were China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, USA and Iraq. To the extent that you can judge someone by the company he keeps, it says something very disturbing about the USA. Nevertheless, there is no evidence that the other five countries are the better for their enthusiasm for capital punishment.
A 1999 study in Texas (which performs more executions than any other US state) confirmed that capital punishment does not have a deterrent effect:
This study tested the deterrence hypothesis in Texas, the most active execution jurisdiction during the modern era. Using monthly observations during 1984 through 1997, both the general relationship between executions and murder rates and the specific relationship between executions and felony murder rates were examined. An initial bivariate relationship between executions and murder rates proved to be spurious when appropriate control variables were included in regression models. Within a context so ideally suited for finding any potential deterrent effects, this study confirmed the results of previous ones that failed to find any evidence of deterrence resulting from capital punishment.
A desire for retribution and vengeance is understandable but it does us no good and can do our society considerable harm.
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hear hear