Should a life sentence mean LIFE?

[Vigilias]

Just a note on capital punishment without wanting to shoot off topic.

Up until 1868, executions in England were carried out in public. Capital punishment was not abolished until 1969 in the UK. In the intervening time there must have been hundreds of people who witnessed a hanging or lived at the time when hanging took place - it did nothing to stem the number of murders.

Albert Pierrpoint, the last official executioner in England, executed some 400 people but is reported to have said that in his opinion, hanging did nothing to deter crime and served only to satisfy society's need for vengeance.

[partisan]

May I just ask whether you see the problems in terms of evidence and innocence since you do believe in the death penalty? I mean, you can't deny that mistakes would eventually occur (albeit in small numbers) - do you believe it's justifiable because of some greater good? Oh and also, just to clarify, are you saying that nature provides a good foundation for our morality and how we should act? Just because a method is efficient doesn't mean it's the right one. If it were we'd have to employ a long range of disturbing tactics.

Do you believe it would be justifiable ?

If you saw a grown man kill 2 young children. Would you want to kill them. I would without a seconds thought! Bang! Go to hell.

[partisan]

Detering crime is irrelevant to the point. Every man is his own man.

Also if you take a life because you have mental health problems, and some healthy person is lying dead, does that excuse the crime, no! Take them out! BANG-BANG.

[SolemnBoy]

I'll draw your attention to the recent case of the murder of Lee Rigby (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Lee_Rigby) where there is not
a single shred of doubt as to who killed him. I don't believe in the death penaly either but these two men I believe are beyond rehabilitation.

This problem can't be solved with exceptions like that (I said "more or less all cases" not "all cases"). Extreme, unquestionable certainty to 100% is hard to achieve.

Also, Partisan, I never said anything about "excusing the crime". It's a matter of accepting the horrible thing you've done; realizing and acknowledging that you can never make up for it nor hope to earn the forgiveness of the victim's family. A lot of people deserve to never be let out of jail. A rare minority, however, is going to change. In their cases true remorse isn't expressed through damnation in a cell but rather through working and living again in acceptance than you won't be forgiven but giving back to society nonetheless.

I always admired families who managed to forgive the person who killed one of their loved ones. I can't say I could find myself in their position but the ability to not be consume by hatred is admirable.