Death Penalty, Right or Wrong?

“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.” This famous phrase still carries weight today. This metaphor extends beyond eyes and into a more concrete view when applied to the death penalty. There are many arguments both for and against the death penalty. 

One argument against the death penalty is that it is in direct violation of the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments hold great value to both Jews and Christians in that they believe that God gave them the Commandments in order to help them lead a better life. One of the Ten Commandments explicitly states, “Thou shalt not kill.”
   
In addition to religion, it can be argued that the death penalty is inhumane. Many states have banned the death penalty, and that could not be done without good reason. Death by firing squad and electric chair both require the recipient to experience great pain before their death. Although there is also death by lethal injection, getting all of drugs at the right amounts and administered without problems is not always a guarantee. There is a chance of suffering before death.

Arrests, trials, and convictions are not guaranteed to be without flaw. While most feel there is enough evidence to convict the defendant of the crime for which they are charged, there is still a chance of error. There have been cases where years later men have been freed from jail, or taken off of death row because they really were innocent. What would happen if you were on the jury who sent a man to his death, only to discover after the fact that he was innocent? It does not happen often, but it can happen.
   
Do we as Americans want to become blinded because of sheer hatred we feel towards others? Why should we murder people to show citizens that murdering people is wrong. This is an extremely hypocritical view. The death penalty is just another way people can abuse our judicial system to exact their own revenge. The question is not whether or not the death penalty is wrong, but rather what humans should have to play God?

This blog post is an official entry for the <a href="http://www.joshuapondlaw.com/scholarship">Law Blogger’s Scholarship</a>, sponsored by The Law Office of Joshua Pond, <a href="http://www.joshuapondlaw.com/">http://www.joshuapondlaw.com</a>.

Schizophrenia

One of my biggest pet peeves is when people misuse the term "schizophrenic". It is often being said when one should be saying, "multiple personalities". For example, on Project Runway Michael Kors described an outfit as being schizophrenic in regards to the fact that it looked like it had been designed by multiple people. This is a common misconception with schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia involves hallucinations and delusions. Often one imagines people who aren't really there, or they have delusions of grandeur. With schizophrenia is paranoid schizophrenia, where one believes that someone, usually the government, is after them. Schizophrenics do not take on multiple personalities--that would be Multiple Personality Disorder/Dissociative Identity Disorder.

So the next time you think about throwing around the term "schizophrenic", think twice. There are people out there who have to live with this, and when stated it can have a negative connotation. The world is slowly starting to accept mental illness, but it's still frowned upon. Make an effort to use real adjectives to describe things appropriately--not misusing an illness.