He Sez: Capital Punishment, Part 2.

The arguments against capital punishment are, as always, that it is more important to save the guilty than to protect the innocent. Just as drunk drivers are sometimes sentenced to view numerous photos of horrific traffic accidents, perhaps those opposed to CP should be required to view photos of the victims of capital crimes. That might remind them that there is more at stake than a squeamish feeling in their stomachs.

There are only two reasons to think that CP is barbarous: religion and emotion.

The religious statement is that all human life is special and must be protected. Fine, believe what you will.

Even rational people, however, are subject to the tugs of emotion. Preservation of the species is the strongest human instinct, even stronger than preservation of self, so when we see someone in a vulnerable position it is usual and normal for us to want to save them. When Saddam Hussein was found in a hole in the ground, picking fleas from his scraggly beard, I saw many letters and op-eds expressing sympathy for him. The same did not occur after the assassination of Osama bin Laden, perhaps because we did not see him in a vulnerable position and our emotions were not aroused.

To become a superior society we have to give precedence to our intellects, not our hearts.