Why I Cannot Support Death Penalty

[temporal1]

Maybe so the US doesn't blow them up with a missile for carrying water home in their car....

That’s a good reason! But it seems strange to blow people up in their home country, and then say they desperately need to be relocated here.

You have probably noticed that there are some people who will never let "good enough" alone,
but feel like they must always shuffle things around, make an impact, and generally make themselves feel useful and needed.

It is my opinion that the rule to "first, do no harm" would be a good rule for US foreign policy.

Brilliant words to remember.
i repeated these words as a prayer (for myself) as a new parent, and 40+ years later, i continue this prayer as parent+grandparent.
Not always easy.

i sometimes share the sentiment with new parents, esp those nervous about “what to do” with their new little bundle of joy.
God has His perfect plan. Large or small scale, trying not to interfere is a worthwhile goal.

[nett]

Likewise, opposition to the death penalty is merely a left wing political position. Jesus never criticised the death penalty which was quite common in his day.

Rather, he called his followers to repent and seek a heavenly kingdom instead of trying to fix the Roman Empire.

Jesus also never once criticized abortion despite the fact that it was probably much more common than the death penalty in his day.

Would it be equally accurate for me to assert like you just did that "opposition to abortion is merely a right wing political position. Jesus never criticized abortion which was quite common in his day."

Sins that were punishable by death in the Torah, included the following:

Homicide (including negligent homicide), striking one's parents, kidnapping, cursing one's parents, witchcraft and divination, bestiality worshiping other gods, violating the Sabbath child sacrifice, adultery, incest,and male homosexual intercourse (there is no biblical legal punishment for lesbians). The daughter of a Kohen who defiles herself through harlotry, blaspheme (of the Tetragrammaton name of God), a non-Levite "encroaching" on the Levite task of setting up or taking down the Tabernacle, a non-Kohen carrying out priestly duties, promoting the worship of other gods (if an entire town is swayed by such people, the entire town is to be put to death and destroyed), defiantly refusing to accept a court's ruling, maliciously giving false testimony accusing another person of having committed a capital offence, rebellion against parents, If a man marries a girl and claims that she is not a virgin, the girl's parents should produce evidence of her virginity. If it is found that she was not a virgin, she is stoned to death for fornicating while still under her father's authority, intercourse with an engaged/betrothed virgin girl (if she could have cried out for help and did not, she is killed as well).

[Gene]

"First do no harm" as a rule for ethically practiced foreign policy means do nothing. In order to protect national interests, there will be times violence is needed against those bent on harming us nationally and individually. In reality, there are competing interests in the world, and some groups and persons can not be persuaded short of convincing them to assume room temperature. (I suppose that depending where you are, that could be very close to body temperature, but you get the point.) Someone is going to get harmed and unfortunately innocent persons will become collateral damage. The best we can hope for is that the damage is outweighed by the benefit. Christians should not be involved, but it has to happen. The world in its fallen state is ruled by violence and the credible threat of its use. Arguments against the state use of the sword in both foreign and domestic policy would deprive humanity of an ordained tool for the suppression of evil.

[temporal1]

"First do no harm" as a rule for ethically practiced foreign policy means do nothing.
In order to protect national interests, there will be times violence is needed against those bent on harming us nationally and individually.

In reality, there are competing interests in the world, and some groups and persons can not be persuaded short of convincing them to assume room temperature. (I suppose that depending where you are, that could be very close to body temperature, but you get the point.)

Someone is going to get harmed and unfortunately innocent persons will become collateral damage.

The best we can hope for is that the damage is outweighed by the benefit.

Christians should not be involved, but it has to happen.
The world in its fallen state is ruled by violence and the credible threat of its use. Arguments against the state use of the sword in both foreign and domestic policy would deprive humanity of an ordained tool for the suppression of evil.

i overall agree.
regarding the U.S. death penality, i believe, so much is done to avoid it, it is well beyond “first, do no harm” by the time it occurs.
that is not to say i don’t hate it. i do. and, i hate the crimes committed that result in its existence.

there may be a difference in “first, do no harm,” versus “never do harm.”

in other threads, “statistical insignificance” is discussed.
Natural Immunity
viewtopic.php?f=24&t=4151&p=136584#p136584

which is interesting. regarding the U.S. death penalty, i suppose it would be “statistically zero,”
while at the very same time, deaths by abortion must be at least 100%, maybe somewhat higher, considering 1 abortion could result in multiple unborn deaths, and occasional maternal deaths.

but, maybe those extra deaths would also be “statistically zero.”

has there ever been a more efficient killing machine than the methods for-profit corporations offer?
the MIC doesn’t compare, does it?

[temporal1]

January 2022 / Poll / “Three types of Anabaptists” ..

One of the problems with capital punishment is that newer, more sophsiticated techniques for investigating crimes have proven that a substantial percentage of people convicted of capital offences are in fact innocent.

By this argument, nobody should ever be incarcerated or punished for anything because they might be innocent.
That approach is working very poorly in society right now.

[Joy]

"Whoever sheds human blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made mankind. [Gen 9:6 NASB20]

Well, obviously God put the onus for conviction integrity on government, and today there are more forensic tools available than ever before--as far as we are aware--in the history of mankind.

He further gives this sobering command:
'So you shall not defile the land in which you [live;] for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of the one who shed it. [Num 35:33 NASB20]

[Josh]

"Whoever sheds human blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made mankind. [Gen 9:6 NASB20]

Well, obviously God put the onus for conviction integrity on government, and today there are more forensic tools available than ever before--as far as we are aware--in the history of mankind.

He further gives this sobering command:
'So you shall not defile the land in which you [live;] for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of the one who shed it. [Num 35:33 NASB20]

Indeed. God's perfect law that he gave to his people demanded that a just government include capital punishment for those who decide to do things like commit murder. When a government does not do this, they literally "defile the land".

It is a warped and twisted sense of justice that allows violent murders to run free, but then pats itself on the back and climbs up on a moralistic high horse because that murder doesn't get executed, and instead is released to go and murder again.