America the Murderous

Forget about the natives, lynchings, immoral wars, homicide rates and having practically invented the serial killer.  Why is the U.S.A. the only developed western nation that still employs capital punishment?

>>1
Cause, meet effect.  Effect, meet cause.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_Japan

>>3
Seems that even the inventors of suicide bombing have developed some respect for life.

>>3
"Executions are carried out by hanging ..."
Awesome.

So when a dictator murders you it's fine, but when a war America fights against your dictator results in inevitable collateral damage, which is entirely justified for the greater good of mankind, all of a sudden we're the bad guys.

>>6
dictator... all of a sudden

You mean the guy who was executed 3 years ago?

>>7
>implying it's that simple
Of course removing the dictator wasn't the only priority, don't be a fag and just accept US hegemony is a good thing because we're a freedom loving democracy.

>>8
>implying
Back to the imageboards, please.

>>9 implying he can tell us to ree-speck his authoriteh

>>9
Wow, you're the kind of person who thinks we should back down when muslims get butthurt over rational criticism of their religion.

>>6
With a dictator you really can't expect any better.
With a civilised liberator (even a self-appointed one), you'd expect more than lip-service to those small details, like liberating the people in question from terror (1). By, for example, having an actual plan for how to do that, instead of relying on wishful thinking. (Sure, invade the country, remove the ones in power (preferably without having anyone credible candidates to take over), ignore sectarian tensions, disband the army and don't confiscate all their weapons, antagonise well over half the Moslem world in the process, and everything will be nice and quiet. Riiiiight.)

(1) protip: a terrorist isn't any more -or less- a terrorist just cos he's not working directly for the oh-so-beloved dictator in question.

>>12
Obviously there will always be a little oversight.

>>11
What!

>>14
You heard me.

>>15
You're not making any sense?

>>16
I am making sense.

>>17
>>9 had nothing to do with Muslims.

>>18
It has everything to do with muslims, it has to do with muslims who hate america and americans who love muslims for hating america because they live a sheltered middle class existence and don't realise that some really fucking crazy/evil people actually exist out there who need to be stopped, it has to do with not becoming complacent and relinquishing our true American values and freedoms because we already have all the prosperity we need.

>>19
Jeepers mister, you're off your rocker!

>>20
You will find that it is you who is off his rocker.

>>21
NO THANK YOU

Capital punishment is a terrible idea.  The state is made up of people, who are imperfect.  The idea that those people should be allowed to employ a punishment so irreversible is just wrong.

Not to mention the fact that the fast-track appeal system ends up costing the taxpayers more to execute someone than it does to house and feed them in jail.  It's bad policy.  The state is not capable of using such a dire power in a responsible manner.

>>23
Hallelujah!  A relevant post!

>>23
Then is the state capable of using its power to punish or imprison anyone at all in a responsible manner?  It cannot be undone; the years can never be given back.

>>23
I always thought a lifetime of slavery was a better use for death row inmates.

>>25
The "years" were never taken, only the liberty.  Your statement is fallacious.
>>26
Hell yeah!  Hard Labor!

>>25
Reparations can be made to the living; not so much to the dead.
>>1
Because this is a Christian Country first and foremost, and the Lord Jesus said "If someone strikes you on the right cheek, strike him dead."

>>26
I've always thought that we should send the murderers, especially the serial ones, to countries we are at war with. Conscription as punishment -- and mania as warfare.

>>28
Some argue the commandment is "thou shalt not murder" not "thou shalt not kill".

>>29
I'm not sure that giving psychopaths weapons and tactical training and experience is that good of an idea.

>>30
Let's not waste our time arguing what the invisible man really meant when he wrote his magical book.

>>31
Amen.

>>31
Let's not waste our time arguing what the invisible man really meant when he wrote his magical book.
It wasn't written by God, it was written by people.

>>33
That doesn't stop those people (or most of their fans) from evoking the name of that invisible man at ungodly times.

>>34
What "ungodly times"? If anything, I see much more militant atheist on here than militant Christendom. Though, extremism on both sides of the spectrum is bad.

>>35
Sure. Hang all extremists.

Srsly tho...
more militant atheist on here than militant Christendom
I fail to see where anyone ITT claimed otherwise. The references were to the Christians (mainly the rabid ones), cos they're the ones in power. They're the ones invoking the invisible sky magician to justify those cuddly little things like hatred, war and capital punishment.

And b4 u ask, those thou-shalt-not-kill, turn-the-other-cheek type bible-thumpers do exist too, yes. But guess who gets the press time? As for why; guess who's got the clout to get shit done?
And as for how they got that power; I somehow don't think they did by turning the other cheek...

(HIBT?)

>>36
But guess who gets the press time? As for why; guess who's got the clout to get shit done?
And as for how they got that power; I somehow don't think they did by turning the other cheek...
Yeah, those damn neocon Republicans.

>>37
Spoken like one who doesn't want to get the point.

>>37
What the hell? My quote failed.

>>38
No, you're just finding ways to baselessly attack religion itself whilst ignoring the fact that it's basically been perverted to the point where the people who find ills within the government do nothing but pray and smash coffee cups. I agree with the criticism, however you're implying that those in power are actually Christian! Ha! They are the farthest examples from it.

As for the Republican party, it's been hijacked by the neoconservative movement that fully came to fruition starting with the Bush administration. Back in 2000, Bush campaigned on a foreign policy that we shouldn't nation build and police the world (classic Republican principals), and that drew in a lot of his voters, since during Clinton's two terms, there was bombing and laying sanctions against Iraq, and bombing Afghanistan, and let's not forget the whole debacle with Bosnia. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9SOVzMV2bc

Of course like the lying scumbag most presidents these days are, he did the exact opposite and invaded Iraq and we're still over there nation building.

So, it's not religion to blame, we just have a lot of corrupt assholes in Washington. Which is not news.

>>39
That's a decent point that a lot of people claiming to be christians don't understand the teachings, but the fact is that religion gives cover to tyrants to do terrible things, and it anesthetizes the population.

People think it's ok to spend your life getting butt-fucked by the government and the corporate interests it serves, so long as paradise is waiting for you.  Besides, the sky wizard is going to ride his chariot down and fix everything any day now. 

Christianity is a tool for control.  It has been since Constantine.  When you have a religion that tells people it is good to act like sheep, you get a population that is docile and easy to manipulate.  Whatever good Jesus could have done for the world, his teachings have been perverted too much to have a net positive effect.