this post was submitted on 13 Jan 2024
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Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for the white supremacist who killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket.

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[–] [email protected] 90 points 10 months ago (30 children)

The death penalty is a barbaric institution. It always has been, and it always will be. The government says it’s okay to murder this person, so let’s murder him.

I don’t get why that doesn’t shock people’s consciences and sense of basic decency.

[–] [email protected] 86 points 10 months ago (11 children)

I think it's that guys like this one aren't a hill anyone is eager to die on. Like, it's bad, but let's not make this guy the poster boy for ending the practice. There are other cases I'm much happier to cite in arguments opposing the death penalty.

[–] [email protected] 60 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Perhaps one of the many innocent folks on death row, which includes a not insignificant amount of African Americans too.

But this guy can fuck right off, I am not losing a second of sleep to his suffering.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I am never worried about guilty people on death row. I am worried about those that kill them, those that help kill them, those that witness the killing, and those who believe falsely that this form of justice will heal anyone from harms or prevent future harms.

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[–] [email protected] 33 points 10 months ago (7 children)

Even a single innocent person getting murdered by the state makes the practice barbaric. The state is imperfect. It should not have a license to murder.

[–] [email protected] 37 points 10 months ago (8 children)

We're all in agreement, but as OP said, this
particular person isn't the time to make your stand on. We've all been vocally against the death penalty for a long time, but this specific person is not the one to make an especially strong "this is the line, no further" kind of stand for. I'm against him being killed like I'm against all cases of the government killing prisoners, but I'm also not doing any extra standing up for this particular person.

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 10 months ago

I have a friend who went to protest outside the federal prison when Timothy McVeigh was executed. He had no love for McVeigh. He thought McVeigh was a monster. That wasn't the point. The point was that capital punishment is always wrong. The state should not have the power of life and death over its citizenry.

And I have great respect for him for doing so. Protesting capital punishment in cases like this are just as important as in lesser cases because the reason for the punishment isn't at issue.

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 10 months ago

Probably because our morals and principles collapse at the first speed bump.

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[–] [email protected] 53 points 10 months ago (8 children)

Fuck the death penalty, the guy needs to be punished, but the death penalty is barbaric.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 10 months ago (3 children)

I don't disagree, but also I think the death penalty is too merciful. This guy should live forever, watching the world go by without him or his ignorance. He should be forced to watch home movies and social media from the families of the people he killed. Watch them mourn, and how they find hope and love in a world where he also exists.

He should live long enough to learn that his life is meaningless, his actions, while extremely harmful, will be forgotten to history as just another violent, murderous bigot. He should realize that from inside a 10x10 room, and then he should live another 50 years with that knowledge.

The state shouldn't kill people at all. It isn't a deterrent, it doesn't cost less money, it doesn't increase justice, and sometimes we get it wrong. There isn't a good reason for the death penalty to exist, and plenty of reasons it shouldn't.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 10 months ago

He should be forced to watch home movies and social media from the families of the people he killed. Watch them mourn

Please, that would make that racist prick feel pride, not shame.

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[–] [email protected] 16 points 10 months ago

Not just barbaric, but also more expensive than life in prison. There's also all of those cases where an innocent person is killed.

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[–] [email protected] 40 points 10 months ago (3 children)

The only issue with the death penalty is the potential to execute the innocent. There is no danger of that here. I don’t want to share the planet with this racist prick.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 10 months ago (16 children)

That’s not “the only issue,” you fucking ghoul. It’s a barbaric practice and has no place in a civilized society.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 10 months ago (18 children)

The other issue is that it quite frequently costs exponentially more to administer the death penalty due to years of appeals. I'm not sure how that would work in this case, since as you said, it's apparent that the defendant is guilty.

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[–] [email protected] 30 points 10 months ago

From Wikipedia

Motive Anti-black racism White supremacy Belief in the Great Replacement and white genocide conspiracy theories[6][7][8]

A political wing of the USA is responsible for this

[–] [email protected] 29 points 10 months ago (22 children)

If you kill the man, his suffering is limited. If you lock him away in a supermax for the rest of his long days, his suffering is a thousandfold.

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[–] [email protected] 29 points 10 months ago (7 children)

I don't even kill spiders. It's hard to look at that photo and understand, how this young adult even considered doing this. What broke him like that? Maybe, instead of killing him, we can somehow guarantee no new guys like him would happen. Not in a genetic crime bullshit fashion, but in providing psychological services, making regular checks, noticing them and reaching out before they act like that? He's a fucking idiot, but also a guy that fell through many safety nets proving them ineffective.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 10 months ago (6 children)

That's not how the prison industry works. There's no money in fixing people if you can use them as unpaid labour.

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 10 months ago (6 children)

It's a worse punishment to let him rot in prison.

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 10 months ago (6 children)

Let him rot in prison. Abolish capital punishment!

[–] [email protected] 13 points 10 months ago (2 children)

The reactionary in me thinks "life in solidarity confinement without the chance of parole."

The me in me says he needs a long time in some sort of rehabilitation program. As much of a monster as he is, he's a bit of a victim. May he be studied so that we can pinpoint and prevent others from following his path.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (87 children)

And will that help reduce violent deaths at all in the future? A large number of shooters are just out to commit a mass murder-suicide. Who does this serve justice to? Or is this just to get people feeling like they've been "avenged"?

I know it's a cliche, but it is a bit dumb to kill someone to show that killing is wrong.

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