Capital Punishment: Just Do It Capital punishment is a justified form of punishment for murderers and is enforced by most states in the United States. The death penalty is an appropriate punishment for murder because executions maximize public safety through a form of incapacitation and deterrence. When a person kills another person, common sense and mental reasoning are lost. As a result, the killer is no longer capable of a mentally stable life not only for himself but also for society as a whole. Conversely, moral issues also call into question the accuracy and benefits of the death penalty. Murder is defined as the crime of unlawfully killing a person with malice and premeditation and wantonly slaughtering him (Webster, 751). Capital punishment is punishment by death resulting in execution (Webster, 162). Since ancient times it has been used to punish a wide variety of crimes. In the United States, the death penalty for murder was first abolished in Michigan (1847); Venezuela (1853) and Portugal (1867) were the first nations to abolish it entirely. Today it is practically abolished throughout Western Europe and most of Latin America. Elsewhere – in Asia, Africa and the Middle East (except Israel) – most countries still authorize capital punishment for many crimes and use it with varying frequency (Academic American Encyclopedia, UT CAT). from stoning in biblical times, to crucifixion under the Romans, to decapitation in France, to those used today in the United States: hanging, electrocution, the gas chamber, shooting and lethal injection. Beginning in 1967, executions were suspended to allow appellate courts to decide whether the death penalty was unconstitutional... middle of the paper... criminal execution to set the limits of appropriate sentences. Not only is the morality of the criminal an issue, but what about the morality of the crime committed by the criminal? Premeditated and wanton murder is an immoral action. As mentioned above, compassion is an admirable thing, but it doesn't have to blind us to the difference between right and wrong, or to the opportunity to discourage bad behavior. Bibliography "Capital Punishment". American Academic Encyclopedia. (UT CAT PLUS). 1991 ed. Hertzberg, Hendrick. "Premeditated execution". Time May 18, 1992:49.Kramer, Michael. “Frying them is not the answer.” Time March 14, 1994:32.Landsburg, Steven E. "Just Do It." Forbes November 21, 1994: 166.Shapiro, Walter. “What should the victims have?” Time May 27, 1991: 61. Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary. Mass.: G& C. Merriam Company. 1981.