thompso@utecfc.UUCP (Mark Thompson) (10/08/84)
-Mark:
- Concerning your recent statement in the capital punishment debate:
-
->It has been shown that polls have little effect on public opinion. They
->merely happen to report on what that opinion is at the time.
-
- This is news to me. I had understood that studies of this subject
-usually report no evidence that reporting poll results influences
-the outcome of a subsequent vote. The American networks regularly use
-these results to quash criticism of their exit polling and election
-coverage. There is a big difference between "no evidence..." and "little
-effect...". Can you find me the study/studies that you refer to? Perhaps
-this is true for the issues of capital punishment and abortion, but I
-don't believe it for a second on most political questions. Remember
-the Joe Clark effect? Furthermore, I think this has rather far reaching
-implications to topics such as the pornography/censorship debate.
-
- Doug
Doug I agree with you! Perhaps instead of "little effect" I should have
said "teeny weeny wafer thin effect". However I am sure that you would agree
that there is the odd person out there who lets somebody else sway their
opinion. Have you read Eugene Fiome's articles? However I am not advocating
any restriction on polling or reporting of such polls. Those who would let
themselves be swayed by polls are likely to be a insignificant minority.
Returning to the issue of capital punishment it is interesting to note
some of the points made by others in previous articles:
- police killers all have a death wish
->Well we had another two policemen killed here in the east this weekend.
The killers are apparently a couple of car thieves and don't seem to
fit this category. Instead they are just a couple of murderous thugs.
One of the suspects was killed in an ensuing shootout with police and
the other suspect deserves no less. It is interesting to note here that
criminals will fight it out to the death even without the prospect of
capital punishment facing them.
- the case of Donald Marshall (Donald Johnston - Wasn't he a Liberal
cabinet minister?)
->Yes undoubtedly there are those who are convicted incorrectly but the
number is very small. Much smaller than the number of convicted murderers
who go on to kill again. However it is a valid point and one that does
concern me. The Donald Marshall case is not the best example to use here
because he was not totally innocent. The murder victim was his
accomplice in a mugging attempt that went wrong. Harsh justice but
Donald Marshall would never have encountered his problems had he been
an honest citizen in the first place.
Mark Thompson
UTMEmmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) (10/13/84)
=================
->Well we had another two policemen killed here in the east this weekend.
The killers are apparently a couple of car thieves and don't seem to
fit this category. Instead they are just a couple of murderous thugs.
One of the suspects was killed in an ensuing shootout with police and
the other suspect deserves no less. It is interesting to note here that
criminals will fight it out to the death even without the prospect of
capital punishment facing them.
=================
Mark Thompson uses this example to support the return of capital
punishment. To me it is a counter-example, supporting the thesis
that the death penalty would never deter such people from murder.
One of the (many) arguments against the death penalty is just that
the murderers do have a death wish, but can't commit suicide. Their
own death is what they wish to achieve by their crime.
Mark also uses the phrase "the number of convicted murderers who
go on to kill again." My understanding is that the repeat rate for
murder is negligible, especially when compared with that for other
crimes. Most repeat murderers do it before they are caught, either
in a mass rampage, a series of similar killings (e.g. of prostitutes),
or as professional killers.
There may be a case to be made for the death penalty in the case of
professional killers, but if you want to deter repeats of a crime,
there are better crimes than murder for which you should consider capital
punishment. Ever thought of sheep stealing?
--
Martin Taylor
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