| Discuss the following questions in small groups.a) Capital punishment means taking the life of someone who has committed a
crime. In the United States, capital punishment is allowed in some states. Do you know of any other societies in which capital punishment is allowed?
b) Why do some people believe that capital punishment is fair? Why do others
think that it is unfair?
Reading
1. A newspaper editorial gives the writer's opinion about a topic. As with any news article, an editorial begins with a headline or title.
Divide into two groups.
Group A Look at the following editorial headline. On a separate piece of paper, write any ideas that you expect to find in the editorial. Then read it and check.
Headline 1—Life in Prison Is Still Life: Why Should a Killer Live?
Group B Look at the following editorial headline. On a separate piece of paper, write any ideas that you expect to find in the editorial. Then read it and check.
Headline 2—Why Do We Kill People to Show That Killing People Is Wrong?
Work with other students in your group and check whether you can find the same ideas in the editorial as you predicted.
Text A
Life in Prison Is Still Life: Why Should a Killer Live?
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Murder is totally unfair; the victims of murder are gone forever. Their hopes and plans have ended permanently, and the pleasures they enjoyed in life have been destroyed. They will never see their friends again and will never hear the voices of parents, brothers, and sisters who cry, "How could this have happened?" But the murderer is still alive. Without capital punishment, murderers are allowed to participate in and enjoy life.
Today there are murderers in prisons all over the world. Most of them would rather spend their lives in prison than die. This is not surprising since the desire to live is normal and natural. In prison there are many small pleasures that one can enjoy every day: the feeling of warm sunshine, the taste of a hot meal, the comfort of sleep. The lifestyle in
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prison is not always harsh and cruel; many prisoners have the opportunity to continue their educations, play sports, enjoy movies, and receive visits from their loved ones.
There is no reason why a killer, a destroyer of life, should live. Justice requires that each person respect the rights and freedoms of every other person, or be punished for not doing so. The people who commit murder give up their rights to citizenship and life itself. Why should the tax money of citizens—including the victim's family—keep the killer alive? The only fair punishment is execution. Execution puts the killer away from society forever, stops him from killing again, and sends a strong message to others who might kill: Killers will not be allowed to live.
Let sunshine fall on those who respect life—not on those who destroy it.
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Text B
Why Do We Kill People to Show That Killing People Is Wrong?
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There are times when murder is not committed because of cruelty. People may kill for other reasons such as anger, misunderstanding, and fear. Everyone has made mistakes because of such feelings. For society, it is a serious mistake to take the life of someone who has killed because it teaches everyone that forgiveness is unnecessary.
The government has the difficult job of deciding who is innocent and who is guilty, and this job can never be done perfectly. If capital punishment is allowed, there always exists the possibility that an innocent person will be executed by mistake. When that happens, an even worse crime has been committed—the killing of an innocent person by the government. Then there is the fact that the poor and minorities get the death penalty more often than whites do. Furthermore, the idea that capital punishment stops criminals from committing murder is doubtful; studies have been unable to show that the fear of capital punishment stops someone from committing murder more than other punishments. And let us not forget that murdering the murderer is a violent act in itself; it is revenge.
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The U.S. government once followed the example of Germany, Britain, France, and other nations that no longer execute their citizens—however, since 1977, our society has been allowing capital punishment again, at a high cost. We cannot imagine the pain of family members who have been waiting for years for the government's decision to execute or not execute their loved ones. It also costs the taxpayer millions of dollars more to execute a criminal than to imprison that criminal for life. Prison is a better form of punishment because it protects society and punishes criminals by taking away their freedom.
People can change, even people who have made terrible mistakes. Life in prison gives people the chance to change. Caryl Chessman is an example of someone who became a better person in prison. He taught other prisoners how to read, and he wrote several books. Before his execution, he wrote that he had finally learned not to hate.
Chessman learned this important lesson in prison. But a dead man learns nothing, and an executed person will never change. When a government kills, it is murdering hope.
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Date: 2015-12-11; view: 1545
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