Social Foundations of Public Issues Essay -- Government Capital Punish

Social Foundations of Public Issues Capital punishment is a hot issue. On a popular news magazine television show documenting the count down to an inmate’s execution or pardon, it is life or death. In the latest Oscar nominated film about a framed man taking his few last breaths on death row while the audience and one faithful lawyer pull for his release, it is emotional magic. Written in the latest literature you were handed on the street advocating the exoneration of some freethinker the government wanted silent, it is American freedom. Capital punishment is a big issue because it is in every home in America and it is discussed in every political agenda. The sides have been drawn for decades, and every opinion and position will be praised as much as it will be despised. Because capital punishment is such a debated issue in the United States, an American politician must take a very logical position towards the subject while keeping very much in touch with the moral arguments involved. The position must con tain an easily followed argument that will not betray the former advocates of its decisions and sway any individual remotely near the fence. The most general key issue involved with capital punishment is whether or not it should be an option in the American judicial system. The array of key issues that lie under this range from states rights to moral law, with thousands of citizens piecing together their separate positions somewhere in between. The position most prosperous for a political candidate is one that rips away all previous conceptions and begins anew at answering this question: is capital punishment beneficial to the public of America? Then as this argument is formed it must address every preconceived m... ...pers.nber.org/papers/W5119> Paternoster, Raymond. â€Å"Myths and Misconceptions about the Death Penalty†. Sociology. 1999 Ross, Michael B. â€Å"The Execution of Innocence.† Peace Review Sep 1998: Vol. 10, Iss. 3. ProQuest. NYU, New York, NY. 22 Feb. 2004 Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics. 2002. 14 Feb 2004. Subcommittee on Federal Death Penalty Cases, Committee on Defender Cases, and Judicial Conference of the United States. â€Å"Federal Death Penalty Cases: Recommendations Concerning the Cost and Quality of Defense Representation†. May 1998. 14 Feb 2004. University of Alaska Anchorage Justice Center. â€Å"The Death Penalty in the United States of America: Cruel, Unfair, Arbitrary, and Racially Biased?†. 1998-2000.