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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 1989)
^PIMML-— Readers answer pro/con on death penalty oeiuence supported I am fully in favor of the death penalty. All I can really say about it is this: If some lunatic butchered one of my friends or a member of my family, l’d want the “lunatic” off this earth so he wouldn’t have any possible chance to do it again. Lisa Donovan, in your column, you said ”... no one should be allowed to decide another human being’s fate.” Exactly. Ted Bundy decided the fate of a 12-ycar-old girl, and deserved exactly what he got. Andrew Meyer freshman pre-med Penalty condemned Is there such a thing as justice and forgiveness? In the real world we live in, I think not. Think about it people, who arc we as human beings to take another’s life. Sure, Ted Bundy ex emplified to the nation that he must uc put away tor me cruel ana unjust actions he did, but capitol punish ment is not right. I certainly have condolences for the murdered vic tims’ families. And I’m sure if some one killed someone close to me I’d be mad as hell, but believe me, I wouldn’t think twice or even con sider the death penalty for anyone. Those in favor of such an inhumane act ought to put themselves in the chair right along with the killer. Remember what Jesus said. * ‘Those without sin should cast the first stone.” Thmk about it. Jay Failla junior broadcasting Killers lose rights Lisa Donovan made one good point in her editorial opposing the death penalty, but only one. She said, ‘‘No one should have the right to determine another person’s fate.” That is true, but she applies the logic where it does not apply, and docs not apply it where it should be applied. 5he makes little mention in her letter about the victims of these con victed murderers. What have these murderers done but decide another person’s fate? They have taken away another person’s right to choose their own fate. Her statement falls down when she tries to apply it to the death sen tence. As long as the death sentence is a possibility of punishment for con victed murderers, then, by commit ting a murder, thr* murderer is taking his fate into his own hands. I he courts are not deciding someone clse’s fate, someone has already de cided it. She also talks about the cost of appeals vs. the cost of keeping some one in jail for 40 years. The fact is, first degree murderers average only 18 years in jail. That means that for everyone who serves 40 years, two would serve only about 10 years. Asa taxpayer, I would rather shell out a few more dollars and make sure the murderer is permanently removed from society. However, I do think the appeals process should be made more effi cient. There should be a maximum of six months or a year in which all appeals must be exhausted. This may mean giving these cases first priority in the courts, but it should save a lot of time and money used in appealing. Lisa also talks about these con victs having meaningful lives. Is she kidding? I nri sure they pondered long and hard over how meaningful their victims’ and their victims’ families’ lives would be after the fact. The death penalty is not an atro cious act similar to the Holocaust (A truly ludicrous comparison Miss Donovan). It is a rational, logical way to remove from society those mem bers who have violated society’s laws in such a way that they have taken another person’s life. Those people don’t deserve to decide their fate any longer. They gave up that right when they chose to take that right from someone else. Brent Boettcher junior ag honors Killer link foolish This letter is not to argue the valid ity of capital punishment but is to discuss Lisa Donovan’s erroneous analogy of a religious persecutor with the sentencing of murderers. Lisa’s correlation of the U.S. judi cial system and Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany has to rank as one of the most ludicrous statements printed by the Daily Nebraskan. This pro-con editorial stems from the Jan. 24 exe cution of Ted Bundy. Our judicial system sentenced Bundy to death based on ONE of 36 reported heinous murders of young women. Adoli Hiller was a confirmed psychopath who sentenced MILLIONS to death solely based on religious beliefs. Lisa has the audacity to link a murderer of innocent millions to the sentencing of a habitual woman murderer? Come on, Lisa, this re minds me of a debate team when people had to defend a topic against their general beliefs. You could al ways detect an incompetent debater based on their grasping for irrelevant information. Either Lisa was asked to defend a topic she didn’t believe in or she’s a naive student who requires a history refresher. Whatever the case, she presented an atrocious analysis of capital pun ishment. Lisa’s credentials at the bottom of her article state she’s a junior news editorial major and senior arts and entertainment reporter. My opinion is that Lisa should slick to reporting for arts and entertainment because her apparent understanding of current and past events is lacking. If Lisa • pursues a career in journalism she shouldn’t pul this article in her res ume — she would probably be laughed out of an interview. By the way, I would favor the exec ution of Adolf Hitler! Jeff Johnson graduate student department of geology judson automotive factory trained foreign car specialists 27th <i T Lincoln, Nebraska * ' You can't miss with a Valentine Cookie from Do-Biz. 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