Comments by "Harry Mills" (@harrymills2770) on "My Chat with David Pakman (THE SAAD TRUTH_206)" video.

I think the strongest argument FOR the death penalty was kind of tangentially touched-upon by Gaad. It is important that the public - in particular the victim and their family - accept the judgement of the courts. The death penalty - it can be argued - de-fuses some of the worst reactions by private citizens who might otherwise take matters into their own hands, or remain unhappy with the courts. Whether citizens are more or less inclined to mete out justice, themselves, is more a function of social norms and culture. Otherwise, it makes little sense to have a death penalty from the policy point of view, as the guest explains. There's a guaranteed appeals process that costs more than housing them for life, and depriving them of freedom is arguably more punishing than the death penalty. I think the death penalty becomes "economic" if society is very close to the bone, very close to extinction, to where prisons are beyond the society's means. We're not that close to the bone.
1