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This is a strange article. The author glosses over the criminals charged with death penalty easily and goes into depth about his and his staff's personal experi

This is a strange article. The author glosses over the criminals charged with death penalty easily and goes into depth about his and his staff's personal experience and their moral burden/PTSD, the distress they might have felt. While that's a valid point of view, it completely sidesteps the core issue of why the author is advocating a change in his stance on the death penalty, or worse, it's the only reason for the change. Being an outsider, it's something I notice a lot in American media - a tendency by law officials (and soldiers) to lament about their suffering while not paying enough attention to the people who are the real figures of the tragedies (death penalty, victims of war). It also relates to the hero worship that I see in American culture (even online). Every soldier with a PTSD is made out to be a "poor fellow who needs help". The person who said "yes" to being comfortable in killing people telling his harrowing story about how difficult it was for his staff. Apologies in advance if the above comes across as too insensitive. Not sure what I'm trying to say here but just dumping my immediate thoughts.

jonknee 10y ago
> The author glosses over the criminals charged with death penalty easily and goes into depth about his and his staff's personal experience and their moral burden/PTSD, the distress they might have felt. I think that is pretty much expected with an article titled "What I Learned from Executing Two Men". > Being an outsider, it's something I notice a lot in American media - a tendency by law officials (and soldiers) to lament about their suffering while not paying enough attention to the people who are the real figures of the tragedies (death penalty, victims of war). But there is damage on both sides. No one disputes the suffering of those who are killed, but it's a fairly recent development to study the suffering of those on the other end. I think it should be studied so that we know what we're asking people to do (be it an executioner, soldier or first responder).
icc97 10y ago
I don't think that the article is trying to give a definitive answer, just his perspective on it.

jonknee 10y ago

> The author glosses over the criminals charged with death penalty easily and goes into depth about his and his staff's personal experience and their moral burden/PTSD, the distress they might have felt. I think that is pretty much expected with an article titled "What I Learned from Executing Two Men". > Being an outsider, it's something I notice a lot in American media - a tendency by law officials (and soldiers) to lament about their suffering while not paying enough attention to the people who are the real figures of the tragedies (death penalty, victims of war). But there is damage on both sides. No one disputes the suffering of those who are killed, but it's a fairly recent development to study the suffering of those on the other end. I think it should be studied so that we know what we're asking people to do (be it an executioner, soldier or first responder).

icc97 10y ago

I don't think that the article is trying to give a definitive answer, just his perspective on it.