Opinion: Anti Death Penalty is Immoral

            A country that prides itself on the taking the moral high-ground on all issues of importance should not turn a blind eye to the immoral nature of government-sanctioned murder. Capital punishment possesses irrefutable flaws that should not be ignored by our government and thus should be abolished.
             Every few months CNN flashes pictures here and there of a scene outside a penitentiary. More often than not, that penitentiary is located in the Lone Star State, a state still associated with the vigilante justice of the Old West. Throngs of people crowd outside what is called the death house, jumping at the chance to have their mug plastered over the broadcast signals shouting at the top of their lungs, "burn in hell!" or "we want so-and-so to die!" I can't help but think of my high school US history class when we discussed the Salem Witch Trials of the late 1600's. We learned how people stood and cheered as a so-called witch burned at the stake - - strikingly similar to what happens when the Warden stands atop the steps of the prison in front of the news media to announce the time of death of the criminal. People clap. People cheer. People are happy and sing their hurrahs for the death of yet another criminal. Are we so delayed in our moral growth that we fail to extend ourselves past the civility that governed the witch trials nearly some 400 years ago? .
             People argue that the death penalty is a way to heal the wounds of the victim's families. They argue that if it was your son or daughter who was killed, you too would take solace in knowing that their murderer could never kill again. However, this is not necessarily the case. In fact, retribution by way of capital punishment often hinders the healing process and perpetuates the violence that we"re trying to "prevent." Our government should not be in the business of retribution and murder to illustrate that we all have concern and empathy for the victim's families.