Could anyone here strap someone to a gurney and inject poison into their veins until they died?

[NNN0LHI]

Anyone? Speak up. Don't be shy.

Don

[Poll_Blind]

1. We're not going to do it for you. Either you or The Voices will have to to it. nt

PB

[tridim]

2. I can't even kill spiders.

[Skittles]

27. and spiders are not always easy to catch!!!

[cliffordu]

32. And those leetle TINY veins!!!

[Skittles]

33. OMG STOP IT CLIFFORDU

[jberryhill]

3. Are you picking up travel expenses?

[pnwmom]

4. I think for many of us the answer would be "that depends."

If the person was a serial killer who had murdered one of my children in cold blood, I think I could do it -- although I'm the kind of person who catches spiders in a cup and throws them outside.

[loli phabay]

6. yup the answer would have to depends but the question was very broad.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

8. Indeed, it is very situational

[Bluerthanblue]

5. I'd like to think that I could if

the person I was doing that to was dying in agony- and begged me to end their suffering, but I'm not sure I would be able to.

Other than that, no- I could not ever concieve of doing this, nor do I feel ok about anyone else doing that in my name, under the guise of "justice".

[ProgressiveProfessor]

11. A Coup de Grâce is easy to dismiss until you are there

In my case it was my wife dying of what started as breast cancer. You better believe it crossed my mind. Finally when it was clear it was over she was allowed as much meds as she needed. It was much easier for her and the rest of us.

[Bluerthanblue]

41. my family has been there, and

agree completely that it is the loving and self-less thing to do. I'm just not sure that I could have been the person to actually do the injecting. I'd like to think that I could- if the situation were to come right down to 'me' physically administering the life ending dosage, I would, but I'm not 100% certain.

That would be the only instance I could say 'yes' to the OP's question is what I was trying to say. I'm sorry if it sounded otherwise.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

53. Nothing insincere about your posts, it a very hard place to be

[tularetom]

7. There are a couple of someones that I'd volunteer to do it to

You'd recognize them.

[msanthrope]

9. Yes. But I'd prefer to use my Time Machine as Jon Stewart suggests...

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-july-16-2012/democalypse-2012---bain-damage

[Egalitarian Thug]

10. I could but wouldn't. n/t

[unblock]

12. well if it were someone old and suffering and clearly and consistently requested it...

assisted suicide i could do.

but cold-blooded killing of someone who, whatever their horrific deeds in the past, are now no longer a threat as they are safely held in a maximum security prison, ...

i would most adamantly refuse to do that.

i would go so far as to disobey direct orders to do so.

[pnwmom]

13. What if the person was a serial killer

and had tortured your seven year old for two days before killing him?

[randome]

17. I commend you for thinking the unthinkable.

[pnwmom]

21. Unthinkable crimes do happen. So I think the only truly honest answer to the OP,

at least for a parent, is "it all depends."

(I think I could have easily answered "never" if I wasn't a parent.)

[unblock]

46. would i have rage, absolutely.

having taken from me my son, would i permit him to also take from me my principles?

no.

i would be one of those people who appeal to the court to not give him the death penalty.


as it happens, i feel that life in prison is a fate worse than death, so whatever thirst i had for vengeance would be satisfied anyway.

[pnwmom]

54. What if you knew for a fact he was guilty, but he got off because his family

was wealthy and gamed the system?

[unblock]

58. then killing him would make me a felon! hell no!

again, i certainly won't deny the intense emotions i'd feel in that situation.

but i certainly wouldn't commit a felony because of them!

[Journeyman]

14. The Hangman at Home, by Carl Sandburg. . .

WHAT does the hangman think about
When he goes home at night from work?
When he sits down with his wife and
Children for a cup of coffee and a
Plate of ham and eggs, do they ask
Him if it was a good day’s work
And everything went well or do they
Stay off some topics and talk about
The weather, baseball, politics
And the comic strips in the papers
And the movies? Do they look at his
Hands when he reaches for the coffee
Or the ham and eggs? If the little
Ones say, Daddy, play horse, here’s
A rope—does he answer like a joke:
I seen enough rope for today?
Or does his face light up like a
Bonfire of joy and does he say:
It’s a good and dandy world we live
In. And if a white face moon looks
In through a window where a baby girl
Sleeps and the moon gleams mix with
Baby ears and baby hair—the hangman—
How does he act then? It must be easy
For him. Anything is easy for a hangman,
I guess.

[The Magistrate]

19. A Favorite Old Poem, Sir

Right up there with 'Grass'.

Thank you for calling it to mind again.

[Reasonable_Argument]

15. No

I don't support murder even when it's state sponsored

[cthulu2016]

16. I oppose the death penalty but I could carry it out.

One of the many reasons I oppose it is that I could carry it out. It is something that must be decided with the head, not the gut.

The question is weird, though. Could I drop bombs on buildings without knowing who is in them? Could I shoot people?

That is to say, could I serve effectively in the military?

It seems that many millions have and do so why is that presumed to be so extraordinary?

[lapislzi]

56. I worry more about serving on a jury.

I could not effectively serve in the military, ever.

But, knowing the law, and believing in my gut that the law is bad, could I apply the law as I understood it, hoping that better minds than mine had brought it to bear?

It frightens me to think that I could.

[Comrade_McKenzie]

18. No. I'm not a murderer. nt

[Summer Hathaway]

20. Assuming your question

pertains to administering the death penalty (and not euthanasia, which is a different topic), yes, I could.

I used to be pro-death penalty, but changed my position almost twenty years ago when I realized how many innocent people have been executed. So I am, for all intents and purposes, now anti-death penalty.

However, in a few specific instances, where guilt was unquestionable and there was absolutely no remorse, I could do it - and would.

[progressivebydesign]

22. Yep.. if that person was a mass murderer.

You betcha! I'm sure I don't fit in on DU in that regard, but I support the death penalty.

[cbrer]

23. Are you coming at this?

From the angle of the death penalty is wrong? Or bullets are cheaper?

Anyways, IMHO, true evil exists in the world. If nothing is to be gained by studying the evil, it's morally acceptable (to me) to destroy the evil.

I would protect the good of the world, as well as those people and things I love, by personal action if it were to be required of me.

Not bloodthirsty. Just morally accountable. A person who eats meat is on the same moral level as the butcher.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

24. Yes... given the proper circumstances.

Hell, given the proper circumstances (ie: Holmes) I'd take him out behind the shed and lay some steel to the back of his noodle.

[TheKentuckian]

25. I can't see it. Can't utterly rule it out but I don't see it.

I could take action against a threat but not a captive like that.

[lpbk2713]

26. Doctor Mengele I presume?

[HockeyMom]

28. Working with special needs kids and adults

I don't think I could have back worked in the 70s or beforehand. Kill somebody? Never.

[teddy51]

29. No, never could see myself taking another life!

[Serve The Servants]

30. Yes.

And in some cases I would even do it for free.

[longship]

31. Madame LeFarge I presume?

Got your knitting?

No. Not only no, but Hell Fucking no.

With all due respect. I needed to put my opinion into perspective.

[BlueJazz]

34. No....I won't. .....Not even for the Joker

[JVS]

35. How does it pay?

[malaise]

36. I can't even kill a roach

I will never support the death penalty

[cliffordu]

37. Given the right circumstances, absolutely.

The scumbag that took and murdered Polly Klass for instance.

He's already dead, but that was the case that made me a believer in the death penalty.

[pnwmom]

38. Especially if you were Mr. or Mrs. Klass.

I think most of the people who say they'd never do this under any circumstances either aren't parents, or they are refusing to imagine the extreme cases.

[NNN0LHI]

44. Circumstances vary

Neighbor who had just moved into my subdivision asked me if I wanted to go fishing with him one day about a year ago.

About an hour into it I noticed he had thrown a few bluegill he had deemed "unfit to live", into the bottom of the boat to die from being out of the water. He was watching them slowly die and he seemed to be taking pleasure from doing it.

I politely asked him, "What in the fuck are you doing with the fish dying over there?" Exact words.

He said they were too small and he wanted the other fish to have more to eat and get bigger so he was going to let these fish die and then throw them in the lake.

I said to him, "Take me back to my car right fucking now." Exact words again.

I have seen this guy several times since and have never acknowledged his existence. Never spoke another word to him.

True story.

Don

[cliffordu]

47. I won't tolerate cruelty to animals at all.

I won't tolerate cruelty to humans, either.

Although I'd say your neighbor could have used an ass kicking.

[NNN0LHI]

64. We had a problem here in Illinois

After doing an investigation into 25 men on death row waiting to be executed we discovered that 13 of the 25 men were factually innocent. Not innocent because of some technicality or some other BS like that. They were innocent because it was proven they couldn't have been guilty of the crimes they were going to be executed for.

We had a Chicago Police Commander named Jon Burge and the officers working under him who were torturing men into signing confessions to crimes that they weren't guilty of.

And I am not suggesting that type of thing had anything to do with the case you cited.

Is what I am saying is whenever the death penalty is used someone can abuse it. Just doesn't seem worth it to me to have the right to kill one guilty person if that in any way opens up the door for another dozen or more innocent people to be killed. Especially when that one guilty person will never be released from prison to ever hurt anyone else again.

Understand what I am trying to say here?

Don

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.theearthcenter.com/templates/firefly/archives/ffarchivesdeathrow1.html

Extracted Confessions

"It is now common knowledge that in the early to mid 1980s, Chicago Police commander Jon Burge and many of the officers working under him regularly engaged in the physical abuse and torture of prisoners to extract confessions," wrote US District Judge Milton Shadur in an appeal for a Death Row inmate.

Since Burge's history of torture became public, dozens of people who were questioned by Burge and his officers have come forth with similar stories of abuse. In a 1990 report, investigator Michael Goldston cites more than fifty instances of alleged mistreatment and abuse under Burge. He also states that Burge's torture was "methodical" and "systematic". Story after story has been told of suspects being led into a tiny room on the second floor, where they were handcuffed to a ring on the wall. After being questioned and abused for many hours, they were forced to confess. The City of Chicago and the police have not organized a complete investigation to determine if Burge's torture tactics led to wrongful convictions and coerced confessions.

The stories of the Death Row Ten deserve recognition, contemplation and, most importantly, action. The stories of Derrick King, Reginald Mahaffey, Jerry Mahaffey, Stanley Howard, Leroy Orange, Leonard Kidd, Aaron Patterson, Andrex Maxwell, Madison Hobley, Grayland Johnson, Ronald Kitchen and Frank Bounds have been among those that the system is trying to keep out of the public eye as much as possible. We will explore their cases in the upcoming issues.

For now, we must reconsider the positions of our "leaders" in the system and insist on the integrity, honesty and honor that Jon Burge needed but did not possess. We cannot allow this situation to happen again. We must ask ourselves how many innocent people have died, how many innocent men and women remain behind bars, and how we can rectify and prevent these tragedies in the future.

[Va Lefty]

39. My problem is not with the death penalty, but the way it is used

Often whether you receive the death penalty or not depends upon your skin color and your ability to hire competent attorneys. Some people commit crimes so heinous that they deserve to die. I would have no problem sending john wayne gacy, charles ng, ted bundy or others like them to whatever awaits them in the afterlife.

[Edweird]

40. Does it come with Dental?

[nadinbrzezinski]

42. No

But I am for moving it from the death chamber, and the sterility of it..back into public executions. I knw about cruel and unusual, but firing squad, or hanging would be fine with me...all those tough guys need to see it...a person die, and the occasional botch... This is why it was moved behind prison walls. It horrified people in the early 20th century.

Oh and for god sakes, full horror show, don't cover the head during the actual hanging. A few bulged eyes, and swollen tongues, and fifteen to twenty minutes (botched job) might do the trick. Granted, some sick folks will get their jollies from this, but that is why they're sick.

[NNN0LHI]

48. public executions?

The Republicans I know would be jacking themselves off for a week after watching something like that.

They would look like house painters

Don

[nadinbrzezinski]

49. The history of the death penalty is clear

One reason they moved behind the prison walls is that a few botches horrified people.

I am willing to bet most of those tough talking Republicans would not after a few, if not just one botch.

[kestrel91316]

43. I do that sort of thing. Just not with people.

If the person were really evil I suppose I could, but the lack of fur might freak me out.

[IowaRevolutionary]

45. No, a guillotine on the other hand

Given the right circumstances, I very possibly could.

[yawnmaster]

50. It depends. probably yes in the right circumstance. eom

[RebelOne]

51. If that person had killed a member of my family, I could do it. n/t

[MrSlayer]

52. Certainly if the circumstances warranted it.

This Holmes asshole? No problem. Jerry Sandusky? Absolutely. I wouldn't lose a second of sleep over it.

[riderinthestorm]

55. I've often thought the DP should have the victim's family administering death.

I'm neutral on the death penalty. There are far, far too many evil people that do the worst stuff to others and its hard to justify extending their life. The victim's family and loved ones should be the ones to decide if/when the perp is declared guilty whether that murderous crime justifies killing that perp in order to satisfy THEIR sense of justice. If the victim's family and loved ones decide the perpetrator must die then they must be the ones to administer that death. They get to depress the plunger and watch that person die.

I'd guess that if the DP were that personal, there'd be a whole different perspective on it.

I can't say if I could or could not do it. It would depend on what the circumstances were. Once you've made life and death decisions on living things like I do daily with my business, once you've stood and assisted in dealing death to a beloved pet, knowing it was the right thing to do, the line gets blurry.

If you are talking about assisted suicide, I'm absolutely sure I could do this thing for a loved one. If I can do it with a beloved pet, I'm absolutely sure I could do it for a living soul who asked for it and whom I trusted was in their sane mind.

[Odin2005]

57. I'll admit it, I could do it to the fucker who raped my best friend.

[4th law of robotics]

59. To euthanize someone in great pain who wants to die?

Maybe.

[JDPriestly]

60. No. And I oppose the death penalty because I don't want to ask

anyone else to do it either.

[NoPasaran]

61. Is that person Dick Cheney? (After being duly convicted and sentenced, of course)

Sure. Although my personal preference involves a wood chipper.

[rdking647]

62. yes i could

or throw the switch on the chair,or spring teh trap for the gallows or pull the trigger for the firing squad.

[Llewlladdwr]

63. Yes. NT