Summary

President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates to life without parole, sparing all but three convicted of high-profile mass killings.

Biden framed the decision as a moral stance against federal executions, citing his legal background and belief in the dignity of human life.

Donald Trump criticized the move as senseless, vowing to reinstate the death penalty.

Reactions were mixed: some victims’ families condemned Biden, while others supported his decision. Human rights groups praised it as a significant step against capital punishment.

    • Steve Dice@sh.itjust.works
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      7 months ago

      But not everybody is making a statement about morality. He’s purportedly saying “capital punishment is bad and we should get rid of it”. If you make exceptions, all you’re saying is that you’re in favor of keeping it around for really bad people, which is exactly where they are now.

    • Feathercrown@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      I’m not sure that’s true. Some people legitimately stop at life in prison and always oppose the death penalty.

      • OccamsRazer@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        I’m one of those. Capital punishment is obsolete in my opinion, since we no longer need to execute people to ensure that they don’t present danger to the civilized population in the future.

        • Feathercrown@lemmy.world
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          7 months ago

          Again, I don’t know if that’s true. People seem to have very strange absolute moral ideas sometimes.

            • Cataphract@lemmy.ml
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              7 months ago

              You’re completely missing the point and focusing on an individual. They’re stating the moral purpose of a SOCIETY. As in the society shouldn’t kill and it certainly shouldn’t be ONE individuals decision for that murder to take place. YOU might have a redline/breaking point, but society wouldn’t. It’s why ONE person isn’t the deciding factor on death, it’s a societies moral choice to do that and uphold that.

              You guys can pretend that EVERYONE has a breaking point, that doesn’t mean you can’t have a society that doesn’t have the death penalty. I feel like these responses are just people trying to incite continued violence or justifying their own extremely vitriol need to kill those they deem less.