>But that does not contradict my point that death penalty is a sacrificial
>ritual that symbolically re-establishes social order disrupted by crime.
Or you could say that it perpetuates the cycle of violence. The southern states, where they love to execute people, are also among the most homicidal. I suppose you could argue that the more murders you have, the more you need your healing rituals of execution, but isn't that just a tad ghoulish?
Doug