>The basis that I advocate for capital punishment of war criminals and criminals against humanity is not deterrence, but retribution -- constrained revenge. No doubt they would not be deterred. They don't expect to be caught. The idea is that thedy have done things that are so bad that they have forfeited their right to live. jks
Advocacy of capital punishment seems to me to be a crime against humanity in and of itself, a political hate crime. I can appreciate that there is a primitive instinct to kill people who commit or advocate abominable crimes. Hate is a powerful emotion and those filled with hate are capable of saying and doing vile things. But we need to appreciate the fact that revenge killings merely perpetuate the cycle of rage and more revenge.
Hence I would be obviously opposed to any suggestion that advocates of the death penalty should be executed for crimes against humanity. Ideally they should be locked up, or otherwise prevented from doing any more harm, but it is quite counter-productive to make martyrs of them. As it would be foolish to make a martyr of war criminals.
Quite aside from the fact that undermining respect for human life, by advocacy of the death penalty, goes a long war towards legitimating the very war crimes it purports to abhor.
Bill Bartlett Bracknell Tas