The implementation of the death penalty is a tricky and controversial subject. When writing for the New Republic in 1985, Edward I. Koch and David Bruck shared their judgement on capital punishment. They addressed the topic from two opposing viewpoints and challenged the death penalty’s effectiveness and place in American society today. Edward I. Koch served as mayor of the state of New York for eleven years and was involved in public service for a total of twenty years. In his essay titled, “Death and Justice: How Capital Punishment Affirms Life,” Koch was adamant that the death penalty affirmed the highest value for human life by being the highest penalty (Koch 486). Professor of law David Bruck countered this idea in his response essay, “The Death Penalty.” Bruck expressed his opinion that the death penalty creates “an attitude towards human life that is not reverent, but reckless”
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He quoted a convict from South Carolina named Joseph Carl Shaw who stated, “Killing was wrong when I did it. Killing is wrong when you do it.” Koch additionally quoted another man, who minutes before his death in Louisiana shared the sentiment, “It makes no difference whether it’s citizens, countries, or governments. Killing is wrong” (Koch 483). Koch dismissed these inmate’s statements by implying that the men should have been more aware of the consequences of their actions, and that if they were, they would not have committed their crimes. He used these quotes in an attempt to show that the death penalty reinforces the idea that there will be retribution for violent actions. However, Bruck drew on these quotes to point out that they do very little to validate Koch’s reasoning. In fact, they do the very opposite by signifying not only an inmate’s remorse, but also their attempt to point out the flawed logic of the death penalty
He quoted a convict from South Carolina named Joseph Carl Shaw who stated, “Killing was wrong when I did it. Killing is wrong when you do it.” Koch additionally quoted another man, who minutes before his death in Louisiana shared the sentiment, “It makes no difference whether it’s citizens, countries, or governments. Killing is wrong” (Koch 483). Koch dismissed these inmate’s statements by implying that the men should have been more aware of the consequences of their actions, and that if they were, they would not have committed their crimes. He used these quotes in an attempt to show that the death penalty reinforces the idea that there will be retribution for violent actions. However, Bruck drew on these quotes to point out that they do very little to validate Koch’s reasoning. In fact, they do the very opposite by signifying not only an inmate’s remorse, but also their attempt to point out the flawed logic of the death penalty