Topic: We should abolish capital punishment

Argument: Capital punishment is asymmetrically enforced against people of color and religious minorities.

Argument: capital punishment is barbaric, ties up a lot of resources, and doesn't really act as a deterrent to major crimes.

Argument: capital punishment is basically taking the life of an unarmed, helpless person.

Argument: Capital punishment is beneficial to society: you are removing a murderer from society who could possibly kill again, even while in prison.

Argument: capital punishment is cruel and in some cases people have been punished for crimes they didn't commit

Argument: capital punishment is cruel and unusual punishment.

Argument: capital punishment is excessive, gruesome, and ties up resources unnecessarily.

Argument: capital punishment is expensive and inhumane.

Argument: capital punishment is good at keeping dangerous criminals off of the streets.

Argument: Capital punishment is hypocritical by engaging in the behavior it is trying to prevent.

Argument: capital punishment is inhumane and often an unfit punishment for the crime

Argument: capital punishment is inhumane. by killing someone legally, you become as bad as the criminals.

Argument: capital punishment is irreversible, there are too many miscarriages of justice to justify retention of the penalty.

Argument: capital punishment is just ineffective. most states that still use it as punishment actually have higher murder rates and crime than those that do not.

Argument: capital punishment is morally wrong, since it can never be acceptable to take a human life; applying an act of violence as a response to an act of violence is not a solution.

Argument: Capital punishment is more humane than leaving someone to rot in a prison cell for the rest of their life and other punishments like solitary confinement.

Argument: Capital punishment is more humane than other extreme punishment like permanent solitary confinement or guard abuse.

Argument: capital punishment is needed as a deterrent to murder.

Argument: capital punishment is not a moral way of dealing with crime.

Argument: Capital punishment is nothing more than state violence directed towards a person in vengeance, making it morally wrong and an unjustified form of punishment.

Argument: capital punishment is often the only viable response to certain crimes and should be upheld

Argument: capital punishment is preferable to costly appeals that the taxpayers have to cover.

Argument: capital punishment is seen as a cruel and inhumane way of treating prisoners.

Argument: capital punishment is simply a waste of resources, and it does not serve as an effective deterrent to major crimes.

Argument: capital punishment is the best method to ensure that a murderer does not kill again

Argument: capital punishment is the best way of stopping a murderer from killing again.

Argument: capital punishment is the most cost effective method of dealing with sociopaths

Argument: Capital punishment is the most fitting retribution for heinous crimes such as serial killings or child rape - and sometimes even it isn't enough.