Conduct a web research to discover which countries in the world have the death penalty and which ones have carried out recent executions.
Although more than half of the countries in the world have abolished the use of the death penalty, there are still many, including industrialized, countries that still practice this controversial form of capital punishment. The United States, a member of the G7, is among these, although many of the individual states have chosen to discontinue the practice. The most executions are allegedly carried out by China, although they refuse to divulge the true amount to the public. Countries such as North Korea, and many middle-eastern countries as well, also still practice the punishment.
Discuss your findings in your response and explain why you believe the United States should continue or abolish the death penalty.
It seems that European countries as well as Canada, some of the United States’ closes allies have essentially abolished the practice. These countries have ideological standpoints that are very similar to those of the United States. Furthermore, nineteen states in the U.S. have not taken the practice back up since the re-inception of capital punishment and four others have Governor imposed moratoriums. While these states are still in the minority, many of their courts have made the ruling that the death penalty is unconstitutional. For this reason, it should be abolished nationwide.
Do you believe the death penalty is an example of cultural relativism?
Yes, the death penalty does seem to be an example of cultural relativism. Many of the countries that still have the penalties, and those that allow the most of them in fact, seem to be traditional or eastern countries. In this way, these countries represent a different ideological perspective than many of the western countries, which are more inclined towards individualism and personal freedom. The United States is different, as the states that make it up tend to have differing ideological perspectives. For this reason, the laws tend to slowly follow other western countries. In this way, the moral standards of a culture are presented through the doctrines of their country’s laws.
