Death Penalty in the USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Death Penalty in the USA - Essay Example   The courts have instead been granted discretion to decide the method to be used, leaving this form of punishment susceptible to abuse. Solution: Uniformity and Specificity of Laws It is important for states to have laws that more or less contain similar provisions especially with regards to topics of a controversial nature (Sutton, 2010). For instance, almost all countries in Europe have abolished these laws, based on Article 2 of the  Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union  which expressly prohibits capital punishment. This goes to show that countries in this region are reading from the same script – something that other countries should strive to achieve. The laws also need to be more specific especially on the methods to be used – some countries use hanging, lethal injection, electrocution, gas chamber, and firing squads. Problem: Fitting the Crime There has been a huge debate as to whether the death penalty is the proper punishment for certain c rimes (Feser, 2011). The question is whether this punishment fits the crime. In most cases, a convicted murderer is sentenced to death, but many critics have asked why the same punishment is not meted out against drug dealers whose crimes may have led to the death of many. Serial rapists and pedophiles are often not sentenced to death despite the unspeakable damage to women and children. Solution: Just Deserts It would be advisable for countries to determine whether the punishments meted outfit the crimes. The principle of proportionality states that the penalties should be proportionate in their severity to the gravity of the crime committed (Belrad, 2008). Problem: Failure to Exercise As previously stated, most countries contain provisions for the death penalty, however, most do not exercise them, thus making these provisions redundant. In most cases, these sentences are translated into life-long ones. It should be noted that there are crimes which are punished by life-long senten ces. Does this mean that capital offenses are reduced to the level of these offenses? Solution: Exercise the Law to the Letter This problem can be solved by exercising the law to the letter because failure to do this beats the whole purpose of having laws in the first place. If it is not compulsory for the courts while meting out punishments to adhere to the laws, then why should the civilians care? The law should be enforced to its full letter while also taking into consideration its spirit. Problem: Controversy There has been a lot of debate on this form of punishment.  

Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Research Paper Example Besides, he played these instruments so well that he would be invited to perform a solo in public. It was at a local travelling, when he first encountered an instrument that resembled a cello that was played a Catalan musician; in fact, this musician played a cello-stung broom handle (Avsharian, 1). Later, he requested his father to build a cello for him to practice playing and his request was granted. When Pablo Casals reached eleven years, he got a chance to heat a real cello performance that was performed by a group of travelling musicians; thus, this led to a decision to be dedicated to this instrument. Pablo Casals was enrolled in the Escola Municipal de Musica, where he was taken by his mother in 1888 and he studies cello and piano theory; later in 1890, he was discovered at age of thirteen where he was performing in second –hand sheet music store in Barcelona (Avsharian, 1). Later, he decided to come up with his version of six suites, thereby leading to an extraordinary progress as a cellist. In fact, this was seen when he got a chance to present a solo performance in February 23 1891 in Barcelona, and five years later, he graduated with honours from Escola Escola Municipal de Musica (Johnston, 1). ... He achieved this by playing through basics and entire controls of his elegant tones along with their interpretations. Casals made several tours around the world, where he had a chance to make foundation such as the Ecole Normale in Paris, and Orquesta Pau Casals in Barcelona (Baldock, 36). He had a chance to present a solo performance in December 17 1899 at Lamoureux during a concert in Paris and this led to significant publicity and crucial acclaim (Avsharian, 1). Casals made numerous tours in Spain and Netherlands; in fact, he made these tours accompanied by a pianist Harold Bauer, and made his initial visit to America in 1901, and later went South America in 1903 (Avsharian, 1). Due to his involvement in politics, he received a threat of execution after the outbreak of the civil war in Spain, whereby he was threatened by Franco regime (Avsharian, 1). However, during the Second World War, ha took a chance to offer numerous concerts that were beneficial to Red Cross and other Catala n exiles (Baldock, 36). After renunciation of the Franco regime, he commenced a self-imposed exile in 1946, later in 1950 be re-emerged and continued to promote peace through his music (Taper, 23). During his time in exile, he went to Catalan village located at Prada de Conflent in France, which was near the border of Spanish and France; in fact, between 1939 and 1942, though he made spontaneous appearances as a cellist (Baldock, 36). However, these performances were conducted in unoccupied regions of southern France and Switzerland. Nonetheless, he expressed severe opposition towards dictatorial regime of Francisco Franco in Spain. In fact, this opposition was portrayed through his refusal to appear or perform in countries that supported the authoritarian Spanish government.