I do so because on this subject of human life, which is to me the heart of the controversy, I find the abolitionist inconsistent, narrow or blind. The propaganda for abolition speaks in hushed tones of the sanctity of human life, as if the mere statement of it as an absolute should silence all opponents who have any moral sense. But most of the abolitionists belong to nations that spend half their annual income on weapons of war and that honor research to perfect means of killing. These good people vote without a qualm for the political parties that quite sensibly arm their country to the teeth. The west today does not seem to be the time or place to invoke the absolute sanctity of human life. As for the clergymen in the movement, we may be sure from the experience of two previous world wars that they will bless our arms and pray for victory when called upon, the sixth commandment notwithstanding.
我之所以反對廢除死刑是因為我認為爭論的核心問題就是有關人的生命的問題，我覺得廢除派的論點是矛盾的、狹隘的，是不堪一擊的。廢除派用一種溫文爾雅的口吻宣傳著所謂人生的神圣，好像只要把它說成是一種絕對的東西就能使一切還有點道德意識的反對者緘默不語。可是大多數的廢除派都是那些把年收入的一半用于制造戰爭武器以及以研究完備的殺人手段為榮的一些國家。對于那些十分明顯地將國家武裝到牙齒的一些政黨，一些善良的人們競也毫不猶豫地贊成。在今日西方，祈禱人的生命絕對神圣不可侵犯似乎既非其時，亦非其地。至于這場運動中的教士，根據過去兩次世界大戰的經驗我們可以確信，一經召喚，他們便會為軍隊祝福，為勝利祈禱，管他什么第六條圣誡。
"Oh, but we mean the sanctity of life within the nation!" Very well: is the movement then campaigning also against the principle of self-defense? Absolute sanctity means letting the cutthroat have his sweet will of you, even if you have a poker handy to bash him with, for you might kill. And again, do we hear any protest against the police firing at criminals on the street - mere bank robbers usually - and doing this, often enough, with an excited marksmanship that misses the artist and hits the bystander? The absolute sanctity of human life is, for the abolitionist, a slogan rather than a considered proposition.
"哦，我們意指的生命不可侵犯是就國內而言的。"好極了，那么你們這場運動還要反對自衛的原則嗎?所謂人的生命絕對不可侵犯，就是聽任殺手對你為所欲為，你即使手邊有個火鉗也不可用來還擊，因為這樣你可就是殺人。再者，我們何曾聽說過這樣的抗議：警察在街頭向罪犯--通常不過是一些搶劫銀行的匪徒--開火時，一些子彈擊中行路人，而不是那神通廣大的匪徒。廢除派所謂人的生命神圣不可侵犯，并不是什么深思熟慮后的主張，只不過是一個口號而已。
來源:可可英語 http://www.ccdyzl.cn/Article/201705/509295.shtml
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