評論
打印
What we accept, and what the abolitionist will clamp upon us all the more firmly if he succeeds, is an incoherence which is not remedied by the belief that second-degree murder merits a kind of second degree death; that a doubt as to the identity of a killer is resolved by commuting real death into intolerable life; and that our ignorance whether a maniac will strike again can be hedged against by measuring "good behavior" within the gates and then releasing the subject upon the public in the true spirit of experimentation.
現在人們所接受的、而廢除派一旦得勢必將更加堅決地強加于我們的是一堆邏輯上的紛亂，這種紛亂決不會因下述信念而得以消除：既然有二級謀殺，就應當有二級死罪;如果對兇手不能完全確定而存有疑問的話，只要將死刑減輕為難以忍受的活罪，存疑便解決了;倘若我們無法預料一個殺人狂是否會再度傷人，那也只需衡量一下他在監獄里的"良好表現"，然后以真正的實驗主義精神將他釋放出來。
There are some of thoughts I find I cannot escape when I read and reflect upon this grave subject. If, as I think, they are relevant to any discussion of change and reform, retain as they do on the direct and concrete perception of what happens, then the simple meliorists who expect to breathe a purer air by abolishing the death penalty are deceiving themselves and us. The issue is for the public to judge; but I for one shall not sleep easer for knowing that in England and American and the West generally a hundred more human beings are kept alive in degrading conditions to face a hopeless future; while others- possibly less conscious, certainly less controlled- benefit from a premature freedom dangerous alike to themselves and society. In short, I derive no comfort from the illusion that in giving up one manifest protection of the law-abiding, we who might well be in and of these three roles- victim, prisoner, licensed killer- have struck a blow for the sanctity of human life.
以上就是當我看到有關這個重大問題的討論并對它進行思考時所感到的不可避免的想法。依我看來，如果這些想法同任何基于對客觀存在的直接、具體的感受而進行的關于變革和改良的討論不是毫不相干的話，那些認為廢除了死刑世界就會變得純潔的天真的社會改良主義者們就真是自欺欺人了。這個問題本應由社會全體來公斷，但我作為社會的一分子，對目前的社會現實很感不安，因為我知道，在英國、美國乃至整個西方通常總有百數以上的人被迫在極其惡劣的條件下茍延殘喘，所面對的只不過是一個毫無希望的未來;而另外一些人一～他們可能是頭腦更糊涂，但無疑是更無力自控的人--則得到提前獲釋的便宜，這無論對社會還是對他們自己都只會帶來危險。總而言之，我決不贊賞這樣一種錯誤觀念：只要取消一種對守法的良民顯然起著保護作用的法律措施，我們這些要么成為受害者，要么成為囚徒或不受約束的殺人兇手的人就算是為維護人的生命的尊嚴貢獻出了一份力量。
