podie the podium

here's my speech. nonoy thought it was mediocre, but i couldn't disagree - i had no idea in my head at that time and when i did get one, i was unsure of how to write it (due to lack of time). now i've revised it, and here it is. please let me know what you think.

Romeo Moran III

J-A

Good morning.

I believe that children are our future. Then, they grow up to become adults, and eventually mess up. They smoke crack, kill people, et cetera, and then usually end up in juvie, a halfway house, or worse, jail. Or if things are really worse, they rape their stepchild, get caught, then go to court. Afterwhich, the holier-than-thou judge, with his almighty gavel, declares the two most feared words in the whole judicial system of whatever country in the world: the death penalty.

It is supposed to end a person’s life because he or she has committed a mortal sin. From the most primitive forms – hanging and stoning to death – to the modern methods of the electric chair and lethal injections, the death penalty varies a lot. Though, they are all conceived and designed for just one purpose: swift justice and ultimate vengeance.

But I ask: Is it fair at all?

I think it is not. Everyone deserves another chance, even if all the second chances are used up. Even the Holy Father, almighty ruler of heaven and earth, the judge of judges, finds it in His heart to forgive man in his every error, even if he is not willing to repent. I think we must be like this as well, even if the sin committed is the gravest. After all, isn’t murder, which the death penalty is, a mortal sin as well?

Of course, that doesn’t mean that these death-row prisoners are automatically off the hook. Criminals are still criminals. Incarceration is the option, along with rehabilitation, but it must be proper incarceration and not degrading.

The death penalty is inappropriate in today’s world of modern thinking and values. Death penalty is basically a violation of human rights. There are lots of other ways, I believe, to set even the worst offender straight. We must realize that taking someone’s life as payback for sin is not the right method of delivering justice, nor does it send any positive message to people. I say to you, once more, that death penalty should be abolished.

Thank you.