It is true that France did use the guillotine and killed many people with it. However, that was quite some time ago and people, countries and the world learn and move on to better behaviour. Just because many years ago a country had the death penalty does not mean it is valid or justifiable today.
In fact most countries have in historic times had the death penalty. However, we have become more civilised. We have discovered that there are alternatives and that as a civilised society killing somebody (or any reason) is not acceptable.
Some people raise religion and what the bible says about such things. Personally I consider that the wording used in the bible is not particularly relevant to the rights and wrongs of the death penalty. Whilst not religious myself, for many religion does play a major part in the debate from the perspective that the bible represents a moral code some people chose to live by. I probably adopt a similar moral code, though for different reasons. The reasoning behind one's moral code is personal ? what is important is peoples attitude to taking somebody else's life.
Certainly Europe is against the death penalty. There are constraints on extradition from European countries to the US that (for an extradited prisoner) require the US to give guarantees that the death penalty will not be used. Whilst not an issue that causes public protests, etc. many Europeans consider the US still has some way to "move forward" to join the rest of the world on such issues.
(In the above it is not my intent to denigrate the importance of religion).
It is true that France did use the guillotine and killed many people with it. However, that was quite some time ago and people, countries and the world learn and move on to better behaviour. Just because many years ago a country had the death penalty does not mean it is valid or justifiable today.
In fact most countries have in historic times had the death penalty. However, we have become more civilised. We have discovered that there are alternatives and that as a civilised society killing somebody (or any reason) is not acceptable.
Some people raise religion and what the bible says about such things. Personally I consider that the wording used in the bible is not particularly relevant to the rights and wrongs of the death penalty. Whilst not religious myself, for many religion does play a major part in the debate from the perspective that the bible represents a moral code some people chose to live by. I probably adopt a similar moral code, though for different reasons. The reasoning behind one's moral code is personal ? what is important is peoples attitude to taking somebody else's life.
Certainly Europe is against the death penalty. There are constraints on extradition from European countries to the US that (for an extradited prisoner) require the US to give guarantees that the death penalty will not be used. Whilst not an issue that causes public protests, etc. many Europeans consider the US still has some way to "move forward" to join the rest of the world on such issues.
(In the above it is not my intent to denigrate the importance of religion).