Will executing Holmes curb gun massacres?

Vengeance is the only plausible reason for executing James Holmes for the 12 murders in the Aurora theater.

Ironic that such arguments often come from those who oppose abortion, and trust in their Christian Bible. They support gun ownership, and disregard the admonition that the lord says vengeance is his/hers.

There has not been even the slightest sign that the failure of our mental health care system, and inadequate gun control laws, will be improved to prevent copycat killings.

In many cases, such as Columbine High School, the issues were blurred because the young gunmen killed themselves.

Time after time gunmen are able to get their weapons because checks are inadequate or law enforcement does not have enough staff to do the job.

Also, time after time, the killers have acted in ways that indicated they were ready to kill. Frequently they go on the Web.

Whether James Holmes is actually executed, after the jury returns the expected death penalty, is far from certain.

The cheerleading media sought to portray the issue as a simple one: did he know the different between right and wrong.

The “McNaughton” rule is from 1840s England, and is based on non-scientific principles. In a country that will not accept that global warming is a threat it is no surprise that it is not understood that people can kill even with a cop at their elbow.

Just as with guns, it is almost as if people have a constitutional right to be crazy.
And what is right or wrong can be a philosophical or legal term, but not science. Was it right to drop nuclear bombs on Japan. Decide for yourself. Many who took part in that decision did not agree but did not even try to stop it.