Witnesses watched through a window at an Alabama prison as Kenneth Eugene Smith became the nation's first person to be put to death using nitrogen gas.
There was no way to perform the execution correctly. N2 asphyxiation makes no sense as an execution method – it will only be painless if the person didn’t realize what was about to happen or if they were cooperative. If not, it’ll mean the person will fight until death. They will be put in a situation of endlessly expanding pain until they can bear it no more.
The idea that an execution method is humane if it would be painless for a cooperative victim, ignoring the experience that will be had be an uncooperative victim, is just… really dumb. It’s incredibly dumb.
There was no way to perform the execution correctly.
Sure there is, fill an airtight prison cell with nitrogen on a random day while he’s asleep. People go out soundlessly to CO poisoning all the time like this.
Yep, except that has two huge flaws – first, how do you make sure he really doesn’t know its coming so isn’t inflicted with other kinds of torture like prolonged sleep deprivation (because sleep = death). Second, how do you maintain the spectacle for the onlookers that have bloodlust in their hearts, who these executions are designed to make happy?
A human can only make themselves stay awake for so long, maybe extend the range toa month.
Tough luck, the bastard is gonna die anyway? I doubt most people who want vengeance are as bad as the death row inmates who have murdered people with their own hands, most normal people can’t handle seeing death right in front of them. I don’t see this as an actual hurdle to getting it done.
Dumb comment. The truth of the matter is, the person will just pass out if done properly. Is it a psychological horror? Sure. But it’s not “painful” like death by slow hanging painful.
I’m yet to read the article, but if something went wrong, it was not the method, but the humans executing the method.
“I haven’t actually bothered to learn what happened, what’s going on, or made any effort to imagine the situation fully or understand what people are saying, but I think other people are dumb.”
My understanding is that the feeling of suffocation is only due to a build up of CO2. So filling a room (or a mask I guess in this case) should not cause that feeling. Existential dread, fear, etc are obviously not affected, but it shouldn’t feel like they’re being strangled and can’t breathe.
You’re right though, in that obviously doing something inhumane such as killing people can’t be made humane. Its a paradox. And with our system specifically, I don’t think there is a way to do the death penalty “right” because the system isn’t just. Or even effective and logical.
The pain will come from the desire to not be killed, i.e., holding your breath and resisting breathing the gas.
Just because the gas ITSELF doesn’t necessarily cause pain does not mean the METHOD isn’t going to be immensely painful. Judging the technique based on how an unknowing or cooperative victim will perform is just so dumb when it is an execution method.
I mean, we don’t even know that this execution caused pain. Pain is subject and the only guy who can comment on it is dead.
All we know is that the guy was thrashing around and then seized on the bed over the course of the 20ish minutes from administering the gas to when he apparently went lifeless.
But it sure sounds like it was excruciating to me.
There was no way to perform the execution correctly. N2 asphyxiation makes no sense as an execution method – it will only be painless if the person didn’t realize what was about to happen or if they were cooperative. If not, it’ll mean the person will fight until death. They will be put in a situation of endlessly expanding pain until they can bear it no more.
The idea that an execution method is humane if it would be painless for a cooperative victim, ignoring the experience that will be had be an uncooperative victim, is just… really dumb. It’s incredibly dumb.
Sure there is, fill an airtight prison cell with nitrogen on a random day while he’s asleep. People go out soundlessly to CO poisoning all the time like this.
Yep, except that has two huge flaws – first, how do you make sure he really doesn’t know its coming so isn’t inflicted with other kinds of torture like prolonged sleep deprivation (because sleep = death). Second, how do you maintain the spectacle for the onlookers that have bloodlust in their hearts, who these executions are designed to make happy?
A human can only make themselves stay awake for so long, maybe extend the range toa month.
Tough luck, the bastard is gonna die anyway? I doubt most people who want vengeance are as bad as the death row inmates who have murdered people with their own hands, most normal people can’t handle seeing death right in front of them. I don’t see this as an actual hurdle to getting it done.
Dumb comment. The truth of the matter is, the person will just pass out if done properly. Is it a psychological horror? Sure. But it’s not “painful” like death by slow hanging painful.
I’m yet to read the article, but if something went wrong, it was not the method, but the humans executing the method.
“I haven’t actually bothered to learn what happened, what’s going on, or made any effort to imagine the situation fully or understand what people are saying, but I think other people are dumb.”
Go away.
Ok. Nice call out. Let’s read the article, then.
Edit: Done. I stand by my comment.
My understanding is that the feeling of suffocation is only due to a build up of CO2. So filling a room (or a mask I guess in this case) should not cause that feeling. Existential dread, fear, etc are obviously not affected, but it shouldn’t feel like they’re being strangled and can’t breathe.
You’re right though, in that obviously doing something inhumane such as killing people can’t be made humane. Its a paradox. And with our system specifically, I don’t think there is a way to do the death penalty “right” because the system isn’t just. Or even effective and logical.
The pain will come from the desire to not be killed, i.e., holding your breath and resisting breathing the gas.
Just because the gas ITSELF doesn’t necessarily cause pain does not mean the METHOD isn’t going to be immensely painful. Judging the technique based on how an unknowing or cooperative victim will perform is just so dumb when it is an execution method.
I saw other people say that later in the thread. Do we know if that’s why this execution caused pain?
I mean, we don’t even know that this execution caused pain. Pain is subject and the only guy who can comment on it is dead.
All we know is that the guy was thrashing around and then seized on the bed over the course of the 20ish minutes from administering the gas to when he apparently went lifeless.
But it sure sounds like it was excruciating to me.
It’s not dumb, they want them to suffer. People who come up with this shit like to pull wings off flies and legs of spiders and watch them squirm.
I think you’re confusing the victims of the inmate for the actual inmate.
No. I don’t. Funny thing they have those traits in common.