I seldom comment on the really hot political issues in my blog. But I am making an exception. I admit that the capital punishment issue is complex - and I am not here claiming to be for or against it. But Gary Bauer, in his 'End of the Day' email, wrote something with which I resonate. With all due credit to him, here is a portion of it:

"The U.S. Supreme Court indicated this week that it is deeply divided over a challenge to the way most states execute prisoners by lethal injection.  It seems some of the justices are distressed by the procedure in which three drugs are administered in succession to knock out, paralyze and kill prisoners sentenced to death.  “I’m terribly troubled by the fact that the second drug seems to cause all risk of excruciating pain,” said Justice John Paul Stevens, who thinks this method of execution may violate the 
Constitution’s 8th Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment.  
I couldn’t help notice the rich irony here.  Why is it that those judges most concerned with whether or not prisoners convicted of horrible crimes like murder and serial rape feel pain during an execution always tend to be 
the same judges who most adamantly defend the perceived right for abortionists to perform their ghastly deed?  Science has established that babies inside the womb feel excruciating pain during an abortion after 24 weeks of gestation. That pain, moreover, can be even more intense than if it were performed on a child outside the womb, because pain inhibitory mechanisms (fibers which dampen and modulate the experience of pain) do not 
begin to develop until 32-34 weeks of gestation.  All this would be comical if it weren’t so serious." I can't say it any better.