Over at the business, there's some deeper analysis of capital punishment, including some figures on other countries around the world that still use it.
For some additional reading, there are several pieces analyzing the scientific evidence on the supposed deterrent effect of the death penalty. Fagan's testimony to the NY state legislature notes that most studies don't separate between types of murders. A crime of passion, for example, might be less susceptible to deterrent effects than a calculated murder.
Basically, I think capital punishment is more reflective of a desire for revenge than justice. I also feel that people didn't get interested in the deterrent effects until they were under the gun to produce some good reasons for having capital punishment other than "that's what we've always done." Capital punishment is like many "traditions" in America that should be allowed to go the way of slavery, literacy tests at the polls, or institutionalization of the mentally ill.
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