History Memes

this claim seems pretty dubious

This is a fairly high level overview of some of the claims. Whilst none of them seem to be recorded with the rigour we'd expect of scientific observation now-a-days, the case of Languille, in particular, strikes me as at leadt somewhat persuasive. They conclude with a note which says:

neuroscientists now believe that it is possible for severed heads to experience a short period of consciousness – perhaps as much as 15 seconds – before death.

Whilst there's no source provided for that, and that's not 30 seconds, I think it suggests that the stories of heads remaining consious and reacting are, at least, plausible.

If I had to choose, I’d probably pick this over the guillotine as well.

If someone is making me choose how they kill me, you'd better believe I'm going to pick the quickest way that leaves them with the most clean up possible!

If you want to humanely kill someone, an overdose of morphine or similar will do it. The problem is that it’s too pleasant a way to go out to qualify as capital punishment; no society with the death penalty will give its traitors and child-murderers the kind of death reserved for a beloved old dog.

If you’re in the business of executing those condemned on the direst charges, you’d typically want it to be as unpleasant as your values still count as civilised rather than barbaric. Of course, values drift, and as we have seen large parts of the world reject capital punishment altogether, it’s conceivable that societies that currently execute criminals by, say, lethal injection or something similarly clinical are an episode of mass psychosis away from bringing back medieval ordeals.

Yes, most shooting type executions target the heart, which likely leaves an even linger period of consiousness. As far as I can tell, the reasoning has as much to do with squeamishness as logic. I belueve sone places use a sedative, then a single shot to the back if the neck, but I'm not certain.

Frankly just administering a massive dose of an anesthetic before any of these methods would address the main problem. Then you only have to work out how to administer it without that being a torture of it's own.

Franticaly leafs through the law books, "cruel and unusual punishment", "cruel and unusual punishment"... I'm sure I saw something about it in here...

That's pretty devious, but you'd have to report they'd been executed eventually, or everyone would realise it did nothing.

Solid Black Mirror episode pitch

Unless it's a farm

I mean I'm arguing to people who seem intent to see justice as a maximization of suffering. So yes the argument is a bit disingenuous.

I'm just pointing out that even if that would be your point in administering justice that they are going about it the wrong way.

if killing people is your way of not having to deal with them ever again you should look into the concept of martyrdom. For instance thee this ancient Jewish person who is frightfully persistent even though the Roman government inflicted the death penalty upon him.

Correct. The 1% should be drawn & quartered.