The idea that the sole aim of punishment is to prevent crime is obviously grounded upon the theory that crime can be prevented, which is almost as dubious as the notion that poverty can be prevented

The argument that capital punishment degrades the state is moonshine, for if that were true then it would degrade the state to send men to war... The state, in truth, is degraded in its very nature: a few butcheries cannot do it any further damage.

The theory seems to be that as long as a man is a failure he is one of God's children, but that as soon as he succeeds he is taken over by the Devil.

Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard.

The common argument that crime is caused by poverty is a kind of slander on the poor

What restrains us from killing is partly fear of punishment, partly moral scruple, and partly what may be described as a sense of humor