There are many strategies when it comes to relaying a point to a reader.  It can be attacked from an emotional perspective.  There is also the option to assert credibility and then attempt to pass off what the author states as being correct.  One other way to appeal to the reader is through statistics and facts.  The author may choose one of these options and go forward with it, but they are more often than not used together and are intertwined.  One of the arguments may be the central focal point, but it is essentially pointless without the other two acting in junction with the first.  One main discussion point in American society today is the topic of the death penalty.  Many are wondering if executing criminals actually prevents other crimes from taking place.  "The Death Penalty Deters Crime" is an article, written by David Muhlhausen, where he uses the appeal of logos to show and convey his argument.  Muhlhausen uses the appeal of logos in his article to much success when discussing how capital punishment deters crime, and while his use of logos and even ethos is effective, he may have been better served to incorporate more pathos into his argument. 

Speaking strictly in terms of logos, the author throughout the article states, analyzes, and also explains multiple research findings.  He discusses multiple research groups and the findings they have uncovered in terms of how the death penalty is still a major deterrent.  He not only shows how capital punishment is a deterrent, but that there is about a 2:1 ratio in support of the death penalty in this country.  "First, each execution, on average, is associated with three fewer murders.  The deterred murders included both crimes of passion and murders by inmates.  Second, executions deter the murder of whites and African Americans.  Each execution prevents the murder of one white person, 1.5 African Americans, and 0.5 persons of other races.  Third, shorter waits on death row are associated with increased deterrence.  For each additional 2.75-year reduction in the death row wait execution, one murder is deterred."  Muhlhausen shows these statistics to great effect while also improving his argument.  These facts uncovered by an independent study he found are just staggering.  They certainly do improve his argument quite a lot.  If the author had not included these findings from the independent research team, his argument may not be as compelling as it had been.  He really strengthens his point by relaying this information which is in lemans terms for many people to understand the significance of the findings. 

Throughout the article, statistics are flying from every which direction. It uses not only logos but also ethos.  The two work together with one another to form a strong relationship and to make the argument much stronger.  Ethos is established in the first couple of paragraphs when the author relays many studies and statistics at the reader.  This not only shows that the author is knowledgeable and has done his due diligence in his research, but also that he is to be trusted throughout the rest of the article.  The way in which logos and ethos coexist makes the article that much stronger.  

The other appeal is that of emotion, pathos.  The author touches on this very little, but he does somewhat.  He discusses it some when he states that the death penalty actually saves innocent lives because it is a deterrent.  While he mostly focuses on logos with some ethos thrown in, this is the part where he discusses some form of pathos.  The author would have been better served to throw in some more pathos.  When discussing sensitive topics such as drunk driving, drug abuse, domestic violence, etc.  It is not uncommon for the author to incorporate a fair share of emotional appeal into his or her writing, and capital punishment is no different.  Although the statistics and figures are great and all, the author could have gotten in touch with the masses more had he touched the reader on a more personal level.  His argument has the ability to become a lot stronger with more emotional appeal if he had thrown in a sob story or two about how the death penalty should still be in affect because of innocent people being killed.  Then possibly touch on how these people being sentenced to death are not people contributing to society or something along those lines.

In terms of strengthening his own argument, Muhlhausen possibly would have been better served to leave the whole race thing out of the equation.  When reading the article, it can become a little confusing as to what point he is exactly trying to make.  The article strictly says that it will be about how the death penalty will deter crime, nothing of race.  He makes some good points, but sometimes just being straightforward and not trying to expand your thesis too far is the best policy.

The author uses all three appeals to feed off of one another and to strengthen his argument as a whole.  He starts off by making the author feel as though he is intelligent, whether or not he actually is, by rattling off statistics left and right.  Establishing credibility through numbers and seeming intelligent is an excellent combination of ethos and logos.  He then incorporates pathos in towards the latter section of the paper when he talks about how all of the research that has been done has concluded that the death penalty does deter crime.  It does not just prevent crime, but the author claims that for each execution carried out, between three and eighteen murders are prevented in the public.

Muhlhausen makes some very good points and just by reading the article it is apparent that he is a well-informed individual.  He brings forward a compelling argument for how much good the death penalty brings to the safety of American citizens.  The article does an excellent job of talking about different findings done by many different research teams across the country which have spanned decades.  He uses ethos and more importantly logos to bring about a strong argument, however if he wished to make it really compelling he could have thrown in more pathos to really connect with the reader. 

