Me Myself
Back to my username
1- I cant imagine a scenario in which I would steal. Maybe there is, Ijust haven´t imagine it yet 
2- I am with Luis:
2- I am with Luis:
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2 Polls
- Thread starter The Sum of Awe
- Start date
Man-made consequences.
I always thought time-out was to make kids learn not to do it again.
Draka
Wonder Woman
Man-made consequences.
I always thought time-out was to make kids learn not to do it again.
If all it took was saying, or some vow/promise to not do it again, then what would stop anyone from committing a horrible crime? What, just saying "Well, it was just that once, I promise I won't rape a 7 year old girl and then strangle her to death and chop her up and display her remains on the street in front of her house again. Cross my heart and hope to die." should justify letting the psychopath walk away without even so much as a slap on the wrist?? Just because he said he won't do it again? Any kind of punishment you think would just be revenge???
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dawny0826
Mother Heathen
1. No. I've never had the desire to steal from anyone.
2. There's no way in hell I'd want to see the criminal go unpunished.
That's true, it doesn't work that way in reality; but what if he came across evidence that he would not do it again, there isn't one that I know of but this is completely hypothetical
Draka
Wonder Woman
No. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. For every action there is a consequence, and not just man-made. Besides, let's be logical here. We're talking about dangerous and violent crimes and dangerous and violent people perpetrating those crimes. A promise, even supposed evidence that a person wouldn't commit that exact same crime again doesn't mean that they wouldn't commit another, just as horrible a crime. And a person just simply needs to pay for their wrongdoings. It's called restitution, not revenge.
PolyHedral
Superabacus Mystic
Making people pay for wrong doings only makes sense because you need to follow through (for credibility's sake) the threat of punishment, so that the behaviour is disincentivized in the first place. There's no metaphysical or overarching enforcer of "karma" - the whole concept is just the psychology we set up so that people behave themselves once society got so big that peer pressure and shame stopped working as effectively.
If you somehow had a 100% guarantee that someone would never commit a crime again, then there's no reason to punish them - the act itself cannot be reversed, and you can't make it any less likely that they'll do the same thing again.
Dena
Active Member
That's pretty vague. Am I being held captive as a sex slave in a secret basement somewhere? Or...do I just really hate the next door neighbor? As of my 30 years I have yet to steal anything from anyone.
I would be punished myself if I did anything to them so, no.
Shuddhasattva
Well-Known Member
These are two broad to answer definitively; too many factors remain unaccounted for. Anyway...
Yes, I would; but this is abstract for me. I would, without hesitation, steal from someone I knew stole from others.
What possible evidence could be shown? Hypothetically, if we live in a more technologically advanced society, and we can show with reasonable certainty that this person has been rehabilitated and is no longer a danger to others, I would feel compelled by my own code to let him go. But part of me - maybe 'most' of me, would want to see him suffer.
Koldo
Outstanding Member
This is true.
Actually, prison sentences and capital punishments ( the typical punishments for murder ) are about deterrence and incapacitation. They don't come even close to restitution. In fact, they don't even try to.
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Totally depends on why i have strong feelings against them. In the sweeping majority of reasons for having strong feelings against someone, the answer would be no.
In some, it would be a definite yes.
Is evidence here indicating that i'm ensured that they would not murder anymore?
If so, what about other forms of violence? If someone can murder a family then they can do all sorts of other violent things besides murder. If we assume that they ensured to me that they've "changed their ways", then i would want to not punish them. I'd rather let them start over and hopefully benefit themselves and others. I'm not sure whether or not i'd be able to do that in such a situation, however.
If i do punish them, then it's no different than revenge, and i have absolutely no problem with revenge. Not in general. That said, revenge in the sense that it would be for me would not be the only reason i'm doing it for.
If on the other hand, nothing is ensured, and/or nothing is addressed in regards to the possibility of other forms of violence, then i'd most likely punish them. As despite there being an evidence suggesting that they would change, it's only in one regard, and it's not even necessarily a safe bet in regards to that one thing.
Terrywoodenpic
Oldest Heretic
I do not see the connection between a dislike of someone and committing a crime.
Punishment is for something you have done, Not for something you may or may not do.
The law should take its course.
Punishment should serve two functions. one, as a deterrent to others. two, to re-educate behaviour.
Revenge is a poor reason to punish, even when understandable..
But let's say it wouldn't deterrent others at all if you did punish the man, and I do not see how it would reeducate behavior
Koldo
Outstanding Member
You are going to an extreme. You are getting too far away from reality.
Terrywoodenpic
Oldest Heretic
The purpose of prison is variously....
To protect the public
to punish
to deter others
to re-educate.
It is rare that any justice system would add retribution or vengance to that list.
Punishment is not about the "satisfaction" , "gratification" or feelings of "moral superiority" it gives to others.
1. If you could steal something from someone you had strong feelings against, and not get caught at all, would you do it? (I'm talking something big like his credit card) No, I would not. Maybe no one else would know, but I would know and I wouldn't be able to live with myself- not just for stealing but for being a hypocrite, as well. And God would know, too. Maybe I am a romantic and a sentimentalist for saying so- but I would rather make up with a person and see a person reform than to do anything bad to him or her.
2. If a criminal who murdered your family vowed and in fact even somehow showed evidence that he would not murder anymore, would you punish him or let him go? If punish: How is this different from revenge? I'd have to actually have had that kind of thing happen to me first before I could make a decision on that. Right now, no one has murdered my family, so I can very easily say that I would forgive the person. But who knows how I would feel if my family was murdered?
2. If a criminal who murdered your family vowed and in fact even somehow showed evidence that he would not murder anymore, would you punish him or let him go? If punish: How is this different from revenge? I'd have to actually have had that kind of thing happen to me first before I could make a decision on that. Right now, no one has murdered my family, so I can very easily say that I would forgive the person. But who knows how I would feel if my family was murdered?