Y'know, it seems we have shootings all the time here in the US. It has become almost normal, and we've become almost numb to it.
Punishment is meant not only to punish, but to teach as well. In the case of the penal system, rehabilitation is a word not commonly used anymore.
I do not believe that the threat of punishment is a deterrent to people who would otherwise be inclined to commit a crime of such a magnitude. If that was the case, we wouldn't have vicious crimes at all. There are, I think, some people who are just plain evil. I have no idea what to do with them. But the rest can find assistance with rehabilitation and job placement.
There are so many other variables that one post and a reply can't cover nearly all of them, of course; for instance, why would a drug dealer care about working at minimum wage when he can get all the much more for selling drugs? You're spot on about needing to identify the source of the problem. Personally, I think inequality of opportunity has something to do with it. I don't know how to fix that, either.
It's a delicate and not so delicate topic I guess. It's not a pleasant thinf to think about.
Interestingly, some who have been victims find forgiveness and others don't. I can imagine what it must be like for a woman to be brutally raped or a kid to be molested, but many can because it happens all the time...I don't feel that those who perpetrate these crimes are worth anything at all, there's no place in society for it - the act of it is heinous and anti-social. Is the threat of punishment (as we know it now) a deterrent? No, because these crimes still occur.
Yes, there's variables, and no a few words are not enough to adequately discuss this topic...I wanted to raise it though, to see what happened. There's always going to be those who sway one way or the other on it...I guess depending on their own experiences, or lack of them.
You know, I actually agree with this, 100%. You're right, it's a delicate/not-delicate, and I wasn't comfortable going that far in the comment, so I'm rather glad you did.
There's a lot of shit out there, and some of it probably ought to be handled ruthlessly. Non-violent issues, though, probably don't warrant a medieval response. It'd be nice if we had a society where people didn't feel that was their only recourse.
There's political correctness and then there's human values. I'm waiting for someone to defend the position of a rapist...I mean really? I've heard people do it here, the same with paedophiles and it blows my mind.
I understand your stance on the non-violent thing and, in an ideal world, that could work. But, in a society that glorifies it (movies/video games) and seems to love it so much...well, I'm not so sure. People say fighting violence with violence isn't the way...I wonder what standing in a line holding flowers would have done in Poland when the Nazi tanks rolled in back on 1 September 1939. I know many people who say they abhor violence, when it suits them, but they'll watch MMA, or play a violent video game. Humans are simply weird.
I don't know any of the answers really, I just have my opinions based on perceptions and experience. I can say for certain though, that if, for instance, someone home-invaded my house and raped my partner they had better kill me first as I'd not be merciful or kind to them if they did not. I'm that type of guy I'm afraid, some don't understand and some totally agree. I'm ok either way.