Capital/Corporal Punishment -- How Far is Too Far? Not Far Enough?

The inspiration for this post came from a from a fellow poster here at ATS expressing his/her opinion that the rapist of a 3 year old child should be placed in some kind of rehabilitative program to "help" him fix his problem as opposed to laying the proverbial smackdown on him in terms of corporal punishment.

While I very much respect said poster's right to have his/her opinion, I could not help but be stunned that anyone could honestly say such a thing. However, this philosophy of "fix em, don't punish em" seems to be becoming more and more prevalent as days go by. This thought lead me to actually sit here and consider what this practice of "fixing" instead of "preventing" might do to this country if it is allowed to go much farther.

First, I had to ask myself; What good would come out of trying to "fix" a child molester or murderer as opposed locking them up for life or (even better) ending their life for them.



The Good:

-Child molesters/murderers don't get their delicate sensibilities damaged.
-Some liberals get to feel like they made a difference.
-More psychologists have a more steady income.
-A "human" life is spared.

These are really the only "good" things I can think that come from the practice of "fixing" these "people".

Naturally, if I am going to consider the good, I MUST consider the bad.

The Bad:

-Continued overcrowding of our prison/institutional system.
-Psychologists have a more steady income.
-Fear of punishment ceases being a deterrent.
-Killers, rapists and molesters end up back on the street.
-People who would normally not commit the crime solely because of fear of punishment no longer have a reason to not commit the crime.
-More childrens' (familys') lives are ruined.
-Roads to legalized child molestation/pornography are possibly paved.
-Murder/molestation become labeled as "illness" and not "crime" and, in turn, possibly become acceptable practice in society.
-Victims have more of a chance of becoming criminals by feeling they must take the law into their own hands.



Now naturally, all of the above (good and bad) are my opinion. However, I do feel that the opinions I stated above are quite correct. Sure, there could possibly be more good and bad to add to the list, but, for sake of not making this thread 3 pages long; I'll leave them as they are.

Now, of course, the commentary.


I honestly cannot understand what logic would lead someone to the conclusion that a child molester or murderer isn't deserving of AT LEAST the same fate as what befell their victims. Sure, you can use the "two wrongs don't make a right" philosophy all day long, but, how many more wrongs are created by allowing one wrong to go unpunished?

If you allow someone to get away with murder or child molestation by simply sending them to be pampered and "rehabilitated", you are not giving them (or anyone else) ANY incentive to not commit the crime, either in the first place or again. However, if you make it known that any convicted child molesters or murderers will be dealt with swiftly and harshly, you at least have the deterrent of fear of pain/death/loss of freedom working against these human pieces of garbage.

Maybe I am a bit insensitive to their "rights" and "needs" here, but, if anything, I feel we are far too lax on them as it is. A lot of these guys get away with these crimes with a few years of jail time and/or time in a mental hospital while the victims have to suffer for a life time. Murder and molestation are NEVER single victim crimes. Anytime some piece of garbage molests a child or kills someone, the lives of EVERYONE close to the victim are also changed FOREVER for the worse. I just don't understand how anyone could ever endorse anything less than equal punishment for the criminal.

Perhaps what we really need is to implement our own corporal punishment system in this country. Maybe if we create a new and fast system of punishment on par with flogging and whipping that other countries use, we can catch the would be criminals BEFORE they get a chance to ruin someone else's life. It is pretty much consensus that most criminals PROGRESS in the level of their crimes through time (and after many a stint in prison). Maybe if we put the fear of prolonged severe pain in them we could actually keep a few of them from ever committing their "ultimate" crime.



Mod Edit: Do Not Use Profanity -- Please Review


Jasn

[edit on 5-11-2007 by chissler]

I personally dont think a child molester can be "fixed." Once a pervert, always a pervert. But I think they should be given a second chance. But if they screw up a second time, I am in favor of castration or the afforementioned capital punsihment.
I personally think that the death penalty is not used enough. If it were up to me, I would have weekly hangings on the courthouse lawn. Good way to reduce prison populations.
If you go out in a right state of mind and intentionally kill someone or rape a child, I don't think you should get 5-10 years in prison, you should be put six feet under asap.

Wasn't it Willie Nelson (along with Toby Keith) that said "A man had to answer for the wicked that he done.
Take all the rope in Texas, find a tall oak tree,
Round up all of them bad boys, hang them high in the street,
For all the people to see."

I agree completly. Like I said, weekly hangings. Seeing a corpse swinging from a tree might change my mind about killing and/or raping someone.
Just my opinion though.

Perhaps I'm a bit too Conservative when it comes to Capitol punishment, but oh well. As far as I'm concerned, if you're convicted of a crime like rape of a child or some other serious offense; you get serious jail time. SERIOUS.

If you are convicted of murder, you get the death penalty, end of story. Naturally there would be some variance in this, but for the most part, that's how I feel.

If you don't like it, just don't commit crimes and you won't have to worry about it.

If all we are going to do is "help" people and release them, what motivation is there to follow the law?

I think you're behind the curve. The concept of rehabilitation had its heyday in the 1950's and 60's. Since at least the 80's the "get tough on crime" position has prevailed in public opinion and in the prison system. Has it been successful? The U.S. now has a higher percentage of its population in prison than almost any country in the world.

Those who advocate some efforts to rehabilitate prisoners usually do not mean a slap on the wrist and a few sessions with a shrink. They're mostly talking about prison industries and education that will allow prisoners to find jobs when they get out and hopefully make them less likely to reoffend. Little effort has been directed toward psychological rehab in recent years.

As far as an insanity defense is concerned, it is rarely successful. The M'Naughton rule stipulates that a defendant must prove he or she was unable to distinguish between right and wrong at the time of the offense. Even severely mentally ill people often know their actions are not considered right, so few get off. Hinkley, the man who shot Ronald Reagan, is now in a mental hospital but he probably will be for life.

I am not opposed to the death penalty. I am not opposed to sentences of life in prison without parole. There are some anti-social personalities (also called sociopaths) who have no empathy or conscience and cannot be rehabilitated. But I do not think the solution is to kill more people more often or to engage in ever more draconian punishments of prisoners. The public canot be tougher on crime than it already is.

Maybe it's time to give some thought and attention to the possibility that some prisoners, especially juveniles under the age of 16, are not completely evil and beyond redemption. Maybe the "liberals" everybody makes fun of only want to re-evaluate what does and does not work in terms of rehabilitation. To explore the possibility that some, at least, of our ever-increasing prison population can actually be safely returned to society after they have paid their dues.

For a look at the evolution of the federal prison system from the last century until the present, read "The Hot House: Life Inside Leavenworth Prison" by Pete Earley.