>
>>>Jealosy and hatred are of course emotions, which cannot be dealt
>>>with legally in any case.
>>>
>>
>>Sure they can. You can't stop people from feeling them. But you can
>>prohibit them from acting on them in a destructive way. jks
>
>"prohibit"? Your "prohibit" is an empty word without effective
>deterrence (and "prohibitionism" can be defined as the propensity
>to pass a law against anything you don't like and give exemplary
>punishment to a very small percentage of those who persist in the
>"prohibited" behavior).
Most people follow the law because it the law, not because they will go to jail or be fined if they don't. It is impossible to determine precisely how many of the rest are deterred, but there are studies that suggest that the promise of reliable punishment has a statistical effect, rathercomplex but real.
But deterrence can never be effective,
>even in the smallest degree, except against those who attempt a
>rational calculation of the expected cost/benefit ratio for the
>"prohibited" behavior.
Yes, and?
The whole point is that *hatred* and
>*jealousy* are extremely powerful and extremely irrational
>negative emotions.
Sure, but part of becoming a civilized grownup is learning how to temper and control your negative emotions. We're not all three year-olds.
>
>What "prohibition," pray tell, would deter an Iago from destructively
>acting on his hatred for Othello, or deter an Othello from destructively
>acting on his jealousy of Desdemona?
Probably nothing. There are a small percentage of sociopaths who simply have to be taken out of circulation. Most potential criminals are not Iagos, though.
jks
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