If I had a gun in my hand, as I once did, and saw someone raping/hurting my child/friend/sister, I would probably shoot. But this would actually stop them.
I notice though that most of the crimes you mention are pretty much built into the system. It seems like the thing to focus on is to prevent the crime rather than punish it.
The psychopaths though probably need isolation.
Joanna
andie nachgeborenen wrote:
>--- joanna bujes <jbujes at covad.net> wrote:
>
>
>
>>And then there's always "Mercy is the highest form
>>of justice," being
>>clear that mercy cannot take place without
>>understanding. None of this,
>>of course, is of any use in a society -- such as
>>ours -- which is based
>>on crime.
>>
>>
>>
>
>An idle sentiment. You feel no more merciful than
>anyone here do towards war criminals, corrupt
>officials, corporate thugs who poison whole
>communities, white collar hoodlums who loot pension
>funds and rob the widow and the orphan, cops who
>torture suspects, and the general rifraff who
>constitute some of my paying clientele -- when they
>caught. And do you feel merciful to the murderers and
>gangsters whom I spend much of my time defending
>(zealously!) pro bono?
>
>The rights of defendants should be scrupulously
>respected, and they deserve good representation --
>that's my job! --, and but with that very important
>limitation, do you want them loose if they are guilty
>and the evidence is there to show it?
>
> Faced with real bad guys who cause real harm, you
>think what all decent people think, these people
>deserve a lot of due process, and if they are
>convicted, they should be punished. Proportionately,
>of course, not insanely, the way we do it in America.
>It's only in the abstract that you can talk this way.
>
>jks
>
>
>
>
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