In my opinion, the root of the problem is the lack of empathy, the me first attitude and the acceptance of violence that has permeated our society. How does this happen?
Violence is so easily accepted in video games, tv programs, movies. The news carries so much. People are desentizied to it, and to some extent it can feed ideas to borderline personality types who act on it. How may copycat Columbines were there after the original event? I'm not saying that these things should be censored or that they are wrong, but it's out there more.
Some of us work hard to raise intelligent, thinking caring children who have empathy for others and goals in life. For all of us that do, there are others who could give a rat's a$$ what their kids do, and even worse those who abuse them. Or those who elevate their little darlings on pedestals and never thwart their desires. This is also abuse, just not formally recognized as such.
To me there seems to be more and more remorseless young people out there with disregard for human life. Can these people be rehabilitated? Obviously prision doesn't reform them, it just gives them better contacts. The thought of it doesn't deter them. Most think they won't be caught. If only it were as easy as in colonial times and we could do as the British and ship them off to another continent.
The death penalty has it's place as a component of a civilized legal system. There are laws that govern it's use, the accused has a trial and is convicted by a jury.
I don't see how it can be said that this country is less civilized because of this. If vigilanteism prevailed..that would be uncivilized.
You can use components of religion to either support or defend the death penalty. The ten comandments are one document, you have to look at the whole body of the theology in context. I can quote you a single passage of scripture that in and of itself would appear to support just about whatever cause you wished to defend. That's what happens when you take things out of context, so I agree that the "WWJD" debate isn't one to have in this forum.
Violence is so easily accepted in video games, tv programs, movies. The news carries so much. People are desentizied to it, and to some extent it can feed ideas to borderline personality types who act on it. How may copycat Columbines were there after the original event? I'm not saying that these things should be censored or that they are wrong, but it's out there more.
Some of us work hard to raise intelligent, thinking caring children who have empathy for others and goals in life. For all of us that do, there are others who could give a rat's a$$ what their kids do, and even worse those who abuse them. Or those who elevate their little darlings on pedestals and never thwart their desires. This is also abuse, just not formally recognized as such.
To me there seems to be more and more remorseless young people out there with disregard for human life. Can these people be rehabilitated? Obviously prision doesn't reform them, it just gives them better contacts. The thought of it doesn't deter them. Most think they won't be caught. If only it were as easy as in colonial times and we could do as the British and ship them off to another continent.
The death penalty has it's place as a component of a civilized legal system. There are laws that govern it's use, the accused has a trial and is convicted by a jury.
I don't see how it can be said that this country is less civilized because of this. If vigilanteism prevailed..that would be uncivilized.
You can use components of religion to either support or defend the death penalty. The ten comandments are one document, you have to look at the whole body of the theology in context. I can quote you a single passage of scripture that in and of itself would appear to support just about whatever cause you wished to defend. That's what happens when you take things out of context, so I agree that the "WWJD" debate isn't one to have in this forum.
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. I, like many here, see little value to society in these habitual offenders, but I think that there are jobs they could be put to that could help them to pay us back for what they took from us. Couple hard labour with miserable living conditions and I think that prison would be a deterent. If somehow we ran out of useful jobs for them to do, find them something pointless. Of course what makes me think of this is that I have to analyse some 1000+ data files over the next few days and it's repetitive, soul destroying work, really the kind of thing fit for a convict 