Subject:
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Criminal Justice
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.off-topic.debate
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Date:
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Sun, 18 Aug 2002 14:17:29 GMT
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Viewed:
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212 times
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Hi all,
There is a recurring notion, in some debates here and in conversations in real
life, about justice that concerns me. It seems that there are many people who
think that it is "just" for someone who does something bad to have something
bad done in return, but I keep not understanding the motivation. Why is this
retributional justice a good thing?
There is sometimes the matter of rehabilitation and sometimes containment, and
I understand both of those as social goals. But above and beyond these ideas,
it seems like an awful lot of people just want wrongdoers to be punished as a
kind of moral-aesthetic right. Even if no one is helped by the experience.
This link describes a tragic crime that illustrates such a conflicted justice
in my mind. http://www.freedebra.org/ Even as I examine this understanding of
justice, and I see that her punishment is pointless -- no one will be helped by
it, I have a hard time getting behind this movement to free her. _I_ feel some
weird need to have her punished.
What gives? Do you all feel this too? Is it good or bad? What should happen
in this specific case, and more importantly in the general case of when a
criminal doesn't reasonably need to be rehabilitated or confined for the public
safety.
thanks for your time,
Chris
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Message has 2 Replies:
 | | Re: Criminal Justice
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| (...) Well, speaking only for myself, I am more interested in restitutional justice -- which has little to do with our current conception of justice. When things can be made right through some monetary or labour means, I think we should force the (...) (22 years ago, 18-Aug-02, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
| | | Re: Criminal Justice
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| (...) Well, you've tempted me out of my shell again... I just came up with some ideas which may explain our issues with justice, especially in these most difficult cases. While I didn't read the specific case at hand, from a quick visit to the (...) (22 years ago, 19-Aug-02, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
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