From a comment by Pascal:
"what kind of civilization are we, if we declare it okay to be barbaric toward some people "because they deserve it"?"
You said it.
I just saw in an episode of "Monk": A black woman shot and killed a guy who many years earlier had been a drunk driver killing her parents and blinding her. She said: "That guy getting a year and a half for vehicular manslaughter, that is not justice. This is justice!"
No darling, that's not justice, that's revenge.
Though you're not the only one who gets them mixed up. As evidenced by the fact that there are still a couple of countries left in the world which have the death penalty.
I agree.
ReplyDeleteWhat I find particularly interesting is how the relatives of murder victims decide to "forgive" the perpetrator when he's in the death chamber and they can be absolutely sure that he'll be dead one minute later. That's not forgiveness, it's satisfaction.
Same thing with "justice" - by many, jail is seen as purely a penalty when the original idea was (or should have been) to make sure the person in question cannot be a danger to society and has enough time and opportunity to understand that what they've done was wrong. Or maybe I'm dreaming.
In any case I can't see anything Christian about revenge and penalties - I thought forgiveness and a chance to redeem themselves would be...
Then there's this new tendency to provide public registers of people who have been in jail before - so they have done wrong, they were penalised, and they are still marked for the rest of their lives. Might have to do with the fact that the US "justice" (should it be called "revenge"?) system doesn't do much to get people to repent and get redeemed, but somehow the sharia seems more human: you steal, you lose your hand and it's done and over with - you've paid for it and that's it (that this is being perverted by the powers that are is no question, I'm just saying...).
Of course, it's always simpler to put aside revenge when you're not the one blinded by understandable emotions.
ReplyDeletePlease don't ask me how I would react in certain extreme situations. I cannot know for sure (life is not a Hollywood movie), and I definitely don't want to take the test. A person hurting enough to wish revenge has my sympathy and understanding. Even if they don't have my approval.
God, I hope I'll always have a clear mind in crisis times.
"there are still a couple of countries left in the world which have the death penalty."
ReplyDeleteI love your optimism, man. "A couple"?
Of course, there are a couple that monopolize more than 90% of executions. China and the good ol' U.S. of A. Among the other most remarkable (in numbers) are Saudi Arabia and Iran. Some prestigious club, hunh?
"somehow the sharia seems more human"
Sometimes, yes. (In the theory.) Let's just say that when you've done your time or had your punishment, it should be over. Save, of course, for the notoriously relapsing child abusers, who clearly should be TREATED, more than punished ad aeternam. Some do seek treatment, disgusted by their own selves, at times requesting surgical castration. (I know I would, if I couldn't contain myself! "Better cut off your hand than let it drag you into the Fire.")
I don't give a damn if they are monstruous perverts, all I care about is that they don't harm innocents. What one does to his own soul is his bloody business. This is why we believe in Hell : because we are considered mentally and spiritually responsible for our own choices, and Mankind is not really mandated to judge our nature. (Here's aiming at homophobic legislations!)
"I don't give a damn if they are monstruous perverts, all I care about is that they don't harm innocents."
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more.
I think people who have a fixation on punishing the guilty, have a problem.
"I am the Punisher. If you are guilty, I'll punish you. That's what I do, to protect the innocent. Like my family that the mafia wiped out."
ReplyDelete[© Marvel Comics.]
Frank,
ReplyDeleteThanks for contributing.
Though our philosophies differ, I must say I sometimes like your comic, and the movie too. (John Travolta deserved what he got.)
Funny, I get that a lot.
ReplyDeleteMany people's rejection of all violence suddenly becomes very relative when their life is unjustly threatened...
Travolta? Whatever that guy gets he deserves!
Now, if you'll excuse me... It's nice chatting with you good people, but I have to get arrested tonight (and therefore find me a very brave cop!) in order to infiltrate Ryker's Island penitentiary. Somebody needs me there. Might take some time... So, see ya in a couple!
I knew that I had seen this quote but couldn't remember the exact words or who it was from. Funny that I should come across it again today:
ReplyDelete"In taking revenge, a man is but even with his enemy; but in passing it over, he is superior."
- Francis Bacon