reply to post by capod2t
For the most part I believe criminal motivations are immune to deterrence.
The criminal either doesnt care if he's caught or even wants to get caught (see "street-cred" and gang initiation), the criminal doesnt think he
will get caught, the criminal commits the crime in the "heat of the moment" (in which case there is no thought present, certainly not one of
deterrent consideration, or the criminal is just bat # nuts and doesnt care about or understand the action/consequences at all.
Also, if we are to believe that this system is set up to deter there would be plenty of notice and education surrounding that.
Ask any kid or adult what the consequences are of any given crime and the answers are all over the place. Murderers getting out in 5, armed robbers
getting death, tax evaders serving 30 to life, etc....
The general population has no idea what the consequences really are for any crime pointing to complete ignorance of the system that is alleged to
deter.
Where is the deterrent in sending a child to time without explanation? Where is the deterrent in suspending an insubordinate employee without a clear
explanation?
I believe our entire vengeance based punishment system is absurdly flawed entirely. Inconsistent punishment is just one problem. You cant train a dog
with inconsistent practices. The other problem is dumping offenders of one sort into close proximity with offenders of another sort. Making soft
offenders hard doesnt help anyone. Then there's the lifelong stigma attached proving that there is no such thing as "time served" leaving all
offenders regardless of crime locked in life long prisons. Then there's the host of non-crime crimes stemming largely from prohibition and popular
opinion.
And, of course the topic at hand, ignorance among the population is proof positive there are no deterrent qualities in the current system.
All we have here is a vehicle by which barbaric bloodlust can be satisfied. No deterrence, no lessons learned, no rehabilitation. Just a population
foaming at the mouth for someone to suffer.