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Originally posted by tyfon
I'm a Norwegian and not angry. He is in jail. He will never get out and he knows that.
To treat him like an animal would only reduce our society to his level.
We have something called human rights here that seem to be missing from a lot of other societies.
I understand that it might be a hard concept to understand, but it is a cornerstone in the way most of us think about other humans. Good and bad, they are still human.
Originally posted by tyfon
I'm a Norwegian and not angry. He is in jail. He will never get out and he knows that.
To treat him like an animal would only reduce our society to his level.
We have something called human rights here that seem to be missing from a lot of other societies.
I understand that it might be a hard concept to understand, but it is a cornerstone in the way most of us think about other humans. Good and bad, they are still human.
I read in the newspaper the other day that most of the families were happy and relieved that he got his sentence. A recent poll by phone showed that 90ish percent were happy with it among the general population.
There is some debate about the general prison lengths, but so far the political parties feel that the current system of containment in extreme cases and rehabilitation in the rest is working good.
I'm on my tablet right now, but I can provide link to the poll when I get on a real computer tomorrow morning (it's 9pm here)
Originally posted by CALGARIAN
Actually... I found a source that shows these pics:
Gitarama has the most overcrowded penitentiary in the world housing over 6000 prisoners in a building design for only 500 people. Inmates are so hungry they bite chunks of meat out of each other to survive. The jail is so congested that inmates have no option but to stand all day and all night and many suffer from rotting feet. The floor is moist and filled with raw feces. Gangrene slowly sets on inmates toes, they turn black and fall off later. Inmates that are not so lucky to only have toes fall off, doctors have no choice but to amputate lower limbs to save the persons life. The unbearable stench is so horrible that it can be noticed a half mile away upon arriving to the prison. The survival rate is low due to the violence and the diminishing conditions in the building where one in eight prisoners will die from disease or violence. Interesting Fact 1: Most of the prisoners are locked up for genocide committed against Rwanda.
Originally posted by benrl
Well the question is, what is jail?
Is it a punishment, or is it correctional in nature.
Should he be forced to break rocks all day in the sun, or is Rehabilitation the goal?
Originally posted by benrl
What ever the answer, I know that here in America Our system is deeply flawed and needs reform.
I am not saying it should be like NORWAY, Simply that Americans are kinda of the last people that should be commenting on prison conditions in other countries as we clearly have no clue how to do it properly.
Originally posted by Kandinsky
To me, these Scandinavian justice systems seem very enlightened.
In general, my reaction to Norway's lenient, rehabilitation-focused justice system is not that the Norwegian sense of retributive justice is underdeveloped and defective, but that America's is. Norway has one of the world's lowest murder rates. America is worst in the developed world. Maybe we could learn something. Perhaps we should wonder why our detention facilities aren't more like Halden. Of course, we couldn't afford it, as we imprison such a disgracefully huge portion of our population, and in often sub-human conditions.
Nothing can be done to bring Mr Breivik's victims back to life. The most compelling, non-mystical case for vengeance is that it offers some consolation to those wracked by desolation and fury at the murder of their loved one. But the point of a criminal justice system in a civilised society is not the mental peace of those collaterally wounded by crime. All evidence supports the proposition that Norway's criminal justice system is both practically and morally superior to America's. If America's abominably cruel and unjust system delivered results even remotely comparable to Norway's enviable level of civil peace and order, then there might be some reason to take seriously American animadversions against Norway's short sentences and humane prison. But we don't. We're not even close. So Americans should just shut up and watch. It could do us some good to see how a civilized society handles such a horrifying crime.