Do you believe in punishment?

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Michee's picture
Do you believe in punishment?

Do you believe that a person can't get away with their crimes?

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ImFree's picture
Punishment is a deterrent to

Punishment is a deterrent to crime, a cost for bad behavior. Unfortunately, as long as a christian repents before dying they are not penalized. Not much of a deterrent. While alive, they do have to worry about man-made laws; otherwise they might run wild pillaging and raping as represented in the bible. Surprisingly enough you hear some christians admit that.

Jeff Vella Leone's picture
Do you believe that a person

Do you believe that a person can't get away with their crimes?
NO

I AM SURE that people can get away with their crimes.
When you have enough connection, you can get away with everything, just like some priests did.(even popes).

Pitar's picture
"Do you believe in punishment

"Do you believe in punishment?

Do you believe that a person can't get away with their crimes?"

_____________________________________

Two distinct thoughts.

Punishment - Yes. I believe in punishment. Pain is a deterrent. It always has been. I think the punishment should befit the crime but that has always been in poor judgement by men. Here in the USA a man (in antiquity) could be sentenced to death for stealing another man's horse. In virtually every case of horse theft the guilty man was hung by the neck until dead or hunted down and summarily executed by men of questionable judicial and moral integrity.

In one island nation I was visiting a man killed his wife for infidelity and was given the court-ordered punishment of 6 months probation.

Crime and Punishment has always been a difficult arena for man to adjudicate.

Getting away with crime -

That's a normal state of man's self-deceit. One man offing another for whatever excuse he will offer will not relieve him of the punishment for taking another man's life. Two combative armies doing the same thing are exonerated out of hand for mass killing. Both situations are subject to that commandment "Thou shalt not kill" without special addendum or circumstance or waiver. Both scenarios are usually with god-fearing men. The former will face a lifetime of incarceration or death, the latter multitudes will face no such punishment. So, yes, countless people escape punishment for capital crimes in direct juxtaposition to the moral codes of their own professed belief systems.

Personally, I would use whatever weapon(s) of mass destruction best neutralized an army of men with murderous intent. If it meant the elimination of an entire region (source of ill-intent) then so be it. Yes, that would include men, women and children. Women support their men and the children will eventually fill the shoes as replacements with the same murderous intent. Regardless of my atheism, I find no validity in murderous behavior in the name of a god. If anything, I find it treasonous and as such it invalidates any claims of belief in a god or religious purpose thereof.

"Praise the lord and pass the ammunition" is not found in any religious works I'm aware of yet it was a man of the cloth who coined the expression.

Travis Hedglin's picture
"Do you believe in punishment

"Do you believe in punishment?"

As a concept or an absolute? I believe that the most effective way we have to enforcing the law is by force, which pretty much makes punishment the only viable option. That does not, however, mean I believe that people don't avoid punishment at times.

"Do you believe that a person can't get away with their crimes?"

I am sure that some people have gotten away with murder.

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