I have often thought that the punishment should mirror the crime….if a person sticks another hands in hot grease then that is his punishment………of if a man beats his wife then his punishment should be someone to beat him…..and…..well you get where I am coming from……so what am I getting at? Newser is running a article about this type of thing….
An eye for an eye—a spine for a spine? A judge in Saudi Arabia has been asking hospitals whether or not they can sever the spinal cord of a man convicted of paralyzing another man in an attack with a cleaver, the AP reports. At least one hospital has refused on ethical grounds. The victim’s brother says “blood money” will not be an acceptable alternative.
Under Saudi law, victims are allowed to request that their attackers receive the same injuries they did, although the country’s leaders have been trying to clamp down on extreme punishment. A man had his teeth pulled out because he knocked somebody else’s out in a fight, and “we have also had cases of people sentenced to blindness because they have caused the blindness of another person,” an Amnesty spokesman says. “But never anything involving a spinal cord.”Read more: http://www.newser.com/story/98521/saudi-judge-seeks-to-sever-mans-spine.html#ixzz0xBAygCKC
I have mixed feeling about this story….but I guess in the long run I would agree with the punishment…..
Yes. Good post. My feeling (as with the death penalty) are exactly as yours – mixed!
I think there are very different situations that could lead up to something like this and I hope that the judge in such situations would have and use discretionary powers to rule appropriately…
For instance: if the attacker was basically defending himself and just happened to be a better shot with a cleaver, then there’s no way I’d frankly even find him guilty let alone support such a punishment – equally, for me to support it there would not only have to be no doubt, but I’d want several independent witnesses and a video showing that it was deliberate and without mitigation – well, sort of – you get my point I’m sure.
All that said, as a young man I argued in debate for the abolition of the death penalty and it is this fear of “mistakes” being made that still makes me wary of this sort of punishment – However, these days and in view of the way society has “progressed” (NOT), I think I was wrong in that when there is absolutely INCONTRAVERTIBLE evidence of both guilt AND intent, then I think I do favour justice that delivers an eye for an eye style punishment – and that includes the death penalty!
😐
Yep, in the case of an accidental result, I would say that your idea is appropriate. in the death penalty I say if it is a MUST then it should be televised on ALL channels…the only way to NOT see it is turn off the tube….and it should be a murderer with a 45 to the head….quick and cheap.
I had an idea a couple of decades ago, when crime was rampant in the US, that every 10th arrestee should be executed, no matter the crime…from jay walking to murder…then maybe people would thinbk twice before doing something illegal.
Yeah – I’m not sure about the idea though… I mean – it’s a real bitch if you happen to be the tenth jay-walker…
How about changing it somewhat? It would reduce crime of course, but it would be very satisfying – every tenth crime, execute a politician or a bureaucrat???
Good one….may I compile the list?
Be my guest – 😆