Poll: Should prison serve as punishment, or should it be used for rehabilitation instead?

[Biosophilogical]

A punishment, rehabilitation will do nothing, if someone is a natural born killer/thief, they will continue to do it, you can't change personalities and belief.

I personally support torture for criminals.

Punishment is equally meaningless though; It does nothing to prevent crime, and can make criminals act even worse later on if they are actually going to be released.
It doesn't undo what they did either.

Basically, it's just an excuse for being almost as bad as the criminals.
But whatever. I've long since given up expecting fairness or rational behaviour from people.
(most Punishment is neither in any real sense - It's only practical value is if it functions as an effective deterrent, but the people who would be put off by deterrents can usually be dealt with more effectively by other methods anyway.)

Hurray, someone on the first page who isn't bat-shit evil-insane ... and who also shares my view of punishment.

OT: Pain is pain, no matter who it is caused to. Pain, (or punishment/damage/etc) should always be used minimally. If preventing someone from killing someone else only requires a stern talking to, then don't go punching them in the face. sure, both may work, but one is less painful tha the other, and is therefore the better option. As for prison/criminal 'justice[footnote]How I hate that word, it sounds more like people dressing up vengeance to feel better than anything 'just' being done[/footnote]', if the person is a minor offender, it can act as a deterrent for future crimes (and also deters people from doing it in the first place), and if the person is a crazy-arsed serial killer, than prison either keeps them out of society (and therefore prevents them from killing others) until they can be rehabilitated, or it stops them from causing harm to others if they can't be helped.

So yeah, minimal-effective pain/punishment, because justice is just vengeance performed by the law.

 

[Ironic Pirate]

A punishment, rehabilitation will do nothing, if someone is a natural born killer/thief, they will continue to do it, you can't change personalities and belief.

I personally support torture for criminals.

Yeah, but what if they aren't?

If they're a "natural born killer" then they'll kill people regardless of punishment, which would mean you might as well use reform, so as to help the people who aren't born like that.

I support rehabilitation.

 

[Condemned]

When I look at some of the comments on here about how we should murder or torture prisoners, I find myself happy at the thought that none of those people have any say in the justice system and did not follow any educational courses on the subject matter, or they wouldn't be saying all this immature nonsense.

 

[xXGeckoXx]

A punishment, rehabilitation will do nothing, if someone is a natural born killer/thief, they will continue to do it, you can't change personalities and belief.

I personally support torture for criminals.

Torture costs money.Kill the bad ones rehabilitate the good ones. No punishment you are just giving them a home and food and health care at the cost of the government how does that make sense.

 

[Audio]

Capital Punishment or Solitary Confinement
Forensic science is fairly advanced now so less time locking them up till it can be proven. There are enough humans on the planet. Taking the life of a few wouldnt be missed.

 

[Leg End]

Capital Punishment or Solitary Confinement
Forensic science is fairly advanced now so less time locking them up till it can be proven. There are enough humans on the planet. Taking the life of a few wouldnt be missed.

Poe's Law in effect.

Please tell me that is a joke because of the .

If not, I go D8.

 

[Moromillas]

Neither of those. It should be used as a place for those that can't exist and function as a part of society, for the good of the community. If rehabilitation is truly possible then that's good too.

 

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

I suppose the optimist in me wants to believe that that it's rehabilitation, and the bastard in me wants those who commit the more heinous crimes to have some sort of punishment.

In reality, I suspect it's mostly about damage control. We're imperfect beings, our adrenal glands are big, and that only diminishes our already flawed capacity for reasoning...we're born faulty by the standards we impose on ourselves.

The dichotomy of belief(between peoples, as well as on an individual basis)is probably why the reality is so middle-ground. We don't want to be too strict, lest we be barbaric. We don't want to allow prisoners luxury...because they're being punished(in a non-violent way).

Locking them away in these "middle-ground" conditions allows us to not have to think about them or interact with them, whilst keeping our collective consciences appeased.

 

[Iwana Humpalot]

I shall choose the wild card; BOTH. Criminal need to be punished from their crimes but rehabilitation would be good after the punishment.

 

[Vykrel]

you can't change personalities and belief.

yes you can, you just dont believe in trying... there are plenty of criminals that turn a new leaf

 

[MikhailGH]

Both. Problem is it depends on the case. But I am actually quite against the punishing aspect. Rehabilitation is the way to go if you really want to achieve something. I have never seen punishment work on someone.
On the other hand, when someone does something gruesome (like murdering someone on purpose) he deserves punishment too.

 

[Exo-Mike]

Punishment - the basic idea is you break the law you go to prison

Rehabilitation - You broke the law, got caught and are punished. Don't do it again

In my opinion rehabilitation only works if the person wants to change, while good if they dont want to change and reoffend then i say there should be a suficient punishment.

Personally I've always been a fan of trial by ordeal, prove your innocence by defeating the Rancor

 

[TheLefty]

It depends on the crime. Relatively crimes like non-violent theft, "victim-less" crimes likes prostitution and drug use, and similar "small time" stuff should be rehabilitation. But then the killers, the people who ruin lives should be punished.

 

[CrystalShadow]

A punishment, rehabilitation will do nothing, if someone is a natural born killer/thief, they will continue to do it, you can't change personalities and belief.

I personally support torture for criminals.

Punishment is equally meaningless though; It does nothing to prevent crime, and can make criminals act even worse later on if they are actually going to be released.
It doesn't undo what they did either.

Basically, it's just an excuse for being almost as bad as the criminals.
But whatever. I've long since given up expecting fairness or rational behaviour from people.
(most Punishment is neither in any real sense - It's only practical value is if it functions as an effective deterrent, but the people who would be put off by deterrents can usually be dealt with more effectively by other methods anyway.)

Hurray, someone on the first page who isn't bat-shit evil-insane ... and who also shares my view of punishment.

OT: Pain is pain, no matter who it is caused to. Pain, (or punishment/damage/etc) should always be used minimally. If preventing someone from killing someone else only requires a stern talking to, then don't go punching them in the face. sure, both may work, but one is less painful tha the other, and is therefore the better option. As for prison/criminal 'justice[footnote]How I hate that word, it sounds more like people dressing up vengeance to feel better than anything 'just' being done[/footnote]', if the person is a minor offender, it can act as a deterrent for future crimes (and also deters people from doing it in the first place), and if the person is a crazy-arsed serial killer, than prison either keeps them out of society (and therefore prevents them from killing others) until they can be rehabilitated, or it stops them from causing harm to others if they can't be helped.

So yeah, minimal-effective pain/punishment, because justice is just vengeance performed by the law.

I despair the most about people's attitudes when I come across those that think being the victim of someone else's misdeeds is an open invitation to do anything you feel like back to them.

Self-defense is one thing, but that doesn't mean retaliating in a way that is out of all proportion to what this person is doing (or trying to do) to you.

You can't trade human rights off against each-other arbitrarily, or they lose all meaning.

 

[hawkeye52]

if its used as a rehabilitation then theres a chance that the criminal will be reformed if its used as a punishment then its just an occupational hazard

 

[LCP]

Why not both?

 

[[.redacted]]

In various places such as in the US, they already use prisoners as slave labourers.

Well, ok, as I understand it they choose to work and are perfectly free not to if they'd prefer to stay in solitary confinement for the length of their sentence instead.

It's not quite the same - also your quote is screwed up =P

 

[Kuilui]

A punishment. Most people that are in prison are their for a VERY good reason. My step dad is a prison guard and he tells me stories of these people and the way they talk or what they have done. Some people are just born rapists, murderers, thieves, etc. Their is no "fixing" them because that is simply what they are. I say most still because some people just got screwed over by the legal system and nothing more or their were circumstances that could be seen as. Well you get my point.

 

[Trolldor]

So, I am taking an intro to sociology class (because I like that type of stuff, and I need the social science credits), and we recently started talking about crime and deviance. One of the topics mentioned was whether the prison should serve as punishment, or should it be used to rehabilitate the prisoners. So I was curious: what does the Escapist community think? Should prison serve as punishment or rehabilitation?

I did a little reading in my psychology class and negative reinforcement doesn't work.

Justice is a deterrent, prison should be built on rehabilitation.
Not an easy road, a harsh and confronting road that deals with the truth, but rehabilitation nontheless.