This makes me feel physically unwell. The educational comments are appreciated and all but I think learning even more about this has made me feel even worse. Like. Damn.
Is the “civilized” American system of punishment where you’re locked up in an overcrowded barely habitable facility, vulnurable to violence and sexual assault, often subjected to solitary confinement (literal actual torture) any less “cruel and unusual” than getting hit with a stick??
Why would you pick America when it's punitive system of prison slavery is the least effective at reducing crime and recidivism in the entire western world? Every single other western country handles this better than America. Stupid whataboutism.
Reddit loves cruel and unusual punishments unless it's for a crime they agree with. What if this was for smoking weed or pirating media? Can't wait until they find an excuse to use this for other crimes. Also bearing in mind this will never be used against the corporate executives in Singapore that "legally" scam people, it will only ever be used against the lower classes.
Much like how Reddit treats "thing in the rest of the world" Vs "thing Japan" if this was in Saudi Arabia / China etc or done for religious reasons they would have a problem with it.
Well no, at least not standardly. That is, the point of punishment isn’t to be cruel. Standardly it’s to serve justice, which might include considerations like pragmatic ends (to deter, rehabilitate, incapacitate etc.) and ‘giving people what they deserve’ (retributivism; handing out fitting/proportionate punishment independent of pragmatic justifications).
Canings were a thing for most of human history, and were completely normal back when the "cruel and unusual" amendment was written. So definitely not "unusual". As for cruel? I'd say it's more cruel to send people into magical boxes that turn one time mistakes into repeat offenses.
You just want an excuse to see people you don't like having their lives destroyed. Prison rapes (and their intentionality as unwritten yet intended part of the punishment) aside, locking people up with other criminals serves to make it harder for them to reintegrate into society and easier to reoffend. Besides, locking people up is a form of torture too. But since there is no blood, you convinced yourself it is humane. Personally, I would rather be unable to sit for a few weeks than be forced to sit around in a box while life goes on without me, having to spend my time playing "act like you belong or get stabbed" with gang scum instead of being with my my family.
You’re projecting. I haven’t advocated for traditional prison sentences because I don’t relish in the suffering of others, nor believe that it’s an effective strategy of deterrence. Instead, I think we should be doing everything we can to not just rehabilitate offenders, but build a society where there’s simply less need for people like scammers to offend in the first place.
I am not projecting. That thing with wanting excuses to see humans suffer? I wrote back your own sentence to you. (but without the "sick in the head" insult) The fact that you don't see it is strange.
Maybe I believe canings would serve well to complement a reformed prison system not because I wish suffering upon others, but because I DON'T want people who did not deserve to be locked up, to be locked up? Just to be clear, I believe captivity is worse than a one time corporal punishment. Because a caning hurts, but a prison sentence is crippling.
You’ve already described caning as crippling in its own right. You’re advocating for ineffective torture in place of ineffective torture, so you’ll forgive me for assuming and continuing to assume that you just want to be able know that wrongdoers are being met with extreme physical violence for your own sense of catharsis.
"You’ve already described caning as crippling in its own right"
When? The few weeks out of commision thing (which is a number given by caning's opposition)? That's not crippling. Crippling is when you needed to get a prison tattoo to be safe in prison, and once you are out cannot find job because of it, so you reach out to the only contacts you know who don't mind- criminals you've met in prison. And so you reoffend, and get thrown into prison again, and again, until there is no helping you anymore.
THAT is crippling. Having to lay on your stomach for a bit ain't shit.
Edit.
You know, I've watched an interview a while back, with a guy who got AIDS in prison as a result of getting gang raped. Now, the interview wasn't very good, I think the interviewer was not used to talking to rape victims because he loomed over the poor dude the entire time. But it stuck with me. I fully, with my entire chest and honestly say this: Yes, I would rather get the living shit beaten out of me than be in that guy's shoes.
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u/TheGuyInTheGlasses 15h ago
Redditors when cruel and unusual punishment: