4 ms·

Is it better to kill an innocent or let them spend their life in jail? Given the states of our jails, I'm not sure but I think I'd prefer death.

Jtsummers 10y ago
> Is it better to kill an innocent or let them spend their life in jail? Given the states of our jails, I'm not sure but I think I'd prefer death. We can't undo killing them. We can't give them back their years, either. But depriving someone of their life entirely is worse than depriving them of a portion of their life. At least in the latter case they have a chance to go out and do something, reconnect, however painfully, with loved ones, or make new connections.
carapace 10y ago
Well, okay, when you are wrongly convicted and sentenced to life in prison you can request execution. For every other innocent person that's wrongly convicted let's not murder them against their will, eh? (Also, let's fix the jails and prisons!)
- pm90 10y ago
  Its hard to fix the jails and prisons when widespread poverty still exists in society, for the simple reason that if the prisons offer a better lifestyle than living in the society, more people would choose to go to prison.
  - maxerickson 10y ago
    There are many changes that could be made to prison without making it a better option than living free but below the poverty line.
    - carapace 10y ago
      Inverting the logic: We must let or make the conditions in our prisons be harsh, harsh enough so that poor people don't commit crimes just to get "three hots and a cot" on the taxpayers' dime. Doesn't that sound insane? Let's fix the prisons, and let's have something like a basic standard of living, below which we only let people live if they want to. I.e. so-called Universal Basic Income, or something. I think we should literally give people housing, food, water, and health care, just because.
  - deleted 10y ago
    [deleted]
patall 10y ago
But that is only your choice. Someone else might prefer to see his kids grow up. And really, do you prefer death penalty even when you are innocent when there is the possibility to be pardoned one year later? And also, it's not like you are killed immediately now, so you spent time in jail anyways. Being 20 years in jail destroys you live, innocent or not, I agree. But by killing people you are not giving them a choice either, so your argument can be negated with the same message. (Not that I am for the choice of death for prison inmates either, a terrorist for example should not be allowed to become a martyr and escape prosecution.)
pm90 10y ago
This is a difficult question. I have often thought about what would happen if for some reason I was wrongfully convicted of a serious crime (e.g. like in Shawshank Redemption). Its absolutely unimaginable for me to think of living a life such as one in prison, and in the US, even after you leave prison, your rights are severely curtailed, as are your job prospects and much of everything else. Stuff of nightmares, really.

Jtsummers 10y ago

> Is it better to kill an innocent or let them spend their life in jail? Given the states of our jails, I'm not sure but I think I'd prefer death. We can't undo killing them. We can't give them back their years, either. But depriving someone of their life entirely is worse than depriving them of a portion of their life. At least in the latter case they have a chance to go out and do something, reconnect, however painfully, with loved ones, or make new connections.

carapace 10y ago

Well, okay, when you are wrongly convicted and sentenced to life in prison you can request execution. For every other innocent person that's wrongly convicted let's not murder them against their will, eh? (Also, let's fix the jails and prisons!)

pm90 10y ago
Its hard to fix the jails and prisons when widespread poverty still exists in society, for the simple reason that if the prisons offer a better lifestyle than living in the society, more people would choose to go to prison.
- maxerickson 10y ago
  There are many changes that could be made to prison without making it a better option than living free but below the poverty line.
  - carapace 10y ago
    Inverting the logic: We must let or make the conditions in our prisons be harsh, harsh enough so that poor people don't commit crimes just to get "three hots and a cot" on the taxpayers' dime. Doesn't that sound insane? Let's fix the prisons, and let's have something like a basic standard of living, below which we only let people live if they want to. I.e. so-called Universal Basic Income, or something. I think we should literally give people housing, food, water, and health care, just because.
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]

patall 10y ago

But that is only your choice. Someone else might prefer to see his kids grow up. And really, do you prefer death penalty even when you are innocent when there is the possibility to be pardoned one year later? And also, it's not like you are killed immediately now, so you spent time in jail anyways. Being 20 years in jail destroys you live, innocent or not, I agree. But by killing people you are not giving them a choice either, so your argument can be negated with the same message. (Not that I am for the choice of death for prison inmates either, a terrorist for example should not be allowed to become a martyr and escape prosecution.)

pm90 10y ago

This is a difficult question. I have often thought about what would happen if for some reason I was wrongfully convicted of a serious crime (e.g. like in Shawshank Redemption). Its absolutely unimaginable for me to think of living a life such as one in prison, and in the US, even after you leave prison, your rights are severely curtailed, as are your job prospects and much of everything else. Stuff of nightmares, really.