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Crimes should be reported to the police, not the public. A public report of a crime is a punishment (see the Biblical story of Cain, public markings for adulter

Crimes should be reported to the police, not the public. A public report of a crime is a punishment (see the Biblical story of Cain, public markings for adultery in colonial New England, etc.). The sex offender registry in the U.S. reports crimes to the public, and at best, it's nothing but a source of FUD ("Find the sex offenders on your block!"). At worst, it's a way of branding offenders for life, keeping them from holding even completely innocent jobs. Don't forget you can get put on the registry for something as trivial as urinating in public. Give me any reason to believe this system will lead to a better end than the sex offender registry and I'll change my mind.

jamesaguilar 16y ago
The problem with the sex offender registry is that its implied claim ("this person has at some time in the past committed a crime that would lead us to believe they are a sexual danger to others") is often false. That is, the actual crime would not lead a reasonable person to believe that the offender present a danger to them. In the event that it were always true or the burdens added by the label were always justified, there would be no wrong in reporting it to the public. > for "life" You mean for the duration of their stay in the registry. > Give me any reason to believe this system will lead to a better end than the sex offender registry and I'll change my mind. Ends are all well and good. But to me, a more important issue is that the public has a right to state facts about publicly committed acts in any forum they desire and which allows it. If people believe that it is beneficial to air their concerns about other people's driving in this forum, no tentative evaluation of the quality of the ends can be permitted to preempt that right.