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K1LLswitch · 06-09-2009, 01:31 AM

....and yes, I'm serious.

But please read before responding. I've been wanting to post this for a while to see what peoples thoughts are, so here goes. Please forgive the generalizations....don't want this to turn into a debate over stereotypes; more of a "how our public funds are spent" question.

Person A is a serial rapist (or whatever crime - don't care). Gets caught, convicted, and sentenced to 15 years in prison. With this comes the following:
- shelter and a place to live, in relative comfort
- 3 decent meals a day
- the opportunity to get some training and return to society with new useful skills
- access to mental help, career and life counseling

This person will then spend 8 years in prison, getting out on bail because of good behavior, and a couple years off for "double time" serve prior to sentencing. Now remember, this is a person who has:
- potentially ended or seriously F*ed up lives and relationships and caused pain that will last a dozen people their whole life
- now has the potential to repeat offend, ruining more lives and getting sent on another taxpayer funded retreat.

Person B is a normal guy, maybe a little lower on the IQ side of things. They don't have close connections with friends or family, and decide to take a job across the country to start a new life. Something happens (lost job, bad relationship, stress etc.) that causes this person to turn to drink/drugs/mental illness and they slip through the cracks, missing a few rent payments and ending up on the street. This comes with the following:
- no where to live, get clean, store your stuff or stay warm. Without a place to store your stuff, you sell it / lose it etc. without stuff, you look dirty and can't get a job.
- without a job, you can't afford food or a warm place to sleep
- if you are lucky, you get a soup-kitchen meal or two a day, and maybe a mattress on the floor of a shelter
- picking cans and food out of the trash, and the indignity of begging for spare change
- chance you'll get stabbed by some other drunk over $5 or pass out in the winter and end up losing a limb to frost bite

If this person is REALLY lucky, they wil get into a program run by volunteers / charities / churches and get a 2nd chance with some volunteer counseling and life skills teaching.

SO, your choices are:
a) Give the rapist a lethal injection and send one person per year to "prison" to get the help they need and the training / coaching to start a new
b) leave the system as it is.

Don't want this to start out as a debate for/against capital punishment, but given enough $$$ to spend on a taxpayer funded retreat for a year, who do you pick?

Thanks,

K1LLswitch

06-09-2009, 01:31 AM	#1
K1LLswitch Crash and Bang Winger Join Date: May 2008 Location: Calgary Exp:	Send the homeless to prison.... ....and yes, I'm serious. But please read before responding. I've been wanting to post this for a while to see what peoples thoughts are, so here goes. Please forgive the generalizations....don't want this to turn into a debate over stereotypes; more of a "how our public funds are spent" question. Person A is a serial rapist (or whatever crime - don't care). Gets caught, convicted, and sentenced to 15 years in prison. With this comes the following: - shelter and a place to live, in relative comfort - 3 decent meals a day - the opportunity to get some training and return to society with new useful skills - access to mental help, career and life counseling This person will then spend 8 years in prison, getting out on bail because of good behavior, and a couple years off for "double time" serve prior to sentencing. Now remember, this is a person who has: - potentially ended or seriously Fed up lives and relationships and caused pain that will last a dozen people their whole life - now has the potential to repeat offend, ruining more lives and getting sent on another taxpayer funded retreat. Person B* is a normal guy, maybe a little lower on the IQ side of things. They don't have close connections with friends or family, and decide to take a job across the country to start a new life. Something happens (lost job, bad relationship, stress etc.) that causes this person to turn to drink/drugs/mental illness and they slip through the cracks, missing a few rent payments and ending up on the street. This comes with the following: - no where to live, get clean, store your stuff or stay warm. Without a place to store your stuff, you sell it / lose it etc. without stuff, you look dirty and can't get a job. - without a job, you can't afford food or a warm place to sleep - if you are lucky, you get a soup-kitchen meal or two a day, and maybe a mattress on the floor of a shelter - picking cans and food out of the trash, and the indignity of begging for spare change - chance you'll get stabbed by some other drunk over $5 or pass out in the winter and end up losing a limb to frost bite If this person is REALLY lucky, they wil get into a program run by volunteers / charities / churches and get a 2nd chance with some volunteer counseling and life skills teaching. SO, your choices are: a) Give the rapist a lethal injection and send one person per year to "prison" to get the help they need and the training / coaching to start a new b) leave the system as it is. Don't want this to start out as a debate for/against capital punishment, but given enough $$$ to spend on a taxpayer funded retreat for a year, who do you pick? Thanks, K1LLswitch Last edited by K1LLswitch; 06-09-2009 at 01:33 AM.