Quote:
Originally Posted by kirant
Under the right circumstances?
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Exactly and the things you mention (among others) show how people, when dehumanized, will act in inhumane ways.
To me it's a basic question.. if I had been in the exact same situation as whatever person had done whatever bad thing, would I have acted in the same way? If I had been in the same situation, having the same history (upbringing, situations of abuse, etc), would I have acted in the same way? If I had been in the same situation having the same history and having the same predispositions (DNA) would I have acted in the same way?
If I would have acted in the same way, then the "personal responsibility" doesn't actually exist, and it's a matter of a person reacting the way any person would in a given circumstance, and the focus should be on remediation not punishment.
If I would not have acted in the same way, then question is why. If I have the strength to overcome a situation, or the wisdom to see the consequences of my path, or the will power not to give into base motivations, or whatever, why do I have those abilities and others do not? Unless someone actually thinks that a person one day wakes up and says to themselves "you know what, I really need to twist my worldview and sense of morality to the point that I am a sociopath, now how do I go about that".
If a person's mind is broken, they need help, not a mob with pitchforks motivated by a misguided sense of "justice".