In Defense of Our Children
Sinead O'Connor has hypothesized that the world's problems all start from a single factor: "The cause of all of the world's problems, as far as I'm concerned, is child abuse." Could she be right? Violent crime is skyrocketing in US cities. Some cities, such as Seattle and Portland, have ungovernable no-go areas for authorities. Authorities are prioritizing keeping violent criminals out on the streets rather than behind bars where they belong. It's time to consider a more effective and permanent alternative to incarceration.
18% of US children are impoverished. 38 million Americans are on SNAP and food stamps. 150 million Americans, or 64% live from paycheck to paycheck, and risk losing their homes if they become disabled or sick and can no longer work. The US cannot afford to jail these perverts who cause so much destruction to our children and society.
As CNN reported, pedophiles are being released on bond, to rape more child victims. "A Texas man died Thursday shortly after being convicted of child sexual abuse. Denton County Assistant District Attorney Jamie Beck told CNN Friday. ..."Leclair was facing five counts of child sexual abuse relating to the same victim, Beck said, and had been FREE ON BOND [emphasis added] until the verdict..." The average sentence for pedophiles in the US is 8-11 years in prison. There have been cases where pedophiles and rapists have been released into the community to make room for marijuana smokers.
Advocates for capital punishment do face considerable opposition at a time when the supposed human-rights of the perpetrator trump the rights of the victim. Opponents of the death penalty for pedophiles claim that some can be re-habilitated, that it is better to treat, release and monitor. But ultimately many of these culprits re-offend -- and totally destroy children's lives. One would think that US prisoners would want the lightest possible penalties for all crimes but this is not the case. Almost all US prisoners want the death penalty for child sex crimes.
If the Islamic Republic of Iran can do this, if India can do this, then this country should be copying good policy and apply capitol punishment for pedophilia. (This does not address Iran's horrible human rights record or other executions). We cannot stop child abuse here or around the world. What we can do is punish the worst crimes in our country appropriately.
One does not need to be a eugenecist to realise that all of society would benefit by giving American children the safest start possible by reducing the number of sexual predators of minors in the country. This is perhaps the most soul-destroying of all crimes, and deserves to be the highest priority in criminal justice penalties -- capital punishment. Our children deserve no less.
The penalty of death for certain crimes is another serious issue conservatives lost to the Left years ago. This one was lost at least forty years ago but I will never forget as an undergraduate listening to Hamish Fraser, who was a catholic Christian convert after first serving as Scottish Propaganda Secretary of the Communist Party of Great Britain and fighting in one of the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War, debate a leftist professor at my Alma Mater during the undergraduate days. In his final summation he said that the chief reason leftists of all stripes oppose the death penalty in all its forms is because they know in their heart of hearts that they deserve it. It’s also strange to me that some of our biggest warmongers since Vietnam, who are always advocating for more wars always and everywhere, will oppose the death penalty during the campaign season. Truth be told, we simply are not a very serious people anymore.
My gut tells me that rapists, especially pedophiles, should be executed. The usual argument against this is that this would encourage the rapist to also kill the victim and dispose of the body in an attempt to hide the crime. Maybe the best response is codification of slap on the wrist penalties for loved ones who take matters into their own hands, but a bit messy and sure to be abused.
Beyond doubt the very best solution is to do everything possible to recreate a society in which all of this is unthinkable, or at least not as easily accomplished. The law is as easily corrupted as the society that makes the laws.
I have dicussed with a conservative friend on FF about the death penalty for a host of crimes, and modern societies would be far better off. I need not tell you about all the violent crime tearing apart this nation, particularly from certain “sectors.” I would welcome further discussion about what crimes deserve this obvious reasonable punishment.
A paranoid ruling class which would benefit from maximizing its supply of potential spies, in some ways, would benefit from a large supply of sex criminals, wouldn’t it?
Another problem that I can see with the death penalty being applied to rape is that accusations of rape have frequently been used to ruin a man and are more easily thrown about casually than an accusation of murder. A woman scorned or crossed can be a very formidable enemy, using the law as a bludgeon, and public opinion as a crucifix.
This is a good point, which is why the death penalty for a false accusation would, perhaps, be a good balance. At least in theory.
First Degree Rape–as opposed to seduction, refusal to say “No” at the last minute, pinching bottoms, etc., would have to be clearly defined and proved by the ordinary standards that apply to murder, theft, etc. If a special category were set up for children, the age would have to be defined in general times to be pre-pubescent, say 11 or 12. A lot of allegations of “child molestation” involve adolescents who were complicit in the act or even solicited it.
Also, to Mr. Strenk’s point, a nurse, who has worked on numerous rape kits, once told me she supposed that “5 out of 6” rape accusations are false, but almost always occur in a situation where a man seduces a woman and then promptly dismisses her. So, it seems like this would be much less of a frequent occurrence if the old social order was in place, regarding familial reaction to seduction and abandonment.
I think the Indians have set the age at 12. It seems reasonable. I do not think this penalty should apply for stautory “rape.” Underaged sex as teenagers was usual in my generation and culture. If a boy crosses over to 18, but his girlfriend is 16, is that any type of rape? Also, there would have to be absolute provable evidence to convict, such as DNA or photos of children. I have personally experienced dishonest retribution in my life by two women who said I had physically absued them when I did nothing of the sort. A woman scorned, as they say… There will be women and even some children who try to destroy their enemies with false claims of rape. That is why it is so critical to have absolute proof. The justice system is corrupt and highly flawed; I have experienced this myself. But a line has to be drawn as to what is life worth to let living, and what lives are simply too dangerous and damaging to society. In my lifetime I have had relationships with first girls and then women, six of whom I know had been molested or raped. Only one of them was able to have a healthy, normal relationship. The others were totally warped by their horrible experiences, which affected their relationships, future families, and professional acheivements. As long as animals run wild in our streets committing crimes, and no one does anything legal about it, I can’t see anyone offering to help resolve this situation either. I am not an optimist.
And as long as we are on the topic, I would like to solicit responses from our readers about what other types of crimes desrve this punishment.
“The justice system is corrupt and highly flawed;”
This thought has repeatedly occurred to me as well leaving me wondering if I trust our system at all to dispense the ultimate punishment. I suppose it doesn’t much matter in the end to the devout soul wrongly executed, but it sure as heck does to those he leaves behind.
One would asume that a life in prison is somehow more humane than the death penalty, but American prisons are brutal.
And if most are found guilty and jailed, a harsher sentsnce for such crimes makes sense. The justice (sic) system is totally rigged and there is
little self-defense, especially if yopu can’t afford a lawyer. What are often called public defenders are nothing more than judge’s hand chosen and paid assistance herding you through the case. Yes, I agree with you. There’s too much injustice and corruption. But in open and shut cases, there are simply some crimes not worth housing due to their danger to society.
Five people just fell off the USCCB Christmas card list
I don’t mean to stifle a conversation on positive law but the death penalty is part of human society. Not because I like it or dislike it, or because it fits into a favorable or unfavorable ideology but because it is. It’s being applied on the streets of Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Atalanta every day of the year. It’s also a deterrent as evidenced by the fact there are “no go zones” in everyone of those cities where civilized people including bondsmen, law enforcement and local residents refuse to enter unless under absolute necessity and accompanied with para military operatives.
It’s been viewed in our lifetimes as in the sole custody of politicians or ideologues when it is in fact a reality of human nature and societies. Again I don’t want to stifle the conversation about crime and punishment but in 2000 years of Christian history one can find plenty of commentary and justification for and against the reality that people kill each other. Socrates did not condemn the death penalty nor did Jesus Christ. It’s unjust use and enforcement was the backdrop and contrast to the very fact of the good life they preached and pursued. We have lost all reference points for such tragedies and for comedies such as Odysseus heading home or the Wife of Bathe on pilgrimage. This because we have lost all criteria for truth and goodness and the theology that placed them. But make no mistake, death and destruction as a deterrent for human behavior is part of the fabric regardless of whether it’s imposed by politicians for Ukraine and Russia, local judges in Texas or police officers and street gangs in Chicago. If a thousand Bishops denied this or wished it were not true, or world leaders convened to eliminate it, the results would be much worse than the already difficult task ( God Help us!) of loving God and our neighbor as we love ourselves. Not because they are bad men but because they are stupid men submitting to the relentless temptation to not only recognize but to determine for themselves, good and evil in heaven and on earth or in the words of John Milton’s fallen one to make evil be good and a hell of heaven.
My advise in these times is to run from the cold hearted death and destruction and towards the difficult but real life of love, family and friends wherever that might be.
“Authorities are prioritizing keeping violent criminals out on the streets rather than behind bars where they belong.” Oh, really? Is it too much to ask for examples and data that are accessible? OK, there’s that fellow in Texas, now conveniently dead. But how many others let go after 8-to-11 years are recidivists? Many? Few?
“18% of US children are impoverished. 38 million Americans are on SNAP and food stamps. 150 million Americans, or 64% live from paycheck to paycheck, and risk losing their homes if they become disabled or sick and can no longer work. The US cannot afford to jail these perverts who cause so much destruction to our children and society.” –I hope this passage is a misstatement. Are that 18%, those 38-million, those 150-million, that 64% ALL “perverts” worthy of jailing?
The primary problem with jailing the millions (or is it only hundreds of thousands?) we Americans insist on jailing is that taxes must always be cut and the various contractors (or, rather, the vultures who run them) that prey on the prison industry must always be paid more and more of our taxes. In short, we can’t afford effective corrections. Hell, we can’t even afford the police.
Hello Mr. Olsen, A few replies to your observations:
I do not need to provide you with the hudreds of thousands of examples of criminals running rampant in our country who would be better off incarcerated. Google and Youtube will suffice. How many pedophiles are recidivists I cannot say; I lack the data. Perhaps you could look into this.
I was certainly NOT suggesting that people like myself who are on every available social assisatnce should be locked up. My point was that a society in such poor shape cannot afford the cost of housing every dangerous criminal, particularly the worst of them, who I have addressed in this article.
Regrettably, we have always been a corrupt and criminalized country, some races (3) more than others. It is and will increasingly be necessary to incarcertate criminals, particularly the violent — before “flash mob” comes to a neighborhood near (very near) you.
As for Christian love of your brother and neighbor, I gave a very good few attempts at beinga Christian and ultimately failed. This love they neighbor was the main sticking point.
As for the commercialization of the prison system, you are right: prisoners are bought and traded on the NYSE. But what is the choice? As for slave labor, prisoners will do anything for a job that gives them a few dimes for commissary — don’t kid yourselves. By their own testimony it keeps them busy, productive and socializing in a positive way. Prison labor — even hard work — helps keep the peace. (and as Russian prisons and even US death rows know: if you want prisoners nice, calm and obedient — let them keep cats! But now I am proselytizing my real religion. Forgive me)..Some even give back to society, and learn trades which they might (might…) be able to use to start a new life.
One thing that would reduce unnecessary numbers and make room for the more deserving violent inmates who pray on society would be a total re-vamp of drug policy. Many junkies suffer in jail even when they haven’t committed a bank robbery for their fix. Some die of alcohol and drug withdrawal with no help. Thank God some politicians are finally doing the right thing on cannabis. This is a legitimate topic for another discussion. Regards to FF from Rockford, IL.
There is little or nothing to be gained from any argument in favor of further anesthetizing the American adolescent.
Anesthetizing the American adolescent is drug abuse. The issue I raise is the legitimate medical use of cannabis for pain and illness. Do you not, Sir, enjoy fine Italian wines? Can we blame alcohol as all bad merely because there have been winos throughout history? And all the pain, suffering and
damage to human society wrought from alcohol? Alcohol has it’s place: for God’s sake, it was present at The Last Supper. Cannabis too was made for a specific use. It is good policy that that is now recognized and put in its proper place. Fin.
This is a subject for physicians and medical researchers. Cannabis is a plant; it is not made. Whatever positive purposes it has in Western societies is medical, though the early predictions about its utility in pain treatment are now at best controversial and mostly refuted. Whatever may be done in other cultures, marijuana use in Euyrope and the US is entirely incompatible with what was once our way of life. Anyone who lived through the 60s knows the devastation it wrought. We are living with it today. People who grew up numbed by TV and dope are now the dominant element in a world that could only have been invented by Phil Dick. This is not a subject for idle amusement or opinion-swapping. All editorial decisions are final.
Mr. Gordon–Thanks for your reply to me. It certainly clears the air for me.
Dr. Fleming–You are certainly correct that our adolescents absolutely need no more anesthetizing. They already have TV, and, as many a hippie asserted back in the day, marijuana is just hippie TV. (I don’t think I’m the only one who said that.)
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