A question to Jesus Christ

[WalterMitty]

maybe there are people on death row who havent commited a 'real crime'?

And maybe there are people serving life sentences who haven't committed a 'real crime', and maybe there are people serving 40 years sentences who haven't committed a 'real crime', and maybe there are people serving 30 days who haven't committed a 'real crime'.....so what is your point?

at the very least, if dna proves a person didnt commit a crime you can let them out of jail.  if you kill them, what do you say, 'oops'?

[John Dibble]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

I'd put him in jail for life. Who the heck here would put him in for 20 years? No one, I'd hope.

According to David S. the guy got out in 15 years, and killed a prostituted two years later.

[Joe Republic]

Well, there's also the possibility that he'll be high on the food chain in prison - he's obviously one sick mofo, so he could do it, too. Many prisoners would be afraid of him.

Now, remember, life in prison may sound bad(and it is) but it's not as bad as you might think. Prisoners get a lot of luxuries that they shouldn't have, and they aren't worked like they should be. I'd consent to getting rid of the death penalty if we could actually make life imprisonment a punishment of the same degree.

I totally agree with you that prison ought to be a LOT worse than it currently is.  I'd prefer that prison was seen as more of a deterrent to potential criminals than the death penalty.

Actually the story of the man who raped a girl and cut off her arms does not end where I left it. The felon served his time (15 years I think) and was released, despite objections from his victim. Within two years he struck again, this time by murdering a prostitute. So in this case the death penalty would not only have been a just punishment but it would also have prevented a murder.

I don't know how effective the death penalty is for deterring would-be murderers, but it most assuredly deters the person who gets it.

IMHO, the bastard should have been left to rot in jail.  Obviously they couldn't have known he'd re-offend when they sentenced him for the first crime, but IMO the first crime alone would have been enough to warrant jail for the rest of his actual life.  If it were up to me (steps up to soapbox), I'd make a LOT more crimes have actual life sentences with no chance of release.  And I'd get rid of the death penalty.  I can't think of one crime where the death penalty is a better solution thatn the ones I've already listed here.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

at the very least, if dna proves a person didnt commit a crime you can let them out of jail.  if you kill them, what do you say, 'oops'?

What about the vast majority of cases where DNA is not an issue?  

Perfect knowledge has NEVER been an issue with carrying out sentences, that's why we only ask a jury to measure a person's guilt beyond reasonable doubt, because the jury can NEVER be 100% sure since they were not there when the crime happened, otherwise they would be a witness.

The argument of "the system is not perfect" is hypocritical...that is, unless you want ban ALL punishments for EVERY crime.

[??????????]

First off Jesus himself said the state is permitted to "draw the sword" so that sounds like a endorsement of the death penalty. He also said on several occassions that his rules for living do not apply to the non-entity state as a whole and that the state can create whatever laws they like and that a good christian would respect those rules even if he/she disagreed. Jesus never said for people not to judge as some have said here. People love to cut that quote in half to fit their own purposes. The real meaning of the quote is "Don't make rash judgements." It does NOT say "dont judge at all".

"Judge not lest ye be judged; for the manner in which you judge you shall be judged as well."

That does not sound like "Don't ever judge at all." Life is full of judgements we must make but the problem is humans have the very bad problem of misjudging or prejudging. It should be our goal to get above those simple human flaws.

[Shira]

When did Falwell appoint himself to be "the spokesman of Jesus Christ"?

Try to listen to this fake-phony-fraud J.Falwell. He "knows exactly" what Jesus would have said on any issue from Iraq to gays.

I claim that J.Falwell totally misinterprets the spirit of Christianity and does distort it according to his political extreme views.

[Nation]

First off Jesus himself said the state is permitted to "draw the sword" so that sounds like a endorsement of the death penalty. He also said on several occassions that his rules for living do not apply to the non-entity state as a whole and that the state can create whatever laws they like and that a good christian would respect those rules even if he/she disagreed. Jesus never said for people not to judge as some have said here. People love to cut that quote in half to fit their own purposes. The real meaning of the quote is "Don't make rash judgements." It does NOT say "dont judge at all".

"Judge not lest ye be judged; for the manner in which you judge you shall be judged as well."

That does not sound like "Don't ever judge at all." Life is full of judgements we must make but the problem is humans have the very bad problem of misjudging or prejudging. It should be our goal to get above those simple human flaws.

Thank you again, States

[they don't love you like i love you]

People who commit such heinous crimes should be given life without parole. That keeps them locked up. If they're getting off with light sentences that's a problem in the system that needs to be fixed, but no one here would advocate letting someone like that out in 20 years. The death penalty doesn't solve that anyway considering how long it takes for an execution to happen and the rate at which they are given out anyway, and upping that and speeding it up only greatly increases the problem of innocents on death row. There is no fair way to use the death penalty.

Is it rather shocking how close me and WalterMitty are on this issue?

[Gabu]

Oh, brother, not another "does Jesus agree with me?" thread.  Folks, I've said it before and I'll say it again: it is not possible to be objective on this subject if you're a Christian.  If you believe that Jesus was the son of God, and therefore infallible in all ways, then of course you're going to argue to the death that Jesus agrees with your views, because if he didn't, then you'd be wrong.

Arguments over what Jesus believes in have never gone anywhere in the past and they aren't likely to go anywhere in the near future.

[??????????]

Oh, brother, not another "does Jesus agree with me?" thread.  Folks, I've said it before and I'll say it again: it is not possible to be objective on this subject if you're a Christian.  If you believe that Jesus was the son of God, and therefore infallible in all ways, then of course you're going to argue to the death that Jesus agrees with your views, because if he didn't, then you'd be wrong.

Arguments over what Jesus believes in have never gone anywhere in the past and they aren't likely to go anywhere in the near future.

I dont need to try and twist the words of the bible to fit my views. I read it as it is written and do not interpret it.

[bullmoose88]

See...I'm selective in how I read the Bible.

I interpret the new testament, and take the old testament literally.

So give me some kids who talked back to their parents--so I can stone them.

With cinderblocks!

[??????????]

See...I'm selective in how I read the Bible.

I interpret the new testament, and take the old testament literally.

So give me some kids who talked back to their parents--so I can stone them.

With cinderblocks!

Hahaha. If you didn't interpret the NT you'd know that OT Law of Moses doesnt apply to Christians.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

I'd put him in jail for life. Who the heck here would put him in for 20 years? No one, I'd hope.

According to David S. the guy got out in 15 years, and killed a prostituted two years later.

Well then that proves that our sentencing laws are crap. A California man got 25 years for stealing a slize of pizza.

[bullmoose88]

See...I'm selective in how I read the Bible.

I interpret the new testament, and take the old testament literally.

So give me some kids who talked back to their parents--so I can stone them.

With cinderblocks!

Hahaha. If you didn't interpret the NT you'd know that OT Law of Moses doesnt apply to Christians.

So what...I don't want to necessarily apply it to Christians...I want to apply it to those little bastards who are a bane to my existence.

[Beet]

Jesus never said anything about the death penalty? How neglectful of him. Instead of the sermon on the mount He just should have listed his stance on every issue from abortion to the sales tax, and mailed them out in a single easy-to-reference compendium. Come on folks, the Bible is not a party platform, it was never meant to be, and for the sake of mankind let us hope it never will be!

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Jesus never said anything about the death penalty? How neglectful of him. Instead of the sermon on the mount He just should have listed his stance on every issue from abortion to the sales tax, and mailed them out in a single easy-to-reference compendium. Come on folks, the Bible is not a party platform, it was never meant to be, and for the sake of mankind let us hope it never will be!

Great post!

[David S]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

I'd put him in jail for life. Who the heck here would put him in for 20 years? No one, I'd hope.

According to David S. the guy got out in 15 years, and killed a prostituted two years later.

Well then that proves that our sentencing laws are crap. A California man got 25 years for stealing a slize of pizza.

If I remember that case it was a three strikes and your out case. That was his third strike. Also, if I am remembering the same case you're speaking of, he stole the pizza from a child. What a low-life.

[Josh/Devilman88]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

Put him in jail with a bunch of other sick bastards who will pass him around and make the next 80 years of his life a living hell.  Death is too easy for someone like that.

or just kill him and when he opens up his eyes in hell then forever will be a living hell for him.

[David S]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

I'd put him in jail for life. Who the heck here would put him in for 20 years? No one, I'd hope.

According to David S. the guy got out in 15 years, and killed a prostituted two years later.

Well then that proves that our sentencing laws are crap. A California man got 25 years for stealing a slize of pizza.

If I remember that case it was a three strikes and your out case. That was his third strike. Also, if I am remembering the same case you're speaking of, he stole the pizza from a child. What a low-life.

I found the case online at http://www.threestrikes.org/calaw01.html Scroll down to Jerry Dewayne Williams.

Yes it was a three strikes case and it was his third offense, and he did steal the pizza from a child. Also he only served 6 years, not 25.

[J. J.]

So if someone raped you and cut your arms off he shouldn't get the death penalty?

I know the question isn't for me (and I'm glad), but if it was, I'd actually be happier to see my attacker stew in prison for the rest of his life.  Yeah, I know, it wouldn't be the rest of his life, but that'd be my only beef.  In any case, I'd love to know that while the rest of my life would be torture, so would his.  Knowing that the chances of him being attacked and raped would also be considerably high.  Giving him death would give him an easy way out.

Hey, when he gets out, he can rape you again and cut off your legs.

[Shira]

Jesus never said anything about the death penalty?

But Jerry Falwell strongly supports the death penalty.
Does J.Falwell really understand the message of jesus?

[7,052,770]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

I'd put him in jail for life. Who the heck here would put him in for 20 years? No one, I'd hope.

According to David S. the guy got out in 15 years, and killed a prostituted two years later.

Well then that proves that our sentencing laws are crap. A California man got 25 years for stealing a slize of pizza.

If I remember that case it was a three strikes and your out case. That was his third strike. Also, if I am remembering the same case you're speaking of, he stole the pizza from a child. What a low-life.

so?  25 years for stealing a pizza is one of the most extreme blunders of justice I've ever heard.  I thought surely that it wasn't true, and I'm horrified to hear that it is.

That being said, I think Jesus would oppose the death penalty?  Why?  Because I believe he was the son of God and a really cool guy, and I don't want to think he may have had any views different than mine.

[??????????]

Jesus never said anything about the death penalty? How neglectful of him. Instead of the sermon on the mount He just should have listed his stance on every issue from abortion to the sales tax, and mailed them out in a single easy-to-reference compendium. Come on folks, the Bible is not a party platform, it was never meant to be, and for the sake of mankind let us hope it never will be!

As I said before. Jesus did mention the death penalty and condoned its proper usage.

[David S]

Ok a man rapes a 6 years old girl.. then cuts her up afterward.. what would you do to him? Put him in jail for 20 years??? So he can do it again.

I'd put him in jail for life. Who the heck here would put him in for 20 years? No one, I'd hope.

According to David S. the guy got out in 15 years, and killed a prostituted two years later.

Well then that proves that our sentencing laws are crap. A California man got 25 years for stealing a slize of pizza.

If I remember that case it was a three strikes and your out case. That was his third strike. Also, if I am remembering the same case you're speaking of, he stole the pizza from a child. What a low-life.

so?  25 years for stealing a pizza is one of the most extreme blunders of justice I've ever heard.  I thought surely that it wasn't true, and I'm horrified to hear that it is.

You missed my second post. He was released after 6 years. Also you may think that shaking down kids for a slice of pizza is trivial, but this guy was convicted of other crimes twice before. Apparently he never learned his lesson. And apparently he still has absolutely no respect for the rights of others.