QUOTE(dkk @ Oct 20 2014, 11:09 AM)
About 160,000 convicts were transported from Britain to Australia. 80% of them for larceny (ie theft). source
This amounts to permanent exile, to the opposite end of the earth. The poor people could never afford passage back, and they stayed there. Imagine if we had that today. Imagine being exiled to Peru for stealing a rabbit or cutting down a tree. That sort punishment is extreme, no?
Prior to transportation, in 18th century UK, they executed people for stealing rabbits and cutting down trees. Neither you nor I may have witnessed such severe penalties, but they had been used. But it did not eradicate crime.
My point is that severe penalties do not reduce crime over the long term. How long have Malaysia been executing convicts, and yet the execution goes on. And people continue with crimes that carries the death penalty. What happens is that when the penalty is racheted up, people are scared initially. We see a drop in crime rates. But over time, people gradually get used to it, and crime rate increase back to the previous level.
Who here has not seen the movie where the kidnap victim accidentally sees the face of the kidnappers, and they go "gotta kill him now, cause he's seen our face and can identify us". If the penalty for kidnapping is death, and the penalty for murder is death, then it is not logical that the kidnapper kill the victim so that they don't get caught?
Why do rapists kill their victims? Yes, because they are sick bastards, and some of them may be necrophiliacs. But some does it to hide their crime. If rape was common place, and rapists were fined $300, then many more rape victims would live. Unfortunately, there would also be a lot more rape victims if the penalty amounts to a speeding ticket. But if the penalty for rape is death, then many more rape victims would die.
The point being, there is an appropriate level of punishment for each crime. If it is too low, it is no deterrent. If it is too high, it is bad too. Deterrence need not be achieved by ever more extreme punishments. Deterrence can be increased by more effective enforcement, and by changing community values. If everybody thinks it is normal to try to bribe police officers when they get pulled over, then we've got an uphill battle ahead of us.
If we have a few motorists sent to prision for 3 months for trying to bribe policemen with RM20 to get out of a RM300 fine, it would be a great deterence. Just highlight it on TV, interview them, make a few shows about them, and everybody would know the risk of trying to slip money under their license.
I like your points. But for me, death penalty and huge fine are not heavy since they carry no trace of lessons to the others. Just few seconds news and done, meaning short term. Their death is meaningless which for me is so pointless to run such penalty. People forget it about it in a few blinks of eye. Its not scary to protect the innocent moms and children from crimes.This amounts to permanent exile, to the opposite end of the earth. The poor people could never afford passage back, and they stayed there. Imagine if we had that today. Imagine being exiled to Peru for stealing a rabbit or cutting down a tree. That sort punishment is extreme, no?
Prior to transportation, in 18th century UK, they executed people for stealing rabbits and cutting down trees. Neither you nor I may have witnessed such severe penalties, but they had been used. But it did not eradicate crime.
My point is that severe penalties do not reduce crime over the long term. How long have Malaysia been executing convicts, and yet the execution goes on. And people continue with crimes that carries the death penalty. What happens is that when the penalty is racheted up, people are scared initially. We see a drop in crime rates. But over time, people gradually get used to it, and crime rate increase back to the previous level.
Who here has not seen the movie where the kidnap victim accidentally sees the face of the kidnappers, and they go "gotta kill him now, cause he's seen our face and can identify us". If the penalty for kidnapping is death, and the penalty for murder is death, then it is not logical that the kidnapper kill the victim so that they don't get caught?
Why do rapists kill their victims? Yes, because they are sick bastards, and some of them may be necrophiliacs. But some does it to hide their crime. If rape was common place, and rapists were fined $300, then many more rape victims would live. Unfortunately, there would also be a lot more rape victims if the penalty amounts to a speeding ticket. But if the penalty for rape is death, then many more rape victims would die.
The point being, there is an appropriate level of punishment for each crime. If it is too low, it is no deterrent. If it is too high, it is bad too. Deterrence need not be achieved by ever more extreme punishments. Deterrence can be increased by more effective enforcement, and by changing community values. If everybody thinks it is normal to try to bribe police officers when they get pulled over, then we've got an uphill battle ahead of us.
If we have a few motorists sent to prision for 3 months for trying to bribe policemen with RM20 to get out of a RM300 fine, it would be a great deterence. Just highlight it on TV, interview them, make a few shows about them, and everybody would know the risk of trying to slip money under their license.
IMO, hudud brings different perspective. It carries out a long term lessons for everyone. DONT steal, else this is what happen. why? u can write a book for it.
What I understand is, in hudud, when u r caught stealing, u are given warning and fine or any punishment according to the society common practice. BUT, when the stealing has become ur habit and harm others, then hudud is implemented.
But as i said, no matter what the law enforced, as long as u do no crime, why worry.
Oct 20 2014, 11:46 AM

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