Can Good Intentions Be Used For Bad Things?
I am not going to say that the sex offender list is a bad thing, nor am I going to say that it is a good thing. After all, registering as a sex offender has its benefits and uses since it allows the police to know who has been convicted of sex crimes and where they are living. HOWEVER, the downside to that is that a persons past should not be used to decide their guiltiness or involvment in present day crimes. The past should only be used to decide their punishment. After all, I could have spent the last 5 years breaking into cars and stealing small sums of money, but 5 years of being in trouble with the law has taught me not to do that anymore. Does that mean, because of my past, I should be sighted by the police for every single stolen car or penny stolen in my area? Do I deserve the right to be held innocent until proven guilty or should I be hounded by the cops looking for an easy arrest? Mind you, while Okham's Razor is usually true (basically, when given the choice of multiple solutions, the easiest one is probably true), when it comes to humans I dont think it should apply.
Can a leopard change it's spots? There are some crimes that are commited that are, argumentally, just a spur of the moment crimes that could be chalked up to teenage immaturity or boredom, like joy riding in a stolen car or taking $40 from the register at work cause you want to go drinking that night. So, if these crimes are just a one time deal, then why cant people accept that maybe sexual offences might be a one time deal as well? One statistic shows that "...out of 29,000 sex offenders, 14% of all had a recidivism tendency, with 13% child molesters and 20% of rapists were rearrested for new sex crimes". Granted, statistics have been argued to be '..used by some the way that a drunk uses a lamp post", meaning that we can always find statistics to show our point. But the main thing to ask ourselves is do these people have the right to be presumed innocent or does one bad deed in life have to haunt you for the rest of your life?
On the flip side, as someone that does contemplate having children, I would say that the safety of my children come before other things. I would like to know if someone living next to me, or down the block, has had a history of child molestation, or raping women. Though, as to what I would do in that situation makes me wonder and I often ask myself the pit and the tiger question constantly and cant seem to get a solid answer. I would like to think that I would do the honourable thing and treat the individual as any other and teach my child that while not to be afraid or treat them as a horrible individual, but treat them with the respect that you would any other person but be wary. I wouldnt say 'go into their house, play games with them in secret and of course, take a ride with them in their van if they ask', but I wouldnt say that about any person. I would teach common sense and safety. Dont talk to strangers, dont get into vans with strangers, dont go into a strangers house unaccompanied by an adult and, when my child is old enough, know proper safety defence moves so that while you wont fight to hurt someone as an offensive, you will at least learn defence. However, that would be the honorable answer, but the truth is that I often wonder if I would teach my children to stay away from that person, dont go near them, dont talk to them and, if they come near you, to run in the opposite direction as fast as you possibly can. Pit and the Tiger, Pit and the Tiger.
I just dont know....keeping a list for the police could violate the individuals right to privacy, but keeping information from the population could violate the rights of the society for safety. Publishing that list on the internet or in the world, now that just goes too far. I mean, are we going to start publishing the names and addresses of murderers now? if that is the case, where is Karla Holmoka? what is her real address and phone number? What about speeding ticket, accident reports and other offences? I mean, I would like to know if my neighbour has any offences for car theft so that I can lock up my car at night, or if they are known burglars so that I can buy more gates and bars for my house. How about if they have any car accident reports on their record so I know how good or bad a driver they are so that I know whether to park my car in the drive way or in the garage so that they dont smash into it coming home.
How much information about or neighbours is good information and how much of it is bad? And what happens when information given to the public is used in a bad way? Like the case just recently where a young man shot two registered sex offenders whose names and addresses were posted on a website. Could this have been an act of vigilante behaviour, where a young man watched too many movies of "The Punisher" who felt that these individuals hadnt been punished enough and thus became the 'hammer of god' to protect society? Could this be an act of vengence where the offenders that were targetted committed crimes against a family member and this is the families way of punishing the men? Perhaps it is a case where the young man was abused or sexually molested as a child and, after being tormented by inner demons for so long, decided to try something to help ease the pain. All this is specuation since we will never know the truth for the young man killed himself.
So, should the information be taken down? yes..for the use by police...should the information be given to the public? possibly in certain amounts...am I right in my thinking and all? who the heck knows...Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? only The Shadow Knows....
http://start.shaw.ca/start/enCA/News/NationalNewsArticle.htm?src=n041706A.xml
http://sympaticomsn.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060416/maine_shjotings_060416
http://www.nacdl.org/sl_docs.nsf/issues/sexoffender_attachments/$FILE/civic%20research%20institute%201105%20-%202.pdf
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9227684
Can a leopard change it's spots? There are some crimes that are commited that are, argumentally, just a spur of the moment crimes that could be chalked up to teenage immaturity or boredom, like joy riding in a stolen car or taking $40 from the register at work cause you want to go drinking that night. So, if these crimes are just a one time deal, then why cant people accept that maybe sexual offences might be a one time deal as well? One statistic shows that "...out of 29,000 sex offenders, 14% of all had a recidivism tendency, with 13% child molesters and 20% of rapists were rearrested for new sex crimes". Granted, statistics have been argued to be '..used by some the way that a drunk uses a lamp post", meaning that we can always find statistics to show our point. But the main thing to ask ourselves is do these people have the right to be presumed innocent or does one bad deed in life have to haunt you for the rest of your life?
On the flip side, as someone that does contemplate having children, I would say that the safety of my children come before other things. I would like to know if someone living next to me, or down the block, has had a history of child molestation, or raping women. Though, as to what I would do in that situation makes me wonder and I often ask myself the pit and the tiger question constantly and cant seem to get a solid answer. I would like to think that I would do the honourable thing and treat the individual as any other and teach my child that while not to be afraid or treat them as a horrible individual, but treat them with the respect that you would any other person but be wary. I wouldnt say 'go into their house, play games with them in secret and of course, take a ride with them in their van if they ask', but I wouldnt say that about any person. I would teach common sense and safety. Dont talk to strangers, dont get into vans with strangers, dont go into a strangers house unaccompanied by an adult and, when my child is old enough, know proper safety defence moves so that while you wont fight to hurt someone as an offensive, you will at least learn defence. However, that would be the honorable answer, but the truth is that I often wonder if I would teach my children to stay away from that person, dont go near them, dont talk to them and, if they come near you, to run in the opposite direction as fast as you possibly can. Pit and the Tiger, Pit and the Tiger.
I just dont know....keeping a list for the police could violate the individuals right to privacy, but keeping information from the population could violate the rights of the society for safety. Publishing that list on the internet or in the world, now that just goes too far. I mean, are we going to start publishing the names and addresses of murderers now? if that is the case, where is Karla Holmoka? what is her real address and phone number? What about speeding ticket, accident reports and other offences? I mean, I would like to know if my neighbour has any offences for car theft so that I can lock up my car at night, or if they are known burglars so that I can buy more gates and bars for my house. How about if they have any car accident reports on their record so I know how good or bad a driver they are so that I know whether to park my car in the drive way or in the garage so that they dont smash into it coming home.
How much information about or neighbours is good information and how much of it is bad? And what happens when information given to the public is used in a bad way? Like the case just recently where a young man shot two registered sex offenders whose names and addresses were posted on a website. Could this have been an act of vigilante behaviour, where a young man watched too many movies of "The Punisher" who felt that these individuals hadnt been punished enough and thus became the 'hammer of god' to protect society? Could this be an act of vengence where the offenders that were targetted committed crimes against a family member and this is the families way of punishing the men? Perhaps it is a case where the young man was abused or sexually molested as a child and, after being tormented by inner demons for so long, decided to try something to help ease the pain. All this is specuation since we will never know the truth for the young man killed himself.
So, should the information be taken down? yes..for the use by police...should the information be given to the public? possibly in certain amounts...am I right in my thinking and all? who the heck knows...Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? only The Shadow Knows....
http://start.shaw.ca/start/enCA/News/NationalNewsArticle.htm?src=n041706A.xml
http://sympaticomsn.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060416/maine_shjotings_060416
http://www.nacdl.org/sl_docs.nsf/issues/sexoffender_attachments/$FILE/civic%20research%20institute%201105%20-%202.pdf
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9227684
posted by Capt_Canuck at 2:25 PM
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