The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
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The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
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Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#2If people were actually worried about inmate mental health we would do away with incarceration. Being held against your will doesn’t exactly do wonders for you - and the consequences don’t end when you’re released.
Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary?
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#3If people were actually worried about inmate mental health we would do away with incarceration. Being held against your will doesn’t exactly do wonders for you - and the consequences don’t end when you’re released. Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary?
> Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary?
Perhaps, insofar as it's arbitrary to be more concerned about the well-being of victims than perpetrators. Personally, I have arbitrarily decided to care more about potential murder victims than convicted murderers, potential rape victims than convicted rapists, property owners than convicted thieves, and so on.
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#4If people were actually worried about inmate mental health we would do away with incarceration. Being held against your will doesn’t exactly do wonders for you - and the consequences don’t end when you’re released. Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary?
> Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary? Perhaps, insofar as it's arbitrary to be more concerned about the well-being of victims than perpetrators. Personally, I have arbitrarily decided to care more about potential murder victims than convicted murderers, potential rape victims than convicted rapists, property owners than convicted thieves, and so on.
Makes sense - I’m well aware no one here cares about anyone else’s wellbeing (but some claims to the contrary sure are good for your image), and you can freely move that line around whenever you want to dunk on someone on Twitter or HN. That’s what life’s about.
Or maybe that’s just Twitter, on HN it’s about saying things everyone agrees with and never bringing up something difficult to respond to, so you won’t get downvoted.
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#5Archive link to the story the author is talking about
https://web.archive.org/web/20160304065420/http://maneatingr...
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#6If people were actually worried about inmate mental health we would do away with incarceration. Being held against your will doesn’t exactly do wonders for you - and the consequences don’t end when you’re released. Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary?
This may be one of my spicier opinions but I think we should have caning for some crimes. Fines and incarceration both have collateral damage, if the person punished is responsible for anyone. Fines are regressive. Incarceration has a host of well known problems.
But, unfortunately, a sufficiently dangerous person does need to be physically put away. Being held against your will may well do wonders for people you threaten.
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#7If people were actually worried about inmate mental health we would do away with incarceration. Being held against your will doesn’t exactly do wonders for you - and the consequences don’t end when you’re released. Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary?
> Sure, we have to “draw the line”, but isn’t that arbitrary? Perhaps, insofar as it's arbitrary to be more concerned about the well-being of victims than perpetrators. Personally, I have arbitrarily decided to care more about potential murder victims than convicted murderers, potential rape victims than convicted rapists, property owners than convicted thieves, and so on.
> Perhaps, insofar as it's arbitrary to be more concerned about the well-being of victims than perpetrators.
I’d argue that our current system isn’t really interested in the well being of victims either. Or rather, it’s only interested with the victims when the victims express specific opinions. The actual relationship between crime, survivors, retribution, and forgiveness is an extremely complex matter.
Consider the case of Sirhan Sirhan, and how public figures treated Kennedy family members who were pro-parole vs. anti-parole. Sometimes the same people who were saying “you must listen to the family” were openly attacking other family members for wanting parole!
> Personally, I have arbitrarily decided to care more about potential murder victims than convicted murderers, potential rape victims than convicted rapists, property owners than convicted thieves, and so on.
If that’s what motivates you, you should actively hope for a more merciful and restorative criminal justice system. Our current system has very high recidivism rates, which is very bad for those potential future victims.
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#8I mean, I'm with Snow here. I think the response is a bit poor in that "well, we don't know that this is safe, so this proposal is obviously crazy and does no one any good." Maybe we could find out if it's safe? It doesn't seem obvious to me that it's a bad idea.
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#9I mean, I'm with Snow here. I think the response is a bit poor in that "well, we don't know that this is safe, so this proposal is obviously crazy and does no one any good." Maybe we could find out if it's safe? It doesn't seem obvious to me that it's a bad idea.
What happens when a rowdy prisoner breaks the VR headset and is suddenly trapped alone in a box for 10 years.
What state do you think he’ll be in when he’s let out?
Ridiculous idea
Re: The worst thing I read this year, and what it taught me (2016)
#10Archive link to the story the author is talking about https://web.archive.org/web/20160304065420/http://maneatingr...
Thanks for the link.
After reading the article I understand the strong reaction to some of its naivete. Many elements the author recommends removing aren't replaceable with a VR system. It's a terrible article.
That said, the underlying idea of using VR/video games in prisons to supplement treatment and increase opportunity for socialization while incarcerated is valid. Plenty of ostensibly healthy, free people opt to socialize this way. I know several psychologists working on these types of systems for non-incarcerated patients (kids with autism, etc). US prisons do not rehabilitate and this might be one way to safely and cheaply provide this type of outreach.