Originally Posted by
Oresai
I have to agree with Arrow Cross in that it does deter. This is based on remembered conversations with my grandparents, both born in the late 1800s, who grew up when the death penalty in Britain was still in place. People did fear and respect it. In fact, given that in the past here, sentences in general were stiffer and actually given, then I think overall the more severe the sentence, the more people would attempt to avoid it by thinking twice about crimes liable to get them such a sentence.
Of course there will always be deviants who don`t care what happens to them or, more likely, refuse to believe it`ll happen to them, but then surely those are the very ones such sentences are meant for?
Given their mentality, it appears that no matter what the sentence is, they`ll offend anyway. Surely better to take them out totally than be lenient and allow them the freedom to go on offending? :confused: