I know my last blog post made it seem like “I am back” but unfortunately I wasn’t. Anyway, I am popping in to write this blog post because I have a “hot” take. My spicy take is that I don’t think we should use the law as a deterrent. I believe crimal laws should be used for the sole purpose admistering justice. I don’t believe criminal law should be a tool of social engineering.
Before you flip out, let me walk you through my thought process.
FROM ABORTION
Texas passed an anti-abortion law that also has a bounty for people to report people participating in abortions and I have been thinking about it a lot. I would first say that I am not sure I see a way this law can be implemented properly. Maybe, I haven’t read enough legal analysis but with my layman vision, it does look like a mess.
Let me start by saying I don’t actually have a side when it comes to the abortion topic. Yes, I am a Christian and I do know abortion is bad. I do value life, from the womb to the tomb. Thing is that, if I get pregnant now I would be lying if I said abortion would not be the first thing on my mind. You may think “But this is hypocrisy” well maybe, I do think it’s me wrestling with issues but this is not the point of this blog post.
The point is I don’t think this law is actually a win when it comes to reducing abortion numbers if you are pro-life. Sure, ban abortions if you want to but that doesn’t necessarily solve the problems that led to abortion being a choice in the first place. I honestly believe if you care about reducing abortion numbers, you would be advocating for creating systems/structures that take care of the woman (aka seeing her more than a vessel for the unborn).
Things like welfare structures, employment opportunities, sex education, good adoption, sexual healthcare, and foster care system, etc should equally be a priority if your goal is to make dents in abortion numbers. Remember, that this IS JUST MY OPINION.
I also have problems like do I want religion to be the basis of law? Am I comfortable with this level of state power and interference? Another major issue for me is how these kinds of laws are usually written as a deterrent. This is something, I don’t think our law should be doing . ( Yes, we have finally gotten to the point of this blog post. Praise master Jesus, LMAO)
TO THE DEATH PENALTY
The thought of the effectiveness of law as a deterrent from Texas abortion laws made me think about the death penalty.
I was listening to The Argument this morning, and David French did make a hint at this in between the conversation.
Side note: That was a wonderful conversation. As someone who has been wrestling with my thoughts on the death penalty, I enjoyed listening.
There are many issues with the death penalty, namely:
- Class issues: how rich people are very unlikely to get the death penalty.
- Race issues: In countries like America with racial disparities, a lot of people in minority groups are disproportionally affected by the death penalty.
- The risk of killing the innocent: The death penalty also runs the risk of killing the innocent.
- Also the discussion about whether the death penalty is actually justice and or vengeance
The discussions aside, I would just like to say that the death penalty is an example of how the law should not be used as a deterrent. There is the death penalty and we haven’t stopped killing each other. This isn’t the only place that has shown that making laws as a deterrent is ineffective.
THREE STRIKES AND THE WAR ON DRUGS
*To understand what the “Three strike” law is, click here.*
One of the advantages the earliest proponents of the three strike law, said it was supposed to deter people from committing crimes. It actually hasn’t. What it has done, is contributed in building mass incarceration as we know it in America.
Read more here.
Also, the war on drugs was and is largely propeled by the notion that if you criminalize drug use with extreme punishment, people won’t use drugs. As we can see, that method is clearly not effective. A lot of countries implementing, the war of drugs approach aren’t seeing less drug users.
Now that I have taken through my thought process, I have been able to convince you and not confuse you that I may have a spicy take but I haven’t lost my mind. Lmao.
