Mercy vs Justice

[Sugar Cube 4,843]

I think it just depends on the situation. How severe is the crime? Who is the one responsible? I mean, sometimes mercy is great and can go a long way, but other times you're dealing with people who just won't change, either because they choose not to, or they just can't. When crimes are really severe, ie. murder, rape, etc. I almost always prefer cold hard justice.

[~Lola bunny~ 56]

Justice. 

 

Sorry, but I don't think I could ever "forgive" or have "mercy" on a murder, rapist (especially a child rapist), or any other criminal honestly. They harmed someone else, so they need to pay. Simple as that. 

[The Coffee Pony 1,390]

But of a hard choice you're giving us here, Justice is a form of morality that fits the behavior, not the opposite of mercy. You can show mercy whilst being just. I think the words you're looking for are "Punishment vs Rehabilitation".

[Rainblow H. Ash 5,090]

Punishment for violent crimes is a must. I'm not a big supporter of the death penalty in America at this point because our society still locks up a lot of innocent people. I believe that the crusade for "justice" spills over into a lot of victimless crimes that merti rehabilitation rather than punishment.

 

Essentially, there should always be a balance. You can never go either direction too much without dire consequences. Going on crusades of justice against all criminals will lead to a lot of innocent people suffering, while having no punishment but always rehabilitating will lead to people cheating the system because they feel they can just act like they've been reformed and then go out and continuing committing criminal acts.