Density of Registered Sex Offenders

To be honest, I think the Sex Offender Registry is good and bad.

With everything made public it's possible for vigilantes to kill these people, and that has happened before.

I DO NOT advocate rapists or pedophiles, I actually hate them and wish they would die. But in the end, they're just like us. Human. You can argue semantics if you really want to. But in the end, we're all guilty of something.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by RacinReaver

Yeah, but I imagine most people wouldn't equate stealing cable with raping their four year old niece.

But if there was an anti-theft vigilante, you'd be skrew'd.

The whole issue of pedophiles is something that bothers me, as a friend argued with me that they deserve to die, but she does not, because even though she is guilty of crimes, she's not a pedophile.

I don't think that anyone NEEDS to die, but if they DO die, I'll be happier.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by RacinReaver

So should every crime be equal in the eyes of the law? Stealing a pack of bubblegum is the same as being a serial killer?

When did I imply that?

Maybe it should be, RR. Then we can up all of the sentences and everyone can end up in jail!

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by RacinReaver

Pretty much combining thoughts between:

People feel that sexual crimes deserve harsher penalties than theft. Why? I dunno, I imagine most people feel getting raped by a previously convicted sex offender that you didn't know lived next door is a little bit worse than having your stereo stolen by the guy across the street.

To be honest, I don't know how many sex offenders repeat their offenses, even though it's just a hypothetical situation.

When did I say that they do not deserve harsh(er) penalties? I just said that someone doesn't NEED to die solely based on a crime. Before you point out serial killers, serial rapists, and serial pedophiles... I just have to say, SERIAL. It means they're prone to repeat it. As I stated before, (I believe or was it in chat?) there was a house with two sex offenders living together, who had not repeat offended in years (or at all, it was a one time thing), and they both lived together and helped each other out. Some dude got a hold of Sex Registry information, went to their house, and shot them. They were not repeat offenders.

I am of the opinion that we have no real rights to say who can live and who can die. I know that doesn't jive well with the current government and the current laws, but that is my belief. I know, I act like and come off like everyone should die, but I do not hold that belief.

My friend said that pedophiles need to die as if she was judge, jury, and executioner. They ARE human too. I mean, I'd hate it if someone was like "You did this. You deserve to die."

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by RacinReaver

Also, I imagine that guy that went and killed the two sex offenders could have just looked in court records for a trial involving a sex offender, and used any of the internet lookup services to find out where they were currently living and done the same thing.

Actually, you're quite right about that one. I forgot that court records are actually public. The reason why it got so much attention though, was because he used the Sex Offender Registry.

I actually feel bad for the two guys who were killed, since they tried to get on with their lives and tried living a normal life with each others support.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Monkey King

I'd always heard in that past that the recidivism rate was pretty high among rapists, but a quick bit of poking around seems to mostly mirror what I found in this document. Namely, that sex offenders actually aren't very likely to commit another sex crime.

As a counter point, it's also worth noting that rapes frequently go unreported. Recidivism among such sex offenders is probably reported as being a lot lower than it actually is. How much its being underreported, I couldn't say.

Still, there's a lingering and unfair sentiment that once you've committed a given crime, you're destined to do it again. On top of that, people have a pretty warped view of what the justice system is for. Rehabilitation is the most ideal goal, but people primarily want revenge. They don't want that pedophile to undergo counseling and learn to control his urges so as to safely re-enter society, they want him to fucking DIE because he's obviously not a human being, just a child-molesting monster.

The more I think about it, the more I dislike the whole idea of a sex offender registry. Essentially, it's presuming guilt before it's been proven, fueled by anecdotal superstitions.

Well, also, apparently almost half of rape claims are falsified, so it kind of evens out with the ones that go unreported.

I know A LOT of girls who have cried rape. It's pretty pathetic, to be honest.

It's a lot higher than you would think.

How ya doing, buddy?