I Think I'm Going to be Sick . . .

[blas87]

Prison isn't a good enough detourent because it's not a good enough punishment.

Life in prison would be ideal if it truly were an actual sentence until you died in prison, and you had to suffer more than just not being able to go back into society.

Take Osama Bin Laden for example. If we ever caught him, life in prison would work great for him if we put him in like a 6x6 cell with only a hole to shit and piss in, and had prison guards gossip loud enough for him to hear that an airplane would blast into his prison cell so he'd suffer what his victims suffered. Make him wait and get scared, never knowing if it would happen or when.

[Amanita]

^Osama has said that being taken prisoner would be a fate worse than death, or something to that effect. Keep him locked up and humiliate him six ways to sunday on a regular basis. Strip searches and patdowns galore!

[guywithashovel]

I'm not sure what it's like in the Middle East, but if I recall correctly from my high school American History class, the Japanese (and perhaps others in that part of Asia) believe that to get captured in battle is a disgrace, but to get killed in battle is an honor.

[Amanita]

Exactly. I think old Japan is where the writers of Star Trek derived a lot of their Klingon philosophy from. "Every Klingon has the right to die in battle"

[lordlundar]

I'm not sure what it's like in the Middle East, but if I recall correctly from my high school American History class, the Japanese (and perhaps others in that part of Asia) believe that to get captured in battle is a disgrace, but to get killed in battle is an honor.

Bushido. Supposedly the ancient code of honour of the samurai.

The funny thing is, it was never around during the Edo period. It's not even that old, starting up around WW2 as propaganda to make the allied forces believe that attempting to take prisoners for interrogation would be a waste of time.

[crashhelmet]

Bushido. Supposedly the ancient code of honour of the samurai.

The funny thing is, it was never around during the Edo period. It's not even that old, starting up around WW2 as propaganda to make the allied forces believe that attempting to take prisoners for interrogation would be a waste of time.

The term "Bushido" was actually first introduced to the American people in a book written in 1899 by a Japanese man living in America. It was an attempt to explain what the people of Japan were going through as they changed from a Feudal Society to a more "modern" one.

Writings by Miyamoto Musashi in the 1600s and Yamamoto Tsunetomo in the 1700s speak of the Code of Honor that they lived by. It describes the mentality that the Samurai used in battle preparation, how they felt about losing in battle, what they were required to do to retain or regain their Honor, and how, when, and why ritual suicide would be performed. Seppuku is just one form of ritual suicide.

It was not propaganda being spread about the Japanese in WWII. It was what was the Japanese expected their soldiers to do.

[guywithashovel]

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...ag=mncol;lst;1

Seems that the guy from the second link is off suicide watch now. According to this article, he's "maintaining a positive attitude." I'm sure we're all glad to hear that.