Funny when we get down to the end of controversial topics we always get to "its personal choice" Always seen as by myself as a kind of topic killer
Fair enough if members dont want these kinds of things debated, dont put them in the forum.
I have a very good think theses day before I pout anything on this forum as Ive seen the sheer amount of negative spins that this community can seem to put on just about anything. However writing to death row inmates would have been one I knew I was going to get a strong opposing opinion to.
Agreed that there are some in this world that need compassion but I doubt form the write to a prisoner scheme you get a nice card with the personals on it what they did etc etc. More likely you pick someone random or they pick you and you just get thier side of the story if anything at all.
I think you missed part of the point of what I was saying, not that it matters. On threads like this or any threads say for example the bareback yes or no threads. After so much debate it always just ends up as "its personal choice" which it is as you say it is but it always just seems to be a way of someone trying to kill off the thread. Thinking about it in this case thats probably not a bad thing.
At no point did I get personal with anyone. If "Its personal choice" does not kill off topics then please make a reply to it :thumbup: Pretty difficult as once you get to that point in the conversation there is not one. As I said above in this thread thats probably not a bad thing.
I started this thread because I was interested in learning about people’s views to something which I found, originally, alien to me. As Nola said this thread started going one sided and echoing the feelings I had when I started the thread.
Nola’s post and some others though made me think. And here’s the crux of it – “think”. I like to hear other people’s views and opinions. They make me think and make me, sometimes question my beliefs and sometimes reinforce them. Sometimes my beliefs get reinforced by my disagreement.
Ultimately I like to believe in what Socrates said that ‘I know that I know nothing’ (or was it the more we learn, the less we know?)
Anyway, what I realised is that most people (and I include myself on this) react with a ‘gut reaction’ – like why would anyone want to befriend a serial killer. Then I read Nola’s post, I re-read the article in the Guardian, I read more on the net. Whilst in a way I still feel a little uneasy that criminals of that magnitude manage to make pen friends, I can see the point of view of people wanting to write to them. Once you see past the crimes and horrors (if you like) of their actions they are still human and possibly very lonely people.
It is in a way a learning experience to try and find out what it is that made people behave like that, what drove them to crimes, etc. If there were no people talking to them we would never know how to avoid that in the future.
There was a great quote by Marilyn Manson when he was interviewed by Michael Moore for his film about the Columbine murders:
Michael Moore: If you were to talk directly to the kids at Columbine or the people in that community, what would you say to them if they were here right now?
Marilyn Manson: I wouldn't say a single word to them I would listen to what they have to say, and that's what no one did.
Makes you think huh?
Also some of the comments on this thread and others on the net made me realise how weird it is that we’re capable of accepting that someone drops bombs (nuclear or otherwise) on towns killing hundreds of thousands of people and we don’t call them scum bag murderers but we can’t accept that others have killed a few.
Isn’t there a saying that goes… You kill a thousand people they give you a medal. You kill one they put you in prison.
So basically my point is (if I have one) I like to keep an open mind – I know what I think, I know my beliefs, but I’m always open to see other peoples points of view – I may not agree with them some of the time and sometimes I might realise that I’ve been wrong… and confirm (again) that Socrates was right.
