Geez, the **** that goes down in that forum after I stop reading it for the night.

i know what you meant. i used the phrase "can be interpreted" intentionally. you chose your words poorly and picked an awful spot to express your thoughts. these are just about as important as content if you don't want to suck as a poster.

Human respect/dignity and empathy are just as arbitrarily-defined as "rape" and "murder". Probably moreso.

I agree with what the boot has expressed on this issue.

Those who have never wronged someone should feel ok with judging others. Everything is on a spectrum. Unless you have never wronged someone else there are people who have wronged others less than you in your life. Just because they have made better or worse decisions than you does not make them a better or worse person. I think we (all people) struggle to separate the person from the decision. You can deplore their actions and decisions without hating them as a person or thinking that they should be treated any worse or respected any less than you are by the rest of society.

For me it comes down to the idea that I shouldn't think I am any better than someone else so I do my best not to judge people, but rather evaluate their decison making and figure out how society can best deal with people who have made horrible decisions (or in lots of cases just one horrible one or a few minor ones). I think that punishments are the wrong way to do things and that someone who is likely to contribute positively to society going forward should be treated differently than someone who is likely to be a drag on society. The problem lies in how to best measure societal contribution and judge future probabilites. If there was any reliable method to do this I would be ok letting some murderers walk and giving 20 years to someone who shoplifts once. However, there isn't and never will be so the best we can do it punish people for crimes with a weighting on past character. We can still judge their actions rather than them and should strive for that, in my opinion.

who's worse, sandusky or madoff?

Paterno!

sandusky made worse decisions that hurt people more deeply on a personal basis

madoff made decisions that radically altered the life of more people, but on a more superficial and less permanent level

So what's your answer CDL?

Sandusky ldo

if you read my argument above you would know that I dont think either is necessarily a bad person and if they were I would have no way of knowing. I do know that they both made really really terrible decisions.

Yeah I got a hearing. The "judge" looked like the guy in Ray Horton's avatar. I probably didn't play my cards right. I had the option of making the police officer show up, but after waiting for a while, I didn't feel like coming back another day and waiting again. As far as arguing my case, my "case" was basically that the law is ******ed. I basically admitted to lying on the seat, just tried to tell the judge that I didn't realize it was against the law, was cooperative with the police officer, remorseful, etc. They make you swear in. I was under oath, so I didn't want to lie. There was an American flag in this guy's ****ty office, this was serious business. I also told him the cop told me these things get reduced/thrown out, which I why I kinda was tempted to make the cop show up, but I'm sure he could have just lied about it.

Eh whatever, lesson learned

rape one little boy fool me once, rape 50 little boys..well

ITT we learn Jerry Sandusky is not a bad person.

WHAT THE **** HAPPENED TO SE

he isnt a good person either. I dont believe in classifying people into good or bad people. evaluate solely the decisions. he is a bad decision maker and I would not trust him. In fact, I don't have anything positive to say about him at all.

Clearly

GJGE

Wrong on both counts. You won't be able to find any substantively poorly chosen words and obviously the point was apropos.

I think I'll take your advice with the grain of salt it warrants.

actually a lot of people committed suicide cause of him

Back to POG with you until you learn how to...think.

committing suicide was not a choice madoff made. it was a choice his victims made. he can be held responsible for ruining their finances, but not their decision to take their own life. they are responsible for that one.

chilltown, what makes someone a bad person rather than a person who makes decisions that societal morals deem inappropriate?

yeah he was just poor at deciding to not rape kids

nfl gets rid of tuq rule

totally disagree

1. good people can do bad things
2. do enough bad things and you are a bad person

sucks he was attracted to kids but jerk off at home or something buddy. not that pedo porn is ok

I think you answered your own question.

But another answer could be: common sense.

That's ok. The eponymous rule and its most famous implementation led to the greatest field goal in postseason history and birthed a legendary career at the same time. My work here is done.