Q: Should we punish thought by having laws against "hate crimes"?

Question

There is the question for those that cannot follow a train of thought.
Here is my view:
(I will be using black and white for this exercise)
Someone (White) hates black people.
he kills a black person. He gets 40 yrs + 10 extra because it is a "hate crime"
would he have to hate to kill, even if it were momentary?
If the black guy (for example) was in bed with the other guy's wife and gets killed, the hate might be momentary, but it would still be hate and the dead guy would be just as dead (no matter the motive)!
now let's say the white guy hates blacks and, as he is driving down the road, he yells F' YOU' NI**ER!
Should this guy get 10 years in jail?
I say no! why not? because the actual crime (assault-verbal abuse) is not nearly as severe as the crime of murder!
EVEN THOUGH THE HATE IS EQUAL!

OK Let's hear it both sides please.

I cannot see why the motivation of crimes is important, as judging this would, inevitably lead to SOME motivations being worthwhile and therfore the crimes justified.

I stole from you because my sister could not get on the make a wish foundatiuons list and all she wanted was a big screen TV

OK your motivation is pure so your crime becomes not a crime, sorry mr. victim, but his kid sister, you understand!

How idiotic

sracl, you almost hit the nail on the head,
But we cannot punish the thought until-
an ACTION is taken, and then the ACTION is punished!

In MIchigan, intimidation is a crime and has been for years. about a decade ago, RACIAL intimidation was passed, by law as a separate crime with stiffer penalties than regular intimidation.
Thought crime is already being punished as well in many states when crimes are committed against homosexuals

Answer 1

hate crimes are not about the thought so much as they are about the purpose, and thus, no--someone shouting something out a window is not illegal. (verbal assault is not considered a crime, unless it is repeated harassment.) (if your boss or co-worker does this, however, then it is a creation of a hostile work environment, and is punishable, if the employer does not handle it satisfactorily. not a hate crime, though.)

if someone is killed or physically assaulted specifically because of their race, especially by a stranger, then there is a larger intimidation and fear purpose to the crime. it is meant to scare the crap out of others who fit the description of the victim--ex: lynching.

the crime is different because it is not a crime of passion or a crime of opportunity--it is a crime against society in that it is attempting to intimidate and instill fear in a larger population.

Answer 2

It would be impossible to prove in most cases. Because unless there were witnesses who heard some racial slur just before the murder, then no matter what the person has said to others before, it would not matter case by case.

Punishing thought would make this country become something no civilization has ever seen before.

Just imagine, standing in a long line somewhere, someone of a different race cuts in line. So you give them a dirty look, not based on race, but based on the fact the person cut in line. So now ol granny standing there sees your look and reads it as hate towards that persons race, she dials 911 on her cell phone and reports you for a thought! She didn't hear it, she just "guessed" you were having a bad thought.

Wow! What a place to live!

Answer 3

Being racist is not a crime in itself. Someone commits a hate crime when the primary intent for them committing a crime, whether it be murder, arson, etc, is race or some other classification (gender, religion). The person who commited the crime is guilty of the crime regardless of his racial motivation, however, his racial motivation is considered an "aggravating factor" and the judge will increase his sentence accordingly to reflect that.

Answer 4

That is why all the evidence has to be in before a decision can be reached by the judge or jury.Yet the last time that i checked,people don't get sent to prisons/jail just for calling people racial slurs.It can result in a civil lawsuit. There are criminal laws that govern racial graffiti,torture,intimidation,murder etc...You can check with the FBI on that or watch "Mississippi Burning". Peace.

Answer 5

people should not be punished due to his/her thought, or opinion; however i do see your approach . what goes in the mind is "private" and you can't be punished due of that, but punished due to your action. for example, i have just finished a McDonald's meal, and u take a moment and think, i don't feel like throwing it in the garbage, but yet u do throw it in the garbage, u can't be punished due to that.

using ur example, if a white man says "F' YOU' NI**ER!" i don't see what u can really do, be cause that person is exercising one of the amendment, "the freedom of speech" if you want to control one of th e amendments i say how about gun control??

and yet there is the slightest possibility that a rule ab out "hate crimes" is passed on don't but it is hard to prove it in front of a judge unless that person confesses, or as written in his journal.

and no need for a hate crime rule, because if a judge sees the criminal needs more time he will give him the time needed.

Answer 6

Well, i cant see how the police would really keep this law, their is afetr all a crisis of institutional racism in the police force itself..no, i think incitement to kill via hatred is a crime, if someone was caught telling people to kill muslims, or blacks or whites etc, thats a crime. To think it however, is a freedom we should all have

Answer 7

That means it is against the law "to think". I think all rimes against a person is a hate crime. If I hate a guy because he has a bundle of money and I kill him to get it ....that is NOT ahate crime unless he is another race, crippled, gay or homeless.

Answer 8

when it's black and white it's automatically a racists thing that is a hate crime

Answer 9

According to the bible, yes you can commit murder in your heart. And hate can eventually leads to actions.