Hacker News Reader

And? Retribution is a basic human instinct. The point of the criminal justice system is to manage that instinct in a large population. If you think about criminal justice only in terms of deterrence and rehabilitation it makes little sense to spend so much effort on what probably doesn't have much effect on would-be or convicted criminals.

>The point of the criminal justice system is to manage that instinct in a large population.

Mostly in places with "old testament" attitudes towards morality. For contrast consider cells and prison quality in a place like Norway or Sweden for example (including prison time), compared to the US or some place in Latin America...

There have been many philosophical justifications by judicial philosophers and political experts on justice systems in various countries, and deterrence and rehabilitation are more often than not the stated goals.

What's the difference between punishment & revenge?

In America, it's the bottom line.