Public shaming of drug addicts - Do you think its a deterant to drug use?

[JudgeRightly]

No, I don't think this would be effective for the vast majority of drug users. It does not address why they use drugs. I think that many use drugs because they feel completely hopeless and hapless. Their lives are empty and drugs allow them to feel something. Unless we can address that which leaves them hopeless, public shaming would likely only drive them deeper into drugs.

See my above post.

Getting high/drunk should be a crime.
The best way to change societal behaviors?
Restigmatize, recriminalize, and get people to repent, in that order.

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[CabinetMaker]

See my above post.

Getting high/drunk should be a crime.
The best way to change societal behaviors?
Restigmatize, recriminalize, and get people to repent, in that order.

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I don't agree. You cannot legislate morality which is why we have a New Covenant instead of the Old. Jesus told us to help those in need, not ridicule and mock them.

 

[JudgeRightly]

I don't agree. You cannot legislate morality which is why we have a New Covenant instead of the Old. Jesus told us to help those in need, not ridicule and mock them.

Jesus did not get rid of the Law, which is what you're saying He did. The Law still exists, and condemns those under it.

God said do not murder, do not steal, do not commit adultery, do not perjure. For the most part, we've legalized each of these, or at the very least we don't enforce the laws against them.

murder: abortion
steal: socialist programs
adultery/sexual immorality: homosexuality
perjury: When's the last time you heard of a someone being punished for this?

You should read through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

And the four Gospels.

Which part of the Bible did Jesus quote from?
Did Jesus repeal any laws? If so, which ones? Which ones did Jesus NOT repeal, if any?

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[musterion]

I voted no.

SHOULD they be ashamed? Yes, as with any sin. But druggies of all kinds are notoriously ok with it if not proud of it. Public shaming won't work now, since society is quickly degrading from whatever skin of Christendom it used to possess.

 

[JudgeRightly]

I voted no.

SHOULD they be ashamed? Yes, as with any sin. But druggies of all kinds are notoriously ok with it if not proud of it. Public shaming won't work now, since society is quickly degrading from whatever skin of Christendom it used to possess.

That's because no one is stigmatizing it anymore. Instead people who are drug addicts or dealers are being coddled, and told "oh, addiction is a disease that needs to be treated and we need to help them," instead of "what you're doing is wrong and it's hurting you, loved ones, and those around you."

And because of that, we can't properly recriminalize the behavior, because no one thinks it's wrong. And because no one thinks its wrong, no one will repent. Why repent if it's not wrong to get high and destroy your life?

Restigmatize
Recriminalize
Repent

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[musterion]

How are you defining "repent," by the way?

 

[JudgeRightly]

How are you defining "repent," by the way?

Well let's think this through. When you hurt others, most likely you are committing a crime. All crime is sin (but not all sin is crime). When you want someone to repent of what they've done, you have to convince them that what they've done is wrong.

It's the same kind of repentance that God requires of sinners.

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[musterion]

Well let's think this through. When you hurt others, most likely you are committing a crime. All crime is sin (but not all sin is crime). When you want someone to repent of what they've done, you have to convince them that what they've done is wrong.

It's the same kind of repentance that God requires of sinners.

Not seeing an answer, sorry. But it's not a trick question. How do you define "repent"?

 

[JudgeRightly]

Not seeing an answer, sorry. But it's not a trick question. How do you define "repent"?

Repentance is when one admits that he has done something wrong, that he has hurt others, and that he is sorry for doing it, and it usually means that he wants to be forgiven.

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[musterion]

Repentance is when one admits that he has done something wrong, that he has hurt others, and that he is sorry for doing it, and it usually means that he wants to be forgiven.

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Here's the usual modern definitions of the word. Which is closest to your meaning?

a) Stop sinning/turn from sin

b) Regret/feel sorry for sin [usually but not always included with (a)]

c) Change of mind

 

[JudgeRightly]

Here's the usual modern definitions of the word. Which is closest to your meaning?

a) Stop sinning/turn from sin

b) Regret/feel sorry for sin [usually but not always included with (a)]

c) Change of mind

A and B

Or rather, B, typically followed by A.

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[musterion]

A and B

Or rather, B, typically followed by A.

Thank you. Two follow ups if I may.

1. Do you consider (c) a false definition?

2. Is there a biblical expectation for unbelievers to feel sorry for their sin and stop sinning?

 

[JudgeRightly]

Thank you. Two follow ups if I may.

1. Do you consider (c) a false definition?

2. Is there a biblical expectation for unbelievers to feel sorry for their sin and stop sinning?

1. Now that I think of it, C can be one of the definitions, for example, God repented of things a couple times in the Old Testament.

However, when talking about repenting of crime/sin, it typically is my above answer.

2. Jesus tells us that wide is the way and many are on it that leads to destruction, but narrow the way and few on it that leads to life.

So, in a way, no, because the majority will reject God regardless.
However, apathy is a sin. We don't have the right to be apathetic to those who reject God. God doesn't want any to perish, but for all to have eternal life. But in order for people to be able to recognize they're doing wrong, and therefore repent, they have to be made aware that they're doing wrong.

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[musterion]

1. Now that I think of it, C can be one of the definitions, for example, God repented of things a couple times in the Old Testament.

However, when talking about repenting of crime/sin, it typically is my above answer.

2. Jesus tells us that wide is the way and many are on it that leads to destruction, but narrow the way and few on it that leads to life.

So, in a way, no, because the majority will reject God regardless.
However, apathy is a sin. We don't have the right to be apathetic to those who reject God. God doesn't want any to perish, but for all to have eternal life. But in order for people to be able to recognize they're doing wrong, and therefore repent, they have to be made aware that they're doing wrong.

Does a convicted sinner need to STOP sinning AND believe the Gospel in order to be saved? Many today believe and teach that; I'm wondering if you do as well.

 

[JudgeRightly]

Does a convicted sinner need to STOP sinning AND believe the Gospel in order to be saved? Many today believe and teach that; I'm wondering if you do as well.

*For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, *not of works, lest anyone should boast. - Ephesians 2:8-9 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians2:8-9&version=NKJV

Sinners who are convicted in their heart (not necessarily by the law of the land, for sinners can remain unrepentant even up to death even if they are convicted of a capital crime) and repent of their sins and accept Christ as their Savior are no longer "sinners." They are saved, but that doesn't mean that they will never sin again.



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[musterion]

*For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, *not of works, lest anyone should boast. - Ephesians 2:8-9 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians2:8-9&version=NKJV

Sinners who are convicted in their heart (not necessarily by the law of the land, for sinners can remain unrepentant even up to death even if they are convicted of a capital crime) and repent of their sins and accept Christ as their Savior are no longer "sinners." They are saved, but that doesn't mean that they will never sin again.

So would you agree that those who preach gospel messages telling unbelievers to "turn from sin" (which always means "stop sinning") AND believe Christ died for them, are preaching false gospels?

 

[Angel4Truth]

Drug-abuse counselor gets 25 years for DUI with corpse on windshield

LOS ANGELES — A California substance-abuse counselor who hit a man with her car and drove two miles with his body embedded in her windshield was sentenced Thursday to 25 years to life in prison.

Sherri Lynn Wilkins had pleaded no contest to second-degree murder and two drunken driving counts.

Wilkins, 55, had been found guilty at a 2014 trial on similar charges but an appeals court last year threw out the conviction because her entire criminal history had been admitted at trial and could have prejudiced the jury.

She had received the stiffer sentence of 55 years to life before her appeal.

Prosecutors then refiled charges and Wilkins pleaded no contest.

In 2012, Wilkins was a substance-abuse counselor and was driving home through Torrance when she hit and killed 31-year-old Phillip Moreno.

She drove more than two miles with his half-naked body embedded in the windshield and his upper body face down on the hood before other drivers confronted her at a stoplight, according to court records.

Wilkins told them that Moreno seemed to jump in front of the car. He died at a hospital.

Wilkins drank three shots of vodka and a beer in her car before driving, but the defense argued there hadn’t been enough time for her blood-alcohol level to exceed the legal limit of .08.

Investigators said Wilkins’ blood-alcohol level was about twice that limit 1½ hours after the crash.

 

[Angel4Truth]

Deadly drug overdoses more than doubled since 1999

Bolstered by a huge increase in cases involving heroin, the rate at which Americans die from drug overdoses has more than doubled since the end of the millennium.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released data Friday showing the nation's overdose rate at 16.3 per 100,000 people in 2015 — more than 2.5 times the rate it was in 1999.

The numbers show overdose deaths afflict middle-aged adults and white people the most. Heroin leads the charge, accounting for a quarter of the overdose deaths, more than triple the rate at which it killed in 2010.

States across the country have pledged to curb drug abuse through public policy. In Wisconsin, policy makers launched an opioid task force and facilitated lower prices on an anti-overdose drug. The American Society of Addiction Medicine recently praised New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and the state's legislature for mandating insurance cover up to six months of addiction treatment.

The states with the highest rates of drug overdose death rates were West Virginia, New Hampshire, Kentucky and Ohio. Although, 21 states outpaced the national average. Those include Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New Mexico among others.

Overall, overdose deaths ticked up for every age group, but none more than those 55-64, who fatally overdosed at five times the rate they did 16 years prior. The group with the highest rate of deaths were those 45-54. Teens and young 20-somethings died at much smaller rates than those older than them, except those older than 65. The overdose death rates for people between 25 and 64 years old were more than twice those 15 to 24.

The rate at which white people overdosed fatally, the study found, had more than tripled since 1999. In 2015, white overdose death rates also nearly tripled those of Hispanics and nearly double African-Americans. The study found the rate at which men overdosed was "significantly higher" than women.

Heroin caused more drug overdoses than any other drug. Heroin's increase was met with decreases in drug deaths including oxycodone and methadone. The study found opioid analgesics such as oxycodone and hydrocodone dipped 5% since 2010 and methadone was down 6% over the same period. However, deaths involving cocaine went up 2%.

 

[Angel4Truth]

I voted no.

SHOULD they be ashamed? Yes, as with any sin. But druggies of all kinds are notoriously ok with it if not proud of it. Public shaming won't work now, since society is quickly degrading from whatever skin of Christendom it used to possess.

I think its precisely that there is little stigma and shame these days attached to many behaviors and habits and practices. There is little reason to fight temptations to do wrong when anything goes.

 

[Angel4Truth]

So would you agree that those who preach gospel messages telling unbelievers to "turn from sin" (which always means "stop sinning") AND believe Christ died for them, are preaching false gospels?

I disagree that always means that, to me it just means to change your mind about doing it your way (sin) and turn to His way (Christ)