Sorry if somebody else already posted a thread on this.  I might have missed it.  Anyway...

Oscar Goodman, the mayor of Las Vegas, fed up with little punks defacing ("tagging") city murals has proposed severing the thumbs of graffiti taggers.  That's right, thenar amputation, just cut 'em right off---on television!
:o :o :o

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5390726,00.html

Aside from Mr. Mayor's conflict with the Eigth Amendment to the Constitution, do you think this kind medieval punishment would work?  If every greasy little punk with spraypaint can knew he'd lose his thumbs if he got busted, would you see a decline in graffiti in Las Vegas?
On a side note, would the city government be obliged to provide these thubless citizens with compensatory income or find them jobs that do not require thumbs?
??? :D ???

I have trouble believing that he could possibly be serious about this... Whatever happened to political suicide?

But he said he was "dead serious" about it!  So perhaps therein lies your "political suicide."

I don't know, suppose the thumb-severing does work?  Then what?  The mayor adopts a similar policy to rid the city of the scourge of johns cruising the strip for the ladies of the night!

You know, they don't spray graffiti or pick up hookers in Riyadh, but on the other hand...oh, sorry, there is no other hand!
:-\\

works in other countries, wouldn't work here.

I don't think it would matter.....heck, some kids might line up to have their thumbs cut off just so they could a) sue the city or b) collect disability for the rest of their lives.  Heck, if the thought of spending some time in a jail cell with a big, burly guy named "Bubba" who is going to be your "master" doesn't scare them, you think losing a digit would?  ::)


Why should they serve jail time for graffitti? It isn't a serious crime. They should have to pay for it monetarily and/or perhaps in community service, but not by going into jail, where they're more likely to come out as harder criminals than they were when they went in. I'm definitely for the community service route. Save jail for murderers, rapists, and Martha Stewart  ;).

I don't think it would matter.....heck, some kids might line up to have their thumbs cut off just so they could a) sue the city or b) collect disability for the rest of their lives.  Heck, if the thought of spending some time in a jail cell with a big, burly guy named "Bubba" who is going to be your "master" doesn't scare them, you think losing a digit would?  ::)

I don't think anyone would get his thumbs severed just to collect disability.  But then I could be wrong.  After all, I didn't know about all those welfare recipients driving luxury SUVs with bling-bling rims either, so...
:D

it may act as a deterent...but probably not well, because no one will take it serriously as its so outragous.  Yet, all he needs is to do it to one person...

There's no possible way he could get away with doing it even to one person. Even if theoretically some government individual could do that, it wouldn't be a city mayor. They don't have that kind of muscle.

There's no possible way he could get away with doing it even to one person. Even if theoretically some government individual could do that, it wouldn't be a city mayor. They don't have that kind of muscle.


yeah, thats very true.  It could be a show though.  I can see that working. 

There's no possible way he could get away with doing it even to one person. Even if theoretically some government individual could do that, it wouldn't be a city mayor. They don't have that kind of muscle.

Of course the whole thing is absurd.  I was just wondering how far people would go to make law enforcement effect and what kind of liberties one would be willing to trade.

There's no possible way he could get away with doing it even to one person. Even if theoretically some government individual could do that, it wouldn't be a city mayor. They don't have that kind of muscle.
I don't know about that. Being the mayor of Las Vegas, I wouldn't be terribly surprised if he's rubbed elbows with a few shady characters who would have no qualms whatsoever about cutting someone's thumb off.

It sounds as if he's running for mayor of theran

It sounds as if he's running for mayor of theran

theran has a higher literacy rate and a lower electricity bill!
;D

GOOD FOR HIM!

I also recommend instead of the thumbs being cut off(as the low lifes will need them to hitchhike out of town,
CUT OFF THEIR,..... OH SOOOO CUTE,..... MIDDLE FINGERS...but if they did that, the ACLU would sue them for taking away their freedom of speech! :D :D :D

GOOD FOR HIM!

I also recommend instead of the thumbs being cut off(as the low lifes will need them to hitchhike out of town,
CUT OFF THEIR,..... OH SOOOO CUTE,..... MIDDLE FINGERS...but if they did that, the ACLU would sue them for taking away their freedom of speech! :D :D :D

Haw haw haw, that's very funny...almost.
:-\\

Haw haw haw, that's very funny...almost.
:-\\


Would you really put it past them not to get involved? ???