Resolved: In the United States, minor jail time ought to be replaced with significant rehabilitation

It has been an interesting set of 4 rounds and with that said, I think it's time to deliver my closing remarks. Why Con has won this debate: 1) The dispute over values. Specifically regarding the dispute over values, I kept "trying to prove which value is higher" as my opponent stated. And he's right. Justice is indeed a higher value than Societal Welfare regarding the Criminal Justice System. Therefore the winner of this debate (me) should be decided by which system provides greater justice. 2) Rehabilitation is unjust. My opponent write "this round is not about which punishment is more just or not". But he's mistaken. If the principle value is Justice, then whether or not a punishment is "appropriate" depends on whether or not it is Just. As I said, Justice is a noun. Just is an adjective. . http://www.merriam-webster.com... The definition of justice is having: "the quality of being just". If rehabilitation is unjust, as I successfully argued, it is not aligned with the central value of justice. 3) Minor Jail time is just As this goes unopposed, my opponent concedes that minor jail time is just. Therefore Minor Jail Time contributes towards the value of Justice while Rehabilitation does not. Therefore I have won the debate. -------------- But even if we do accept that societal welfare is an important value (so all this is actually irrelevant since it's clear that I've shown Justice is the superseding value), the debate is still won by Con because the status quo (jail time) necessarily contributes to societal welfare while rehabilitation does not. a)Forced rehab and Police State My opponent repeated numerous times that Forced Rehabilitation is good because it reduces crime. I said, we should be especially wary of programs that reduce crime because those programs are the ones which jeopardizes liberty most. And Forced rehabilitation is the perfect example. My opponent brings up Criminon, this exemplary redemption program. And to which I responded that it was either willful ignorance or just unintended oversight, but Criminon's success comes in large part from their teaching of Scientology's principles and recruiting it's subjects into the Scientology flock. It's one thing to punish people for violating the social contract. But another altogether to reach into their minds and create "model" citizens out of them through this Forced rehabilitation. "The difference between forcing people to become "model", "respected" citizens who follow the "correct" behaviors of society and offering them the opportunity to learn is as wide a gap as between the freedoms of our Democracy and the tyranny of a Police State. Rehabilitation is wonderful. Forced Rehabilitation is tyranny. " People in America have the freedom to do what's wrong . .. so long as they then pay the price. It's how civil disobedience operates. Forced Rehabilitation is a dangerous concept, a step short of brainwashing and societal conformation. Forcing people to behave a certain way . .. that is not what OUGHT to happen in a Democracy. ----------------------- And for these reasons, I am proud to oppose the resolution.