Hans Reiser Guilty of First Degree Murder (Wired) [LWN.net]

Hans Reiser Guilty of First Degree Murder (Wired)

Posted Apr 30, 2008 8:44 UTC (Wed) by thumperward (guest, #34368)
In reply to: Hans Reiser Guilty of First Degree Murder (Wired) by bojan
Parent article: Hans Reiser Guilty of First Degree Murder (Wired)

and all you can think about is what _he_ should get?

This too is a straw man. There are obviously other considerations here. However, it is a valid point to bring up. If you don't believe that murder sentences should be universally punished with execution or solitary confinement, the question is what said murderers should be doing with themselves behind bars.

Hans Reiser could make a minor contribution to society manufacturing license plates, or could make a larger one by working on a file system. It is evident that criminals are already allowed access to writing materials, books, multimedia and physical education, so the question is whether or not restricted access to computing facilities should be allowed as well.

- Chris

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Hans Reiser Guilty of First Degree Murder (Wired)

Posted Apr 30, 2008 9:37 UTC (Wed) by bojan (subscriber, #14302) [Link]

I find it awfully distasteful that many here are worried whether he'll be able do this or
that, especially given that they may have personal interest in it. The man has just been found
guilty of murder and the first priority is preserving his coding privileges? I think not.

Murderers should be given an opportunity to think long and hard about the consequence of
actions they have chosen to take. This does not include (effectively) extending their
employment inside prison walls on day one of their imprisonment.

Hans Reiser Guilty of First Degree Murder (Wired)

Posted Apr 30, 2008 11:24 UTC (Wed) by Janne (guest, #40891) [Link]

"Murderers should be given an opportunity to think long and hard about the consequence of
actions they have chosen to take. This does not include (effectively) extending their
employment inside prison walls on day one of their imprisonment."

What if we are talking about a hobby here? Of course Reisers ambitions about coding for profit
wont fly while he's doing time. But what if he wants to code as a hobby? Last time I checked,
inmates are allowed to do things that could be considered hobbies. Things like sports,
writing, reading, playing an instrument etc. Why would coding be different?

Of course coding Reiser4 might be difficult since his net-access would be limited in the
extreme. But still.