Why Revenge?

 

You Won't Feel Better

My motivation for exploring the pitfalls of vengeance and revenge is the recent surge in federal executions. Propublica reports a rush to execute, often at the expense of due process. So, what's the big deal? These people are on death row. They are getting just punishment based on our legal system. Right?

Trump is demonstrating a core belief that those who commit a crime should be punished in kind. Remember the Central Park Five. Never mind they were cleared of the crime after spending years in prison. DNA evidence and a confession freed them, I believe. Trump never backed off his assertion.

The lust for retribution and vengeance is a core value of his base, including White Evangelicals. Ironically, White Evangelicals are strongly opposed to a woman's right to choose claiming killing is wrong. 

If we are one nation under God, the Bible says, "An eye for an eye," right? On the contrary, Jesus said, "But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, …" "But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also."

Sound advice. Once consumed with revenge, you will not soothed once enacted.  

So, what's happening on death row in federal prisons?

According to Propublica:

In its hurry to use its final days in power to execute federal prisoners, the administration of President Donald Trump has trampled over an array of barriers, both legal and practical, according to court records that have not been previously reported.

Officials gave public explanations for their choice of which prisoners should die that misstated key facts from the cases. They moved ahead with executions in the middle of the night. They left one prisoner strapped to the gurney while lawyers worked to remove a court order. They executed a second prisoner while an appeal was still pending, leaving the court to then dismiss the appeal as “moot” because the man was already dead. They bought drugs from a secret pharmacy that failed a quality test. They hired private executioners and paid them in cash.

The Trump administration has executed more federal prisoners than any presidency since Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s. Roosevelt was president for 12 years, and his total includes six saboteurs who were tried by a military commission.

True Healing

Does the vengeance of capital punishment offers bring healing, peace of mind, and closure to the families of the victims? Good question. There is plenty of evidence to suggest not. 

Behaviors of rage and seeking vengeance are learned. The justification is a whole genre of popular movies where a super hero takes on whole groups of people alone. Well, they are armed with superior fire power, so never mind the law. Besides, the villains are so obviously bad.

If revenge is a learned behavior, it can be unlearned.

Learn to Let Go 

I found a website called Ditch the Label. It offers advice to teens and young adult. They're global youth organization helping young people overcome the issues that affect and hold them back the most. Their core strands of support include bullying, digital wellbeing, mental health, relationships and identity.

They've come up with Seven Reasons Why Seeking Revenge Is A Bad Idea.

1. IT WON’T MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER.
Sadly, evidence shows that people who seek revenge instead of forgiving or letting go, tend to feel worse in the long run. You are much better off channelling your energy into moving forward positively with your life.

2. IN FACT, IT MIGHT MAKE YOU FEEL WORSE.
While you might feel hurt or betrayed right now, eventually you will be able to put those feelings behind you, but if you burden your conscience with guilt, you are more likely to ruminate over your actions – this makes moving on much harder and only puts your life on hold.

3. IT COULD BACKFIRE.
Gandhi once said, “An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” It is far better to save yourself from the possibility of further trauma. Focus on the good things in your life and look at how you can move forward, putting the person who hurt you firmly in the past.

4. YOU ARE WASTING PRECIOUS TIME.
Do you really want to waste your precious time on someone that doesn’t deserve it?
How can you make way for new, positive experiences if you are preoccupied with wreaking havoc?

5. BECAUSE, KARMA.
Whether you believe in it or not, karma makes a much better friend than a foe – make sure to keep on the right side of it:

6. TWO WRONGS DON’T MAKE A RIGHT.
Fact. Seeking revenge isn’t going to undo the actions of the person who has wronged you. So do the right thing, be the bigger person – you will be glad you did so in the long run.

7. YOU COULD GET CAUGHT IN AN ENDLESS REVENGE LOOP.
So, you seek revenge on the person who hurt you. They then take revenge on your revenge…and the cycle continues. Make sure you don’t get caught in a loop, it will only cause you further pain and hurt. Try and leave negativity and people who bring you down in the past. They are not worth your time and energy.

Something Ditch the Label forgot to mention is a strong support group. Nobody said forgiving and moving on was going to be easy.