I have been following this discussion and wanted to chime in few things.

In a society there are different types of people. That is why there are different political parties. Pro life, or pro choice. In the same way, there are people who are more lenient and those who are not. The poster here grgdai seems to be lenient and forgiving and focused on the excessive punishment, while newlynew is focussed on the severity of the crime itself.

Maybe they can sort out their differences in email so that this interesting topic does not get spoiled by personal egos.