2022-06-27 Is compassion weakness or wisdom?

Two 16 year old boys were arrested for trying to rob a bank, and spent several years in prison.

The parents of one of the boys disowned him, never visited him in prison and refused to see him when he was released from prison. That boy was filled with bitterness, became a hardened criminal, and spent the rest of his life in and out of prison.

The parents of the other boy, although distressed and embarrassed, often visited their son in prison and encouraged him to study and improve himself. On release from prison, that boy found a good job and became a community leader. 

"Show no mercy", "let them rot", "harshness the only policy" ... this line of thinking usually makes things worse, causing alienation and division ... in a family and in society.