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I wasn't saying that decisions of that ilk are based solely on the reference only that the root of the idea "an eye for an eye" is calling it out as bad practice. Turn the other cheek is good practice from the same collection. Meeting red with red is wrong. We can call it "make the punishment fit the crime"to use more current vernacular.
I don't know what the right answer is for every situation, but the idea is to be how you want them to be not how they have been. All acting like a tyrant does when confronted with one is create more tyrants. That doesn't lessen the suffering exacted on innocents, it increases it. This is not just biblical but inherent in every religious philosophy I've spent any time learning about. Eastern, Native American, African, makes no difference. I'm not talking about pacifism as "you piss me off, I'll pass a fist". That's how the ideal comes off from people who think force should be met with equal or superior force in the same vein. Its not an ideal at all if the answer is to punch the bully back.
I wholeheartedly agree that punishment in the present system is not deterring crime enough, but I also believe the problems have a root in our society that will not be fixed by treating symptoms. George Carlin said "as long as we continue to have selfish ignorant citizens, we will continue to have selfish ignorant leaders." He want saying that we're all selfish and ignorant (neither am I) just that those are two pervasive flaws in society here. There's no easy answer for the fix in society, but it will continue to decline until there's a breaking point or answers are implemented. Just as the war on drugs has failed and its time to try a different approach, our ideas on how to resolve conflicts have proven more costly than the gain in this age. Education in this country is not working, its timefor a different approach. So many things are not working and slow change isn't making significant progress, in fact so many things continue to get worse even with it.
BTW, How is it that the fundamental debate between Lucifer and God was that God wanted us to be free to choose and Lucifer wanted us to be forced to do what's right, yet many Christian groups seem to want us all to be forced to do what's right? Am I misrepresenting or misunderstanding vocal Christian groups? I do not mean it as an insult, just a curiosity I've had for awhile.