Is a real-life Dexter justifiable?

I believe that is called “vigilante justice” and is not considered a good idea.

I don’t think so!

Honestly, I think people would probably make him a modern day saint, or something along those lines. I am not condoning someone like this, but with the way so many evil people get away with things, I think, a lot of people, would glorify someone like that.

No spoilers; I’ve only seen the first two seasons.

But no. Vigilante justice is never justifiable. The whole point to the idea of “justice” is that it’s not just this one guy handing out justice. We rebelled against monarchy because in a monarchy, only the king hands out justice. A vigilante is no different from a king who acts as judge, jury, and executioner.

In a way the question is the same as asking “is having a dictator as a leader justifiable?” There can of course be so-called “benevolent dictators,” just like there could conceivably be perfectly just vigilantes like Dexter. That doesn’t mean it’s justified, it means we’re lucky.

It can be a nice fantasy at times, but there could be no real-life Dexter. Sociopaths play by no one’s rules, and any real life Dexter would soon be settling scores and killing for fun.

As much as we have all wanted to at some point, no.

Dexter in real life would be immoral just like his character on TV is. But when it’s on TV, they can write him to be likable so that we are cheering for him. Great show.

::sigh::

I love Dexter. I root for him on the show. I wonder if I knew someone like him if I could be cool and kosher with it.

Truth is, I don’t know. Being as socially liberal as I am, I think it’s a possibility, but it conflicts with all that I believe in, in terms of two wrongs not making a right, yadda yadda yadda.

I think society would have a hard time stomaching it. There would be a shocking uproar among the general population, but there would be a few that say “Hey, he/she’s cleaning up the streets.”

No, it’s not justifiable but it should be

I always root for DEXTER….

IF I was on a jury and the defendant was Dexter ; I’d nulify and vote NOT GUILTY .

@HighShaman Did the finale shock you, too? I was so sad!!

I agree with @pdworkin‘s assessment.

SPOILER!!! when he killed that innocent man this season, it shook him..but that lasted what? one episode! A normal person would be sick over it. He was upset for about a day that he messed up, but then got over it. He could quickly get over these “rules” of his, especially in the real world. A TV killer apparently has more control.

No. As much as you might want to take out evil people without the bother of going through the justice system, we need to have a court system, a rational way of determining guilt and innocence that values reason over emotion, evidence and reason over gut reaction. An individual, a vigilante as someone said, is not capable of being nor should be police, judge, jury and executioner.

@taciturnu I was VERY surprised with the finale….

However ; I wasn’t “sad” as I did not like Rita… she was too“Demanding” -“Bossy” .

I was sorry for the little kids, though ..

@HighShaman Really? You didn’t like Rita? I thought she was ADORABLE. I do wonder about Aster and Cody, though. Poor kids won’t look at Disney the same way again. lol! I wonder what the next season holds…

Okay- got it on instant download via Netflix. I will chime in after watching tomorrow. :)

@taciturnu Nope; did not like Rita at all ..lol…

I’ve been trying to find out when the next season of Dexter begins and can’t locate it on Showtime’s website… I THOUGHT I’d cancel it until the new season .. and save $10 a month .

@Dog You’re in for a good one!

@HighShaman I don’t think it comes out again until next September, unfortunately. Took that long between 3 and 4 anyway! Lucky you, if I cancelled Sho, I’d end up paying MORE.

While I enjoy the books, I also believe that we cannot tolerate an actively murdering sociopath in our midst. Even with all the guidelines and fail-safes provided in our court procedures, we still convict too many innocent folks. Depending on the flawed decisions of one person who likes killing is too chancy.

um, this past season isn’t on Netflix yet.

@pdworkin I am renting season 1 and starting from the beginning. How many seasons are there?

@Dog If I am not mistaken ; they just had the finale of season 4.

I think this past one is 4. I downgraded my DirecTV, so I missed the last 3 or 4 episodes.

FML
I didn’t care for Rita either, I agree she was too needy. I was hoping he would divorce her, but I was blown away, by the ending. I didn’t want that to happen! I am hoping when they come back for the next season, it will all have just been one of his hallucinations. I also, didn’t know, that his sister on the show, was his real wife.

Dexter is the only TV series, I watch.

I’m sorry, I tried to whisper that last comment, with the code I was given, and it didn’t come out. I’m sorry. How do I whisper?

I’m going to stop following this thread unless someone can tell me where I can watch the most recent season on line. I’ll pay for it!!

No and it’s not even possible. An actual killer like Dexter is constitutionally incapable of having empathy for another human being so the premise itself is ludicrous. Serial killers have no moral basis for what they do other than that they are addicted to killing and consider it as a sport. Their decisions hold as much consideration as their narcissistic brains imagine would be impressive to an audience.

Thanks @HighShaman and @pdworkin on netflix I rented “Dead Like Me” and loved it till I realized at the end of season 2 it had been canceled (nothing to rent- storyline left hanging). I am half through episode one of Dexter and it is awesome so far! It will be great catching up.

test, am I whispering

@smashbox – Yes, you are.

Awesome!

@smashbox I read an interview with one of the writers, and it doesn’t seem to be a hallucination. ::Sigh::

@Judi I think you can subscribe to Showtime’s website to watch recent episodes of Dexter. You could do that during the season, but now that it’s over, I’m not sure you still can.

I just watched episode one and two. What an unusual concept for a series. In psych class my professor showed us a movie “the Star Chamber” where Judges had a secret panel that would meet and hire assassins to dispatch criminals who had gotten off on a technicality. Dexter avoids the court process altogether.

Would he be justified if it was real? No on many levels. It would be too easy for evidence to point to an innocent person and without the trial process a Dexter could dispatch an innocent person. Additionally the torture, even if the victim had engaged in such activities on his victims, is too barbaric for modern society.(However I personally think that it would be just to do exactly to convicted criminals what they have done to others.)

Great question and great series. Watching it satisfies the “vigilante” in me and temporarily appeases my frustrations with the loopholes in our judicial system.

@Dog I’m glad you’re getting a kick out of it! It’s one of the (very) few shows I watch regularly. The first season is the bloodiest, but they all have great story lines, and I think you’ll enjoy the ending of the first season. Let me know what you think! :)

small (g) and justice is blind Yes/No

Our justice system is flawed. There are far too many people who simply get a slap on the wrist or a few years in prison for committing horrible acts against others. I can’t even watch the news because I find it sickening. I absolutely think a real life Dexter is justifiable. Once these people do the things they do, they are no longer human in my book, and they shouldn’t float through the justice system only to wind up on the streets and kill or rape again. If those are their urges then they should be stopped, and if our system can’t do it… well… what’s wrong with someone picking up where its failing?

If there was a real-life Dexter, and I mean he acted as the exact same person with the exact same principles, then YES by all means he is justifiable. Have you seen some of the people he has killed in the show? The scum of the earth.

With that said, if there was a vigilante in real life, many “innocent” people would still be afraid because of how unpredictable this person would seem. They could change their ways instantly and start killing anybody and not just murderers. Criminals like that are too unpredictable to be trusted.

But, like I said before, if this vigilante were to keep to the same “code” as Dexter, then he would be 100% justifiable.

Well I agree Totally with the fact that some people get away with murder, and Murder Is exactly what those people should have coming to them. I strongly believe In the old “Eye for an eye” Policy. So no if Dexter being in a perfect Job opportunity that he is in To be able to be there when Guilty Men or Woman were set free, takes care of them Nope. Sometimes the law does not work and justice is NOT served. But on the other hand in the show it references the fact that he has actually set people up to be set free in order to be the one who delivers justice. Now that Is wrong. If the court of our peers finds someone guilty and sentences them then that is what should go down. him tampering with blood evidence in order to secure his next kill would have to be put to an end. But people who totally beat the system .. (cough.. cough ))O.J Simpson )) and I’m sure countless others I say hey let the Dark Defender take care of it then.. LOVE THE SHOW!!