# Punitive Coma

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/punitive-coma/178132>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [May 28, 2003, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/punitive-coma/178132 "2003-05-28T22:40:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![TVAA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TVAA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVAA)\
**Post date:** [June 1, 2003, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/punitive-coma/178132/21 "2003-06-01T04:14:51Z")

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The damage to the brain from being kept unconscious for that period of time would be prohibitive as well.

Drugs aren’t some magic switch, people. You can’t just “turn off” a brain for twenty years.

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**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\
**Post date:** [June 2, 2003, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/punitive-coma/178132/22 "2003-06-02T17:16:15Z")

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Issues of the ability to defend yourself aside, I don’t think it’s punishing _enough_. If you commit a crime, going to sleep for 20 years doesn’t seem like punishment, but 20 years doing hard time behind bars - _that_ is punishment.

IMHO.

Esprix

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