Prisoner numbers

[lookout123]

whether you like the law or not, it is the law - if you choose to break it be prepared to pay the consequences. don't look for sympathy and pats on the back.

I know a few people behind bars for drug violations... not a single one of them got arrested in hopes of changing the law - but nice thought.

[lumberjim]

there is NO way in hell tw smokes pot.



no fucken wai man.

[smoothmoniker]

I'll take that bet.

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by lumberjim

there is NO way in hell tw smokes pot.



no fucken wai man.

Well he should start.


...and stop dropping acid.

[DanaC]

the State let these underachievers down?

Patterns of illiteracy form at a very young age. The education system lets down a lot of kids, and particularly boys. In order to reach them the work needs to be put in at primary school level, long before the word 'under achiever' should ever be applied to a child. If a child is not learning at the age of seven the fault lies with the educators (or the system in which they operate) and family not the child.

The second huge swathe of prisoners I mentioned was those who are actually suffering from mental illness. The state has let them down because instead of giving them appropriate psychiatric attention, treatment and in some cases that will mean enforced in-patient treatment, they've been dropped into the prison system. part of the problem is that psychiatric health is the cindarella service in britain. Another part of the problem is the severe social stigma attached to mental illness which puts people off seeking help or information before they reach a critical stage. The state could alleviate this situation by: better funding and organisation of mental health provision; a more concerted effort to educate the public about mental health issues and a more concerted effort to educate local magistrates (who are often instrumental in the early stages of someone's entry into the criminal system) about mental illness thereby better equipping them to delineate between simple criminality and someone in crisis.

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by tw

Curious that Australia, created as a penal colony, does not have so many evil people.

Sure they do, they just are not in prison.


{Hi Ali! }

[classicman]

Dana - sometimes people are at fault. We cannot help every individual, nor is it rational to assume that everyone has the same capacity for achievement. we are all individuals with different intellects, attitudes and abilities. Some are going to be below others. It is not so easy to say that it is the states fault if at age 7 they are not learning. They may just be doing their best. The fact that their best is really poor, just may be a harsh reality. Lookouts old sig said it best. You cannot make things that are not equal, equal. It will inherently fail every single time.

[Cloud]

I also suspect that some of reasons the figure is so high is the efficiency of our justice sytem and public reporting--I certainly would not trust any figures coming out of Russia, China, or North Korea on these statistics. And corruption isn't as rampant as in some countries.

Still, no question there's a problem. I wonder what percent of the total prison population is minority? Like 90%?

[HungLikeJesus]

If the percentage is above 50% then they're not a minority.

[Cloud]

apples to oranges

[Flint]

…
Nearly 2 million Americans are
incarcerated in the prison system,
prison system of the U.S.
…
The percentage of Americans in the prison system,
prison system has doubled since 1985.
…
All research and successful drug policy shows
that treatment should be increased,
and law enforcement decreased,
while abolishing mandatory minimum sentences,
…
Drug money is used to rig elections,
and train brutal corporate sponsored
dictators around the world.
…

[classicman]

Don't those other countries - russia, china, korea et al - just kill people instead. Doesn't that skew their numbers a bit?

[lookout123]

well damn, we can fix that. I'll be the executioner.

[TheMercenary]

Using the original links from the study and following the statistical trail back to a single source:

http://www.kcl.ac.uk/depsta/law/rese.../wpb_stats.php

when you begin to look at the per 100,000 population the statistical difference among the top contenders is not that big.

[DanaC]

The Uk has a ridiculously high prison population. In fact we are at breaking point and now talking about building so-called 'super prisons' to house even more of the population.