Kevin Drum reports on prison stats over at CalPundit, and in reading the comments sections I am struck by the assumption that, ipso facto the stats indicate something wrong with the US criminal justice system. While I will concur there are a remarkable number of young men in jail, there is the very real possibilitity that they deserve to be there by dint of their trangressing the laws of the US and/or the various states.
And while I will agree that our drug laws are all screwed up (if not, in some cases, ludicrious), it isn't like said laws are a secret or anything. People knowingly risk jail when they deal, purchase, or use illegal substances.
Posted by Steven Taylor at July 28, 2024 05:46 PM | TrackBackWell, I daresay that virtually all of them are indeed there because they broke the law. No argument there.
But still, there's just gotta be something wrong when a full 1% of adults are currently in jail. That indicates something seriously wrong with society.
Posted by: Kevin Drum at July 28, 2024 07:10 PMIndeed.
However, what struck me about most of the commentary on your site was that most seemed to infer that the problem was with the law, rather than the lawbreaker.
Posted by: Steven at July 28, 2024 08:12 PMI always hear that the vast majority of people in prison are non-violent drug offenders. That is such a BS myth. It takes you 7 CONVICTIONS to get put into prison here for grand theft auto (seriously). They aren't going to be locking up Pete Pothead for a simple toke in public. Indeed, I know many cops who say they never arrest the typical pothead, or even your casual coke user. The folks in prison on "drug charges" usually have something else going on.
It's real simple people -- don't do drugs; don't mug anybody; don't steal their property and don't kill anyone. Got it? Any questions?
Posted by: John Lemon at July 28, 2024 09:33 PMGot milk?
Posted by: Steven at July 28, 2024 09:38 PM