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> A politican voting to reform a clearly broken prison system faces tons of risks to their career. Can you say more about this? It sounds like you think that'

> A politican voting to reform a clearly broken prison system faces tons of risks to their career. Can you say more about this? It sounds like you think that's normal in your community, to think that way. That's not how I hear the people around me talking about prison. I think most of us would support a candidate who talked about rehabilitation. I worry that by trotting out this old meme as if it were an permanent fixture of our political system that you are actually strengthening it.

grasshopperpurp 9y ago
In my experience, the divide is similar to the War on Drugs. Most young people understand that it was a poor concept, initiated by racists, from the start. Many old people are still tethered to the propaganda of the past, so there are politicians that can just continue that line of thinking. As long as the current generation is in power (Boomers), we won't see much change for the better. Obv not all Boomers are this way - to be clear, just way too many.
aaron-lebo 9y ago
The only thing you gotta look at to confirm this is how elected judges rule when election time comes up. They get a lot tougher on crime.
rhino369 9y ago
Part of the problem is that even thought a lot of people generally agree that we are too harsh on criminals, they don't stick to that viewpoint when the rubber meets the road during situations they care about. People who are liberal on sentencing get angry if short sentences are handed down in rape or financial crime cases.
- ajmurmann 9y ago
  Your last paragraph made me smile at the idea of having prisons filled with bankers instead of drug dealers. Do your point is certainly valid.
- anigbrowl 9y ago
  absolute/relative
- anonacct37 9y ago
  There's an appropriate amount of punishment. It's too much for a joint and too little for the people who broke the economy. This is not a contradiction or indication of hypocrisy.
  - thinkmilitant 9y ago
    If it's still about punishment, it's still coming from the wrong place, imo. Furthermore, everyone will have different opinions on which crimes are more heinous than others.
pillowkusis 9y ago
Most of the people I know aren't swayed by the "tough on crime" narrative. Certainly not me. But then again, I live in a techno-liberal-intellectual bubble. I believe this "punish those who do wrong" mentality (which is understandable on the face of it) is definitely built into the conservative wing of American politics. Public opinion is swayed at a very superficial level. Emotional stories about convicts going free or people getting killed are always going to have a more substantial impact. Especially compared to mundane stores on successful prison reform -- 10% shorter prison sentences? 5% higher rehab rate? This guy who murdered people has a stable construction job now? Ignore the ideology, I think the optics of prison reform give us this unequal incentive structure.

grasshopperpurp 9y ago

In my experience, the divide is similar to the War on Drugs. Most young people understand that it was a poor concept, initiated by racists, from the start. Many old people are still tethered to the propaganda of the past, so there are politicians that can just continue that line of thinking. As long as the current generation is in power (Boomers), we won't see much change for the better. Obv not all Boomers are this way - to be clear, just way too many.

aaron-lebo 9y ago

The only thing you gotta look at to confirm this is how elected judges rule when election time comes up. They get a lot tougher on crime.

rhino369 9y ago

Part of the problem is that even thought a lot of people generally agree that we are too harsh on criminals, they don't stick to that viewpoint when the rubber meets the road during situations they care about. People who are liberal on sentencing get angry if short sentences are handed down in rape or financial crime cases.

ajmurmann 9y ago
Your last paragraph made me smile at the idea of having prisons filled with bankers instead of drug dealers. Do your point is certainly valid.
anigbrowl 9y ago
absolute/relative
anonacct37 9y ago
There's an appropriate amount of punishment. It's too much for a joint and too little for the people who broke the economy. This is not a contradiction or indication of hypocrisy.
- thinkmilitant 9y ago
  If it's still about punishment, it's still coming from the wrong place, imo. Furthermore, everyone will have different opinions on which crimes are more heinous than others.

pillowkusis 9y ago

Most of the people I know aren't swayed by the "tough on crime" narrative. Certainly not me. But then again, I live in a techno-liberal-intellectual bubble. I believe this "punish those who do wrong" mentality (which is understandable on the face of it) is definitely built into the conservative wing of American politics. Public opinion is swayed at a very superficial level. Emotional stories about convicts going free or people getting killed are always going to have a more substantial impact. Especially compared to mundane stores on successful prison reform -- 10% shorter prison sentences? 5% higher rehab rate? This guy who murdered people has a stable construction job now? Ignore the ideology, I think the optics of prison reform give us this unequal incentive structure.