> Lack of opportunities for a nice lifestyle is not a justification for criminal behavior. Of course it's not. Suppose you're in a situation where you have a l

> Lack of opportunities for a nice lifestyle is not a justification for criminal behavior. Of course it's not. Suppose you're in a situation where you have a lack of education, family/community support, and a general lack of resources. Perhaps you already have a minor conviction on your record due to racist or classist laws. The options are: have money, or don't. Do you sell drugs? In the states, where money implies safety, health care, and the means to provide for your family, while lack of money implies little security for your way of life, potentially no access to health care, and no support for your family, the choice is obvious. And yes, about half of federal prisoners in the US are for drug offences[1]. > and finally to hurt I assume you're talking about violence in general. I know you didn't argue against it, but since it's the topic of the original article, I'll state it plainly. I would rather violent offenders receive education (yes, at a cost to taxpayers), which is shown to reduce recidivism greatly, than have my taxes go to a system which favours their return to prison. [1] https://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/releasing-drug-offenders-wont-end-mass-incarceration/ https://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/releasing-drug-offenders...