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I hate private prisons. But we've nearly won the battle against them already. And they're a convenient way for a lot of people to pretend that the whole public

I hate private prisons. But we've nearly won the battle against them already. And they're a convenient way for a lot of people to pretend that the whole public system isn't rotten to the core. > does how much sociopolitical damage? It leeds to how many damaged individuals? How much does it contribute to the need social support programs... Compared to publicly run prisons it leads to much much less damage > The cost to society is significantly more than that budget figure. Absolutely. But it works to compare them: the social cost of private and public prisons is probably roughly proportional to their budget. > "U.S. incarcerates more than any other nation: report" A huge problem I agree. But not one that would be fixed by getting rid of private prisons.

chiefalchemist 3y ago
> A huge problem I agree. But not one that would be fixed by getting rid of private prisons. Fixed 100%? No. But you might be underestimating the power and influence of the Prison Industrial Complex. They can dump money into anyone and anything that promotes fear of higher crime. Their lobbying can discourage restorative justice, etc. These _______ Industrial Complexes don't sit still. They're like any other company / industry...they do whatever they can to create more demand for their product.
- iudqnolq 3y ago
  They didn't sit still. They decided it'd be easier to give up and moved to private immigration detention and private prison services and private parole services and so on. Total private prison profits are less than 5% of military industrial complex donations to Congress. They aren't comparable. https://www.citizen.org/article/military-industrial-complex-contributions-report/ https://www.citizen.org/article/military-industrial-complex-...
  - chiefalchemist 3y ago
    The Prison Industrial Complex is its own complex. It's a beast that roams the world looking for opportunities. To hell with the sociopolitical damage from that. The beast needs to be fed. Recently there was a judge who was being paid off to send more juveniles to a local facility. Let's not be naive. Similar is happening elsewhere. We simply don't know about it. The MIC wrote the blue print and other industries said, "We can do that as well." Whether that's prisons or pharma or...take your picks. Just because The MIC is massive and is the OG doesn't mean these other forces aren't exerting their will. They have more than enough resources (money) to kick greed into high gear. The MIC is proud of its children.

chiefalchemist 3y ago

> A huge problem I agree. But not one that would be fixed by getting rid of private prisons. Fixed 100%? No. But you might be underestimating the power and influence of the Prison Industrial Complex. They can dump money into anyone and anything that promotes fear of higher crime. Their lobbying can discourage restorative justice, etc. These _______ Industrial Complexes don't sit still. They're like any other company / industry...they do whatever they can to create more demand for their product.

iudqnolq 3y ago
They didn't sit still. They decided it'd be easier to give up and moved to private immigration detention and private prison services and private parole services and so on. Total private prison profits are less than 5% of military industrial complex donations to Congress. They aren't comparable. https://www.citizen.org/article/military-industrial-complex-contributions-report/ https://www.citizen.org/article/military-industrial-complex-...
- chiefalchemist 3y ago
  The Prison Industrial Complex is its own complex. It's a beast that roams the world looking for opportunities. To hell with the sociopolitical damage from that. The beast needs to be fed. Recently there was a judge who was being paid off to send more juveniles to a local facility. Let's not be naive. Similar is happening elsewhere. We simply don't know about it. The MIC wrote the blue print and other industries said, "We can do that as well." Whether that's prisons or pharma or...take your picks. Just because The MIC is massive and is the OG doesn't mean these other forces aren't exerting their will. They have more than enough resources (money) to kick greed into high gear. The MIC is proud of its children.