Armed Robber never told to report to Prison for 13yrs

we never consider physical punishment as a substitute for serving time, because it seems barbaric

but it has benefits

1) achieves the desired deterrent/rehab effect (no one wants to get caned/flogged, and if they do they won't want to experience it again)

2) cheaper to administer than keeping someone locked up

3) frees up the time the person would have spent locked up to contribute to society

Perhaps give the convicted person an option of serving time or receiving physical punishment.

Problem is, the level of physical punishment necessary to achieve the desired deterrent effect may be very high. Caning is one thing, cutting off someone's hand for stealing is quite another.

 

How about chained in the town square (city hall) for a month? :grin:

 

that's an interesting idea, combining pain with humiliation

 

Partially true, but drugs trump humiliation and shame any day. You can get a heroin addict to blow you for a cheese burger and shame wouldn't do anything. Most people are in jail because of drugs. Not sure about the answer, but finding an effective drug reform law will go a long way in reducing crime. It would probably solve some of our illegal immigration laws also.

 

This is so weird. I just called a friend and she's crying. A family member of her's just passed and it was likely due to drugs.

 

I feel like it shouldn't be a criminal offense to take drugs. It should only be a criminal offense to sell or manufacture drugs. I don't get how, in a free country, the government still can tell me what I can and cannot do to my body. Drugs have a lot of residual effects, which is the government's reasoning behind such strict enforcement...but the war on drugs has failed because people are always going to look for a high, whether it's drugs, alcohol, or extreme sports...they're always looking for something to make their boring life more entertaining or their stressful lives more relaxing.

Punish drug dealers severely, and offer drug rehab instead of jail to addicts.

I also think anything organic or natural should be legal, anything that requires a process should be illegal.

Decriminalization and education should really be our policy moving forward. I don't think kids really understand the dangers of drugs until it is too late. Start educating them from an early age with REAL examples of drug addiction and the pain and suffering it causes.

I'd show them scenes from Requiem for a Dream, haha.

 

I wonder what percentage of drug incarcerations are for use/possession rather than sale/manufacturing.

i.e. how much of an impact are you really making if sale/manufacturing is still illegal?

 

I think the majority of drug incarcerations are for low level possession.

What impact are you speaking of? The impact to the number of total drug incarcerations? Or the number of people on drugs?

 

Straight across the board, it would be interesting to know the percentage that are incarcerated for use/possession.

However, I suspect those who are only guilty of use (not to be confused with conviction) do not frequently get jail time. Those who are incarcerated for use are mixed up in other illegal activities.