http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/prisons.htmSummary findings
On June 30, 2008 —
– 2,310,984 prisoners were held in federal or state prisons or in local jails – an increase of 0.8% from yearend 2007, less than the average annual growth of 2.4% from 2000-2007.
– 1,540,805 sentenced prisoners were under state or federal jurisdiction.
– there were an estimated 509 sentenced prisoners per 100,000 U.S. residents – up from 506 at yearend 2007.
– the number of women under the jurisdiction of state or federal prison authorities increased 1.2% from yearend 2007, reaching 115,779, and the number of men rose 0.7%, totaling 1,494,805.
The prison population in America is bloated; frankly, alot of the people in prison are in there for victimless crimes, especially from that 'war on drugs'
That's an issue, but here's my main question: are prisons moral? Is it moral to hold people in prisons? To arrest them?
I had a thread a while back comparing the death penalty to life in prison and asked 'which is more barbaric'. The results were split between the two.
I find that it is inconsistent to support prisons, but oppose the death penalty; if the death penalty is murder, then is arresting people 'kidnapping'? Is holding them against their will a 'hostage' scenario? It's absurd.
It's interesting, in a way; if the state does not have the 'right' to execute people, why does it have the right to even punish people in general? Putting someone in prison for life is, effectively, taking away their life.
Rehabilitation could be said to be more 'practical', but we don't rehabilitate people for 'justice'. Justice is tied closely with revenge; revenge is getting even, it is about fairness; the difference with revenge and justice is justice is revenge undertaken by the state.
If prisons are not immoral, why is the death penalty immoral (if you indeed find it immoral)? If you give somebody life in prison, you might as well just execute them.
The death penalty is not immoral; prisons are not immoral. There are people that simply cannot be 'rehabilitated', and whose actions are so heinous that they deserve their death. Their execution is both a permanent solution, and is justice. There is no 'two wrongs don't make a right' argument to be made, because the death penalty is not wrong.