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RE: The best way to reduce the cost of prisons is by encouraging inmates to lower the cost of their incarceration
It is really sickening to see a prison system like that. Working in prison to reduce sentence? That sounds like slavery to me, and it can be easily abused by throwing people to prison for every minor offense and then working them as slaves and paying less than minimal wage there. It is a grounds for abuse.
You don't treat the sympthom, you treat the disease. We have to ask ourselves, why are there so many people in prison in the first place?
Thanks for sharing your perspective, @freddy008. I think your concern that the system could be exploited to get cheap labour is valid, yet I think if an inmate has the freedom to choose this option, and if not choosing the option will not result in a greater punishment, that a system like this could work if the incentives and rewards are right for all parties. If implemented in the right way blockchain technology might be able to help with this since it could help make the system transparent, decentralized, immutable and uncensorable. I also agree with you that it's an attempt at a solution to the symptom and not the cause. I don't know why there are more people incarcerated in some parts of the worlds than in others. In some places censorship by governments is surely a key factor, but I think there are other factors at play as well. Do you have any thoughts on which factors are the most decisive ones for the U.S. penal system?
In any regard, thanks for giving push back, you made several fair points! I appreciate it!
I'm afraid the incentive to abuse is greater than the incentive to do the right thing. Most prisoners are in prison injustly. The actual criminals are a very low %. I don't consider a crime to be a crime if there is no victim. Most "criminals" are in jail for victimless crimes. Now if you make the prison system profit based, that will only result in more innocent people going to prison just to work like slaves. Corporations can easily abuse this to get under-minimumwage labour, essentially slave labour.
Prison is an unjust institution, and with a small % of dangerous criminals, the rest of the people can easily can let go free.
I believe the majority of people are good people and I also think that it's better to let ten actual criminals go free than it is to incarcerate one innocent person. I also identify with your views that if there is no victim, there is no crime. One can argue that for many industries corporations already have a very strong influence on wages and the conditions and quality of work life, whether it is inside or outside of prison. What would you find a fairer solution to balancing the evils of impinging on the freedoms of some to protect the freedoms of others, than the current system?
Yes, crime should be de-incentivized ,and not punished. There are many ways to decrease crime, before happening, like improving communities, organizing a local community better. I guarantee you petty crimes like burglary and larceny would rarely happen if a community is united. There are other way for other crimes.
I don't find the impinging of freedoms good at all, non-invasive and peaceful methods are already available to reduce crime, there is absolutely no need for endless survailance and agressive policing. Psychology already has the answers, its just that it's not mainstream.