“With our days as a manufacturing power a wistful memory and the marketing of fraudulent Wall Street ‘financial products’ an infinitely self-replenishing source of national outrage, incarceration may soon become -- by default -- our leading national industry.” ~ Pro Libertate BlogThis quote is from a piece which describes the proliferation of the correctional industrial complex in America . I thought it interesting enough to send a copy to a friend. (His wife is a public school teacher – mea culpa!) I had no idea he would provide me a brief response so rich as to be irresistible. Below is his response to the column. (At least this good Christian did not ask me for 15 minutes of fame like the last one did.) My friend is intelligent. Here is his response:
“Judges seem to be afraid to hand out sentences that are too light, because when they have to run for reelection, they know that it will be brought up by their opponent. I am guessing that is one of the main contributors to the overpopulation of prisons. Michigan is one of only five states that spends more each year on prisons than it does on education.”
Some emails just wake you up, don’t they? I rubbed my hands together and gleefully wondered where to begin. At least he implicitly agrees that there is an incarceration problem--it’s difficult not to with the numbers involved. He also implicitly agrees that the problem lies with authority. Interestingly though, he considers the thing worth commenting on is the manipulation of the “Just Us” system by some for political gain. He has no idea how deep the rabbit hole goes.
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