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RealityVsUnreality 19 - 23 Feb 2009 - Main.WilliamKing
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When Prof. Moglen was discussing the wide chasm separating between what we know about the penal system and what really transpires behind prison doors, it occurred to me that this divergence between reality and unreality certainly isn't unqiue to the criminal "justice" system, and that the failure to bridge that gap often leads to a distorted understanding of human behavior in other contexts as well. In the case of the penal system, we witness some alarming absurdities: the father who thinks jail time will "shape up" his son, the politician who pads his resume with convictions, the prosecutor whose political ties pervert her duties as a public servant, and a community which thinks itself safer despite rising rates of incarceration and crime. These symptoms are no doubt worrisome, but I believe the same social forces operate in other cases as well. | | | I think the current political climate is ripe to make some dramatic shifts in communal priorities, so perhaps progress on this issue will be made. But is this something that will be pursued?
-- AaronShepard - 21 Feb 2009 | |
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Jamilla, while I think that you make a good point about how social norms can be used as a means of motivating people to do things differently, I think the "I am because you are" mentality is implausible for American culture as a whole. Ontop of Aaron’s point about costs, I do not believe that the majority of Americans, even in the time of recession, would support a system like free public housing. The current “system-wide collapse” will not result in people wanting the government to engage in the free allocation of something like public housing.
My fear is that as a result of the recession, Americans will focus on the government effort to help them individually and then desire to protect their money. Though when we hear about the bailouts and stimulus packaging the conversation is geared towards generating more jobs and capitol, Americans are still concerned with how these moves will affect them directly. Herein lies the problem of trying to use financial hardship as a means of bringing people together. Poverty may bring a group together, yet each person in that group desires to escape poverty. One cannot loose sight of the fact that by losing their jobs and money, people become more closed off to the problems affecting others and more concerned about their personal lives and their own finance.
-- WilliamKing - 23 Feb 2009 | | |
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