USA is first in number of prisoners

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We may be proud of that. Even China where population is running into billion is behind. Each 37th American had been imprisoned during his life. And more than 70 percent of imprisoned are colored persons. And those figures are growing. And you know why? Soon those pastyfaced haughty WASPs in White House will turn into prison the whole country. They're so glad that number of violations of law decreased last time. But at the same time they're inventing more and more far-fetched excuses for keeping an Afro-American behind bars. And that's because they want to reduce all to the same level. All Americans must read the same books, sing the same songs and think alike each other. And Latinos and Black brothers are prominent very often. We don't suit their totalitarian police state where everyone spies about everyone. So for avoidance of "intellectual ferment" they jail colored men for every insignificant fault. The most ridiculous is that we're paying for our own discrimination! I've been thinking already if I should stop paying taxes? Oh, know I'm afraid that now they'd arrest me for thinking either Wink

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it doesn't really spell out "freedom" does it? then again, neither do your racist comments. besides, colin powell and condeleeza rice aren't any better, are they?

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I know what you're saying but I don't think not paying your taxes is the answer.

When I read posts like this I always wonder what the poster is doing to make things better. I don't mean huge, grand gestures but little things -- teaching a kid to read, being a CASA, being a Big Brother, being a foster parent, volunteering somewhere -- you know, being a mentor, a hero, to some kid who needs a hero.

Do you do anything like that?

You can be a hero!

Do you always remember to vote?

That's important too.

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Perhaps if they didn't commit crimes, they wouldn't be in prison?

Why is it someone else's fault that they commit crimes and are now in prison?

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Much of the recent rash of incarcerations can be attributed to the hip hop culture of violence, and utter disrespect of the police. The cops now look at everyone as suspects - there are no victims in their eyes - someone else gets to sort that out.

http://thebrowntimes.com/funnypics/albums/ghetto/warnabrother.jpg

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McGentrix wrote:

Perhaps if they didn't commit crimes, they wouldn't be in prison?

Why is it someone else's fault that they commit crimes and are now in prison?

One reasom certainly might be that you get quite easily in jail - for offense, which are either not punished in other countries (e.g. "underage drinking") or where you aren't send to prison but get probation (e.g. in Germany most prison sentences up to two years prison are stayed of execution and you get probation instead of going in jail).

Which works in my opinion - and from my experiences as a probation officer as well as a social worker in prison - not too bad.

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Much of the recent rash of incarcerations can be attributed to the hip hop culture of violence, and utter disrespect of the police. The cops now look at everyone as suspects...

RIGHT, that's not confusing cause with effect...

what's the next nugget of wisdom we can expect from cjhsa? "the reason men batter women is because they're all feminists now!" chrissakes...

McGentrix wrote:

Perhaps if they didn't commit crimes, they wouldn't be in prison?

Why is it someone else's fault that they commit crimes and are now in prison?

an old, stupid question based in dishonesty or delusion. here's an old answer:

tacitus wrote:

the more corrupt the republic, the more numerous the laws.

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This is something that has concerned me.

As a "free" nation, we have more people imprisoned than any other.

Is that ironic?

And the fact that, well, at one time I heard, but could not validate, that 3/4rth's of black men from 18 to 25 years of age are imprisoned ... how different is that from WWII and the Jews in Germany?

AND, it's a money-making scheme. The privitization of jails. The poor cannot afford excellent defense. The private business rakes in the moola.

If ANY other age group in ANY other race in our country was being hauled off to jail in these numbers, WE would be up in arms!

Imagine ... 3/4rths of white women from 33 to 40?

And it has nothing to do with Hip Hop. As I understand it, but cannot verify, these percentages have been going on for decades.

Would guess they started after the privitization of jails.

Any demographics people or excellent researchers care to help?

I think this may be one of the biggest national issues of our time.

How different is this than slavery, where slaves were making money for the master?

The New Color of Slavery

BYW, I'm white female, 47 years old, if that matters to anyone reading this.

Would love to see this get serious attention.

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Would love to see this get serious attention.

better find a country that gives a damn about freedom. the eu has a mountain of faults, but at least they believe in civil liberties. we used to have a thing called the bill of rights in this country, but no one cares anymore. good luck.

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Make them care.

Martin Luther King did.

Ghandi did.

If someone can point me to facts and figures I can use ....

I've tried to find them before but can't.

Perhaps I should call the New York Librarians reference desk.

Those folks are pretty good.

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McGentrix wrote:

Perhaps if they didn't commit crimes, they wouldn't be in prison?

Why is it someone else's fault that they commit crimes and are now in prison?

What is it, do you think, that makes Americans so much more likely commit crimes?

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FreeDuck wrote:

McGentrix wrote:
Perhaps if they didn't commit crimes, they wouldn't be in prison?

Why is it someone else's fault that they commit crimes and are now in prison?

What is it, do you think, that makes Americans so much more likely commit crimes?

I have no idea, do you?

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I've heard the argument that Americans are more likely to commit crimes BECAUSE of our "free" status. It gives us more rope to hang ourselves.

BUT, that does not excuse the fact that white people probably commit just as many crimes as black men from 18-25 but percentage-wise more convicted black men end up incarcerated.

Supposedly, the arguments from an anthropological / sociological perspective say that that age group is less likely to be "missed" since they would take jobs from white men and women and young black women who are "more ready" to join the workforce in a compliant frame of mind, than these young black men.

I've heard that the testostorone (sp?) level for men at the age rages, after that age they are more compliant ... well so be it. Let's work around that, if it's true.

That energy and vitality could be put to good use .... MUCH better than paying for them to be kept in jail till they're "over it."

Just to play the devil's advocate for a moment ... much has been made of post-partum depression and the mass killing of whole families of children ... should we lock up every white woman of child-bearing age?

I make absurd arguments here on purpose ... to drive home a point.

I'm just brainstorming ideas I've heard batted around. I certainly do NOT have a handle on any of it or even a preferred interpretation of the facts, which I DO NOT have, but would like to get.

Anyone know the facts, the raw data? Like I said, I've looked, but cannot find any. Why is THIS data hidden?????

Now, there's a good question ...

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I found this:

Quote:

On June 30, 2006--

-- 2,245,189 prisoners were held in Federal or State prisons or in local jails -- an increase of 2.8% from midyear 2005, less than the average annual growth of 3.4% since yearend 1995.
-- there were an estimated 497 prison inmates per 100,000 U.S. residents -- up from 411 at yearend 1995.
-- the number of women under the jurisdiction of State or Federal prison authorities increased 4.8% from midyear 2005, reaching 111,403 and the number of men rose 2.7%, totaling 1,445,115.

At yearend 2005 there were 3,145 black male sentenced prison inmates per 100,000 black males in the United States, compared to 1,244 Hispanic male inmates per 100,000 Hispanic males and 471 white male inmates per 100,000 white males.

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/prisons.htm

Pretty shocking.

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And this:

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The disproportionate representation of black Americans in the U.S. criminal justice system is well documented. Blacks comprise 13 percent of the national population, but 30 percent of people arrested, 41 percent of people in jail, and 49 percent of those in prison. Nine percent of all black adults are under some form of correctional supervision (in jail or prison, on probation or parole), compared to two percent of white adults. One in three black men between the ages of 20 and 29 was either in jail or prison, or on parole or probation in 1995. One in ten black men in their twenties and early thirties is in prison or jail. Thirteen percent of the black adult male population has lost the right to vote because of felony disenfranchisement laws.

at: http://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/usa/Rcedrg00-01.htm

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I don't wish to steer this away from color, but I wonder how many of those inmates as an entire group came from a two parent home....or even had a father.

I think economics affect this a lot, certainly as much as skin color...

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This seems to support your idea of the "business" of jail, dupre:

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A new study from the Justice Policy Institute (http://www.justicepolicy.org), a Washington, DC-based think-tank that advocates for alternatives to prison, has found that after two decades of harsh criminal justice policies, there are more black men in jail or prison than in college. At the end of 2000, 791,600 black men were behind bars and 603,032 were enrolled in colleges or universities. By contrast, in 1980 -- before the prison boom -- black men in college outnumbered black men behind bars by a ratio of more than 3 to 1, the study found.

The report, "Cellblocks or Classrooms? The Funding of Higher Education and Corrections and Its Impact on African American Men," also found that spending on education has suffered as a result of the imprisonment binge. Between 1985 and 2000, the increase in state spending on corrections was nearly double that of the increase to higher education ($20 billion versus $10.7 billion), and the total increase in spending on higher education by states was 24%, compared with 166% for corrections.

from: http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle-old/252/jpistudy.shtml

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Startling

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Economics has everything to do with it.

The best way to skew figures like plummeting employment rates is to elimate mass quantities of employable people.

I've always thought that was a big reason for the needless enormous loss of life in the Vietnam war.

Political cronies' pockets got lined, taxes paid for a lot of military stuff, and there were less people coming back home looking for jobs.

I'd like to see the numbers and look at the trends and the decades when those trends started.

In the 50s and early 60s more white women entered the workforce than ever before.

Were there enough jobs?

They were well educated, compliant, docile even (most), and were willing to work for way less money, less benefits, less recognition, and even way less hours--part-time so they could be home for children--than any other group.

Did they need the money? Uh ... yes they did, in order to maintain the same lifestyle that they did in the 50s, the lifestyle they were used to.

So ... did white women in the 60s lead to Vietnam deaths and the incarceration of millions of employable black men?????

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Economics has everything to do with it.

that's the rule in politics, which is why congressional medal of honor recipient smedley butler said "the flag follows the money and the troops follow the flag."

this is also why people that actually care about "freedom" go on about corporations, while corporate shills go on about how people have too many rights and corporations have too many restrictions.

meanwhile the conservatives (who sign bill after bill removing those restrictions while crying "communist!" at anyone that opposes them) tells people obsessed with the bible that liberals are godless and communist and dress up tolerance as sin.

the bible says "turn the other cheek" and "judge not lest ye be judged" and "you can't serve god and mammon," but as a nation, we end up committing dollar worship just so we can attain the higher goal of bashing homosexuals, blacks, and women. god bless america!

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USA is first in number of prisoners

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