Solution to Rising Crime, Poverty Rates in America

[Elok]

Could we have democracy instead? I believe in the democratic peace theory. I refuse world peace without world democracy on humanitarian grounds.

"War" -Marley

Provided the democracy is real and grows organically instead of being imposed by American boots, fine. In the ME that should only take another two hundred years or so, barring the unforeseen. Given the certainty of the unforeseen where that sector of the world is concerned, however, that's effectively a "no."

In the far future, when the now-isolated Ukalaka tribe of the Amazon is organized into a democratic society with a 90% literacy rate, low crime and a couple of good universities...people in the Middle East will still be stoning women for wearing miniskirts. It's not even an Islam thing, there's just a "crazy-stupid" zone extending over the whole area. I think the fringe of it reaches out to touch the Balkans sometimes.

[a.kitman]

we should take it one step further. if someone commites a serious crime we should lock up and sterilize there kids aswell. if you get cought driving to fast you get a gps tracker put in your head, and if it is ever traveling faster the 90km again your head will explode.
if your overweight you have to pay more in taxes. same for smokers and people who have been picked up by the cops for excess drinking.
dont even get me started on special needs kids, any support they get from the goverment should be dropped right away. the parents want them they foot the bil. if you ever call in sick you can be fired right away. no questions asked. if you get a terminal desease your put to sleep right away.
and if your cought spending your time reading useless **** on forums they throw you straight into the meatgrinder to get feed to old people or cattle.

[Caligastia]

Whoosh. I meant that the solution is worse than the problem. Gross invasion of privacy, and I doubt whether all that many people go through the humiliation of food stamps strictly by choice.

From what I've heard, it's not all that humiliating. They just swipe a card.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Hey! Flashback to years back when Floyd called me a thief because I was on the dole for 4 months in the recession of '93.

Been in professional employment ever since and paid many, many times more back than I ever received, but why let a trifle like that interfere with schoolboy Randism, eh?

[David Floyd]

You'll note that I didn't advocate sterilizing those on unemployment

And BTW, as long as we are paying taxes to fund unemployment, we better damn well receive it, so I officially retract my "thief" comment, which I don't remember making, but sounds like something I would have said.

[Combat Ingrid]

[Dinner]

i would guess most people would chose a life of crime instead of going on welfare then.

Exactly.

[Theben]

Wouldn't it be easier to sterilize Floyd instead? Then when he dies, the problem goes away. Plus it will enhance his ability to treat women like plastic baggies, "Hey, baby, no worries getting preggers from me!"

[David Floyd]

Wouldn't it be easier to sterilize Floyd instead? Then when he dies, the problem goes away. Plus it will enhance his ability to treat women like plastic baggies, "Hey, baby, no worries getting preggers from me!"

Believe me, I have no intention of ever having kids. So don't worry

[Timexwatch]

True, but what I've learned from my friends who are cops is that most people who get picked up on drug charges - whether pot or coke or heroin - usually have outstanding warrants for non drug related offenses, too.

I'm OK with legalizing pot, and in fact all drugs, as long as we do something to round up the outstanding warrants that the drug users have anyway. It'd be the same effect, or nearly the same, again from what I understand from multiple police officers.

Most people I lock up for drug offenses usually don't have outstanding warrants; however they frequently get locked up for lots of dumb small-time offenses like driving without a license, unregistered auto, open container, etc. When they do have warrants, it's usually for failure to appear i.e. they didn't go to court for the last dumb offense that they were arrested for.

[David Floyd]

Timex,

Well, dumb small time offenses like driving without a license, open containers, etc., are things that tend to drastically increase my insurance rates, so I'm not too sure I'm against locking those people up

However, I am genuinely interested in your opinion, based on what you've seen - do you believe that ending the Drug War would reduce crime, or would it just reduce the number of criminals who get caught?

[Ecofarm]

How could ending the "War on Drugs" not reduce crime? I would think that decriminalizing what might be the majority of prisoner offenses will have the effect of reducing crime.

It might not reduce drug use (some argue it could) but it will eliminate dealers, smuggling, most gang revenue, violent crimes for a fix and a slew of other crap created when we perpetuate (and even support) the black market with archaic legislation.

Hell, just the money we spend overseas tracking drugs and spraying 3rd world land with DDT could probably pay for healthcare reform (or, at least, Grandson of Porkulus). Then start looking at what we spend domestically with enforcement, the courts and imprisonment. It's a colossal waste of money and, frankly, only makes things worse.

[David Floyd]

Let me rephrase. Ending the war on drugs might reduce "crime", but it might also reduce capturing people who commit other crimes. It's pretty much a given that most drug users also commit other crimes of some sort, or at least it is according to police officers with whom I'm acquainted.

[Ecofarm]

I think if we start with just pot, your "other crimes" argument evaporates. I know and have known many a pot-head and none of them were gangsters or otherwise criminals.

Perhaps with the hard stuff you have some real coorelation/causation, but many argue that those additional offenses are largely the RESULT of living in the black market and eliminating the black market (and all the shady deals/goings-on that accompany it) would push other criminals into the open - thereby increasing their chances of exposure and conviction. I think that is a fair argument, given that people generally keep their mouth shut about their source(s).

[David Floyd]

Could be. I'm not opposed to ending the drug bans - hell, I don't give a **** who uses cocaine or pot or heroin. I'm just interested in what cops think, because they have a fairly unique viewpoint.