As for the “victimless crime” crowd on this thread, eff you. Your libertine personal behavior is destructive to you and to the community around you. I’ve seen two teenagers buried side by side in the same small cemetery because of your behavior that doesn’t affect anybody else.

Feedie on April 1, 2008 at 9:50 PM

It is government’s job to protect its citizens in their life, liberty and proeprty from the predations of others, both foreign and domestic, so that civilization may flourish. It is not government’s job to protect people from themselves.

It’s as if the Duke Lacrosse case had resulted in the Duke students going to prison…where it appears that many Hot Air commenters would have laughed if they were raped. Thank you, Ed, for pointing out that prison rape is not funny, it is sick and wrong. Prison rape is cruel and unusual punishment, and tacit approval of it is in violation of the 8th amendment to the United States Constitution.

Red Pill on April 1, 2008 at 5:23 PM

1. I do not believe that any tacit approval of prison rape is violative of the 8th Amendment (nor would I care, but that’s another story …), as tacit approval of the public in prison rape is not state action. Further, the 8th Amendment has been stretched so badly that it is now being used to strioke down any kind of punishment.

2. Your point of the Duke lacrosse players relates more to the determination of guilt or innocence, not with the punishment. Do not conflate the two. If you want to make the system of determiantion of criminal culpability more accurate, I am with you. But the punishment has to be a deterrence to future crime. Watering down punishments on the assumption that you have innocents in prison only promotes more crime by that (vast, vast) majority in prison that is not so innocent. For purposes of determining punishment, yoo must assume that the determination of guilt or innocence is accurate.

Frankly, crime with actual victims should result in the death penalty. No victim, or if the victim was the perpetrator, as in drug use, etc, should probably mean no jail time.

The Japanese run their prisons like a military boot camp. Every second of every day is scheduled and discipline is highly valued.

Guess what. It works.

amkun on April 1, 2008 at 6:11 AM

Agreed……… when you are working hard labor for 18 hours of the day, the only thing on your mind might be food and sleep, and “God, please, give me the strength to get out of this, and I will never harm another in my life!”

I think it is time for some ACLU lawyers to experience the joys of our prison system, …….. just for the “sh*ts and giggles”.

The Japanese run their prisons like a military boot camp. Every second of every day is scheduled and discipline is highly valued.

Guess what. It works.

amkun on April 1, 2008 at 6:11 AM

I was thinking the same thing. Make them work, hard.

As for the “victimless crime” crowd on this thread, eff you. Your libertine personal behavior is destructive to you and to the community around you. I’ve seen two teenagers buried side by side in the same small cemetery because of your behavior that doesn’t affect anybody else. Now I know the meaning of “unto the fourth generation.”

If there are x.y people in prison, that means there should be x.y times 2 in prison. We need more prisons and we need more tigers like the one in the San Francisco zoo.

I don’t know where else to go with it. You tell me if you have any good ideas.

LickyLicky on March 31, 2008 at 1:30 PM

Heart-breaking story. Is it not possible to appeal to a higher court?

It’s as if the Duke Lacrosse case had resulted in the Duke students going to prison…where it appears that many Hot Air commenters would have laughed if they were raped. Thank you, Ed, for pointing out that prison rape is not funny, it is sick and wrong. Prison rape is cruel and unusual punishment, and tacit approval of it is in violation of the 8th amendment to the United States Constitution.

DNA evidence freed them.

rockdalian on March 31, 2008 at 6:55 PM

DNA evidence is powerful because your DNA is unique and represents your unique identity.

When was your unique identity established?

At the same time your unique DNA was established…

…at conception.

You are a brave and good man.

Bravo to you for having the courage and decency to write this post.

Let us do a little experiment…

1)Sell your car (person -person)
2)Pay the true taxes on the vehical (not just the 100$ car that is worth 20,000$
3)When you don’t give the government its cut of the booty how many years do you have to wait till it becomes a subprime loss?
4)Wait for IRS

I can’t feel sorry for rapists and kid-touchers forced into holding the target in a butt darts game.

I can’t feel sorry for a drug-running, murderous former gang-banger being caught in the irony of those words.

It’s abominable, but I honestly I have a hard time feeling sorry for them.

OmegaPaladin on April 1, 2008 at 3:30 AM

You hate weed, huh?

My daughter was killed by a drunk driver. Do you hate alcohol, too?

I don’t care if you drink (or smoke weed for that matter). Until you affect others it’s none of my business. Then I’ll support the death penalty for you.

Guess what. It works.

Prison rape is as bad as murder in my book. I support a mandatory death penalty for such a horrible crime.

One TV can keep 10,20 sometimes 30 inmates interested and out of trouble. Take the TV or the wait room or the whatever and you had better be willing to triple the guards to watch inmates who are just looking for something to do (cause trouble).

They’re prisoners. If they make trouble, shoot them.

If they don’t, let them serve their time, then let them out.

Simple.

I’m still laughing my butt off over “civil liberties for incarcerated Americans.”

I never knew that “liberty” and “incarcerated” belong in the same sentence, but thanks to the metrosexual society of enablers and wimps that we’ve built, apparently it does.

Boo-hoo-fricking-hoo.

It’s been tried and found to be a recipe for insanity.

Kralizec on April 1, 2008 at 12:28 AM

Mr.MaCain? That is a automatic sentence of 10 years+ for a public servent who steals from us. Would you Mr. (we should give up some of our free speech rights for security) agree with that bill?

Solution: Give each con the option to slash the amount of time served for each crime by 50%, but making it all solitary confinement, with no one visiting except family, lawyers, counselors, & clergy. Give each inmate a TV with only educational or inspirational channels. No cigs, desserts, dirty mags, or music.

jgapinoy on April 1, 2008 at 12:05 AM

It’s been tried and found to be a recipe for insanity.

Please don’t take me wrong. I am a firm believer in doing away with parole. If you get a sentence you do the sentence. If you goto prison then to bad, you royally messed up and now you must pay. However, the reality is our society could not higher enough guards to keep the quantity of prisoners we have at the present under control without providing ways for the prisoners to do something other then sit around and plot scams or worse.