Here’s one from a maybe-odd source, but with relatively good citations.
If we have limited money to spend in government, can we put spending on a balance to see where it should be spent? This is one example out of many pending before the U.S. Congress and state legislatures, today — right now, and for the coming several months. When you hear elected representatives say “we must cut spending to reduce deficits,” you need to understand that their proposal is to cut spending for education, for job training, for employment assistance, for unemployment payments, for health care, for mental health care, for drug rehabilitation programs, but generally NOT for incarceration programs. In short, they are saying we must cut off the education of poor kids, to build jails to house them if they run afoul of the criminal justice system after being unable to get the education and training to get a job that will produce the income that would have made them great parents and taxpayers.
If we have limited money to spend in government, can we put spending on a balance to see where it should be spent?
- Prisons, or schools?
- Prisons, or mental health care?
- Prisons, or drug rehabilitation?
- Justice, or incarceration?
From OnlineJusticeDegree.com; check references listed on the chart.
What do you think?
More:
- Source of the graphic, http://www.onlinecriminaljusticedegree.com/no-justice-for-all/
- New York Times, “U.S. prison population dwarfs that of other nations” April 23, 2008
- List of incarceration rates by country (“We’re #1!)
- Land of the Free: the Best Investigative Reporting on U.S. Prisons (propublica.org)
- Tragedies … Read the Essay about Jon E. Yount (faktensucher.wordpress.com)
- Why Do We Keep Building Needless Prisons? (alethonews.wordpress.com)
- Yes, I’ve posted this before, when I found it at Under the Lobsterscope
- The other conversation: America’s decrepit mental health infrastructure (tv.msnbc.com)
- Mental health patients receive substandard care (confused.com)
- UK News: Addict treatment ‘better than jail’ (walesonline.co.uk)
- Why violent people don’t get mental health treatment (counselorssoapbox.com)
- Newton, Aurora, Virginia Tech, Columbine – type shootings WILL NOT STOP and WILL ESCALATE until we educate about, make access easy to, and fund mental health care (drlindashelton.wordpress.com)
- AZ invites CCA to help get more customers in School to Prison Pipepline (lake.typepad.com)
Millard Fillmore's Bathtub 
Mark (Pseudo-Polymath)! So your answer to evil is we should turn our heads and wait for it to get us? That’s not adequate. Giving evil a full run is the antithesis of civilization — though, I know that the idea of civilization bothers you, because it requires taxes and people to obey laws.
“Be afraid,” is a good p.r. line for a scary movie. It’s crappy public policy, especially with schools.
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Well said. In a capitalist country we vote with our pocketbooks. Where government money is being spent says a lot about our priorities. Thanks for the mention in the “More” section.
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[…] the gun rhetoric seriously for a moment. And gussy up a false dichotomy with pretty graphics and its still a false dichotomy. Seriously. Hint … to the non-religious […]
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