I've noticed a few distinct problems with the way that punishment is dished out in America, most of these problems aren't the fault of the government, rather, they are the fault of the parents. These problems snowball and eventually result in the overcrowding of our prisons, or at least that's the way that I see it. The problem starts during elementary school when kids bully other kids on the playground, whenever one of these incidents come about almost invariably the parents of the bully will deny that anything occured saying that their little angel wouldn't be capable of doing such a thing, thus no real punishment results from the process. This then continues into junior high, and high school, all the time the misbehavior of the youth in question just becomes more and more drastic, this is due to the fact that they are never punished for what they do. I saw a prime example of this Thanksgiving weekend when a group of teenagers caused a raucus by Dick's Market, and got away with it, in fact the parents of the kids in question even threatened to sue over something that was clearly the fault of their respective children. This behavior then continues into the adult world where their crimes becomes even more drastic, and then their parents can't shield them from the hand of justice.
Friday, January 18, 2008
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6 comments:
Hmm...I think short-sighted parents do create problems, but saying this is the "real problem with the legal system" is a bit strong. And though this problem may give rise to children who eventually tangle with the American legal system, it has nothing to do with how America dishes out punishment, rather, it only suggests to origins of those who need to be punished.
Sarah hits it on the nail again!
Ryan:
I have never heard it suggested that the problem with the legal system is that it spawns criminal behavior, creating a vicious cycle. The problems (more than one!) with the legal system involve the criminal after they have been arrested, not before. And I am uncertain to what extent crime is parents' fault, as well. I suspect that it is likely that the problem(s) with crime has something to do with our greater culture...
the solution is obviously child abuse.
agree with cam! And I think barker need to do more research, for instance, how many criminals actually have parents? Maybe most of these prison dwelling people were poor staving orphans who never got the proper amount of love or abuse and are just looking for attention?
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