I'm from the UK, so I'm not sure whether or not this applies to the state of prisons in America, but feel free to say what you think and let me know if it does apply.
The prisons are getting pretty full here in the UK. The tax payer has to pay to keep people in jail, and there is hardly any room left. the government has proposed to solve this problem...by giving people community service, as opposed to prison sentences. If there is one thing I disagree with that the government has done, then it has to be this.
As it stands, I don't think prison sentences are tough enough. People get put away for a life sentence, but if they are well behaved, they get set free...plus life is about 15 years or so...that's not literally "life". People aren't afraid to go to jail anymore. you get put away for a few months, and that's it. You're bound to want to have another guy at committing a crime, because the punishment is hardly worth it. Most people aren't bothered about being kept away from their families and the outside world because they don't care anyway...they don't get on with their families and aren't interested in the rest of the world.
Alot of people just get fined, raher than being sent to prison. So commnity service isn't going to solve anything. I think this is one of the main reasons why crime is up so much in today's world, and why so many people commit serious crimes.
But what do you think would be a sensible way to punish people?
to be honest, I could be quite brutal, and use the same methods they still do in remote parts of India and Pakistan and Africa...chop a limb off...like a hand or a leg...be brutal...or at least, make the prison sentences ALOT longer...and make prison only a simple cell with little else...no human contact..no TV or smoking breaks...
