Chapter 10
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Transcript of Chapter 10
Chapter 10
How do the authors summarize findings of their study (p. 219-220)?
– Poor/Petty/”Losers” with “few options in life”
– Aspire to a conventional life – In and out of trouble until they age out – Mislabeled “dangerous criminals”– Eventually warehoused for long terms
Chapter 10
How expensive are prisons - why are new prisons more expensive than they appear to be (Table 10-1)?
Two models:Prosperous states - Lower CR - union workersPoorer states - Higher CR - non union workers
(“criminals” poor and dispro minority in both)
Costs & “hidden costs” (lost taxes, welfare) **Table 10-1 223
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Chapter 10
Has the imprisonment binge reduced crime – I'll talk about this in class?
Common sense says -- it must have!!
But: low clearance rate, aging out, andreplacement suggest --
not likely!
Chapter 10
“Lying with stats” - selecting time periods to “prove” a
point.
** Figure 10-2 224 impr incr, crime decr!
** Figure 10-1 224 more honest view
Table 10-2 Table 10-3 Table 10-4
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As IRs go up, CRs go down!!
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A more honest view
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Chapter 10
What are the other factors that influence crime rates
- especially demographic and economic factors?
Table 10-5 237
Aging population % at prime crime age
1990s economic boom
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Chapter 10
What is "voodoo criminology"?
Conservative ideology
+ “stories”
+ pseudo-science (selective information)
Note: competing liberal version no better
Chapter 10
What is America's "farm system for criminals"?
Basic idea is that crime is cultural -- learned (Authors avoid use of term “class”)
Poor as “abandoned class”
Contrast with Euro countries - “welfare states” (EU dismantling some aspects)
Chapter 10
Where is the binge headed going into the new century
- more "costly, inhumane, and racist"?
Short run -- Yes!Long run -- the “budget wall”
“Our vindictive society”Individualism, competition, and “losers”
Chapter 10
What do the authors mean by "cutting our losses"
(p. 244-245)?
Reallocate resources
From: incr imprisonment and decreasing social services
To: decr imprisonment and increasing social services
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What two broad solutions do they advocate for prisons?
1. Reduce prison terms (length of sentences)
2. Humanize prisons (for when they get out)
“Minimum list” p.248
Health, safety, rehab -- stop the damage!