Why should I be forced to pay for the incarceration of pot smokers in private prisons?

Question

The goal of corporate prisons is profit so they push to have as many people incarcerated as possible for as long as possible. Why are non-violent drug offenders being used as "assets" for corporate prisons at the taxpayer expense? Why are we paying thousands of dollars a month to imprison each person only to have them learning how to become a true criminal when they ever get out? What should be done?

The private prisons set up policies to keep each person in the there for as long as possible AFTER the courts have found them guilty of a victimless crime you clown.

Answer 1

B/C without them, the prison population would drastically decrease and we would be able to fit all prisoners into existing federal prisons which would eliminate the need for private prisons. If these were taken away, several hundred politicians would lose millions each year in political backing and the funds would go to another canidate who promised to bring back private prison systems who would then be elected and start to change the law. The people in office now see this and I suspect do not want to be the first to throw in the towel on their office to justify a corrupt system.

Answer 2

My thoughts, we are too soft on crime to include dope smokers. Send them to the Arizona and let them eat MREs, burn up during the day, freeze, pick up trash on the road, work the fields, wear pink PJs and that should cut down on some of the dope smokers. However, if dope was legal, it could be taxed like regular tobacco products and that could be applied to medical research, treatment or something to benefit the general public. Now, for folks locked up, there should be no electricity, heat, a/c, tv, gyms, or any touchy feely good stuff, give them stationary bikes to produce their own juice for heat and overall quality of life. Give them three shifts, one on the bikes, one in the kitchen and other jobs and the another shift sleeping. Keep them busy and productive16 hours a day or longer. Cut down on mail, visitation and other goodies, keep the drugs out of the prisons. Stop the organized crime within the walls, no outside contact. We are too soft on crime and play too much to feelings and so called abuse as a child, blame the schools and parents for everything. Hold individuals accountable, do the crime, do max time. No probations, no getting out early, too bad for overcrowding, erect more tents in the desert. However, with three shifts, you only need one bunk for three inmates. That would solve some of the problems. Death row, don't give them ten to twenty years for appeals, do like the some of the third world countries, give them a few months.

Answer 3

Part of the problem is that the prisons are not truly private, operating in a free market. They are contractors to the State. If the police and courts were a private conglomerate, then justice would be quicker and jail terms shorter but more cruel. (Don't get me wrong - I'm not actually advocating that.) We have seem to have created another 'worst of all worlds ' compromise.

Answer 4

God Bless YA !!! But you are on yahoo answers and going well over a lot of people's heads. THis is another fine example of GWB's famous quote that "money trumps what is right". The same goes for our corrupt court system. Innocent people are forced to plea bargain or go into financial bancruptcy. Bad prosecutors look for another notch on their resume. I watch this discusting process everyday and people just can't see it until it happens to them.

Answer 5

I totally sympathize with you on this. We pay so much tax $$ just so we can keep bad people off the streets and they think they're making the government suffer by causing them (government) to pay for their stupidity. The government for one thing is in need of reforming so badly.

Answer 6

Yeah. Prison companies have strong lobbies.

Pot should be a misdemeanor.

Maybe create a big fenced farm where they need to live together and grow their own food or pot. : )

Answer 7

Because they are criminals. You do the crime, you do the time! And if we pay the Arabs and Palestinians to not Blow up Israelis...we can pay to put criminals away!

Answer 8

Eliminate "private" prisons.

Answer 9

probably for the same reason I'm forced to pay their education in public schools...

Answer 10

For the same reason we are paying to incarcerate Iraqis simply because they stepped on their neighbor's lawn.


25,000 Iraqis are now in U.S. detention facilities:

"Most of those held are never charged with crimes. Sometimes Iraqis are detained because of a tip from a neighbor or because a few cables and cleaning agents are mistaken for bomb-making material."
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=At0QIROexaI0IyqkE4gpSYnsy6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20071221130745AAhxo13