1 of 100 American adults in prison?

Contributed by: filbert Friday, February 29 2008 @ 02:30 PM CST

Somebody’s priorities are way out of whack.  And that somebody, collectively, is us.

Like Coyote Blog, I wonder about the wisdom of the lock’em’up strategy of the “War on Drugs.”  I think we’re locking up lots of the wrong kind of people.  The people to incarcerate are the ones who present an immediate danger to others.  Some loser toking weed behind the high school football stadium doesn’t qualify.

There is, of course a racial component.  We’re throwing lots and lots of black males into the klink.  According to the Pew study[*1] (.pdf link), one in nine black males between 20 and 39 years old.  Why?  Because modern black culture demands that young black males behave in antisocial ways.

We’re all way too worried about throwing Karl Rove (or, if you wish, the Clinton’s latest shady fundraiser) behind bars, and way too unconcerned about teaching kids personal responsibility—too worried about climate change, and not worried enough about teaching kids to respect private property.  I don’t think this will turn around any time soon.