ADDICTION TO IMPRISONMENT

The American criminal justice system--and maybe Americans in general--are addicted to imprisonment. Recent studies show that 1% of Americans are in prison, a very high percentage. Few other countries routinely imprison people for stealing and drug offenses as we do. This addiction, like all addictions, is expensive. And, like other addictions, it creates its own economy. Economically depressed areas want prisons for the jobs they generate, but that requires prisoners to fill the beds. Of course, people who spend significant amounts of time in prison are likely to return, particularly since our society is highly intolerant of people who have been convicted of crime, done their time, and been released. We seem to want to show those who break the law that we are "mad as hell and just won't take it any more!" But returning anger for wrongdoing only generates anger in the wrongdoers. There has to be another way.