“The Prison Alternative” by Scott Ervin Take a group of people, strip them of possessions and privacy, expose them to constant threats of violence, overcrowd their cell-block, deprive them of meaningful work,and the result is an embittered underclass more intent on getting even with society than contributing to it. There is a better way to deal with crime and punishment in America. Americans pay too much money for prisons to fail so badly. Like …showed first 75 words of 1073 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1073 total…for life. Crime is the result of morally responsible people making wrong moral decisions, for which they must be held accountable. The just and necessary response to such behavior is punishment, which may include restitution for community service, stiff fines, or, in cases where the offender is a danger to society, prison. But let's not kid ourselves any longer. The prison was not designed to cure the individual; it was made to lock him up.