[metalcrow]

To pick one point out of the article for discussion, does anyone have any idea why the US is the leader in per-capita prison rates? The laws aren't all that different from other first world nations, and i doubt all the other nations have magically solved crime. What is going on? Is crime just lower in other nations? Do they not punish as many crimes with jail time?

[throwaway_5633]

Longer incarceration times in the US, fewer alternative punishments, lower rehabilitation and a higher inequality compared to similar countries. Recidivism in North-west Europe is around 25% compared to around 60% for the US, combined with longer and more prison sentences for comparable crimes quickly leads to much higher incarceration rates.

[metalcrow]

Longer incarceration times and lower rehabilitation (and lack of interest in it) are definitely huge ones you're right.

[chadcmulligan]

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction".

This probably has something to do with it.

[arctic-true]

America uses prisons to warehouse the mentally ill. We also have the rare combination of extremely high rates of violence - our rate of violent gun deaths per 100,000 is in the top 5 globally, slotting in between Mexico and Venezuela - and fairly robust policing and judiciary functions.

[metalcrow]

Those are very good points, but it does make me question how other countries handle the mentally ill so much better.

[acuozzo]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_drugs

[metalcrow]

That's can't be entirely it. Other nations have similar laws against drug use, and from what i remember reading only 5% of the prison population is in jail for non-violent drug related crimes.

[Zetaphor]

Many of the prison systems in the US are privatized

[metalcrow]

The United Kingdom also extensively uses private prisons, along with Japan and Australia, among others. If that is it then it would be a lobbying problem specific to the US, which seems like it could be pinpointed to more specific laws or sentencing guidelines.

[acuozzo]

Only 8% of prisoners in the US are kept in private facilities.

[stop50]

additional to some things of other posters i would like to add these things:

- 3 Strikes policy: once you commit 3 Crimes, the third trial gets you a lifesentence

- police has effective immunity: the police can do everything, from getting 3 people incarcarated for the crime that only one person commited to shooting anything that shooting anything that frightens them(backfiring of an car has caused an shooting that turned an person into sieve)

- in many states lying by the police is allowed.

- the widespread availability of Weapons of War: i mean weapons that have no usage apart from killing people

- the prisoners are used as cheap labour.

[locopati]

a lack of a social safety net (and what little there is is often punitive and degrading)

[SirFatty]

Prisons are for-profit.

[9x39]

Demographics and a punitive culture that leans towards violence.

[metalcrow]

That's a convenient explanation, but it's almost too convenient. We just got unlucky and there's not much we can do? We just got bad people and bad culture and that's that? It's also pretty difficult to prove! Not to say it's wrong, just that it makes thing too easy.