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Originally posted by Sir Taliesin:
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Originally posted by Yorick:
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Originally posted by Maelakin:
Lets be realistic.
Prisoners cost us money, dead guys don't.
Kill them all, cigarettes are getting expensive. [img]tongue.gif[/img]
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It costs money to excecute people.
In any case, turn it around. Put lifers into work that benefits society. Societies of old made prisoners row galleys, or work mines, or build roads.
Why not do that? Use prisoner labour to build something, rather than spend money throwing that life away.
[/QUOTE]That sounds all fine and dandy, but what about that guy or gal who was working a construction job you just put out of work, so prisoners could do something constructive.
In the late 1800's the State of Tennessee went to the Coal Companies and offerred them prison labor to dig coal at a very cheap price. The Coal Companies, seeing what a good deal this was, got rid of all their coal miners (who made less than a pittance) and put these prisoners to work. Needless to say the miners didn't take this laying down and war between the out of work miners and the Coal Companies broke out in the East Tennessee Mountains, with the prisoners caught in the middle. This was one of the things that stated the UMW (United Mine Workers). I figure much the same thing would happen all over again if you were to do that. [/QUOTE]You spend the government money to pay the workers to build something else. It ADDITIONAL labour, not replacement labour. Have you seen the state of New Yorks roads? Subways? They need all the help they can get.
If it's additional think of what could be accomplished. Why think of it in terms of replacement? With construction or roads or whathaveyou, unlike coal, you're not going to run out.
Alternatively, you could license out all plumbing work to prisoners and pay the existing plumbers to train and supervise. What plumber would prefer to NOT swim in excrement, and yet still get top dollar?
Give the prisoners implants so they can't escape or run away and set them to work.
Simply ideas that's all.
But think of all that manpower. That energy, untapped. Strong, energetic humans with a debt to society either being exterminated or rotting away doing nothing.
How about putting prisons on the electricity grid. Setting up treadmills and weights in prisons so that they produce electricity for the nation.
While we're at it, why not hook up every Gym as well?? All that human energy going to waste!!!
The Japanese had the idea (although they were barbaric in the extreme in it's application) they set prisoners of war to work on the Burma railway. Stalin had prisoners work the salt mines. Which was actually a death sentence.
Now, I'm not advocating barbarity and abuse, as human rights should bery much be in effect. Set up rewards systems. Time off sentence or rest rewards for good behaviour.
But still, scrap the death penalty and put all that energy into constructive endeavour.