This thread is another in the endless demands that we get tough on crime. Nearly for my entire life, that has been the cry and demand from the Right. Get tough on crime. If we would only get serious about crime, we could nearly eliminate it.
Well let me rephrase. Get tough on some crime. Not all the crimes.
But let’s discuss that. The infamous three strikes laws. Those were supposed to rid our streets of criminals. They don’t seem to have worked. Our streets are purportedly filled to the brim with Criminals. So much so we need to get tough on crime again. Or continue getting tough on crime. Or something.
Some crimes have been virtually eliminated. Kidnapping for Ransom for example. It wasn’t the death penalty that ended the crimes. It wasn’t the federalization of the crime. It was the money. The money would be marked, it would be recorded. When you went to spend the money you would be caught. You couldn’t get away with it.
If you kidnapped someone for ransom, you would be caught. Even if you got the bags of money, it wouldn’t be long before you were found.
Also the Feds stopped printing large denominations of bills. No more thousand dollar bills.
So money became bulkier. It was now going to be heavier, harder to move, and if you tried to spend it you would be found.
Look at the effort to get money from criminal activity. The civil asset forfeiture. If you have a lot of cash you must be a criminal.
They removed the profit from the crime.
Profit from activity is why most criminals get involved in crime. When you remove the profit, you remove the willingness to commit crimes.
Let’s take Prohibition as an example. People wanted alcohol. They wanted booze. It wasn’t fear of prosecution that ended the mobs and the violence that surrounded the bootleggers. It was the simple fact that prohibition was repealed.
Mobsters who got rich and powerful during prohibition either went straight after it ended, or stood stop diminishing organizations. They couldn’t maintain their empires with Hookers and Gambling.
Gambling is another example. People would go to their Bookies to place a bet on sporting events. The cops and courts tried to stop the crimes by going after bookies. In the end, it was essentially eliminated by legalizing gambling. State lotteries replaced the Numbers Rackets of the mobsters. Off Track Betting ended the horse race bookies. You could go in and play your hunch for the 7th race with ease.
Sports betting went online, and now even the Sports bookies are a rarity.
Remove the profit and you do a lot more of the getting rid of criminals than you do getting tough.
Now to firearms. I’m a supporter of Licensed Concealed Carry. I’m also a supporter of mandatory training to get a license. The RW demands everyone be allowed to constitutional carry.
What about those under 18? Don’t they live in dangerous neighborhoods that scare you too? Don’t they also face threats from criminals? Don’t they have a right to self defense?
