2. There are no easy answers, certainly not the quick-fix claims of politicians of the right and left.
3. Start by putting into practice nation-wide the heroic elderly woman's strict-altruistic response to a teen crook who steals her purse in "Thank you, Ma'am" by Langston Hughes.
4. Stop treating law breakers as victims, blaming others or the 'system', etc. for their crimes; stop letting law breakers off with light sentences or no sentences!
The latter has happened a lot; for example many law-breakers in Portland, Oregon 3 years ago were let off by the Multnomah County District Attorney, given no penalties, given no required restitutions because their violations weren't as severe as others.
"Protesters march through the streets after rallying at the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse on August 2. Part of this photo has been blurred because of profanity.) Photo by NOAH BERGER/AP
Yet the law-breakers were part of a mob of protestors, who night after night, attacked the Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse causing over a million dollars in damages, the Portland police, other government and privately owned businesses and set arson fires, etc.)
It's very sad also to see that the Mennonite Church in Portland defended the law breakers, and instead blamed the police who were trying to protect and to stop the law-breaking protesters.
5. On the other hand, we do need to be careful not to dehumanize those who commit crimes and are arrested. But they need to be held accountable, and focus needs to be on finding new ways to help such law-breakers overcome their criminal patterns.
6. Check back with Quaker Elizabeth Fry and others' methods, who engaged in major prison reform in the past. And study various other nations who allegedly have had better success with helping criminals reform, such as Finland.
7. Isolate only lawbreakers who keep harming others. For nonviolent crimes, use methods of rehabilitation in the midst of regular society.
8. Of course, keep in mind, that very different methods will need to be employed against sociopaths, the minority of crooks
who only see those who try and use redemptive justice (such as displayed by the elderly lady in the Hughes story) as weaklings, easy marks to be conned, attacked, and murdered.
What new ways do you think might help improve our broken system?
In the Light,
Dan Wilcox
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