This article is really good, but it fails to mention that fact that the United States - like no other country on earth - criminalizes and sets prison sentences for more an incredible amount of non-violent and victimless crimes. Most prominent among these is drugs. In Mississippi 33% of the adult male black community has been disenfranchised due to drug charges. If drugs were a legal, taxed, controlled, and regulated substance in America our prisons would not be full and we would not have children killing one another on the streets.

I am not a user, I have NEVER used and NEVER will, but I feel like some things should simply be legal in the comfort and privacy of one's own home. Marijuana could be filtered and papered with a color to distinguish it from standard white tabacco cigarettes. Police would know if you were smoking a joint or tabacco while driving, etc. This is not saying that drugs are great for you, they are often highly toxic and detrimental... but if we are trying to reduce the amount of inherent waste in the justice system, it would be good to start with our drug policy.

Mr. Craig - may God bless you for being objective in your analysis. I completely agree with you regarding the justice system. It is natural for most victims and/or eye witnesses to be 'revenge-minded', but our justice system does nothing to account for such potential 'emotional injustice'. You know, we used to have people like you in our Republican party, but now it may be comprised merely of the loudly barking, attention seeking, insecure and revenge-minded so-called conservatives. I hope to see our Republican party back on its feet, unless it means putting the future of our country in the wrong direction. The current Obama-shlobama festival hasn't turned out that great either. Whatever happens, lets hope we can turn this economy around and move in the right direction.

MY previous comment (comment #2 @8:49AM) was for Mr. Roberts.

In the unlikely but prayed for day we ever break the influence of the military industial complex, the prison industrial complex should be the next target. Regarding legalization of drugs; of course they should be decriminalized even though they can be harmful in some instances, just like cigarettes, alcohol and fast food. Free men should be free to make bad decisions and be willing to accept the consequences.

MY COUSIN WAS RECENTLY SENTENCED TO 60 YEARS IN PRISON I WAS IN COURT EVERYDAY HEARD THE WHOLE TRIAL AND GOT TO WATCH THE VIDEO. THE VIDEO WAS BLANK MAY I ADD. THE DRUG TASK FORCE AND THEIR WITNESS BOTH LIED. THE WITNESS HAD TO PRIOR DRUG CHARGES AND HE WAS CHARGED WITH RAPED. HE REPEATED OVER AND OVER THAT HE WAS TESTIFYING BECAUSE THEY TOLD HIM THEY WOULD MAKE HIS CHARGES DISAPPEAR. THE MONEY THE INFORMENT HAD WAS 100 DOLLARSD. SO WHEN HE APPROACHED MY COUSIN ON THE VIDEO HE SAID I DONT HAVE ANYTHING RIGHT NOW. BUT THEY CHARGED HIM WITH INTENT, WE NEED AWARENESS DOWN HERE IN MS THEY ARFE THROWING AWAY OUR YOUNG BLACK MEN AND PUTTING RAPIST BACK ON THE STREETS. PLEASE HELP US.. WE NEED IT BAD DOWN HERE.