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CPC policy hypotheticals: Canadians see a balanced budget, longer jail time as ‘good’; defunding CBC as ‘bad’ -
(angusreid.org)
In the absence of these important policy proposals, there is evidently some apprehension among Canadians. Half (46%) say they are “fearful” of the CPC forming government, while fewer (35%) anticipate it with hope. A majority (54%) suspect Poilievre and the CPC have a “hidden agenda” that won’t be revealed until after the party wins the elections.
There is also some doubt that a Poilievre-led government can balance the budget and lower income taxes as promised, even if most view them to be “good things”. More than two-in-five (45%) say neither will happen.
Short version: longer sentences don't mean more justice.
I never understand why people don't want criminals reformed, just locked up.
There are very good arguments for rehabilitation of those who commit crimes.
And before anybody sounds off there are certain people who just need to be removed from society due to an inability to behave. It's just a very small portion of those who break the law.
And increase social spending. Of those who can be reformed, they'll only do so if there's a support network.
Because "lock them up" is a simple answer that is quick, easy to understand and relativity easy to do.
Rehabilitation takes time, takes effort, and doesn't have a "one size fits all" method.
It's not a simple, easy to understand (and easy to slogan) approach, even if it does actually have proven better long-term outcomes for society.
Sadly, longer jail time is purely placebo. Plenty of studies show jail time has no incidence on crime rate. Sure, locking people for longer would delay recidivism, but we could do better than that.
It's not about logic though. Longer jail time proponents do lean on the emotional argument of a few anecdotal cases or recidivism. This tend to make flashy headlines and stick with the population.
It's because there is no nuance anymore. With every issue you have to either be 100% on my side or 100% on the other side. So many times people argue for and against things that aren't mutually exclusive. It doesn't mean we should "both sides" everything, but sometimes both sides each have half of a good idea.
It is pretty easy to understand. People are interested in their personal safety above all else, way more than they care about inefficient use of public resources and human tragedies brought by a carceral system. Many favor systems that error to the side of unjustly punishing over a system that accepts the inherent trade-offs of pursuing common good.
In other words, to some folks, criminals aren't people so we shouldn't worry about what's good for them - all worry is dedicated to making the lives of white flighters as stress-free as possible. TLDR: snowflake conservatives.
These are the same people who say they would prefer a dangerous freedom *rather than a peaceful slavery. As if you can't have a peaceful freedom...
They are more concerned about their feelings than actually moving towards a real freedom.
Edit: wording
Yep. It's cognitive dissonance. Presumed innocence & welfare for me, discipline and punishment & rugged individualism for thee.
I'd like the justice system funded enough that criminals aren't getting released due to long court dates or things like that.
I also want the police at a local level to take more action on petty crimes, right now criminals know the consequences are nil and it's contributing to a more expensive/lower quality society.
This is regrettably true, and driving a lot of the red meat for "tough on crime" talk from right-wing politicians.
Our saving grace is that being tough on crime takes effort and money, and the CPC is just as cheap and lazy as the LPC. They'll just talk tougher and do nothing, as compared to the Liberals smiling and waving flags...and doing nothing.
Yeah, I should add, I'm not against reforming the justice system, really I'm frustrated by the lack of enforcement and lack of resources given to our courts.