tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post5453175718667407659..comments2024-03-25T20:06:39.794-05:00Comments on Grits for Breakfast: Mexican incarceration rate one fifth that of Texas, but growingGritsforbreakfasthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-82875179264964372242008-07-18T16:52:00.000-05:002008-07-18T16:52:00.000-05:00Actually the crime rate there is comparable to wha...Actually the crime rate there is comparable to what we hav here. You people believe Fox News far too much. Yep, sad to say Bill O'rielly has definitely not wasted his lies on that guy..<BR/><BR/>Yes, there are drug wars in Mexico in border cities, but there are drug wars in the US as well. Look at Los Angeles, New York, Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, Atlanta. Tell me again how these places are the land of milk and honey. Shoot, I'd move to Mexico in a heartbeat, an ex-army officer would make a ton of money there consulting with the Mexican military.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-45339645380711350982008-07-18T13:02:00.000-05:002008-07-18T13:02:00.000-05:00Aw Hell, I just read where you said "I'm with numb...Aw Hell, I just read where you said "I'm with numbnuts," stopped reading, and threw you in with my response.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-83770672857211573532008-07-18T12:45:00.000-05:002008-07-18T12:45:00.000-05:00Rage, you don't understand satire, sarcasm and sna...Rage, you don't understand satire, sarcasm and snark, do you?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-5449384976897910872008-07-18T10:01:00.000-05:002008-07-18T10:01:00.000-05:007:17 and 7:52:And who supports the drug gangs that...7:17 and 7:52:<BR/><BR/>And who supports the drug gangs that are so violent in Mexico?<BR/><BR/>Americans. Because we're their market.<BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>I've been to Mexico plenty of times. I'd rather have a slightly higher crime rate than have federal troops on street corners with machine guns, like they have.<BR/><BR/>Many shops also have private "security," sometimes with automatic weapons as well. <BR/><BR/>What I don't like is that even with a somewhat higher crime rate, we have an insanely higher rate of incarceration. And we thought Mexican prisons were bad...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-1596369435986651692008-07-18T09:24:00.000-05:002008-07-18T09:24:00.000-05:00Sam, where did I write that Mexico is "better than...Sam, where did I write that Mexico is "better than we are because they have less of a % of their adult population"? I corrected another blogger's math error, I didn't say Mexico's justice system is something we should replicate. That doesn't mean it's not important for Texans to <A HREF="http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/2008/06/mexico-approves-shift-to-more-open.html" REL="nofollow">pay attention</A> to <A HREF="http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/2008/05/crime-and-punishment-in-mexico-big.html" REL="nofollow">what goes on there</A>.<BR/><BR/>What a complete red herring. Try to focus.Gritsforbreakfasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-53537731781625907162008-07-18T09:21:00.000-05:002008-07-18T09:21:00.000-05:00Sam, I just hate having to point out the obvious, ...Sam, I just hate having to point out the obvious, but prison is exactly the place for the really bad guys: The murderers, big time drug financiers, big-time corrupt politicians, people who assault others with weapons, people who beat-up children and such as that. It is not necessarily the best place for a lot of other offenders. For instance, the Texas prison population includes far too many non-violent offenders, and not nearly enough corrupt politicians. I suspect that if so many offenses were not categorized as felonies, and if so many possessory offenses were not even crimes, and if some offenses were recognized as medical problems, the Texas prison population would much less than it is today. That might translate into lower state and local taxes taken out of your very own pocketbook.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-12048338482002156182008-07-18T08:55:00.000-05:002008-07-18T08:55:00.000-05:00Yes, but Mexico has gang wars running in the stree...Yes, but Mexico has gang wars running in the streets of Nuevo Laredo and elsewhere. Are they better than we are because they have less of a % of their adult population incarcerated?<BR/><BR/>Remember what Benjamin Disraeli said and Mark Twain reported. There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08076420833939935389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-39899479074851959272008-07-18T07:52:00.000-05:002008-07-18T07:52:00.000-05:00I'm with Anon 7:17 on this one.It is vitally impor...I'm with Anon 7:17 on this one.<BR/><BR/>It is vitally important that Texans do everything necessary to maintain out mystique of being No. 1! And particularly with regard to Mexico. It would be a shame we could never live down if Mexico ever out-does Texas in anything at all, including incarceration rates. We are ahead on that now, and our great Legislature and Judiciary are working night and day to keep us ahead.<BR/><BR/>We are also working hard to put Texas ahead in the poverty sweep-stakes. Mexico has an edge on us now, but -- again with help of the Texas Legislature and loyal Texans in Congress -- Texas is gradually closing that gap and we can expect to be ahead of Mexico soon.<BR/><BR/>As for the "livability" factor -- that is nonsense. We have a fine, authoritarian, semi-oligarchy in Texas which functions well to keep people in line, or in prison if they don't stay in line. Who really cares if living is easier in Mexico? A REAL Texan, not one of Grits' typical bleeding heart liberals, exults in the harshness of our justice and economic systems, the meaness and stratification of our social system, and the near-vacuity of our culture. Adversity makes good citizens.<BR/><BR/>So, Anon 7:17, I will join with you in contributing to a send-off of Grits south of the border, where he obviously will be happier than he is in Texas. Just let us know the amount of your contribution and when you make it, and I will match it. (This being Texas, I'll have to get a confirm and verify about your contribution before making mine.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-46572202841547514852008-07-17T21:51:00.000-05:002008-07-17T21:51:00.000-05:00After what I have personally experienced with the ...After what I have personally experienced with the Smith County criminal justice (so called) system in the last year I think I would have been better off in Mexico. Anyone who thinks the criminal justice system in this country is fair and impartial and that you can expect to find truth in a courtroom in this country needs to think again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-28422258168598083862008-07-17T21:22:00.000-05:002008-07-17T21:22:00.000-05:007:17 - feel free to deposit money for tickets via ...7:17 - feel free to deposit money for tickets via Paypal. I'd love to visit Mexico on your dime.<BR/><BR/>Also, have you ever been to Mexico? It's an incredibly "liveable country ... for the aveage [sic] folk," IMO much more so than here.<BR/><BR/>There are plenty of countries with lower incarceration rates than we have who also enjoy much lower crime rates than the United States, but that wasn't the point of this post. Not that you care, I'm sure.<BR/><BR/>Otherwise, you're a fool and your comment is entirely nonresponsive to what I wrote. All I did was compare the data (or rather, correct Grabman's math in his comparison), not say which was better. The rest is just you spewing bile and ill will and has nothing to do with anything I've written.Gritsforbreakfasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-4119044037315320382008-07-17T19:17:00.000-05:002008-07-17T19:17:00.000-05:00"In other words, Mexico's adult incarceration rate..."In other words, Mexico's adult incarceration rate is approximately 1/5 that of the state of Texas."<BR/><BR/>And look how low the crime is in Mexico, will ya? And what a liveable country it is for the aveage folk? <BR/><BR/>If'n you don't count the thousands of street drug executions this year alone in Mexico, then you can easily see in my skewed liberal logic that Mexico is making a much better country by only imprisoning 1/5 as many folks as Texas.<BR/><BR/>Great logic, Scott. By the way, if you ever need money to move to Mexico, I'll pay for the bus tickets for you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-91227747956582591102008-07-17T17:52:00.000-05:002008-07-17T17:52:00.000-05:00"seeing them as protectors of the status quo and o..."seeing them as protectors of the status quo and of wealth, and not of the people"<BR/><BR/>I've come to realize recently that is exactly what our criminal justice system does. Clarence Darrow said:<BR/>"FIRST AND LAST, IT'S A QUESTION OF MONEY. THOSE MEN WHO OWN THE EARTH MAKE THE LAWS TO PROTECT WHAT THEY HAVE. THEY FIX UP A SORT OF FENCE OR PEN AROUND WHAT THEY HAVE, AND THEY FIX THE LAW SO THE FELLOW ON THE OUTSIDE CANNOT GET IN. THE LAWS ARE REALLY ORGANIZED FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE MEN WHO RULE THE WORLD. THEY WERE NEVER ORGANIZED OR ENFORCED TO DO JUSTICE. WE HAVE NO SYSTEM FOR DOING JUSTICE, NOT THE SLIGHTEST IN THE WORLD." <BR/><BR/>He was right. Think about how many of the laws we pass seem to be a good idea but have a disproportionate affect on the poor and serve to protect the wealthy. For example, the city where I live started impounding cars of people who are caught without insurance. At first I thought this was a good law. People should act responsibly. Then I thought, who will this law effect? It will affect the single mother who can barely afford the rent let alone insurance but must have a car to get to work. Then we will make it harder on her by imposing additional fines and impound fees. People who can afford insurance will not be affected. This law is designed to protect the property of those who can afford insurance from those who can't. Next consider the fact that drug crimes (often committed by people of lower socioeconomic status) are investigated and prosecuted much more agressively than white collar crime (usually committed by the middle and upper class). I criminal justice has essentially become an instrument with which the rich and powerful opress the poor and the weak. At least in Mexico law enforcement is more honest about their dishonesty.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com