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On July 29 2015 01:20 whatisthisasheep wrote: I predict a gigantic lawsuit against the Daily Beast incoming https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlcRhaHYuCs#t=110 News media has officially become a joke
On July 29 2015 01:20 whatisthisasheep wrote: I predict a gigantic lawsuit against the Daily Beast incoming https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlcRhaHYuCs#t=110 News media has officially become a joke
On what grounds?
I also question the grounds. From my reading of the issue, it is a direct quote from his ex-wife where the term "rape, but not int he criminal sense"(I have no idea how that works) came up. But a shitty case has never stopped anyone from filing a lawsuit.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
We seem to be okay with the idea of cracking down on political corruption and to say that corruption investigations are somehow abusive authoritarianism would be rather absurd. Same should go for the private sector.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Sure, I guess if you fear the police more than some random person on the internet or a mutli-national corporation. Just so long as everyone else has my information and can misuse it but the government.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
I was more referring to people like those behind the mortgage crisis circa 2008. For sure, laws need to catch up with technology before you can fairly and equitably prosecute cyber criminals, but is it so far-fetched to imagine a future where police are equipped to investigate a potential crime, get a "cyber" warrant based on probable cause, and THEN invade the privacy of the person they are investigating?
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
Damnit Millitron, I wasted my 10k on you!
I'm surprised in a country that just got done decrying police overreach, you're so quick to give the police more power.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
Damnit Millitron, I wasted my 10k on you!
I'm surprised in a country that just got done decrying police overreach, you're so quick to give the police more power.
Do you need the difference between cracking down on banks committing fraud and the deaths of black suspects in police custody explained to you? Is that really necessary? Do we really need to explain that they are two entirely different topics and areas of law enforcement?
I work for those banks and cleaned up the aftermath of those loans. They had a special type called Ninj loans. No-income-no-job. But weirdly no charges were ever brought for handing those out for “reasons”.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
Damnit Millitron, I wasted my 10k on you!
I'm surprised in a country that just got done decrying police overreach, you're so quick to give the police more power.
That's because "power" is a meaninglessly non-specific word that belongs in ideological texts and not in actual discussions. I'm totally for both limiting and expanding police power, because, gasp, such a thing is possible.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
I was more referring to people like those behind the mortgage crisis circa 2008. For sure, laws need to catch up with technology before you can fairly and equitably prosecute cyber criminals, but is it so far-fetched to imagine a future where police are equipped to investigate a potential crime, get a "cyber" warrant based on probable cause, and THEN invade the privacy of the person they are investigating?
Judging by what we have seen from police and prosecutors during my lifetime, yes, that is pretty far-fetched. Unless pre-warrant snooping is made an offense punishable by 10 years in prison, and there was a special division that investigated and prosecuted such offenses by the police force.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Sure, I guess if you fear the police more than some random person on the internet or a mutli-national corporation. Just so long as everyone else has my information and can misuse it but the government.
Is it so irrational to fear the entity that can imprison you, bankrupt you, and render you nearly permanently unemployable more than the entity that can bankrupt you? Plus the part where there is no recourse against on entity, while there may be from the other.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
Damnit Millitron, I wasted my 10k on you!
I'm surprised in a country that just got done decrying police overreach, you're so quick to give the police more power.
Do you need the difference between cracking down on banks committing fraud and the deaths of black suspects in police custody explained to you? Is that really necessary? Do we really need to explain that they are two entirely different topics and areas of law enforcement?
I work for those banks and cleaned up the aftermath of those loans. They had a special type called Ninj loans. No-income-no-job. But weirdly no charges were ever brought for handing those out for “reasons”.
So for some reason the police are more trustworthy in cyberspace than on the street?
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
I was more referring to people like those behind the mortgage crisis circa 2008. For sure, laws need to catch up with technology before you can fairly and equitably prosecute cyber criminals, but is it so far-fetched to imagine a future where police are equipped to investigate a potential crime, get a "cyber" warrant based on probable cause, and THEN invade the privacy of the person they are investigating?
Judging by what we have seen from police and prosecutors during my lifetime, yes, that is pretty far-fetched. Unless pre-warrant snooping is made an offense punishable by 10 years in prison, and there was a special division that investigated and prosecuted such offenses by the police force.
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Sure, I guess if you fear the police more than some random person on the internet or a mutli-national corporation. Just so long as everyone else has my information and can misuse it but the government.
Is it so irrational to fear the entity that can imprison you, bankrupt you, and render you nearly permanently unemployable more than the entity that can bankrupt you? Plus the part where there is no recourse against on entity, while there may be from the other.
Not at all. That's why I think police need more powers to prosecute large, scary companies that could do that.
The problem with your logic is that you assume there the people who currently have that information won't ruin your life. And if they do, that the police will have some ability to stop them or hold someone accountable.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
Damnit Millitron, I wasted my 10k on you!
I'm surprised in a country that just got done decrying police overreach, you're so quick to give the police more power.
Do you need the difference between cracking down on banks committing fraud and the deaths of black suspects in police custody explained to you? Is that really necessary? Do we really need to explain that they are two entirely different topics and areas of law enforcement?
I work for those banks and cleaned up the aftermath of those loans. They had a special type called Ninj loans. No-income-no-job. But weirdly no charges were ever brought for handing those out for “reasons”.
So for some reason the police are more trustworthy in cyberspace than on the street?
Is there some reason why we cannot do two things at once?
WASHINGTON — For several years, a handful of lawmakers in Congress have tried to scale back tough sentencing laws that have bloated federal prisons and the cost of running them. But broad-based political will to change those laws remained elusive.
Now, with a push from President Obama, and perhaps even more significantly a nod from Speaker John A. Boehner, Congress seems poised to revise four decades of federal policy that greatly expanded the number of Americans — to roughly 750 per 100,000 — now incarcerated, by far the highest of any Western nation.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee who has long resisted changes to federal sentencing laws, said he expected to have a bipartisan bill ready before the August recess.
“It will be a bill that can have broad conservative support,” said Mr. Grassley, who as recently as this year praised the virtues of mandatory minimums on the Senate floor.
Even in a Congress riven by partisanship, the priorities of libertarian-leaning Republicans and left-leaning Democrats have come together, led by the example of several states that have adopted similar policies to reduce their prison costs.
As senators work to meld several proposals into one bill, one important change would be to expand the so-called safety-valve provisions that give judges discretion to sentence low-level drug offenders to less time in prison than the required mandatory minimum term if they meet certain requirements.
Another would allow lower-risk prisoners to participate in recidivism programs to earn up to a 25 percent reduction of their sentence. Lawmakers would also like to create more alternatives for low-level drug offenders. Nearly half of all current federal prisoners are serving sentences for drug crimes.
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
I was more referring to people like those behind the mortgage crisis circa 2008. For sure, laws need to catch up with technology before you can fairly and equitably prosecute cyber criminals, but is it so far-fetched to imagine a future where police are equipped to investigate a potential crime, get a "cyber" warrant based on probable cause, and THEN invade the privacy of the person they are investigating?
Judging by what we have seen from police and prosecutors during my lifetime, yes, that is pretty far-fetched. Unless pre-warrant snooping is made an offense punishable by 10 years in prison, and there was a special division that investigated and prosecuted such offenses by the police force.
On July 29 2015 04:17 Plansix wrote:
On July 29 2015 04:09 Millitron wrote:
On July 29 2015 03:59 Plansix wrote:
On July 29 2015 03:52 cLutZ wrote:
On July 29 2015 03:39 Plansix wrote:
On July 29 2015 03:34 cLutZ wrote:
On July 29 2015 00:38 ZasZ. wrote:
On July 28 2015 23:55 {CC}StealthBlue wrote: [quote]
About time. There really need to be room for context in sentencing for drug crimes. I liked the way John Oliver phrased it in this week's Last Week Tonight, in that mandatory minimum sentences essentially treats all drug offenders as Season 5 Walter White when they may or may not barely be Season 1 Jesse Pinkman. There is a big difference between possession and low level dealing and the people running major drug operations, and sentencing should reflect that. Not making possession of small amounts of drugs an offense that can carry jail time would be a start.
If we cracked down less on minor drug offenses and cracked down more on white collar crime, this country would be a much better place.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Sure, I guess if you fear the police more than some random person on the internet or a mutli-national corporation. Just so long as everyone else has my information and can misuse it but the government.
Is it so irrational to fear the entity that can imprison you, bankrupt you, and render you nearly permanently unemployable more than the entity that can bankrupt you? Plus the part where there is no recourse against on entity, while there may be from the other.
Not at all. That's why I think police need more powers to prosecute large, scary companies that could do that.
The problem with your logic is that you assume there the people who currently have that information won't ruin your life. And if they do, that the police will have some ability to stop them or hold someone accountable.
While I agree with you on mandatory mins (along with Prosecutorial overreach an count tacking) being unjust. "Cracking down" on white collar crime basically requires Patriot Act 2.0
Police are not equipped or funded well enough to collect or deal with digital evidence in the modern era. Not with the way laws and evidence currently work.
For now, that is a good thing. Until thousands of laws are repealed, the police having the resources and ability to comb through the digital world means that the police could select a person, and then fit the crime to their internet conduct and what it implies.
That works is reverse too. People commit real crimes, but know they won’t get caught unless the local police put in overwhelming amounts of effort. See swatting. And also that large banks and other corporations can just hide behind a mountain of paperwork and evidence, making it do difficult to bring a successful case.
I'd prefer to let a few crimes go unsolved than let the police run wild.
"That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a Maxim that has been long and generally approved." - Ben Franklin
Outdated grammar, outdated capitalization, outdated logic, outdated quote. But yes, cracking down on corporate malfeasance is clearly synonymous with "let[ting] the police run wild."
Damnit Millitron, I wasted my 10k on you!
I'm surprised in a country that just got done decrying police overreach, you're so quick to give the police more power.
Do you need the difference between cracking down on banks committing fraud and the deaths of black suspects in police custody explained to you? Is that really necessary? Do we really need to explain that they are two entirely different topics and areas of law enforcement?
I work for those banks and cleaned up the aftermath of those loans. They had a special type called Ninj loans. No-income-no-job. But weirdly no charges were ever brought for handing those out for “reasons”.
So for some reason the police are more trustworthy in cyberspace than on the street?
Is there some reason why we cannot do two things at once?
Google can't imprison me. Bank of America can't send a SWAT team to kick down my door and shoot me. The police can do both.
EPT
