Holland's Dwindling Prison Population

The Netherlands is facing a different kind of crisis: too few prisoners.

"During the 1990s the Netherlands faced a shortage of prison cells, but a decline in crime has since led to overcapacity in the prison system. The country now has capacity for 14,000 prisoners but only 12,000 detainees."

Doing some quick math, the incarceration rate in Holland is approximately seven hundredths of one percent. By comparison, the rate in the United States is over seven tenths of one percent. Here's more information on the US prison system. I wonder what Holland is doing differently?

(link via boingboing)

Paging Mr. Orwell

"Wisconsin police can attach GPS to cars to secretly track anybody’s movements without obtaining search warrants, an appeals court ruled Thursday."

(link)

The Newburgh Four

As has been widely reported, four American men are under arrest for plotting to attack two synagogues and an air national guard base in New York. Reading about the individuals involved, the picture that emerges is of a gang of uneducated, mentally unstable ex-cons, duped by an informant desperate to get himself out of hot water with the federal government. TPM has the best run down, including links to major MSM articles.

Although this is a case of domestic terrorism, I see a several parallels between the men arrested in Newburgh and the suicide bombers and Jihadi that are fighting in Iraq and Af-Pak. In both cases, the foot soldiers of terror come across as uneducated and brainwashed, not sure of what they are fighting for or against, but committed to their adopted cause thanks to a frail and often manipulated understanding of Islam conveyed by more intelligent individuals.

There are lessons to be learned from this correlation. Instead of seeing the War on Terror through the lens of a black and white struggle for freedom, maybe we should instead see it as a fight against the David Cromities of the world--men who have little to live for and an axe to grind against societies they feel have failed them.

Legalize It?

A new Zogby poll indicates a majority of Americans think marijuana should be legalized. Perhaps more interesting, only 37% are against. What do you think?

Update: As noted earlier on this blog, Portugal's progressive drug policies are paying dividends.