No Leadership in California
When Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected governor of California in the 2003 recall of Gray Davis, he advertised himself as a different kind of politician. He has been anything but. Instead he has proven himself to be very much like his irresponsible Republican counterparts in Washington. He loves to propose expensive new public programs, but doesn’t want to pay for them. He expects future generations of Californians to pick up the tab for his spending sprees. Leaders are honest about the cost of new roads, bridges, schools and water projects. Arnold Schwarzenegger is no leader.
California could seriously use some leadership when it comes to prison overcrowding. For decades California politicians have responded to rising crime rates by throwing more people in the slammer. Under the three strikes law, some convicts are serving life sentences for relatively minor offenses. Now a federal judge has appointed a judicial panel to consider capping the California prison population. That would lead to the early release of prisoners in order to relieve the overcrowding. In the meantime, juvenile delinquents get sent to out of state boot camps.
If California politicians would only look past the next election for once, they would see that a more proactive approach is desperately needed. Instead of treating juvenile delinquents as throwaways, they should be recognized for what they really are: at risk children in need of life skills training. If these kids don’t receive the meaningful help they need to turn their lives around, they are virtually guaranteed to spend most of their adulthood behind bars. We’ve got enough convicts in California prisons already.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, California, prison, California prison crisis, prison overcrowding, leadership, juvenile delinquency, boot camp, violent crime, crime prevention
October 23rd, 2007 at 4:50 am
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