Ineffective Punishment

In science fiction, all manner of different forms of punishment and discipline have been conceived by various future cultures. And they all seem to suck. Apparently at no point in the future do we solve our massive prison problem and in many cases we just make it worse.

To me, the worst possible prison idea is cryogenics. Yes, I am going to cite the cinematic masterpiece that is Demolition Man. In the Demolition Man world, convicts are frozen for a set period of time and then unfrozen when they have served their time in prison. But the thing is, cryogenic prisoners are supposedly not aware of the passage of time (there is a scene that alludes that Sylvester Stallone’s character actually could dream and tell time passed but the overwhelming opinion is that they can’t).

What is the point of incarceration if the prisoner can’t even tell time has passed? The purpose behind prison is meant to be a punishment to deter future bad behavior (though even that idea tends to fail). Basically all the prisoner is aware of is a cold shower and no passage of time. There is some mental modification involved in the prison system of Demolition Man, but surely that could be done without freezing them. And even that mental conditioning does little to alter the behavior of a person, as seen by Sly Stallone’s character’s refusal to fit into society (and really only learns to sew from the mental augmentations). So basically freezing people is only going to lead to eventually unleashing criminals on a world not ready for them.

Of course, some systems don’t really bother with prison. The world of Judge Dredd (and since I’ve already picked on Stallone I am talking about the reboot starring Karl Urban) advocates a society where the police (Judges) pretty much have complete power to commit executions at will. Certainly this solves the problem of what to do with criminals. Of course, this also eliminates many valuable parts of the judicial system. No due process, no appeals, no probation, everything is either you get away or you get executed. And as seen in the film Dredd, these officers are not above the ability to become corrupted and take bribes. In a world where the power to meet out justice is limited to an elite few, that elite few is just that much more likely to abuse said powers.

So the best idea is to try and refine the current judicial system and make bigger prisons. But just because a prison is bigger, doesn’t necessarily mean it is better. Escape from New York and Escape from L.A. both showed entire cities being walled off and converted into prisons, both of which were broken in and out of. Lockout showed a movie where a prison is in outer space, which just seems far too cost ineffective to send prisoners to. You can rig the prisoners with electronic leashes or explosives but then you run the risk of prisoners figuring out ways around those devices and also the excessive body count as in the Dredd world. Finally there is what I consider the dumbest idea and that is the flying shuriken blades in Wild Wild West. Simple gravity eliminates that one.

So even though people are constantly complaining about the judicial system in this country, looking at all the alternatives others have dreamed up, I say it could be a lot worse. I guess the best thing someone can do is just keep their nose clean and then the concept of prison is one they need never consider.