Join Craig Jones of the John Howard Society and The Globe's Kirk Makin for a discussion on Canadians' hardening attitudes towards crime.
Globe and Mail Update Published on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2010 10:37PM EST Last updated on Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 11:08AM EST
Canadians who like to think of themselves as holding progressive attitudes are increasingly embracing a hard line on crime and punishment that includes rising approval of capital punishment. This hardening attitude is revealed in a new international survey that found 62 per cent of Canadians polled favour the death penalty for murderers.
In 2004, a similar poll showed 48 per cent in favour of executing convicted killers. The results of the survey, which finds interesting parallels and differences with U.S. and U.K. opinions, are certain to buoy the federal Conservative government, which has strongly identified itself with tough-on-crime policies such as mandatory minimum prison terms.
The survey also raises the perplexing question of whether high-profile wrongful conviction cases may create more, not less support for death penalty.
Join Craig Jones of the John Howard Society and The Globe and Mail's justice reporter Kirk Makin at 11 a.m. ET Friday for a discussion on the study and what it could mean for Canada's justice system.
As executive director of the John Howard Society of Canada, Craig Jones has for many years been one of the country's leading advocates for prison reform and the humane treatment of inmates. Mr. Jones lives in Kingston, Ont., a city that houses seven federal penitentiaries.
Kirk Makin has been reporting on Canada's justice system for The Globe and Mail since 1986 and has covered numerous high-profile trials including Henry Morgentaler, Paul Bernardo and Guy Paul Morin. He has written thousands of stories about the legal system, including the Supreme Court of Canada and its judgments.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/are-canadians-getting-tougher-on-crime/article1439431/
Its just so easy to offer the get tough on crime approach to win votes, its a
guaranteed winner, who is brave enough to object?
Its an abuse of absolute power given or taken by out politicians with scant
regard to the destruction it causes.
The educated approach is to deal with the causes in society that create crime.
The single biggest cause of crime is Fatherless Homes and for that you can thank
the politically correct approach of criminalizing men as unfit parents, and
labeling every man as a potential wife beater when, the reality is very very
different.
Most child abusers most domestic abuse is carried out by women, not men, men and
women are generally equally good or bad parents, yet, society applies a Male
Gender Apartheid , a Male Sharia Law of evidence that means basically anything a
man says has little evidentiary value compared to what SHE SAYS.
Canada can start reversing the primary cause of crime by legalizing a
presumption of equal parenting after separation and ensuring that men have equal
legal rights.
That will require a fundamental change in the hiring of the Judiciary, with
psychological screening to avoid hiring that present high percentage of
psychopaths and borderline personalities who are guaranteed to become
professional abusers and leave an endless trail of family destruction until
their voluntary retirement.
Canada can solve most of the cause of crime simply with a Legal Presumption of
Equal Parenting after separation.
www.OttawaMensCentre.com