quote "the ... belief that violent crime can be remedied by social engineering, social intervention and more "services" to help those "vulnerable" people who are susceptible to criminal behaviour; in other words it is all society's fault"

That "it is all society's fault" is not, by any stretch of the imagination, "other words" for what was said previously - the first is about how crime may be reduced, the second is about who is (morally?) responsible, or to blame, or at "fault".

Two totally different things, however much it may suit certain people's views to pretend to confuse them

"Prisons, An Inconvenient Truth"?

Even some of the most vicious and low-life crims in jail
are being encouraged to feel the “Real Victims”
There is now a Massive “Prison Welfare Industry” catering to this.
It used to be, "Do the Crime Do the Time"
With No Sympathy.
And this was Understood and Accepted by the inmates.
Many of them caused a lot of Pain and Suffering
to a lot of good people.
My experience and observation over years was that
90% of the prison population deserved to be there.
I did the Prison Programme when employed as a Counsellor
with QAIAS and assisted with parole applications.
I also spent a few Early Years in Prisons.
As a lot of us did when Cherbourg was deregulated in the sixties.
Not because we were Crims or had Criminal Intentions.
We simply had some issues adjusting to a different way of life
when we moved to Brisbane. And, We All Moved On.
The inmates of today are certainly a Different Kettle of Fish.
Many Hardened Criminals with 20 or more convictions for car theft, burglary or break and enter and destruction of property,
And with no respect for anything or anyone.
Including the Elderly and other Aboriginals.
Quite a few for vicious assaults. On women and even children.
Most spruik Aboriginal Rights
but are Ignorant on the Rights of Other People in the Community
whom need to be protected from them.
This being why they are in Prison.
Most are “Repeat Offenders”.
Definitely not “Innocent Victims” and “Traffic fine Defaulters”
As the “Aboriginal Victim Industry” ( AVI )
including the “Out of Touch” and “Misguided Moral Postures” ANTaR
and Others, would have us believe. ( 6/6/2009 alb. )

extract from www.whitc.info

Arthur Bell.

Criminal justice is a field of debate in which no winners emerge, either literally amongst those involved or figuratively amongst those discussing the issue.

Those who have dealt with inmates have encountered untold numbers with horrendous life stories. A constant theme is drug fuelled lives, personal abuse and deprivation.

Those who have suffered crimes being committed against them can have various repercussions including nightmares and fear of being in different situations. These impacts can blight their lives.

In dealing with inmates one point that is stressed to them is that an understanding of the forces that led to a decision being made that became a crime does not change the fact that person is responsible for that decision. Progress does not occur until that is accepted. The notion of being a victim of some horrendous experience does not change responsibility or the need to accept it and find a way forward.

The use of the term victim is similarly a hindrance for those who have suffered crime. Are such people helpless in the face of events or do they too have decisions and actions to take to deal with what has happened? Again there is a responsibility to self to address the situation rather than have, as some call it, ‘a pity party’.

...

Those within corrective services understand many of the futilities going on. The ongoing methadone program may produce more tractable inmates but it maintains addiction and a probability of reoffence. Rehabilitation and training programs which are attended solely to put ticks on a form for parole and which have no impact on the inmate are of little value. Abusive and capricious gaols merely allow the inmate to see themselves as victims and seek revenge on release.

Media use of the standard interview after a major case in which the people subject to the crime always say the sentence is not enough gains attention on TV, but that response would be drawn no matter how long the sentence. Politicians can continue with law and order auctions on who is toughest with sentencing and play on fears to their advantage. This does not improve justice.

How often do those subject to crime want to front the perpetrator and see they understand the harm they have caused? Having suffered crime and spoken to others this makes sense. Yet this is not readily achieved within the current approach to justice.

Keane’s call for a return to justice could benefit from understanding the Old Testament’s proscribing of an eye for an eye was not calling for a perpetrator to be blinded – rather it limited our desire for revenge by beheading them! Is the criminal justice system no more than an organised means by which revenge is achieved or does it have a job to do?

There is an industry around justice in which careers and fortunes are to be made let alone political points to be scored. Academia, that increasingly irrelevant group in Australia least capable of addressing society’s needs, speaks ad nauseum without lifting a finger to help. The genuine needs amongst those subject to crime and amongst perpetrators are not handled.

Who will put the money and mental effort in to achieve change?

Cronus derogatively talks about law and order auctions. Unfortunately it has been the opposite. Our politicians have been bullied by politically correct zealots who believe all this “it’s society’s fault” nonsense. They have pandered to the ideological, vocal and completely irrational elite. In doing so they have let down the victims of crime and with reckless indifference allowed the victims of crime to suffer horrendous torment. All because they have been too afraid of a small number of vocal, politically correct elite. Shame on the politicians. Thankfully there is such community outrage over grossly inadequate sentencing that our politicians might finally do the decent, rational and morally correct thing and start to bring sentencing in line with community expectations.
Cronus also says “Those who have dealt with inmates have encountered untold numbers with horrendous life stories. A constant theme is drug fuelled lives, personal abuse and deprivation.” Thankfully people are finally starting to challenge this myth that crime is a function of social deprivation. And drugs don’t cause violent crime. There is absolutely zero rationale for that.

Michael Keane, Please explain what you mean by 'simple criminality'. How does this work?

Seems to me that all the social research shows that there is no such thing. You don't understand the evidence that shows that criminality is not simple, do you? It's not that difficult to understand you know. Just takes a bit of mental effort to move out of that comfort zone where it's all so simple if only people saw things the way you do.

Perhaps you could look at the way football clubs are working with their young men, using all that 'leftist' psychological evidence to minimise the criminal behaviour of their players. Did you notice that it seems to be working?

Wonderful the way the latest 'politically correct' research becomes useful when there is money to be made and public opinion makes it necessary to do something about that 'simple criminality'.