"Why are YOU involved? What, YOU decide what is reasonable! This is ridiculous! YOU are suffering from Trump delusional syndrome, YOU are definitely delusional. Please get off the sauce before its too late!"

There's nothing like a fact laden, thought provoking response AND that was nothing like a fact laden, thought provoking response. Just screaming that you don't want it to be true, therefore it isn't true, isn't a good look.

"Taking a lock em' up and throw away the key approach doesn't work. That has been tried the world over, without success. "

That's just rubbish and we should all note that not a single bit of evidence is supplied to support this know-nothing assertion.

In fact, there is ample evidence that removing criminals from society reduces crime rates. Gee, if the criminal is behind bars they can't commit offences. Who da thunk it?

eg "The Effect of Prison Population Size on Crime Rates (1996) Levitt et al. "showed that a one-prisoner reduction in incarceration was associated with roughly 15 additional Index (serious) crimes per year."

"Studies of Truth-in-Sentencing laws (requiring violent offenders to serve a large share of their sentences) have found statistically significant declines in both violent and property crime in adopting states, with quicker effects on murder and robbery" in the US states compared to those who didn't adopt such laws.

Best recent figures (eg Bushway et al) cluster around 2–5 serious crimes averted per year of prison on average. Earlier estimates were often higher (15–20).

There's more than enough evidence to show that incarceration works in protecting the wider community. But I suspect many aren't interested in the evidence but are chasing the warm inner-glow of (misplaced) compassion.

Hi Judge Trumpster,

Your Dodge City American research is not relevant to Australia. No doubt YOU support capital punishment, unrestricted gun ownership, along with vigilantism. National Academy of Sciences reviewed decades of data and concluded there is no credible statistical evidence that the death penalty affects murder rates.
Research compiled by the National Institute of Justice shows that longer prison sentences do not effectively reduce overall crime rates or stop future offences.

People committing crimes rarely weigh the future length of a sentence against their immediate actions. Extra years in prison does little to change a persons behaviour on release. Long confinement removes people from regular jobs and family, which can actually increase the chance they commit crimes again.

Since I've shown how stupid your "lock up the Judges" nonsense is, YOU have retreated to some 30 year old American rubbish, which fails every conceivable test on crime and punishment.

Criminals don't get enough time, if any, in the Big House because this government prefers fines to increase their spending money. The squillions in fines they promise for anyone not obeying the Censor in “protecting” children online is just one indicator of the Albanese's lust for money as opposed to their slack-arsed attitude to crime and safety and their unwillingness to insist that judges get scum off the streets.

There is a fine for everything.

If you lie on the census form (not sure how they can pick a lie); or if you choose to skip filling it in, you could be fined up to $3,640. Not $3,600, not $3,650 - but $3,640.

Of course they need to pay the 30,000 extra casual staff ‘required’ to carry out this intrusion into our lives.

I've filled in quite a few census forms in my life, and don't know why. Everything seems to have got worse no matter what information you give the vultures.

Not all countries have a census, and civilised countries like Denmark and Finland no longer do a physical census; they do continuous checks ‘in-house’, making public servants useful, not threatening to fine the plebs for not doing a job that our vast public service is apparently not capable of doing.

Threaten and fine is the way for Australia. We are also fined if we don't vote, unlike 99.9% of countries.

In crime-rife Victoria, four youths allegedly involved in the death of a 60 year old shopkeeper have been let out on bail, despite “serious charges against them”.

The dead man is Van Viet Truong. No multiculturalist sentiments or different treatment: teenage boys and a girl are out on bail, charged with affray, violent disorder, intentionally causing serious injury, and intentionally causing injury . A 15 year old boy charged with manslaughter is still locked up. For how long is the automatic question.

No murder charges because the victim died in hospital. WTF!

The accused were shoplifting in the victim's shop, and he had the cheek to protest, and got beaten up.

Taking a lock em' up and throw away the key approach doesn't work.
Paul1405,
On that one I agree with you. It is no punishment to regret their actions when they have ten times better conditions in those 4 Star motels erroneously called Jails. Education, physical exercise, three meals a day, TV, internet, visitors, fresh bed sheets every few days etc etc. That is not punishment, that is privilege that honest wage earners can only dream about. Some of these jailed actually walk out with Uni degrees & as qualified Lawyers. They're laughing all the way thanks to incompetent bureaucrats whose only interest is their Superannuation account.
Real punishment must cause immense regret not some tolerable inconvenience in utter comfort.
Priority one in any crime must be compensating the victim. The perpetrator should have to work it off at standard wages & if necessary, the family should have to chip in as well. Not sitting in front of a computer or spending time in the Gym, work during time in Jail will do far more than the present system. There's only one effective deterrent & that is punishment !