NSW STATE ELECTION- TOUGH ON CRIME AGAIN?
Another year, another year of putting up with a rubbish state Government.
What is it that we expect from the state Government anyway? I believe it is the main role of the respective state governments to take care of the people of those areas in the departments of roads and transport, health and hospitals and education. We here in NSW seem to be getting rather neglected on these fronts- has been the case for as long as I can remember. Oh, and as always there is crime. As we all know, one of the major playing cards for parties wanting to be in power is the assertion that crime will be reduced, making us the people safer and happier. Haha. How about responsibly spending some valuable resources on housing and education to attempt to reduce the need or want for people to commit crime. Hey what am I saying? That’s a crazy idea that’ll never work. Instead we get the old “we’re gonna be tough on crime” spiel. Since Bob Carr in 1995 we have heard the same old gas bagging about how the Government will be - and needs to be- tough on crime and tough on criminals. Carr also floated the idea of minimum mandatory sentencing, stating that if minimum sentences were more severe, the deterrent factor would be more prominent and help to reduce crime levels. Never mind the fact that measures such as these will inevitably overcrowd our already overcrowded prisons and put further budgetary strain on the tax-payers.
I (very studiously) stumbled across an article from The Sydney Morning Herald from 2002 on this exact topic that I happen to agree with wholeheartedly. The author, Adele Horin (2002), suggests that, as I stated earlier, the Government might be better off diverting time and money to education in order to create a better and less crime ridden society. She makes a point that echoes my sentiments directly, “Educated, well-parented and much-loved offspring from good neighbourhoods can be found in jails, true, but they are the exceptions. If a state wants to cut crime it has to be serious about tackling its causes - neglectful, inadequate or abusive parents, school failure, "toxic" neighbourhoods, alcohol and drug abuse and long-term unemployment.” This election we were promised from both sides 500 new cops on the streets in an election that saw a much more toned down approach to the issue of crime than has been evident on years gone by. Turns out we’ll be waiting longer for those police officers than had been hoped anyway.
Why not for once take a long term approach to any and all issues of governance instead of these ‘band-aid’ fixes to the situations and preying on the vulnerability (or perhaps ignorance bordering on stupidity) of voters that genuinely do want to see a reduction in crime and the causes of crime?
http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/06/25/watching-the-detectives-nsw-kept-waiting-on-promised-new-police/
An insightful post Brenton. Maybe politics is calling you? :)
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