"What people want"?

sokol at jhu.edu sokol at jhu.edu
Thu Feb 18 09:12:27 PST 1999


At 11:19 AM 2/18/99 -0500, Doug Henwood wrote:
>That quote leapt out at me too. Posner is a harcore libertarian, right? But
>is what he says true? What does the U.S. criminalize that other countries
>don't?

Everyday life conduct of the working class, for the most part. Recreational drug use, public drinking, sex for pay, jaywalking, street vending, violations of bureaucratic regulations.

Also do not forget the myriad of private bodies, such as banks, utlity companies, etc. that have the power to punish the laboring class for noncompliance with their regulations, deadlines etc. For example, the penalty for missing a payment deadline can be as much as the one day earnings at the minimum wage.

It is difficult to imagine a nominally democratic state that is more punitive of its working class than the US.

Wojtek



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