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Steve's Cafe, Why Are So Many People in U.S. Prisons?

Why Are So Many People in U.S. Prisons?

Hi there, Steve Kaufmann here, again talking about politics, which interests me. I think we should all be interested in it because it affects us in our lives. For my language learning videos, please go to the Lingo Steve channel. The transcripts from these videos and from the language videos are available as lessons at LingQ (LingQ.com). Today, I want to talk about prisons, prisons, in particular, in the United States. It relates to something that happened to a person who I know quite well. I'll start with the story.

A gentleman I know that used to live nearby was an entrepreneur businessman. I never knew too much about what he did, but apparently he had a company that was involved in reclaiming areas that had been contaminated, where there had been a factory that poisoned the ground or whatever. His company was bidding on a project in the United States and apparently he bribed the management of that project to look at the bids of competing companies and, of course, that's against the law.

According to what I was able to find on the internet, he provided some cash inducements, he gave the manager there a free box at the Buffalo Sabres hockey arena to watch professional hockey and he gave him a 10-day cruise of the Mediterranean. I don't know the facts. Did he do this? Did he not do this? Did he know it was going on? I have no idea. However, his punishment now could be 10-15 years in prison and the man is 80 years old. It also appears, from what I was able to read on the internet, that he has a legal bill that could be as high as $5 million stretching over a few years.

I think this is crazy. He is no threat to society. He may have committed something which I think is very dishonest. I don't know if he did or he didn't, but he apparently has been convicted. So according to the judge or the court, he is guilty. Instead of spending $5 million on lawyers, he should just be fined. Personally, I think there's no reason to put people in jail unless they're a threat to society. People should be fined in proportion to their income for crimes that they commit.

It used to be that way. Six, seven, eight hundred years ago if you killed someone you paid three cows or something. I mean it's horrible to kill someone and we should certainly be trying to prevent crime and punish people who commit crimes, but the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, 700 per 100,000 people, whereas most of the OECD countries the rate is like 100 or, in the case of Japan, 40, Sweden is 60. There are more people in jail in the United States than any other country in the world, including China. I mean that's absolutely appalling. What a tremendous waste of money. What a tremendous waste of peoples' lives. I just feel that people should be in prison only if they're a threat to others. Otherwise, they should in some way be obligated to reimburse society, to compensate society and to pay for their crimes in other ways, through service, through money, garnishing wages or whatever, unless they're a threat. An 80-year-old man who has never committed a violent act in his life shouldn't spend the last 10 years of his life in prison, in my opinion.

I don't see any reason why the United States should have a seven times higher incarceration rate than the average in the OECD, very strange. Not to mention the horrendous fees charged by lawyers.

Thank you for listening, bye for now.

Why Are So Many People in U.S. Prisons? Warum sind so viele Menschen in US-Gefängnissen? Why Are So Many People in U.S. Prisons? ¿Por qué hay tanta gente en las cárceles estadounidenses? Pourquoi y a-t-il tant de gens dans les prisons américaines ? なぜ米国の刑務所に多くの人がいるのですか? Porque é que há tantas pessoas nas prisões dos EUA? Почему в американских тюрьмах так много людей? ABD Hapishanelerinde Neden Bu Kadar Çok İnsan Var? 为什么美国监狱里关押着这么多人？

Hi there, Steve Kaufmann here, again talking about politics, which interests me. こんにちは、スティーブ・カウフマンです。また政治について話しています。 I think we should all be interested in it because it affects us in our lives. それは私たちの生活に影響を与えるので、私たちは皆それに興味を持つべきだと思います. For my language learning videos, please go to the Lingo Steve channel. 私の語学学習ビデオについては、Lingo Steve チャンネルにアクセスしてください。 The transcripts from these videos and from the language videos are available as lessons at LingQ (LingQ.com). これらのビデオと言語ビデオのトランスクリプトは、LingQ (LingQ.com) でレッスンとして利用できます。 Today, I want to talk about prisons, prisons, in particular, in the United States. 今日は、刑務所、特に米国の刑務所についてお話したいと思います。 It relates to something that happened to a person who I know quite well. Si riferisce a un fatto accaduto a una persona che conosco bene. それは、私がよく知っている人に起こったことに関係しています。 I’ll start with the story.

A gentleman I know that used to live nearby was an entrepreneur businessman. 近くに住んでいた私が知っている紳士は、起業家のビジネスマンでした。 I never knew too much about what he did, but apparently he had a company that was involved in reclaiming areas that had been contaminated, where there had been a factory that poisoned the ground or whatever. Ich wusste nie allzu viel darüber, was er tat, aber anscheinend hatte er eine Firma, die an der Rückgewinnung von kontaminierten Gebieten beteiligt war, wo es eine Fabrik gab, die den Boden vergiftete oder was auch immer. 私は彼が何をしたのかあまり知りませんでしたが、どうやら彼は汚染された地域の再生に関与している会社を持っていたようです。 His company was bidding on a project in the United States and apparently he bribed the management of that project to look at the bids of competing companies and, of course, that’s against the law. La sua società stava partecipando a una gara d'appalto per un progetto negli Stati Uniti e, a quanto pare, ha corrotto la direzione del progetto per esaminare le offerte delle società concorrenti e, ovviamente, questo è contro la legge. 彼の会社は米国のプロジェクトに入札していましたが、どうやら彼はそのプロジェクトの経営陣に賄賂を渡して、競合する会社の入札を調べさせたようです。もちろん、それは法律違反です。

According to what I was able to find on the internet, he provided some cash inducements, he gave the manager there a free box at the Buffalo Sabres hockey arena to watch professional hockey and he gave him a 10-day cruise of the Mediterranean. Nach dem, was ich im Internet finden konnte, stellte er einige Geldzuwendungen zur Verfügung, er gab dem Manager dort eine kostenlose Loge in der Hockeyarena der Buffalo Sabres, um professionelles Hockey zu sehen, und er schenkte ihm eine 10-tägige Mittelmeerkreuzfahrt. Secondo quanto sono riuscito a trovare su Internet, ha fornito alcuni incentivi in denaro, ha dato al manager un palco gratuito all'arena di hockey dei Buffalo Sabres per vedere l'hockey professionistico e gli ha regalato una crociera di 10 giorni nel Mediterraneo. 私がインターネットで見つけたものによると、彼はいくつかの現金誘因を提供し、マネージャーにバッファロー セイバーズ ホッケー アリーナでプロのホッケーを観戦するための無料ボックスを提供し、地中海の 10 日間のクルーズを提供しました。 I don’t know the facts. 私は事実を知りません。 Did he do this? Did he not do this? Did he know it was going on? 彼はそれが起こっていることを知っていましたか？ I have no idea. However, his punishment now could be 10-15 years in prison and the man is 80 years old. しかし、彼の刑罰は現在 10 年から 15 年の懲役になる可能性があり、男性は 80 歳です。 It also appears, from what I was able to read on the internet, that he has a legal bill that could be as high as $5 million stretching over a few years. Nach dem, was ich im Internet lesen konnte, scheint es auch, dass er eine Anwaltsrechnung hat, die bis zu 5 Millionen Dollar betragen könnte, die sich über ein paar Jahre erstreckt. また、私がインターネットで読むことができたものから、彼は数年間で 500 万ドルもの高額になる可能性のある法的な請求書を持っているようです。

I think this is crazy. He is no threat to society. Er ist keine Gefahr für die Gesellschaft. 彼は社会にとって脅威ではありません。 He may have committed something which I think is very dishonest. Er könnte etwas begangen haben, was ich für sehr unehrlich halte. 彼は、私が非常に不誠実だと思うことをしたのかもしれません。 I don’t know if he did or he didn’t, but he apparently has been convicted. 彼がしたかどうかはわかりませんが、彼は有罪判決を受けたようです。 So according to the judge or the court, he is guilty. Also ist er schuldig, so der Richter oder das Gericht. したがって、裁判官または裁判所によると、彼は有罪です。 Instead of spending $5 million on lawyers, he should just be fined. Anstatt 5 Millionen Dollar für Anwälte auszugeben, sollte er einfach eine Geldstrafe bekommen. 弁護士に 500 万ドルを費やす代わりに、罰金を科すべきです。 Personally, I think there’s no reason to put people in jail unless they’re a threat to society. 個人的には、社会に対する脅威でない限り、人を刑務所に入れる理由はないと思います。 People should be fined in proportion to their income for crimes that they commit. Menschen sollten im Verhältnis zu ihrem Einkommen für Verbrechen, die sie begehen, mit einer Geldstrafe belegt werden. 人々は、犯した犯罪に対して、収入に比例して罰金を科されるべきです。

It used to be that way. 昔はそうだった。 Six, seven, eight hundred years ago if you killed someone you paid three cows or something. 600、700、800 年前に人を殺したら、3 頭の牛か何かを支払った。 I mean it’s horrible to kill someone and we should certainly be trying to prevent crime and punish people who commit crimes, but the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, 700 per 100,000 people, whereas most of the OECD countries the rate is like 100 or, in the case of Japan, 40, Sweden is 60. つまり、誰かを殺すのは恐ろしいことであり、犯罪を防止し、犯罪を犯した人を罰するよう努めるべきです。しかし、米国の投獄率は世界で最も高く、人口 10 万人あたり 700 人であるのに対し、ほとんどの OECD 諸国では100とか、日本の場合は40、スウェーデンは60とか。 There are more people in jail in the United States than any other country in the world, including China. 米国には、中国を含む世界のどの国よりも多くの刑務所に収監されている人がいます。 I mean that’s absolutely appalling. What a tremendous waste of money. なんて途方もないお金の無駄遣い。 What a tremendous waste of peoples' lives. 人々の生活がいかに途方もなく無駄にされているか。 I just feel that people should be in prison only if they’re a threat to others. 他人に脅威を与える場合にのみ、人々は刑務所に入れられるべきだと私は感じています. Otherwise, they should in some way be obligated to reimburse society, to compensate society and to pay for their crimes in other ways, through service, through money, garnishing wages or whatever, unless they’re a threat. An 80-year-old man who has never committed a violent act in his life shouldn’t spend the last 10 years of his life in prison, in my opinion.

I don’t see any reason why the United States should have a seven times higher incarceration rate than the average in the OECD, very strange. Not to mention the horrendous fees charged by lawyers.

Thank you for listening, bye for now.