The “Gospel according to Smee”

A Revelation regarding Crime and Punishment

Smee again:

I’m back!

I have managed to frame my Argument for Personal Growth and am making slow but steady progress on my speech to Surrey Council that will accompany its presentation to them. It’s a pretty good dose of Common Sense. It attempts to cover a wide variety of pertinent flaws in their Bylaw, and suggests an alternative way of approaching the problem of Personal Growth in the City.

Working on my speech has resulted in only a trickle of news to post regarding marijuana. My partner in crime, Luigi, suggested I share with you some of the extensive Wisdom I have gained from my long roller coaster ride through life. It’s amazing how easily champagne and caviar can turn into Kraft dinner and draft beer. Keep some of both in your cupboard, they can save from you hunger and adjust your attitude simultaneously when the world goes upside down. I assume Luigi means Comment and Criticism and I’ve got lots of both. I will therefore begin your enlightenment.

“The Gospel according to Smee”

Chapter One:  “Revelations”

Revelation 1.1- Harper building all those Jails is Stupid!

He simply doesn’t grasp that there is no incentive to rehabilitate your behaviour when your punishment is get lodging far better that you have on the street, 3 squares and a roof complete with TV, cell phone and internet connection. Jail time is no deterrence to recidivism and that includes time at hard labour. History shows the only really effective deterrent to any criminal action is Fear of the consequences.

Stephen should wake up and realize that there is one thing feared by nearly all creatures with a nervous system: PAIN. Let’s use it. Evolution has given us an immediate pain avoidance reflex. All we have to do is wake it up. When someone considers a decision to commit a crime, fear that the consequences will be extremely painful will make an effective deterrent.

Unfortunately most adults of middle age are the result of being raised under the guidance of Dr. Benjamin Spock and his book “Baby and Child Care.” He ruined a whole damned generation with his “Don’t hit the little bugger, you’ll damage his ego” philosophy. End result a generation of egocentric adults with no sense of consequences. Now they are the ones in charge: Woe is us!

I am not talking about torture. Torture involves violence and physical damage: I’m talking about the controlled infliction of pain as punishment: nothing physical. Make the punishment for crime just too horrible. All humans fear pain. Nobody likes it and everyone does their best to avoid it from the time of birth to the moment of death. The only thing that would be almost perfectly effective as a deterrent to crime on a mass scale is fear of pain too terrible to contemplate. There is a way to create just that

I’m not going to pretend that I know enough to decide how to inflict pain but do no physical damage, I’ll leave that in the capable hands of CSIS and the CIA. They have lots of experience with drug induced compliance. Their joint illegal studies of chemicals like LSD back in the 50’s, undoubtedly contain some drugs that could be pulled out of mothballs and used to inflict modern day misery on the criminal class. I’d lay odds they can com up with a suitable application of pain.

Think about it. It could work!

That’s it for now.

More to follow shortly, until then

 The.Smee.Goan.Guy