• vortic@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    I don’t understand how 40 years of prison for a non-violent crime isn’t considered to be both “cruel” and “unusual”. It is objectively cruel. I certainly hope that it is also unusual. I certainly hope that there aren’t many more like him, imprisoned for decades for what amounts to personal-use levels of pot. 5.5 lbs of pot when you include the stem and roots isn’t that much and certainly sounds like a personal supply to me.

    • marxistsynths19@lemmy.ml
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      10 months ago

      These people are kept in jail to be used in labor. It’s not about being cruel. It’s about making money in the cheapest way possible. Since Alabama is a hellhole with no workforce they turn to modern day slavery.

      • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Oh it’s both. It’s definitely both, the cruelty and the slave labor, which is cruel in and of itself as well.

      • buddascrayon@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Yeah, when you read the article you see that the parole board has stopped issuing paroles almost entirely in the last couple of years. This is 100% about manufacturing cheap labor and keeping the oligarchy running smoothly.

    • JustMy2c@lemm.ee
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      10 months ago

      It is the most cruel people in the world that hide behind a law book and the pretense of being fair and worse even: past cases.

      But since you first have to study for a decade, then kiss ass for a decade or two before even beginning to qualify for ‘JUDGE’ it is not more as normal you will have lost ALL BONDS WITH REGULAR SOCIETY.

      If you think 15$+tax+tip is fine for a glass of wine with lunch on a daily basis; you are NOTTTTTTT qualified to speak for the benefit of society : in contrary!

      • BananaTrifleViolin@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Yeah I think you’re mistaking what a Judges role is. It is merely to uphold the law. The problem in the US is that the role is so politicised that the idea they are legal experts rather than representatives of parties is being lost. They should be representative of society to an extent but ultimately the main qualification is legal experience.

        The issue is the law itself and that comes back to the elected politicians in Alabama. It’s a problem of one party rule, and first past the post electoral system plus gerrymandering which means a stagnant political system dominated by one segment of society. The US increasingly looks like a it’s just a large collection of failed democracies.

        You don’t specifically need representative judges. You need electoral reform so you have an actual representative democracy, and everything else comes from that.

        • Pat_Riot@lemmy.today
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          10 months ago

          Judges are “supposed to be” impartial, not representative. That’s one of our many problems. They shouldn’t be conservative or liberal, they should be judges, but people don’t seem to be capable of impartiality, especially ones with any degree of power. Just like men who claim to want to lead really wish to rule. Those who would judge really just want to decide.

        • JustMy2c@lemm.ee
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          10 months ago

          The MAKING of the law favors the establishment. I say use the guillotine first, then new laws. Slave master still a slave master now, only the slaves believe they’re free

        • JustMy2c@lemm.ee
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          10 months ago

          I’m stating it’s the WRONG ROLE law should NOT be upheld in the same way for poor and rich. For uneducated and the wise.

          IT SHOULD NOT BE THE SAME favoring the poor and weak.

          HOWEVER IT FAVORS THE EXACT OPOSITE.