Is Punishment Ethical?

Is there a false premise that is blinding us to the truth? Is the reason our jails and prisons are bursting at the seams because we have been blinded by a lie? Does this lie prevent us from seeing a truth that has been proven repeatedly by scientists who cannot connect the dots between their work and the problem with the current system because they, too, believe this lie? Research has repeatedly shown that sustained low emotional states precede criminal activity. Research has also shown that positive emotional states lead to increased kindness, corporate citizenship, better relationships, less racism, and better treatment of strangers. What if the solution to crime was within our grasp and all we have to do is take action? What if our biggest prison problem twenty years from now is what to do with all the empty facilities? In her revolutionary thesis, Minister Joy argues that this future is feasible and that it is our moral and ethical responsibility to use this information to prevent the suffering and the waste of lives that will surely occur if we don't act. She challenges us to be bold enough to move forward or risk being viewed as the cowards we were by history when her thesis is proven and our current practices are seen for the ignorance that is at their root. While being clear that she does not blame those involved for our current system because they are simply doing what they were taught was right. She beseeches us to look at the evidence and do whatever we can to move this forward, for the benefit of all. Once you understand the evidence it is so clear that is becomes hard to remember how we could have ever been blind to the truths revealed herein. Science has shown that Primary Prevention can prevent crime and other undesirable behaviors. This thesis provides a blueprint to a world our ancestors only dreamed of--a kinder, gentler world where peace and harmonious relationships are normal. We can create that world today.
About the Author: Minister Joy has studied human thriving for more than two decades. She can explain how to thrive more in scientific terms, religious terms (six different religions), and many spiritual practices. The scientific evidence that behavior is tied to emotional state is so strong that it led her to begin questioning and contemplating society's tendency to try to make people who do bad things feels worse. Research makes it clear that worsening emotional states lead to worsening behavior. Once her quest for the answer to what empowers humans to thrive brought her an understanding of the answers, she began designing programs to teach those skills to individuals and groups. Researchers have also been able to demonstrate that skill based knowledge taught to at-risk children improves their futures and helps them avoid the socially undesired paths. Our current system is a tremendous contributor to the problem. More laws and more prisons will not solve the problem. It won't solve the problem because the premise the current system is built upon is rotten at its root. Punishment does not deter crime in individuals whose emotional states are low. The cognitive narrowing eliminates the more socially acceptable paths from their consideration when the emotional state is low, especially when it is chronically low. That is at the root of the problem and there are techniques that can cure the problem at the root. There is no excuse for not implementing these programs on a wide spread basis now that history will not view as barbaric, unethical and unconscionable. Now that we have the knowledge, we have a responsibility to take positive actions.