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A comment on At $75K, housing a prisoner in California now costs more than a year at Harvard. Parent comment

Re:At $75K, housing a prisoner in California now costs more ... by brewdad on Friday March 22, 2019 @10:54AM (#19463083)
I have no doubt it would be used to "pay" for ones incarceration. Thus adding more fuel to the dumpster fire that is the for-profit prison system in the US.

Done properly, it could provide a strong incentive not to commit crimes. I have little faith that it would ever be done properly.

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Re:At $75K, housing a prisoner in California now costs more ... by conanbatt on Friday March 22, 2019 @12:32PM (#19464186)
UBI would not defray the cost of incarceration. But even if I concede negative reactions, the bulk will definitely be positive. (thats my bet anyway).

Remember most petty criminals make less than minimum wage.

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Re:At $75K, housing a prisoner in California now costs more ... by Viliam1234 on Sunday March 24, 2019 @05:07PM (#19478792)
> Remember most petty criminals make less than minimum wage.

Which direction is the causation? Do they steal because they are poor? Are they poor because they have bad behavior, such as stealing? Or is both stealing and low wage caused by a common factor, such as mental illness?

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