The average member of Congress makes $174,000 a year, while the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. The fact that if an average person worked 40 hours a week at $7.25 every single week of the year, they would only make barely over $15,000 before taxes is a joke. And everybody knows that poverty and crime go hand-in-hand.
Instead of learning and implementing preventative solutions, they create more problems. Spending money on things like accessible mental healthcare facilities or even something as simple as a community family center would be bad for business. The government doesn't make money off of happy customers.
But think about it like this...without other options, why wouldn't someone turn to crime? A mother can't afford to feed her growing baby, why wouldn't she steal it or do odd jobs? If a kid grew up in poverty and suffered all the psychological trauma of it, why wouldn't they turn to drugs when they can't pay a co-pay...let alone afford to pop some pills to make them "better"?
And of course, the government barely funds all the good things that could help these people BEFORE it's too late because who profits from the system? The government...
A young man commits a crime and is caught by a police officer. They get booked and then need a lawyer to fight their prosecutor. Until trial, they sit in a jail because many can't afford bail. Prosecuting a perpetrator, going to court, going to jail and everything in between costs money that all goes to the neverending pockets of the government. So why would they want to change the process when various government agencies benefit, especially when "only one person would be happy"?
What's even worse is that the system is automatically rigged in favor of people who have money to GIVE the government. People who can pay large settlements usually don't end up in jail. But when a lower income person gets a public defender that has no incentive to win, it's an uphill battle.
Is it fair? No, but it's something people need to start acknowledging and deal with. Fortunately, I know that my generation is working to fix this. We will be the next generation of policymakers. We will learn how to make money without exploiting people and their situations.
Learn how to see the other side of the coin, and next time you see someone convicted of a crime...think about what's REALLY going on behind the scenes.
