Gang Violence in the United States Essay -- Exploratory Essays Researc

Gang Violence in the United States Gang violence in America is reaching alarming proportions. Chicago police Commander Donald Hilbring states, "Gangs are everywhere. All throughout the city of Chicago, the suburbs, throughout the state, throughout the nation." Chicago police state that so far this year, more than 100 gang-related murders have occurred. Everyday an other report on the evening news relays the tragedy of a child accidently caught in gang crossfire. The image of black, inner-city teenagers selling "crack" on neighborhood street corners and shooting it out over drug "turf" comes to mind whenever we hear the story told. What can we do to understand and remedy this problem before an entire generation is lost? We hear the stories about abused, abandoned children. We hear about drug-addicted mothers and absent fathers. We hear about children forced to fend for themselves in a cold, hard world. It's no wonder kids join gangs. They need someone to care. They are looking for a sense of belonging and family. Yet, not all youngsters who join gangs are looking for a sense of belonging. Often, adult gang members lure teenagers into gang activity. They establish them as drug dealers, use them as car thieves, and often pay them to commit robberies and even shoot rival gang members. Adults use juveniles because the law does not prosecute them in the same manner as adults. Under the current system, the teenagers are back on the streets, and the adults are rarely caught. Just as we assume we know the reasons kids join gangs, we also assume we know who joins gangs. Gang violence is stereotypically thought of as a Black or Latino, inner-city problem. Dr. George Knox, an expert on gangs, says, ... ...her Chicago neighborhood, COP-Citizens on Patrol, a volunteer group, has formed a neighborhood watch group. They patrol the streets and report any suspicious activity to the police. Their presence helps reduce gang activity on the streets of their community. Juvenile justice reform, programs for rehabilitation, and adult concern and involvement are all ways to help remedy the current crisis of gang warfare in our streets. For those youth already involved in gangs, rehabilitation and counseling may help rescue them. For those youth who refuse to give up the gang lifestyle and crime, tougher juvenile laws should put them in jail, away from other children and the rest of society. Finally, parents and community members need to care. Children who grow with parental guidance, in an environment of care and concern, are much less likely to fall prey to gangs.

NPM in the Philippines

The sporadic but effective New Public Management practices in the Philippines as presented by the author may be good catalysts for NPM proliferation and actual practice, but as presented by Vina and Aceron in â€Å"Building the Basics†, the small sources of hope often die a natural death due to partisan politics, corruption and in my own opinion, in some areas, violence. The idea of managing the government like a business and treating citizens not as constituents but customers/clients, public administration is therefore mutating from a benefactor which people tend to thank for the service to as a service provider that the clients can claim their rightful service. The appointment of Secretary Robredo to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is an effort of the Aquino Administration to have a successful grassroots-level performer and a paragon of good governance to effect change in the national level. I believe that the idea is for a veteran and proven NPM practitioner who understands the local scene can effect change. This strategy has been marred with recent unsavory criticisms of how he handled the DILG, e. g. the Quirino Grandstand Massacre. On Robredo, I believe a DILG Secretary should have a very strong grasp on a wide array of sectors, still, he has to focus on the sector that he is most effective, local administration. His weakness on the other sectors should be complemented by undersecretaries and assistant secretaries to present a competent multi-sectoral leadership. On the privatization efforts of Weihl, if the Philippines will continue to further privatize services, a very thorough study should be made to assure that these companies which will be placed in monopolizing positions, would not be able to abuse that position and further place the Filipino further down the poverty line, e. . Oil Deregulation and Energy Sector Privatization. Though majority of the bureaucracy and the private sector have lost hope in the moral recovery program of the government, I have not. A moral recovery program should go hand-in-hand with the headhunt for corrupt officials to expedite the change process in Philippine public administration. As the saying goes, if we want something we’ve never had before, we should be willing to do something we’ve never done before. †

Equal Punishment And Proportional Retribution - 1443 Words

In this essay, I will argue that equal punishment and proportional retribution do not justify the use of the death penalty. First, I will argue that equal punishment is too specific and literal because it stems from the idea that one crime is deserving of that exact crime in the form of a legal punishment. In the case of murder, that belief would condone punishing murder with murder. We can’t justify some killings while condemning others. By giving permission to someone to execute another human being on the grounds of the death penalty, we are allowing him or her to kill another human being for killing. This creates a cycle of murder. Second, I will argue that proportional retribution does not leave the death penalty as the only option for punishment. However, it does give much room for interpretation and is not specific enough regarding alternative punishments. It would allow us to rank crimes according to severity and dole out punishments according to that scale. I will also bring up how retributive justice does not completely delve into the concept of who deserves to deliver the punishment to the murderer. Retributive justice is simply a means of attempting to legally inflict suffering upon another human being for their wrongful actions. Equal punishment turns society as well as those executing the punishment into barbarians. Murdering a person is not a crime that is deserving of being repaid with murder as a form of punishment. Killing someone for killing isShow MoreRelatedThe Theory Of The Criminal Justice System931 Words   |  4 Pages The notion that punishment should be equal to the crime is a major philosophy in the US criminal justice system. However, finding a great balance between justice and punishment is often a blurred line. Over the past 40 years, the population of state and federal prisons have risen drastically. 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