The Federalist Society teleforum with Bill Otis and Carol Steiker is going on now. See Bill's post earlier today. Explaining the difference between legislative action on this issue and popular votes, Professor Steiker actually said, in essence, that the ignorant regular people don't know what they are doing, unlike their enlightened and informed representatives.
Actually, I think it tends more the other way. The anti-death-penalty movement has the benefit of funding to create an entire organization just to do [dis]information, plus they have left-wing academia on their side. With these advantages, they have snowed the legislatures with a lot of misleading half-truths. The pro side has no such organization. (CJLF's budget is comparable to DPIC's but death penalty information is maybe 5% or our work versus 100% of theirs.) The few academics who publish articles refuting the anti-DP myths are bullied out of the field. That is why we aren't seeing much in the deterrence area, for example.
Another factor is that legislators tend to be financially well-off people who live in safe neighborhoods and are much less likely to become victims of violent crime. It is easier to be soft on crime when it is unlikely to affect you or anyone you know, but mostly those people on the wrong side of the tracks.
I will continue to trust the Great Unwashed more than I do the politicians. The history of the initiative here in California shows that the people are not always right, but they are right more often than the politicians.
The teleforum will be available as a podcast later. We will post a notice here when it is.
Actually, I think it tends more the other way. The anti-death-penalty movement has the benefit of funding to create an entire organization just to do [dis]information, plus they have left-wing academia on their side. With these advantages, they have snowed the legislatures with a lot of misleading half-truths. The pro side has no such organization. (CJLF's budget is comparable to DPIC's but death penalty information is maybe 5% or our work versus 100% of theirs.) The few academics who publish articles refuting the anti-DP myths are bullied out of the field. That is why we aren't seeing much in the deterrence area, for example.
Another factor is that legislators tend to be financially well-off people who live in safe neighborhoods and are much less likely to become victims of violent crime. It is easier to be soft on crime when it is unlikely to affect you or anyone you know, but mostly those people on the wrong side of the tracks.
I will continue to trust the Great Unwashed more than I do the politicians. The history of the initiative here in California shows that the people are not always right, but they are right more often than the politicians.
The teleforum will be available as a podcast later. We will post a notice here when it is.
Leave a comment