13 January 2013

The feral rich: tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime

This month's New Internationalist has a good set of articles on the theme of the feral rich. Obviously referencing some politicians' rightist-press rhetoric about the 'feral poor'. There's a great set of cartoons under the title: "The Feral Rich, How Can We Help Them?" and it's a '10-point action plan for policymakers'.
These are witty. Some of them are quite worth considering (I nominate 2, 4, 6, 10).
1. Gang Culture. Break up their vicious, criminal gangs by arresting the ringleaders and locking them up. (The cartoon has the police turning up at the World Economic Forum)
2. Parenting. Provide parenting classes to teach social values and respect for others that they can pass on to their children.
3. Housing. Move them out of overvalued ghettos in the centres of the world's capitals. Turn over the properties that they own but rarely occupy to public use and social housing.
4. Crime and Rehab. Crack down on repeat climate-crime offenders by confiscating their luxury cars and private jets. Rehabilitate persistent offenders by teaching them how to walk and use public transport.
5. Wean the work-shy off the benefits of unearned profit. Break trust-fund dependence. Get undeserving recipients on to work experience schemes.
6. Anti-social behaviour. Use 'tough love' to deal with those who engage in risky behaviour, who gamble, cheat and deceive and then expect the public to bail them out of trouble. Ground them, tag them and ban them from using the internet to vandalize the global economy.
7. Profligacy. Target contraception towards problem families with morbidly obese carbon footprints fuelled by irresponsible lifestyles.
8. Vandalism. Get them to clear up after themselves (the cartoon has a reference to BP chief being made to help clear up an oil spill.)
9. Social Conscience. Teach them to start paying their own way. Lesson no.1 Pay your tax.
10. Restorative Justice.  Get overpaid execs who helped themselves to bonuses from bailed-out banks and businesses to face the victims of their crime and repay the money they owe.

The feral rich -- New Internationalist

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