America has more prisoners than high school teachers

[marmar]

If sitting in a prison cell was a job, it would be one of the most common jobs in the United States. In 2012, there were some 1,570,000 inmates in state and federal prisons in the U.S., according to data from the Justice Department.

By contrast, there were about 1,530,000 engineers in America last year, 815,000 construction workers, and 1 million high school teachers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

There were also 750,000 car technicians.

That's what Anthony Papa was in the early '80s, before he agreed to deliver 4.5 ounces of cocaine for someone who turned out to be an undercover cop. ...................................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/05/us-prison-population_n_4214626.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000009

[gopiscrap]

1. and that says something about our punative society

[marmar]

2. Agreed.

[851-977]

3. How many countries have more high school teachers than prisoners?

Context?

[uponit7771]

7. Sweden?

[851-977]

9. I asked how many

Not just whether Sweden was one.

Are there a lot of countries with more HS teachers than prisoners than the US? Just a few?

[bemildred]

10. We have the largest prison population in the world.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/05/us-usa-prisons-idUSBRE9A405120131105

On the other hand, the report from the nonprofit Urban Institute said that lawmakers have numerous options if they want to start making some dents in a prison population that is the largest in the world.

[lonestarnot]

4. Welp of course. For profit prisons are going to make sure of that.

[malthaussen]

5. What's interesting is more prisoners than construction workers...

... with our infrastructure falling apart in front of our eyes, wouldn't it be nice if we could mobilize some people to build things?

And twice as many engineers as construction workers. That just seems... out of whack, even stipulating that "engineer" covers a multitude of professions.

-- Mal

[uponit7771]

6. This is shocking, good framing

[warrprayer]

8. We All Live

... in an Attica State

[woo me with science]

11. The US prison system is being aggressively privatized

by corporatist politicians, including this Democratic administration.

Poor minorities are worthless to corporations on the street. In prison they can bring in $40,000/yr
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023368969

Poor Land in Jail as Companies Add Huge Fees for Probation
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014158005

The Caging of America - Why do we lock up so many people
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002226110

The Obama administration is aggressively growing private prisons
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022568681

Obama's 2013 budget: One area of marked growth, the prison industrial complex
http://sync.democraticunderground.com/1002392306

Obama selects the owner of a private prison consulting firm as the new Director of the United States Marshals Service (USMS)
http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2010/12/mars-d03.html

Private prison corporations move up on list on federal contractors, receiving BILLIONS
http://www.nationofchange.org/president-obama-s-incarcernation-1335274655

Prison Labor Booms As Unemployment Remains High; Companies Reap Benefits
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/10/prison-labor_n_2272036.html

Private Prison Corporation's Letters to Shareholders Reveal Industry's Tactics: Profiting from Human Incarceration
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022665091

Financial growth of private prison industry...Profiting from caging humans.

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/BshteP8i282pcaeH8pdUsA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTUyMA--/

[Comrade Grumpy]

12. Drug prohibition accounts for about 25% of our prison population.

Directly, that is. People convicted on drug charges.

Other crimes committed because of drug prohibition (burglaries, robberies, competitive violence) are not included.

[Comrade Grumpy]

13. If we got rid of everybody in the far right column, we could probably shrink the far left column.