Word: harshly
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...Harsh Prison Punishments Undeserved
...imagine most of us were shocked to learn that one of our peers could go to prison for 20 years for perpetrating an ultimately harmless--though badly botched--prank. But this surprise only reflects the extent to which we are sheltered from the harsh reality of our country's system of punishment. Many of us can use illegal drugs without fear of prison, we can drink while underage. We know that we, like our President, will be given second (and third and fourth) chances when we make mistakes, when our judgment errs...
...would be upset if I found out that there were [proctors not reporting alcohol incidents to the FDO], because that makes my job harder," says Casey Due, a second-year proctor in Canaday Hall. "It makes me look unnecessarily harsh...That really upsets and shocks...
...class warfare all play their own critical roles in defining and further electrifying what has never been a simple exchange. In the past decade, an uproar has grown over the discrepancies between sentencing for possession of crack (which tends to surface in inner cities and often carries an extremely harsh punishment) and cocaine (the drug of choice among the upper class; repercussions tend to be much lighter) - a chasm that emphasizes race and class divides. Proportionately, more women than men are incarcerated on drug charges, and far more black and Hispanic addicts are arrested than their white counterparts...
...Because the public is increasingly open to changes in drug policy, the major challenge for opponents of harsh sentencing rules, says Nadelmann, is convincing state, local and federal politicians to let go of a dependable old campaign line. "The public is ahead of the politicians on this one," he says. "Witness the success of ballot initiatives and support for change in public opinion polls," he says. "Politicians have old fear of being soft on crime. It's a hangover from the drug war heyday of the 1980s." And even today, some politicians still find a willing audience for anti-drug...