What is the answer to crime?

I was in Victoria Park downtown Regina last Friday when the Liberal Party with Stéphane Dion and the Ottawa press gallery swept across the prairies for a series of announcements. I have only heard Dion speak through the radio or television and was curious to see him live in person.
The man has always appeared to me to be uncomfortable with the English language, but I was pleasantly surprised by his delivery in the downtown park. He was eloquent, passionate and appeared at ease with himself before the crowd.
The crowd of local Liberals had been warmed up by Ralph Goodale who tore verbal strips off of the Harper Conservatives and was ready to hear the announcements of Stéphane Dion on the warm cloudless autumn Friday afternoon.
When the fifty or so media people were removed, along with the six Saskatchewan Liberal candidates and their 30 odd volunteers, there remained only about 20 onlookers in the crowd.
Dion announced a $80 million package for increased policing that would be administered by the RCMP to forces across the country. It was geared to crime fighting and focused on gangs, and organized crime groups.
The other measures unveiled included making crimes committed against women, “Hate Crimes” and also making bullying whether on the internet or directly “Hate Crimes”.
Trying to defang Stephen Harper, the Liberal announcement also promised new programs to help divert youth at risk from crime.
In the city of the home of the RCMP training centre, the announcement was warmly received.
Monday was Stephen Harpers announcement on crime and he promised to get tougher on sentencing your people. His legislation would change the law so that young offenders 14 and older convicted of murder would go to jail for life even if tried as children. Those convicted of other violent crimes would face up to 14 years in prison. Those youth in Quebec would be exempted from the changes until they are 16 years of age.
The province of Quebec currently focuses on rehabilitating youth.
Youth who are convicted would also see their identities published.
Jack Layton in speaking on Monday noted that he has yet to meet anyone who thinks the key to lowering crime rates is publishing the names of young offenders.
Studies have shown that although people feel really good about incarceration of criminals, the costs and benefits simply do not work. I doubt that lowering the age of placing youth in prisons will help them adapt to the world when they finally leave.
They will have received an education, but is it the education and rehabilitation that will benefit and protect society and the individual. We just have to look south to determine if jailing people is the best policy. The USA has the highest per capita number of people in prison of any nation in the world.
Do the people of that country feel any safer because of that?

–Jim Cumming,
Publisher