Fancy a Holiday? Got no money? Try stabbing someone!

Or, if that's a little too strong for you, how about a little petty theft?*

Very interesting article in today's Sun:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/justice/article946362.ece

Now, whilst the Bishop doesn't really like the Sun much - it tends towards the simplistic, although not so much as the Mirror - he does approve of their view about prisons: a small number of criminals commit the vast majority of crimes, ergo locking up criminals prevents crime, as they aren't in the 'community'** to commit more crimes.

But, of course, the flaw in that logic is that prisons are not exactly unpleasant places to be, as the article suggests. This reinforces the story that my friend who runs the local Chippie told me last week, about his friend who is 'inside' for a little 'drunk and disorderly' - astonishing that anyone could be locked up for that these days: must have been really unlucky with the magistrate he got that day :) - and phoned him from his mobile phone to tell him what fun he has been having playing Playstation and the odd game of football with the other inmates.

Jack Straw says that it is unpleasant having a toilet in the corner of a room that you can't leave. To the Bishop, however, it sounds like a "young person's" dream - they never have to leave their room (sounds like a typical teenager to me...), get meals brought to them (better than Mum's! And they're unlikely to be forced to eat vegetables...), and can continue to play their favourite (violent) video game or watch the football on Sky even when they are on the shitter...


*Of course, this wouldn't actually get you a prison sentence in England. If you aren't capable of violence, may I suggest a homophobic insult, or a suggestion that Islam might not be a very nice religion? Should get you life without parole...

** I would be grateful if anyone could tell me where the fashion for talking about 'community' (worse than 'society' - the Bishop is a fan of Hayek) came from. All too PC for my taste...