1.)Apply Strain Theory to the episode of Cocaine Cowboys
After watching the show Cocaine Cowboys I can see the Strain Theory at full play here. As we can tell from the show it’s about two men who smuggle about over 100 tons of drugs worth around 2 billion dollars into the the US. The first thing that stood out to me within the show that I saw where the strain theory could be applied is the fact that they were trying to glamorize the violent and deadly lifestyle. They were showing what kind of money can be made and how much fun it could be in the process. Obviously this can be aimed towards anyone but it definiltey will stick out to the people of lower income classes. This being said this is a pressure of a social factor because these lower income classes are seeing this type of money income so they are being pressured into committing these crimes not really thinking of the consequences.
1.) Consider the social process and social reaction theories discussed and think about your own conformity and/or deviant behavior.
In my own opinion, I believe that even human on this planet has engaged in criminal or deviant behaviors. Whether this is intentionally or unintentionally. People engage in criminal/deviant behaviors all the time but it depends on the severity of the behavior being shown. I could name so many different criminal/deviant behaviors from underage drinking, speeding, petty theft, all of this is something we can even see in younger teenage years. I will fully admit that Ive engaged in behaviors resulting in underage drinking, and even speeding. These are the things I was talking about in regards to doing them unintentionally. Now, is this learned or is this this something that is just genetic or psychological. I could make and argument that both these are correct, but criminal and deviant behaviors are learned. Criminal behavior is learned with contact and interactions with others. You observe, you watch, and you commit. Now, it’s not that simple and I wouldn’t say that it’s a done deal once observed but other things play a role into that as well things such as peer pressure, obligations, black mail, environmental aspects, and even just for survival. I know this isn’t probably the best example but if you think about it an infant that is just born isn’t born a criminal they observe and learn from the people around them to do things like walk ,talk ,eat, etc. So it’s the same for criminal behavior. Now obviously theres rare exceptions to this with things like the serial killer gene and so on that make certain people more opt to things like this as well as mental illness but that is on rare accation’s.
The cool thing about this topic is that if you ask this question, the limitations to learning criminal behavior, everyone will have a different answer. There is so many theories behind this but one of the biggest ones is the criminal behavior is in fact learned and NOT inherited. A statement that I found super interesting is the idea that people who arnt already trained in crime does not invent criminal behavior. I like this statement because it puts things into more of a clear concept for how criminal behavior is learned not inherited. Something really important that play along into learning criminal behavior is that this behavior is learned socially and specifically through communication.
Overall, I think that I would say that I definitely have engaged in criminal and deviant behaviors. I would also say that a lot of these behaviors have been learned socially. I grew up around cousins underage drinking or growing up sitting in the front seat of my dads truck when he would drive really fast all the time. Now are the behaviors the end of the world no, and is there worse behaviors to be engaging in yes. This just goes back to my point that everyone in my opinion engages in these behaviors at some point in there lives, and a lot of the time they are learned, with limitations of course.
1.)Rational choice and determinist theorists have very different ideas about what causes people to engage in criminal and deviant behaviors. Describe the main differences between the two.
Rational choice focuses on how the individuals who commit crimes believe that the benifit from commiting the cirme outwieghts the punishment of doing it. While on the other hand, determinist theories beliee that the individual’s who commit these crimes engage in these behaviurs biologically. Not only that, but rational choice theroist focus alot on the idea of free will and how the individual should know the difference between criminal and non-criminal behaviours. Determinist rest their beliefs that the behavioural stimuli can be rationally structured within society to produce the lawbiding citizens.
2.)What is the goal of the pre-crime unit in Minority Report?
The goal of the pre-crime unit in the Minority Report was to identify the crime the individual was supposed to commit and take them away so the people are unable to commit the crime before they did it. This unit has a lot to do with deterring and preventing crime by looking into the future. They were able to do this by visualizing crimes by receiving visions of the future.
3.)What assumption does the unit make concerning the cause of criminality? Consider how this might relate to deterministic theories of crime.
The assumption that the unit makes concerning the cause of criminality is that no matter the choice of the individual it is set in fate to happen and that the individual has no free will or self control to fix it. This relates to determinism because their ideology’s focus of free will being an illusion and that it’s more governed by internal or external forces, which we have no control over. In other words, all the criminal behavior has a cause and that it is predictable, which we can see being used in the pre-crime unit and there assumptions on the cause of criminality.
4.)Does ‘free will’ play any part in the behaviors and actions of the characters in the film?
The characters in the movie Minority Report have free will, but it cannot be used because once they talk about an individual commiting a crime in the future you are arrested and unable to make any choice yourself. In my opinion, this is great for deterring crime from happening but dosnt play along with free will very nicely. Even though these characters could use their free will and not commit the crime, the individual would be taken away and not able to make any decisions themselves.
5.)Consider the ethical implications of determinism as illustrated in Minority Report. For example, should people be arrested and convicted of crimes they have not committed, but who are genetically or psychologically disposed to do so?
People shouldnt be arrested for crimes they have not commited and determinism talks about how people are biologically made to be a criminal which is wrong because people should be able to make their own decisions. The situation would be different if the individual has had a past of criminal behavior. Genetic and psychological factors should be taken into consideration because they may play a role in predisposing certain individuals to criminal behavior. That being said, if the individual hasnt commited a crime yet the arrest would be unjust.
6.) In what ways can “pre-crime” prediction be useful/beneficial to society? In what ways can it be harmful? Use examples from the film to explain
Pre-crime predictions can be helpful if people are not taken away too quickly. If these pre-rimes are seen then the people who are guilty of these crimes should be watched and given the chance to make the right choice and not commit the crime. Pre-crime is also good to have when looking for a victim because you are able to see the whole crime play out. The minority report shows how it can be harmful to society because you are putting innocent people away even though they still have the chance to make the right decisions. Everyone has bad ideas and thoughts and have the ability to not act on them, and if your not given the chance to not act on them is that fair?
7.)Try to locate an example of society labeling and consequently punishing or targeting people viewed as belonging to a criminal/deviant group before they have done anything.
Society usually puts a label on people of color and assumes they are more likley to commit crimes rather than white individuals. You can see this play out in our own prison systems.
The legal term for this view is the agreement among citizens on what should and shouldnt be illegal. In other words, it allows groups to come together (i.e. regardless of race age, gender, and characteristics like that) to discuss what should be illegal in that time. While doing some deeper research, something that I found interesting is that this view also sometimes suggests that criminal law and criminology is a function of beliefs, mortality, and rules that apply equally to all members of society.
In an article that I found written by Shannel Sanchez she provides and example of the consensus view approach of law. She used the example of one child per family policy in China. She explained that us (The United States of America) have a consensus the people in the U.S. cannot kill their baby at birth because they wanted the opposite gender. If this was to happen in the U.S. it would be considered murder and would be charged. However, in China when their government introduced the one child policy there was a surge of female infanticide because families in China wanted male baby for what they stand for. I chose this example because I feel like its a great insight about how consensus views of law are different depending on location.
Conflict perspective of law tends to be views that the law is used as a tool by dominant groups (i.e. people with social, political, economic power, basically anyone with an ounce of privilege) to maintain their position above subordinate groups. With records showing, usually these dominant groups are the white race, people with connections, and of course the wealthy.
An example of this perspective of law is actually something that we talked about in class. This example would be the crack cocaine epidemic. In this article, it describes that a person convicted of possessing five hundred grams of powder cocaine received the same mandatory minimum prison sentence of five years as someone possessing five grams of crack cocaine. The author then describes that more the 90% of persons sentenced in federal courts for crack cocaine violations are African American. Something I found really interesting in this article is the fact that this law, imposed by dominant groups, results in the arrest, conviction, and imprisonment of thousand African Americans every year. This is a great illustration of how the law used and controlled expecially when suppressing certain races.
So what makes them different?
In one of the articles I was looking at, the author described the main difference between conflict theory and the consensus approach and I believed it to be the most fitting. The author described ” Conflict theory rejects the consensus approach and contends that different groups do not necessarily share the same values ,agree on what behaviors should be criminalized, and believe in the same penalty structures” (Race and Crime: Conflict Theory).
What do I think?
In my Opinion, I feel as though are law system is composed of both aspects ; Conflict and Consensus. I feel like we use an equal amount of both and that both can be used improperly but also used for good in a sense. For example, we used a consensus approach when we adopted Occupational Health and Safety Act (OSHA). On the other hand , we can see the conflict theory when it comes to Global capitalisms such a pay inequalities between gender and races.
This is used for law enforcement and it provides reasonable statistics
Its also a great platform for students who are studying criminology and criminal justice
This is a platform that has been used since 1930
This is nation wide and has been submitting crimes and data that has been observed from over 18,000 cities
2.)What are Index Crimes and Non-Index Crimes?
Index crimes are crimes considered serious in nature and occurring with sufficient frequency and regularity that they are considered index to the crime situation in a given area
This involves murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, robbery, theft and carnapping
Non-Index crimes are violations of special laws which involve reckless imprudence resulting in damage
This includes property or physical injury, violations against women and children, illegal possession of firearms and drugs, illegal logging, lasciviousness, direct assault, and other crimes not listed under index crimes.
3.) What crimes are excluded from Index offenses?
Arson (couldn’t find much on this topic)
Any deviant crime
4.) What is the “dark figure” of crime?
Is the amount of unreported or undiscovered crime
This is in Criminology and Sociology
5.) What do SRD and NCVS stand for, and how do these approaches address the “dark figure”?
SRD= Self Report Data
NCVS= National Crime Victimization Survey
NCVS approaches the “dark figure” by polling a large number of households, victimization surveys such as the National Crime Victimization Survey are able to uncover some of the crime incidents that were never reported or discovered by police.
6.) What are some examples of major trends that are observed in UCR, SRD, NCVS Data?
1.) Outline the main tenets of classical criminological theory
We can see that it explains crime in more of a sense that it is free-will decisions to make criminal choices and behaviors.
There are 4 basics elements of classical criminology : Rationality (idea that people choose to commit crime), Hedonism (assumption that people seek pleasure and try to avoid pain), Punishment (acting as a deterrent to crime), Human rights (must be respected by society)
We can also see that there are 3 main principles : Human beings have free will and are rational actors, human beings have a certain inalienable rights, there is a social contract between citizens and the state
2.) What role does rational choice play in criminal behavior for classical theorist?
For classical theorist the rational choice theory insists that crime is calculated and deliberate
In an article found, it’s described as views man as a reasoning actor who weighs means and ends, cost and benefits, and makes a rational choice. The foundation of rational choice theory is behavioral choices, that includes the choice of the person to engage in criminal activity based on intent/premedication and that the possible benefits outweigh the risk (Bond, 2015).
This is important to classical theorist because the majority of classical economic theories are based on the assumption of rational choice theory: “individuals make choices that result in the optimal level of benefit or utility for them”
3.) Why is the concept of deterrence so important to classical theory?
Deterrence is designed to punish current behavior(s), but also ward off future behaviors through sanctions or threats of sanctions
These basic principles of classical theory would later come to be known as deterrence theory
I found something interesting online where it compared the rational choice theory and the deterrence theory and how they differ but also connect and I believed that to be important: “rational choice theory states that individuals have free will to choose between criminal and non-criminal behaviors. Deterrence theory, on the other hand, is a choice-based theory that states people commit crimes when the expected benefits of committing a crime outweighs the likely cost of it” (Hasa, 2020)
4.) Outline the importance of certainty, severity, and speed to the deterring effects of punishment
“Certainty has a greater impact on deterrence than severity of punishment. Severity refers to the length of a sentence. Studies show that for most individuals convicted of a crime, short to moderate prison sentences may be a deterrent but longer prison terms produce only a limited deterrent effect” (NIJ, 2016).
Severity =to the length of a sentence.
Certainty= the likelihood of being caught and punished for the commission of a crime.
5.) How rational is choice?
According to the definition of rational choice theory, every choice that is made is completed by first considering the costs, risks, and benefits of making that decision
Choices that seem irrational to one person may make perfect sense to another base don the individuals desires
6.) Does deterrence work?
In my opinion, I think that deterrence does work but also to an extent. For this question I did some research and I came across many articles proving that it does work but as many saying that its a myth.
For example, in one article a professors talked about : “The severity of punishment, known as marginal deterrence, has no real deterrent effect, or the effect of reducing recidivism,” he says. “The only minor deterrent effect is the likelihood of apprehension. So if people think they’re more likely to be caught, that will certainly operate to some extent as a deterrent” (Knight, 2020)
In another article, it stated “Initial research supported the theory that severe punishments deter crime. A series of studies examining homicide rates found that the severity of punishment for homicide had a deterrent effect” (Johnson, 2019).
PART TWO:
6.) Have you been deterred from behaving a certain way because of the threat of formal punishment?
I like this question because I feel like everyone at some point in their life will change their behavior due to the thought of formal punishment. I feel as though It’s human nature to do this. No one likes punishment, especially formal punishment. I have done this in all honesty probably more than one time in my life. The first example that came to mind that pertains to me is speeding. As we know cops and state troopers are always out but there is always an abundance of them on holiday weekends. I think I tend to normally a faster driver so I know Ive done this. If Im driving on the highway no matter where Im going I know that there is going to be a lot of cops looking for certain behaviors on the road (in this case, mostly speeding). I will reduce my speed, a lot less than the speed I normally drive, in fear of a higher cost ticket as well as the punishment of being pulled over. I just the risk of these formal punishments are extra high during these times.
If I was asked to define or even give my best explanation at what Criminology was this is what Id say. Criminology is the study of criminal behavior in less legal terms and more focused on psychology and sociology. I think this definition is flexible and different for everyone because it incorporate a lot. Ive spent a lot of my life looking at criminology and what that could mean for me and my future. Ive dreamed about growing up and pursuing a career in this field. I think Criminology is important for many reasons. It allows room for help with alleviating social injustice , discrimination and even with poverty. Criminology is so broad that so many aspect fall under that category.
Criminology in Legal Terms:
Criminology includes the study of all aspects of crime and law enforcement—criminal psychology, the social setting of crime, prohibition and prevention, investigation and detection, capture and punishment.
Legislators (a person who makes laws; a member of a legislative body)
Social workers (helps individuals, groups, and families prevent and cope with problems in their every day lives “diagnose and treat mental, behavioral, and emotional problems”)
Probation Officers (a person appointed to supervise offenders who are on probation)
Judges (an elected or appointed official who conducts court proceedings)
ect.
Current Articles:
As I was going through some online articles about what Criminology was and how its helpful and what it entails. I came across an article that went through all the different approaches Criminologist use during there career to asses different situations. This article was written by Dr. Martin Ahmad Mughal who studied at the Punjab University Law College; Superior Law College. This article really imprints on how Criminology is broad and that it can be personalized but also flexible on how things are run!
Something that I wanted to pull from the article that I found interesting and important was when the author said ” This paper tells Rational actor model of crime and criminal behavior is based on the notion of free will, it proposes that human beings choose to commit criminal behavior and can be deterred through the threat of punishment ” (Mughal, 2011)
After planning the working protocols, WSPA and the GSB´s administered vitamins, rabies vaccines, anthrax vaccines, deworming, wounds and infection treatments to the different species in Baudin, Cap Haitien. Nov. 2012 – WSPA people in the photo Dr. Sergio Vasquez.
As we know the earth is diminishing day by day.
Is this our obligation as humans? Can we fix it? Do YOU want to fix it?
Growing up I’ve always noticed the sad fact that my home is withering away in front of my eyes. We as humans use earth as our home, and would you let your house wither away into nothing? I don’t think so, I hope… I grew up on Conservation land with my grandparents and family so I believe I’ve had first hand experience. Being able to see pastures clean of pollution, animals that are on their way to extinction protected, even down to little things such as the little noises I would hear in the morning, the peacefulness, is what we need to bring the earth back too.
I remember sitting at my grandmother’s kitchen table for hours listening to stories about my grandfather’s connection to nature. I was mesmerized, that glimmer of hope in my 8 year old eyes was clear. These stories even lead me to pursue a life in saving the earth. On that note, I even went as far in declaring a major in Animal Behavior at my University to understand this whole situation better.
Working with animals ranging from small rodents to exotic zoo animals really opened my eyes to what really needs to happen. We wouldn’t be where we are today if it wasn’t for animals, they provide endless sources for us humans. Not a lot of people think through the whole situation, animals’ lives are ripped apart. This can be in forms of being ripped from their families, their homes demolished, inhuman treatment, etc.
We consider ourselves to be the best of the best, the apex predators. When in reality animals were here first!
Something that I found to be super important was found over on World Animal Protection, the blog author describes how animals are so similar to humans in the article “Empathy, Memory and Dreams: 11 Facts about chickens’ ‘ . The author really sheds light into the topic about how even chickens are able to feel the empathy, memory, and shared dreams humans might have. In other words, killing these chickens inhumanely is like killing another human.
The author described:
1.) Chickens can recognize up to 100 faces
2.) Chickens dream!
3.)Chickens pass down information
4.)Chickens chirp to their eggs
5.)Chickens are Hierarchical
6.)Chickens use past experiences to make decisions
7.)Chicken emphasizes with peers
8.)Chickens have great memories
9.)Chickens suffer immensely by the hands of humans
In the end, this has opened my eyes even more to the situation at hand when it comes to animals and I hope it has your too. We can now see that we are more alike to animals than you might believe!
A new app was just released that gives you money for exercising!
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“I love this app,” said Emily Tree, a frequent user of Exercise Capitalist. “I just went grocery shopping, and I saved $15 from using the discounts that I earned from Exercise Capitalist. This app is what motivates me to work out.”
The app also keeps track of your workouts for you through a GPS and a heart monitor rate, so all you have to do is keep jogging and watch the points roll in. “Exercise capitalist saves me so much time because it keeps track of my workouts for me,” says John Smith, owner of Planet Fitness. “When switching back and forth between cardio, free weights, and deadlifts, I don’t have to write down what exercises I completed. I look forward to checking my phone after every workout session to see the progress that I’ve made, and all the discounts that I’ve earned.”
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Journal #26:
After completing our group news release for Exercise Capitalist, there many things that I have learned not only about the topic itself but also in terms of group work. My group and I have been working on this project for a couple weeks now, so I have learned alot about how to work in a group in a professional environment. I’ve worked in groups many times but I dont think Ive been working in a team for a longer period of time. This allowed all our voices and ideas to be heard from one another, which really led to some good collaboration on our product. It was really helpful for my group and I to be able to do the dry run and receive feedback. It allowed us to see some imperfection within our design that we didn’t see before. I’ve never completed a news release before and I don’t think my group has either, so it was a new genre of writing that we experienced. It was interesting to create though because it made us feel as though our product was validated or even that we are headed in the right direction. It was really cool to see where our product started from to where it led to and In my opinion you can see the progress pretty clearly!
Outcome 6: Control sentence-level error (grammar, punctuation, spelling)
Writing to me is a form of words being put into a structure a certain way that it makes the words flow. In my opinion, grammar, punctuation, and spelling is the hardest part of any essay you will ever write. For reasons such as if these skills aren’t used correctly it can make your words and sentences sound choppy, un-professional, and childish. When it comes to my writing career this is something I’ve struggled with hard, spelling and grammar has never been my strong suit, and in all honesty I still think I rely on grammar and spell correct to fix my mistakes. I have grown throughout this year in English 110 when it comes to sentence level error because I have taken more time to think over what I’m writing and allow the correct usage of grammar and spelling. The one grammatical error I seem to always misuse is commas, and I believe I’ve learned how to correctly structure them into sentences allowing my words to flow nicely. In my third essay, I believe it used commas to the best of my ability as seen in Figure 1. While going through the work that we did throughout the year I found a poem that demonstrated very unique and cool ways to use grammar, commas, and punctuation in their poem. I thought this was really interesting so in my third essay I incorporated a segment from the poem to show the structure and meaning of it, as seen in Figure 2.
FIGURE 1: ” History put into Perspective” FIGURE 2: “History put into Perspective”
