tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-819711698688655785.post4186815287979749312..comments2023-10-30T00:44:05.942-07:00Comments on Governing through Crime: Rites of MayJonathan Simonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15217567476776700363noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-819711698688655785.post-88760962921227359722007-05-16T20:46:00.000-07:002007-05-16T20:46:00.000-07:00No doubt every society needs its Durkheimian booge...No doubt every society needs its Durkheimian boogey-men (or women, e.g., witchcraft). But I remember getting initiated by older cousins and camp counselors. The fact that the presence of the monstrous among us today is relayed by school curricula and smart highway signs wired to Amber alerts that makes the era of governing through crime so peculiar.Jonathan Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15217567476776700363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-819711698688655785.post-19500119383313752082007-05-16T20:29:00.000-07:002007-05-16T20:29:00.000-07:00Professor Simon,thanks for setting up this blog. ...Professor Simon,<BR/><BR/>thanks for setting up this blog. I especially like this post. I mean Governing through crime goes hand in hand with the moral fabric of society. it like Durkheim said:“But so that the originality of the idealist who dreams of transcending his era may display itself, that of the criminal, which falls short of the age, must also be possible. One does not go without the other (Durkheim 1983: 74).<BR/><BR/>seems like governing through crime perpetually reminds the good citizen that she is doing a good job. So does this mean that the more security, fear, surveillance and "code reds" we get the more solidarity we will feel? does the very core of our citizen idenitity require that we be given code reds in order to feel normal--the more code reds we are given, the better citizens we become...hmm...Dr. Victor M. Rioshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10626352888374177555noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-819711698688655785.post-14963606292393437262007-05-15T23:46:00.000-07:002007-05-15T23:46:00.000-07:00This is not surprising, since so many schools, esp...This is not surprising, since so many schools, especially those in inner-city ghettos, spend much more on security equipment like surveillance cameras, metal-detectors and pay for extra security rather than spend that money on substantive things like books, renovations, etc. <BR/><BR/>Personally, my old high-school fell under this mentality: the school was locked-out completely during school hours. No one can come and go without close supervision, and there are cameras everywhere. <BR/><BR/>Given this hyper-paranoia of crime and violence in public schools, it's no wonder that people grow up to become supporters of the populist "law-and-order" rhetoric and end up supporting extremely harsh criminal laws.Michael Zhouhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18045444157584974004noreply@blogger.com