Law in Contemporary Society

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KhurramDaraFirstPaper 3 - 12 Apr 2012 - Main.KhurramDara
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Law and Social Control

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Utility of the Law as a Form of Social Control

If law is not a powerful form of social control, than why do we spend so much time and energy drafting penal codes, writing legislation, and interpreting the Constitution? Wouldn’t we be better off using some other form social control? Is the reason we don’t murder children or use crystal meth because of laws the tell us not to? If not, then why have laws at all? Some would probably say that the reason we have laws is for the few people that do engage in activities like murder and drug use. Deterrence is often argued, yet many felons, for example, are repeat offenders. A report from the Bureau of Justice statistics found that 61% of felony defendants had at least one prior conviction.
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<		While laws don’t appear to be a strong form of social control (in that it is unclear whether laws actually prevent crimes from being committed) it may have some utility. At least these individuals are locked away and prevented from committing crimes during the time they are imprisoned. Until a more clear form of social control that can be applied in place of the law, or as a supplement to the law presents itself, maybe this is as good as we can do.
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>		While laws don’t appear to be a strong form of social control (in that it is unclear whether laws actually prevent crimes from being committed) it may have some utility. If one has the resources, short term relief can be granted. An injunction or a court order will meet an objective in the short term. But it must be met with other forms of social control. With a Muslim woman who wears a hijab (headscarf), for example, winning an employment discrimination lawsuit will help the individual who was discriminated against. But does it actually change the perceptions the employer has of Muslims? Social pressures (a friend who is Muslim, a neighbor who is Muslim) are likely to result in more lasting change.
 

Revision 3r3 - 12 Apr 2012 - 02:41:16 - KhurramDara
Revision 2r2 - 27 Feb 2012 - 19:46:57 - KhurramDara
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