A couple of points about Chauvin Trial and Public Policy

Posted on: April 21, 2021 at 10:23:43 CT

First, the public policy purpose of punishment is deterrence. Or more specifically to influence future behavior. While many find an emotional response gratifying (to a large extent this is brain chemistry related) those emotional responses are only productive to the extent that they lead to political reform.

Second, punishment and regulation are alternative (and at times complementary) methods used to influence behavior. There would be fewer trials of this type if the system was reformed via regulation in a way the reduces the frequency of questionable police activity. For example, there are various organizational, training and disciplinary measures that can influence behavior that fall far short of prison terms. So if you are upset at the punishment received by Chauvin, you should advocate for reforms that will reduce the frequency of future punishments of this type.

Now back to your brain chemistry festival. Just a word of caution. As with most brain chemistry effects, tolerance to the chemicals builds over time requiring every larger doses of outrage.

Edited by Knucklehead at 10:28:59 on 04/21/21