Some suggest that the dramatic increase during the last two decades in both the number of prisons and the inmate population in the United States points to a “punishment binge.” Do you agree with that...

Some suggest that the dramatic increase during the last two decades in both the number of prisons and the inmate population in the United States points to a “punishment binge.” Do you agree with that assessment? If yes, how do you feel about a corrections system that is becoming increasingly punitive? If not, how would you explain the country’s preoccupation with building prisons and populating them?