Response needed:

1. Identify and discuss any two issues that your found interesting in the Chapter 84 reading: Prison.

       First of all, I found quite a bit more than two issues interesting in chapter 84. This being my first criminal justice class I have never really looked deep into the facts or statistics relating to the criminal justice system. The first issue that stuck out to me the most was a crazy statistic that stated how research shows that while 83% of state prisoners have a history of drug use, only about 15% of this group receives treatment in prison, and even fewer continue to receive appropriate treatment once released (Wood,2009). Most of these inmates report that that was the primary reason for their past and current problems and yet almost none of them are getting or seeking treatment. I am willing to bet most of these crimes they committed had to have been fueled by some type of substance abuse, whether it was a schedule I narcotic or alcohol. The second issue that I wanted to note of interest was the chapter on mass imprisonment and state budgets. To sum it up it talks about the massive amount of prisoners that Mississippi is forced to house in their facilities. Because of this, they had to use most of their state’s budget on building prisons instead of spending it on schools. The astonishing issue that stuck out in my mind was extracted from a recent report by Grassroots Leadership. They go on to say that Mississippi built 17 new prisons between 1997 and 2005, but not one new state college or university. And several more Mississippi prisons are under construction or consideration. There are now almost twice as many African American men in Mississippi prisons as in colleges and universities, and the state spends nearly twice as much to incarcerate an inmate as it takes to send someone to college.  It is very unfortunate that most states have to worry about spending most of their budget on prisons and institutions rather than schools and higher education.

2. Identify and discuss any two issues that you found interesting in the Chapter 71 reading: Capital Punishment.

After reading this chapter the most interesting thing that popped out to me was the five methods of capital punishments approved by the United States. These include lethal injection, electrocution, lethal gas, hanging, and firing squad. Lethal injection being the primary method of execution used by all executing jurisdictions in the United States. I honestly thought that lethal injection and lethal gas were the only approved method for capital punishment. I could understand how electrocution could be debatable seeing as which they have had some cases where the prisoner lived through the electrocution. The second issue that was interesting was the fact that congress got involved to expand the number of crimes punishable by death. In 1994, Congress passed a federal crime bill (the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act), which expanded the number of federal crimes punishable by death to about 50. All but four of the federal crimes involve murder. The four exceptions are treason; espionage; drug trafficking in large quantities; and attempting, authorizing, or advising the killing of any public officer, juror, or witness in a case involving a continuing criminal enterprise—regardless of whether such a killing actually occurs (Bohm, 2009). I am not to familiar with the criminal justice system and all the crimes that can be committed but all but 50 have to do with murder with is surprising. I always assumed murder was just murder. But apparently there are 46 different crimes involving murder.

3. What is offender classification, how does it work and is it reliable? (Chapter 90)

Offender classification is a system that categorizes prisoners into different custody levels based off of what their specific needs are regarding their temperament or personality traits or even gang affiliations. These are categorized based on the security risks involved to see how much security the prisoner would actually need or different types of facilities that are able to house the particular prisoner with specific resources such as psychiatrists or regular doctors. After reading this chapter I would say Ultimately the offender classification works. Because of this system, they are able to appropriately place prisoners in a setting that would be deemed safe. If this system wasn’t in place and no one cared where these prisoners went, there would be a lot more murders in the prison itself along with gang wars. Yes, there are some issues and flaws within the system itself. As it’s stated in the classification protocols paragraph, training conducted in order for someone to administer and score the classification could take up to 2 weeks. But it some cases people will only get 1-2 days of training.

(3f-g) Both the conscious and automatic systems help in the pursuit of goals. The conscious system does much of the goal setting and helps to resume goal pursuit that has been interrupted. The automatic system can signal the conscious mind to get back to a goal that has been interrupted. Consider your conscious and automatic mindsets as you share with the class about your own goals in this discussion. Choose one goal that has been interrupted several times and answer these questions in your post:

• Describe the goal and the reasons it has been interrupted.
• How have your automatic and conscious systems helped you in pursuit of this goal?

You must cite, in APA style citation, any sources used and include a works cited page. No plagiarism

A natural monopolist faces the following demand curve: P = 50 – Q, its total cost is given by: TC = 39 + 10Q (marginal cost is the slope of total cost).

(a) If the government regulates the monopolist to charge a socially optimal price, what price will it charge and how many units will it sell? How much are the profit, consumer surplus and producer surplus? Show answer step by step

(b) If it is not a regulated monopolist, what is its profit maximizing price and quantity (assuming single price monopolist)? How much are the profit, consumer surplus, producer surplus and dead weight loss? Show answer step by step

(c) If the regulated monopolist is allowed to charge a fair return price (which is $11), how much are the consumer surplus, producer surplus and dead weight loss?Show answer step by step

Assignment 2: Reflection 2

Interpersonal effectiveness is a broad topic that entails many aspects of how we view and interact with the world. In each module, you will take in a great amount of information from a variety of sources—your reading, media presentations, case studies, etc. Throughout the course, you also have the opportunity to journal, which allows you to reflect on how the course content applies to your life as a person, professional, and student. In this module, you will reflect on how mindful you are in your relationships.

Plan to have a thoughtful conversation with a friend, family member, or colleague. Before you have the conversation, note the following things that you will be required to do during your conversation:

• Focus on what the person is saying.
• Don’t think about what you are going to say next.
• Truly listen to the person.
• Let the person finish his or her sentences.
• Don’t interrupt while the person is talking.
• Make note of the person’s nonverbal communication.
• Be mindful of how you are saying things (verbal and nonverbal communication).
• Take note of how the person is reacting.

After having the thoughtful conversation with another individual, please write a one- to two-page reflection paper focused on the following questions:

• Briefly, with whom did you have the conversation and where?
• How easy did you find it to be mindful? Why?
• What did you notice during the moments when you were able to be mindful? How were you feeling?
• How did mindlessness—both yours and the other person’s—show up in the conversation? What effect did it have?
• Identify two or three things that you learned in class, which were evident in your conversation. Explain how they were evident in your interaction.
• What would help you be more mindful in your life? Identify two actions (i.e., new behaviors you can practice). How will these actions improve your relationships with others?

Your paper must be clear, well-organized, and present a thoughtful response to each question above. Be sure to use proper spelling and grammar. You should write your reflection paper using Microsoft Word, double-spaced, and using a 12-point font. Provide a reference for any sources, such as your textbook, at the end of your paper. This paper should be about 1 -2 pages in length.