America has become a nation that intrinsically believes that punishment is the best tool to manage both individual and group behavior. It’s reflected in our laws, rules, and our reactions to changes in cultural norms. We punish people so they will act the way we expect them to act. Mistakes are punished just as harshly as intentional wrongdoing. Our legal system claims to be based on the concept of innocence until proven guilty. How often do media cultural arbiters demand punishment for an accused person based only on an accusation? Again, and again the phrase “innocent until proven guilty” is ignored and “justice” is meted out in the court of public opinion and cheered on by media. Not just right-wing media, not just left-wing media, but also independent media as well.
The punishment mindset tells us that to convince an unruly child to behave in school, we make them stay home. Something or someone that goes against the cultural norm and is no longer relevant or alive is irrevocably bad. Is it just to penalize individuals for cultural mistakes they’ve made in the past, even if they’ve apologized and not repeated them? Punishment Culture overrides the legal concept of a statute of limitations. Laws sometimes have time limits for enforcing crimes because punishing someone after a long time doesn’t benefit society or culture. Our legal system has a built-in forgiveness. Yet it is lacking in our culture? The answer is, of course, Punishment Culture; timeless and unforgiving.
The paradox of Punishment Culture is it lacks forgiveness, understanding, and exists outside of time and history. It also highlights our true cultural norms. Richard Nixon committed more crimes than just paying off some burglars to keep muted. Before he even won the election in 1968, he committed treason. Later he claimed if the President does something, then it is not illegal. And he protected himself by making a deal with Representative Gerald Ford to pardon him. Criminality on that large a scale went unpunished. If you are a VIP in America, you become immune to Punishment Culture, at least while you are still alive.
But Punishment Culture exists in every facet of our lives if you are not a VIP. Consider the multiplicity of forms one must sign to buy a home. There are only about two or three that are about the house and the loan you got from a bank. The rest are for you to sign to deny that you are a terrorist, or that your name is really your name (my favorite). Similar forms denying any criminal intent are required for jobs and renting an apartment. If you do not sign them, is that admitting guilt? A major attribute of Punishment Culture is the assumption of guilt unless you deny it before even being accused of being a criminal.
Regulatory processes are built on the assumption that people must declare their innocence. But we assume corporations are innocent.
The purpose of having a Punishment Culture is not to control behavior, but it is to discourage nonconformity. America, more than most nations, disdains nonconformity. In grammar school, they taught us American culture grew from all the various cultures and nationalities that moved to America. Mostly from Europe; mostly by Caucasians, and overwhelmingly Christian. The Italians, Irish, (Roman Catholics) and the East European Jews were the spice. The western Europeans were the prime ingredients of America’s proverbial melting pot. Catholics and Jews gave the bland concoction a bit of flavor. But Indigenous people, Asians, Africans, Muslims, and other peoples of color may not melt into the pot. We must punish them because their skin color and native cultures do not conform. The Indigenous peoples already living in America were forced from their lands and punished for their non-conforming customs. Africans imported as slaves lived lives of constant punishment. Once freed, they followed the model used by Indigenous peoples to punish former slaves and their descendants. The punishment for Irish, Italians, and Jews was not as severe because they could blend in with American culture due to their European roots.
Cooking the melting pot stew for so long that all the ingredients melt into a singular mush. It does not make for an appetizing meal.
Some people use the term Cancel Culture to describe a single aspect of Punishment Culture. But it goes way beyond that in the US:
America has more incarcerated person per capita than any other country; Punishment Culture.
We routinely blame the poor for being poor; Punishment Culture.
Health Care is an employer’s responsibility, so get a job with a generous employer; Punishment Culture.
Hooked on drugs – go to jail; Punishment Culture.
Vote for a 3rd Party – your vote does not count; Punishment Culture.
Born poor, grow up poor – your fault; Punishment Culture.
The political establishment enforces a status quo of the individual’s responsibility for guaranteeing their own minimum of life’s absolute needs. The opportunity for health care, shelter, food, clothing, jobs, education, training, and more are not a social responsibility. If you cannot supply these for yourself and your family, you will be punished.
Social Media outlets all reflect the Punishment Culture. Banning a person or group because they posted something deemed by computer code as false. Regardless of whether it was a mistake, ignorance, or the code itself was faulty, you will be punished.
We punish people for their opinions, circumstances, beliefs, behavior, mistakes, ignorance, or even lacking respect for those in authority. The Puritans have long since passed into history and we understand better technically the multitude of ways people live and act. Instead, it seems every year we slide increasingly into the Puritan mindset. It is time to act on what we know and respect, diversity, not just of identity, but also opinions, circumstance, beliefs, and behavior.