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Europe |
Chinese react with disbelief to photos of Norwegian prison |
2011-08-07 |
Translation from a Chinese magazine: Norway's unrepentant mass killer, Anders Behring Breivik, is now under arrest. And he should count himself lucky for -- if entirely undeserving of -- a penal system in that country that is among the cushiest in the world. There's no capital punishment, and the longest jail term allowed is 21 years (a caveat: if a prisoner is deemed to still be a threat, his sentence can be extended in five-year blocks indefinitely, though it's highly unlikely, according to Norwegian officials). In Norway, rehabilitation is the guiding principle, not punishment -- a somewhat difficult notion to swallow given the gravity and callousness of his crimes. "Both society and the individual simply have to put aside their desire for revenge, and stop focusing on prisons as places of punishment and pain," one Norwegian prison official told the Daily Mail. "Depriving a person of their freedom for a period of time is sufficient punishment in itself without any need whatsoever for harsh prison conditions." Norway's newest jail may hold rapists and murderers, but Halden Prison -- the country's second largest and most secure facility -- looks more like a posh sleepaway camp. In fact, architects say they purposely tried to avoid an "institutional feel." When it opened in 2010, some news accounts called it the "most humane" prison in the world. According to Time magazine, the prison is spread over 75 acres "of gently sloping forest. To avoid an institutional feel, exteriors are not concrete but made of bricks, galvanized steel and larch; the buildings seem to have grown organically from the woodlands." The prison boasts a state-of-the-art gym, complete with a rock-climbing wall. Guards don't carry guns and are encouraged to be outgoing and friendly toward the inmates -- they eat together and play sports in mixed teams to create a sense of family, according to officials. The following comments were made by Chinese: If prison is too comfortable, then everyone will want to go there, and society's law will become even more ineffective. If the Heavenly Kingdom's prisons were this comfortable, the crime rate would definitely go up. What kind of world is this... Other country's convicts are living easier lives than I am!!! How is that like a prison sentence? It's clearly a vacation! After 30 years of being lost, I have finally found a goal in life: Illegally immigrate to Norway and blow up several buildings. Being kind to the killer is being cruel to the kind innocent people! Norway's type of so-called "being civilized" is just trampling on the respect for the lives of the kind and innocent! |
Posted by:gromky |
#20 Anonymoose where do you find this stuff but its good!. |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 23:43 |
#19 Though a little bit NSFW, there is the superbly funny viddy, "Rare Exports, Inc.", about the hunting of wild Father Christmases in Lapland. |
Posted by: Anonymoose 2011-08-07 21:00 |
#18 A bit of a warning. Should you be invited to a sauna you may wish to avoid a Finnish sauna. The Finnish invented the sauna and it is a very important cleansing effort. First you remove your clothing then shower. You take a towel in to sit on. Heads of state, families ,or business client this is normal for them. Jumping into icy water is an eye opener even when you are under water. |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 16:16 |
#17 gr(o)mgoru "the 400-year-night" Denmark. Then Swiss till early 1900." In 1814 Denmark-Norway was defeated in the Napoleonic wars and the king was forced to cede Norway to the king of Sweden in the Treaty of Kiel (January 14). The Norwegian dependencies Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands were kept by Denmark". |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 14:07 |
#16 I've been comfortable in the U.S., S, although there were a number of universities the trailing daughters did not apply to. |
Posted by: trailing wife 2011-08-07 13:10 |
#15 Not a comfortable place be Jewish, though. Where is it comfy? Juice are a stubborn (albeit damn well armed) people. You get comfy, it's a sign something bad is getting ready to happen. Vigilance at all times. |
Posted by: S 2011-08-07 12:35 |
#14 Dutch rule for 400 years then the Swiss till the 1900s Dane & Swede? |
Posted by: gr(o)mgoru 2011-08-07 11:52 |
#13 Lotp yes at birth but to do it again as an adult is the heresy. |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 11:29 |
#12 Um, Dale - Lutherans practice baptism. ;-) Mr. Lotp is the descendent of Norwegian immigrants, as it happens. The old family farm is now a historical park there, of the 'this is how our ancestors scratched out a living' sort. FWIW |
Posted by: lotp 2011-08-07 11:09 |
#11 Let me give you an idea on how strong minded they can be. The Grandfather overhears an argument. He asks all parties to sit down. He then asks each to express their side of the issue. He then presents his thoughts on the the subject; so that's how it is, end of discussion. |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 10:30 |
#10 TW that is true. Why I don't understand. Many Norwegians came to this country at the time of the potato famine in Ireland. Large families with say ten children. The oldest boy would inherit the farm so what are the others to do. They went to American to seek their fortunes. That's what they said before Ellis Island and after when asked on paperwork. To become baptized was heresy and in old days and put to death. Lutheran mainly was or is the faith. Dutch rule for 400 years then the Swiss till the 1900s. Strong bond with the Swiss. So in there my be where the behavior comes from for the Jewish people. TW personally I believe the left infected their socialism so that's where it comes from. |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 10:09 |
#9 Not a comfortable place be Jewish, though. |
Posted by: trailing wife 2011-08-07 09:43 |
#8 I'm on the waiting list, so in the meanwhile, I've booked a ClubMed vacation. |
Posted by: Jack Salami 2011-08-07 09:33 |
#7 The total population of Norway on January 1st, 2011 was 4,920,305 [1] Non-Norwegians Country of origin Population (2011)[1] Poland 60,610 Sweden 34,108 Pakistan 31,884 Iraq 27,827 Somalia 27,523 Germany 24,394 Vietnam 20,452 Denmark 19,522 Iran 16,957 Turkey 16,430 Lithuania 16,309 Bosnia-Herzegovina 16,125 Russia 15,879 [1] Social issues are a lot easier with basically a mono-culture that has the same common beliefs and ethics. Just take that small town suburb largely of one culture and extrapolate to an entire nation. |
Posted by: Procopius2k 2011-08-07 09:26 |
#6 "Drive drunk. Go to camp." |
Posted by: Perfesser 2011-08-07 09:07 |
#5 Norway has the lowest crime rate in twenty years. Increase in rape yes so women travel in pairs. Federal prisons in this country are cushy. I asked a Federal warden if I could have my son tour his prison. He said that would not be a good idea. It is too nice. Many of the Norwegian things you see are similar to our Federal prisons(many open spaces without bars). Look at our recidivism rates and compare to theirs. They compare Breivik to our Mcveigh. They have moved on already. Each Norwegian has $100000 dollar rainy day set aside fund just the opposite of us. Retired at 50. Free state of the art health care. Free education. Socialist, happy, longevity, and the desire to help other peoples of the world. Very strong minded people like the Swiss. They are showing great progress. 40% growth in new housing construction, historic fishing exports, Cruse lines booming, four new oil platforms being built. So I would not travel there to commit a crime but others will so others could be as miserable as themselves. They need help. They are hiring. Around 350000 now are employed from all over the world. |
Posted by: Dale 2011-08-07 08:31 |
#4 NORWAY PRISON SYS COMFORTS versus * PEOPLE'S DAILY FORUM > CHINA THREATENS THE ISI? ATIC = Besides everything else that PAK has endured this year, its "Big Brother" + BFF CHINA IS DEMANDING THAT PAK HUNT DOWN + KILL ANY + ALL UIGHUR TERRORISTS BASED OR TRAINING IN PAKISTAN, ESPEC THOSE IN TRAINING WID THE ETIM MILITANT GROUP; OR ELSE TURN 'EM OVER TO CHINA. * CHINA MIL BLOGGERS > argue that, iff Islamabad refuses the above, + also given the PLA's inferiority or lack of training + hi-tech, dedicated or specialized assets, etc. vee US-NATO as required for the conduct of counter-terror ops, e.g. Abbottabad, THE PLA BE PREPARED TO COVERTLY DEPLOY SMALL TO BATTALION-SIZED SPECOPS UNITS INTO SOVEREIGN PAKISTAN WID OR WIDOUT ISLAMABAD'S CONSENT, + BACKED UP BY PLAAF UNITS = AIR SUPPORT. Pro-Islamist Pak on an existential tripwire as it was counting on BB BFF China to counter the USA - ONLY ONE MISSING IS THE RUSSIANS, I.E. PAK LINK TO RUSSIAN/CAUCASUS TERROR??? |
Posted by: JosephMendiola 2011-08-07 06:45 |
#3 Not everything is cushy. For instance, at times of the year, the entire prison reeks of lutefisk. And non-Norwegians who are kept there are surrounded by sanctimonious Norwegians. And once a day, everyone greases up with Neutrogena, which keeps their skin soft and touchable. |
Posted by: Anonymoose 2011-08-07 06:10 |
#2 Well, I've just changed my retirement objective. Do Norwegian prisons come with room service? |
Posted by: Eohippus Phater7165 2011-08-07 00:36 |
#1 for once I agree with the Chinese on this one |
Posted by: chris 2011-08-07 00:16 |