Lies, damn lies and crime statistics
The justice system runs on evidence. Politics, not so much. Justin Trudeau recently said he wants to take an “evidence-based approach” to reforming our prostitution and marijuana laws. He also accuses the Harper government of taking an ideological approach to policy — which is kind of like accusing the Pope of being a closet Catholic.
Ah, but evidence is in the eye of the beholder, and a prime minister in election mode is liable to take credit for anything and everything. A few months ago, Stephen Harper claimed that “…on our watch the crime rate is finally moving in the right direction; the crime rate is finally moving down in this country.”
He repeated the claim in his year-end interviews: “We’ve put emphasis on a different kind of criminal justice that protects victims and protects law-abiding citizens and properly punishes criminals … I think … the proof points of that, not just in terms of popularity but in terms of results are clear.”
There’s a tiny problem with the prime minister’s argument, of course: If government action has a direct and measurable effect on crime rates, then government can take credit for that effect — but not his government, and not now.
READ MORE: http://www.ipolitics.ca/2015/01/08/lies-damn-lies-and-crime-statistics/
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