# Joe Arpaio **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 28, 2012, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398 "2012-11-28T19:37:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 15
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/281 "2012-12-06T21:37:17Z")
Didja ever notice that whenever Starkers does his version of Cher’s Absolutely Positively Final No, This Time I’m Not Kidding Farewell Tour, the room gets a bit brighter? When he leaves, its like the Most Interesting Man in the World just walked in. Its like I feel a sudden affection for Sixties-style radical chic, his absence makes the heart grow Fonda. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/282 "2012-12-06T22:52:39Z")
The luminosity of hope! ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/283 "2012-12-06T23:17:33Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Two of us have presented real world evidence, plus there’s the very obvious and well known human response to unpleasant or irritating stimuli, which often goes by the name of “avoidance.” If that’s true, why do people continue to respond when you post? ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/284 "2012-12-07T10:05:10Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > And so, inevitably, we reach the conclusion of a **Starving Artist** thread: it’s all the liberals’ fault. As inexplicable as the tides, and as worthwhile to reason with. But regrettably can’t be turned into as much cheap reusable energy. Seriously, somebody out there, somebody smarter than me, needs to invent Stubbornly Stupid Power. Infinite resource, infinitely re-usable since they never change their minds about anything and haven’t since before the Roman Empire, perfectly clean as long as you’re out of voice range. Maybe we could harness it by sitting them in front of computers featuring a contrarian version of Eliza masquerading as a message board, and turning their angry disjointed keyboards mashings into electrical impulses. Hmm… ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/285 "2012-12-07T15:17:18Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Seriously, somebody out there, somebody smarter than me, needs to invent Stubbornly Stupid Power. Engage the [Dunning-Kruger Overdrive!](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=658400) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/286 "2012-12-07T15:18:18Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > Seriously, somebody out there, somebody smarter than me, needs to invent Stubbornly Stupid Power. You could run Las Vegas off YouTube comments alone! ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2012, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/287 "2012-12-08T07:14:27Z")
I don’t think **Starving Artist** is a conservative – he’s an insult to many of my conservative friends. He went off of the deep end a long time ago. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2012, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/288 "2012-12-08T14:15:25Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > I don’t think **Starving Artist** is a conservative – he’s an insult to many of my conservative friends. He went off of the deep end a long time ago. 😕 By that argument you could say Limbaugh or Beck or O’Reilly is not a conservative. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2012, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/289 "2012-12-08T15:34:16Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > 😕 By that argument you could say Limbaugh or Beck or O’Reilly is not a conservative. Actually, I would agree with that assessment. The named “personalities” are Far Right Wing demagogues who have very little in common with any serious conservative I know. (Well, to be fair, they have nothing in common with any serious person I know.) ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2012, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/290 "2012-12-09T02:53:57Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > 😕 By that argument you could say Limbaugh or Beck or O’Reilly is not a conservative. They’re more like radicals, if you think about it. I don’t think some of them believe half of what they spew out of their mouths. It’s all about the $$$$. **Starving Artist** is just a fucking idiot. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2012, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/291 "2012-12-09T21:46:41Z")
[RationalWiki](http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Crime_woo) is a good source here – page on “Crime Woo”: > [@](#): > > **“If prison is unpleasant enough, then criminals won’t commit crimes”** > > This is the bit of bullshit most often spouted by politicians and companies with money deep in the prison industry. They think that the bad guys won’t want to go back to prison if it sucks. In reality most criminals are poor and uneducated with little to no work experience. The years-long gaps and the stigma associated with being an ex-con reduce their chances of getting a decent paying job. While in prison, the inmates are victims of a near constant stream of threats, abuse, and rape, both from the staff and other inmates, causing them to be released with severe mental stress issues. Drug addicts receive no treatment for their addictions and are either forced to go cold turkey, or to buy drugs on the inside. Either way they are released into the real world still addicts and have difficulty finding jobs. Released prisoners go directly from this brutal harsh environment and are expected to rejoin the real world as reformed men, but in reality the above factors cause them to return to a life of crime at a staggering rate (about 75%). ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2012, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/292 "2012-12-09T22:28:48Z")
So, right there! Prison is so cushy and comfy, 75% of the people who’ve been there want to go right back! Motel 6 doesn’t have a record like that! Just common sense! ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2012, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/293 "2012-12-09T23:56:18Z")
Ahem…Arpaio runs a jail, not a prison. Lesser crimes, lesser time - therefore its inmates presumably have more control over whether they wish to engage in future miscreancy. Plus, the jail almost certainly has a deterrent effect on would-be miscreants who don’t want to wind up there. Mustn’t forget to take that into account, too. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/294 "2012-12-10T00:00:50Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Plus, the jail almost certainly has a deterrent effect on would-be miscreants who don’t want to wind up there. Almost? Come back when you are sure. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/295 "2012-12-10T02:39:55Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Almost? Come back when you are sure. SA is always sure. 😛 It would be better to ask to see evidence. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/296 "2012-12-10T02:59:19Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > It would be better to ask to see evidence. Done that. Not satisfying. ---
**Author:** ![Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/budget_player_cadet/32/205_2.png) [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Budget_Player_Cadet)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/297 "2012-12-10T05:18:26Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Ahem…Arpaio runs a jail, not a prison. Lesser crimes, lesser time - therefore its inmates presumably have more control over whether they wish to engage in future miscreancy. Plus, the jail almost certainly has a deterrent effect on would-be miscreants who don’t want to wind up there. Mustn’t forget to take that into account, too. Yes. _And yet the recidivism statistics seem to state exactly the opposite_. I will repeat this as needed. This is approximately the 6th time. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/298 "2012-12-10T06:27:53Z")
Yes, this is approximately the 6th time you have referenced 17 to 20 year old statistics, and it’s probably the 3rd or 4th time I’ve said that since times and Arpaio’s methods have changed, those statistics are very likely worthless. Plus they don’t measure the number of people who take pains to stay within the bounds of the law so as to avoid the risk of being sent to Arpaio’s jail. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/299 "2012-12-10T06:31:32Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Plus they don’t measure the number of people who take pains to stay within the bounds of the law so as to avoid the risk of being sent to Arpaio’s jail. I’m not aware of any studies, polls, research or anything else that measures that. So let’s call that number “zero”, since there’s no evidence to suggest that anyone uses that particular rationale for “staying within the bounds of the law”. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2012, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398/300 "2012-12-10T06:37:58Z")
[QUOTE=Budget Player Cadet] I will repeat this as needed. This is approximately the 6th time. [/Quote] It won’t help, and this is why. He approves of Arpaio’s methods; to acknowledge that those methods do not work would be to acknowledge that he supports something that does not work, and is therefore in the wrong. The far right is incapable of admitting they are wrong. So he’ll have to continue to pretend he’s right, regardless of facts. One cannot reason a person out of a position they didn’t reason themselves into. The opinions of those such as Starving Artist are not based in fact, so presenting such as he with facts will not change their opinions. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398.md?page=14) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/joe-arpaio/642398.md?page=16)