USA leads world in sending its own people to jail

I usually like it when the USA is number one but in this case, we could be doing better by being way down the list. The thousands upon thousands in jail for using marijuana could be better serving our nation by working at home, instead of in jail.

clipped from www.hrw.org Statistics released today by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, a branch of the US Department of Justice, show that, as of December 31, 2007, nearly 2.3 million persons were incarcerated in US prisons and jails, giving the United States the largest incarcerated population in the world.  With 756 of every 100,000 residents behind bars, the United States also has the world's highest rate of incarceration. By contrast, Britain incarcerates 153 per 100,000 residents; in Canada, the figure is 108; and in Italy, 83.