"stone walls do not a prison make" someone once observed. actually they do, but obviously he was trying to emphasise the state of mind that must accompany any authoritarian, incarceration-loving regime, the kind of which modern britain has already become.
in recent days , a certain mr otis ferry, son of successful rock star bryan ferry, has been reported in various newspapers as subscribing to the "too soft" view of prison. the odd thing is that he himself is incarcerated on remand, awaiting trial.
observant readers will note that prisoners on remand, being presumed innocent by law, are usually given a less harsh regime. that's how it's meant to work, and "holiday" comforts simply do not enter into the matter. but what on earth could prompt such an opinion?
in fact, its just another manifestation of the current zeitgeist, where so-called "reality" shows have successfully encouraged the idea that regimentation and control, can be trendy, popular, even "fun". even the titles of the programmes flirt with totalitarianism ( can you name the foremost example?)
the trick was to implicate us all in the surveillance "culture". no longer would "big brother" be watching you, but you would be encouraged to imagine yourself to be in the monitoring room beside him. along with the proliferation of sub-police community wardens,(of varuious types, with a deliberately confusing array of uniforms), the people of britain are already becoming their own prisoners.