Have a Good NEWS

On Wednesday Cameron got his desired reward. "Right at last," thundered the Daily Mail, hailing the prime minister's "new sense of direction". The Sun cried, "Cameron shows welcome steel," and claimed credit for stopping the "soft justice secretary", otherwise "Crackers Ken, the paedophile's pal". The Daily Telegraph welcomed "Humiliation for Clarke," as Cameron was "forced to get a grip on the government's agenda." Thus was the fatted calf prepared for the repentant hoodie-hugger.

To make matters worse, Cameron suddenly proved sensitive to the tabloid press, the hysteria over crime series with celebrity infidelity and banker-bashing as stock trading. For decades all attempts by the courts, juries, sentencing, drug laws, rehabilitation or reform the treatment of women has a vertical cliff face of the tabloid reaction. Around the Sun, the Daily Mail and Daily Express are all in all, judge and justice minister wimps whose dangerous tendency to liberalism can be limited only by media vigilance, in strong alliance with the police and prison unions and victims 'rights groups. Their policy is simple: Bang 'em up forever.

Most people are naturally paranoid about crime, especially when they fed on a daily diet of horror. Three-quarters of the nation thinks crime is rising when it falls. Men are twice as "concerned" plays on crime at the national level than on crime in their area, suggesting the media have an important role in creating misunderstanding. But then most people think taxes are too high, the immigration too simple and the cost of their chosen public service too low. Sensible politicians put those views in context, but to crimes that they capitulate.

Money is spent fighting crime as any aspect of security. There is never enough, and most will be wasted, but nobody knows how much is wasted and where. The only way to measure, advances to the test of any policy towards improvement. Clarke 's message was radical - that too much money goes to prison for many non-violent offenders and not enough attention is paid to cutting reoffending. This is not a question of "Sending messages". Every visitor to British prisons with an ounce of humanity know that they have no place in a civilized society. If they had a deterrent effect, there would be no recidivism. You just ruined lives and promote crime.

As long as politicians appeal to media-fed paranoia instead of publishing facts calmly, and as long as they delegate policy to the worst openings of the press, will be money wasted. Families are destroyed will increase drug and criminal political atrophy. Cameron can scream "advice is good," but the crushing of Clarke was not consultation, it was panic. Be drawn, there is only one lesson from this sad story. Those who live by the tabloid press, die by them.