Overcrowded Times

"Stimulating, informative and accessible." -- LCCJ Newsletter

This volume brings together a collection of articles on penal reform in the United States, Europe, Japan, and other English-speaking countries. Unique and wide-ranging, the volume provides material on penal policy development and research and presents an international, comparative focus. Written by leading national and international authorities, it offers some of the broadest efforts to characterize recent penal trends and to analyze their causes and consequences.

The articles in this collection originally appeared in the journal “Overcrowded Times”. They provide an overview of sentencing policy, practices, and institution in the United States, other English-speaking countries (Canada, England, Australia, New Zealand & South Africa), and Europe.

Crime is one of the most significant political issues in contemporary American society. Crime control statistics and punishment policies are subjects of constant partisan debate, while the media presents sensationalized stories of criminal activity and over-crowded prisons. In the highly politicized arena of crime and justice, empirical data and reasoned analysis are often overlook or ignored. The Handbook of Crime and Punishment, however, provides a comprehensive overview of criminal justice, criminology, and crime control policy, thus enabling a fundamental understanding of crime and punishment essential to an informed public. Expansive in its coverage, the Handbook presents materials on crime and punishment trends as well as timely policy issues. The latest research on the demography of crime (race, gender, drug use) is included and weighty current problems (organized crime, white collar crime, family violence, sex offenders, youth gangs, drug abuse policy) are examined. Processes and institutions that deal with accused and convicted criminals and techniques of punishment are also examined. While some articles emphasize American research findings and developments, others incorporate international research and offer a comparative perspective from other English-speaking countries and Western Europe. Editor Michael Tonry, a leading scholar of criminology, introduces the 28 articles in the volume, each contributed by an expert in the field. Designed for a wide audience, The Handbook is encyclopedic in its range and depth of content, yet is written in an accessible style. The most inclusive and authoritative work on the topic to be found in one volume, this book will appeal to those interested in the study of crime and its causes, effects, trends, and institutions; those interested in the forms and philosophies of punishment; and those interested in crime control.

After doing the soundtrack for the 2010 Scott Pilgrim video game, New York 8-bit geniuses Anamanaguchi dove headfirst into the recording of their second album. Three years (and many ideas, plans, and diversions) later, the 22-song Endless Fantasy finally saw the light of day in early 2013 on their own dream.hax label. All the time and effort put into recording the music paid off in the end, and the album is something of an 8-bit masterpiece. The band uses hacked Nintendo systems, Game Boys, and live instruments to make (mostly) instrumental music that is blindingly bright and insanely fun. They liken their music to teenaged nights listening to Weezer and playing video games, and they aren't far off. It also sounds a lot like what one would imagine for an Andrew W.K. video game soundtrack, full of energy and possessing an almost heavy metal power when the massed cartridges and guitars form into a tightly wound, ultra-powerful ball of sound. The songs are almost all as catchy as lice in a preschool, with the game consoles playing super hooky melodies and the instruments crashing along behind. Apart from a couple quiet transitional pieces of near-classical calm, there's not a single moment that isn't joyous fun as the band pushes down on the happiness throttle and never lets up -- sometimes sounding like the house band at the giddiest emo-pop (minus the emo) party ever, other times like they were doing the theme music for a super nerdy podcast (which isn't far off since they do that for The Nerdist). The occasional vocal interludes (three in all) show that they aren't a one-dimensional trick band; "Japan Air" bounces frantically like Puffy AmiYumi at +8, "Prom Night" sounds almost like it could be a club hit as the beat pounds along and Bianca Raquel's pleading vocals come across like a cartoon Katy Perry. As impressive as their hacking skills may be, the group's true strength is that if you stripped away the bits and chips, the songs underneath are strong enough to stand on their own. The beauty is that you don't have to strip away anything, because everything happens on Endless Fantasy all the time! It's a one-stop shop for all the goofy sounds, frenetic energy, and fast-paced fun one music fan can handle. Anamanaguchi may not have invented chiptune or 8-bit music, but they've pretty much perfected it. ~ Tim Sendra