Is Street Crime More Harmful Than White-Collar Crime?
YES: David A. Anderson, from The Aggregate Burden of Crime, Journal of Law and Economics XLII (2) (October 1999) NO: Jeffrey Reiman, from The Rich Get Richer and the Poor Get Prison: Ideology, Class, and Criminal Justice, 5th edition (Allyn & Bacon, 1998) David A. Anderson estimates the total annual cost of crime including law enforcement and security services. The costs exceed one trillion dollars, with fraud (mostly white collar crime) causing about one-fifth of the total. His calculations of the full costs of the loss of life and injury comes to about half of the total costs. It is right, therefore, to view personal and violent crime as the big crime problem. Professor of philosophy Jeffrey Reiman argues that the dangers posed by negligent corporations and white-collar criminals are a greater menace to society than are the activities of typical street criminals. Issue 16 Should Marijuana Be Legalized? YES: Ethan A. Nadelmann, from An End to Marijuana Prohibition, National Review (Ju
