Should prisoners get paid minimum wage for jobs done in prison?

[Mr Khan]

SamuelRSmith said:

Mr Khan said:

Privatization encourages profiteering, which encourages the use of prisoners as de facto slaves. If it was on the taxpayer dime, there'd be less incentive to exploit prisoners. It would be wrong if the state does it, and it is wrong that the state allows it to be done under their watch, but if it were wholly the realm of the state, it would be less likely to occur. Or at least if the state exploited prison labor purely for public-works purposes, then the people as a whole would benefit, rather than a few profiteers.

Tell me more about how the state doesn't "profiteer".

How many state employees are on the paybook because of things like the War on Drugs? Police? Prison Wardens? the DEA? How much power has the Government been able to claw in thanks to the WoD? Much of the PATRIOT ACT was expanding powers used against drugs to terrorism.

Besides, forget prison. How am I not already a "de facto slave"? Do I own anything? Can I volunteer to engage in any exchange I want? Am I even allowed to kill myself?

That's not profiteering. Profiteering is about making money on stuff. You're talking about pork. Employees of the state can profiteer off of things like the War on Terror, but the State as a whole draws no revenue from rounding up terrorists or conducting warrantless wiretaps or what have you.