--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: what’s the point in threatening them with…" description: "\"“what’s the point in threatening them with imprisonment if they break the terms of their parole? The threat has no meaning for them.” He”\" — Jon Ronson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/jon-ronson-1772_imprisonment_what-s-the-point-in-threatening-them-wit_2228249.png" --- # what’s the point in threatening them with imprisonment if… ![“what’s the point in threatening them with imprisonment if they break the terms of their parole? The threat has no meaning for them.” He” quote by Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/jon-ronson-1772_imprisonment_what-s-the-point-in-threatening-them-wit_2228249.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/jon-ronson-1772_imprisonment_what-s-the-point-in-threatening-them-wit_2228249.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/jon-ronson-1772_imprisonment_what-s-the-point-in-threatening-them-wit_2228249.png) > ““what’s the point in threatening them with imprisonment if they break the terms of their parole? The threat has no meaning for them.” He”” [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote questions the effectiveness of threatening parole violators with imprisonment, suggesting such threats may be meaningless to them. **In simple terms:** Threats of prison may not deter parole violators. Key Takeaway Consider alternative deterrents for parole violations. Themes justice deterrence law parole punishment Mood skeptical analytical Type legal policy When to use this quote - probation meetings - court sentencing - rehabilitation programs - policy making - community safety Key Concepts legal theory behavioral economics criminal justice reform Questions to Reflect On - Do threats influence behavior? - What alternatives could be more effective? A Different Perspective Threats may be ignored if individuals lack belief in the system. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Imprisonment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imprisonment/) [Parole Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parole-threat-5002749/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Terms Parole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terms-parole-5002751/) [Threatening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threatening/) [Threatening Imprisonment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threatening-imprisonment-5002750/) ## Related quotes > [“I had as lief have the foppery of freedom as the morality of imprisonment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-had-as-lief-have-the-foppery-of-freedom-as-the-morality-of/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [It was only when I lay there on the rotting prison straw that I sensed within myself the first stirrings of good. Gradually it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-was-only-when-i-lay-there-on-the-rotting-prison-straw-that-i/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [If we went back to the imprisonment rate we had in the early '70s, something like four out of five people employed in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-jarecki/if-we-went-back-to-the-imprisonment-rate-we-had-in-the-early-70s/) [Eugene Jarecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-jarecki/) > [I think for Beecher specifically, Keller was with him when his wife died. Beecher had decided after he first got into prison that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-tergesen/i-think-for-beecher-specifically-keller-was-with-him-when-his-wife/) [Lee Tergesen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-tergesen/) > [Capital punishment kills immediately, whereas lifetime imprisonment does so slowly. Which executioner is more humane? 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Sansom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-sansom/) > [O thou that pinest in the imprisonment of the Actual, and criest bitterly to the gods for a kingdom wherein to rule and create,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/o-thou-that-pinest-in-the-imprisonment-of-the-actual-and-criest/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) ## More by Jon Ronson > [Sometimes labeling is only useful, like with OCD. Once you're labeled you can be treated. On other occasions labeling leads to tyranny, like with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/sometimes-labeling-is-only-useful-like-with-ocd-once-you-re-labeled/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“I wonder if I’ve got any of the 374 mental disorders,” I thought. I opened the manual again. And I instantly diagnosed myself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/i-wonder-if-i-ve-got-any-of-the-374-mental-disorders-i-thought-i/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Trying to prove you’re not a psychopath is even harder than trying to prove you’re not mentally ill,’ said Tony.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/trying-to-prove-you-re-not-a-psychopath-is-even-harder-than-trying-to/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“It may very well be that the frotteurist is a helpless victim in the clutches of his obsession, but it’s equally possible that he’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-may-very-well-be-that-the-frotteurist-is-a-helpless-victim-in-the/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“We are defining the boundaries of normality by tearing apart the people outside of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/we-are-defining-the-boundaries-of-normality-by-tearing-apart-the/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [My worryingly paradoxical thought process could be summarized thus: Thank God I don't believe in the secret rulers of the world. 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I read books. I reconnected with people I knew from real life and met them for drinks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-world-outside-twitter-was-great-i-read-books-i-reconnected-with/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“What a brilliant cover story. In a success-obsessed society like this one, what's the best rock to hide something under? It's the rock called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/what-a-brilliant-cover-story-in-a-success-obsessed-society-like-this/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Guy Savelli's role in the War on Terror began when half-a-dozen strangers, within days of one another, contacted him via e-mail and telephone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/guy-savelli-s-role-in-the-war-on-terror-began-when-half-a-dozen/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [My paranoia never ends, but I haven't been paranoid about being spied on my shadowy forces for some time now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/my-paranoia-never-ends-but-i-haven-t-been-paranoid-about-being-spied/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“It is an awful lot harder, Tony told me, to convince people you’re sane than it is to convince them you’re crazy. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-is-an-awful-lot-harder-tony-told-me-to-convince-people-you-re-sane/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [It is slightly chilling to realize there are rational, functional people up there employed to spot, nurture, and exploit those down here among us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-is-slightly-chilling-to-realize-there-are-rational-functional/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) [Explore all 209 Jon Ronson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) ## More Imprisonment quotes > [O thou that pinest in the imprisonment of the Actual, and criest bitterly to the gods for a kingdom wherein to rule and create,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/o-thou-that-pinest-in-the-imprisonment-of-the-actual-and-criest/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Dominion is a spy novel, a love story, and also I hope gives some sense of the difficulties faced by dissidents under any totalitarian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-sansom/dominion-is-a-spy-novel-a-love-story-and-also-i-hope-gives-some-sense/) [C.J. Sansom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-sansom/) > [“But a punishment like forced labour or even imprisonment – mere loss of liberty – has never functioned without a certain additional element of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/but-a-punishment-like-forced-labour-or-even-imprisonment-mere-loss-of/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [What is imprisonment to the man who is fearless of death itself?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/what-is-imprisonment-to-the-man-who-is-fearless-of-death-itself/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“The thing that give me the mos' trouble was, it didn' make no sense. 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Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-f-chandler/) > [So I departed and was free from imprisonment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/so-i-departed-and-was-free-from-imprisonment/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“To subdue and crush the masses of a nation by military force, when all are unanimous in the determination to be free, is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-dalrymple/to-subdue-and-crush-the-masses-of-a-nation-by-military-force-when-all/) [William Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-dalrymple/) > [“An insincere individual would feel afraid to admit the truth because he or she wants to avoid facing the consequences with a guilty conscious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saaif-alam/an-insincere-individual-would-feel-afraid-to-admit-the-truth-because/) [Saaif Alam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saaif-alam/) > [“The growth of his power and fame was matched, in my imagination, by the degree of the punishment I would have liked to inflict…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nabokov-i-tyrants-destroyed-i/the-growth-of-his-power-and-fame-was-matched-in-my-imagination-by-the/) [Nabokov i Tyrants Destroyed i](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nabokov-i-tyrants-destroyed-i/) > [Capital punishment kills immediately, whereas lifetime imprisonment does so slowly. Which executioner is more humane? 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