Digby: What A Shame

There's been quite an outcry in China (and here) about the recent public shaming of prostitutes. Everyone seems to acknowledge that there is something inherently discomfiting about this use public humiliation.

But it reminded me of a famous essay by someone you don't usually associate with totalitarian practices --- the godfather of communitarianism, Amitai Etzioni, who wrote some twenty years ago:

Public humiliation is a surprisingly effective and low-cost way of deterring criminals and expressing the moral order of a community. It is used by a few judges, but much too sparingly. Some jurisdictions publish the names of “Johns” who are caught frequenting prostitutes.