Punishment depends as much on politics as it does on crime: crime rates have been S36 ______in recent years but there ’ s been a S37 ______increase in the prison population. And because populism is coming so much to S38 ______the political agenda, politicians are S39 ______sharp increases in penalties to take advantage of public S40 ______. The question is how far this will get. In the 21st century weak governments might try to win legitimacy by being especially S41 ______ on crime that could mean high prison population and draconian punishments such as those S42 ______in the United States in recent years. Luckily there remain significant differences between the UK and the USA: S43 ______. Although S44 ______-- are much lower because guns have not been so widely dispersed. S45 ______ , and all but the toughest criminals will still have a view about what is and what isn’t "acceptable" violence.