Assume That You Are a Fellow at the Ellis Institute

Essay

Assume that you are a fellow at the Ellis Institute for Genetics, Evolution, and Crime. You have been approached by a staff member for Senator Akers (a well-known and influential religious conservative) and asked to help draft a crime control policy statement based on Ellis's theories of suboptimal ANS arousal and r/K evolutionary selection strategies that the senator can use as part of his platform in his upcoming reelection bid. The only stipulation made is that the policy statement must not violate or go counter to the senator's long-standing and publicly professed Christian beliefs that every person has worth in God's eyes, that every person is individually responsible for his or her acts but is redeemable, and that high ethical standards should guide the actions of individuals and government alike. What would be your response to the senator's request? Would you accept? If so, what would be the chief features of your policy proposal? If not, what reasons would you give the senator's staff member for declining?