" The philosopher Martha Nussbaum has written at length about this, classifying strategies of crime management as either ex ante or ex post. Ex ante methods are those that aim to prevent criminal acts; ex post methods are those employed in response to acts that have already been committed. Incarceration is definitively an ex post strategy, one that Nussbaum views as utterly ineffective at reducing crime. If the goal is fewer offenses, Nussbaum asserts, then the focus of our efforts and our investments must be on deterrence—on preventing criminal acts before they occur. And deterrence requires that we look rigorously and honestly at how constructive policies that target nutrition, education, employment, and social welfare work to prevent crime. "

― Christine Montross , Waiting for an Echo: The Madness of American Incarceration