The size of the prison population is considered to be a normative question, and limits on the growth of the prison population and the crime control industry are established by human decisions. The author contends that modern crime control systems have the potential for developing into Gulags, western style. He discusses crime in the context of the social environment, punishment and pain, crime control in European countries, prison conditions, crime control as a product, public versus private prisons, and private security police. In addition, the author examines bottlenecks in the criminal justice system, the role of psychiatry in criminal law, behavior modification and control, the notion of legalized killing, and crime control as a culture. References, footnotes, tables, and figures