THE TREND TOWARD MORE SEVERE PENAL SANCTIONS IS REFLECTED IN THE RESTORATION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT IN 40 STATES, IN LEGISLATED MANDATORY SENTENCES, AND IN LENGTHENED TERMS OF IMPRISONMENT FOR CERTAIN CATEGORIES OF CRIME. A RELATIONSHIP EXISTS BETWEEN THE SEVERITY OF PENAL PRACTICES AND THE SIZE OF THE PRISON POPULATION ON THE ONE HAND AND THE CONDITIONS OF THE CAPITALIST LABOR MARKET ON THE OTHER. UNLIKE LIBERALS, WHO ACCEPTED CRIME AS A SOCIAL PHENOMENON RELATED TO THE POLITICAL ECONOMY AND ADOPTED PENAL REFORMS ACCORDINGLY, REALISTS HAVE NO ILLUSIONS ABOUT REFORMING THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE APPARATUS. REALIST ARGUMENTS ARE CHARACTERIZED BY A FOCUS ON STREET CRIME (I.E., WORKING CLASS CRIME); ANTI-INTELLECTUALISM AND DISINTEREST IN THE CAUSES OF CRIME; AND EMPHASIS ON PUNISHMENT. WHILE UNITED BY MORAL OUTRAGE AND A CONTEMPT FOR CRIMINAL JUSTICE BUREAUCRATS, REALISTS PROMOTE A VARIETY OF REMEDIES, RANGING FROM CAPITAL PUNISHMENT TO COST-BENEFIT SENTENCING. ALTHOUGH REALISTS ARE OPPOSED BY LIBERAL ADVOCATES OF THE JUSTICE MODEL AND PRISON MORATORIUM, THESE GROUPS SHARE A BASIC ACCEPTANCE OF CAPITALISM AND THE NECESSITY FOR TECHNOCRATIC SOLUTIONS TO PENAL PROBLEMS. THE MAJOR UNIFYING ELEMENTS IN THE REALIST IDEOLOGY ARE PROMOTION OF THE STATE, MORAL OUTRAGE AND CYNICISM, AND ELITISM AND HATRED OF THE WORKING CLASS. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT CRIMINOLOGISTS MAY EITHER JOIN THE REALISTS IN BLAMING THE WORKING CLASS -PARTICULARLY NONWHITES -- FOR THE CRIME PROBLEM AND SEEKING TO DEVISE NEW METHODS OF PUNISHMENT AND CONTROL, OR CONTINUE TO INVESTIGATE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CRIME AND THE POLITICAL ECONOMY, THEREBY AIDING THE WORKING CLASS STRUGGLE AGAINST EXPLOITATION AND REPRESSION.