If we all actually accepted this today, incarceration and policing reforms become an immediate moral imperative, as would changing attitudes about the behaviors of those around us. The resulting societal changes would arguably change the world for the better.

The notion that individuals should be punished for circumstances outside of their control is as problematic as jailing someone for getting the flu.

This isn’t to claim that criminal behavior is acceptable or that nothing should be done about it, but the change in understanding of the behavior itself would immediately demand a shift towards rehabilitation instead of punishment/vengeance.

Some people are still gonna have to be locked up, just like critically ill patients require ongoing care. But headlines like “scientists make breakthrough discovery in correcting brain chemistry that leads to sociopathy” will be as exciting as headlines about cancer cures.