Is prison the best way to punish criminals?

There has been an increase in the crime rate in recent years. While many argue that imprisonment is the best penalty for criminals in terms of social safety and educating the next generations, I believe that there are numerous alternative punishments such as community services or fines. On the one hand, one of the main advantages of imprisoning criminals is that the others may feel much safer. Indeed, if the government does not send offenders to jail, especially those who committed felonies, people might usually worry about surrounding people, which leads to their life satisfaction decrease. Moreover, schools and parents can use that evidence to educate their children to avoid committing crimes. Undoubtedly, children probably do not engage in any evil action if they recognize that they will receive corresponding penalties. However, there are plenty of substitute solutions that likely have better effects. First, criminals can be advantageous for the community by participating in social services such as forestation, helping the elderly, or improving remote areas' environments. They can also be aware of their public roles and social responsibilities, then become better and profitable people after being released. Furthermore, being jailed is not suitable for those who offended petty crimes. For example, fining a person who parked his car wrongly is a better punishment than sending him to prison. In conclusion, sending criminals to prisons is a reasonable penalty for community security and educational reasons. Nevertheless, several alternatives are more proper for minor crimes, such as social services or fines.