A lot of this is either a direct or indirect result of the the national government's addiction to drug prohibition.

Now, the question here becomes: What politicians have the guts to admit that prohibition doesn't work, and we ought to start undoing the stupidity we've been subjecting ourselves to for over half a century?
I can think of one presidential contender from each major party, and I bet they won't be hard for any astute person to name.

It's fairly ridiculous to imply as you do that the fact that we have six times the number of people in prison as the rest of the world necessarily means that we're the ones out of step. We have more wealth than the rest of the world and therefore can afford more justice.

That said, marijuana should be legal and the crack/powdered cocaine distinction abolished.

2.2. million people in prison is the price that we pay for liberalism. In dictatorships, they do not have such a large number because they do not make excuses for criminal behavior like the liberals.

Most democracies have many fewer people in prison than we do and are safer too.