> the odds that an American will go to prison are relatively high.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_incarceration_ra...)

That "relatively" is important.

(In 2009)

    US:     743 per 100,000 
    Russia: 577 per 100,000
    China:  120 per 100,000
    Canada: 117 per 100,000

Compared to other countries the chances of an American going to prison are higher, even though the chances overall are quite low.