IS PRISON REALLY REFORM/REHABILITATION OR BIG BUSINESS??

Prison is definetely not reform or rehab. So gather your own conclusions. When prisoners families pay for their medical bills, their food (if they get enough to eat) and exhorbant telephone bills and the prisoners themselves work in factories that make items sold to the outside, where does the money go?

Donna

I know the answer! I did 15 years. DAY FOR DAY SECOND FOR SECOND. #1. PHONES ARE THERE FOR INMATES TO CONTACT THEIR FAMILY (IES), PRISON HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE PHONE BILLS OR THE SURCHARGES. #2. LIKEWISE SO IS CABLE T.V.; DON'T WANT THE BILL DON'T HAVE CABLE! DON'T WANT THE PHONE BILL WRITE LETTERS. AS FOR FOOD AND MEDICAL AS IT SHOULD BE, IT'S CALLED RESPONSIBILITY! #3. WORKING IN FACTORY'S, YEAH SO! RESPONSIBILITY, IT TEACHES HOW TO DISCIPLINE ONESELF TO WORK AND MAKE MONEY AND STAND ON YOUR OWN TWO FEET, INSTEAD OF ROBBING LITTLE OLD LADY'S FOR THEIR SSI CHECKS, OR KILLING SOME 12 YEAR OLD OVER A PAIR OF TENNIS SHOES. tHUS THE QUESTION REMAINS REHAB/REFORM OR BIG BUSINESS??????? YOUR ANSWER IS INCONCLUSIVE!

Prison is rehab if as an individual you choose to seek out programs and help yourself. In some states such as NY GED programs are mandatory for early release. If you have a GED or HS diploma College classes are offered. These are both chosen by the inmate if he/she want to better themself. You are paid a very minimal salary, which does teach you responsibility and a good work ethic, if you choose to absorb it in that aspect. In Florida however, you have to fight the DOC to take any "rehab" programs. Wether it be drug/AA, school, a trade program, etc. In most facilities they are not offered and if offered sapce is limited. You MUST work yet you are not paid (modern day slave labor in my book). The prisoners even build the prisons! So what responsibility can one learn by working with absolutely no positive reinforcement?
Big business? I absolutely think so, definately in the state of Florida ( Bush County,lol). Now with Jebs brother as the president it may rub off to the rest of the US. I hope not. The Bush family is extremely wealthy, and they don't make their $ from politics per-say. The have millions is stocks, and from what I read approx. 80% is invested in the prison system. They invest in prison privatization, food service providers, clothes providers (along with Bob Barker, yes the guy from the price is right. The tags inside all Florida DOC issued clothing says Bob Barker INC.) contracted medical providers, contracted construction companies. The list goes on and on.
So my answer, which I assume is conclusive... Rehab - if and only if you are given the opportunity and choose to take it.
Big business YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT.
The more people sent to prison and the longer the sentences the more $ the investors or the "business" makes. Can't say the Bushes are stupid for being involved in both politics and prison investment. Immoral? Absolutely.

Michelle

Thank you Michelle for a very thoughtful and insightful response. YES your answer is very conclusive and also correct! It is BIG BUSINESS for those who don't take advantage of what is offered in oreder to stay out here, 15 in over 3 out without a single hitch, the cycle has ended because I took advantage; you arte correct most prisoners have to fight for simple things such as education but the fight is the discipline, to stop BIG BUSINESS you have to destroy the infrastructure.

My opinion.... Prisons are more big business than rehabilitation... based on my experiences working within the walls. That doesn't mean that there is NO rehabilitation.... I must admit that there are some programs, but I also saw those programs being sabotaged by DOC. There is the few and far between officer or counselor who sees inmates as people and wants them to learn from their mistakes, but for every one of those there are 100 DOC employees who view inmates as subhuman and demean them and purposeful aggravate them. I definately saw officers cover one another's backs and cover up wrongs and talk often about how much they could get away with before they would lose their great-paying state job. Politicians are really good about talking about "recidivism reduction" and yet the system seems to truly set people up to get back in. Just my opinion... take it for what it is worth! :)

Recidivism reduction will always occur if the sentences imposed are longer. Less of a precentage released less of a precentage returns. See as a social worker I've have seen the way statistics can be misrepresented. As a state employee I know first hand how the state makes sure the statisitcs they release convieniently prove they are bettering society. For example, the state of Florida recently released a report stating that less children were abused in their foster homes over the last year. They wrote a whole bunch of junk "proving" this. The key word in the report was THEIR foster homes. Here is the catch... Florida has recently decided to contract private agencies to take over the department of children and families. Over the last year they have slowly reffered open case (including foster care) to these agencies. So the amount of abused children in foster homes over the last year may very well have gone down. But, it may have gone up dramatically too. These children may just have been placed in foster homes monitored by the private agencies. Well the report only talks about the state. Those of us who work for the state were so mad when we saw this because we just got notice that the number of infants that died due to abuse/neglect over the last year had almost doubled. But hey statistics show, blah blah, blah. (I hope I made some sense cause I tend to ramble about things that bother me deep down). Sometimes I wonder if these things are written by lawyers. I mean who better to "prove" a point with a underlying misconception?
Michelle

The recid. rate is going to stay the same, the only thing is the recid.'s are parole violators for such b.s. as being 5 min. over curfew. Correct it is a statistic padding ! ?????? If you and other workers noticed the death rate was higher then why didn't you ask questions, create waves and show the COVER-UP???????????????

we all wanted to but who's gonna be the trouble maker and loose their job? In reality as we got madder the press caught on and printed articles about the facts. However they were not front page like the first one. Expected though.
Congrats on overcomming! I wish you all the luck! were you in State or fed? Maybe with all your knowledge you could help some of us answer some questions, if u don't mind.
Michelle

Originally posted by Rommell
I know the answer! I did 15 years. DAY FOR DAY SECOND FOR SECOND. #1. PHONES ARE THERE FOR INMATES TO CONTACT THEIR FAMILY (IES), PRISON HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE PHONE BILLS OR THE SURCHARGES.

I am not sure about the institutions you were in but I know for a fact the county jails and many of the prisons DO make quite a bit off the telephones

#2. LIKEWISE SO IS CABLE T.V.; DON'T WANT THE BILL DON'T HAVE CABLE! DON'T WANT THE PHONE BILL WRITE LETTERS.

You mentioned IES.. Are we talking FED phone systems? If we are talking about the B.O.P. then we also know inmates may be moved across the country away from their familes = few visitations.. Phone calls are more necissary to keep up family contacts.. Letters don't always cut it when you don't have voices and visitation very often

AS FOR FOOD AND MEDICAL AS IT SHOULD BE, IT'S CALLED RESPONSIBILITY!


When you are placed into prison, it becomes THEIR responsibility.. If you are not there of your own free will and you cannot make the $$ to cover it. then it is on them..

#3. WORKING IN FACTORY'S, YEAH SO! RESPONSIBILITY, IT TEACHES HOW TO DISCIPLINE ONESELF TO WORK AND MAKE MONEY AND STAND ON YOUR OWN TWO FEET, INSTEAD OF ROBBING LITTLE OLD LADY'S FOR THEIR SSI CHECKS, OR KILLING SOME 12 YEAR OLD OVER A PAIR OF TENNIS SHOES.

The vast majority of inmates are not in prison for "robbing little old lady's for their ssi checks, or killing someone 12 year old over a pair of tennis shoes" . I don't know if this teaches someone responsibility or just adds to bitterness of feeling like they are being taken advantage of.. Could you tell us how it made you feel if you worked in one?

tHUS THE QUESTION REMAINS REHAB/REFORM OR BIG BUSINESS??????? YOUR ANSWER IS INCONCLUSIVE!


Inconclusive? What are you looking for? Statistics, opinions, case history?
My Government professor said it best.. "We are no longer in a rehabilitation mentality where prisons/prisoners are concerned. We are in a lock up and throw the key away phase." He claimed these phases last about 10-20 years at a pop.. Take a look at the population and the programs in prison.. It seems pretty clear to me.. The priority is on locking up and throwing away the key... and Big Business is taking full advantage of this.. 2 million plus inmates is BIG BUSINESS.. especially when you corner the market..

David

I started in the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, during this little adventure of mine, I was blessed with the chance to visit USP-Leavenworth, I got a chance to work in UNICOR and make some $400.00 a month, likewise I worked for the Pa. DOC for a minor .18 an hour $30.00- a month. I concur as to medical, however when you have as many people ABUSING it as do then it is time to stop the BS. The vast majority of people in prison are there for stuff worse than robbing little old lady's! 90% of the murders got ACCIDENTIAL BODIES! Feel free to visit my web page and see what it did for me http://www.members.aol.com/rommell1959/myhomepage

I don't know what state you live in but here in PA. we have what is called the WHISTLE BLOWER LAW, if you get fired for reporting such things it's called arbitrary dismissal and you would win in court. Undercover leak to press with proff phone call to U.S. Attorney General.

Come on, you would have to be able to prove that was why you got fired and most of us know that it is very easy for the employer to come up with another reason why you were fired. For example they could lay you off due to "budget cuts" especially with the state. We all know that laws are written in a manner that is very subjective. How many people have been convicted with out proof, or sentenced around the guide lines. These things happen every day, in evry company and every courtroom. I'm suprised to hear someone was down for 15 years promote the US legal systems validity.
Michelle

NOTHING WRONG WITH THE SYSTEM, SYSTEM WORKS FINE BECAUSE PEOPLE WONT CHALLENGE IT. CAN'T FIRE 15 PEOPLE FOR BUDGET CUT'S, I PROMOTE A SYSTEM OF JUSTICE AND FAIRNESS; I SPENT 15 YEARS FIGHTING THE STATE OF PA. GOT CONVICTED, WON MY DIRECT APPEAL, HAD LEGISLATION REWRITTEN DURING THE PENDCY OF ALLOC. TO THE STATE S.CT. AND THEN APPLIED TO MY CASE EX POST FACTO, I KNOW ABOUT GETTING SCREWED BY THE SUSTEM, I ALSO LEARNED THE SYSTEM AND LEARNED HOW TO SCREW IT FEEL FRE TO VISIT MY HOME PAGE

maybe you could enlighten us?
Michelle

I WOULD BE MOST HAPPY TO INLIGHTEN ANYONE ON ANY SUBJECT THAT I MAY HAVE SOME SCHOOLING IN, HOW DO YOU SCREW THE SYSTEM I WOULD GUESS IS WHAT YOU WANT ENLIGHTENMENT ON. YOU SCREW THE SYSTEM BY LEARNING IT BETTER THAN THOSE WHO MADE IT AND WHO WROTE THE LAWS (CASE IN POINT IS COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA-V-WAYNE O'BRIEN AULTMAN, JR. 563 A.2D. 1290 REV'D 602 A.2D. 1210 (PA 1992) CERT. DEN. 112 S.CT.____(1992)) THEY WERE WRONG I WAS RIGHT, I KNEW I WAS RIGHT AND I'D BE DAMN IF I'D LAY DOWN AND TAKE IT EVEN AFTER THE LAWYERS TOLD ME IT WAS A LOST CAUSE, LAWYER FIRED, I SET PRECIDECT! HAD YOU AND YOUR CO-WORKERS OF USED THE WISTHLE BLOWER LAW IN YOUR STATE YOU COULD HAVE EXPOSED EVERYTHING AND COULD POSSIBLE EVEN BE THE DIRECTOR BY NOW, IT'S AMAZING HOW FAR A PERSON CAN GET ONCE THEY APPLY PRESSURE IN THE RIGHT PLACE, THE ONLY WAY TO CORRECT THE WRONGS IS TO HOPLD THE SYSTEM ACCOUNTABLE FOR ITS ACTIONS! TO DO THAT YOU MUST FIRST KNOW THE SYSTEM AND BE ABLE TO MOVE THROUGH IT , DID YOU VISIT MY HOME PAGE?????????????? KEEP IN MIND I'M A HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUT! ALSO CHECK OUT WWW1.ASKME.COM I'M LISTED UNDER CRIMINAL LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAQL LAW.

Rommell,

I think you are correct in many ways but it is VERY hard to apply pressure when you are an inmate or the family of one.
How long did it take you to get the relief that you wanted? Given your experience with these things, are there methods you think are more productive than others? What is the best way beyond everyone standing up on all the issues.. ?

David

The one thing a gurad hates worse than getting his/her ass beat by 1,000 pissed off convicts, is public eyes. Did you see the movie Shawshank Redemeption??? When Tim Robbins told the waden "I'll write a letter a week, they can't ignore me for ever." The warden said "yes they can", robbins said ":then I'll write two letters a week", in the end he got the books for the library and a check to start a library. During my last year or so one of the St. Sen. here in Pa made a lot of wise out the sid eof his neck remarks about prison and prison life and convicts in general. Needless to say I wa ssome what upset so I wrote him and told him he should keep his mouth shout about things he had no knowledge of, I produced facts and documentation tosupport what I said unlike him running off at the mouth. Well release me on parole he showed up at my cell door the very next day and said "sir you were correct, I should have at least taken a tour before I made any comments" He took his tour with me in tow, had lunch & talked, the next day he printed a semi-recantation of most of his statements of the prior two days. Public Pressure is the worst nightmare of prison officials!

Dear Rommell:

Son, I don't know what State you live in and I noticed that you made $400.00 per month while working in the system. I also noticed you were in the System for 15 years.

Someone really has brain washed you. My son lives in the State of North Carolina. He has been in the syste 12 years. Yes, he has been the the counseling classes. Yes he has been in school. (But he also graduated from College before prison) Yes he works every day in the Prison Kitchen. He gets paid .17 cent per day.... Not $400.00. I pay for any other item that he needs including his medical bills and the Phone billes to my home. Those phone bills are $3.05 per each 10 minutes. He only is 5 miles from my home. Yes, Evercom the PRISON TELEPHONE system here in the State of NC is a private company But, They do send a % of the phone bill to the Prison System. We are being charges Triple what the regular phone costs should be. My son cannot even call me on my 800 number which is a special rate I pay for long distance.
He can only get what I send to him. The only thing the prison system gives him is clothes and the little he gets to eat at meal time which very rarely includes real meat. Most times they are fed meat mixed with corn products to make it go farther.

The State of North Carolina is now selling products made by the inmates to the public business. The prison system is making money on those sales. They also get a substantial amount of money from the Federal Government for inmates. We have 30,000 inmates in the State. Our State is very small population wise compared to Pennsylvania or New York or California.

I send my son $100.00 per month to live on..... "That is to buy his shoes (he also has to pay for them.) To pay his medical bills ( he has a back problem) and to give him enough to eat. Extra food has to come out of the canteen machines.

Yes, he has learned a lot.... But not through the rehab process. He has learned a lot by watching things around him... He has also learned a great deal by his faith in God. The Prison System has never taught him a thing. I have met many many inmates during his tenure. Most of them are good people who made stupid mistakes. They are not murdurers or robbers.. They sometimes are drug addicts and alcohol abusers who did not have their full capacity at the time of their crime.

Thanks for your opinion, but its not always the way you describe..... Prison is not a good thing at anytime.

Donna

If you had of read ALL of my post in this thread you would know I spent (or at least started) my 15 years sentence in PA. However due to the simple fact that I REFUSED to lay down and kiss a......, within 18 months I started a prison riot (my 4th), thereafter I was transferred to USP-Leavenworth for "SAFE KEEPING" you see my actions had the REGEAN trickle down effect, 2 days after I started the riot at SCI-Huntingdon, SCI-Camp Hill exploded, remember your news facts of October 25, 1989. In the FED system when you go to work in the factories (UNICOR) you start at .22 an hour, the increasments are in .22 rates, in 6 months I was making $1.32 and hour x 8 = $10.56 x 23 = $242.88 a month. In the fed system you will also be paid, OT, x & 1/2, double time as well as triple time on top of that there are also quota's meet the quota and get a bounus! I muat not forget the 2 weeks PAID vacation as well as the long jevity pay an extra $1.00 an hour, a person must be in UNICOR for a year to receive L.J. Yes $400.00 a month. Thank you for your insight into your sons medical problem, I alo went throiugh the same carp, for 15 years with my back, upon my release in Feb. 99 I was on a surgicial table being sliced open for spine surgery, simple don't pay the medical they can't deny medical attention to anyone in their coustody, if your son as you say works in the kitchen then he should have no problem with food, furthermore if he is a STAND UP CON none of his friends should have top worry about eating either. Does your son get the shit beat out of him every time the guard shift changes???????????????????? Or when the guards are boared????????????? I did! D A I L Y. YOUR SON SPEND 4 1/2 YEAARS IN THE HOLE 24 HOURS A DAY??????? You say your son has a college education (before prison) but he works in the kitchen for .17 an hour; so why doesn't he get with the proper people and get a real "prison" job, i.e. the law library, block clerk those are the paying jobs and after 12 years he should know this, sounds to me like he's a mommies boy and needs mom to STILL take care of him. My parents sent me money too, I sent it back! I stood on my own two feet, either I survive on my skills or I fall down, I tripped a few times but in the end I made it by myself. PRISON IS PUNISHMENT, it isn't suppose to be easy or fun or laid back, prisons are full of MURDERS/KILLERS rapist, robbers,child molestors, etc.... the basic scum of the earth and so is how they are suppose to be treated, every now and again a few innocent people fall through the cracks into the abyss know as the PENAL SYSTEM, 100 innocent & 34,000 guilty! The 100 have to take what is intended for the 34,000. Being in prison is like anything else in life, IT'S WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT! Oh by the way has your son been sent half way across the country, keep in mind that during PA's little "let us hide them" secene of 1989 there were convicts from PA that ended up in CAlF. You don't get the undelying of why the prison systems are now making inmates pay for stuff. It's very simple, make it as uncomtorfable as possible and just maybe they will STAY OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's the new form of DETERENCE, I'm one of the exceptions to the rule, I was a bad ass going in, stayed one while in and let it be known to the cops from the door "I'm not the one to piss off" 5 riots in 15 years! It's as I told someone else on this thread it's BOTH BIG BUSINEES AND REFORM; you yourself say "my son has learned alot............" "mostly from watching people around him......................." CONVICT'S & COP'S" What has he learned??????? Human nature????????????? That the system that he use to believe in is all screwed up, that politicians are all liars, just what has he learned, not much he still works in the kitchen after 12 years maaking .17 an hour.

You still don't get it do you? Here, there are no other jobs. We are Country....Even Levenworth has towns around it and a population of many. North Carolina has almost as many inmates as we do people.....

This prison system does not even have jobs for most inmates and will not pay more than 17 cent. The inmates get gain time... (time off) for their good behavior.... They are used to produce goods for this special profit company situation that you say does not exist.....

Why should the prison system pay them anything? They don't have to.... They certainly do not have to give them jobs in the liabrary.

They have no access to computers.... No law library.... No TV except in the mess hall. I am glad you are so very able to take care of yourself. That is great and most all of the inmates I have met want to be able to do the same things. They hate having to depend on anyone for anything. They hate to have put their families through such pain.

So is Butch. He weighs 295 lbs all muscle. (He works out daily and has since 15 years old. He played Football, wrestled and played basketball. Yes, he has had a few confrontations (5 in 12 years) He stands his ground like a Man and not many people want to bother him. He stays to himself and does not get involved in the day to day crap that goes on in prisons. This you can do....

I hope you loose some of the bitterness you have acquired over the years. It takes a big person to be able to walk away from trouble. It takes an even bigger person to forgive.

I'll never loose my bitterness it is what keeps me alive; Butch is DOING TIME! I "REQUIRED TIME TO DO ME" I know many people as Butch just sitting back doing time, not wanting to start any problems other than to moan about how the systems does this and that. But not FIGHTING THE SYSTEM! As for Law Libraries, I know better! WOLfF-V-MCDONNELL 94 S.CT. 2963 is a case right out of N.C. it's a landmark case that established that all state prisons would have law libraries, I argued the case to manny time over my time not to know it. I never said the "ghost company" didn't exist. I know all to well what goes on, I was a block clerk, I did the paperwork, not only do I have a Paralegal Degree I also have one in accounting, business math, business management; I put what I had to use to keep from "DOING TIME", checks and balances; If it wasn't right and across the board I'd report it, I had two wardens arrested for fraud and several other guards indicted for conspiracy. GOOD TIME????? Here it is DAY FOR DAY! Parole at half (i.e 7 1/2 to 15), they told me in 1993 to admitt to them I was guilty and they would parole me, I told them "Kiss my ass I'm not guilty; I'll max out before I tell you I'm guilty of something when I'm not, max me" Do you know any of your sons friends willing to go that far???????????? You see I got convicted; wrote out my own direct appeal and WON had my sentence vacated and the case remanded; then the state legislature decided to rewrite the law while the state appealled to the state supreme court, the court agreed to hear my case and the rewrritten law was applied to my case on appeal to the state s.ct.; they used the rewritten version to reverse the lower court and reinstate my sentence, Thus setting PRECIDENT in Pa and the U.S. Eastern District of PA as well as the Third Circuit Unted States Courrt of Appeals (which covers PA, NJ, DE)! Loose my bitterness, nope; and I get even more bitter when I hear of convicts that just lay down and not fight for what they want, I'm from the ATTICA mold of CONVICT!

Romell, what is your point? I have been watching this forum for a while now and cant stand not asking you what your point really is? Your first post was about prison rehab and reform or big business? but it really seems like you just want to argue and talk talk talk? I looked at your website but cannot figure out what exactly it is you wanted everyone to see?
I am all for debate and would be more than happy to debate issues with you or anyone else but please make sense.

Rockford


I did time in USP Levenworth, USP Terre Hutte, Lompoc, & MARION.. which is where they send inmates that incite riots & need real "behavior modifications". I have never heard of someone being sent to USP Levenworth in recent memory for what you are talking about. Maybe a disciplinary x-fer but its no MAX. Levenworth is just another old USP.. definitely not a MAX / ADMIN

The question was Reform/rehab or big business? Simple question; follow the thread closely the second respopnse was CORRECT it's both for those that want to take advantacge of the STRUCTURE that was missing prior to being locked up. Don't know when you were at the USP, don't really matter usp-lvn is class 5 max; go back to the newspapers for oct-dec 1989 and follow the transferrs of the PA prisoners all the way to usp-lompac.



what is there for u to see???? Guess sometimes it's hard to see the forrest for the trees! REFORM IS THERE FOR U TOP SEE! If you did the time you say then you know those who lay down get run over those that fight in the end are the wons left alone by the system, sure get to see the us via a bus, all part of the game, if I wanted conversation I'd go to a bar, I simply responded to a reply from someone who made the question a personal matter about her son, as if his the only son in the us lockedc up.

You also know what I say about UNICOR is also true.

Why the riots; as i said before one thing a cop hates worse than pissing off 800 inmates on one block and thats being exposed to the public.

Rommell, I was browsing you site and came across a page/picture you have up under "Rommell 1959". I just have to ask if this is a self portrait? Maybe it was meant to be a joke, in that case I am still laughing, though I don't know if I would have put it in the same webpage/site as the one with my official degree credentials.

Since it would not be tasteful, nor "legal" to paste it here I will just post the link.

Peace brother and keep up the good fight! - Rockford

LINK:

http://members.aol.com/rommell1959/index.html

or you can get there from the main page behind the cute little puppy with "Rommell 1959" above it.

:cuffs: :cuffs: :cuffs: :cuffs: :cuffs: :cuffs: :cuffs: :

My puppy, My Rottie (Rommell; now decest 12-17-01), optical illusion, "TOP" hand-rollie. :-)

Is it a cammel or donkey?

:hmm:

No, I am talking about the page it links to of an Arab and an animal? Click on the picture

OH thats my groups page, Osomma "BEND-A-LOTTEN" U.S. couldn't find him but I'd. :--) Donkey!

I admit I was/am ignorant of the US prison system. Until I found out just recently that I have two friends incarcerated I thought the penal system worked just fine. I protested at the thought that a prisoner could get a degree while incarcerated while I had to work two jobs and try to take one class at a time. Why should they get a degree so easily and I have to work so hard? I. thought the United States had the best humane system running. Just look at Turkey and China! Our government will tell you. Then I began to hear complaints and I justified them to myself with, "Well if someone (another inmate) hadn't broken the rules or hurt or killed someone in the past then that privilege would not have been taken away. Then I learned that humane things were forbidden. Little things like Hot food that is not rotten, real sunlight, a descent place to sleep.

I even watched the Taliban terrorist prisoners placed in Guantonomo Bay and thought everything looked good to me. Not much different from what our American prisoners receive. Then it occurred to me when the whole world and Amnesty International went crazy and protested loudly at their treatment maybe something was wrong. This started my research and education quest.

Reform? I don't see too much although there is some effort in trying to teach trades and continue education. That has to help. Mentally reformed? I don't see how that could happen. To be kept in overcrowding, hostile, cages, and enslaved environment cannot do a person with good mental health any good. If a person is a bit unstable they will came out a lot unstable.

To teach someone a lesson? If you don't follow the rules you will be locked up again? I believe if they have the nature to do crime that threat will not matter. If they lived through the prison system once One more time will be a piece of cake.

Big Business? I think not but maybe this would be a better idea. Why not make this a business and reinvent the system? I know there are private prisons and that is not a different idea. Design a new controversial prison system. What does not work and what works. Surely someone has figured that out. I would love to hear Amnesty International ideas on this. Anyone else has ideas on the ideal prison system? Easy enough to complain how it is run now but starts getting hard on how to replace the wrong programs. No one in political office wants to tackle hard projects that will send controversy his way. Can't get re-elected if your not tough on crime.

To Rommell, Good for you in fighting and learning the legal system. I checked out your web page and I didn't see anything to validate your claims at all except the claim you like to argue. All I could see was that you made good grades on your report card, you have dogs, and the not so nice picture of the donkey. Maybe you have an important link down? Until you get more infomation on there or fix it I wouldn't recommend it to prove your valid on any of your debates.

As far as other inmates following your example and do as you do I have a friend that is fighting the courts and because he filed so many appeals he is banned from the law library. He makes $40.00 a month working and they seize every penny charging him for copies and postage of his legal appeals. They confiscated his legal files because they exceeded the 1X1 cubic personal space limit. But he is still fighting. NOt everyone has assess to the libraries for whatever reasons.

Perhaps you should follow your own advise and take the tour of other prison systems before you cast judgments and opinions. What is a prisoner "whine" to you might be something he can do to better hismself or maybe not? Rules, regulations and privilges may not be protestable the same way you attained them.

As far as patting your own back for not pleading guilty with the promise of parole. So what? Any idiot would know the parole board lies. That offer they made you is one of a million. Just a lie. They would not have paroled you for sure if you admitted your guilt. We are not impressed with that claim of being a 'grand stand by your principles man." Sorry but I had to call you on this.

The best future to you. Peace, love, blessings, and harm to none.

First of all, it's big business. If a tv that on the outside costs like 45 dollars, cost an inmate 175 dollars, let me know what it is that makes it that expensive. The guys who work, get like 15 cent/hour, while the things they produce is sold for a lot more. What happens to that money. it certainly isn't used to It;s rehabilitation in a certain way, but only because the guys get time to think about what they did. Only the people who want to rehabilitate will rehabilitate. but if people want to get into a drugs program, to get rid of their problem, and they get refused, or the state cancels the program, because it costs too much (??), but still tests the guys on drugs in their blood,... even if you have intentions to better yourself, you don't get the opportunities.
even the guards try to make the guys do the wrong things, because they seem to love and see them slip and fall.