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> Prisons, Is this to harsh?
Rindy 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 09:49 AM
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Sheriff Joe Arpaio (in Arizona) who created the "tent city jail":
He has jail meals down to 40 cents a serving and charges the inmates for them
He stopped smoking and porno magazines in the jails.
Took away their weights.
Cut off all but "G" movies.
He started chain gangs so the inmates could do free work on county and city projects.
Then he started chain gangs for women so he wouldn't get sued for discrimination.
He took away cable TV until he found out there was a federal court order that required cable TV for jails. So he hooked up the cable TV again but only let in the Disney channel and the weather channel.
When asked why the weather channel he replied, so they will know how hot it's gonna be while they are working on my chain gangs.
He cut off coffee since it has zero nutritional value
When the inmates complained, he told them, "This isn't the Ritz/Carlton. If you don't like it, don't come back.
He bought Newt Gingrich' lecture series on videotape that pipes into the jails.
When asked by a reporter if he had any lecture series by a Democrat, he replied that a democratic lecture series might explain why a lot of the inmates were in his jails in the first place.

More on the Arizona Sheriff:
With temperatures being even hotter than usual in Phoenix (116 degrees just set a new record), the Associated Press reports:
About 2,000 inmates living in a barbed-wire-surrounded tent encampment at the Maricopa County Jail have been given permission to strip down to their government-issued pink boxer shorts.
On Wednesday, hundreds of men wearing boxers were either curled up on their bunk beds or chatted in the tents, which reached 138 degrees inside the week before.
Many were also swathed in wet, pink towels as sweat collected on their chests and dripped down to their pink socks. "It feels like we are in a furnace" said James Zanzot, an inmate who has lived in the tents for 1 1/2 years. "It's inhumane."
Joe Arpaio, the tough-guy sheriff who created the tent city and long ago started making his prisoners wear pink, and eat bologna sandwiches, is not one bit sympathetic
He said Wednesday that he told all of the inmates: "It's 120 degrees in Iraq and our soldiers are living in tents too, and they have to wear full battle gear, but they didn't commit any crimes, so shut your damned mouths!"
Way to go, Sheriff! Maybe if all prisons were like this one, there would be a lot less crime and/or repeat offenders. Criminals should be punished for their crimes - not live in luxury until it's time for their parole, only to go out and commit another crime so they can get back in to live on taxpayers money and enjoy things taxpayers can't afford to have for themselves.
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susieq76 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 10:02 AM
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Amen! I think most of what he said was fine. I would disagree with letting them watch the Disney channel - that wouldn't be punishment for the child molesters. Maybe the Cooking Channel or some other channel that might be punishment for them.

I don't think they should be in tents in that kind of weather, though. And the Newt Gingrich thing could definitely be perceived as cruel and unusual punishment biggrin.gif


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HeatherMarie 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 10:30 AM
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Life of luxury? How is being a prisoner luxurious? Let me ask you this: Imagine you lived in a palace. The palace is huge, has cable TV, a sauna, swimming pool, gym, library, and other amenities to make your stay more comfortable. However, you're not allowed to leave the palace. And you know that you'll be stuck there for let's say the next 15 years. All the freedom you had before you moved into the palace is gone. You can only see your friends and family during certain hours of the day on certain days of the week. On top of all this, there's also another 1000 people that live in the palace with you, some of which are not the nicest characters and are apt to pick fights with you for no apparent reason. You have virtually no privacy or time to yourself because the palace is so crowded. You don't even have your own bedroom, you have to sleep with a complete stranger.

Would you consider this life luxurious?

Now I'm not trying to say that prisoners in the current Federal system have things too hard, but I don't think things need to be made harder either, especially not as hard as Mr. Arpaio is making things. Being a prisoner and having your freedoms removed is punishment enough. Prison's purpose in society is not only to punish criminals, but also rehabilitate them. By increasing the punitive aspect and minimizing the rehabiliatation aspect to nearly none, Mr. Arpaio is rendering the prison useless. These prisoners will have no idea how to reenter society. Telling them "Don't come back if you don't like it" will not deter them because if they commit another crime after they are released, the chance is small that they will be sent to that same prison. Not only is this prison inhumane, it's ineffective and a waste of taxpayer money.


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Aragorn 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 11:32 AM
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Who is more apt to return to such luxurious surroundings?? Prison is just that and always should be, a very terrible place to be and stay for any period of time. The reason we have such a high crime rate is the way the criminals are treated on the inside. Prisons have gotten to be like a country club for bad people. Please....They all should adopt a Turkish prison atmosphere where you would hate to ever go back. Prisoners have it way too easy and they have it better then any homeless person does. We should spend more money on the homeless and take care of them then to even spend one dime on prisoners.

They chose that life style and they need to pay for what they did in the worst possible fashion, no pun intended but I like the pink idea. I fully support what this sheriff is doing.

No, the prisoners will not know how to reenter society after spending time with his prison but they still don't know after spending time in a major prison either so that argument is a mute point. There is not enough done to make any prisoner ready to rejoin society as a productive citizen. If we creat a prison system where it would be the worst thing known to man to be placed in one then I think there will be a lot less crime in the streets. Please oh please bring back capital punishment and get rid of the prisoners on death row for good.

Just my opinion.


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oldraven 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 11:57 AM
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It's prison. Meant to be a punishment where you're cut off from society and get to keep your head. I don't see a problem with this at all.


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HeatherMarie 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 12:05 PM
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QUOTE
Please oh please bring back capital punishment and get rid of the prisoners on death row for good.

There's at least a hundred people who think we should do otherwise. We convict innocent people who later walk free, but once you kill someone, you cannot take it back.

Prison-as-punishment does not work. Virginia is learning this for itself right now. They focus on punishing prisoners, don't educate them or ready them for real life work, and wonder why their prisons are full of repeat offenders. Sure, we get the criminal off the streets for a short time, but they will be let out eventually. It's in society's best interest to try to ensure newly freed prisoners will have the knowledge and skills to live a new crime-free life.
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oldraven 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 12:15 PM
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It's also in the best intrest of society for these ex-cons to not want to go back. this reminds me of the people who think spanking will never work as good as a reasuring talk about why they should be good.
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Aragorn 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 12:18 PM
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Well, things happen....

I agree we should be reconditioning the prisoners and educating them so they can be a productive part of society, as of right now this is not happening and just how much do you want to ask from tax payers?? What about those who could careless about being educated and find the life of crime their best advantage in life?? Should we let them go so they can do the same things over again? Prison should be a dungeon where no one would ever want to go. There should never be any comforts unless it is in a class room. The criminal has a better life then the victim does. Our society is srewed up as a whole when it comes to prisons and prisoners...
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maisky 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 12:31 PM
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QUOTE (Aragorn @ 16-Dec-2004, 12:18 PM)
What about those who could careless about being educated and find the life of crime their best advantage in life??

They become preachers, used car salesmen and politicians.


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Rindy 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 01:29 PM
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QUOTE (Aragorn @ 16-Dec-2004, 11:18 AM)
Well, things happen....

I agree we should be reconditioning the prisoners and educating them so they can be a productive part of society, as of right now this is not happening and just how much do you want to ask from tax payers?? What about those who could careless about being educated and find the life of crime their best advantage in life?? Should we let them go so they can do the same things over again? Prison should be a dungeon where no one would ever want to go. There should never be any comforts unless it is in a class room. The criminal has a better life then the victim does. Our society is srewed up as a whole when it comes to prisons and prisoners...

Well said Aragorn, I believe they shouldn't have any comforts of any kind. It is sad some are innocent. But the majority are not. The costs of prisions are unreal. Other countries chop off your hand if you are caught stealing and the crime rate is much less than ours. The town where I live was going to get a medium security prison and the people fought back and we one.

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bubba 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 04:12 PM
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How many of you actually know anyone that's done time? I do and if anyone thinks the average prison is a "country club" they're not looking at reality. Yeah, politicians and the wealthy get to go to those country club jails, but the average person doesn't. Overcrowding is normal, 6 in a cell designed for 4. The food can charitably be called crap. It ain't fun. As for cable TV, that's a joke. The trustees might have access to TV in a dayroom, but often there isn't any. A friend of mine served 3 years. I've heard the other side.


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erickbloodax 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 04:49 PM
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A while back, a gentleman we will call Mr. Dumas, tried to get by a U.S. Border Patrol check point with some drugs. The agent on duty called me after his K-9 pointed at Mr. Dumas and said "Je acuse!" Well we can't have people trying to get dope past the check point so I took him to jail. The other day Mr. Dumas went to court for sentencing, and when he left the court he got into his car a proceeded to drive. . . to the U.S. Border Patrol check point. . .with some drugs in his car. . .where the K-9 said "Dude, would you give it a rest!". . .and we took him to jail. . .





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Aragorn 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 04:55 PM
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I have no pity for prisoners....You get what you pay for plain and simple. Don't like it do not do the time.....
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HeatherMarie 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 06:18 PM
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Bubba, did your friend serve in a state or federal penitentiary?

I think it's sad how it's ok to use prisoners as whipping boys for our desire for retribution. No thought is given to how some criminals have been created by society to begin with, or how our current prison system teaches convicts how to become more efficient criminals, or to try and think up better ways to rid ourselves of the crime problem. After all, convicts are hopeless cases who have chosen to spend their time in jail rather than become productive members of society, right? They chose to do the crime, so they deserve whatever sadistic punishment we can think up. After all, there are innocents living in worse conditions than these rapists and serial killers, so let's make sure they REALLY regret whatever they did! ...All said with an evil gleam in the eye and very little thought about how punishment works, psychologically.

But anyway, this guy can explain it much better than I can. He's actually been there. If anyone wants to hear how it really is, from an insider, that site is a great read. Otherwise, please...continue with the torture chamber designing.
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bubba 
Posted: 16-Dec-2004, 10:03 PM
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My friend did time in the State prison for robbery. Some might not believe it, but he got out and got a job through a rehab program. He's now a supervisor in a paper mill and a helluva great guy. Yeah, he did something stupid and he ain't proud of it but he was determined not to make any more of that kind of mistake. He did the time, stuck out the parole with a parole officer that took great pleasure in revoking his "clients" and made it. Frankly, I'd trust him before I'd trust most "pillars of the community".
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