Wind power is unreliable, as in it won't work 100% of the time (since the wind isn't always blowing outside of D.C.'s congressional halls). So I say put the generators, with handles instead of the long wings, in prisons.
I know the gut reaction: cruel and unusual.
Pay attention, my plan doesn't end there. I understand that this has been attempted before and that the prisoners endured intolerable conditions. However that does not mean we can't try again with improved conditions. People work in power plants all the time, why not prisoners? Here in Maine we have the highest electricity costs in the North East. This would be an effective way to lower costs immensely. Monetarily, creating the electricity would be free with my plan. The prisoners would be payed, but in credits, which I'll address later.
Now this work would not be required. It would be open to non-felons and felons who have had 10 years of good behavior. The yard, or the library doesn't pay the prisoner and so they earn nothing from it except pride just knowing they didn't sit in their cell all day wasting away.While long term that may help them, it doesn't give them something then and there to hold on to and it isn't a gaurantee of success once out of prison. This could give them something tangible. The payment, the value earned would be credits towards early release or parole. They would be earning their freedom. Freedom throughout history has never been free. An effort to gain and maintain freedom has always had a cost in effort, bravery, and even blood. This only calls for effort towards earning their freedom.
In the process of doing this they do not forget what it is to earn something. The prisoner could spend the credits towards better conditions: from private rooms, more time in the yard, or even an extra serving at the lunch the options are limitless. Or the prisoner could put them towards their release. Maybe even if they commit their credits towards release and nothing else it could be treated as a savings account and earn interest. What does this allow the prisoner to do? It allows them to not forget how to survive in society.
Recidivism is one of the plagues of our current criminal justice system. One of the stand-out social stereotypes, even if overplayed, does apply. It is the one of criminals leaving prison not knowing how to function in society. Prisoners are those who have been deemed dangerous enough to seperate from society. I believe prisons should be isolated societies where the prisoners are seperated from the mainstream, but not so much so that they forget how to live.
With this work being a choice for the prisoner, it is not forced labor. Giving the prisoner choices makes certain they keep the sense of freedom and how to use it. It is not a blank check of freedom, because they are still being punished, but it makes sure they keep control over enough freedom to know how to survive when they finish their sentence. It would also give them a career opening into electricity when they leave because they (using their credits and passing a test) could even earn promotions to operate other aspects of the power plant then just moving the turbine to make it work.
If anyone disagrees with my plan let me know.
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8 comments:
Unfortunatley, if the prisoners are stuck away from the mainstream they most likely would forget how to live in a society. Even in today's time prisoners do forget how to get back into society, and this would make it even worse.
Chirp chirp
How would it make it worse?
They would be even farther away from the mainstream society. In turn, would make them slip further and further away from the real world.
How does this make them further seperated from mainstream society? This does not take away anything they have otherwise, and in fact gives them a society to be part of that immitates the world outside. Prisons today seem to lack the society that enables prisoners to be prepared for a return to the mainstream. This would give prisoners something close to mainstream, and not isolate them further.
I agree that it would give them their own society. What about when they have to leave THEIR little society, and then get back to the regular society. Can they make it without the people that were in the society they made?
People move from city to city, to different homes, kids get transferred to different schools all the time. The society's people are not the critical element, it is the society and the process of living in a society that must be preserved.
Prison society is different than Our idea of a society. Actually im giving up this debate, and giving Kudos to you. Prisoners actually have it better, they actually get meals. They don't have to worry about the economy, cause they can't buy anything Anyway. Remember Dorothy saying to Stan about finding a Buba? Even Prisoners can have fun.
Chirp
The meals may be free, but the economy does affect them. When the states do not recieve enough tax income the prisons suffer cut backs in maintainence or even in expansion of the prison so the overpopulation issue is a major factor. The prison plan above reduces prisoner population based on recidivism. The Buba comment, Golden Girls are not a philosophy of life to follow. The other comment after that, I will leave that for someone else to address in their own drunken stupor. Thank you for conceding and post on other things if you like. - RHKINC
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