What is the primary purpose of prison?

[Extend a Hand]

Poll question: What is the primary purpose of prison?

[valerief]

1. To make prison owners very, very rich. And to provide slave labor

to favored corporations.

[izquierdista]

5. Ding, ding, ding!

We have a winner!!

[XemaSab]

49. Oh, bullshit

Don't tell me that if someone raped your daughter your first thought would be the corporations.

[tazkcmo]

13. Yup. n/t

[Sarah Ibarruri]

30. Isn't that how many corporation owners got rich in the 3rd Reich too?

Same thing as now.

[Extend a Hand]

33. I agree that private for profit prisons are an abomination

but I was really curious about what others in light of the polanski flame wars

[yurbud]

40. yep--which is another reason righties enact insane gun laws...

When you shoot your wife from your barcolounger, whip out you magnum to settle a bar fight, you will have to go to prison.

A private prison.

That the Republican dickweed you voted for collects profits from so he can run more ads to convince you that you need your gun in more places.

For example, funeral homes. Because if that guy isn't quite dead after you went to all the trouble to put on your suit, SOMEONE's gotta finish him off...

[the other one]

59. Great minds think alike

And so do you and me

[Forkboy]

2. A mix of 1 and 3.

[vadawg]

4. +1 punishment hopefully to make the inmates not want ot come back

and primarily to keep the inmates away from the general public, especially the scarey ones..

[EndersDame]

3. It should be about Rehab but it is about Learning How to Make Meth

[Mojambo]

6. Primary? Protecting society. n/t

[handmade34]

7. I used to be a correctional officer

...it's job security for the staff

[NOLALady]

11. My relatives who worked in law enforcement

said the EXACT same thing.

[customerserviceguy]

34. As a former corrections officer

don't you feel that there are individuals who need to be kept away from society? Or did you just guard drug possessors?

[handmade34]

37. yes, there are some individuals that should be kept away from society

[vadawg]

39. i think theres a lot of people who should be kept well away from the rest of society

we have all met the guy or gal who you just know is going to hurt or kill someone as soon as they get back on the street..

[customerserviceguy]

47. So, then, the job of being a correctional officer

is more than just job security for the individuals?

I was a good friend of two CO's about ten years ago, one would talk about his job, the other wouldn't. Both were good men, fine gentlemen really, and the crap they had to deal with was pretty horrific. I've known a goodly number of government-employed people, and what they dealt with was piddling compared to what these guys had to put up with.

[handmade34]

52. I have a daughter who is a police officer and

throughout my life have been friends with and/or crossed paths with many CO's and police officers. I am not trashing all officers; I am maintaining that our prisons system (corrections?) needs much tweaking. I have much respect for honest officers.

[Rabrrrrrr]

8. To give republicans something to masturbate over

To a lesser extent, the purpose is to keep violent and other criminals off the streets.

But mostly it's to give Republicans a great woody because they get off on humiliation, bondage, and mistreatment of people.

It's also a way that the Republicans are able to keep black people, especially the black men, out of society, so that they don't go around having sex with the white women and taking the white man's jobs.

[handmade34]

15. I have stories...

...one day I was in a sallyport watching three units, we had a substitute supervisor and he came down and ordered me to get one of the young guys out (this kid was not a serious criminal) the supt proceeded to egg the kid on intentionally to get him written up - I quit soon after, for a number of reasons.

[Nye Bevan]

48. How about Madoff?

Does he belong in prison?

[Rabrrrrrr]

51. Oh, gee. I don't know. What do YOU think?

:eyes:

[TexasObserver]

9. It's all three, and we pursue each of them in prisons.

[Flaneur]

14. I haven't seen a whole lot of rehabiliation efforts for a few decades.

More like useless warehousing.

[vadawg]

17. i would not say useless, way i look at it the 50 inmates in my block tonight

are here instead of out stealing, robbing, driving drunk, killing people. Its better for all concerned for them to be wharehoused as you say than wandering the streets committing crimes..

[TexasObserver]

21. Are you a prison guard or a jailer?

[vadawg]

22. deputy sheriff working tonight in a female block...

[TexasObserver]

23. So, many of your inmates are merely charged with crimes, not convicted?

If they had been convicted, wouldn't they be in prison?

Or are these people convicted of things like shop lifting, prostitution, possession, etc. and serving out sentences at the county level for those crimes?

[vadawg]

25. nope not all the time, depends if they are doing county time or DOC

also even if they are DOC they can sit here waiting for transport for quite a long time...

[TexasObserver]

26. Some are merely charged and some are already convicted.

The convicted would break down into those awaiting transfer to prison, and those serving county time, would they not?

You would therefore have those three types of prisoners: those on the way to prison, those serving county sentences, and those awaiting trial. Correct?

[vadawg]

27. nope in this block its county time females and DOC, but there are inmates who are awaiting trial

throughout the gaol.

[TexasObserver]

29. What's the "gaol?"

[vadawg]

31. oops county jail n/t

[vadawg]

58. i forget sometimes to spell it the US way...

[vadawg]

41. realistically it makes no difference what their status is anyway

they are all treated as inmates as long as they are in the facility, the only differences between inmates are the levels of classification and were they are housed...

[TexasObserver]

46. My point was you consider them all the same, convicted or not.

Some are only guilty of not being able to pay bail.

Some will be acquitted.

[vadawg]

54. yup they are all treated the same, even if its not being able to pay bail

my life and the life of everybody else in here depends on me doing my job and doing it well, some of the dumbest and most dangerous people i have had to deal with are in here on minor charges or are intoxicated etc. So yes everybody gets treated the same whether innocent or guilty as long as they are guests of the facility..

[Flaneur]

How many have been convicted of a crime?

I assume you work a jail, not a prison.

And how many are in there for non-violent offenses?

About half of all state and federal prisoners are in for non-violent offenses, including about a quarter for drug offenses (60% in the federal gulag).

My contention is that the US is prison crazy. It's a substitute for having a humane, rational social policy.

[TexasObserver]

19. When was the last time you talked to a prisoner or an ex con about imprisonment?

There's actually quite a bit of rehab, and it's generally considered the best shot at ending the recidivist cycle. Not everywhere. Not all prisons. But they're doing good things in substance abuse treatment. It's not possible with all and should not be pursued with all, but it definitely helps many.

[NOLALady]

10. Other.

Profit through slave labor.

Slavery
Share Croppers
Jim Crow
Draconian Prohibition Laws

It's all about the same thing, profit at the expense of their fellow countrymen.

[tazkcmo]

12. Punishment

Does society need to be protected from a chemo patient buying pot?

[aikoaiko]

16. Punishment and protection of society. If it were only protection, then no one would get out.

But we have sense of paying for crimes and some crimes require lesser years in prison.

[Swamp Rat]

18. To protect the rich

[vadawg]

20. unfortunately its not the rich who are the victims of crime

its the poor people who are struggling to get by on the minimum who are robbed on the street corner or whose house gets burgled.

[Swamp Rat]

24. Yes, the poor are the victims.

Not the rich.

[whoneedstickets]

28. It should be about rehab...in the long run all but the worst will get out.

It would be great if they had something to do other than repeat offend.

[Thickasabrick]

32. +1 nt

[rucky]

36. +2

[BuyingThyme]

35. Revenge.

[Nye Bevan]

38. The *only* real deterrent for white-collar criminals

Fraudsters and embezzlers who have almost certainly squirreled away millions offshore during their crimes.

Question for all those DUers who seem to hate the concept of prison: would you have been happy if Bernie Madoff has simply been made to pay a fine and apologize?

[Selatius]

42. Rehabilitation should be the primary goal of prison and safety of society if the individual is...

deemed to be beyond reform.

Unfortunately, private prisons are twisting the entire system into a for-profit enterprise.

[Kievan Rus]

43. I'd agree with C but for that dumb-ass Drug War

[Massacure]

44. Other -- Deterence.

Humans tend to seek gratification and to avoid pain. We discipline humans by threatening them with something unpleasant and then punish them if they do it anyway.

Unfortunately, we also punish people for doing things that they have no other choice but to do -- such as jailing homeless people for vagrancy, loitering, or trespass.

[johnaries]

45. Please clarify: what is it currently, or what should it be? nt

[Extend a Hand]

50. What you think it should be n/t.

[Romulox]

53. Other: enforce modern day Jim Crow. nt

[JackRiddler]

55. As long as there is drug prohibition? Class war, obviously.

[Odin2005]

56. All of the above, and one more, deterrence.

[conflictgirl]

57. Punishment, and cheap labor, and keeping the unemployment rate artificially low

In one of my urban sociology classes in college we specifically focused on demographics relating to prison and unemployment rate in certain zip codes - in one zip code in my city, the unemployment rate among black males between age 16-52 was 75% and 2/3 of those had been in prison. However because the overall unemployment rate for the city was "only" 15 percent it was easy to overlook the fact that among certain populations it was actually far higher.

Prison is a holding cell in many ways. Although some criminals indeed present a danger to society and the streets are safer without them, what about all those who are in jail for lesser offenses like marijuana possession? They don't present any significant danger to society. But when the official unemployment rate is already 15 percent in some places, like where I live, what happens if you release people from all their holding places like prison and the military? Imagine what would happen to the unemployment rate then? We might see just how bad the employment outlook is right now.

[madmusic]

60. DU is conservative on crime (compared to California)

At the same time, analysts said, the survey revealed an undercurrent of conflicting attitudes that could affect the future of Schwarzenegger's evolving program and California's troubled prison system.

Californians are divided over the primary role of the prison system in society, except most believe it has to do with them. Some 35 percent say prisons exist to protect the public from crime, while 26 percent say prisons are there to punish inmates for what they have done.

Only 25 percent say prisons' primary role is to rehabilitate criminals, who inmate advocates said often are already disadvantaged before they commit crimes.

"Democrats are more likely than Republicans and independents to say rehabilitation, while Republicans are more likely than Democrats or independents to say protecting the public from crime," said Baldassare.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4176/is_20070602/ai_n19203837/

But Arnie led them to enlightenment.

[madmusic]

61. Compare this Dec-23-04 DU poll on the same question

50% voted rehabilitation.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x2859626

Why the change over 5 years? Change in politics? Infiltration? What?

[cherokeeprogressive]

62. Other: License plates and military uniforms. SOMEone's gotta make 'em. n/t