Why not educate yourself about the Prison Industrial Complex?

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

It flies under the consciousness of most. Google it. Think about the how and why we incarcerate the numbers of people we do. Think about who we incarcerate. Think about who profits from such a flawed system.

This appeared on Daily Kos today. It might make a good start.


http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/6/30/880039/-Crimina...

[TheDebbieDee]

1. I did some research on this last fall while preparing a presentation

for class. The US has 5% of the world's population, but 25% of the world's prisoners.

WE ARE a prison nation!

[Oregone]

2. We're Number 1! We're Number 1!

[depakid]

4. Land of the free! home of the..err....

[Quantess]

8. A dubious distinction to be #1 in this category.

[handmade34]

3. I did a few years as a Correctional Officer

only minimum security, but it was an education. The cost to incarcerate an individual costs from $20,000+ upwards towards $100,000 depending on where it is. Sad state of affairs. I needed the job but quit because a number of the guards were seriously deranged and annoying (common wisdom is that the only difference between inmates and guards is that the inmates got caught)

[Whisp]

5. who says slavery is abolished?

land of the free, ha!

[annm4peace]

6. t;his Year is the most I have seen attention to the Prison complex

and even more, to think of the humans who are incarcerated.

It seems to be gaining momentum and I hope it doesn't stop.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

7. Sen Jim Webb of Virginia is actually paying attention to the issue of prison reform

I've emailed and thanked him for taking on an orphan issue that has huge implications.

Say prison or prisoner and no one cares.

[TexasObserver]

9. it's the main reason the War of Drugs continues

This is a monster the GOP created to privatize prisons, so that they could ship business to their supporters, who could ship political contributions back. Mainly GOP, with some Dems guilty, too.