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Need advice or assistance for son who is in prison
- crb002 6y agohttps://www.amazon.com/Category-Theory-Context-Aurora-Originals/dp/048680903X https://www.amazon.com/Category-Theory-Context-Aurora-Origin... was a Godsend when I was in solitary. Fuck jpay - send letters by post.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- crb002 6y agoTo the person who deleted their question, yes most institutions prefer you ship straight from Amazon. Make sure the inmate has the book pre-approved to prevent SNAFUs.
- Fjolsvith 6y agoAnd don't order used books. Only new books. Used will get rejected.
- mulmen 6y agoHuh, that’s surprising. I’m curious, do you know reason for that?
- calciphus 6y agoMy understanding is "anything not new might be modified". It's not specific to books.
- selestify 6y ago"Modified" as in, contains contraband that gets smuggled in via the book.
- cyberbanjo 6y agoPrisons have lots of (seemingly to me arbitrary) rules. Only new books from the printer has been my experience.
- newintellectual 6y agoWhy is this clearly extremely intelligent individual in prison?
- aaomidi 6y agoThis is so depressing. I really hate our punitive justice system. Punishing people for 15 years doesn't change drunk driving. If they were *thinking* before driving drunk, or contemplating the consequences, they wouldn't be driving drunk. Edit: I think this puts it far better than I can: http://www.cscsb.org/restorative_justice/retribution_vs_restoration.html http://www.cscsb.org/restorative_justice/retribution_vs_rest...
- influx 6y agoWhat would you rather do if someone drives drunk and kills two teenagers?
- aaomidi 6y agoI don't know, I just don't see the point of essentially killing another person. Is the point revenge? To make sure this doesn't happen again? Is justice = revenge? Questions... Like I guess my point is someone who is driving drunk is already not thinking logically. You could execute drunk drivers and the rate of new drunk drivers wouldn't change.
- screamingninja 6y agoYou can however stop punishing drunk driving and watch the number of drunk driving incidents skyrocket. The punishment is designed to act as a deterrent.
- aaomidi 6y agoAgain I don't think someone who is behind the wheel driving drunk is thinking about the consequences of their actions. I don't think the severity of the punishment changes that. I'd much rather see why drunk driving rates is far higher in the US than other countries with similar laws and transpiration systems.
- screamingninja 6y ago
- nickysielicki 6y agoSad story of why he's in prison: https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2015/06/man_sentenced_12-30_years_in_d.html https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2015/06/man_sentenced_1... See also: https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2015/10/crash_victims_family_sues_supe.html https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2015/10/crash_victims_f... > "While he's on bond, he commits a strong-arm robbery down in Monroe stealing a fifth of whiskey," Bredell said, adding that authorities in Monroe eventually dropped those charges because the Washtenaw County case took precedence. Alcohol has ruined a lot of lives.
- noncoml 6y agoReminded me of the movie Another Earth. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it
- whiddershins 6y ago‘Alcohol has ruined a lot of lives’ True. True fact. You don’t know that this is that.
- anonytrary 6y agoI think it is fair to assume that someone who goes as far as to commit a strong-arm robbery for a fifth of liquor probably has an extremely toxic relationship with alcohol.
- whiddershins 6y agoThe overwhelming majority of alcoholics do not do this.
- reificator 6y ago> > ‘Alcohol has ruined a lot of lives’ > True. True fact. > You don’t know that this is that. I don't think it's that far of a stretch given > > he commits a strong-arm robbery down in Monroe stealing a fifth of whiskey
- troupe 6y ago
- sillysaurusx 6y agoSometimes I try to imagine life without prisons. It seems an inexorable part of the human condition: where society exists, punishment exists. It's a bit like trying to imagine all the foods we're missing out on by them not existing; it's easy to imagine a world without tomatoes, for example, and if you invert that thinking, you end up with all the foods we might have enjoyed if they evolved. Is there any society with no judicial system? Or is it an absolute requirement of any group of people over, say, 10,000?
- viraptor 6y agoIt seems like an extreme different from the current one. From the post: "In short, without direct access to the internet or fellow researchers [...]" - that seems like a really stupid limitation for someone who wants to be productive. Many countries could start with prisons which are not pure punishment. We even have "open prisons" in a few places. Once we stop over-punishing, it could be easier to imagine plan for what no-prison world would look like.
- nilkn 6y agoIt's interesting to consider that if we provided inmates with computers and a solid internet connection, they could potentially find remote work in the new virtual world and have a full-time job.
- codesnik 6y agosomewhat related: in Russia, mobile phones are illegal in prisons, but somehow ends up available to some inmates. Sizeable amount of scam calls from "banks" etc are coming from there. Problem isn't solved for many years, of course prison management tolerates if not directly profits from that, but yeah: internet and mobile connectivity will be used for crimes, unless something else in how prisons work would change as well.
- yamakadi 6y agoThe sad truth is, if that were the case, prisons would label what they do as prison labor and claim their wages or sell them connectivity and equipment at exorbitant prices. One upside is it would be a solid addition to their resume, but that’s after they find a company willing to hire ex-cons. We would all be better off if prisons had rehabilitation and reintegration as their raison d'être, but with private prisons wanting to grow, I doubt that’ll happen any time soon.
- sebmellen 6y agoIt's tragic to see bright young people in prison like this. Travis (the son in this post) is 25. To be in prison since 19 years old, with the earliest release date in 2027 (latest in 2045)... Goodness. This sort of time in jail is what you get for murder in parts of Europe [1]. Anyway, sorry if it's off-topic. Very inspiring what he's up to. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_imprisonment_in_the_Netherlands https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_imprisonment_in_the_Nethe... > Due to the strict nature of the sentence, most "common" murders result in a sentence of around 12 to 30 years. EDIT: If you downvoted me I would appreciate knowing why. What is it that I wrote?
- whiddershins 6y agoThink, for a moment. Let’s all think. Are we saying it is tragic for smart and young people to be in prison but not older or less intelligent people? I’m not messing with you or being snarky. I felt your sentiment keenly and then wonder what exactly I’m agreeing with.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- sebmellen 6y agoI'm sorry if it comes off as dismissing the plight of others, that certainly wasn't my intention. I think being sentenced so heavily in one's youth is arguably more tragic because there's an argument to be made that adolescence is a different developmental period [0]. Perhaps sentencing should take this into account (e.g. a different sentencing bracket until ~24?). Also, there's another argument to be made that younger people have had less time to sort themselves out, and a longer time to redeem themselves or make something of themselves (which I think we see here, not to say an elderly person couldn't do that). With regards to less intelligent people who are imprisoned, I would even say their plight is maybe even more tragic. Less intelligent people probably have faced many more hardships in life and/or had a harder time mounting a strong legal defence (though intelligent people are more likely to abuse drugs [1]). I suppose this struck me in particular because it's a strong condemnation of the stereotype that prisoners are "certain kinds" of people. The contrast is what made it stand out. Maybe it can serve as an example for those who believe you only end up in prison if you are one of those "certain kinds" of people. Again, it wasn't a calculated sentiment, it just struck me how absurd getting sentenced to up to 30 years of imprisonment is, especially as a 19 year-old who probably could've ended up at a top university if not for life circumstances. I also think our justice and prison system is fundamentally flawed and should be reworked, especially for non-violent crimes (which this borders on the edge of). [0]: https://bigthink.com/mind-brain/adult-brain https://bigthink.com/mind-brain/adult-brain [1]: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-scientific-fundamentalist/201010/why-intelligent-people-drink-more-alcohol https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-scientific-funda...
- martin1975 6y agoSend him the Holy Bible too, in addition to the math papers.
- edlebert 6y agoIt’s prison, I’m sure there are lots of bibles.
- tenacious_tuna 6y agoI'm beyond disturbed that you think a suggestion to proselytize your religion without any other discussion or interest in this person's life is a useful and empathetic action here. Please don't do this. Think more before you speak.
- mhh__ 6y agoIf God exists and created a world like this I'm not interested
- barnaclejive 6y agohah, because religious people make fewer bad decisions? Where are you going with this?
- sixmonths 6y agoA person below asked, "Why is this clearly extremely intelligent individual in prison?" (The comment is dead.) My father has several degrees, including a doctorate. He is highly intelligent, has an incredible work ethic and is a very kind and considerate person. He went to prison for 6 months for a minor financial crime, something that was very out of character for him. The judge did not wish to send him to prison (she said that in court) but the prosecutor insisted that the prosecution would appeal any non-custodial sentence. So the judge gave him the minimum 6 months. That custodial sentence ruined my father's life, made him basically unemployable, despite his brilliance and integrity, and ruined my family's life too. Now my parents live in poverty and I have $23 in my bank account, with rent due tomorrow. I expect to be homeless by next week. Not a great situation for somebody with clinical depression. Intelligent, good people can and do end up in prison and it can ruin lives (and not just the person behind bars, but also the people who love them). Good people do sometimes make terrible mistakes. My experience of this taught me so much. The really hard way. For anyone who has a family member in prison, or has a similar story to mine, I feel for you.
- 3131s 6y agoEveryone deserves to be helped out of poverty, but cases like yours show that the deck is just too stacked even against some of our brightest people. Despite being from a more stable set of circumstances and I can barely manage to get by at times (including now), if that helps. It's tragic that the very best things on this planet are being destroyed as we speak, including people like you and your father.
- crenstrope 6y agoThe father stacked the deck against himself and his family through his criminality. This has nothing to do with being a bright person (though, one that clearly wasn't bright enough to consider the consequences from committing this crime, and like, not do it).
- listenpal 6y agoActions have consequences and, well, you know what they say: if you can't do the time, don't do the crime. Perhaps your father isn't so much a "good person" as you believe. He sounds crooked to me, anyway.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- IG_Semmelweiss 6y agothis case makes me wonder - are there reasons that no govt agency nor NGO has offered computers to jails... with restricted connectivity to only specific domains like Coursera, Edx, etc? I understand the need to prevent criminal activity via internet access, but that seems like a trivial technical problem... or is it ? I'd think such an initiative would impact re-incarceration rates, which for the price of a few laptops, seems like a steal (pun intended)
- throwawayboise 6y agoProbably the thinking is that any online platform likely has some roundabout way to be used to communicate with people on the outside. Internal message boards, group chats, help desk, etc. The software would have to be usable completely offline to be acceptable.
- naewonawonga 6y agoPrisons do not actually have rehabilitation as a meaningful incentivized goal.
- IG_Semmelweiss 6y agoMaybe so. But the people paying for the prison certainly do. And they have the purse strings to impose things on their vendors. The profit motive cuts both ways. Good money steward, good outcomes. Checked out steward...
- naewonawonga 6y ago>> But the people paying for the prison certainly do. That's quite a leap.
- siliconvict 6y agoI also served a prison sentence. When I was 19, I didn't have a father or mother to send me books, but I managed to barter with other prisoners to get books to come in from the outside. My primary focus was computer science rather than mathematics, and even though I didn't have a computer to work with, I wrote out all my programs on paper. Learning was slow, very slow. When I got out, it took me 8 months to get a computer. I couldn't afford to buy one, so I bought it part by part and built one myself, even though I never had done it before. Fast forward 20 years, I'm a multimillionaire, successful startup founder, and two IPOs deep. I think my success came from the anger I felt in prison. Nothing could be worse than serving time, I told myself, and it made me very ambitious because of it. Reading Travis' letter and seeing his DOC number at the bottom of it made me feel all those painful, frustrated moments I had while serving time. Best of luck to Travis. I will be contacting his father and sending what is allowed.
- alex_young 6y agoIt’s unfortunate that so many here are advocating for harsh prison sentences for some perceived deterrent value. The US has the highest total number of people in prison, as well as the highest per capita rate [0], and yet we still have high rates of crimes we throw people in jail for decades for. Clearly this system isn’t having any deterrent impact, and it is having a huge cost to both the lives directly deprived of freedom and to the families around them. [0] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/uk/06/prisons/html/nn2page1.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/uk/06/prisons/html/nn2...
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- alphabettsy 6y agoYou’re right, but when referring to harsh prison sentences I think most people mean the fact the non-violent offenses like drug related ones can get you significant time. There are crimes of desperation and crimes of selfishness, most people I think have less tolerance for one than the other.
- julianmarq 6y agoI read the question and answers and felt a little cheerful at the idea of someone turning his life around and even thought to myself that maybe the system works sometimes. Then I came back here and read a few of the comments, particularly those by the new throwaway accounts (except for the top one). I shouldn't have read the comments, particularly those by the new throwaway accounts (and not because they might have changed my mind about the question and answers; they didn't, far from it).
- rtyujkx 6y agoHe killed two kids, you know.
- julianmarq 6y agoI commented how I already read the comments (particularly those by the green usernames) and they didn't change my mind about that particular situation; I don't understand what is going to be accomplished by yet another comment simply repeating that. Yes, he killed two people, and he's doing the time while clearly taking the process of rehabilitation very seriously. That's the whole point of prison, or at least it's what it was supposed to be.