Death Penalty: Hypocritical bullshit

[system]

1. As a deterrant: so others are discouraged from committing crimes
2. As a punishment: the criminal simply “deserves” to be punished
3. For revenge: I- or society- will feel better if the criminal is punished
4. Rehabilitation: change the criminal into a productive member of society
5. Retribution: the criminal pays back his victims or society, for example by paying a fine or doing community service.

6. To get people out of society that are committing crimes.

Many people who commit crimes are repeat offenders. They may only serve one jail term, but the person with the scruples to rape a woman will rape another regardless of whether caught or not.

The reason for any punishment should be to get people who have comitted crimes out of society permanently. If you kill someone, or rape someone, you should never be able to interact with the general society again. I could give a hoot about rehabilitating criminals, getting revenge on them, or whatever. Just get rid of them. It doesn’t matter of you lock them up for life or kill them, so long as they no longer get to walk among the general populace.

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Jason R Remy

“And it could be safely said that at that moment, in the whole of India, no one, absolutely no one, was f^(king a goat.”
– John Irving A Son of the Circus (1994)

[system]

[[Actually, the arguments (or most of them) that the D.P. constitutes cruel and unusual punishment do not arise from the punishment itself (putting someone to death), but from its application. ]] jodih
Excellent point, as usual, although that is NOT, IIRC, the position of Justices Brennan, Marshal, and Blackmun. They argued that capital punishment was inherently C&U punishment, as I think Stoidela is maintaining.
[[{{1. As a deterrant: so others are discouraged from committing crimes
2. As a punishment: the criminal simply “deserves” to be punished
3. For revenge: I- or society- will feel better if the criminal is punished
4. Rehabilitation: change the criminal into a productive member of society
5. Retribution: the criminal pays back his victims or society, for example by paying a fine or doing community service.}}

6. To get people out of society that are committing crimes.]] JayRon
   Also a very good point – and don’t you all appreciate me sitting here pontificating about what points are good. <g>

[system]

The reason for any punishment should be to get people who have comitted crimes out
of society permanently. If you kill someone, or rape someone, you should never be able
to interact with the general society again.

Are you serious?

I mean, first of all, is there no room in your worldview for someone who commits a murder under a certain circumstance which might never occur again? History is full of the names of people who committed “crimes of passion,” or killed a person undedr other circumstances, who were otherwise notable and accomplished people.

Second of all, I fail to see the allure of any argument against taking people who have committed crimes and making them productive and useful members of society. That’d be terrible, huh?

All the people in this country who wonder whether the problems come from movies or video games, or from the availability of guns, should read some of the bloodthirstiness in this thread. That’s where it comes from.

People can change, both for better and for worse.

[system]

Being in Prison is not a “punishment” in itself…My uncle is a prison guard, and he claims that the modern day prisons have heating and air contitioning, and Television…All prisioners get three meals per day, and a recreation/exersise period in a fenced in area with basket ball court and gym iquipment better than that found in most high schools…And they dont have to pay for any of it------Hmmm…this sounds like PUNISHMENT to me HA!!!

i would like to see more “chain gangs” (work crews made up of convicted criminals) They could do stuff like cleaing up roads and parks, and other public constuction jobs…as for the Death Penalty----im completey for it…If you kill somone, for any other reason than self defense or defense of property, you deserve the Death sentence…OR, here’s a little twist on it----why dont we let the FAMILY of the murdered person decide the criminals fate-------That s fair’ aint it?

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“In wildness is the preservation of the world, so seek the wolf inside thyself”

[system]

Being in Prison is not a “punishment” in itself

Ah, here we go, the old “A day in prison is like a day at Disneyland” canard. I can safely assume, then, if prison is such a picnic, you are willing to spend some time there voluntarily?

My uncle is a prison guard

Well, if he’s half as smart as you are . . .

and he claims

“Claims”? So you’re saying this may not be accurate at all?

that the modern day prisons have heating and air contitioning, and Television…All prisioners get three meals per day, and a recreation/exersise period in a fenced in area with basket ball court and gym iquipment better than that found in most high schools…And they dont have to pay for any of it------Hmmm…this sounds like PUNISHMENT to me HA!!!

So, would you take all that if it included not being able to interact with society in general? Oh, yes, not to mention the constant possibility of a penis in your mouth or anus? Or regular beatings?

Oh, BTW, none of this is true of maximum security inmates, many of whom are on 20-hour lockdowns; or of death row inmates. And I hesitate to think you are advocating starving or broiling prisoners. Personally, if it makes otherwise violent people docile, I’ll sign 'em up for DirecTV myself.

OR, here’s a little twist on it----why dont we let the FAMILY of the murdered person decide the criminals fate-------That s fair’ aint it?

This is what is referred to in the field of jurisprudence as a “stupid idea.” Our criminal justice system does not exist for the purpose of allowing individuals to exact personal revenge.

[system]

::sighing:: Thanks, Phil. I don’t think I have the energy to go through all this again. This is one issue, at least, that I know we agree on.

-Melin

[system]

Justin, Justin, Justin…

It is people like you that make me want to go live in a cave, far from the rest of society.

Yeah, how could it be puishment if they still have TV? Not to mention the fact that we aren’t starving them and freezing them!

Prison is hell. Even if they gave everybody their own personal television, a feather bed, and gourmet meals, it would still be hell.

I lived with a man many years ago who, at the time I met him, had spent nearly half his life in prison.(He’d originally gone in for a very petty crime when he was young, but ended up staying after he killed a man to avoid being raped.) I learned alot about prison from knowing him, and let me tell you, it is punishment.

Imagine being put in a place where you have no idea when you might be killed or raped. Where these things are a daily part of your existence. When the fact that you’ve gotten through the day unmolested is a cause for celebration. eventually everyone you love will stop coming to see you, if they ever started, and there you are, alone in a sea of really badass motherfuckers, day after day, just trying to stay alive.

Imagine a place where everyone treats you like garbage, where you are considered less worthwhile than a cow. Where you, as a man, have virtually zero control over any aspect of your life, including when you go to the bathroom, in large part. (Hey, imagine a place where you have to go to the bathroom in front of anyone who cares to watch, that would be hell enough for me, thank you. I’d die of constipation.) Imagine being forced to become a violent, scary person, just like everyone around you, just to survive.

Have you ever seen HBO’s “Oz”? It’s a tiny bit over the top in the frequency and grislyness of its depiction of prison life, but it is rooted very much in reality.

Now, you may say that anyone who commits a crime deserves this, and whether you are right or not is open to debate. But the point is that it IS punishment. And even if it were not, the more important point is that the bad people are off the streets and locked away where they can’t hurt you or me. And that is really all that should concern us.

And finally, realize this: prison is a breeding ground for criminals and madmen. Take a dumb kid who sold the wrong guy some pot and throw him in jail for five years. This same kid, had he not gone to jail, would probably have stopped selling pot and gone on to have a normal decent life. But after a few years in the joint what you have on your hands is a man who is angry, violent, and completely transformed by a vicious culture that teaches him to be a much worse human being than he would ever have become on his own.

And that is a very foolish and fucked up thing for a our society to be doing. Maybe some day it will wake up.

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Stoidela

Thesaurus: An ancient reptile with an excellent vocabulary

[system]

Phil and other friends from the old AOL board can attest to the fact that on most issues, I’m a pretty conservative guy. For most of my adult life, this was also true of the death penalty. Even through law school, I always believed that society had the right to determine that certain offenses could be punishable by death.

Indeed, I still feel that way. But after serving as a judicial clerk for the Illinois Supreme Court (which means as an attorney I assisted one of the Justices in researching and drafting judcial opinions), I came to realize that the whole judicial framework for death penalty cases was an incredible waste of time and effort. I’m not sure what the ultimate answer is, but it always appeared to me that crimes which were ultimately punished by a prison term (even life in prison as the ultimate sentence) were resolved in a few years tops. Bring in the death penalty as the ultimate sentence, and the appeals are dragged out for an insufferable time, sometimes more than a decade. We end up basically taking convicted capital crimanals and supporting them in prison; taking the suspense out of it wouldn’t make much difference.

By the way, as an aside, here in Illinois we’ve had a spate of death row inmates exonerated by new found evidence or DNA techniques. Imagine, if there had not been a death penalty, would any of these inmates gotten the scrutiny needed to be exonerated? I think not. They would have been just another convicted felon serving a long sentence.

The passion that supports this kind of debate can lead to interesting results.

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SoxFan59
“Its fiction, but all the facts are true!”

[system]

Stoidela: “And finally, realize this: prison is a breeding ground for criminals and madmen. Take a dumb kid who sold the wrong guy some pot and throw him in jail for five years. This same kid, had he not gone to jail, would probably have stopped selling pot and gone on to have a normal decent life. But after a few years in the joint what you have on your hands is a man who is angry, violent, and completely transformed by a vicious culture that teaches him to be a much worse human being than he would ever have become on his own.”

Are you suggesting then that the crime be ignored? What do you suggest we do with minor criminals?

Assuming that no other solution can be thought of and that prisons must persist, your very statement lends itself to supporting the utter removal of major criminals since they will then be unable to breed more major criminals (I assume you understand that itself is the hard criminals and madmen that affect the minor criminals into making them harder and more vicious).

About the original question, I support the death penalty for a few reasons:

1. Some crimes are so terrible and the proof so complete that no punishment that isn’t cruel or unusual fits the crime. I wouldn’t support for example locking a man in a small dark room, with nothing to do for the rest of their lives since as ARG said above that would be truly more terrible than death.

2. The “proof” that death penalty is not a deterrant to murder is highly circumspect as are many statistics. Anybody care to debate whether guns prevent more crimes than they start? (this is rhetorical). I believe that if it were properly enforced it would be (see Cons #1 below). As it is the death penalty is likely not a deterrant because there is little bite behind. It is hardly ever set as an actual sentence, and as mentioned elsewhere appeals can last 15-25 years in some cases. It is not hard to imagine that somebody (a criminal) might not be too fearful of a potential death so far off. If the death penalty were implemented more often and with a greater degree of speed then I think it would be more dreaded.

3. There is little reason to lock a man up for life. Assuming that a life sentence were to be truly a life sentence (i.e. no parole).

Cons:

1. One problem with the death penalty is the enforcement of it. The entire appeals process (if not the judicial system itself) is out of whack. It makes no sense that we allow appeal after appeal over a variety of issues.

2. If prison sentences were carried out with much less parole chances, I might actually change my mind on this (despite Pros #3 above). I find it personally very frustrating that criminals laugh at justice. If criminals feared the judicial system without the death penalty then I would would have no trouble supporting such a judicial system.

However, I am not a diehard supporter of the death penalty. It does bother me a bit that society views killing as a solution to a problem, but I do believe that the death penalty could be a tool against crime. It probably isn’t as it currently exists.

[system]

I use to be pro death penalty and having the executions held in high school gynmasiums, then I decided to do some research into the subject so as no make my bias-ness at least intelligent. Now I am anti death penalty, not because it is a final. Not becuse some consider it murder. Not because there may be possible killing of innocent. And not because it might not be a deterant after all. But, brace yourselves, it is a waste of money.
It costs more to run through all the appeals before the guy is fried or released, than to keep him in solitary the rest of his life.

Now I think public trials should be held in school gymnasiums, in a controlled enviroment, so kids can see first hand the consequences of actions.

[system]

Bernard:

Are you suggesting then that the crime be ignored? What do you
suggest we do with minor criminals?

             Assuming that no other solution can be thought of and that
             prisons must persist, your very statement lends itself to
             supporting the utter removal of major criminals since they will
             then be unable to breed more major criminals

Well, that certainly isn’t very imaginative of you, now is it? “Hmm… prison breeds criminals, so let’s kill 'em all!” Sheesh.

yes, other solutions can be thought of and are actually being implemented in one or two rare instances.

First of all, let me say: yes, there are people who are going to be bad no matter what we do, whether born that way or made, they are what they are and there’s probably no hope. A standard prison setting is probably fine for them. 'K?

BUT… as it happens, MOST of the people in our prison system are or were redeemable, or are there for crimes that should never have been crimes in the first place (i.e. DRUG crimes. Please. Jsut legalize the shit and let the chips fall. We’d all be so much better off.) Prison does not have to be a hellhole that breeds more criminals. It can and SHOULD, as often as possible, be a place of true rehabilitation. Instead of spending scads of money building bigger fences and hiring more $6 hour “corrections” officers, the money we are spending now could be much more productively and usefull spent helping many of these people turn their lives around and become productive members of society.

There is at least one prison I read about some 4 or 5 years ago that is operated in this way. I still have the article somewhere, I believe. I think it was private, and it was amazing. They were educating and training the inmates, they had created a prison culture that helped create self-sufficiency and self-control, they had for the msot part eliminated violence and rape, etc. The results were amazing.

But our society is too stupid to realize that IT is best served by this kind of approach, that we do OURSELVES no favors by taking the attitude we do about prisons. But then again, our society is stupid in so many ways, why single out this one?

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Stoidela

Thesaurus: An ancient reptile with an excellent vocabulary

[system]

Are you serious?

                I mean, first of all, is there no room in your worldview for someone who commits a murder under a
                certain circumstance which might never occur again? History is full of the names of people who
                committed "crimes of passion," or killed a person undedr other circumstances, who were otherwise
                notable and accomplished people.

                Second of all, I fail to see the allure of any argument against taking people who have committed
                crimes and making them productive and useful members of society. That'd be terrible, huh?

                All the people in this country who wonder whether the problems come from movies or video games, or
                from the availability of guns, should read some of the bloodthirstiness in this thread. That's where it
                comes from.

                People can change, both for better and for worse.

You know what Phil, you’re right. I have seen the light. Instead of locking up all of the rapists in the world, and putting them in prison so they can never rape again, let’s send them to your daughter’s house. Let them hang out there for a few weeks. Lets see if that rehabilitates them any.

I have no problem making violent criminals productive, so long as they do it in a way that no longer allows them to be violent against the general populace.

People can change. The problem is, that people, by and large, DON’T change. Certain crimes, I will grant you, even those that involve someone else dying, are not sufficent proof that the person who has committed them will committ. There are however some crimes that are so heinous that they can only be committed by a person who has shown so little respect for human life that they can no longer be trusted among the general populace. How many sorority sisters do guys like Ted Bundy have to rape and murder before we can say they are unfit to intermingle with the rest of society? How many times does John Wayne Gasey have to dress up in his clown suit and rape and murder a little boy before you no longer want to invite him to your son’s birthday party?

I understand that some people commit murder in fits of rage, and that ultimately they can be reformed and will cause no harm to anyone else any more. I have no problem with helping people cope with these problems and helping them back on their feet.

However, again, certain crimes are so heinous as to merit permanent removal from society. There should, for example, be zero tolerance for rape. If you rape a woman, you have displayed sufficient lack of respect for human life to have forfeited you Human Race membership card. Multiple murders, murder comitted with complete lack of remorse, or muder so brutal as to display complete lack of respect for human life are also sufficent for permanent lock-up. I have compassion for people who have made a mistake at a point in their lives, but I also have compassion for innocent citizens.

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Jason R Remy

“And it could be safely said that at that moment, in the whole of India, no one, absolutely no one, was f^(king a goat.”
– John Irving A Son of the Circus (1994)

[system]

“Well, that certainly isn’t very imaginative of you, now is it? “Hmm… prison breeds criminals, so let’s kill 'em all!” Sheesh.”

Thanks for complimenting my imaginative abilities … oh wait, you mean that sarcastically.

I did not say “kill 'em all”, if you mean that as saying that all criminals should be killed. There are some criminals which society would be better served by simply putting to death so that their poisonous (sp?) spirit can no longer infect others either by their own acts or their influence.

Rather than use exact quotes (save space) I’ll respond only to the spirit of the remainder. Feel free to correct me if I have been understood.

I also didn’t say that I thought there was no room for rehabilitation or for special “prisons” for minor criminals. But even a special prison is still a prison even if the conditions are different than what you expect. I do believe in the possibility and occurance of rehabilitation. I also would agree that our current prison system does not facilitate this. In some and perhaps many cases it would likely be futile anyway. You want proof? I don’t have any so there … if you want to show me proof (and I mean proof) to the contrary I would like to see it. This is simply something I believe.

My point is simply this. The death penalty properly implemented would not be a bad thing. Would it be better to have lots of preventative measures? Sure… I am all for it. Would it be better to rehabilitate criminals? Yes. But when a person CANNOT be rehabilitated what sense is there in holding them for a period of time and then releasing them to do more harm? What sense is there in holding them forever? Do we know when somebody cannot be reformed? I think there are times when we know somebody can be reformed, I think there are times when we aren’t sure, and yes I think there are times when we now that somebody is quite simply gone.

[system]

I agree that most (not all) of our drug laws ought to be repealed and that that would eliminate a lot of crime.

That being said, I wouldn’t necessarily assume, without more facts, that you’d rather release the guy who has been selling drugs and keep the guy who killed somebody locked up. The guy selling drugs most likely made a conscious decision to do so, and figured that the rewards outweighed the risks. It’s not something that happens as a “moment of passion” or without some thought. He (or she) has simply decided not to obey the law, period. This person shows a disdain for the rules of society, and most likely doesn’t have any remorse for his crime. On the outside he or she will make the same analysis again, and do as they damn well please if they believe that they will benefit from what they do and the odds of gettng caught and punished are not high.

The person who has killed someone quite often has done so in the proverbial moment of passion, or out of desperation, or under circumstances which are not likely to repeat (we are not discussing the truly sicko types who murder repeatedly, or who abuse and torture their victims). Quite often they are indeed remorseful, and sometimes this is the only unlawful event they have committed in their otherwise law-abiding lives (well, yes, except traffic infractions, okay?). These people are, IMHO, less of a risk to society if released from prison than the drug dealer posited in the first paragraph of this post.

-Melin

[system]

Presently there is entirely too much focus on rehabilitation. Nowadays, it has become politically incorrect to state that the main focus of the penal system should be to punish, not to rehabilitate. Why are we trying so desperately to rehabilitate these people rather than focusing on punishing them for their crimes and keeping them out of society so they can not do any more damage? I know, we’re trying to make them into “productive members of society”, but why? Can’t our money and resources be used more effectively to help other, more deserving, “productive members of society?” How about using our tax dollars to do the following:

1. Provide free psychiatric care and/or counselling (for life, if need be) for victims of violent crime (most notably, rape).

2. Provide to the families who have lost a breadwinner to violent crime a lump sum of money representing the present day value of all of the lost future earnings of the victim.

3. Pay for all medical treatments and lost wages for survivors of crime.

Of course, none of this would be cost effective. Much better to let the victims suffer the financial and psychological effects of crime alone and concentrate on improving the lives of a bunch of deadbeat criminals.

IMHO, once you make the conscious choice to break the law, you should damn well be prepared to face the consequences. This extends to so-called “crimes of passion”. Sure, some of these people may be really, really sorry for what they did, but (with all due respect, Melin), they should be able to leave prison and walk around in society as soon as their victims have that same option.

[system]

[[Being in Prison is not a “punishment” in itself… ]] Justin
What are you, a looney? Of course it is.

[system]

[[Presently there is entirely too much focus on rehabilitation.]] katmandu
What are you, kidding? Rehabilitation has been way out of vogue for years and years.

[[ Nowadays, it has become politically incorrect to state that the main focus of the penal system should be to punish, not to rehabilitate. Why are we trying so desperately to rehabilitate these people rather than focusing on punishing them for their crimes and keeping them out of society so they can not do any more damage?]]
If there has been any "political correctness, on this issue, it runs the other way, with any suggestion that attempts at rehabilitation are is society’s interests being shouted down with the accusation that said speakers care more about criminals than victims, are “soft on crime,” etc.

[system]

Big Iron, for some prison is NOT a punishment. There are some crimminals who like it and commit crimes specifically to go back.

For most of you posting on this thread, you like most of Americans don’t seem to understand that almost all people on death row (I’m NOT saying ALL, for there are some who, while guilty of their crimes don’t belong there.) have been in prison multiple times for violent offences and are beyond hope of ever functioning in any type of society, including IN prison. My stepfather works as a counsler in the Va prison system, and he worked on Va Death Row for over 10 yrs, where he was known as the counsler who worked for prisoner issues, taking the prisoners side most of the time and in his opinion all but ONE of the prisoners put to death during his time there deserved it.

If you want to understand what I’m talking about go research James and Linwood Briley and tell me if you don’t think those psychos needed to be put to death.

Oh yeah, let me Pick a Nit, the term “murder” is a legal defintion meaning a willing, unlawful homicide. Calling the Death Penalty murder is implying that it is illegal, which it is not. I can understand a disagreement with the death penalty, but trying to imply it is illegal, even if you consider it immoral, shows that you are trying to evoke an emotional response to make a point instead of using facts. Face the facts, The Death Penalty is not Murder, until is is made Illegal.

wduty

[system]

[[Big Iron, for some prison is NOT a punishment. There are some crimminals who like it and commit crimes specifically to go back. ]]
So making THEM submit to torture and inhumane conditions is OK, I guess, huh?

[[For most of you posting on this thread, you like most of Americans don’t seem to understand that almost all people on death row (I’m NOT saying ALL, for there are some who, while guilty of their crimes don’t belong there.) have been in prison multiple times for violent offences and are beyond hope of ever functioning in any type of society, including IN prison.]]
Putting aside the fact that from time to time the guy on death row isn’t guilty period, I’m aware of all that, and it is really beside the point as far as I’m concerned
[[ My stepfather works as a counsler in the Va prison system, and he worked on Va Death Row for over 10 yrs, where he was known as the counsler who worked for prisoner issues, taking the prisoners side most of the time and in his opinion all but ONE of the prisoners put to death during his time there deserved it. ]]
Well, then – it’s settled! <g>
[[If you want to understand what I’m talking about go research James and Linwood Briley and tell me if you don’t think those psychos needed to be put to death.]]
Again, do not flatter yourself that there is something you are discussing that most people don’t understand. Death penalty opponents know full well that most (or at least many) of those under sentence are vile and virtually irreemable. We still think it’s wrong – society should be better than that.
[[Oh yeah, let me Pick a Nit, the term “murder” is a legal defintion meaning a willing, unlawful homicide. Calling the Death Penalty murder is implying that it is illegal, which it is not. I can understand a disagreement with the death penalty, but trying to imply it is illegal, even if you consider it immoral, shows that you are trying to evoke an emotional response to make a point instead of using facts. Face the facts, The Death Penalty is not Murder, until is is made Illegal.]]
“Good morning, Tautologies R’Us.”

[system]

Katmandu:

Presently there is entirely too much focus on rehabilitation.Nowadays,
it has become politically incorrect to state that the main focus of the
penal system should be to punish, not to rehabilitate.

Are you out of your mind? Or just waking up from a coma you went into back in '78? There is virtually NO focus on rehabilitation these days.

Why are we
trying so desperately to rehabilitate these people rather than focusing
on punishing them for their crimes and keeping them out of society so
they can not do any more damage?

We’re not. We should be.

I know, we’re trying to make
them into “productive members of society”, but why?

Again, we are NOT trying to do any such thing, and we absolutely SHOULD BE.

BECAUSE (oy) to treat inmates as we do now pretty much GUARANTEES that we will create bigger, badder, madder criminals for the future. And most criminals WILL get out some day (and don’t even go there re: “let’s keep 'em all locked up” - yeah, guy steals a car, locked up for life. No, dont’ think so.) so it behooves us, for our OWN SAKES, to see to it if we can that the men who emerge from the system are BETTER, not WORSE. And if that doesn’t make sense to you, then my explaining it further won’t help.

Regarding your ideas for the money we would supposedly save if we stop doing what we are NOT doing, which is itself a ridiculous idea, we won’t do any of those things. So why not use the money to save ourselves from the criminals of tomorrow, eh?

concentrate on improving the lives of a bunch of deadbeat
criminals.

No, not improving their lives, improving THEM so that they won’t BE deadbeat criminals all their lives, constantly harming people and draining the society. DUH.

Big Iron:

Thank you!

wduty:

Man, for a guy who has a relative working in the system, you just don’t get it, do you?

Criminals dont’ “like” prison… what they LIKE is what we all like: feeling SECURE. And if you have spent years and years in a culture of violence, with no control whatsoever over the simplest tasks of your daily life, with no clue how to function as a normal human being in the real world, prison seems alot safer, more secure, and more comfortable than dealing with that big bad world out there.

And i know INTIMATELY whereof I speak. The man I lived with that I mentioned earlier? The first time he got out, after spending his life, ages 18-29 in the joint, he was thrilled of course. (He had been sent to military school as a young man so he had grown up in a regimented way already) He was also a basket case. He had no idea how to cope with life on the outside. He was lost. And after about 2 years of living a legal life that absolutely overwhelmed him he couldn’t take it anymore and he very conciously and deliberately went into a bank and robbed it, went outside, crossed the street and sat on a bus bench and waited for the cops to come and get him. When he got out again a few years later, after he and I had been together and broken up, and he’d married and had a son, he was freaking out again and did the same thing. The judge basically told him that he wasn’t going to make it easy on him by locking him up. He told him he was going to be on probation and he was going to have stay on the outside and learn to cope. He committed suicide a year later.

And THAT is what prison does to people in our society. He was a good man, a very intelligent, funny, good hearted man. He’d had a very difficult childhood and committed a petty crime when he was 17, stealing $16 from his employer, who prosecuted him to the full extent of the law and got him thrown in a very tough adult prison. He made a couple of friends of some older guys who protected him at first. Then the older guys got out or transferred or something and he was on his own, and scared to death. A big baddass dude had been threatening to rape him. So he stole a sledgehammer from the toolshed and had it in his cell in case the guy came after him, which he did. My friend went after him and killed him in front of the captain of the guard, who went on to testify on his behalf at his trial. He still spent the next 10 years in prison. He NEVER would have killed anyone on the outside.

This man was so screwed up by prison, I couldn’t even do sweet things lovers do, like surprise him or goose him, because he went into survival mode immediately. The few times I did it he turned on me like he was gong to kill me, and explained to me why I couldn’t do that to him. He had spent his whole adult life being afraid of everyone, and on guard for his life.

Prison sucks. It doesn’t have to be that way.

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I used to worry about Newt. Then I started worrying about the fact that the sun stopped
producing neutrinos in the early '80s, indicating that its internal fusion process had
stopped. But that was too scary, so now I worry about fashion.