We’d have to be talking in the range of something like The Partner before I’d even consider it. Having a one-year time limit would also be key. I can put up with an awful lot if I know that there is going to be a definite date for it to be over with. I’m not sure I could ever willingly choose to go to prison though. I think it would have to be something that was forced on me.
I have a very strong aversion to prisons. Even the idea of prisons is fairly abhorrent to me, especially given the attitude of retribution and punishment that seems to exist in the US. In my opinion, if prisons exist at all they should be there solely for removing people from a society that they endanger, not to punish them. On a personal level, I also have a problem with being restricted and having people in a position of authority over me. I don’t mind willingly following orders that are geared toward accomplishing a goal, but I would have a very hard time doing what I was told if the only reason for doing so was to comply with the whims of the guards.
In a supermax, I would have some problems with the isolation, more of a problem with the authority, and I would go absolutely apeshit crazy if I had nothing to occupy my mind. In a Federal pound-me-in-the-ass prison, depending on how things went, I would either be kind of okay, but a much less decent human being after I got out due to what I’d have to do to get by, or I’d be dead. I can’t see myself submitting to anyone for any reason and, while I’m quite willing to use violence to protect myself, I’d have to sleep sometime. Without joining a network I’d be pretty vulnerable. Best case scenario would probably be a multitude of new scars, a few dead or maimed bodies in my wake, and probably some screaming nightmares over what I’d done. Worst case, only my heirs would be in a position to spend any of that money.
The Survivor comparison is really inapt. One of my friends worked as a guard in a state prison for a couple of years. He quit because he didn’t want to be around people who were like either the guards or the prisoners. He noticed some changes in his personality and attitude toward people even on the outside and didn’t like it at all. That’s what prisons can do to the guards, who aren’t even there all the time.
In comparison, the Survivor situation is something that I’d practically do for fun. I’ve gone on camping trips that incorporate almost as much deprivation as they undergo. I’d love the challenge and the opportunity to test some skills that I only tried out in theory, without having to depend solely on them, and that further in the past than I’d like to admit. Living conditions wouldn’t be the problem for prison – they could even be pretty cushy compared to what I’d willingly put up with – the social conditions would be the problem.