# Would you spend the last 1/4 of your life in prison in exchange for 30 years of being filthy rich? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 24, 2011, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748 "2011-06-24T18:52:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2011, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/21 "2011-06-25T16:43:18Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > The point is the you do the crime, you make the money and are basically scot-free for a solid 30 years, then you’re busted and sent to die in prison when you’re already only a decade or so from dying anyway. It’s _going_ to happen. Call it a deal with the Devil. Would you make that deal? If the Twilight Zone taught me anything, it’s that deals with the Devil invariably turn sour. No way. ---
**Author:** ![SCSimmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@SCSimmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCSimmons)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2011, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/22 "2011-06-25T18:12:39Z")
I think anyone who picked a ‘yes’ option is overestimating how much happiness lots of money can bring you, and underestimating how much prison can suck (even a low- or medium-security one). If I were actually poor, maybe it would be something to think about. But once you have enough income & savings that you’re pretty confident & secure about having a roof over your head every night, three meals a day, and decent medical care when you need it, the marginal happiness increase from having more money than you know what to do with doesn’t come anywhere near compensating for the happiness decrease of being locked in a cell for the rest of your natural life. IMHO, of course. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/23 "2011-06-26T18:14:42Z")
Wealth is overrated. Freedom is underrated. I choose freedom and the ability to sleep well at night, knowing that I do unto others as I’d have them do unto me. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/24 "2011-06-27T03:57:41Z")
Not to be cliche, but I find it hard to believe that any amount of money can give me a better day than a nice afternoon in the park, grilling, drinking, and throwing a football or something with friends. IOW, while wealth could solve some of my problems, it won’t make me happy (or, happier, on a day-to-day basis). I wish I had more money than I do, but not at the expense of jail-until-death, no matter when I start doing my time. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/25 "2011-06-27T04:06:30Z")
Never. Not even for Camp Fluffy, where Madoff is. Not for a minute. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/26 "2011-06-27T05:57:56Z")
Jail and prison aren’t that much different, and I’ve been to jail for a few days. Despite what people think it’s not all nothing but rape and gangs, most of it is boredom. Lots of boredom. In the minimum security resorts they put white collar criminals in, there’s not much to get bored about. Hell, how’s it much different than a shitty old folks home like you see on 60 Minutes? ---
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/27 "2011-06-27T08:50:22Z")
Even if I didn’t have to do anything immoral, there’s no way I’d choose prison. Not when it means being separated from my family. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/28 "2011-06-27T09:29:54Z")
I voted ‘no way’, but on second thougts, I’ll say yes. Thirty years in prison, beginning at my 120th birthday, please. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/29 "2011-06-27T10:33:44Z")
When discussing the prisons the rich and powerful go to, I always hear a lot of contempt about “Club Fed,” implying that there are some prisons that (these commenters consider) are not _really_ punishment at all. Does anyone believe in such a thing? If so, what about THOSE prisons? ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/30 "2011-06-27T15:49:27Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > When discussing the prisons the rich and powerful go to, I always hear a lot of contempt about “Club Fed,” implying that there are some prisons that (these commenters consider) are not _really_ punishment at all. > > Does anyone believe in such a thing? If so, what about THOSE prisons? I remember when Dan Rostenkowski got out of jail, he insisted that those types of prisons didn’t actually exist. No amount of money could ease my mind knowing that I was facing years of ass-rape. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/31 "2011-06-27T15:55:41Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > When discussing the prisons the rich and powerful go to, I always hear a lot of contempt about “Club Fed,” implying that there are some prisons that (these commenters consider) are not _really_ punishment at all. > > Does anyone believe in such a thing? If so, what about THOSE prisons? I’ve visited a federal medium/minimum prison, and compared it to my extensive experience with state maximum/medium/minimum institutions and camps. It sure didn’t look cushy. Clean and well-organized, yes. But not not cushy. Average sentence length there was over 4 years, and I would definitely NOT want to spend 4 years of my life in that environment. And rape is mostly an anomaly in prisons, endemic but not affecting most inmates. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/32 "2011-06-27T16:18:32Z")
> [@EvilTOJ](#): > > Jail and prison aren’t that much different, and I’ve been to jail for a few days. Despite what people think it’s not all nothing but rape and gangs, most of it is boredom. Lots of boredom. In the minimum security resorts they put white collar criminals in, there’s not much to get bored about. Hell, how’s it much different than a shitty old folks home like you see on 60 Minutes? True. The worst part about prison isn’t the danger - it’s the tedium. I once used this analogy. Imagine you’re in a really bad waiting room. You’re sitting in a chair with no magazines, no TV, no cell phone, nothing interested to do. Imagine how long it would seem if you had to sit there for two or three hours doing nothing. Now imagine being that bored for two or three years. That’s what prison is like. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/33 "2011-06-27T16:25:05Z")
**Qadgop** - What is the worst thing about prison life? If it’s not a fear of sexual abuse, is it the lack of privacy? The monotony? The lack of family? StG ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/34 "2011-07-01T19:31:53Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > **Qadgop** - What is the worst thing about prison life? If it’s not a fear of sexual abuse, is it the lack of privacy? The monotony? The lack of family? > > StG I’d put those three things high on my list. Also the smells. My patients complain most of the lack of freedom to decide to do certain mundane things. They’re restricted as to when they can exercise, when they can go to the library, or the canteen, or the hobby shop. When they can make phone calls, when they can eat, etc. And the risk of violent assault is still significant even though sexual assault is not nearly so common as the public thinks. Also a chronic level of stress from having to live and work with people with whom they often really don’t get along. I’d better stop now, I’m not sure if I’m describing my patient’s lives or a lot of jobs out in the real world… ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2011, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/35 "2011-07-01T19:48:11Z")
ETA: Actually responded to thread and poll question, not OP. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748/36 "2011-07-01T20:53:20Z")
I’d take the deal because with that type of money I could make a significant impact on society, politics, and all sorts of other things. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-spend-the-last-1-4-of-your-life-in-prison-in-exchange-for-30-years-of-being-filthy-rich/586748.md?page=1)