Slashdot Mirror
Which Computer Books For Prisoners?
Brian D. writes "I've recently begun working with a group that sends books to prisoners in federal and state prisons. We try to match their requests as well as we can. One request that we consistently have trouble filling is for computer books. This is not for lack of books, but because the prisoners' requests tend to be vague and their computer resources are obviously severely limited. Keep in mind that we send prisoners all types of books — from gardening and landscaping to cooking and sailing — about topics they don't have the resources to experiment with. With basically one shelf devoted to books on computing, what types of books should I tell them we should keep? What are the best types of books to send a prisoner who requests a book on 'computer repair?'"
I wholeheartedly agree - anything to make the U.S. even *more* like China is fine by me!
Let's see - the government already has the right to hold you indefinitely without charging you if they think you're a terrorist; listen to any phone call you make, anywhere, whenever, with the help of the phone companies; and executes more people than any other country on earth - except China.
Hey - why not install a firewall that prevents access to 'illegal content', like Australia is trying? As long as you're taking away freedoms, why stop with just prisoners?
---sheath
I've used Ada a fair bit, but the biggest joke in that particular line when I used the language tended to be that none of the compilers complied with all aspects of the specification because it was just too complex. Ada is powerful and I do like many aspects of Ada (including the fact that many common programming errors are impossible in the language) but it is... clunky in some respects and the runtime components tend to be heavy. Modula-2 I don't like at all - it has a tighter structure than Pascal but I've not seen any way in which it does so that is actually useful.
When it comes to programming languages, I am not satisfied with any of the languages currently out there and feel they tend to either be over-engineered or over-reliant on evolution to fix a lack of engineering. There are some that seem to have a better balance, but they tend to be obscure and therefore insufficiently exercised to be sure that this appearance reflects reality. If they were better, it would seem they'd be used more.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
First, let me say that this repsonse made me laugh. Not in the "Oh hey, look at the moron" sense, but I like the humor in your post. It's shows the intellect behind your opinion.
I don't think the point is moot. I have a malleable mind (drat, there's that alliteration again) and am open to hear others' ideas.
What little religious faith I have is in the Quaker mindset. They had something to do w/ the 'modernization' of the prisons (in Philly?). They believed the conditions were too harsh. As a human, I'd love to believe that enriching people while they are in prison would be a worthwhile endeavor. I don't see that happening. While growing up through high school, my family taught equality and acceptance. Once I started living my own life, I've seen that this might not be the best approach. Some sub-cultures in America have placed a mark of honor on those that have been incarcerated. They have not availed themselves to the oppurtunities that their "jaunt/bid" in prison provided to them. They are just 'goofing off' until their time is up. There is no deterrent to keep them from coming back.
Maybe there should be a tiered system. 1st time offenders are provided w/ the means to better themselves. Subsequent visitors have to earn their return to society.
I would be thrilled to see all prisoners learn a trade and once they were released, they could be a productive citizen. In its current form, prison sentences aren't doing this. This is why I advocate making prison harder.
One other issue I have is that once your sentence is complete, it should be forgiven. It should not hinder you. As a felon, you shouldn't have to appeal your right to vote or buy a gun.
I'm interested in hearing your stance. As I said, I have a mal^h^h^h flexible mind.
Yep, I never spell check.
More incorrect spellings can be found he
Actually, most studies have shown that, for every dollar spent on rehabilitation (drug rehab; job training; religious training (yeah, I know, it's stupid)) that saves between 2 and 5 dollars in future incarceration costs, to say nothing of the benefit to society.
Not only that, those who go into generally 'hard' prisons tend to come out hardened criminals. There is a strict social order in prison, which doesn't exists in the real world; there is a strong incentive to become 'hard' in prison (self protection); there is a general sense of resentment. By putting people in "hard" prisons, we make it so that they tend to be more likely to recidivate.
Most crime is caused by poverty; poverty is caused by a failure of society. By rectifying these failures, we can eliminate most crime.
It's difficult to make hard and fast rules about these things, but murder is one of the crimes I had in mind when saying that some combinations of crime and criminal require a long period of incarceration.
Even then, there are circumstances in which I would prefer to see the offender rehabilitated - as an example, where the perpetrator is young, and the crime is motivated by something other than greed (I'm thinking vengeance, fear, or other circumstances here).
Someone who is prepared to take a human life while carrying out a robbery is obviously not likely to respond to rehabilitation, but a kid who lashes out with a knife through fear may well be ready to be a productive member of society after ten years or so of prison, given the correct guidance.
Those for whom hope is slim or none should at least be given something meaningful to do for their life term - not the worst jobs, but something according to their capabilities.
Some murderers are best dealt with in secure psychiatric units - Broadmoor (the most notorious unit in Britain) is just a few miles from me, and I have had the privilege to know some of the staff there, and their job is scary to say the least.
Your example of a prostitute is more difficult for me - I am in favour of criminalising the client rather than the prostitute, as I see the prostitute as the victim rather than the criminal.
Free education for prostitutes is a good idea, but naming and shaming the clients in their local community would be my preferred option.
As to reading - I read almost anything, though my preferred genres are crime (Iain Banks' Inspector Rebus novels are superb) and old sci-fi - Stanislaw Lem is the master.
Thanks for the discussion - and by the way, Quakers didn't just make porrige, they started Cadbury's, Fry's, Rowntree's, Lloyd's and Barclay's banks, and the Stockton and Darlington railway (the first steam railway in the world).
Truly a good religion, if ever there was one - I'm a non-practising Methodist myself.
One swallow does not a fellatrix make
Typical - an inmate convicted of a non-crime (ooh! he had scary pictures!). So the authorities treat him like shit, and he finds a way to strike back. Bully for him! Best of luck in the future!
In the modern age, shouldn't access to the internet be a right of every prisoner? It is just too important to modern life to cut off access. Some restrictions may be in order, but cutting off access entirely is just going too far. Let's not forget that most prisoners will be leaving prison some day. Preventing them from keeping up with what is going on in the world is an unnecessarily cruel punishment in a world in which we all have to keep updated just to keep from being overwhelmed.
Of course, a bigger problem is all the people in prison who shouldn't be there. America keeps 1% of adults in prison, and still pretends to be a "free" country. Most of the people in prison are there because of non-crimes like possession of drugs or pornography. Aren't we past that kind of moralistic bullshit? When will America grow up?
Murder is one thing, theft and drug possession is something entirely different.
Hmm. I would have put theft on the other side of that divide. Murder and theft both inconvenience someone else - to different degrees, sure, but it's a quantitative rather than a qualitative difference. On the other hand, drug possession (or use, for that matter), affects nobody else.
Way to judge someone you've never met. How the fuck do you claim to know the poster is pretending, having never met them?
It might have to do with my post-doctoral research into autistic spectrum disorders. Maybe. Not everyone that reads slashdot works in IT.
If the OP actually had any sort of autistic tendencies, they wouldn't have said half the idiotic things they said.
An attention seeking, lazy, socially ackward but otherwise healthy man-child like him makes life difficult for people who are diagnosed with Aspergers( and Autism). You can't self-diagnose Aspergers any more than you can self diagnose a heart condition - you might be able to tell that something is wrong, but you can't just decide on the diagnosis, especially not with your community-college diploma in network security and A+ cert.
Also, Assholes like you give them license to continue.
Actually, I have met them. They've posted on slashdot. I read their comment. Also, you're judging my mental condition at the same time I'm judging yours. Chances are, though, that I'm a lot more qualified to do so, than you.
Idiots like the OP are making life difficult for people who have genuine difficulties. Like you. Except, you've probably been diagnosed as having a type of social disorder. Too bad that neither your mother, or your guidance teacher in high school are qualified to make that judgment.
Then again, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe you're self-diagnosed as well. Either way, stop making life difficult for people who have genuine problems. Maybe you and the OP should start a support group. You can call it the "We never learned social skills because we were too busy playing Baldurs Gate, so we're going to pretend we have aspergers" group.
Asshole.
Well there's 2 sides to this coin, on the one hand you have inmates who are remorseful for what they did and eager to re-enter society. These people indeed I have no problem spending my taxpayer dollars on to fund computers and other devices to let them stay in tuned with the world.
But most of your types in State Prison? The hardcore, those who have no intention of leaving or functioning normally in society. Whom would view a computer and say "what kind of improvised weapon can I make to better make someone's life hell and/or kill them?" They're a$$holes pure in simple.
The trick is to separate one from the other here and fund accordingly...
...in bed
Without a doubt, I would recommend "The Art of Computer Programming." Being ardently theoretical, one could read and grasp and even love the entire thing without ever using a computer.