NEWS: Oregon Inmates Enjoy New Flat-Screen TVs

There are a lot of misconceptions here concerning what prison is like. Yes, prisoners receive three balanced meals a day (with an option to purchase extra food from a weekly list with money in their account from working for pennies an hour or sent in by family). This food isn't some gourmet cooking. Sure, the menu says salsbury steak with brownie, vegetable and potato. This food barely fills you up. The food is low grade. The meat is the scraps they cut off of meat they sell you in the supermarket. The fruit is often rotten, bread served with animal nibbles. 3-4 men are housed in a cell made for 2. 4 people sharing one toilet (with no curtain or privacy to take a crap, a foot away from where you roomates heads are when they sleep). These rooms aren't cleaned by some maid service but my the inmates themselves, who are allowed to clean once or twice a week. In fact, maximum prisons allow you to shower 3 times a week, a change of clothes just as often.

I am not asking for anyone to sympathesize for those incarcerated but to be realistic. It's easy to jump on the "they don't need this/that" bandwagon, but sit down and take one minute to actually think about this. Many of you act as if everyone incarcerated was guilty, or deserve to be in prison to begin with. An armed robber and a guy who owes back child support go to the same prisons.

honestly if they want prision to be a deturant it has to be somthing your totally dread, like raqther loose a arm before going there..

I suggest working 12 hours a day doing hard labor sweat shop style, 3 slop meals that are balanced but taste absolutely terrible.. and a bed..no cell at all, if your not sleeping your working you ass off..

There there for punishment not a vacation, now im not sayprision is a great place to be but, i see these criminal sitting in there cells doing nothing and then working out 2 hours a day on weights etc.. sorry my tax dollars should not go for this crap or flat panel tv's

These inmates don't need a flat-panel TV. That's ridiculous. I didn't go flat till 21 months ago and I'm not in prison.

What these criminals need is "chicken soup for the soul." They need books/literature. They should have to read and educate themselves! This might actually give some of them motivation to continue gathering knowledge when they are released back into the population. Instead, they are released back into a greedy consumer driven world. When they find themselves unable to get a job which enables them to buy their precious material items (like flat tv's) they get angry and go commit another crime.

What a joke.

Originally posted by DontTreadOnMe
This is an outrage..WTF can Oregon be thinking?

What's next--the new reality show, "A day in the life of an Oregon inmate"???

P.C. out of control

Go watch MSNBC around 11pm and you will find "LOCKUP - Inside ****** prision"

Oh, What's next? Bring in College Professors or letting them use the internet to take online courses?

We're supposed to be punishing them! Where is the Rehabilitation? Most people in the US can't even afford tuition, so why should us tax payers be footing the bill for the criminals?

[/sarcasm]

TV is a great tool to motivate prisoners to fall in line. It works with adults just as good as it does with kids. That is device that facilitates the rehabilitation - teaching them to obey the rules of the system, be better members of society, and just stay out of trouble. Plus, it's a lot cheaper.

Seeing that this news article is well over 4 years old, the thread is being closed. Should members wish to discuss the issue on Prisoner benefits, please start a new thread in one of the other forums.


Thread closed.