Prisons are common, yet misunderstood institutions. So what does popular media like Orange is the New Black and Shawshank Redemption get wrong? Why do prisoners wear orange jumpsuits? Do prisons operate the same way around the world? How many prisoners are incarcerated for marijuana possession?
Join host Justin Dodd as he breaks down some common myths and misconceptions about the prison system.
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00:00:00 Intro
00:01:30 You only have one phone call
00:02:41 Pumping iron is a common activity
00:04:08 Riots happen a lot
00:05:47 Prisons are full of murderers
00:06:16 Prisons are full of people convicted for marijuana possession
00:06:54 U.S. prisons jail people at about the same rate as other countries
00:07:58 Most people in jail have been found guilty of crimes
00:08:22 Prison and jail are the same thing
00:08:57 Prison is the same around the world
00:09:36 Prisons have decent libraries
00:10:37 Incarcerated people earn good money working prison jobs
00:11:10 “Don’t drop the soap” is a concern
00:12:03 Prisons have to provide nutritionally complete meals
36 Comments
First?
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We here in America are a society obsessed with punishment, not to ourselves, but to others that we see as lesser. We thrive vicariously on the pain and suffering of others. It's a massive problem here, which explains why we have so many prisoners with such long sentences and do so few for them. At the end of the day, they are human too, and as you said, most of them are innocent and are simply awaiting trial
You don't go to prison when you first are arrested, usually it's county jail. Not the same thing as prison. For one, the food is much worse, usually.
The reason the US looooooves prison is because of the 13th Amendment. "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, EXCEPT AS A PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." Need slaves? Makes more laws so more people break them. Want slaves of a certain demographic? More heavily police their areas and target laws towards crimes you think they're more likely to commit, and then prosecute at a disproportionately higher rate for longer sentences…
People that can't afford bail, who are presumed innocent tend to show the opposite being true. I'm the United States you are guilty until proven innocent…unless you have money.
I was in jail for a few weeks (not prison) and it was worse than anything I have seen on TV. The worst thing was the fact that there was no library and no books to read (unless you had someone on the outside ordering them for you). The smell was always terrible even after washing down the pod, and the food was literally inedible (I don't mean "bad," I mean inedible). My "offense" was a sarcastic comment I made off the top of my head online regarding the most criminal and terroristic pharmaceutical company in the world. It was called a "terroristic threat" despite being a sarcastic comment with a context protected by the 1st Amendment (the second charge was what is referred to as "stacking the deck" where you either did not break the law or committed a far lesser offense, but the prosecutor wishes to ensure that you are punished as harshly as possible). I have multiple education degrees I am over $35,000 in debt for and have hardly worked in seven years as I only work in academics and no other field (I am also being blocked from apply to positions online possibly because those doing it do not want me to reveal what was done to me for me to get the record I do not deserve). I have decided to go back to school and get more degrees as I refuse to work in any field outside secondary English education based on principle alone (only sociopaths and psychopaths think it just to destroy someone's career over a sarcastic comment made towards a pharmaceutical company with the worst criminal history of any drug company. Even now, I know this comment won't show as there should be many more (so I will add it to my videos as even more evidence that my 1st Amendment rights are being violated). Regardless, I will get justice and get my life back 100% one way or another.
Slave labor was never completely outlawed.
Enslavement of anyone who commits a “crime” is not only legal but makes up the backbone of many of our major industries.
Ever wonder why candy is so cheap?
I'm not gonna do the math, but if riots per capita have gone down since the '70s, we could very well be seeing more total prison riots, considering the insane skyrocketing of the number of incarcerated Americans since that time.
The county jail where I live serves dry bologna sandwiches 3 meals a day every day.
"Prison is a terrible place. It's full of criminals!" —– Ozzy Osbourne
In many of the older prison movies they had some inmates called Trustees that would be given more freedom than the others. It sounds like a creation of the movies. Also, how often do jail breaks occur?
Jeffery Dahmer and another prisoner were beaten to death with a barbell in Prison.
I live very near Attica.
Just here to see if they correct any shower misconceptions or if all of those prevalent notions are true.
Slavery still is legal in the US: if you're a prisoner.
I have to imagine that the reason that the Black and White stripes were common was because no matter where an escaped prisoner may be hiding or running, they're not likely to blend in with the environment. Like outlining white text in black so that the text can alwyas be seen no matter what it's sitting in front of.
Making money is an action.keeping money is a behaviour, but "Growing money is wisdom" I figured this out a week ago.
In my prison majority of sentences were for fraud. I was in for car accident due to a stupid law change 2 weeks prior to the accident. I'm no criminal in was in wrong place at wrong time. My prison had great resources, education and medical services. We lived in real houses with singular bedrooms on a farm. It was actually a great place. It's not quite Norways Halden prison but it was great none the less.
We had a food allowance and got to choose, order and cook for ourselves.
Prison should be a place of rehabilitation and personal growth, prisoners deserve the same rights as everyone else.
the fact that jails house the non-convicted, yet are usually far worse for inmates, really pisses me off.
We (thankfully) fired the hell out of our former contractor who fed our inmates. Its was ~90% carbs. They now get better quality food, but fruits and veggies! Fruits are a little less available due to its ability to turn into hooch.
If anyone can sit through the intro alone and not realize prison is fundamentally broken…I don't like them
I'd be curious to know about misconceptions about Europe that decade?
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I'm quitting this halfway through because it's so poorly written. In the item about violent offenders he says most prisoners aren't in for violent offenses based on the Federal prison population. But most violent crimes are state crimes, and there are 5 times as many people in state prisons than Federal. THAT'S where the murderers are. When discussing whether incarcerated people have been convicted, he says and I quote "People who have been found guilty … are more likely to be found in Federal prison." Again, wrong, most convicted people are in state prisons. It's not as if they don't know state prisons exist or were doing an episode about Federal prisons only; he mentions state prisons, but the thinking is totally disorganized. There was an intelligent, informative episode to be done on this topic, but this isn't it.
In the 90s, we didn't all wear bright contrasting colors all the time. Nor did we all wear flannel and jeans.
Most of the girls in my school DID have huge hair, though. Man, I miss that style.
The last part about the garden would have a range of benefits. Too many to list all but Not only to off set the costs and better nutrition but gardening is considered therapeutic for the most part and puts people in a better state of mind which would probably reduce the violence in prisons. I'm sure they could use it as a type of reward for well behaved prisoners. Also, the stuff they grow in the summer can be canned and used year round to name a few. I'm actually surprised that most prisons don't do this.
5 acres is paltry.
Nothing to debunk, but if your 90s video doesn’t mention the two years of neon nylon garbage we had to put up with then you’ve failed.
imagine believing any of these myths. So cucked by the police
Confusing title when they inter mingle jail and prison but than say jails and prisons are different. Maybe they should visit some prisons before doing this video. Some prisons are full of murders. The one near me is about 50% are in for murder. It’s because they are higher level prison and hold most of the violent guys. The prison has a very good library, they even have a full time librarian. Some of the jobs at prison pay minimum wage depending on the job. Most make very little but there are high paying jobs. Many are able to pay off fines and pay child support working these higher paying jobs. The prison has a dietician that must approve all meals. I know many prisons are bad but there are good ones. The prison also offers college classes, cd treatment, vocational classes, gym time with workout equipment, cable tv, and many other things.
Why the long sentences? Racism and classism .
My grandfather was a cop. He told me long ago about the BASIC difference between "jail" and "prison" by this quote: "I can take someone to jail..Only a Court can send someone to prison".
TIL: Commit a crime in Norway! 😜
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