UNIVERSITY OF EX-CONS

Yesterday, while I was watching a local newscast, a black lady was asked for some comments on the sad state of our economy. She said that instead of wasting all that money on the war in Iraq, our government should spend it to release prison inmates and place them in college. Now that is a novel idea if there ever was one. I suspect her remarks were related to the fact that a disproportionate number of blacks are imprisoned in this country.

Thanks to the crap put out by radical-left academics and by black community rabblerousers, many African-Americans believe that black prisoners are the victims of a racist criminal justice system. That is far from the truth. Blacks are disproportionately imprisoned simply because they commit a disproportionate amount of crime.

Let's explore the lady's suggestion that prison inmates be placed in colleges. Will that work? Based on my professional experience, I rather doubt it. Most prison systems provide inmates with the opportunity to take college courses leading to a two-year Associate degree and, in some systems, even to a four-year degree. However, in order to accomodate the average inmate with his low IQ, those courses have been pretty well dumbed down.

Once released on parole or discharged from his sentence, an ex-con who received a dumbed-down Associate degree while in prison would probably not pass the tougher courses of a college or university. Not only that, but many ex-cons will lack the self-dscipline needed to go to class, get there on time, study, keep reasonable hours, etc.. Why do I say that?

Prison societies are artifical and have no relationship to the reality of society in the free world. In my blog, "Prisons Cannot Rehabilitate Criminals" (11-28-07), I wrote: "In the totalitarian nature of prisons, inmates are directed when to get up and go to bed, when to shave, shit and shower, when and what to eat, and when, where and how to move about. In the prison society, its members are not responsible for providing themselves with food, shelter, clothing and medical attention."

"(Prisons) should provide the tools which will enable an inmate to rehabilitate himself once he has been released into the free world. Those tools should include a literacy program, a GED and higher education program, addiction treatment, psychotherapy (if deemed appropriate), tattoo removal and work skills training. Even with such programs in place, California still experiences a recidivism rate of around 50 percent."

College enrollments of ex-cons in large numbers would bode ill for the general campus population. Many prison inmates are simply crime prone and opportunities for them to succeed in the free world do not reduce recidivism rates. If colleges were to open their doors to a substantial number of ex-cons, students would eventually become crime victims. However, a careful and extensive screening of former prison inmates should enable a select number of ex-cons to be enrolled with little danger to other students.

Some of you reading this blog may think that I am just a hard nosed ex-cop who doesn't want to give an ex-con another chance. In that case, you have misread me. I have always advocated giving former inmates every opportunity with which to rehabilitate themselves and have tried to help in that process. While on the faculty of Sam Houston State University, I conducted group therapy sessions twice weekly for problem inmates at the Ferguson Unit of the Texas prison system. And I also conducted pre-release classes for those inmates about to leave that unit for the free world.

I hate to disillusion that lady who was interviewed on yesterday's newscast. Using the money we are spending on the Iraq War to empty our prisons and place the freed inmates in college would be an even bigger waste of money. Sorry lady, but a well intentioned mass release of prison inmates to a University of Ex-Cons is simply not advisable.