Comment - Part 2 - I took a couple of criminology classes here in Australia and my lecturer had spent some years researching in & around various U.S. prisons and your system is used as an example in our Universities as… basically, what not to do. We are told if we keep lengthening prison sentences and taking the ‘hard stand against crime’, as, yes, the media and politicians push for, and not focus on rehabilitation (which isn’t unachievable! - even without any professional assistance, as you seem to know only too well), we will end up going the same way as the U.S.A. and that’s not at all where we want to be. I don’t know if the fact that Australia started our modern identity as a penal colony, as the English sentenced criminals to deportation here in the 1800s, whether that has anything to do with the reason why we’re a bit more relaxed and don’t believe most people should be shut away without ever being given a second chance.
I know none of this information will be specifically helpful to you; I just wanted to let you know that you’d sparked some level of thought as I read through your post.
You used the phrase “rational decision maker” twice here; I would definitely suggest that there is not a lot of rationale being utilized in these decisions. How can people possibly show their level of reform if they’re never given an opportunity to? I would like to say - Lighten up America! Everyone deserves a fair go and I think, has a responsibility to contribute to society. It couldn’t be more obvious that your system is not working – your sentences are high and your crime rate high, our sentences are low and in comparison, our crime rate is low (doesn’t really take a genius to work it out does it). Of course simply reducing sentences isn’t the answer either, the whole societal structure has to be strengthened also.
Finally, I wanted to say that I read your profile before I typed my reply, just to try and get a feel for who I was speaking to and I smiled when I saw you say you were going to work on your sense of humor. For that reason I feel I must acknowledge your last sentence. I’ll elaborate a little more. When I first saw you’d mentioned George Bush I thought ‘oh no, and you had me hanging on every word up until that point’ (not a very internationally well respected man is George Bush, although our Prime Minister of that time was good mates with him :D), but then I thought about it “even George Bush said that we are a nation of second chances” and I saw the humor. I see your work there is paying off too :D
I hope you continue to find the strength to never give up your goal! Thank you for writing!
Comment - Part 1 - I really enjoyed reading this post. I’ve only fairly recently discovered this site, so this is the first of your posts that I’ve read. I can see (with 87 posts currently on this blog site) I could have many late nights reading through the others :D
Thank you for speaking about this book. I hadn’t heard of it before but I will definitely get myself a copy. I have a very close friend serving life in Arizona so I related to a lot of the things you were saying here.
When you mentioned the problem is the propaganda, news media & politicians demonizing you, as sensationalism sells and wins votes; I agree they are certainly contributing factors, but from a more ‘outside looking in’ viewpoint, I think there are more factors at play here also. I live in Australia and our system is a lot more lenient than that of the U.S.A. a ‘Life’ term of imprisonment here is 15 years, and I think eligibility for parole is after 8 – Just think, with the time you’ve already served you could have completed THREE life terms here already & be heading into your 4th - that’s mind boggling!). Although our countries are allies & we have a strong connection with the U.S., I think we see Americans as extremists (on many levels) who don’t stop to consider the consequences of that excessive level of behavior. As I was reading this paragraph in your post I found myself thinking that I would hope future generations of decision makers will be less-extremist, and become more lenient on offering the most challenging members of our society a second chance and even encouraging a ‘fair go’. I’m not sure that is a natural progression though, sadly. My other thought was that as more and more American’s are sentenced to prison terms for longer and more prisons are continually built, surely it’s only a matter of time before EVERY person in the U.S. is touched by having a loved one residing within the prison system, and therefore may be inclined to look at the situation differently – from a more personal perspective – perhaps this will spark the sensible change in thinking that’s required there.
“The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land” Isaiah 58:11. "The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8. Yes, your Abba really loves the beach and He loves you even more!
There is a small minority of Christians, (who happen to be quite loud), who don't really represent the Church or the religion begun 2000 years ago in Judea. They are the ones who are the "go-to" people for MSNBC or other bastions of leftist atheist philosophy, in order to get, what they KNOW will be crackpot answers to any question regarding Christianity. You'll never hear an interview or read an article focusing on a thoughtful orthodox Roman Catholic Priest or Bishop who they know can actually articulate the real Christian position on some idea or issue. No....they give you Bubba from the Church of Christ babbling about God hating fags, and everybody going to hell, (except themselves), because they're "saved". Not a man among them has ever even cracked open the Summa Theologica, or The Imitation of Christ, or any number of great spiritual classics of rational classic, orthodox Christian thought, which is about as tightly woven, and perfect as philosophy gets. They are either rednecks, who were full of hate before God, and then found God and remained full of hate, but now feel justified in it, or they're hokey health and wealth evangelicals looking to show you how you deserve to be rich since you found the Lord.
It is, or course, possible one could read St. Thomas Aquinas, C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, etc. and still come away without being a believer. That's fine. Because one must still feel a call, and no book can provide that. But it's nearly impossible to imagine someone studying the richness of these theologians and philosophers, and still come away with ideas like the 6000 year earth, and judgementalism being representative at all of true Christian thought. This smacks more, I'm afraid of using Bubba as a yardstick of what Christianity is. To understand real Christian insight, better to take a look through "Confessions" by St. Augustine, than to watch a news story about Fred Phelps.
Only modernist Christians can give you ugly thoughts about Christianit. But seriously..........a VERY small (though admittedly vocal) minority of them.
All I can do is pray that things change over the years, but whether they do or don't, it shouldn't be a division between us.
People are always wanting to NOT talk about religion and politics. Well what the hell does that leave anybody to talk about? Religion and politics are the only things that matter to anyone's life at all. It's no big surprise that they have become the least favorite topics of modernism. It's because authentic religion and politics makes people stand somewhere. To take positions. To get uncomfortable in their surroundings. They call for choices, reasoning, and good old fashioned thinking and studying. These concepts are anathema to modernists.
RSS
I took a couple of criminology classes here in Australia and my lecturer had spent some years researching in & around various U.S. prisons and your system is used as an example in our Universities as… basically, what not to do. We are told if we keep lengthening prison sentences and taking the ‘hard stand against crime’, as, yes, the media and politicians push for, and not focus on rehabilitation (which isn’t unachievable! - even without any professional assistance, as you seem to know only too well), we will end up going the same way as the U.S.A. and that’s not at all where we want to be. I don’t know if the fact that Australia started our modern identity as a penal colony, as the English sentenced criminals to deportation here in the 1800s, whether that has anything to do with the reason why we’re a bit more relaxed and don’t believe most people should be shut away without ever being given a second chance.
I know none of this information will be specifically helpful to you; I just wanted to let you know that you’d sparked some level of thought as I read through your post.
You used the phrase “rational decision maker” twice here; I would definitely suggest that there is not a lot of rationale being utilized in these decisions. How can people possibly show their level of reform if they’re never given an opportunity to? I would like to say - Lighten up America! Everyone deserves a fair go and I think, has a responsibility to contribute to society. It couldn’t be more obvious that your system is not working – your sentences are high and your crime rate high, our sentences are low and in comparison, our crime rate is low (doesn’t really take a genius to work it out does it). Of course simply reducing sentences isn’t the answer either, the whole societal structure has to be strengthened also.
Finally, I wanted to say that I read your profile before I typed my reply, just to try and get a feel for who I was speaking to and I smiled when I saw you say you were going to work on your sense of humor. For that reason I feel I must acknowledge your last sentence. I’ll elaborate a little more. When I first saw you’d mentioned George Bush I thought ‘oh no, and you had me hanging on every word up until that point’ (not a very internationally well respected man is George Bush, although our Prime Minister of that time was good mates with him :D), but then I thought about it “even George Bush said that we are a nation of second chances” and I saw the humor. I see your work there is paying off too :D
I hope you continue to find the strength to never give up your goal! Thank you for writing!
Nicki
I really enjoyed reading this post. I’ve only fairly recently discovered this site, so this is the first of your posts that I’ve read. I can see (with 87 posts currently on this blog site) I could have many late nights reading through the others :D
Thank you for speaking about this book. I hadn’t heard of it before but I will definitely get myself a copy. I have a very close friend serving life in Arizona so I related to a lot of the things you were saying here.
When you mentioned the problem is the propaganda, news media & politicians demonizing you, as sensationalism sells and wins votes; I agree they are certainly contributing factors, but from a more ‘outside looking in’ viewpoint, I think there are more factors at play here also. I live in Australia and our system is a lot more lenient than that of the U.S.A. a ‘Life’ term of imprisonment here is 15 years, and I think eligibility for parole is after 8 – Just think, with the time you’ve already served you could have completed THREE life terms here already & be heading into your 4th - that’s mind boggling!). Although our countries are allies & we have a strong connection with the U.S., I think we see Americans as extremists (on many levels) who don’t stop to consider the consequences of that excessive level of behavior. As I was reading this paragraph in your post I found myself thinking that I would hope future generations of decision makers will be less-extremist, and become more lenient on offering the most challenging members of our society a second chance and even encouraging a ‘fair go’. I’m not sure that is a natural progression though, sadly. My other thought was that as more and more American’s are sentenced to prison terms for longer and more prisons are continually built, surely it’s only a matter of time before EVERY person in the U.S. is touched by having a loved one residing within the prison system, and therefore may be inclined to look at the situation differently – from a more personal perspective – perhaps this will spark the sensible change in thinking that’s required there.
"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8. Yes, your Abba really loves the beach and He loves you even more!
It is, or course, possible one could read St. Thomas Aquinas, C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, etc. and still come away without being a believer. That's fine. Because one must still feel a call, and no book can provide that. But it's nearly impossible to imagine someone studying the richness of these theologians and philosophers, and still come away with ideas like the 6000 year earth, and judgementalism being representative at all of true Christian thought. This smacks more, I'm afraid of using Bubba as a yardstick of what Christianity is. To understand real Christian insight, better to take a look through "Confessions" by St. Augustine, than to watch a news story about Fred Phelps.
Only modernist Christians can give you ugly thoughts about Christianit. But seriously..........a VERY small (though admittedly vocal) minority of them.
All I can do is pray that things change over the years, but whether they do or don't, it shouldn't be a division between us.
People are always wanting to NOT talk about religion and politics. Well what the hell does that leave anybody to talk about? Religion and politics are the only things that matter to anyone's life at all. It's no big surprise that they have become the least favorite topics of modernism. It's because authentic religion and politics makes people stand somewhere. To take positions. To get uncomfortable in their surroundings. They call for choices, reasoning, and good old fashioned thinking and studying. These concepts are anathema to modernists.
Just my 2 cents. Sorry for the little rant.
Love ya,
Dad