Between the Bars: Comments on 'A Mindful Approach to Prison Reform'https://betweenthebars.org/posts/commentfeed/130582022-05-28T05:03:06ZComment2022-05-28T05:03:06ZCellowind/people/show/39172tag:betweenthebars.org,2022-05-28:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 1 year, 9 months ago.</span>
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Dear Daniel,<br /><br />I'm someone who really believes in restorative justice and your post helped me learn how important it is to treat everybody as a human being.<br /><br />I hope to be a public defender in the future, and your post is one of the reasons why I want to work on the behalf of prisoners. I don't believe excessive punishment and retributive justice does anyone any good and the focus on getting people in prisons neglects to think about the effects of after prison and during prison.<br /><br />I hope humanity can go on a closer step towards restorative justice and work on remembering the humanity in everyone. Thank you for writing.
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Comment2021-11-06T21:59:43Zrc1/people/show/35936tag:betweenthebars.org,2021-11-06:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 2 years, 4 months ago.</span>
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I never knew about the Dhamma Brothers. How interesting! I agree that rehab that focuses on mindfulness and educational content would be beneficial in helping inmates transform.
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Comment2018-12-14T14:47:18ZMedicalMomm@32/people/show/24258tag:betweenthebars.org,2018-12-14:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 5 years, 3 months ago.</span>
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Daniel, your truly correct. However one course doesn't change the person the person has to want to change. I don't think the Reforming program should be offered to everyone right from the start I think it should be offered after the INMATE has proven his/her good behavior and wants to better his/her life by choosing to do the programs offered to you all because he or she really wants a second chance. otherwise keep up the positive attitude and continue fighting for a more JUST system of reformation. Happy holidays.
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Comment2017-12-14T14:46:08Zglenncheney/people/show/17187tag:betweenthebars.org,2017-12-14:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<a href='/people/show/17187'>glenncheney</a>
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 6 years, 3 months ago.</span>
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Daniel, I am writing a book about prisons and how they can be made better. I might be able to use one of your blog posts, probably the one from 2013 on Mindfulness. I will need your person to do this. How can I contact you? I am at glenn@cheneybooks.com or Glenn Cheney, P.O. Box 284, Hanover, CT 06350. <br /><br />There is no money involved, but i can send you a few copies o;f the book.
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Comment2017-12-10T21:15:20ZChristipep/people/show/13173tag:betweenthebars.org,2017-12-10:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 6 years, 3 months ago.</span>
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Dear Daniel: I, truthfully, enjoyed your post. I only WISH that I knew how to put this on Facebook, so Tht your very well thought-out ideas could be viewed by everyone. That is really the only way something like this could ever come to fruition. I would Soo love for that to be the case. Your ideas not only make A LOT of sense, but I truly believe that they could absolutely change the whole world!! Sincerely Ms. Christine
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Comment2016-12-08T12:21:42Zcarolineshort/people/show/10876tag:betweenthebars.org,2016-12-08:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 7 years, 3 months ago.</span>
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Dear Daniel, <br /><br />This is an incredibly well written and thoughtful post. I think you are the type of person who could be the leader in revolutionizing our system, which is clearly NOT working. Keep it up, and stay strong! <br /><br />Sincerely,<br />Caroline
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Comment2016-12-05T11:44:27Zreader3/people/show/10775tag:betweenthebars.org,2016-12-05:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 7 years, 3 months ago.</span>
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Daniel.<br /><br />Your writing here is so thoughtful. Justice focused only the past cannot lead to a future. I love the way you've articulated these very specific items but also shared a bigger theme and idea. So well said. Stay strong!
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Comment2016-12-02T10:42:37Zcm55/people/show/10764tag:betweenthebars.org,2016-12-02:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 7 years, 3 months ago.</span>
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Hi Daniel,<br /><br />Your post is a tremendous call not only for a completely reconceived idea of justice, but for a society that views those who it has failed as human, rather than animals or sources of profit. Keep up the good fight.
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Comment2016-10-28T18:16:03Zblackmanizgod@7/people/show/10491tag:betweenthebars.org,2016-10-28:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 7 years, 4 months ago.</span>
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greetings my brutha. I was reading threw these posts. Looking at shit I wrote years ago. I do no know where you are now. However, I would hope you still receive this note. I enjoy your insight and thorough analysis. We share a similar vision. I would like to stay in touch with you. So that if/when the opportunity presents itself for me to build my own center or have one built. You can be a part of it's design. peace brah.
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Comment2015-07-16T23:51:53ZLuli726/people/show/9256tag:betweenthebars.org,2015-07-16:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 8 years, 8 months ago.</span>
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This was amazingly well written and inspiring. I agree with a previous poster that this article is worthy of publication. It is people like you that have the heart and the know-how to change the world, that ultimately will. I'm sure at times it might be easy to feel powerless but a person's mind is the greatest power they have. Continue to utilize all that you were blessed with. You, my friend, are more powerful than some that have all the freedoms imaginable. God bless you.
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Comment2015-04-06T07:18:30ZAnne/people/show/9086tag:betweenthebars.org,2015-04-06:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 8 years, 11 months ago.</span>
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Excellent written!! What an insight you have!!<br /><br />I encourage EVERYONE to forward/share this blogpost of yours. Let's start working.<br />*thumbs-up*
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Comment2015-03-09T14:00:51ZK/people/show/9031tag:betweenthebars.org,2015-03-09:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 9 years ago.</span>
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Daniel,<br /> Too often you hear reasons of why or why not change in the system cannot occur coming from higher authorities, but I think it is refreshing to hear your thoughts since you are going through this first hand. <br />What is the purpose of the Prison? Is it to punish? Is it to reform? As my knowledge continues to increase, I began to form an opinion that agrees with your position. A restorative justice system is needed. Your goals for an ideal system are great and go along completely with my morals and thoughts about the prison. <br />This RRC program sounds fascinating, and I would be interested to see how many inmates would choose to participate in this facility. Also, I would be interested to see how many people would be willing to participate in the ten-day retreat you described. You touched on the point that many people coming into the prison are not really in a good state of mind, but I do believe through a system like this people would be willing to change. You described how if you are a first time offender you can get a sentence reduction by 1/3; a second time offender will not receive a sentence deduction, but can still participate in the program; and those who have participated in the program twice already are not able to go through it again. This is a very smart and well thought out idea. I feel for first time offenders it is almost like an incentive to get a sentence reduction. And during their time there, hopefully they will have a change of mind for the better. Also, those that are second time offenders are still given the privilege—like a second chance. While it might of not worked completely the first time, if they are willing to go back to the program without the incentive of a sentence reduction, this shows that they are motivated, and they do want to see a change within themselves. Lastly, the third time offender is not given the opportunity to participate in the program. It is like the idea of ‘three strikes and you are out’; you were given the opportunity to reform, but you did not take advantage of it therefore you missed your chances—it is a missed opportunity. <br />The lessons you are envisioning for this RRC program such as ‘self-discovery’ and ‘interpersonal skills/conflict resolution’ is exactly what the prison needs. Moreover, the question you proposed at the end really brought your idea full circle. Do you want to have a criminal in your neighborhood that did not undergo reform? Or one that has gone through this RRC program and has reformed and has had a change of mind? People say they have this WANT for reform of prison inmates, but do slim to nothing about it. However, with an idea like this brought to the table, people will agree and feel a passion to take action.
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Comment2014-11-13T11:12:08ZStina01/people/show/8779tag:betweenthebars.org,2014-11-13:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 9 years, 4 months ago.</span>
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Daniel, <br />Your insight on this topic was fantastic to read. I couldn't help feeling like this may be a calling for you. I am confident that someone like yourself, who has the knowledge, background and positive mindset to make a change in this world......will. I also know that there would be many people willing to support you and cheer you on.<br />I wish you the very best of luck. <br /><br />Justina.
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Comment2014-10-24T14:24:46ZMarina/people/show/8744tag:betweenthebars.org,2014-10-24:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 9 years, 4 months ago.</span>
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Dear Daniel,<br /><br />This was fantastic to read, for so many reasons. It is individuals like you who have motivated me to work toward the position I'm currently in - doing a PhD at the University of California, Irvine in Criminology, Law & Society. I taught Philosophy and Ethics for the Prison University Project at San Quentin, and saw the tremendous need for exactly the kind of approach you suggest. I'm working on developing a research proposal for implementing a large number of the policies and practices of offender treatment and social attitudes from the Nordic countries. My contention so far has been that the unit of focus for rehabilitation needs to expand beyond the individual inmate, and also encompass the local communities into which they are released. The public imagination needs to be rehabilitated too. I would love to hear more of your thoughts and ideas about how this might happen. I feel the perspective of inmates is invaluable in this endeavor. <br /><br />Love and strength to you,<br />Marina
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Comment2014-10-24T09:19:41Zjesslopez19/people/show/8742tag:betweenthebars.org,2014-10-24:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 9 years, 4 months ago.</span>
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Daniel, you are nothing short of a blessing. Thank you for this post. I'm looking forward to reading more from you.<br /><br />Yours in the struggle,<br />Jessica Lopez &<br />Ban Reverse Stings
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Comment2014-10-07T08:46:44ZTenaj/people/show/8699tag:betweenthebars.org,2014-10-07:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 9 years, 5 months ago.</span>
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Daniel, first off excellent post! I too believe in "restoration" being on both sides of the fence I now know what people go through. I was an advocate for addicts of all walks of life and I found myself defending my clients due to the lack of help that they received and the lack of injustice in the system. Then I found myself defending myself in similar circumstances. I promised to be a voice on the outside because people tend to forget that inmates are still people and not just an inmate number. Continue your research and be that voice! Looking forward to reading more of your blogs!
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Comment2014-03-04T23:54:20Zsusan/people/show/1157tag:betweenthebars.org,2014-03-04:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<a href='/people/show/1157'>susan</a>
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years ago.</span>
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HI Daniel,<br /><br />I just read an article from the Onion and thought of you and your posts. Hopefully the satire will help spark some minds!<br /><br />http://www.theonion.com/articles/15-years-in-environment-of-constant-fear-somehow-f,35434/<br /><br />15 Years In Environment Of Constant Fear Somehow Fails To Rehabilitate Prisoner<br />NEWS IN BRIEF • Prison • Lifestyle • ISSUE 50•09 • Mar 4, 2014<br /><br /><br />WOODBOURNE, NY—Reportedly left dumbfounded by the news that recent parolee Terry Raney had been reincarcerated on charges of assault and battery, officials at Woodbourne Correctional Facility struggled Tuesday to make sense of how the prisoner had not been rehabilitated by 15 years of constant threats, physical abuse, and periodic isolation. “It just doesn’t seem possible that an inmate could live for a decade and a half in a completely dehumanizing environment in which violent felons were constantly on the verge of attacking or even killing him and not emerge an emotionally stable, productive member of society,” said chief warden Albert Gunderson, who noted that, as hard as it was to believe, Raney’s recidivism proved that his criminal impulses had not in fact been corrected by the sense of grave distrust he felt toward every other person in the facility, including both fellow inmates and prison authorities, every day since 1999. “We surrounded him with a combustible mix of rival gangs and made sure that he was consumed by a round-the-clock sense of terror that the slightest misstep on his part could result in a sharpened piece of scrap metal being shoved into his neck, and yet he still leaves this facility with the same criminal thoughts and violent mindset as before? I’m truly at a loss for how this could have happened.” Gunderson then noted his additional confusion at how the man’s criminal record and the social stigma of his prison sentence had somehow failed to land him a steady job immediately upon his release.
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Comment2014-01-05T22:30:54ZDaniel Labbe/people/show/342tag:betweenthebars.org,2014-01-05:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<a href='/people/show/342'>Daniel Labbe</a>
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 2 months ago.</span>
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Comment2013-11-11T05:08:11Zcandleships/people/show/6486tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-11-11:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<a href='/people/show/6486'>candleships</a>
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 4 months ago.</span>
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Dear Daniel, <br /><br />I just finished reading your article entitled "A Mindful Approach to Prison Reform". Consider my mind opened. It was a truly insightful article, and your ideas on how to better rehabilitate prisoners are very well-thought-out. <br /><br />I think you have pinpointed the problem in our criminal justice system today, which is the fact that we spend far too much time worrying about getting offenders into prison, and very little time at all thinking about what happens to them when they get out. People who have, as you say, been treated like "rabid animals" will have an incredibly hard time becoming a part of society outside prison again. <br /><br />I must admit that I found myself a little doubtful about how much a ten day intensive meditation retreat would really help people who have (perhaps for more than twenty years) been trapped in the current prison system, and confined like animals... <br />But I did some more research on The Dhamma Brothers, and I was shocked that I had never heard about it before. The program really does seem to work, and most importantly, work WELL. A program with such beneficial results should, I think, be the norm in prisons all over the US. Reading through some of the letters of prisoners who had undergone the program, I was absolutely astounded at the results that it seems to have. Here's one quote from Willie Carroll that particularly struck me:<br /><br />"I can now talk to the worse of attitudes and still keep my composure—I can now be human to myself and others. I’m not cured of my lack of knowledge but this experience has allowed me room to grow and to respect my growth." <br /><br />Thanks for the insightful article, and keep writing -- if anything can get these ideas spread, it's through Between the Bars.<br /><br />Best wishes,<br /> --C.B.B. (candleships)
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Comment2013-10-03T16:11:42ZVladimir/people/show/7560tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-10-03:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<a href='/people/show/7560'>Vladimir</a>
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 5 months ago.</span>
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Hi Daniel,<br /><br />First off, an excellent post! Very poignant and well-written. I fully agree with your emphasis on "restoration" rather than "punishment," especially with regards to the practice of mindfulness. It has worked wonders in my own life, and I have no doubt that it can greatly help inmates as well. What a shame that our government refuses to fund such programs. Sadly, they seem to view all inmates as beyond repair, which is just plain wrong.<br /><br />Hope you are well. Stay strong!<br /><br />Sincerely,<br />Vladimir<br /><br />P.S.--are you allowed to receive books in the mail? If you'd like, I would be glad to send you some reading material.
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Comment2013-09-05T11:45:55Zangiejyc8/people/show/7465tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-09-05:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 6 months ago.</span>
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I think its an awesome idea I had a dad who was in prison and he got great education but he served time for something he didn't do I wish justice would be served for him but now he is already out is it too late for him to try to fight his crime?
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Comment2013-08-24T06:25:18ZJT/people/show/7238tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-08-24:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<a href='/people/show/7238'>JT</a>
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 6 months ago.</span>
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Those programs are free. Write to a local buddhist group and see if they would come out to your prison. Is there a group coming out now?<br /><br />I've run a Buddhist program in the past :).
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Comment2013-08-23T21:38:45ZLetsMakeSomethingHappen/people/show/7419tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-08-23:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 7 months ago.</span>
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Asking all my family, friends, co-workers and networks to give any size donation they can spare to this great cause. Large or small it all helps and will be greatly appreciated.<br /><br />http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/inmates-who-have-no-one/x/4522850
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Comment2013-08-05T20:49:57ZBellerophon/people/show/7355tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-08-05:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 7 months ago.</span>
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Dear Daniel:<br />Thank you for this thoughtful and well researched article. I cried when I read it, especially your definition of a "restorative justice system". I am the mother of a victim of a crime and I have struggled to come to terms with whether I will ever feel like justice has been served for the perpetrator of this crime. You have helped me realize that more than punishment for him, I just want to be absolutely certain that nobody else will be hurt in this same way by him or anyone else. I want desperately to save other mothers and daughters from this pain. What I really want to believe in is what you described, a system that can truly rehabilitate. The difficulty is that most people believe that adult offenders can't be truly rehabilitated. I looked up the programs you wrote about and I think you might be onto something. Thank you for giving me hope that most people might be wrong.
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Comment2013-08-01T11:43:43Zwolfkeeper/people/show/7100tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-08-01:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 7 months ago.</span>
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Thanks for writing! I finished the transcription for your post.<br /><br />Excellent article!! I would never have guessed that you have a 10th grade education. This was very well written and an excellent idea. You should try to get the article published!
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Comment2013-07-31T12:32:12Zslaterbrown/people/show/4933tag:betweenthebars.org,2013-07-31:/posts/13058/a-mindful-approach-to-prison-reform/comments
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<span class='comment-date'>Posted 10 years, 7 months ago.</span>
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Be sure to check out Daniel's previous companion post on the subject, "True Prison Reform: Change Begins With Us": https://betweenthebars.org/posts/6217/true-prison-reform-change-begins-with-us
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