FORTY - TWO PERCENT

 As the 16 month campaign for president begins its tsunami- like tidal wave towards the election in 2016, the "spinning" of the discussion about crime and imprisonment in America will eventually be pushed to the forefront of all upcoming debates.

Each candidate will expound on how tough they will be on crime and in today's political climate of forgiveness, the discussion will also include reduced sentencing for low level crimes and drug use. Democrats and Republications will attempt to convince the American public just how badly they want to make and keep America safe.

If this were true, why won't the politician in this country do what's right by making America's penal system a rehabilitative endeavor instead of one that incarcerates and punishes those who commit crimes. They have a captive audience and there are many things that can be done and taught to inmates that would help them acclimate to society after their release.

It is very obvious that the present method of incarceration is not working because after an inmate is released, they usually return because of many reasons, but the biggest reason is that they are ill prepared to participate in a ever changing world. The term used to label repeat offenders who return to prison is called "recidivism" .

An even more alarming statistic that insures that your politicians are talking out of both sides of their mouths is that after receiving a little amount of education while in prison, 42% of those who receive it do not return to prison. 

The government pays approximately $ 45,000 dollars per year to house someone in prison, it pays $ 6,000 dollars per year to educate a child and of course the cost of college in America is off the charts. But here we have a "Criminal Industrial Complex" whose only person is to house criminals and when they pay for their crimes, wait for them to return after doing nothing to rehabilitate them.

Sure, there are some criminals that will never change, but when the rate of recidivism can be reduced by a little education while in prison, then the system is doing what it is supposed to do, rehabilitate and not just incarcerate.

Your politicians will continue to rattle on about prison reform but rest assured that it's not because they have had a change of heart. It's really because of the rising cost of housing men of color for low level crimes and how these costs are bankrupting the states.  So the new BS that you will hear will be from Rand Paul, Corey Booker, and the like who are beating that prison reform drum very loudly.

If change does come, we all can say that it's about time and maybe some of the money saved with prison reform can be used to improve an educational system in America that is failing young kids who are the ones who end up in prison anyway.

Mad Man