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Another thing not mentioned in the article is the fact that a lot of small jails in the US have instituted a 23-hour lockdown policy, similar to super max prisons. So now socializing and free time out of your cell is rare, and lockup is the norm. I don't think they truly care too much about rehabilitation, so much as they care about control. Just my humble opinion.

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When you have a building designed for 500 people, and hold 750 every day, you do what you have to to avoid large-scale violence. I'm not saying I agree with it, I'm just saying why it exists.

Prison overcrowding is a thing across the US.

Yes that's exactly why, and I do have empathy for the situation. That's why I mentioned the control part. I don't mean that they would rather be oppressive than help. What I really mean is they simply don't have time or money to worry about what happens to these people, because just maintaining control is hard enough. Just keeping the prisoners safe, while keeping yourself, and society safe also, is a very tough job.

Even with such limitations to prevent violence, it's extremely easy and cheap, today, in the digital age, to enable communication between prisoners.

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