Inmates can no longer receive book donations. They have to buy them | Hacker News Reader

Inmates can no longer receive book donations. They have to buy them

wnyc.org

63 pointswowsig24 comments

"When there were five vendors, 77 books were available for purchase and 24 of the titles were coloring books." They've added a sixth vendor, but it doesn't say how many titles are available now.

I think this is truly shameful. I can't think of any good reason to deny inmates books with a few exceptions. Much like increased costs to make phone calls or replacing in person visits with expensive video-conferencing technology this is just another way to extract some money from prisons.

I thought the same until I saw that this is being done by the state. Perhaps it is simply laziness. It's far easier to have a whitelist than a blacklist.

Seriously! At least a for-profit prison would be sure to at least maximally charge the inmate for the privilege.

This move is clearly about profits. The money being drained from these prisoners and their families goes to for-profit corporations. Have no doubt that those making the decision to implement this scheme are making profits, both directly and indirectly (Governor Cuomo among others). Kickbacks, campaign contributions, and payoffs (both now and in the future) are just a few of the ways. That's how business is done in New York (and elsewhere, but especially New York).

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/04/nyregion/corruption-trial...

Laziness and CYA. Nobody wants to be the guy who didn't realize there was a useful section for making weapons, poisons, weakening bars, etc in a book he green-lighted.

I wonder if this could violate RLUIPA [1], at least with respect to religious books.

An inmate's personal religious practice may include reading books about their religion. The selection of religious books available from these vendors is likely very small if not non-existent. This is especially the case if the inmate follows a minority religion. (And, reading books about one's religion, as a religious practice, can't be limited to just reading one's religion's scriptures.)

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_Land_Use_and_Institu...

What is the purpose of prisons?

If it is penitence and rehabilitation, this makes no sense.

If it simply to incarcerate people for a while to make their lives difficult and make them not want to reoffend, this makes the wardens’ and guards’ life more difficult.

I suppose if the objective is to demonstrate righteous wrath and judgement then this is a good idea. However such demonstration is not likely to make society safer.

Cheap labor?

It does appear that was part of the development of Parchman, Angola and the like. However the cost of the prison-industrial complex dwarfs the economic value of a prisoner's labor.

There are other funds to be extracted of course, including exorbitant phone calls, "snack kits" and the like but that money goes to private corporations, not to the state (and to the kind of political donations that lead to the "three strikes" laws in California).

Your analysis makes sense but I think it’s too simplistic. Specifically, I think the economic costs are borne by the taxpayers as opposed to people planning prisons, and rather obliquely at that. I’m not sure a prison is motivated to be fiscally prudent above and beyond what’s required to stay within their operating budgets, whereas a private corporation would have that incentive. I’m envisioning someonething like the military, where the pain of wasteful spending is quite disconnected from the people making the decision.

I was not clear: I agree with you. Selling off the prisoner's labor is a minor source of income for the private prison operators (basically bonus revenue); most of their revenue indeed comes from the state.

I don't believe incarceration for labor is much of an arrest motivator any more. I think the primary motivation in the US is some sort of punitive cruelty.

Historically the point of incarceration has changed with fashion (and technology of course).

>If it simply to incarcerate people for a while to make their lives difficult and make them not want to reoffend...

One thing I've noticed about ex-cons I've actually come in contact with is the people who are least afraid of going to prison are the people who've been there.

Is that because its not as bad as its made out to be?

It's pretty awful. Even a holding cell overnight sucks.

The guards don't give a crap about you, and you're bored out of your mind. You end up pacing endlessly.

The holding cell is actually worse in some cases. Here, it’s a concrete box that you can’t leave until you go to court or get transferred to jail. You get shit for food, banana for breakfast, pbj for lunch, etc. At least at the local jail, you get rec time, TV, and subjectively better meals. I caught a 4 day weekend in a holding cell with 3 of them without anther person. That really starts to eat away at you as it’s essentially short term solitary confinement.

Just to add, that’s 3 days solitary for not even being convicted of shoplifting. The charge was dropped for other reasons.

I think it's because they know what to expect, so there's less fear of the unknown. They already know what to look out for, and they already know people inside.

Plus, life for an ex-con is pretty hard on the outside.

it is to remove the danger from society.

Is it? In which case should the penalty for all offenses be the same?

Regardless of that: if the goal is simply to get these people out of circulation, anything that makes that process easier / cheaper is presumably worth it. This change goes the other way.

Really? Last time I checked, all those drivers who speed haven't been locked up for life and they're certainly a danger to society. Though prison might be too hot for them with all those dangerous marijuana smokers which the justice system has availed of us

>Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office has made the point that inmates still have access to prison libraries, but some say it’s not enough.

Sickening that the state is gouging people (and families) least able to afford it or contest the action. Not surprising it comes from the most corrupt governor (Cuomo) in the most corrupt state (New York) in the country. This is a governor who literally disbanded his own commission to investigate corruption when it started investigating his own corruption

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/23/nyregion/governor-andrew-...

Nobody should have any doubt that Cuomo and/or his political allies are getting lucrative kickbacks from the small group of for-profit corporations that stand to benefit from this despicable act.

“At three New York prisons” is critically omitted (not by HN, it's a defect in the source headline.)

this is a boring dystopia for us, but two layers of it for the inmates

This is wrong. So wrong , money really blinds. The idea of for profit prisons is an abomination, giving incentives for increasing the amount of incarcerated people is crazy and sad. It is also asking for corruption.

Trump might be in office, but how is America going to get any better if blue states like New York and California can not even run a decent prison system?

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