Saturday, March 15, 2008

My Kind of Prison

This is Scott here, been a while since I posted but I was just captivated by this video! As many of you know I am involved in rehab and prison ministry. One of the most distressing things is to see is the effect that the shift from punishment to rehabilitation has had on so many. The lock up used to be a deterant to crime but talk to many and prison time is now just an 'expected' part of life. Prison wasn't meant to be pleasant but the shift in emphasis from punishment to rehabilitation has only exacerbated the problem. Now petty homeboys are locked up with gang veterans who in essence disciple their younger homeboys. Add muscle building activities and our prison s #1 export is the hard bodied, street wise homeboy. This isn't to say the guys who get to prison don't deserve to be there. If you've ever been around one you know why they exist. I just don't think the rehabilitative model is producing the kind of guys Lady Justice would feel comfortable going on a date with!

In other countries people do thing differently. Instead of lounging around becoming more depraved prisoner, in the facility on this video achieved something visually stunning. Sure it may just be a stunt but think of all the time, dedication and effort put into learning how to pull this off and you soon will realize that all the time, dedication and effort put into this was not put into other more insidious enterprises. Look, if we can't bring back chain gangs and work crews then at least let us be entertained by them!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Scott, this prisoner video is simply amazing. Can you imagine how much time they spent practicing? Maybe they should go on tour. This kind of reminds me about Crocodile's nightclub here in Modesto where I learned some line dancing. There is definitely a group mentality and some pride when everyone learns to do something well together. Love, Mom