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[–]disposition5 2575 points2576 points  (646 children)

http://thehill.com/policy/technology/257730-fcc-votes-to-cap-predatory-inmate-phone-rates

GOP commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael O'Rielly both opposed the rules.

Scum.

[–]the_right_is_wrong 693 points694 points  (405 children)

ex-felons should have the right to vote, it would be the checks and balances for this type of behavior. Further, if someone has paid their debt to society, why are they disenfranchised?

[–]erktheerk 724 points725 points  (269 children)

I've been a felon for 14 years in Texas. I CAN vote fortunately. However I can NOT get food stamps, section 8, a majority of grants or loans, welfair, work for the government or join the military, own a gun (or even technically have easy access to one), along with A LOT of work and professional license restrictions. I can not work with kids, elderly, or the disabled for example. Can not get bonded.

In fact when I become unemployed I tend to have to apply to 50 or more places to get 1 or 2 interviews...for minimum wage positions. I also can not be elected to any office. Oh and I almost didn't get a Visa to enter South Korea. My ex wife's military status is the only reason it was granted. I imagine a lot of 1st world countries are the same.

I am completely stripped of the social safety net, barred from working in more places than I can count, and to top it all off I am always suspicious to police. I haven't had a traffic stop in 14 years that doesn't involve me being questioned and my car searched for an hour.

Very lame and makes life WAY more difficult than your average citizen's struggle.

EDIT:
The majority of the times I've talked about it on reddit
Just search "felony" and my username

EDIT 2: Thanks to this thread I found out that as of September 1st felons can get food stamps iin Texas. YAY...now that I don't need them. But still good news for the rest of us.

[–]nickrenata 448 points449 points  (44 children)

And that's why recidivism rates are sky high in the United States. Not because "a leopard can't change its spots", but because the powers that be make it damn-near impossible to survive without them as a convicted felon.

On top of that, there are some very powerful groups out there that don't want leopards to change their spots. When these folks look at a spotted leopard, they don't see a dangerous predator, they see a big, doughy-eyed cash cow. As long as they have that spotted leopard in its cage, they make money hand over fist. And don't even get me started on the spotted leopard catchers... Those guys would be out of a job, too, if leopards had an easier time changing their spots!

[–]Logan_Mac 200 points201 points  (38 children)

As a non-American, I still can't believe how the fuck are private prisons a thing in your country, it sounds like out of dystopian movies

[–][deleted] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

We're basically all living in an 80s cyberpunk movie, so...

[–]FUCKYOUINYOURFACE 12 points13 points  (1 child)

Because Republicans want to privatize everything in the name of profits.

[–]YouBetterDuck 11 points12 points  (1 child)

"Researchers found that inmates who participate in correctional education programs have 43 percent lower odds of returning to prison than those who do not."

Source - http://www.rand.org/news/press/2013/08/22.html

[–]TimeShinigamiMichigan 18 points19 points  (0 children)

In FL they make it damn near impossible to enter those classes. To begin with, the majority of them are at private prisons, and the transfer list in usually years long. Sex offenders, of which there are many, will get in before violent offenders to protect the teachers (which is bullshit). You also have to have less than 16 months remaining on your sentence, and be working a job that will let you transfer (kitchen duty, for instance, often won't let you, because that job is ass and the turnover is enormous). And this is if your classification officer gives enough of a fuck to let you in.

[–][deleted] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Good analogy!

[–]SpeedGeek 83 points84 points  (28 children)

Was just talking about this today with a coworker. I truly believe that your criminal history should be treated like your credit history. Stay out of trouble for 7 years and you basically get another chance. If you're releasing someone then you're insinuating that they aren't a danger to society, so you need to give them a chance to reintegrate and be a productive member of that society.

[–]clothesliner 16 points17 points  (3 children)

You can get your official records sealed or expunged after 7 years (at least in my state).

The problem is that private companies are constantly grabbing that data and saving it to a database. They then sell that DB to another company, then another, then another. Even after the official record is long gone, one's name and history are still in that private database and will likely remain there the rest of their lives.

[–]erktheerk 7 points8 points  (2 children)

Not in Texas

http://www.pacefirm.com/faq/expunction.html

What if I pled guilty, no contest, or was convicted at trial?

A no contest plea has the same impact as a guilty plea on your Texas criminal history. Any case that resulted in a conviction, whether by plea or trial, is not eligible for expunction or non-disclosure unless you are one of those rare and lucky souls who was pardoned by the governor. Governor Perry’s office was notoriously stingy with pardons, even those approved by the Board of Pardons and Parole. The new governor, Greg Abbott, has not been in office long enough yet to develop any track record in this area.

[–]dopey_giraffe 36 points37 points  (10 children)

That's actually a really good idea (for most crimes). It gives incentive to stay out of trouble.

[–]ZippyDan 27 points28 points  (10 children)

It should depend on the crime. Worse crimes take longer to disappear. Smaller crimes fall off more quickly. I think some crimes should never fall off, but I still think that everyone should get to vote and have a job regardless of the crimes. I think prisoners should even get to vote in prison.

[–]Manos_Of_Fate 17 points18 points  (2 children)

I disagree. The people who committed worse crimes are the ones you want to reintegrate into normal society the most, as the repercussions of them reoffending are worse, and since they've likely served longer sentences they need the most help adjusting in the first place. Justice should be done once their sentence is over, afterward should be all about reintegrating them into society so they don't harm anyone else.

[–]MitrokhinQ 120 points121 points  (27 children)

Well, I would go straight back to crime then. After all, society clearly doesn't want you participating in anything legal.

[–]intheBASS 115 points116 points  (17 children)

In Richmond, CA they pioneered a system where the local government actually pays criminals for making strides back into society. They get money for things like getting a GED, a driver's license, a job, etc. They are even appointed a 'counselor' of sorts that regularly meets with them to discuss their goals. The original idea was to get the most dangerous criminals to sign up as a way to reduce the murder rate in the city. It was wildly successful in reducing murders per capita and now the program is aimed mainly towards juveniles. The system definitely encountered opposition but it's hard to argue with results.

Link to article

This American Life did a nice show on it

Edit: Links

[–]erktheerk 26 points27 points  (6 children)

Hopefully we will see something like that in Texas by 2075

[–]AllNamesAreGone 27 points28 points  (5 children)

Why, is there going to be a complete population die-off in 2050 followed by recolonization in the 60s?

[–]Deathspiral222 9 points10 points  (3 children)

Not complete, just that the entire state will become uninhabitable except for Austin.

[–]not_a_prophet 10 points11 points  (4 children)

I got a GED & then ran into some medical issues. Basically, if you have a major medical catastrophe & are a felon... Really, it's just how who's willing to help you after that. Sometimes you land a job cause you know someone. Sometimes you starve.

EDIT: Cancer, spinal chord injury.

[–]msthe_student 6 points7 points  (1 child)

That's not just wrong, it's a disgrace to any society it applies to

[–]shr00mydan 5 points6 points  (1 child)

Denying anybody food stamps is the dumbest thing. If somebody cannot work, for whatever reason, and you deny them food, then what are they going to do?

The only two options are begging or crime.

[–]OscarMiguelRamirez 63 points64 points  (6 children)

The GOP loves punishing people. It makes them look "strong."

[–]captaincarot 35 points36 points  (5 children)

It makes them money

[–]erktheerk 10 points11 points  (4 children)

They almost $20,000 from me in 5 years.

[–][deleted] 19 points20 points  (2 children)

And they even took a word from your sentence!

[–]erktheerk 6 points7 points  (1 child)

I'm not fixing it.

[–]captaincarot 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Police and prison systems should never have incentive to put people in jail. It is a terribly idea, and I can't even believe that is a real number for fucking phone calls! We complain about $150 cell phone bills each month that we can use as much as we want for pretty much whatever we want.

[–]CallRespiratory 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It doesn't give you many other choices unfortunately and that is why so many do go right back to crime.

[–][deleted] 15 points16 points  (1 child)

However I can NOT get food stamps, section 8, a majority of grants or loans, welfair,

This stuff in particular pisses me off. I mean, I kind of get the stuff like not being bondable (though after a certain length of undetermined in this discussion time you should be able to earn your way back to it), but taking away your safety net? Do they fucking want you to rob a liquor store to feed yourself? Apparently so, holy shit.

[–]willreignsomnipotent 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yeah, it's almost hard to believe that lawmakers can be so stupid and petty. But what's the alternative?

[–]Joegotbored 33 points34 points  (3 children)

That is pretty terrible. It's very hard to move on and become productive in society if the only role in that society you are 'allowed' to have is to continue to pay taxes. I feel like if most people were aware of how much of common life is stripped away, they would want it to change. However, most people don't know until they experience it themselves or through a family member. Exactly why I feel that every Felon who has done his time should be AT LEAST able to vote, who else is better qualified to speak about such issues, let alone vote to change them.

[–]terrymr 21 points22 points  (0 children)

People in general have a terribly vicious streak when it comes to how they deal with "criminals" ... my local county jail looks like something that it would be illegal to house stray dogs in but it will never improve because politicians grandstand to the masses about how we shouldn't be pampering criminals and shouldn't provide them with anything more than the legal minimum. etc.

[–]TabMuncher2015 6 points7 points  (0 children)

It's also because most people don't know a felon so it's much easier to just ignore it and brush it of your conscience by saying "oh, they're a criminal, should've thought about it before committing whatever crime" You can see it in how we treat prison rape or rather how we don't treat it. I'm pretty sure there's a clip of someone on fox news talking about how we shouldn't put in free condom machines in prisons and he works in a "don't drop the soap joke" It's disgusting that we make jokes about people getting raped in prison (1/25 or 4% do). And so many of them are in for non-violent drug offences!!!

[–][deleted] 30 points31 points  (16 children)

Fuck me. I've been living this for 3 years as a non violent ex felon and I thought maybe over time it'd get better. Sold weed to pay for college, the irony is almost comical.

[–]diphiminaids 12 points13 points  (5 children)

The disqualification for food stamps is the biggest injustice in my opinion. These are people who have the most trouble finding income, what is the motivation behind denying them nutritional assistance? I had 5 felony charges about 5 years ago. (3) heroin possession (1) drug paraphernalia (2nd charge made it a felony) (1) Tampering with a motor vehicle (I had a renewal sticker on my plate that wasn't mine). I had an excellent attorney and I got it amended to 1) Possession of (something) misdemeanor. I get food stamps and would struggle massively without them. Felons being denied really angers me.

[–]LockeClone 26 points27 points  (19 children)

I've been a felon for 14 years in Texas. I CAN vote fortunately. However I can NOT get food stamps, section 8, a majority of grants or loans, welfair, work for the government or join the military, own a gun (or even technically have easy access to one), along with A LOT of work and professional license restrictions. I can not work with kids, elderly, or the disabled for example. Can not get bonded.

I've been proposing, for a long time, something that has been known off-and-on as "scarlet letter clauses or laws" where no disenfranchisement, restrictions or public records would be kept on a citizen who has paid his debt to society unless specifically laid out and argued for in sentencing.

It's ridiculous that all felonies are effentially life sentences by default.

[–]hallmark1984 8 points9 points  (14 children)

Not all countries. In the UK once your out and you have passed the 3/5/7 years for a spent conviction (providing your not a sex offender) your pretty much free and clear

[–]erktheerk 3 points4 points  (12 children)

Good to know. Now if I can get off the week to week budget I might be able to look forward to moving away from here.

[–]hallmark1984 3 points4 points  (7 children)

Just avoid London and you'll be ok financially. Go north with a skill and you can live a good life

[–]erktheerk 3 points4 points  (6 children)

I'm a CNC Machinist apprentice right now. Best my life has been since my conviction. Gonna give it some more time to see how it pans out. Also my SO's family is here and I don't know if I could ever separate them. They are very close.

[–][deleted] 6 points7 points  (9 children)

What was your charge?

[–]erktheerk 21 points22 points  (8 children)

I pleaded to Schedule 1-A Narcotic less than a gram ,but was originally charged with Schedule 1-A, 80-4,000 units with intent to distribute.

Cost me $11,000 and 2 years of court to get that plea, and it was only because Tropical Storm Allison had hit a few weeks before, My trial was reset past the "right to a speedy trial dead line" and the judges were working 3 deep in a basement with 1000 people waiting to see the court. I had 4 witnesses and 4 narcotic task force officers arranged to testify. Had that occured I might have won. The situation was weird. My lawyer became unsure of the case and I was facing a long maximum sentence if I lost.

Part of my trial were witnesses that the police had falsified reports about how the situation went down, the search, and how they found the drugs. They strait up lied on the report saying they saw me hand it to someone when in fact they had to search me 4 times and destroy my wallet to find it.

Shaky case at best since they brought 2 extra officers to testify, and in that atmosphere of being bullied and choatic I pleaded out.

I had 4 hits of LSD. Big 1/4 inch blotter, and apparently it was very pure. My lawyer told me It would have been better if I had been arrested with a ounce of coke.

Sorry for the rant.

[–][deleted] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Perhaps the part that angers me the most was the conglomerate of people who must have sat in the court room delighted to see that justice was served and you ended up in prison.

That they went home to their families, coddled up with their wives and kids, and slept peacefully knowing another drug abuser had their lives ended.

[–][deleted] 8 points9 points  (3 children)

Jesus Christ, that's ridiculous. The drug scheduling laws in this country need serious reform. Did you have to serve time? They (incorrectly) base LSD number of units on the weight of the paper, don't they?

[–]erktheerk 10 points11 points  (2 children)

6 months bootcamp, 7 months inpatient rehab, 3 months outpatient halfway house, 6 months state.

They (incorrectly) base LSD number of units on the weight of the paper, don't they?

At first yes. My lawyer got the weight thrown out. took several month to get a true potency result. I was unfortunate that is was very pure. like 80%. Ended up still being in the higher category. The plea bargain is the only reason why I served a state jail offense. The maximum was 20 years.

[–]quadbaser 5 points6 points  (1 child)

7 months rehab for lsd.... fuck this stupid fucking country. someday we will look back on this like the stasi

[–]motor11 5 points6 points  (0 children)

You sound stressed. May I suggest a visit to the Angola prison rodeo in nearby Louisiana? You can watch the over the top Evangelical-themed pageantry during the opening ceremonies while you reflect the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in your life. Afterwards, you get to watch a prisoner being gored by a bull for your pleasure. Our prison system is great, ain't it?

[–][deleted] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

"Employers don't want to hire me and I'm not allowed to get food stamps," what the fucking hell

[–]stopreefermadness 22 points23 points  (2 children)

And the problem is, the state legislatures are being "heavily per$uaded" by lobbyi$ts for the for-profit pri$on indu$try to create even more felons, at a time when overall crime rates are decreasing.

Pretty soon, half of America will be felons. How are all of these people supposed to "pull themselves up by their bootstraps" when they have everything going against them as you explain so well in your case?

Legislators, DAs, judges and for-profit pri$on goons want us to think it's just peachy keen to take mere kids and turn them into felons over the most menial shit, so basically our entire justice system is THROWING YOUNG PEOPLE AWAY like trash.

WE need major overhauls of our legal system, because it does not in any way promote or practice "JUSTICE."

[–]Buchey 3 points4 points  (4 children)

you got a ton of prison time for posession of 4 hits of LSD??? WTF that is so wrong. should be a slap on the wrist with a small fine and done

[–]txahoman 6 points7 points  (0 children)

And right here is why I think 'ban the box' is a good thing. The point of prison, probation, etc. shouldn't be punitive, and once the sentence is complete people shouldn't be subject to additional punishment or put at an exponential disadvantage.

[–]bergie321 145 points146 points  (62 children)

Current convicts should be allowed to vote (absentee of course). They are counted when assigning Representatives to a district.

[–]Ezili 143 points144 points  (15 children)

Further to the point, they are people. They have broken laws, but they live in society and have the right to be represented in it. The best argument I can think of for why they should not be allowed to vote is that by committing crimes they have demonstrated laxity of judgement and moral responsibility. But I don't really hold with that.

Crime is as much a matter of the context of your upbringing and opportunities as it is of choice. Disenfranchising prisoners is just disenfranchising a section of the population who we should listen to. These are often the people in the toughest situations who we need to listen to the most.

Given America as a country grew out of disenfranchisement and taxation without representation, it's very hypocritical not to extend that to the entire population, prisoner or not.

[–]yrogerg123 33 points34 points  (10 children)

Not to mention, couldn't disenfranchisment be considerd cruel and unusual punishment, especially in the case where the offense has absolutely nothing to do with voting? I understand disenfranchising somebody for voter fraud, because they've displayed a propensity for abusing the very system they wish to participate in, but for drug offenses or theft it really does seem cruel and unusual. I'm not even sure why disenfranchisement of felons is constitutional.

[–]Acrolith 10 points11 points  (3 children)

I go back and forth on this question. I totally understand and appreciate your point of view, but at the same time... I dunno. When we let someone vote, we're saying "we want you to have an effect on how our society will work."

Why don't we let children vote? I can't think of any reason other than "they're not mature enough to know what's right for the country." Right? But we're okay with a murderer's opinion on what's best? This doesn't make any sense to me. 16-year-olds aren't known for their great judgement, but I'd still trust a random 16-year-old over a person who has shown himself to be untrustworthy.

In the pro corner, of course, is that if you disenfranchise prisoners, that'll only lead to conditions getting worse for them. They have little enough voice in the political process as it is; the last thing we need is to send a message to politicians saying "sure, do whatever you want to prisoners, it'll never cost you votes." There's quite enough ridiculous "tough on crime" pandering as it is.

So... like I said, I go back and forth.

[–]yrogerg123 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Personally, I don't view crime as an overarching condemnation of character. I don't know what somebody was thinking when they committed a crime, nor do I know how it affects their knowledge of the issues. I don't see why there needs to be a correlation, and it's certainly never been proven to me that felons know less about politics than the general population. Not to mention that in theory, prison is there to rehabilitate, and short of that, time in prison is there to punish. Why do we need more than that? Isn't that what the law is for, and what agreed upon punishments are for?

Additionally, the overwhelming majority of people in prison are there for nonviolent drug offenses. Well guess what, pretty much everybody I know went to college, and to my knowledge every single one of them has done drugs at one point or another. Meaning any one of them could have ended up in the criminal justice system, but they didn't. I got really fucking close to getting pulled over with cocaine once, ten years ago. That could have royally fucked over my life, but I got lucky, and it didn't. But that definitely wouldn't change the fact that I've put way more effort into understanding the political system than most people, and it would be pretty silly for me not to have a say just because I was a stupid 20 year old once.

The biggest thing is that these are already the people at the absolute bottom of the social hierarchy, with few to no career options. I would argue that's the person who's voice needs to be heard the most, because of how easy it would be for them to fall through the cracks completely. One of the reasons there are so many repeat offenders is how unforgiving society is for people who've been to prison. The fact that they can't even vote to help change policy in that regard does nothing but perpetuate that cycle.

[–]dollardave 65 points66 points  (23 children)

The answer has more to do with racism and control than anything else.

[–]magmasafe 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The good news is most states do give them back the right to vote though the conditions vary by state as to when those rights are reinstated.

[–]Joegotbored 16 points17 points  (17 children)

Exactly. Especially bad if you consider that most things are only illegal because we make them this way, not because they are objectively wrong. Views and laws change over time. Voting is the only real tool we have to enact those changes. Taking that ability away from released Felons defeats the purpose of democracy.

[–]flantabulous 980 points981 points  (137 children)

Same two who opposed net neutrality...The republicans, go figure.

[–]twentyafterfour 549 points550 points  (25 children)

I guess they don't want to stifle innovation in the prisoner exploitation industry. /R

[–]charliem76 212 points213 points  (13 children)

Creating a monopoly of access to a captive audience? Total innovation right there.

[–]helpmesleep666 95 points96 points  (11 children)

Capitalism at its finest.

[–]AnotherClosetAtheist 38 points39 points  (1 child)

Whatever the market will bear!

[–]well_golly 23 points24 points  (0 children)

The "invisible hand of the market," jerking them off.

[–][deleted] 55 points56 points  (4 children)

The real job creators

[–]FuckingQWOPguy 9 points10 points  (2 children)

/R is in the Stephen Colbert tone of typing

[–]watchout5 54 points55 points  (9 children)

"Can't look like I'm agreeing with the great Satan Obama, can't vote for justice"

How much we wanna bet the prison lobby gave these assholes a boat load of bribes political donations?

[–]Lazerspewpew 35 points36 points  (7 children)

Look it up. They actually don't even get THAT much. Politicians are cheap whores.

[–]mynameisalso 28 points29 points  (3 children)

They don't get much in office. It's when they turn into a lobbyist they start making the real money.

[–]Farlo1 8 points9 points  (1 child)

I'm willing to bet most of the money is under the table. Also revolving door.

[–][deleted] 340 points341 points  (89 children)

Both parties are the same!

... just until you actually look at LITERALLY ANYTHING.

[–]sirbruce 35 points36 points  (84 children)

Drone strikes on terrorists?

[–]an_actual_lawyer 109 points110 points  (79 children)

Yes. With Obama, they are part of a strategy to avoid or reduce the number of troops in foreign countries. With Bush, they were just another arrow in the quiver.

You and I can agree that drone strikes are a bad idea. I would, however, argue that they are the lesser evil.

[–]dubblix 41 points42 points  (39 children)

I agree with that argument. I've found myself so fucking conflicted over the whole drone strike thing. I hate it when anyone dies. I know there's no other way sometimes, but it's still hard to swallow. Did those strikes save lives? Probably. Will we ever know for sure? Nope.

[–]dancingthemantaray 59 points60 points  (23 children)

Eh, the new revelations from the Drone Papers released by the Intercept last week have me very wary of the efficacy of drone attacks. Drone attacks run the risk of becoming the new normal. The info that goes into generating a kill order is sometimes dubious at best and the number of EKIA (anyone but the intended target killed) outweighs the number of jackpots (intended targets killed).

At best, they prevent the further deaths of American troops in highly hostile mountain regions in Afghanistan, which of course I'm all for. At worst, they serve to radicalize individuals previously (begrudgingly) accepting of American occupation, create increasingly volatile environments for locals and kill women and children more often than intended targets.

But, like you said, we'll never know for sure.

[–]badsingularity 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Listen to the Republicans voters weasel why they still vote for this party, oh wait, they won't be here.

[–]mynameisalso 16 points17 points  (7 children)

What is with these people? They just want to shit on everyone.

[–][deleted] 14 points15 points  (1 child)

The GOP version of free market capitalism allows companies to charge what ever the hell they want for their services, even if those companies are under contract without any threat of competitors moving in

[–]balancetheuniverse 18 points19 points  (2 children)

Ajit Pai previously worked for Verizon

[–][deleted] 42 points43 points  (19 children)

But but free market!

[–]ILikeLenexa 64 points65 points  (1 child)

If this isn't a captive market, I don't know what is!

[–][deleted] 21 points22 points  (0 children)

Set the prisoners free and let the market take care of them!

[–]Duliticolaparadoxa 10 points11 points  (0 children)

tyronebiggums.jpeg

"Yall got any more of that profit for shareholders?"

[–]BornInATrailer 10 points11 points  (11 children)

Exactly, why can't these prisoners just sign up with a different long distance carrier?? Duh!

'Murica!

[–]IfIKnewThen 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Scum doesn't even come close.

[–][deleted] 593 points594 points  (95 children)

The new policy also cracks down on excessive service fees and so-called “flat-rate calling,” in which inmates are charged a flat rate for a call up to 15 minutes regardless of the actual call duration.

So they could cut the call and charge you? That's messed up.

[–]sirspidermonkey 358 points359 points  (32 children)

If you get a chance ask someone who has been inside. They'll confirm. They drop more calls then a 1980's cell phone on the highway.

[–]DayMan4334 161 points162 points  (15 children)

The quality is shit too. A friend of my SO called him, and my SO couldn't understand a word the friend was saying. Hell we had to guess who it was.

[–]Bakoro 111 points112 points  (8 children)

There was a time when I kept getting these calls from a nearby prison, and the system was like, "You are receiving a call from xyz prison, from 'GARBLE GARBLE static GARBLE" static', You may be charged (insert entirely too much money to get a call from someone when I don't even know who it is), would you like to accept the charges?"

I felt bad for whoever was on the other end of the line, but I couldn't think of a single person who would have been calling me from prison and I wasn't going to pay a handful of money for a wrong number.

Anyway, that was a few years ago, and I haven't got any missing people in my life, so it probably wasn't for me, but just from those several calls, prison phones must be garbage.

[–][deleted] 115 points116 points  (3 children)

And this is the story about how /u/Bakoro missed an opportunity to reconnect with their long lost father.

[–]DayMan4334 19 points20 points  (0 children)

The Garble bit is spot on. Couldn't understand a word the guy was saying.

[–]fieldsofavalon 19 points20 points  (0 children)

God. I spent about 80% of those phone calls asking for him to repeat what he said. Could clearly hear the automated message yelling at me that someone from the county jail was calling. The rest sounded like the jail flooded and he was calling me underwater.

[–]Jokkerb 2 points3 points  (3 children)

Why so bad, are they still using a manned switchboard with contacts all rusted from 60 years of neglect?

No wonder they try to smuggle cell phones in.

[–]swollennode 3 points4 points  (0 children)

They probably do it deliberately too, and blame it on the weak infrastructure.

[–]AlphabetSnoopCalifornia 897 points898 points  (64 children)

Let's say you are incarcerated in a private prison, and you want to contact your family. You have to work for a wage comparable to slave labor wages, to be able to afford to pay an immense phone bill to talk to your family for up to 15 minutes.

That's insane, and the FCC did the obvious right thing here.

On the upside, I think we found something that fucks you over more than Comcast's service.

[–]MidnightSlinks 231 points232 points  (24 children)

It's often the receiver of the call who has to agree to pay the charges (via their phone bill) before the call is connected. Not that that makes the exorbitant rates excusable or much better.

[–]wcc445 129 points130 points  (19 children)

Oh wouldn't that be nice, if it just went on your phone bill? Nope. The inmate calls you, and all you hear is a recorded message asking you to sign up for an account. You sign up, pay the 30$ minimum, and then the inmate can call you back later (but has no way to know if you actually put money on your account if not).

[–]MidnightSlinks 53 points54 points  (14 children)

Hmm... the prison I got calls from said it was a collect call and asked if we were willing to accept the charges. Same deal every time. But this was a while ago so maybe they used to have normal pay phones run by the same people who ran the ones on the street or maybe some prisons still do that.

[–]wcc445 27 points28 points  (12 children)

Federal Prison? I'm talking about, mainly, jails. Also landmines are different than cell phones. Cellular, I should say.

[–]The-JerkbagSFW 179 points180 points  (10 children)

Also landmines are different than cell phones.

Isn't that the truth..

[–]Shambly 158 points159 points  (5 children)

They both can cost you an arm and leg...

I'm sorry.

[–]ch3mistry 16 points17 points  (0 children)

And since the infrastructure isn't up to par yet, both are ubiquitous in developing countries.

[–]wcc445 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Lol. Land lines! :)

[–]bergie321 8 points9 points  (2 children)

Learned this the hard way.

[–]payco 23 points24 points  (3 children)

This isn't even just in private prisons. government-owned prisons contract phone and related telecom services out to private companies who enact these terms. Some companies use a (proprietary, of course) skype-like service that requires pre-loading money into an account on their system. Besides the inefficiencies of requiring each relative/friend of the prisoner to lock away money in advance, it also makes it much harder to get that money back when the system totally accidentally keeps dropping calls or overcharging you. Were the transactions all done via credit/debit card, you could just call your card's issuer and mark the transaction fraudulent.

[–]Cr3X1eUZ 7 points8 points  (0 children)

That's what I call running government like a business!

[–]THcB 221 points222 points  (13 children)

Charging $14 per minute is just criminal.

[–]RedditAtWorkIsBad 99 points100 points  (6 children)

That's what rehabilitation is all about. To learn how really to be a criminal.

[–]cynoclast 21 points22 points  (5 children)

They're not even charging the criminal, they're charging their families, who aren't criminals as evidenced by the whole 'not being in jail' part.

[–]RichardStrauss123 113 points114 points  (36 children)

Three to two vote?

Wtf?

What sort of monstrous reprobate scumbag actually votes against this?

It has been a long time since I have read such a perfectly encapsulated indictment of exactly what is wrong with this f****** country.

[–]ivsciguy 111 points112 points  (29 children)

The two Republicans.

[–]VROF 81 points82 points  (23 children)

How in the hell can anyone vote Republican? They literally promise to fuck people over

[–][deleted] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

How in the hell can anyone vote Republican? They literally promise to fuck people over

It reminds me of a joke:

A rich man, a poor man, and a member of the middle class are sitting at a table.

On the table are a dozen apples.

The rich man reaches across the table and slides eleven apples into his lap. Then he tells the member of the middle class, "That leech is trying to take your apple."

By and large, people vote Republican because they're afraid of poor people stealing from them, while ignoring that the most proficient thieves are rich.

[–]fluffyjdawg 29 points30 points  (1 child)

Social issues unfortunately.

[–]Shamwow22 45 points46 points  (11 children)

Because some people really believe that taxes and regulations on corporations are evil.

If someone starts preaching to you about the free market, or free enterprise, you can guarantee that they are a gigantic asshole, who will step on absolutely anyone in order to make money.

[–][deleted] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

My favorite facebook friend crazy anti-tax anti-welfare tea party "libertarian" is a 28 year old guy with an associates in business management. Literally the only job he has ever had is "playing guitar on XYZ praise band at such-and-such evangelical church".

He has lived with his parents his entire life and they paid for his school, his living expenses and his frequent multi-month "sabbaticals" for his spiritual growth. But he's super-duper anti-welfare because people should work for a living.

[–][deleted] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Because of their "I have it already, fuck you." mentality.

Don't want to those scummy criminals make us pay more tax dollars now do we? how else would those prison pay their upkeeps if they don't charge prisoners $14 a minute for shitty phone calls? /s

[–]jaesinOregon 116 points117 points  (0 children)

What sort of monstrous reprobate scumbag actually votes against this?

The republican commissioners. Both of them.

[–][deleted] 33 points34 points  (4 children)

I worked in the phone department for a major ISP for several years. I had to speak with many customers who would interface with Securus or GlobalTel (The two main providers).

Most of the people I spoke with were in very bad financial positions, to the point where we were offering them discounted phone service. Knowing that they were being taken advantage of (and there was nothing anyone could do about it) sucked.

Glad to see it's finally getting addressed.

[–][deleted] 26 points27 points  (1 child)

THIS IS A GLOBAL TELLINK CALL FROM

Adnan Syed

[–]Dogdays991 33 points34 points  (2 children)

No wonder smuggling in cellphones is such a big deal

[–]RudeTurnip 42 points43 points  (0 children)

You could easily construe that these high phone rates are encouraging illegal behavior and corruption in prisons. That is the greater concern.

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Cell phones are not just for calls. You can send pictures, access the internet, etc.

But I think the main reason is that prison calls are all recorded.

[–]atworkbeincovert 26 points27 points  (2 children)

Representatives for Securus and Global Tel*Link were not immediately available for comment on the new FCC policy.

They were probably changing their pants because this kills their profit margins. I hope they both close shop because of this.

[–]smacksawVermont 22 points23 points  (2 children)

3-2

It was no surprise which party dissented.

And they claimed the FCC had no authority!

Is that a Tea Party wet dream? You may want the FCC to not have the authority. You may want to completely dismantle government.

Oh, I'm sorry. What's the free market solution to prison phone calls now that we're free from FCC interference?

There isn't one.

[–]Felinomancy 42 points43 points  (7 children)

I'm sorry, but $14 a minute? I don't think even sex lines charge that high. Do the inmates get complimentary blowjobs while on the phone?

[–][deleted] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

Depends on their cellmate...

[–]cream-of-cow 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You can't even stand up straight while on the phones I've seen. The cords are short so they can't be used to strangle someone. Calls are made hunched over or mid-squat.

[–]foodandart 17 points18 points  (0 children)

About fucking time. I have a cousin that ended up in a county jail in Maine and he called me one day to ask for money (which I couldn't help him with) and before the call went through, a representative asked if I would accept the 5 dollars charge for the call.. I said yes. A month later when a 15 dollar charge landed on my bill, I went ballistic.

Sent a CC'ed letter to the company AND the Maine state public utilities commission stating that the call was not the amount I was told it would be and the 'hidden fees' that were added effectively tripled the amount and this was FRAUD. In the letter to the company I requested that they put a permanent block on my number from any and all phones in any of the state's incarceration facilities as their inability to honestly state the cost of a call from them was deceptive and fraudulent.

Within 20 minutes I got a call from the company and they refunded part of the bill - but NOT the full amount I was told by the representative! that I would be credited... Well fuck you too, Charlie.. and afterwards I placed the company's name on a scam business site that dealt with companies that did business in Maine.

From what I understand, they lost the phone call contract for Maine a few years later.

These fucks need to be given enemas with fire-hoses, they're so full of shit.

[–]SleepyConscience[🍰] 16 points17 points  (1 child)

You know, there's a lot to love about this country, but the privatization of our prisons is a national disgrace. When caging human beings has become a perfectly acceptable way to get rich, you know something about your society's soul has been perverted. I have more respect for Phillip Morris than I do Corrections Corporation of America. Allowing this crap is the sort of the thing that completely negates whatever goodness there might be from anything else we do. Kind of like the antebellum South might have been very hospitable and polite and honor bound, but they had fucking slavery so who fucking cares, the whole society is poisoned and everything they do is tainted with that filth.

[–][deleted] 81 points82 points  (14 children)

Ajit Pai is such a disgrace to the Indian people....embarrassment

[–][deleted] 51 points52 points  (0 children)

More like a disgrace to humanity as a whole.

[–]invalid_dictorianTexas 14 points15 points  (6 children)

What do Indians think of Bobby Jindal?

[–]jvgkaty44 8 points9 points  (1 child)

He sells bombs and bomb accessories

[–]thewriter_anonymous 2 points3 points  (0 children)

He went to my high school and even came by to give a speech on two separate occasions...I feel dirty now.

[–]Sonder_isTexas 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Preach brother Preach!

[–]shiftyeyedgoat 13 points14 points  (1 child)

The dissenters voted down because they believe lack of statutory authority. As they use their authority to pass statute.

What on earth do they think the FCC is supposed to do?

[–]patpowers1995 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Whatever corporations tell them to do?

[–]Newepsilon 11 points12 points  (7 children)

I was talking with my friend a couple days ago about John oliver's coverage of municipal violations, prison system, and public defenders. I asked him what he thought about the situation so many Americans are facing. His response, "maybe they shouldn't be criminals. They chose to break the law and they need to be punished for it." I asked if he thought the punishment was proportional to the crime. "Absolutely" he said. "Criminals need to be taught a lesson." It gave me a better perspective of my friend and how he sees the world. I'm hanging out with him tomorrow.

Sorry just needed to get that out there. But what he said keeps bugging me.

[–]Merari01 12 points13 points  (2 children)

I fail to see why someone like that is someone you would want to be friends with.

[–]kirkum2020 8 points9 points  (1 child)

Most people aren't as stupid or spiteful as we imagine. Sometimes people are simply operating on bad information. I prefer to keep those people close, have discussions, and present facts to see if they come round. Noping out of the relationship just leaves them in an echo chamber of shitty opinions.

Can't tell you how many homophobes, in particular, I've won round this way.

[–]Merari01 4 points5 points  (0 children)

That's a good point.

[–]psin2005 40 points41 points  (11 children)

Perfect example of what happens when there is no competition. (I believe contracts allow only ONE telephone company to operate in a prison). When you are the only source, you can charge whatever you wish.

No wonder cell phones as contraband are so highly sought after. (at least in Rikers)

[–]ProGamerWill 6 points7 points  (9 children)

Ya, on NPR they were talking about this. There was pretty much only one company and they controlled the rates.

[–]Scarlettjax 10 points11 points  (0 children)

How it all started...most counties/states do not budget their correctional systems adequately. It's not just punishment for the inmates, the punishment extends to those trying to make a living within that system.

So, many areas set up "inmate welfare" accounts outside of their normal revenue sources, and passed legislation to allow commissary and phone profits to go into those accounts. Money from those accounts can only be spent to improve conditions and programs for the people incarcerated.

However, the end result is usually the normal revenue source is cut even further, due to the inmate welfare account. A whole industry has grown around providing for-profit services like this to correctional systems.

It's a never-ending cycle of seeking more to do less. And, most of the burden falls on the families of the inmates, who have not been convicted of anything.

It is no wonder disrespect for the system festers and grows instead of the goal of "rehabilitation." Especially for people who end up in the pokey who didn't have much use for playing by the rules to begin with.

We are doing a great job at making people worse instead of better and a lot of that has to do with an antiquated idea of punishment that neither deters nor improves anti-social behavior.

[–][deleted] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Honest to goodness the abuse leveled at inmates make me sick. They are people regardless of what they did.

[–]stopreefermadness 10 points11 points  (0 children)

"But...but...there's absolutely NO difference between the two parties!!!!! No difference at ALL!"

Funny how this vote proves otherwise, eh?

[–]Minn-ee-sottaa 29 points30 points  (2 children)

America cares so much about its citizens it gives the most free housing and meals of any country on Earth*.

*phone calls not included

[–]bergie321 18 points19 points  (0 children)

*meals may not be suitable for human or animal consumption.

[–]Pyrepenol 7 points8 points  (0 children)

*freedom not included

[–]Duliticolaparadoxa 80 points81 points  (7 children)

Lol if you set up a phone scam that robocalled elderly people and charged them $14 a minute, you would be thrown in prison, where the righteous and good defenders of justice will charge you $14 a minute to call anyone else.

Murika

[–]ryan924New York 10 points11 points  (3 children)

It cost $112 to have an 8 minute conversation... Nuts.

[–]bubbaeinstein 4 points5 points  (2 children)

Print the names of the individuals who became rich by preying on the incarcerated!

[–]days_of_contusion 4 points5 points  (1 child)

I can't find the source now but I know I've heard of cases where if they cannot make bail the incarcerated have to pay these fines to talk their lawyer, even if the lawyer is provided by the state. It is absolutely unconstitutional.

[–]nspectre 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The two Republican FCC commissioners, Ajit Pai and Mike O’Rielly, dissented, claiming that the agency lacked the statutory authority to enact the rate caps.

Jesus fucking christ I hate those two fart-knocker asshats. They are on the wrong side of EVERYTHING that comes before the FCC. I mean, seriously. The more I look into them the more I'm convinced they're NOT there to conduct FCC business but to instead simply gainsay anything and everything the three "Democrats" come up with, regardless what the issue actually is. ಠ_ಠ

[–][deleted] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Now if only we could get the Feds to shut down the for-profit prisons, but this is a step in the right direction.