Prisoners and the Internet/ PCs - Page 2

Xaccers · 12-06-2007, 20:18

You've got a 7 year old that can get around net nanny, or a 7 year old who can get around a dedicated proxy?

papa smurf · 12-06-2007, 20:58

prison is supposed to be punnishment, so no ,computers and bb are luxuries that should be beyond the reach of prisoners, what the hells next 42 inch plasma telly ,pizza and beer. far as i'm concerned they have the right to suffer

alferret · 12-06-2007, 21:19

Many years ago I happened to spend some time in care of HMP. Prison isnt a place to use computers FFS its a place of punishment because you have done wrong. Its really grinds me that people\prisoners now days say their rights are being violated and they should have access to this and that.

Time means time not a bloody holiday.

**Paul** · 12-06-2007, 21:30

No wonder people no longer worry about going to prison.

AntiSilence · 12-06-2007, 22:28

There's people outside of prison who have not committed any crime, but cannot afford a luxury like broadband internet due to having to pay to live.

Mr Angry · 12-06-2007, 22:35

If they're to be allowed web access then make sure it's via a VM connection. At least that way they can think they have internet access - but can't actually access it with any degree of stability the majority of the time.

It's like the prospect of an educational tool with punishment, best of both worlds.

AntiSilence · 12-06-2007, 22:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr Angry

If they're to be allowed web access then make sure it's via a VM connection. At least that way they can think they have internet access - but can't actually access it with any degree of stability the majority of the time.

It's like the prospect of an educational tool with punishment, best of both worlds.

Xaccers · 13-06-2007, 08:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by AntiSilence

There's people outside of prison who have not committed any crime, but cannot afford a luxury like broadband internet due to having to pay to live.

They can get access to the internet at the tax payer's expense.
GF used to use it when we had no broadband at home.

Escapee · 13-06-2007, 08:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Damien

Yes. Email, News and such access. Maybe webcam to talk to kids or something as well.

Would the webcam to talk to kids be reserved for the paedophiles?

Prisons are full of people who have committed crime, these crimes range from deception to severe sexual crimes. I think allowing Internet access to criminals is a silly idea, and whats more it will be the silly old tax payer who foots the bill.

Prisons were not built to be holiday camps, hearing a young offender say " I robbed my grandmother on my weekend leave because I wanted to get back in and stay longer with all my mates" is not a way of encouraging people not to commit a crime.

The same young offender told me "It's great, I get my food, get to watch TV, play snooker, pool, use the gym, have a few beers with my mates, its great"

This young offender had come from a bad family, but making life on the inside a great deal better than life on the outside for this young man ensures he will continue his crime spree.

We should not be making it so good that it encourages him to commit crime to get back in there.

Xaccers · 13-06-2007, 08:22

Escapee, should prisons be a place to lock people up for a set period of time and then release them, or should they be a place to lock people up for a set period of time and educate them so that they don't need to rely on crime to get by when released?

checker · 13-06-2007, 08:29

I would be worried that encoded information could be passed to and from prisoners. Perhaps information about their fellow inmates or staff to be used for future blackmail or revenge.

Xaccers · 13-06-2007, 08:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by checker

I would be worried that encoded information could be passed to and from prisoners. Perhaps information about their fellow inmates or staff to be used for future blackmail or revenge.

As opposed to passing each other notes or just talking to each other on the food hall?

TheDaddy · 13-06-2007, 08:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xaccers

Escapee, should prisons be a place to lock people up for a set period of time and then release them, or should they be a place to lock people up for a set period of time and educate them so that they don't need to rely on crime to get by when released?

You have to get the balance right though, let's not forget prison is also about punishment as well as rehabilitation, imo we are currently failing in both areas and I don't think this particular idea will redress the balance of either

Xaccers · 13-06-2007, 08:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDaddy

You have to get the balance right though, let's not forget prison is also about punishment as well as rehabilitation, imo we are currently failing in both areas and I don't think this particular idea will redress the balance of either

Course it doesn't. It's suggesting giving prisoners computers in their cells for starters. Like I said, if a prisoner wants to entertain themselves in their own cell, they should read a book.
But at least you can see that restricted internet access for prisoners can be of benefit to rehabilitation (not to mention helping a wrongly convicted inmate to clear their name).
The other benefit of electronic communication is the monitoring abilities.
Every email in and out can be stored and analysed either automatically via keywords or manually read.

sssshhhh · 13-06-2007, 11:07

I have voted no. They are there to be punished for commiting a crime. They already have access to pool tables, books etc. This should be enough.

I can see the point that it would be good for rehabilitation/educational purposes, and I agree that rehabilitation has to sit alongside punishment in a prison environment. But imo anything relevant on the net to any subject/course a prisoner is studying should be taken off by staff and provided in another format they can access that doesn't involve the prisoner sitting at the pc and logging on to the www themselves.

In terms of a prisoner using the net to clear their name, the system already allows for this in terms of appeals processes and the like. THere are obviously occasions where this is not possible. no money for barristers etc. So I think there should be a monitered system in place that is run by a party away from the prison staff at that particular institution. And if agreed that the prisoner has enough grounds to warrant time given online to source information then it should be monitered by the right impartial people, but who still have the intrests of the law and the public at the forefront.