Prison- I’ve been watching and reading about all the print newspapers going into bankruptcy (The Tribune Corp) and newspapers that are just shutting down. Rocky Mountain News, Seattle Post-Int, et al. As a prisoner we get the bulk of our news via the printed media. In California we get local channels on the TV, so there is some news from there. We do not get cable or any internet. My point is what would happen if a few more big newspapers-SF Chronicle is operating at a $50 million loss and the NY Times won’t pay a dividend again this quarter-shut down? How would we, prisoners, get out news and information? I submit that technology has advanced enough to put in the proper filters and safeguards that we , prisoners, should be allowed selected internet access. This may come as a shock, but approximately 95% of all people who are sent to prison get out. Yes, they parole, and they parole all over the state. I further believe that the prison system has an obligation to do its best to reform a prisoner and get a prisoner ready to return to free society. Everyone has watched a movie where a person is sent 20 years into the future and how much that person stumbles around trying to fit in. Well, there are 1000’s of prisoners who parole after 20 or 30 years and are just lost. There’s a guy a few cells down who has never used or seen a real cell phone. He doesn’t know what the internet is! And yes, he’s going to parole. One way to better prepare a prisoner for release is to get him/her more familiar with what’s going on in the world. Today everyone, it seems, is plugged into the net. People get their news, talk to friends, and do business on the internet. And with print media going the way of horse drawn carriage, it is time to take a serious look at allowing prisoners limited access to the internet. My basic idea is this: 1) Each inmate would have n email address. The information coming in and going out could be screened by a program that could look for key words, codes, anything the prison wished to collect. Since almost everyone can find time to email (It seems letter writing is almost a lost art) this would keep the prisoner connected to the outside. Upon a prisoner’s parole hearing, positive connections with people on the outside greatly increase the odds of not returning to prison. 2) Each inmate can go to pre-approved news sites, blogs, or other sites that provide education or news. For example: If I wished to take college courses, I would get on the internet, log on at the college and do my course work (of course college courses are at a prisoners expense). 3) All social networking sites would not be accessible via the prison internet service. All email would notify a person receiving that email originated from a state prison. This is just the most basic framework. I’m trying to get the conversation started. Technology is quickly changing how news and information are delivered. If people want prisoners to be successful upon parole, changes need to be made in how prisoners can receive their news and how a prisoner is prepared for release. Being on parole is hard enough. Maybe society can help that ex-prisoner fit in better. It costs $48,000 a year to house an inmate in a California prison. Please try to do everything to ensure a person who is paroled does not return. I believe that controlled internet access is a step in the right direction. With Respect, Veritas 5509