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AngryDatayesterday at 4:15 PM4 repliesview on HN

Im not sure I would call "You can sit in a concrete box all day and then eat food that was rejected from the dog food plant" versus "Go outside for awhile doing some work, be able to buy a pack of prepackaged ramen when you are done" clearly voluntary.

Have you ever ate prison food? I literally would not feed most of it to my dog.


Replies

preg_matchyesterday at 10:16 PM

It’s even deeper than this, because in some states, like Georgia, you’re “rewarded” with good time and a higher chance of parole.

Good time means you get to exit the prison for things like visiting family.

The prisoners are coerced to work for sub-human wages because, if they don’t, they stay in prison longer and can’t see their loved ones.

strictneinyesterday at 4:35 PM

Would it be better if you could only do the former then?

Also, if you worked 8 hours you'd be able to buy a lot more than a single pack of ramen.

> While ramen costs about 35 cents at Target, prison commissaries charge between 24 cents to $1.06 nationwide.

https://theappeal.org/locked-in-priced-out-how-much-prison-c...

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lesuoracyesterday at 5:55 PM

> "You can sit in a concrete box all day and then eat food that was rejected from the dog food plant"

Isn't that not the actual choice though?

Like for a prison with monetary advantages to the inmates working don't they actually send you to solitary for refusing work detail?

parineumyesterday at 5:02 PM

The uncomfortable part of that is the involuntary part, not the work.

Prison is not voluntary.