Isn't it about time we got our prisoners to work and earn their keep?

shamblertine · 25-02-2009 07:51PM #1

No such thing as a free lunch and all that. Was watching a show the other night about a US prison where the inmates had to work and earn their keep. Can't we do the same or is there some EU legislation preventing us from doing so?

phasers · 25-02-2009 08:02PM

They could run the country... oh wait that job's already full of crooks

old boy · 25-02-2009 08:09PM

no, just an organization called do gooders me thinks.

Aidric · 25-02-2009 08:10PM

Stick 'em on the M50.

Carlotta · 25-02-2009 08:11PM

shamblertine wrote: »

No such thing as a free lunch and all that. Was watching a show the other night about a US prison where the inmates had to work and earn their keep. Can't we do the same or is there some EU legislation preventing us from doing so?

Great, now we have to compete with prisoners for jobs.

Keeping prisoners is expensive. I say we execute the murderers and bill their families for the bullet. If its good enough for the Chinese.

shamblertine · 25-02-2009 08:16PM

Aidric wrote: »

Stick 'em on the M50.

Yeah they're an untapped sourse of free labour, we can get them building roads, schools etc. Things are just going to get worse for this country and we can't continue to pump money into prisons and see no return on our money.

Sam Kade · 25-02-2009 08:23PM

In one American prison they feed the prisoners @ a cost of $0.46 for each prisoner. I think they use out of date food. Imagine if they tried that here?

TripleAce · 25-02-2009 08:27PM

I heard at the radio that it cost 95k € /year to maintain a prisoner here in Ireland :mad:

randylonghorn · 25-02-2009 08:44PM

Yeah, coz with the current full employment what the economy really needs is a source of free labour ... oh, wait!! :rolleyes:

SoWatchaWant · 25-02-2009 08:48PM

TripleAce wrote: »

I heard at the radio that it cost 95k € /year to maintain a prisoner here in Ireland :mad:

Oh my ****ing God . That's outrageous:eek:

Seriously, they might as well put them to use. They're no good to anyone rotting in their cells.

But what could we get them to do that's outside the prison? Working on the M50, I heard someone say. Would that not be dangerous, prisoners in contact with the public, possibility to escape etc...

Has anyone any ideas?

Leprachaun · 25-02-2009 08:51PM

SoWatchaWant wrote: »

Oh my ****ing God . That's outrageous:eek:

Seriously, they might as well put them to use. They're no good to anyone rotting in their cells.

But what could we get them to do that's outside the prison? Working on the M50, I heard someone say. Would that not be dangerous, prisoners in contact with the public, possibility to escape etc...

Has anyone any ideas?

That's not what he meant when he said stick them on the M50.

Sam Kade · 25-02-2009 08:52PM

TripleAce wrote: »

I heard at the radio that it cost 95k € /year to maintain a prisoner here in Ireland :mad:

Correct, thats the average cost of running the prison which is the total running costs of prisons/ number of prisoners. Portlaoise is the highest cost at €270,000 per prisoner per year.

shamblertine · 25-02-2009 08:58PM

TripleAce wrote: »

I heard at the radio that it cost 95k € /year to maintain a prisoner here in Ireland :mad:

The state should allow law abiding citizens like myself to take prisoners under their care and look after them for a fee, I would charge 55k per prisoner a year, theres a saving of 40k right there.

shamblertine · 25-02-2009 09:17PM

randylonghorn wrote: »

Yeah, coz with the current full employment what the economy really needs is a source of free labour ... oh, wait!! :rolleyes:

Its nothing gained and nothing lost for the unemployed, the government wouldn't be taking these projects on in the first place if they had to pay top dollar for labourers like they usually have to, so the unemployed labourers out there wouldn't of got the work anyway, and so are no better or no worse off than before.

JohnCleary · 25-02-2009 09:38PM

I agree with this thread, but you could only have them do menial jobs like picking stones out of fields etc.

Imagine Anto & Deco being chief engineers of a new motorway bridge :eek:

TBH if I was a prisoner myself i'd prefer to be working rather than sitting on my hole in a cell all day - guess i'm prob part of a minority thinking though??

ejmaztec · 25-02-2009 10:22PM

Give em all jobs with Ryanair, Aer Lingus, Irish Ferries and Stena. They could be stewards (for a few hours anyway).

After they've cleared off, we'll fill the prisons with politicians, bankers and property developers.

Utopia!

Nehaxak · 25-02-2009 10:38PM

Send them all to Australia...

Kernel · 25-02-2009 10:39PM

randylonghorn wrote: »

Yeah, coz with the current full employment what the economy really needs is a source of free labour ... oh, wait!! :rolleyes:

Randy, the bigger picture is that if you tap into this labour you can get infrastructure built and hopefully improve the economy, or at the very least cut costs for the state. Dole scroungers could be put to good work too.

The_Minister · 25-02-2009 10:42PM

Damn prisoners, taking our jobs....:mad:

Mhmm...weetabix · 25-02-2009 10:49PM

TripleAce wrote: »

I heard at the radio that it cost 95k € /year to maintain a prisoner here in Ireland :mad:

:eek: I'm actually in shock at this. It's an absolute disgrace, almost 3 times the average (or what use to be!!!)working wage.

Dig a pit, take all murderer's, rapist's and pedophile's throw them in and let them fight to death battle royal style and the winner gets their freedom and can be the next Taoiseach, wouldn't make much difference! Setup some cameras and put it on PPV type business. That's how you make those ****ers useful. We said no to Lisbon, lets say no to rights for prisoners

!

Diggabot · 25-02-2009 10:54PM

Chain-gangs..... put them in shackles and get the digging & breaking rocks... in the rain... with no lunch

CamperMan · 25-02-2009 10:55PM

Aidric wrote: »

Stick 'em on the M50.

then what... run them over

ejmaztec · 25-02-2009 11:05PM

They could be sold to McDonalds for burgers - so that McDs don't have to kidnap winos from the streets anymore.

RATM · 25-02-2009 11:18PM

Get 'em dancin'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMnk7lh9M3o

Diggabot · 25-02-2009 11:25PM

RATM wrote: »

Get 'em dancin'

I don't think Anto, Damo or Joxer could be that co-ordinated strung out on da geeeer

Sean Templar · 25-02-2009 11:25PM

shamblertine wrote: »

No such thing as a free lunch and all that. Was watching a show the other night about a US prison where the inmates had to work and earn their keep. Can't we do the same or is there some EU legislation preventing us from doing so?

No i prefer to keep them behind bars were they belong.Do'nt want them running around the place.Better to get those on social welfare to do a bit of work,like in other european countries.

Riddle101 · 25-02-2009 11:31PM

Carlotta wrote: »

Great, now we have to compete with prisoners for jobs.

Keeping prisoners is expensive. I say we execute the murderers and bill their families for the bullet. If its good enough for the Chinese.

Why should we have to care what the Chinese think they're our prisoners;)

Anyway I think making them work is a great idea. Then their money could be used to funds the prisons and then they could by an electric chair and killer those motherfu*kers

Seriously though it is a good idea, those prisoner get to sit in their cells and have the world handed to them on a silver platter. It's plain wrong how they manage prisoner service

Capt'n Midnight · 25-02-2009 11:36PM

Sam Kade wrote: »

In one American prison they feed the prisoners @ a cost of $0.46 for each prisoner. I think they use out of date food. Imagine if they tried that here?

we could out source
send them to the US

or would it be cheaper to have them in eastern european prisons ?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/13/us/13judge.html?em

the judge, Mark A. Ciavarella Jr., and a colleague, Michael T. Conahan, appeared in federal court in Scranton, Pa., to plead guilty to wire fraud and income tax fraud for taking more than $2.6 million in kickbacks to send teenagers to two privately run youth detention centers run by PA Child Care and a sister company, Western PA Child Care.
...
“In my entire career, I’ve never heard of anything remotely approaching this,” said Senior Judge Arthur E. Grim, who was appointed by the State Supreme Court this week to determine what should be done with the estimated 5,000 juveniles who have been sentenced by Judge Ciavarella since the scheme started in 2003. Many of them were first-time offenders and some remain in detention.

RonMexico · 25-02-2009 11:37PM

Chain them together and work the bollix off them. Pay them with food that is being thrown out by supermarkets.

**** the do-gooders

m5ex9oqjawdg2i · 25-02-2009 11:43PM

TripleAce wrote: »

I heard at the radio that it cost 95k € /year to maintain a prisoner here in Ireland :mad:

How, how is that even possible? How does it cost us sooo much money?

You have to take into account security. How can criminals work without causing others harm? Thinking of the tools they use etc etc. They can still work behind bars. I remember seeing a program where some of the criminals in mountjoy made toys for children, the kids were sick, or homeless or something, I cannot remember.

carrieb · 25-02-2009 11:50PM

It would have to be something they could do in their cell alright......
My dad watched some docu about a prisoner, killed his wife, in for life and was going off his head. Started making this dolls house for his brothers grandchild or some1, was the most perfect detailed thing in the world. Was working on it all day every day for over 3 years, the little wardrobes even had little hangers! Anyway, something like that might work. Toys then donated to charity.
Cant believe its costs that much!! :mad:

Isn't it about time we got our prisoners to work and earn their keep?

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