Prison Reform can cure the ills of a city facing escalating crime and here’s how

One of our local news station here in Rockford, Illinois, WREX posted a story on their website titled “Several armed robberies reported in Rockford”  by Breane Lyga and leave it to our local closet Klan members to be the first to chime in with comments and statements that would make most people say shut up.  They offer solutions that simply don’t make no sense because these are the same solutions they offer what any story that they comment on.  It’s somewhat annoying to read these things and often times you skip them thinking that they are not worth the time.  In this case you would be wrong because one of the comments did have smart advice and caused me to think of how we can put a serious halt to all this crap without violence as many suggest.

The article reported that; “The entire city of Rockford is on high alert after a string of robberies to people and businesses. Police confirm at least 13 armed robberies since 3 p.m. this afternoon and 12 of them seem to be connected.  We're learning details about what's happened to some of these victims.  One was taking out his garbage on N. Sunset Ave. around 4:30 p.m. when he was robbed. He told police one suspect pointed at gun at him while the other searched his pockets. They drove off.  Later, just before 6 p.m., a Rockford man was parking his car on 21st St. The victim says a car stopped nearby, three suspects demanded anything valuable on him.  Two of them were armed with handguns.  Here are the specific streets of all the robbery locations we've gotten confirmed by Rockford Police so far: John St., Miriam Ave., N. Independence, N. Court St., two incidents on Ashland Ave., about five minutes apart, N. Sunset Ave., 21st St., and N. Main St.  We also know the Verizon Wireless store on S. Perryville was robbed tonight as well.”

The comment that got me thinking mentioned gang initiation as a possible motive and mentioned that while stationed in Los Angeles, he hear of this quite often.  That thought brought me to this conclusion.  Back in the day, when someone was jailed for a crime, they were placed in a single cell and did not have much contact with anyone else except the person housed right next to him/her on either side.  Today we have an open common area where they all gather and trade stories or unite and become even stronger in than they were out.  This concept eliminates the opportunity for remorse because you are with your “boys” or “girls” while serving time for a crime.  Now some psychologist may say that keeping inmates separate is cruel but those will only be them who has not lost a family member to those committing a crime or been held up at gun point.  If one pays a slight bit of attention, notice that the most feared place in all correctional facilities is solitary confinement.  There they are truly given the time and opportunity to realize where their actions put them and what they may wish to consider if they ever get out.  You want to rehabilitate people but we place them in what appears to be a prison that closely resembles a college dorm frat house.  Each individual placed on an island alone will have no other recourse but to reflect upon their lives and the choices that they made instead of still pretending to be some bad to the bone thug who has to show his/her courage by remaining a coward in the presence of others.  Just a thought, I could be wrong.