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What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

dailydot.com

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Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#3

Interesting but is it only me who can't find the author's name or a link to his blog?

Probably this is a more appropriate article as it hasn't just stolen someone's content.

http://www.dailydot.com/opinion/santos-getting-online-after-...

His name is Michael Santos and he did 25 years for running drugs.

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#4
I've read about this guy before and what continues to puzzle me is how well versed his Internet terminology is. Things like "amazed me to see how the search engine indexed so much" just doesn't make sense, this guy was already aware of what indexing is and yet never used a computer inside prison?

It also seems that he built up an entire online presence before he'd stepped out of prison, the way it reads.

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#5

I've read about this guy before and what continues to puzzle me is how well versed his Internet terminology is. Things like "amazed me to see how the search engine indexed so much" just doesn't make sense, this guy was already aware of what indexing is and yet never used a computer inside prison? It also seems that he built up an entire online presence before he'd stepped out of prison, the way it reads.

I imagine he did it the way we all did in the 70s and 80s: by digesting every shred of information from available print publications.

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#6
Presumably the reason why inmates don't have unfettered access to the internet is to make sure they're not running some empire from behind bars but at the same time in this day and age this sounds like exceptionally cruel punishment.

If there is one thing that would help an ex-convict to re-integrate into society it would be to be able to read about what is going on in the outside world and to be able to self-educate so they can hit the ground running. After all if you leave jail without marketable skills chances of falling back into crime are higher which eventually serves nobody, least of all society.

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#7
I have utmost respect for this guy, after spending 25 years in prison he still has such a positive outlook, thinking about how he can utilize the internet to his advantage.

It teaches us something about not giving up our future even if the present is less than stellar. Startups are hard, but imagine if you would have to wait 25 years to realize your ideas...

As cliché as it is, never give up!

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#8
post #6

Presumably the reason why inmates don't have unfettered access to the internet is to make sure they're not running some empire from behind bars but at the same time in this day and age this sounds like exceptionally cruel punishment. If there is one thing that would help an ex-convict to re-integrate into society it would be to be able to read about what is going on in the outside world and to be able to self-educate…

Most workplaces block certain websites anyway so I don't see why they could not do the same thing for inmates. Maybe they shouldn't be using Tor, but I don't see why Wikipedia is a problem.

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#9

Interesting but is it only me who can't find the author's name or a link to his blog?

Probably this is a more appropriate article as it hasn't just stolen someone's content. http://www.dailydot.com/opinion/santos-getting-online-after-... His name is Michael Santos and he did 25 years for running drugs.

Can we ask the mods to change the link to the one you provided?

Re: What It’s Like to Get Online After 25 Years in Prison

#10

I have utmost respect for this guy, after spending 25 years in prison he still has such a positive outlook, thinking about how he can utilize the internet to his advantage. It teaches us something about not giving up our future even if the present is less than stellar. Startups are hard, but imagine if you would have to wait 25 years to realize your ideas... As cliché as it is, never give up!

25 years is an enormous amount of time. Think of the cost to society to lock up people for the bigger part of their productive life.
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