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Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

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Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#11

Post by rayiner »

innguest wrote: post #7
beloch wrote: post #2

This is a state-granted monopoly and it's being abused. The services JPay offers should either be government run or open to free market competition.

How can we trust the government to solve this when it was the government that created the problem to begin with?

Bullshit. As noted in the article, everything was fine (pay $1.50 for a money order and $0.50 for postage) until people pushed to get private contractors involved. You can say "government created the problem" but that's totally obtuse. Should people who commit armed robbery (like the man in the article) not be in jail? If they should be, someone has to take care of their logistical needs. The drumbeat since Reagan has been that private companies should handle the logistics, because government is inefficient. Well governments responded, and what we are seeing is that the svrice of the for-profit corporations dwarfs the inefficiency of government.

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#12

Post by innguest »

rayiner wrote: post #11
innguest wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How can we trust the government to solve this when it was the government that created the problem to begin with?

Bullshit. As noted in the article, everything was fine (pay $1.50 for a money order and $0.50 for postage) until people pushed to get private contractors involved. You can say "government created the problem" but that's totally obtuse. Should people who commit armed robbery (like the man in the article) not be in jail? If they should be, someone has to take care of their logistical needs. The drumbeat since Reagan ha…

You're being myopic on purpose.

> The drumbeat since Reagan has been that private companies

Companies! Plural! The free market cannot exist when there is One True Company that the government let operate and Oh! See! The One True Company is charging too much so clearly free markets don't work.

Please.

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#13

Post by deadfall »

jMyles wrote: post #4

The only question that rings to me anymore about these stories: What can I do? What code can I write? What broker can I call? What form can I sign? How can I register my civic will so as to undo this blight? For me, this is the most embarrassing thing about being a United States citizen.

I am a victim of these ridiculous fees. I thought about how someone was getting rich and I justified the fees because of the convenience. It most certainly cut back how much I sent and how frequently I used it. This directly affects the incarcerated person.

Side note: PayPal allows you to send money to friends and family for free.

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#14

Post by ajiang »

breitling wrote: post #10

"He says he charges only as much as he must to maintain a razor-thin profit margin." I have a hard time believing this. Does any one have experience in this space? The way I understand it, it really shouldn't cost $6+ for an electronic transaction.

I used to do work in this space and personally diligenced JPay for investment purposes. Their profit margins are low for the same reason most successful startups have no profit - growth. They're growing incredibly fast, investing in sales and marketing efforts (as well as the 'commissions'). Take out the growth aspects, you have a company with very high gross margins.

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#15

Post by rayiner »

innguest wrote: post #12
rayiner wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Bullshit. As noted in the article, everything was fine (pay $1.50 for a money order and $0.50 for postage) until people pushed to get private contractors involved. You can say "government created the problem" but that's totally obtuse. Should people who commit armed robbery (like the man in the article) not be in jail? If they should be, someone has to take care of their logistical needs. The drumbeat since Reagan ha…

You're being myopic on purpose. > The drumbeat since Reagan has been that private companies Companies! Plural! The free market cannot exist when there is One True Company that the government let operate and Oh! See! The One True Company is charging too much so clearly free markets don't work. Please.

There isn't "one company." Different departments of corrections have contracted to hire companies to handle deposits, just as your business might contract with a company to outsource some service.

More generally, I'm not saying that the free market doesn't work. I do think market solutions are merely tools to be used in appropriate situations. And when the potential for abuse is high, as with prisons and other traditional functions of government, private organizations are not appropriate, because private industry has the wrong values and the wrong culture for the situation.

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#16

Post by GFK_of_xmaspast »

jMyles wrote: post #4

The only question that rings to me anymore about these stories: What can I do? What code can I write? What broker can I call? What form can I sign? How can I register my civic will so as to undo this blight? For me, this is the most embarrassing thing about being a United States citizen.

Pretty much "diddly squat".

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#17

Post by innguest »

rayiner wrote: post #15
innguest wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're being myopic on purpose. > The drumbeat since Reagan has been that private companies Companies! Plural! The free market cannot exist when there is One True Company that the government let operate and Oh! See! The One True Company is charging too much so clearly free markets don't work. Please.

There isn't "one company." Different departments of corrections have contracted to hire companies to handle deposits, just as your business might contract with a company to outsource some service. More generally, I'm not saying that the free market doesn't work. I do think market solutions are merely tools to be used in appropriate situations. And when the potential for abuse is high, as with prisons and other tradit…

> There isn't "one company."

Ok, so lest we shift the conversation - as right now we're talking about the specific prison and the specific banking corporation that this prison is using as described in the full article - please tell me who is the competitor to JPay.

Don't give me "different departments of corrections" blah blah blah. I'm arguing the system as explained in the article is broken specifically because JPay is not competing in a free market, i.e. it has no competitors. You seem to disagree. So please tell me the names of JPay's competitors.

Thank you.

Re: Prison Bankers Who Profit from the Inmates

#20

Post by disposition2 »

innguest wrote: post #7
beloch wrote: post #2

This is a state-granted monopoly and it's being abused. The services JPay offers should either be government run or open to free market competition.

How can we trust the government to solve this when it was the government that created the problem to begin with?

I doubt the government would be doing this:

"JPay is protected from other market forces, as well. When states offer its music players and tablet computers for sale to inmates, they often confiscate radios that people already own, according to inmates in Ohio. This leaves inmates dependent on JPay’s music downloads, which can cost 30 to 50 percent more than the same songs on iTunes, inmates say."

I'm confused, are you defending this company and its practices are merely railing against government? Atleast with the government, there is a bit of oversight. It seems like JPay is a monopoly thanks to bribery and their CEO's lack of morality.

Edits: spelling

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