Ammie's blog

Persuasive Speech: Rehab Programs

2009-03-18T23:52:00.001-07:00

“In a prison the awe of public eye is lost, and the power of the law is spent, there are few fears, there are no blushes. The lewd inflame the lewd, the audacious harden the audacious,” Samuel Johnson wrote these words in The Idler. In prison there’s no worry about what your neighbor might think of you or any embarrassment. You’re no longer under the same restrictions of the law. The reckless; the fearless influence the unrestrained. The behavior of prisoners and the concept of being isolated from society is what cause inmates to find themselves back in prison. In my speech I will persuade you that more programs are needed to rehabilitate released prisoners and what programs would be effective.
The recidivism rate of prisons in our country, which is the repeated or habitual relapse into crime, is more than half of those that stay released. According to a study by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, “67 % of prisoners released in 1994 were rearrested within 3 years.” 74% over property, 67 over drugs, 62 % were public-order and violent offenders. What is the cause of these numbers? Imprisonment affects the well being of the prisoner. They become prisonized. In an article on uplink.com, “Prisons do more harm than good,” “Prisoners are faced with incidence of violence. And they are concerned for their safety”. They have to withstand the shock of entering prison, adapt to that way of life, their exposed to a different culture, then keeping contact with family becomes frustrating, they have endless free time to fill, and they lose their ability to make their own decisions. They’re told what to eat and when, what, where, and when to play and sleep. Lock-ups and isolation used for punishment are dehumanizing. Prisoners are reduced to nothing as they live with bear subsidence.
Now, you might be thinking who cares, they disserve to be there; they committed a crime? Well, for one thing we’re all human that make mistakes, some fewer and less severe than others. But their prison time affects us, too. As you probably already know, prisons take our money, or at least it will if you’re not currently working. More importantly, it puts us in fear of criminals and the prison-looking. So, what could be done about these high numbers since they did commit a crime or crimes? There are a few options that I think will work. First, I will discuss what kind of programs could be effective then I’ll explain what programs are already in place and what their doing.
The first thing, provide rehabilitation programs for each inmate leaving prison or jail to fit his or her needs. They will reshape how they live and show them how to re-enter society. This might include group homes, counseling on a regular basis, and employment assistance. Second, the judges could chose to put drug offenders through a drug rehab to replace prison time, with routine drug tests and lifestyle monitoring. This will not only help the drug abusers it will help the overcrowding of jails and help the recidivism rate even further. Next, correctional facilities should have education opportunities with the government requiring each inmate to attend. It will help pass time and when they are released their educated and not inadequate. And finally, the government should research more ethical ways to punish criminals; still keeping justice and integrity.
Are these just far fetched only-if ambitions? No, there are some programs already in place that show successful results. The Interchange Freedom Imitative that’s voluntary and holistic based. On IFI.org this program begins 18 months before the inmates release and continues for 12 months of mentoring. It’s volunteer and they must meet several criteria before their accepted. It operates in 50 states throughout Brazil with a recidivism rate of less than 5 %. Others are Ready4Work, Woman’s Re-entry Initiative, and Youth Violence Reduction. A few programs to help drug abusers are the Second Chance Program and Teen Challenge. The Second Chance Program uses six modules from drug withdrawal to job training. According to penalrehab.org, “Those who have completed the first month of the program before release, the normal recidivism rate of 70% dropped to less than 10 %”. And Teen Challenge has a 67% success rate. According to teenchallengeusa.org they admit adults and children to an effective and comprehensive faith-based solution to drug and alcohol addiction. Then the education programs already implemented on educateupdate.com say college prison programs nurture self-esteem and provide rehabilitative projects. The response to these projects is enthusiasm from inmates and the recidivism rate is 20-60% lower than non-participants. And finally, psychologists understand the effects of imprisonment and treat criminals with that in mind.
In conclusion, are rehabilitation programs effective? Yes, but I’m sure it depends on the criminal. We should have them because it allows inmates to re-enter society with support and an opportunity at a second chance. What could we do to help lower the recidivism rate of criminals? Well, we could vote for rehabilitation initiatives written by the government or even volunteer at you local city mission with these programs already in use. I’ll leave you with these words by Henrey Feilding, “Houses of correction, whatever the houses were designed to be or whatever they at first were, the fact is that they are at present…no other then schools of vice, seminars of idleness, and common bearers of nastiness and disease”.

Let Freedom Ring

2008-11-25T02:35:00.000-08:00

"I'm singing for freedom/ I know I'm not the only one" (Run Kid Run "Freedom"). According to my favorite song, freedom can be achieved and only one person can grant it. The reasons why it's my favorite is because of the band as artists, the lyrics, and how I relate to it.I first thing I notice in a song is the music and the vocals that follow. Run Kid Run sing, "Freedom", which is currently my favorite song. They're a newly, popular Christian band. And not solemn hymnal music, though that's great too, I would classify them as a mix between alternative and soft rock. "Freedom" begins with a soft melody by piano playing and soft guitar strums. Drums pick up once the chorus starts bringing dramatical effect. But the one thing I picked up the most, in any song really, is the vocals. David Curtis is the lead vocalist and his voice overwhelms me. It's deep and buzzy pulling his emotions into the music. The last thing that keeps me hooked, is the lyrics. Their metaphorical of a prisoner compared to the life of a follower of God.Right off the bat, the lyrics begin with imagery. "All my chains I can't disengage/ I don't believe that I want to" (Run Kid Run "Freedom"). The narrator is trapped with no hope of escaping, but he wouldn't want to if he could. I believe this is the result of giving in to temptation and is now faced with the consequences. He continues with the next dilemma, "I keep holding my chains/ No longer bound/ Still you wait patiently" (Run Kid Run "Freedom"). Here the consequences are over; God has released his traps. However, he either doesn't want to give up his sin, or he too ashamed to come to God. And finally he gets a response, " take my hand grace has found you... in the end there's only love" (Run Kid Run "Freedom"). God reached his hand to pull him out of his misery. And though he couldn't see it, love was there, all he had to do is embrace it. But how do these lyrics with the music make it my favorite song?Well, I can relate to it. I enjoy the concept of freedom, beyond what my country gives me. I often feel enchained by anger the the problems that come my way. In the song, God rescued him as he has for me, and probably will again. I've gone through, from what I can tell, the same things the narrator has. So, it reminds me of difficult times and how God has pulled me out. This shows me, though I struggle too, it's encouraging to know I'm not the only one. This song also gives me a chance to worship. By remembering my past experiences, through the lyrics, I bring adoration to God. As well as, praises for his compassion, love, and forgiveness displayed in the song.So, though Run Kid Run is searching for freedom through difficulties and complete justice, for the time being, they bring us freedom. Often times we might forget, and they remind us of God's love through their song. They're a great band that bring thoughtful lyrics making "Freedom" an amazing song.

Spending Time With God

2008-07-25T13:13:00.000-07:00

When I was little I always felt guilty if I didn't read my Bible or wanted to do something else instead. And it was wrong to watch tv at the same time. Well, when I started working at Mountain Lakes it would get really boring and I would run out of things to do sometimes, so I brought my Bible and would read in between customers. Then ever since I stopped working I would read my Bible while watching tv after Lily laid down for her nap. I think I do get insights from the Spirit while I'm reading, though I'm not giving my full attention. So, I thought it wasn't really a big deal. But something occured to me one night when I was done reading my usual studying I didn't want to stop, but I was tired of reading. I've been going through kind of a difficult time lately, just not really enjoying my circumstances and I've been waiting for some prayers to be answered for quiet some time. Not that I'm complaining, we all have to go through difficult times to grow. So, the last couple of weeks I've been looking for God's peace and some has filtered through my sorrow some days. So, that night I stared at the scriptures from a distance enough to see the words, but not actually read them. I felt a little relief and I imaged if God would be sitting across from me. And that's when I realized that's what I'm doing when I study the word. I'm spending time with God. Afterall they are his words his history. And how much more insight and peace I would feel if I read with the tv off. And that's why I feel comforted when I read the word.

We're Not Alone

2008-07-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

There was a song in church the other morning that explained how we're free and no longer chained down so we can now shine to the world. Well, the line that explained how were redeemed and been set free really spoke to me. I think that when things get a little difficult we start forgetting what God's done in our lives and we don't feel very free. But though we may feel chained down by drugs, an unhealthy lifestyle, relationships, or just dealing with life itself, we're still free. Jesus doesn't want us to feel trapped by these things that's why he calls us to cast our cares on him. And I think it is still really difficult, but the thought that we have someone looking out for our interests is amazing.
Then it accured to me that we're not alone in our troubles. Yeah, we know that God is always around us and above us and in us. But I think we often take that for granted and don't really grasp it in our minds. And I think we think we feel guilty for not measuring up to what we know were suppose to do or prideful that we need to do and fix our fears or our mistakes or what causes sorrows on our own. I know I struggle with this. And Jesus reaches out to us when we're in need( or tugging at our hearts to come to him). Well, he did die on the cross so that we would no longer face the worst that comes our way all alone. When we're fearful or sad or stressed or angry or trapped by unwanted circumstances, whatever the case may be, he doesn't walk away or leave us to fend for ourselves. He's right there with us every step of the way.
And deeper than that, we are all sinners and whether we're not currently sinning, being tempted, or blinded by the actions we're doing, God still loves us. How could God love such corrupt and sinful people? Honestly, I'm not really sure, it's even hard for me to show love to those that have done wrong to me. I know that God see's our hearts for every spec that it is. Every corruption it has and every future wrong we'll make, but he looks past our sinful nature and love us for the person that we are. And I don't know about everyone else, but that means a lot to me because I'm a girl and hold a few insecurities and the person that created me and will judge me some day loves the person that I am, that's awesome. Think about it, though. You have a huge God has written all our names on his hand and will never faint or grow weary and who created this world with just a few words and see's us for who we exactly are and loves us anyway. So deeply it fact, that we can never ever comprehend or even recipricate to him or anyone else. So, to a loving person that see's everything past present and future and loves us beyond what anyone or anything can seperate why not spill our guts. Afterall, we're not alone and we're free to do so.