Ratings Man

In 2002 the prison population of the country topped 2 million. Maybe there are just a lot of people who are so lazy they want free room and board at the expense of personal freedom. At any rate, things are getting pretty overcrowded in the system. That breeds all kinds of unpleasantness, such as lawyers.

The occasional science fiction story deals with this by having inmates risk their lives in return for freedom if successful in completing some dangerous task, such as escaping when being hunted. While I think the occasional (literal) manhunt could be interesting, I see something more beneficial to society. There are many dangerous jobs in the world we could be using inmates for. In return they would get a reduced sentence (variable according to the danger inherent in the job).

One job in particular I would like to see an inmate do is travel to Mars. With proper training and careful selection, it could be beneficial to everybody. We would get firsthand knowledge about the planet, and the convict would become a cultural icon, which would lead him to largely stick to white-collar crimes, like the rest of our celebrities.

If anybody out there actually reads this, give me some suggestions on what jobs you'd like to see our inmates tackle.

Comments

Krista said…
Alaskan Crab Fishermen. I love crab but it's way expensive. Make the criminals go out there and get it. That should bring down the price.
May 17, 2007 at 1:20 AM
Todd said…
How in the world did you come up with this post? It is pretty out there...

At some of the prisons in Utah the inmates make office furniture. I think that is a pretty good occupation.
May 17, 2007 at 8:31 PM
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