Prison Lobbyists vs Prison Reform

Read Michael’s recent posts on Change.org:
Most Popular Posts by Michael Santos

What Happened to Prison Reform?
Do Longer Prison Sentences Make the Public Safer?
The View from Inside: Prison Time Doesn’t Equal Justice
Take Action on Long-Term Imprisonment
Bring Back Federal Parole

And here’s a related article addressing the issue of prison lobbyists vs. prison reform: 
First Solve Prison Crisis, then [...]

Michael Hamden is Mad As Hell About the Failed U.S. Prison System

The following article is featured on Change.org
http://criminaljustice.change.org/blog/view/mad_as_hell_about_the_failed_us_prison_system
Mad As Hell About the Failed U.S. Prison System
by Michael Hamden
category: Prison Reform
Published March 10, 2010 @ 05:34AM PT
Yeah, I’m angry. I’m all riled up because our misguided criminal justice policies destroy individuals, families and entire communities. I’m steamed because at a time of financial crisis worse [...]

Why Prisons Will Always Be Full

Prison Journal: Day 8,227
 It’s 3:30 on Wednesday morning as I write this entry. I’m in the room where I begin every day, watching as Dave walks on the concrete pathway that leads to the Control Center of Taft Camp. Dave is being released from prison, and in a few hours the guards will finish processing [...]

Gary McGivern’s life work

 Click on the link below to read Michael’s most recent post on Change.org:
http://criminaljustice.change.org/blog/view/in_one_prisoners_life_work_inspiration

Community Building

Text of a recent Toastmasters speech Michael gave at Taft Camp–
Community Building
I don’t know how many of you remember studies of early Western Civilization, but on the pages of a history book that’s circulating I read a passage describing the early Greeks. As founders of the first known city, the Greeks recognized the importance of [...]

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, An American Slave

Title: Narrative of The Life of Frederick Douglas, An American Slave
Date Read: January 19, 2010
Book title: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, An American Slave
Author: Frederick Douglas
Book Publisher: Barnes and Noble Classics Series (1845/2003)
Non-Fiction / 126 pages
Narrative of The Life of Frederick Douglas, An American Slave was the 2nd book I read in 2010.
Why [...]

Lessons From Prison

Date Read: January 6, 2010
Book Title: Lessons From Prison
Book Author: Justin M. Paperny
Book Publisher: APS (2009)
Non Fiction/ 200 pages 
Lessons From Prison was the first book I read in 2010
Why I read Lessons From Prison: 
Justin Paperny, the author of Lessons From Prison, was confined with me at Taft Camp for about one year.  While he was [...]

Fourth Quarter Report–2009

It feels good to have completed the fourth quarter of 2009.  On the first day of this year I set clearly defined goals, and through my daily journal entries, along with the three previous quarterly reports that I published, I kept readers current with the progress I made toward each.  Now, on the last day [...]

Black Boy

Date read: December 31, 2009
Book Title: Black Boy
Book Author: Richard Wright
Book Publisher: Harper Collins/1944
Nonfiction/ 419 pages
Black Boy was the 21st book I finished reading in 2009
Why I read Black Boy:
My friend, Steve Urie, recommended that I read accomplished nonfiction writers.  Although Steve said that he was not a fan of Richard Wright, he told me [...]

Mean Justice: A Town’s Terror, a Prosecutor’s Power, a Betrayal of Innocence

Date Read: November 30, 2009
Book title: Mean Justice: A Town’s Terror, a Prosecutor’s Power, a Betrayal of Innocence
Author: Edward Humes
Book Publisher: Simon & Schuster (1999)
Non-Fiction / 491 pages
Mean Justice: A Town’s Terror, a Prosecutor’s Power, a Betrayal of Innocence was the 18th book I read in 2009.
Why I read Mean Justice:
A few years ago, in [...]

A Short History of Nearly Everything

Date Read: December 3, 2009
Book title: A Short History of Nearly Everything
Author: Bill Bryson
Book Publisher: Broadway Books (2003)
Non-Fiction / 544 pages
A Short History of Nearly Everything was the 19th book I read in 2009.
Why I read A Short History of Nearly Everything:
A friend I met at Taft Camp, Steve Urie, recommended this book to me. [...]

The Upside of Fear

Date Read: December 7, 2009
Book title: The Upside of Fear
Author: Weldon Lang
Book Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press (2009)
Non-Fiction / 199 pages
The Upside of Fear was the 20th book I read in 2009.
Why I read The Upside of Fear:
My friend Justin Paperny, read a review of The Upside of Fear and suggested that I read the [...]

A Moveable Feast

Date Read: July 22, 2009
Book title: A Moveable Feast
Author: Ernest Hemingway
Book Publisher: Touchstone (1964)
Non-Fiction / 211 pages
A Moveable Feast was the 12th book I read in 2009.
Why I read A Moveable Feast:
A friend of mine here at Taft Camp, Steve Urie, passed along A Moveable Feast to expose me to the wonderful writing of Ernest [...]

Twenty-Three Thanksgivings in Prison

Today begins my 23rd consecutive Thanksgiving holiday as a federal prisoner. I’ve now passed as many Thanksgiving holidays in prison as I passed as a free citizen. Prison has numbed me–I no longer experience the excitement and joy of holiday celebrations, though I know the season represents a time of significance for citizens of the [...]

Bam

Last week I spoke with Bam, a prisoner and former gang member serving time at Taft Camp. Bam’s been incarcerated for six years, though his initial prison adjustment led to problems with prison officials and transfers to higher security prisons.
Bam has listened to a number of my presentations at Taft Camp–I often speak to groups of at-risk [...]