Let Freedom Reign! with an apology to MLK

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison, and you came to visit me . . . I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me"(Matthew 25:35-36, 40).


PLEASE SIGN THE PETITIONS SUPPORT THE NCADP

Some of you may remember this piece,but 99% of you are not familiar with it I am sure.It as been sitting in the previous post section,but from the mail I have been receiving asking me about my history,no one was reading it so I think it is time we start all over!
Besides it is a cheap way of getting a new post published,which gives me a chance to use my notification list,which by the way,you need to be on.Simply email me with the world READ in the subject header,and now,on with our main feature:

The first time you hear that door slam behind you,when it all comes together and you know you are no longer a freeman,that is the time when you have to be at your finest.
What lies ahead of you,none of the stories or any of the movies featuring prison life could prepare you for.
The first time I was jailed was in 1977,I was a twenty year old expert on everything.
the charge?
MURDER.
The reason I was charged and not another?
Simple,I was responsible it was my actions,and then inaction,that caused that man to die.it was by my hand,and mine alone.
There never was a question of who had done it,there was as it would turn out,seventeen people who viewed the last seconds of that man life,and
I have never before today talked of that incident,and it is not my wish to drag it all up again,my family certainly does not wish me to even be this public,and I am positive that the deceased family wants no more publicity,as not all of it is kind to the victim.I mention this only as reference to my claim of being an expert on prison life.
Perhaps at another time and place I will go into it,but this is not the forum for that type of tale.
It was self defense,I was totally exonerated after an exhausting six week trial.I did however spend eighteen months behind bars awaiting the outcome.
Eighteen months to brood on what I had done,eighteen months of self incrimination's and speculations.Eighteen months of believing that this was to be my life for the next twenty five to life.Eighteen months of meeting the very best of the worst!

If that had been my only time behind bars,it still would have been enough to give me the background needed for this endeavor how ever,it was only the begining.manageded to stay out of trouble (meaning I was never caught and convicted ) for for close to ten years.

I offer no excuses,I do not blame my childhood,I do not blame the creep who( this as NEVER been revealed to a single living person until now!!!) sexually abused me when I was very young teenager( yup-the jokes and stories about boyscout leaders....LOOK OUT JOHN,your day may yet come)

I do not blame the death of my son,nor the death of my wife,I do not blame my addictions,and I certainly do not,like so many do,blame it on sociality.I blame it all on myself.I can honestly say though,I would never had achieved the success I did as a criminal if it were not for my time behind bars!

Rehabilitation,the magic word,the reason you give for the practice of jailing those who have broken your laws.

Rehabilitation:
To restore to good health or useful life, as through therapy and education.
To restore to good condition, operation, or capacity. Thus says a dictionary.

Let's examine it closer:restore.....Therapy and education,remember that word,education,we will be examining just what that means in the prisons you send us to.

I have used the terms you and yours as if I felt outside of the mainstream,as if YOUR laws were not my own,and that is exactly how a con feels after even a short stay behind bars.The word lgets's divided between US and YOU.

WE develop a whole new way at looking at things that those who have not done time can not fully understand.I am not saying this is a good thing,in fact any thing that helps divide society is be definition a harmful event.I will just say one more thing that jail does,it:

CREATES BETTER CRIMINALS!

In 1989 I received a six month sentence for mainly bad cheques,a pretty minor thing,and since it was my first criminal CONVICTION I was placed in a minimum security work camp.

My employment just previous to being jailed( my legal employment,which was mostly a cover for my "illegal" activity) was that of a bouncer/bartender in a rather seedy hotel in the local "red-light zone"So it was no surprise that I meet many of the same people in jail that I had associated with on the street.

There was another "class" if you will of criminal I encountered in that first little stay.The Professionalal"

Yes it was a minimum security facility,but it was also the stopping off point for some rather serious people who where finishing out their terms there as a way of returning them to society after a LONG prison stretch,some as many as fifteen years for such things as bank robbery,kidnapping,manslaughter and drug smuggling.

I had at that time adopted a strategy for survival of recognizing in any situation,just who was on top of the food chain,and then blending in with them.I have always had the ability to be cameleon,to blend and fit into any role I wished to play,and although my crimes that had brought me there were minor,I made the conscience decision to gravitate towards those whose crimes where the most serious.It was a decision that would serve me well over the next fourteen years of my criminal career.

So it is with those credentials,and more in the future,that I bring you this new series,which will deal with related social and moral issues as well as current events.We will be examining things like capitol punishment,injustices of any kind,penalties imposed on criminals.To harsh? to lenient ?Guilty?Innocent?eye witness reports,are they valid?( you will be amazed!)

I will also be doing my best to sway public opinion anytime I feel that there as been a huge miscarriage of justice,or of suspected cover ups,or any other issues that really grabs my attention,and that is where YOU come in.If you know of or suspect that there been a mistake made in the dealing out of justice,let me know,and I will do my best to investigate it.It does not have to be the innocent who was wrongly convicted,I will also be examing the ones where the guilty were freed through some error or procedure.

For my first attempt at this forum,I direct you to the link dealing with the death penalty.so until next time.thats been my VIEW FROM THE OUTSIDE

I am also the proud founder of a on line support group for those with addiction issues.It is open to all,and do not let the name fool you,all addicts and all treatment programs are welcome to be discussed.If you or a love on as been touched by an addiction,join today:

NOW WITH 34 MEMBERS IN NINE COUNTRIES!

SAVEDBYMETHADONE

FOR A LOOK AT THE DARKER SIDE OF ADDICTIONS,AND HOW THEY LED TO MY DOWNFALL,I INVITE YOU TO VISIT THE ROAD DOWN (PG14)

For some HAPPY tales of misery and suffering( huh?happy,suffering?misery?you will just have to see won't you?) I invite you to visit my newest attempt to entertain and educate AND FROM THE ASHES

To ensure you never miss a publication of mine,please place yourself on my notification list by emailing forbes1@sasktel.net with the word READ in the subject line