During the Corona virus pandemic many states, including my home state of Michigan, have issued some form of Stay Home order for the general public and specifically request that people with Covid-19 or think they may have been exposed to it, to self-quarantine for some period of time. On television the trend for talk shows is for the personalities to do their shows from home. The late-night comedians spend their time lampooning the president, life in quarantine, and the idiots who have earned their 60 seconds of infamy. The daytime shows continue to pander to celebrity, as if those who can most afford not to work can really relate to those who can’t even file for unemployment due to the overwhelming number of people applying. The poster child for this may be Ellen DeGeneres. She made a joke on her first show back after 3 weeks off that those of us who have been there found to be in unbelievably bad taste. She compared coronavirus self-isolation to being in jail. “It’s mostly because I’ve been wearing the same clothes for 10 days, and everyone here is gay.” Compared to the “real world” prison is a place where reality: including things like common sense, empathy, manners, personal hygiene, health care, personal space, and access to PPE is extremely limited or non-existent. Jails and prisons are like petri dishes which culture microorganisms. Even in the best of times they are unsanitary places full of unhygienic people. Many people have been speaking out about this problem for years, yet the MDOC ignored the warning signs such as outbreaks of norovirus that have resulted in prisons being quarantined on a regular basis. The sad thing is that unlike the Flint water crisis there will be no Attorney General investigation, no one will lose their jobs, and no one will be held responsible for the criminal negligence that has led to the unnecessary loss of life that has resulted from the coronavirus pandemic of 2020.
Tag: Prison Medical Services
Anti-Social Distancing
It has been widely reported in the news recently about the fears of what could happen with the COVID-19 pandemic spreading inside of jails and prisons. The basic tools used to combat the spread of infectious disease are either not practiced adequately by inmates, poorly implemented and executed by staff, or prevented by policy as security risks. There have been a number of unusual facts about this Corona virus that are particularly troubling. for corrections. This will combine into a perfect storm that the MDOC and all other jails and prisons, either state or federal are not capable of handling. When this pandemic is brought under control and life resumes its new normal, my concern is that the successful measures taken to combat the spread of this disease will be eased or rescinded altogether. If you have loved ones or friends currently incarcerated- pray about them; reach out to them; speak out for them.
DWH
While prison is a dangerous place and several inmates are killed by other inmates on an annual basis, for the 95% of inmates which will likely receive parole, the fear of dying in prison is more likely related to a medical issue such as a heart attack or cancer.
