Do you think you could survive prison?

[jmt225]

Every single male in America fantasizes about what would happen if they ended up in prison. When you think about it, surviving in prison would be the ultimate masculine test. If you could survive prison unharmed, then you are one bad ass, smart, and lucky motherfucker.

That said, do you truly think you could survive in prison? And when I ask this, we're talking about Federal prison here, not county jail.

What lengths would you go to survive? Most forum members here are white, would you join the Aryan Brotherhood? Would you become someone's "bitch"? Would you request to be in solitary?

Going to prison here in the states is a horrific thing to think about. Getting raped, of course, first and foremost is the one thing that no one ever wants to experience, and the thought of it just makes you shiver. And that's the ultimate fear about ending up in prison for I think almost everyone: Getting raped. Even the baddest motherfucker on the planet can't hold off 5/6 muscular guys beating and holding him down. It's just not possible.

And what about the mental part of prison... being locked in a small jail cell at all times, most likely stuck with a total and complete stranger as a cellmate? Could you handle the loneliness and boredom without losing your mind?

I've contemplated these questions many times throughout my life. Luckily I've never come close to becoming arrested, and I don't plan on it ever happening, but if it did and it was for something serious... I'm not so sure I could handle prison. The loneliness and lack of personal space I would be able to handle just fine, but all the things that come with joining a gang, and the prospect of getting raped, those are just things I wouldn't be able to handle. I would kill myself before I allowed myself to get raped. And while I wouldn't be completely against joining a gang, no matter how racist or despicable, there's just no way I would jeopardize my freedom and adding years to my sentence to passing those "test" those bastards require for you to join.

It's nice to think that maybe you could survive by keeping to yourself, not stepping on any toes, and only sticking up for yourself when the time calls for it, but the media and stories you hear from people just make it seem like the chances of that happening in a federal prison are slim to none. So, I ask you, with that in mind, could you survive if you landed in one?

 

[Paralyzer Z]

Every single male in America fantasizes about what would happen if they ended up in prison. When you think about it, surviving in prison would be the ultimate masculine test. If you could survive prison unharmed, then you are one bad ass, smart, and lucky motherfucker.

That said, do you truly think you could survive in prison? And when I ask this, we're talking about Federal prison here, not county jail.

What lengths would you go to survive? Most forum members here are white, would you join the Aryan Brotherhood? Would you become someone's "bitch"? Would you request to be in solitary?

Going to prison here in the states is a horrific thing to think about. Getting raped, of course, first and foremost is the one thing that no one ever wants to experience, and the thought of it just makes you shiver. And that's the ultimate fear about ending up in prison for I think almost everyone: Getting raped. Even the baddest motherfucker on the planet can't hold off 5/6 muscular guys beating and holding him down. It's just not possible.

And what about the mental part of prison... being locked in a small jail cell at all times, most likely stuck with a total and complete stranger as a cellmate? Could you handle the loneliness and boredom without losing your mind?

I've contemplated these questions many times throughout my life. Luckily I've never come close to becoming arrested, and I don't plan on it ever happening, but if it did and it was for something serious... I'm not so sure I could handle prison. The loneliness and lack of personal space I would be able to handle just fine, but all the things that come with joining a gang, and the prospect of getting raped, those are just things I wouldn't be able to handle. I would kill myself before I allowed myself to get raped. And while I wouldn't be completely against joining a gang, no matter how racist or despicable, there's just no way I would jeopardize my freedom and adding years to my sentence to passing those "test" those bastards require for you to join.

It's nice to think that maybe you could survive by keeping to yourself, not stepping on any toes, and only sticking up for yourself when the time calls for it, but the media and stories you hear from people just make it seem like the chances of that happening in a federal prison are slim to none. So, I ask you, with that in mind, could you survive in your landed in one?

This line, it confuses the red man, for the Injun in me needs to go deeper into the meaning of "Aryan".

Alright all jokes aside I would not be able to survive prison in the least bit. Lets put aside the horrors of rape and confinement for a second and look at the other factors that push people away from prison. For one the sleeping conditions in federal jail have always been portrayed as steel metal cold blocks. Not to mention the labor that you are commanded and expected to do, I am not a fit guy so that is out of the questions. There is also the worry about the rest of your life, will this sentence ruin your records, will it damage relationships? Stuff like that is often overlooked by people that infer what prison may be like without any experience. Once you get back into the real world, if you ever do, there are significant challenges former inmates, and hypothetically speaking in this thread I would have to face head-on to continue on.

Now let's get to the 2 big reasons that JMT stated above, Prison Rape, and confinement. It's pretty obvious that prison rape is almost always same-sex and that doesn't go well for me. I am a pretty weak guy, that would be a big target for the more muscular guys that represent stereotype of the physical appearance of criminals. I would rather chose rape over death since that is pretty big hyperbole choice to make, though I have heard some really sick prison rape stories in the past. As far as confinement goes, I am a really private guy, privacy is something I can't live without, I need to just get away sometimes. Delusion, and lunacy I would try to keep out of my head as long as I can so I survive in there. However like I said before, my lack of physic and timidness would foil that. I will try to stay as far away from prison as I can for as long as I live, and honestly I don't think the chances of imprisonment for me are very high, I am a disciplined lad.

 

[LSN80]

Let me tell a story here that should answer the question. I'll keep it on subject as much as one possibly can.

When I was in my final year of graduate school, I took a class called multicultural therapy. The aim of the class was to put us in the shoes of the people we would eventually be working with. Among the "working assignments" we were given were to go to a place of Worship that clashed with your beliefs, recruit a same sex friend and walk around in public for an hour, and sleep in a homeless shelter for a night. None of these were that difficult for me, but the final assignment was one that still gives me chills today as I think about it: Spend 72 hours in observation in a Mental Hospital.

I won't pretend a mental hospital falls under the same banner as spending time in jail, as it's much less restrictive. I've had clients who I council who've been to jail, and they laugh off my experiences as if they were nothing. However, my experience was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life.

When we checked in, the only person who knew we were there "on assignment" was the head psychiatrist. None of the nurses, case workers, or therapists knew, we were just considered to be "Patient #23." You turned in your clothes at the door for hospital issued ones. You woke up when they told you to, went to bed when they told you to, and once in your room, you were looked there for the night, with a roommate. My personal roommate had a broken hand, and it was because he had punched a cop. But instead of sending him to jail, they sent him to the hospital. And the man was crazy, and knew no fear. He went after staff several times, had to be tazered, and put in isolation twice in just the three days I was there. I was so thankful the final night when he spent the night in isolation, because I finally got sleep. I was so terrified of this man, and the fact that I was locked in a room with him.

Most of the fear in me came from the lack of control. Being told what to eat, when to shower, and where to be at all times didn't help me in any way, it created a large sense of anxiety in me. I'm someone who's generally a very calm, relaxed individual, but those three days were as anxious as I've ever been in my life. And this was only for a short period of time, and much easier, I imagine, then being in prison. And unlike prison, where you're facing punitive action for wrongs you've done, the hospital is supposed to helppeople.

So could I make it in prison? No. I'm not sure how I would cope. I struggled badly those three days in the hospital, all-the-while knowing Id be getting out soon, and that I was on assignment. As I said earlier, Ive had clients who have been in federal prison, and they laughed at me as I told the story of my fear and anxiety as I tried to empathize with them. "You wouldn't last a f*cking day in jail, kid", I've been told, and I believe them. I shudder just thinking of the way I saw staff treating mentally ill patients in a hospital. If I had a hard time there, it's unfathomable for me to think that I could last long in jail. Thankfully, I've never been arrested, not close, and I plan on keeping it that way. If I could keep to myself, I'd stand a chance, but the chances of that being reality are slim to none. I couldn't bring myself to join a gang if it meant compromising my values, but neither would I be able to deal with someone forcing themselves upon me either. Death or being thrown in isolation would seem like the most pleasant options to me.

Essentially, I look at things this way: Anytime I think my life is difficult and feel confined in any way by responsibility, I think back to the stay in the hospital. The stories I've heard first-hand from those who've been in jail are also terrifying reminders. Although the remembrance of those days and stories make me anxious to this day, they also assist in allowing myself to find perspective, and I consider myself blessed.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I am pretty sure I would struggle terribly to survive in prison. I am naturally someone who plays things over in my mind again and again, and the constant worry of what was going to happen to me in the showers or in the exercise yard would drive me insane.

It's not that I am a weak guy, because I am not. I am in good shape and dont look "weak" in the slightest, but as LSN said, noone can hold off a gang rape, and that is a thought that terrifies me.

I think I could handle the being told when to get up and go to bed, and the being locked in a cell, but it would be the constant fear of getting slashed, or raped or beaten up by other inmates who would be much crazier and dangerous than me that would really affect me.

I am going to try and ensure that I stay as far away from prison as possible, as I really do believe its something I would struggle to survive, if I was in there for a long time.

 

[CH David]

When I was on the Grand Jury last month, we actually got a tour of minimum/medium security wing of the Cook County Jail. Shit is nuts and that is just the overnight stints, people coming back from court, and a part where they house the military vets who have committed smaller crimes and are trying to get them back on their feet. From that experience alone I hope I never get arrested for anything.

Federal prison or regular prison I'd probably die. I don't think I could do things to get initiated into a gang, especially if that meant getting time added to my sentence. Solitary is possible, but I'd likely end up going crazy as I like to interact with people. I'd do my damndest to survive, but I don't know what would play out.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I would not survive in prison. At least I don't think I could. People do whatever they have to in order to survive, depending on the situation, and you find yourself doing things you never thought you would. I am white, but just cannot see myself joining the Aryan Brotherhood since I hate what they believe. Being someone's "bitch" wouldn't be much better. I would try to just be a lone wolf, leaving others alone. Which could work for a while, but inevitably someone is going to confront me. Requesting to be put in solitary would see me be safer from the other inmates. The boredom and constant state of being in the same spot would drive me insane though. I doubt I would be able to handle it because I am far too nice of a guy and would have to go through drastic changes quickly in order to survive.... and that doesn't even begin to describe how awful of an experience it would be. I personally hate the prison system (reasons for why would be a topic for another thread) and hope to never end up in one. I try to live my life according to the law so that I do not.

 

[Chardee Macdennis]

I've spent the night in county on 3 seperate occasions. Each of which were dumb things I did when I was drunk in my earlier days. None of which were violent crimes or anything of the sort. From those experiences alone, I'd say that it'd be damn near impossible for me to spend any length of time in the Federal prison system. I actually have a pretty funny story about the night/next morning on one of my stays in county that involves me standing up in the middle of the lunch room and screaming at every person in that place that I would be getting out later that day and for everyone to leave me the fuck alone. Of course, I'm 6'2" and at the time wieghed in at 275lbs, so I was EASILY the biggest dude in the place (and that's not even THAT big). But, it would be ENTIRELY different in the penn.

Now, unfortunately, I am involved in something through my place of business dealing with the mis-shipments of DG/HazMat packages that a subordinate of mine neglected to mark and label properly time and time again, with me having absolutely no knowledge of the situation, and this has landed me on Federal Probation for 12 months. Should I happen to get in any type of significant trouble and the Asst. U.S. D.A. decides to prosecute me on this charge, I will be facing a minimum 12 months Federal Prison time. I HAVE NO INTENTIONS OF SPENDING ONE NIGHT IN THAT PLACE. However, as much as I steer clear of trouble, you never can tell what may happen. Should I wind up there, I'll come back to this thread a year from now and tell you all how I managed (if I manage).

 

[The Rob]

I'd be absolutely fucked if I went to prison.

Whilst I'm pretty good in social situations I'm comfortable in, I think I'd just crawl into my own little shell if I went to prison, and I suspect that's probably not the best way of dealing with it. I mean I have no idea but I'd imagine you'd want to make a least one 'friend' whilst in there for company, ideally your cell-mate. I think if I had a decent cell-mate I'd be okay for those periods of time where your locked in your cells. As for the rest of the day, I'd struggle massively, I just know it. I hope I never find out for real.