Idaho Prison Blog

The CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) type televisions currently allowed for inmate use in the IDOC should be removed from the offender authorized property list in the interest of safety, security, efficiency, cost-savings and environmental impact. Since mid-2010, Keefe Commissary Network (KCN) has sold only flat screen televisions to inmates in the IDOC [FN 1]. This means that each CRT television owned by an IDOC prisoner is at least 8 years old - well exceeding the life expectancy of such an appliance which is operated on average more than 10 hours per day in less than optimal conditions. It is also very unlikely that analog/CRT sets will ever again be sold to prisoners. Dealing with CRT TV sets creates a number of problems in the prison setting. The most obvious of these problems has to do with available space where the bulky footprint of the CRT sets owned by inmates are at least 5 times greater than even the largest flat screen set available. In addition to the space they take up in housing ...

I wasted a day today - I was simply watched. I did nothing to benefit anyone or to hurt another... or myself.  Or maybe I did, or didn't... it's difficult to know. What the price of sorrow or delight - convenience or security? Did my presence stimulate the economy? It cost $69.59 in other people's money to hold me here today. I am inventory - an invesment. Were I missing for even part of a day, it would cause a panic, thus, I am meaningful to at least some, but I was not missing today, thus, no panic - so nobody noticed me. Fed morning and night, meals - prepared in bulk - calculated for optimum nutritional and caloric value. Standard fare, with occasional treats and drink, pushing and shoving with others milling about, through a small hole in a wall. During the day I am released amongst the others of my kind, staff casually walking within the enclosures checking for injuries, conflicts or concerns, but at night I am caged for the protection of others as if my dangerousness...