A few weeks ago, a friend handed me an article he thought I'd be interested in...
I put it in a folder and mistakenly forgot about it until I came across it this morning. It's titled: "MORE WOMEN IN PRISON THAN EVER, REPORT FINDS."
The article stated that "There were 100,179 women in prisons" in 2003, a "3.6 percent increase" from the year 2002.
Like death, incarceration is no respecter of persons. The article said that some of the biggest increases of female inmates in correctional facilities were in the States of North Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Wyoming and Hawaii, in this order.
It also said that there may be up to 80,000 more women in local jails that were not a part of the above count. The federal prison system, according to the article, had a female population of 11,635 at the close of 2003. Texas had 13,487, while California held 10,656 ladies at the end of last year.
For most states, the numbers were going up, although it said that the incarceration rates for women actually went down in a dozen states.
I don't know all the reasons for such increases. But in many areas of the United States of America, communities are losing ground to drugs. For in these areas there has been a rise in the number of people who are getting addicted to methamphetamines, especially in the Midwest and rural areas, everywhere from Nebraska to North Dakota.
Powerful mind-numbing drugs continue to destroy lives and damage families. Yet, these chemicals remain as an escape mechanism for many people. I believe the drugs are used to seek solace from a world of pain, disappointment, and gnawing emptiness. Of course, in the end, addiction brings destruction. The drugs a person takes, in order to end their problems, only wind up causing even more problems. But these are my thoughts. And I believe, too, that a large part of the solution is a spiritual awakening for our nation.
Concerning the article, however, it went on to state: "Expressed in terms of the population at large, this means that in 2003, one in every 109 U.S. men was in prison. For women, the figure was one in every 1,613." Many are presently incarcerated in the United States, including plenty of women.
D.B.
The article "More Women in Prison Than Ever, Report Says" is an associated Press story which was published in the Times Herald Record, Monday, November 8, 2004 (page 16).
The article stated that "There were 100,179 women in prisons" in 2003, a "3.6 percent increase" from the year 2002.
Like death, incarceration is no respecter of persons. The article said that some of the biggest increases of female inmates in correctional facilities were in the States of North Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Wyoming and Hawaii, in this order.
It also said that there may be up to 80,000 more women in local jails that were not a part of the above count. The federal prison system, according to the article, had a female population of 11,635 at the close of 2003. Texas had 13,487, while California held 10,656 ladies at the end of last year.
For most states, the numbers were going up, although it said that the incarceration rates for women actually went down in a dozen states.
I don't know all the reasons for such increases. But in many areas of the United States of America, communities are losing ground to drugs. For in these areas there has been a rise in the number of people who are getting addicted to methamphetamines, especially in the Midwest and rural areas, everywhere from Nebraska to North Dakota.
Powerful mind-numbing drugs continue to destroy lives and damage families. Yet, these chemicals remain as an escape mechanism for many people. I believe the drugs are used to seek solace from a world of pain, disappointment, and gnawing emptiness. Of course, in the end, addiction brings destruction. The drugs a person takes, in order to end their problems, only wind up causing even more problems. But these are my thoughts. And I believe, too, that a large part of the solution is a spiritual awakening for our nation.
Concerning the article, however, it went on to state: "Expressed in terms of the population at large, this means that in 2003, one in every 109 U.S. men was in prison. For women, the figure was one in every 1,613." Many are presently incarcerated in the United States, including plenty of women.
D.B.
The article "More Women in Prison Than Ever, Report Says" is an associated Press story which was published in the Times Herald Record, Monday, November 8, 2004 (page 16).
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