[Wolfman]

Sorry, the article is from a facebook app.

Some of Brazil's most notorious criminals offered 48 days off jail terms each year if they read 12 books

Brazil will offer inmates in its crowded federal penitentiary system a new way to shorten their sentences: a reduction of four days for every book they read.

Inmates in four federal prisons holding some of Brazil's most notorious criminals will be able to read up to 12 works of literature, philosophy, science or classics to trim a maximum 48 days off their sentence each year, the government announced.

Prisoners will have up to four weeks to read each book and write an essay that must "make correct use of paragraphs, be free of corrections, use margins and legible joined-up writing", said the notice published on Monday in the official gazette.

A panel will decide which inmates are eligible to participate in the programme, dubbed Redemption through Reading.

"A person can leave prison more enlightened and with a enlarged vision of the world," said São Paulo lawyer Andre Kehdi, who heads a book donation project for prisons.

"Without doubt they will leave a better person," he said.

[Rainbow Crow]

This sounds pretty cool, I wonder who will be eligible and what the reading list will be.

I would like to see this in the US, along with flogging. Nasty as flogging sounds, it's better than spending years or more in prison for some non-violent crime.

[Smertios]

This is kind of old news. I read that in the news about 2 years ago...

And trust me, t hasn't been working very well. Turns out prisoners don't really like to read...

[Kman]

And trust me, t hasn't been working very well. Turns out prisoners don't really like to read...

I am shocked! Shocked I tell ya.

[Wolfman]

And trust me, t hasn't been working very well. Turns out prisoners don't really like to read...

It also has basically zero cost, so if one prisoner is opting for it, and it reduce his sentence, and makes him less likely to reoffend, then what's the problem?

[Smertios]

It also has basically zero cost, so if one prisoner is opting for it, and it reduce his sentence, and makes him less likely to reoffend, then what's the problem?

The problem is that most Brazilians want to see criminals inside the jail, finishing his full sentence, not finding ways to et out earlier...

[Wolfman]

Then most Brazilians want to pay higher taxes so that that can happen, and want to accept higher and higher rates of recidivism and criminality. In otherwords, most Brazilians are morons.

[Smertios]

Then most Brazilians want to pay higher taxes so that that can happen, and want to accept higher and higher rates of recidivism and criminality. In otherwords, most Brazilians are morons.

lol
You fail to understand one thing. The poor prisoners that never read a book will continue not reading. Even if by some miracle, they convince them all to read all 12 books and reduce full 48 days of their sentence, that won't turn them into good guys who will never steal again.

This kind of measure is only good for rich criminals that had some background in good schools, and were involved in corruption schemes, money laundering, organized crime etc. Those will read all books as fast as they can. Then they will be out, still full of money, and not ashamed to get on new schemes, they'll just be more careful not to get caught this time.

There is absolutely no indication that reading habits are related to criminal activity, so I don't really see how that helps prevent recidivism. I can't find a reason why a murderer/thief would stop stealing and killing because he had a good understanding of the plot of [i]Don Quixote[/i]

[Wolfman]

A few states in the US have found that allowing felons to vote while in prison reduces the recidivism. I have this feeling that a prisoner who reads is less likely to go back to prison.

[Smertios]

A few states in the US have found that allowing felons to vote while in prison reduces the recidivism. I have this feeling that a prisoner who reads is less likely to go back to prison.

Prisoners in Brazil are required to vote, since voting is compulsory here. That never reduced recidivism at all...

[Wolfman]

That is not my point, and I hope you realized that when you made that irrelevant post.

[Smertios]

That is not my point, and I hope you realized that when you made that irrelevant post.

Your point was that voting rights for prisoners reduces recidivism (which is not true at all, as proven by my relevant post), which you seem to believe means books would also reduce recidivism rates, somehow. Quite non sequitur...

There are no scientific explanations for it at all. And so far, no indication of that whatsoever...

[Wolfman]

Your point was that voting rights for prisoners reduces recidivism

No it wasn't. My point was that the things impact recidivism rates are not always obvious.

[Smertios]

No it wasn't. My point was that the things impact recidivism rates are not always obvious.

And my point was that there is no proof whatsoever that either voting rights nor reading habits reduce recidivism and no logic in it at all...

Your proposal is like saying we should start adding salt to the water in Cuba to see if it helps bringing democracy to the country... Because the things that impact democracy are not always obvious, either...

[Quantum]

The problem is that most Brazilians want to see criminals inside the jail, finishing his full sentence, not finding ways to et out earlier...

This is a common sense position as opposed to throwing money at rehabilitation schemes that fail. There should be more emphasis on punishment, including the use of prison labour, to deter criminals from committing crime and softly-softly approaches to crime won't deter prisoners at all.