Moving Along….

My son, Jace, spent his 23 birthday in prison last Monday.

He was surrounded by me, my boyfriend Jim, and the love of his life Vicki. V, as we call her, flew a thousand miles to be with him on that difficult day. I was so very thankful to her.

We laughed, we cried, we drank soda, ate vending machine food, and played games while our asses ached from the uncomfortable chairs, until the guards said ‘Time to go’. It was the best I could do for him. And yet, even stuck in prison for a ‘thought crime’, most consider him ‘lucky’. How fucked up is that?

The truth is this state is prison happy. They jail runaways. Wait what? Kid is unhappy at home so….lets see how happy he is in a detention center? There is talk from some current state candidates of jailing homeless people. Wouldn’t it just be easier to create a penal colony?!?

But hell – there are a number of states just as bad, not that there is any redeeming value in that. And we all know the US doesn’t just lead the world in incarcerating their own people, it blows the other countries away! More than Russia? More than China? How is that even possible? ‘Land of the free’?

But, like I said, Jace is ‘Lucky’. Washington state has two prisons with high concentrations of convicted ‘sex offenders’. And that makes sense since these felons are often the target or others. Murdered a family of five? Nah, you’re just misunderstood. But joe there, he ‘Raped a child!’. Doesn’t matter whether its actually true or not – he’s scum.

It is the states legal obligation to protect their prisoners. After all – these men are stripped of liberty. They cannot defend themselves in any reasonable way we would think of, they are truly captive.

A friend of ours heard today that their son will be heading to Coyote Ridge. He is a victim of a police created, victim less ‘thought crime’. Coyote Ridge does not have a large sexual offender population. The prisoners there are allowed to form gangs. Sexual offender prisoners get regularly moved out of that prison due to abuse by other inmates. Why would the state purposely send someone into that environment? Are prisoners no longer allowed even the basic sense of someone being responsible for what happens to them?

Our heart goes out to our friends and their son. We are hoping for the best and supporting them in any way possible. Please take a moment to send them a prayer, warm thought, or positive vibe to assist them with this development.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACE. I LOVE YOU.