ARE SERVING TIME FOR MANSLAUGHTER.

THIS IS AN

AMAZING STORY.

APPARENTLY THE HARVARD TEAM FACED OFF WITH

THESE INMATES, AND THEY ASSUMED THAT THE INMATES WOULD NOT BE

WELL PREPARED FOR THE DEBATE.

SINCE THEY UNDERESTIMATED THEM,

THEY LOST BIG-TIME.

AFTER AN HOUR OF THE FAST-MOVING DEBATE,

THE JUDGES DECIDED THAT THE INMATES WON.

"THE AUDIENCE BURST

INTO APPLAUSE.

THAT INCLUDED ABOUT SEVENTY-FIVE OF THE PRISONERSí

FELLOW STUDENTS AT THE BARD PRISON INITIATIVE, WHICH OFFERS

A RIGOROUS COLLEGE EXPERIENCE TO

MEN AT EASTERN NEW YORK CORRECTIONAL FACILITY."

THEY ARE TRYING TO REHABILITATE THESE INDIVIDUALS SO THAT

WHEN THEY ARE OUT OF PRISON THEY DO NOT GO BACK TO PRISON.

RECIDIVISM IS A VERY SERIOUS PROBLEM IN THE UNITED

STATES, MOST PRISONERS END UP GOING BACK TO PRISON.

AS A RESULT, THERE ARE SOME INITIATIVES THAT ARE TRYING

TO COMBAT THAT.

"THE BYZANTINE HAD ITS FIRST DEBATE IN THE SPRING 2014,

BEATING THE U.S.

MILITARY ACADEMY AT WEST POINT, NEW YORK.

PREPARING FOR THESE DEBATES HAS ITS CHALLENGES.

INMATES CANNOT USE THE INTERNET FOR RESEARCH.

THE PRISON ADMINISTRATION MUST APPROVE REQUESTS FOR BOOKS

AND ARTICLES, WHICH CAN TAKE WEEKS."

THEY WERE AT A SIGNIFICANT DISADVANTAGE, AND ON TOP OF

THAT THEY BEAT STUDENTS THAT ARE GOING TO HARVARD.

FIRST OFF, IT WAS SEVENTY-FIVE PRISONERS WHO WERE

THERE TO WATCH, NOT SEVENTY-FIVE

PERCENT.

MUCH MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE JUDGES RECOGNIZE, HEY LOOK,

WE ARE IN THIS BIASED SITUATION.

EVERYBODY WANTS TO ROOT FOR THE

HOME TEAM, EVERYBODY WANTS TO CHEER, AND THEY RECOGNIZE THAT.

SO THEY ARE VERY STRICT ABOUT SCORING AT STANDARDS THAT

ARE APPROVED IN THE DEBATE SYSTEM.

THE JUDGES ARE AWARE THAT YOU WANT TO ROOT FOR THE

UNDERDOGS, AND SO THEY TOOK THAT INTO ACCOUNT.

THAT IS WHY THEY LOST TO WEST POINT IN THE REMATCH.

THEY LEGITIMATELY BEAT THE HARVARD DEBATE TEAM.

THAT IS CRAZY.

EVEN MORE AMAZING BY THE FACT THAT, AS ANA TOLD YOU, THEY

DON'T HAVE THE INTERNET.

THAT IS SOME OLD-SCHOOL STUFF.

THAT

IS WHAT I WOULD DO WHEN I WAS A KID.

YOU WOULD GO TO THE

LIBRARY, USE THE CATALOG INDEXES SYSTEM, GO TO THE SHELF, FIND

THE BOOK AND READ THE BOOK.

THAT IS HOW THEY ARE PREPARING,

THEY STILL BEAT THE HARVARD

DEBATE TEAM.

BANANAS.

BUT THAT IS NOT THE MOST INTERESTING PART

OF THE STORY.

TO ME, THE MOST

INTERESTING PART OF THIS STORY IS, AS A COUNTRY WE SPEND $212

BILLION TO IMPRISON 2.3 MILLION

PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY.

THAT IS NOT ONE PERCENT OF THE COUNTRY,

BUT IT IS GETTING THERE.

THAT IS AN UNBELIEVABLE NUMBER.

WE

IMPRISON MORE PEOPLE PER CAPITA THAN ALMOST ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE

WORLD.

THE AVERAGE PRISONER COSTS $29,000 A YEAR TO KEEP IN PRISON.

SO WHEN YOU SAY, JUST PUT THEM IN PRISON, WAR ON DRUGS, WHATEVER ñ

DO SOME PEOPLE NEED TO BE IMPRISONED?

OF COURSE.

WE WANT THE MURDERERS, RAPISTS, THE CHILD MOLESTERS, THE ROBBERS IN PRISON.

WE NEED THEM IN PRISON.

THEY ARE A THREAT TO SOCIETY.

BUT REMEMBER, ANY TIME THAT YOU PUSH FOR HARDER LAWS ON

EVERYTHING, ON EVERYTHING, EACH PRISONER COSTS $29,000 OF YOUR

TAXPAYERíS MONEY.

OUR RECIDIVISM RATE IS SIXTY-EIGHT PERCENT.

68 PERCENT.

OKAY, NOW, THEY GET REARRESTED.

OVER THOSE, SOME PORTION ARE PROBATION, OR ACQUITTED,

ETC.

SO, THERE IS A FIFTY PERCENT RETURN TO PRISON.

WITHIN THREE YEARS, FIFTY PERCENT ARE BACK IN PRISON.

SOME PEOPLE THINK THERE IS NOTHING THAT

YOU CAN DO ABOUT THAT.

TURNS OUT, THAT'S NOT TRUE AT ALL.

RESEARCH INDICATES THAT THESE HIGH AND EXPENSIVE RATES OF

RECIDIVISM FALL TO LESS THAN TWO PERCENT IF

PRISONS OFFER SIGNIFICANT EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY TO

INCARCERATED MEN AND WOMEN.

AMONG FORMERLY INCARCERATED BARD STUDENTS, LESS THAN TWO

PERCENT HAVE RETURNED TO PRISON.

THINK ABOUT THAT.

FORGET BARD FOR A SECOND, FORGET THIS

PARTICULAR PROGRAM.

OBVIOUSLY IT IS WORKING, THEY BEAT THE

HARVARD DEBATE TEAM, ETC.

BUT IF YOU JUST EDUCATE PRISONERS,

THE RATE DROPS FROM SIXTY

PERCENT TO TWO PERCENT.

THAT FREES HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE.

THEY SERVE THEIR TIME, AND THEY ARE NO LONGER CRIMINALS AFTER

THAT.

RECIDIVISM IS THAT THEY NO LONGER DID ANOTHER CRIME.

YOU SAVE THAT PERSON GOING BACK TO PRISON, YOU SAVE TAXPAYERS

$29,000 A YEAR FOR HUNDREDS OF

THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE.

ARE WE MENTAL?

WHY ARE WE NOT EDUCATING

THE PRISONERS?

I KNOW THAT AMERICANS ARE MORE BARBARIC THAN

EUROPE, AND WE LOOK AT NORWAY, AND I SEE HOW COMFORTABLE THEIR

PRISONS ARE AND I THINK, YOU CRAZY, SOFTIE EUROPEANS,

RIGHT?

THEY ARE DOING IT FOR A REASON, SO THAT PEOPLE DON'T

COME BACK AS MUCH.

YOU CAN'T SOLVE EVERYONE'S PROBLEMS, SOME

PEOPLE ARE GOING TO COMMIT CRIME ANYWAY.

BUT IF WE CAN REDUCE IT FROM SIXTY-EIGHT PERCENT TO

TWENTY-TWO PERCENT, HOW CRAZY ARE WE THAT WE DON'T TAKE

THAT ACTION?

YOU CAN ACTUALLY LOWER THE RECIDIVISM RATE

FURTHER, IF YOU CHANGE CERTAIN POLICIES FOR PRISONERS

AFTER THEY GET OUT OF PRISON.

FOR INSTANCE, RIGHT NOW, EMPLOYERS ASK WHETHER OR

NOT SOMEBODY HAS BEEN CONVICTED OF A FELONY.

IF THEY HAVE, THEY ARE DONE, THEY WON'T GET A JOB.

I KNOW THAT PEOPLE ARE REALLY UNEASY ABOUT HIRING SOMEONE

WHO HAS A CRIMINAL RECORD.

ONE OF THE REASONS PEOPLE GO BACK TO PRISON IS THAT THEY

DON'T HAVE MANY OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE TO THEM AFTER

THEY GET OUT.

IF I AM A WARDEN OR A GOVERNOR, IN ANY WAY RELATED TO

PRISONS, AND I SEE THESE NUMBERS, THIS IS THE BIGGEST

NO-BRAINER OF ALL TIME.

OF COURSE I AM GOING TO EDUCATE THE

PRISONERS, I DON'T WANT THEM TO COMMIT MORE CRIMES AND HURT

MORE OF MY CITIZENS, AND I DON'T WANT TO PAY TAXPAYER MONEY TO

IMPRISON THEM.

OF COURSE YOU SHOULD EDUCATE THEM.

NOT BECAUSE YOU LIKE THEM, NOT BECAUSE YOU WANT TO BE

FRIENDLY TO THEM, BUT BECAUSE IT WORKS.

IT WORKS, BUT I DON'T THINK THOSE NECESSARILY WORKING IN THE

PRISON INDUSTRY WANT IT TO WORK.

I DON'T THINK THOSE IN LAW ENFORCEMENT NECESSARILY WANT IT

TO WORK.

IT DOES NOT MATTER IF

YOU ARE IN A PRIVATE OR PUBLICLY FUNDED

PRISON ñ THOSE WORKING IN THE PRISON INDUSTRY HAVE AN

INCENTIVE TO KEEP LOCKING PEOPLE UP.

THEY DON'T WANT TO LOWER

THE RECIDIVISM RATE, THEY WILL

BE OUT OF A JOB.

THAT WILL SUCK, WON'T IT?

YOU CAN'T DO THAT.

WE HAVE GOT TO BE MORE RESPONSIBLE

CITIZENS.

THE PEOPLE WHO ARE RUNNING THE PRISONS ARE

GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS.

I KNOW THEY WANT THEIR JOBS, THEY WANT

PROFITS, THEY WANT ALL THE GOODIES THAT COME WITH IT, YOU

HAVE GOT TO END THIS NONSENSE.

YOU DON'T END THE PRISONS, YOU

JUST DO IT IN A SMARTER WAY.

IF IT IS TRUE WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT

BARD, AND I WOULDN'T TAKE THEIR WORD FOR IT, I WOULD DO MANY

MORE STUDIES, BUT IF IT TURNS OUT THAT THIS LOWERS YOUR

RECIDIVISM RATE, EVERY PERSON IN THE COUNTRY SHOULD DO IT.

IF IT

IS TRUE, SIGN THEM UP.

WHO DOESN'T WANT A RECIDIVISM RATE

OF TWO PERCENT?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?

WHY DO YOU WANT TO HURT

YOUR FELLOW CITIZENS THAT WAY?