I have just returned home after a 3000 mile cross country trip and here is something I just don’t get…..Roadside Memorials. Flowers and crosses on the side of the road. In fact, long before this trip these memorials have cropped up all over the place. Many states, in fact, have abandoned the roadside billboards and advertisements as a distraction to drivers, only to have them replaced by the Roadside Memorial.
I’d like to know when and how this all got started. Personally I think they are very morbid and does anyone, except for the families of these victims, really care? I first started seeing memorials painted on the rear windows of cars. I’m sure you must have seen them too. In Loving Memory Of…….Rest In Peace ….. etc. I was always under the impression that these were the morose writings of some gang member after the loss of one of their own. Yes, let’s shoot each other on the street and then paint your car for the world to see how sorrowful we are. At least that was my impression of it. I may, of course, be wrong.
Then the roadside memorials; and this is going back sometime now. On this trip across country I saw something I had never seen before. Flowers and, not the usual cross, but the Star of David. It is very unusual for a Jewish family to do this, it’s simply not the custom. I was really taken aback by it.
And let’s not forget those folks who decided it would be a good idea to dedicate one’s car or truck in loving memory of someone. Now, what the hell is that all about. I often wonder what the deceased person would think if he or she could see that they were so important to that person that he dedicated his truck to him. All I can say is that there must be a lot of rumbling going on upstairs.
It seems this practice has caught on like wildfire and just why boggles the mind. What possible purpose does it serve. If one really wanted to honor the memory of a loved one who was killed in a traffic accident why not do something worthwhile. Make a contribution to a favorite charity in that persons name or set up a scholarship fund to help a young person with education.
There are so many more ways to pay homage to a lost sole, why not save the flowers and the makeshift crosses for some other venue. It would seem to me that all the time and effort that must go into maintaining these roadside memorials would be better spent doing something that would really pay tribute to the deceased. Working against drunk driving or sponsoring a safety course for young teen drivers comes to mind, just to name a few.
I know that I will probably offend a lot of people by my comments especially those who have placed these memorials but quit honestly your loved one isn’t on the side of the road, your loved one remains alive in your heart; why not honor their memory in a more positive and deserving way.
The events of the past two weeks remind us just how precious life is. On this forth of July celebration we have much to be grateful for; not just the tangible things but the intangible one too. Those things that are felt in the heart: love, family, friends, and the fact that we live in this wonderful country. Even though at times she may fall a little short of our expectations we are so lucky to be here. Maybe our expectations are to high or unrealistic. Maybe we have grown to demand to much from the land our forefathers fought so hard to win. Perhaps we need to work a little harder, ask for a little less, see the glass as half full instead of half empty.
I think it is greed on every level that has gotten us into this mess and once we open our eyes to that fact maybe, just maybe we can begin to turn things around. My parents generation has been called “The Greatest Generation” and I understand on a personal level just why. I saw them pick themselves up from the boot straps and carry on through the great depression and the second world war. They had one suit or best dress for those special occasions. Likewise dining out was a luxury to be savored and enjoyed for what it was. They never thru anything out unless it was beyond repair. My parents and those of most of my friends could retire and lived comfortably without benefit of 401K’s because the house was paid for, the insurance was up to date and the money they had managed to save was enough to live on. They managed with what they had and what they had went a lot further than today. We seem to be a generation of “I want” and “Throw it away” and we wonder how we got into this mess.
Well enough said on that subject after all it is the 4th of July and I for one am very proud of my country. Grateful to God that I was born here. Grateful to the men and women who fight and have fought to preserve the blessed land. Grateful to our forefathers who believed in their hearts that there was a better way and acted on that belief. GOD BLESS AMRICA!!
Sometimes people are put through tests. Those tests make us stronger and prepare us for the battles we have to fight. There are all kinds of battles.
Everyone has a unique role in God’s plan. One that no one else can play. I am sure you will do what you are meant to do.
Have Faith. No matter what lies ahead. Hold onto your Faith.
Have you ever thought that sometimes the real criminals are not all incarcerated? Well this blog is for any of you who have ever entertained that thought and for those of us have more than a passing acquaintance with the prison system in this country. More than that, anyone who has had the misfortune to have encountered MCI and its monopoly on the telephones in the California prison system and in other prisons across the country.
How this company has slipped through the cracks and managed to stay a step ahead of the law boggles the mind. Perhaps its because not enough people are filing complaints with the FCC and their state senators and representatives or maybe it’s as simple as too many palms are being greased to look the other way. In any case for those of you who haven’t a clue as to what I’m referring to allow me to enlighten you.
Sadly many of us have a family member incarcerated in a California correctional facility or a facility in some other state. My particular experience is in California. We have all heard on the news about the over-crowded situation in the prisons but for those of us who have a loved one inside the situation is made worse by the fact that often these men and women are sent to a facility far from their home area making it almost impossible for them to receive family visits. Aside from letter writing the only other form of communication with family and friends is by telephone. To this end MCI has placed an even bigger burden on these families than is already in place.
Irregardless of what crime these people may have committed, being able to speak with family and friends is an important and often critical means of connecting with family. Many of the inmates are very young people and many are from extremely low-income families and some are possibly illiterate and can’t write, so being able to phone home may be the only means of communicating.
Most of the long distance carriers have converted over to flat rate long distance or VOIP (voice over internet protocol) even for those folks who don’t have this capability most all carriers have one flat rate or extremely low rates for long distance calls. Of course there is always the option of the ever ready and available calling cards at very low rates. So why then is MCI, who has captured and I don’t say that loosely, most of the telephone operations in these prisons charging outrageous fees for these calls?
Inmates are permitted to make collect calls from designated pay phones in within these facilities. As a rule collect calls are more costly than a direct call but with MCI monopolizing these phones they have set unreasonable fees. Basically it’s about $3.95 connection fee and $.89 cents a minute thereafter. However it gets better, here is how it works. You are first asked to establish an account with MCI by depositing a set amount of money, let’s say $100.00. This deposit is then deducted from your first bill; it’s a sort of good faith fee, that much I get. This account then allows you to receive a set number of calls in any month (let’s say six) and the length of calls in limited to about ten minutes. Once the set number of calls have been placed your phone number is then blocked from receiving any further calls until the first day of the next month. Also, if your bill remains unpaid the phone number remains blocked. For those who already have MCI as the long distance carrier it works about the same with the exception of having to make the initial deposit. In this case MCI determines how many calls you can receive based on your payment history with them. The same rules apply and the phone number can be blocked at any time they see fit.
If this isn’t bad enough, MCI eats up your minutes by playing a recorded message every few minutes during your conversation with an inmate. This message tells you that you have received a telephone call from an inmate at a correctional facility, as if you didn’t already know this. The purpose of this recording is anybody’s guess for certain the MCI representative couldn’t explain it and in fact didn’t seem to know much about it at all.
So there you have it. Life is hard enough these days and certainly for the many families who are suffering a member who has been sent to prison it gets even harder. It is, in my opinion, immoral and unconscionable that a large company like MCI or any company should be permitted, under the auspicious of the law, to place and even bigger burden on these families by monopolizing the prison phones and charging unnecessary and outrageous fees for their use. As one person put it. “Prison is an industry” and certainly it is.
From the standpoint of the prison system I guess they consider it a privilege for inmates to be able to make telephone calls at all and that maybe so, but from the standpoint of many of these families it may be the only lifeline available to them.
Imagine how hard it must be for anyone of moderate means who simply can’t afford these fees to not be able to speak with a loved one or even for a friend reaching out to another friend for support.
Now I know that some of you out there must be thinking that if they did the crime then tough they deserve it. However not all of the men and women incarcerated are hardened criminals and in fact many, even most, are young people who have made bad choices whether through drug abuse or due to getting involved with the wrong people and have ended up in prison. A system that, for the most part, is warehousing these people with very little rehabilitation in place; but that’s another story. Whatever the why and wherefore the issue remains that having been given the opportunity to be able to make telephone calls why should the cost of these calls be so excessive?
What can be done about it? I’m not certain if things can ever change because it is such big business, but I do know that there has to be a better way. We can start by encouraging every person who has someone incarcerated in a prison and has experienced this situation whether it be through MCI, Correctional Billing or any other company to file a complaint with the FCC (Federal Communications) and with your senators and congressmen; even begin by contacting your local representatives. Do whatever you can. Get a petition going and forward it along with your complaints. Maybe if enough people speak out a change will be made. Remember the old adage, “the squeaky wheel gets the oil” well let’s put it to the test.
So there you have it, the answer to your question is not all criminals are in prison, most of them are operating about a minute behind the law and getting away with it at the publics expense.
To everyone reading this blog, thank you; and to all the many families out there who are experiencing this problem my heart goes out to you and yours. Why and how a loved one ends up in prison, well the reasons are as wide and as deep as the ocean but once inside why should the situation be even more of a burden on those waiting to hear or just waiting. Remember even E.T. wanted to “phone home.”