How bad are prisons?

Answer 1

Prisons are not meant to be good places to be. They are not resort communities where people lie around and work on their tans. There are no spa treatments, or excursions (well, there are for court and medical appointments, but those usually require the wearing of leg shackles and belly chains).

There are gangs and violence in prisons, and while these are prevalent, it is not as necessary as some might have you believe to become involved with them. Loners often do quite fine without involving themselves in the imbecilic politics and activities of gangs and gang members.

There is no "Greeting Group" led by anyone named "Bubba" waiting ready to take incoming inmates' innocence.

Some inmates do carry shanks, but it is rare that you would ever see one in the open, let alone used. The supposed prevalence of them is more to serve prison administration reports of how dangerous inmates are, and how important it is to keep them locked up.

Make no mistake, prison is a dangerous place, especially for those who have no concept of respect, and those who have been locked up the longest automatically receive deference for the time they have served. The greatest danger comes from "cops," prison guards, who find pleasure in playing games with people's lives. And, the inmate on staff violence that gets reported, generally does not report also the reason for the attack, which is usually a form of prison karma--what goes around comes around. Especially in prison.