Comments on: Twittering Time at the Washtenaw Jail

By: Tom Lagana

Tom Lagana — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:36:34 +0000

I found this article very interesting. It isn’t often we get a first-hand perspective as a person is going through it. Being an author of several prisoner-related books, I receive a lot of mail from inmates that is gut-level sharing and important for those of us on the outside to better underrstand. Personally, I have been to this jail but fortunately as a volunteer and not a prisoner. As the co-author of “Chicken Soup for the Prisoner’s Soul”, “Serving Time, Serving Others”, and “Serving Productive Time,” we’re pleased to have some of our books at this jail to help give the inmates hope and inspire them to use their time productively.

By: Mike Garrison

Mike Garrison — Fri, 29 May 2009 14:35:00 +0000

Thanks Dave, I was wondering what happened to the feed..

By: Dave Askins

Dave Askins — Thu, 21 May 2009 14:13:34 +0000

For folks who were following the Twitter feed, we’ve heard back from the author who had this to say about that:

“I deleted the Twitter account myself for two primary reasons.

1. Reliving my time in jail is proving to be emotionally painful for me and my family, especially around this anniversary of my
incarceration. Exactly a year ago today, I was at the lowest point in my life, sitting in Bam Bam, begging for my phone call.

2. I’m trying to get rid of a great deal of “clutter” that does not
meet my core responsibilities of getting emotionally and
psychologically healthy after that horrendous experience and to meet my financial obligations in this economy. In short, it was taking too much time and attention away from my daily work.”

In his message, the author indicated that at some point in the future, he might be interested in picking up the story again, but not as a Twitter feed–perhaps in serialized form in The Ann Arbor Chronicle.

For The Chronicle’s part, we’d be pleased to publish such a serialized work if he decides to pick up the thread at some point. In the meantime, the brief glimpse into the author’s experience made it likely that we’ll try to follow up at some point with the Sheriff’s Department (see comment [1]) to the extent that our resources allow.

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 20 May 2009 21:27:46 +0000

As of this afternoon, the Twitter account is gone. Using the old link, Twitter says: “That page doesn’t exist!” I wonder what happened. Dave, can you follow-up with the author?

By: john doe

john doe — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:21:39 +0000

i had a very similar experience. i must say that the atmosphere is not conducive to reform and betterment, but the treatment you receive further polarizes you and pushes you to the abyss. i look forward to following this and seeing how my experiences compare to his, and maybe we can all learn a little something from it.

By: Dave Askins

Dave Askins — Fri, 08 May 2009 03:31:31 +0000

It’s been pointed out to me that one set of original scare quotes meant to designate non-literal meaning could have the opposite effect. I’ve removed them from the question, as I don’t think they had an impact on the answer. Otherwise, the somewhat familiar tone struck in the questions likely reflects a prior acquaintance with the author, something that might have been better included as a note in the original piece.

By: rodii

rodii — Fri, 08 May 2009 02:52:41 +0000

Indeed–you seem intent on a kind of smirky take on something that must have been devastating.

By: Virgil

Virgil — Fri, 08 May 2009 00:38:52 +0000

The subject’s twitter feed is fascinating. The interviewer and his choice of questions much less so.

By: Bob Martel

Bob Martel — Thu, 07 May 2009 18:36:04 +0000

I agree with Dave. A truly fascinating thread. I added the RSS feed to my home page so I could follow.

By: Dave Cahill

Dave Cahill — Thu, 07 May 2009 12:28:48 +0000

A fascinating story. Has the Chronicle considered getting comments about the issues it raises from our new sheriff, Jerry Clayton?