Poor moral decisions send people to prison

The May 12 Opinion page had three articles dealing with incarceration, but the articles do not address the root cause of the problem. Men and women go to prison because they make poor decisions. Spending more money and establishing more social programs will not prevent crime or curb recidivism.

Unless individuals commit to a moral standard that leads to wise decisions, they will continue to end up in prison!

Furthermore, the men and women who change their hearts and behavior during prison time become productive citizens. Many prisoners value their time in prison because it causes them to rethink priorities and morals and commit to a new behavior system.

Look at the success of the “InnerChange Freedom Initiative” (http://www.ifiprison.org/). People are changed and recidivism goes from a national average of more than 60 percent to less than 10 percent. The change does not result from new government policies, social programs or political leadership; it results from changed individuals - individuals who make sound decisions.

If we really want to make a difference and reduce the number of people who go to prison, we need to come along troubled youth, offenders and released prisoners as positive mentors and support groups willing to help them prepare to be positive members of society and avoid making bad decisions.

Gary Fischer

Iowa City