Religious Books Removed From U.S. Prisons

The Skinny: Bid To Prevent Prisons From Becoming Breeding Ground For Radical Religious Beliefs

(CBS)  The Skinny is Dan Collins take on the top news of the day and the best of the Internet.

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The New York Times reports that chaplains in federal prisons have been systematically removing religious books and materials from prison libraries.

The newspaper said that in some cases, thousands of religious books had been removed from libraries where they had been accumulating for years. The Bureau of Prisons has ordered the chaplains to remove "any books, tapes, CDs and videos that are not on a list of approved resources." (Prayer books and other worship materials are not affected by the purge.)

Federal officials said the purge stemmed from a Justice Department report that recommended that prisons not become recruitment centers for militant Islamic and other religious groups.

Prison chaplains and groups that minister to prisoners have mobilized to oppose the policy, which was implemented in the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

“It’s swatting a fly with a sledgehammer,” Mark Earley, president of Prison Fellowship, a Christian group, told the Times. “There’s no need to get rid of literally hundreds of thousands of books that are fine simply because you have a problem with an isolated book or piece of literature that presents extremism.”

The bureau has prepared a list of approved religious materials, but because "the bureau has not provided additional money to prisons to buy the books on the lists, so in some prisons, after the shelves were cleared of books not on the lists, few remained."

An unidentified prison chaplain interviewed by the Times said the policy was pointless since chaplains routinely reject material that incites violence.

Is 9/11 Already Fading From Memory?

USA Today wonders whether Sept. 11 is becoming just another date on the calendar. The newspaper noted that WABC-TV in New York had, for the first time, not planned to televise the entire memorial ceremony from Ground Zero. (The station reversed its decision after receiving protests from some of the families of victims.)

And Morris County, New Jersey, which lost about 100 residents on 9/11, has had to postpone improvements in its 9/11 memorial because fundraising has fallen short.

Nevertheless, 71 percent of Americans called Sept. 11 the most memorable news event of their lives. But only 6 percent plan to mark the anniversary in any formal way.

"Like any event, even Pearl Harbor, the more time goes by, the less central it becomes to our experience," Robert Thompson, a Syracuse University professor who studies U.S. popular culture, told the newspaper. "That's healthy. It becomes more a part of history, less a raw wound."

China Steps Up Internet Censorship

The Washington Post reports that China is energetically censoring the Internet and other forms of electronic communication.

The Public Security Ministry, which monitors the Internet, has recruited "an estimated 30,000 people to snoop on electronic communications. The ministry recently introduced two cartoon characters -- a male and female in police uniforms -- that it said would pop up on computer screens occasionally to remind people that their activity is being tracked."

Even apparently non-political postings can bring punishment.

Flooding this summer in the northeastern province of Shandong caused 34 deaths, according to China's tightly controlled media. Not so, said a woman who posted an Internet piece that said at least 100 people had been killed in the provincial capital alone, where an underground supermarket was flooded.

The 23-year-old author was arrested and charged with creating public disorder by spreading rumors. But censorship has its limits. The Post noted that many residents readily believed the anonymous Internet posting over official pronouncements by the government.

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[gunownerdan]

Prisons are full of stupid people and many stupid people need religion to keep them in line.
Just remove the Qurans and other Islamic ***, this religion is the main problem.

[jumkey]

Society is full of stupid people and many stupid people need guns to keep them in line.
Just remove the Bibles and other Christian ***, this religion is the main problem.

[i_like_jam]

No need to show hatred towards anyone.

Prisoners need an opportunity to learn. It''s best if they had access to all types of literature. They also need access to the outside world as well in the form of ministers, imams, etc. engaging with them.

[diverinnl]

OK, so they have gotten rid of any reference to religion in public schools and civic buildings. Also, any reference to religion in public holiday displays are attacked and usually removed. Now it''s religion in prisons and most universities being attacked. I''m not sure how liberals get the idea that Republicans are destroying the Constitution. They are the ones going after freedom of religion, freedom of speech and press (the Fairness Doctrine), and right to keep and bear arms.

[mitywhity]

Wow! Only stupid people need religion. Stupid people need guns to govern them. Christianity is the main problem in the world. Wow again! I''m done, I could learn no more than I have already from the keystrokes of these two sages of wisdom. Prison - it''s where morons go, they are already dangerous, that''s why they are there. Guns are what stopped them from doing any more of whatever they were doing and put them there. Christianity is what could have possibly prevented them from doing the wrongs they did and many lives would be the better for it. But Christianity is for stupid people so we should just relegate all Bibles and believers to exile somewhere far away so society can accelerate towards a bloody implosion upon itself. Yeah, that makes total sense. Thanks Dan and Jumkey! You get my nomination for the Nobel Dense Prize.

[neobrian-2009]

Mini Whitty,..You are showing your vast IQ,..Now that you have introduced your wisdom to the people,..You are free to go back to your McCave !

[boldwin223]

MityWhity... So Christians don''t commit crimes? Your argument defies logic.

[trumpetstuff]

''...religion in prisons and most universities being attacked....''

Posted by diverinnl at 10:50 AM : Sep 10, 2007

So the Bureau of Prisons is liberal? :-)

[zendigity]

What ever happened to the concept of rehabilitation?

Sooner or later someone''s bound to say it...

Why don''t we eliminate the prison system and just start gassing the prisoners and burning their corpses in large ovens...

Oh...that seems like something more in line with 2012''s election campaign...

[infidel_us]

Just remove the Qurans and other Islamic ***, this religion is the main problem.
Posted by GunOwnerDan at 10:29 AM : Sep 10, 2007

You''re right. But they have to take it ALL away - so the ACLU can''t claim d i s c r i m i n a t i o n!!!

[mitywhity]

MityWhity... So Christians don''''t commit crimes? Your argument defies logic...Posted by boldwin223.........sure, I never said they didn''t. But your arguement wasn''t even thought out. The majority of heinous crimes committed are no way tilted in the direction of true Christians.................They sent the religious fanatics to the new world to express their psychosis, which is why we''''re near to imploding now...Posted by Spectrum108.....That''s very humorous. No we came here to escape the mistreatment and bondage of the Catholic Church and the state churches of Europe. It''s just that we didn''t put mines in the Atlantic to keep you from following............Mini Whitty,..You are showing your vast IQ,..Now that you have introduced your wisdom to the people,..You are free to go back to your McCave!...Posted by neobrian.............No, you mean this: "I don''t agree with you and I hate God and all His followers. I can''t defeat God and I am mad that I know I am going to He11, so I am going to insult you." Then you go cross your arms and pout a while. It''s typical of all of you. But I used to be just like you, so there is hope for your souls. John 3:16

[iceman_1960]

"...that prisons not become recruitment centers for militant Islamic...groups."

That was the idea, and since radical Muslims can''t have Qu''rans, Christians and Jews can''t have Bibles.

Otherwise there would be a big lawsuit about this, which there probably will be anyway.

[df248-2009]

%u201CIt%u2019s swatting a fly with a sledgehammer,%u201D Mark Earley, president of Prison Fellowship, a Christian group, told the Times. %u201CThere%u2019s no need to get rid of literally hundreds of thousands of books that are fine simply because you have a problem with an isolated book or piece of literature that presents extremism.%u201D


Excellent logic... Now if we can get the US Government to take this approach, there would be some hope for us.

[iceman_1960]

RE: "But Christianity is for stupid people so we should just relegate all Bibles and believers to exile somewhere far away..."

We could find some beautiful island and call it the Garden of Eden.

By the way, I''ve known some pretty smart Christians.

[neobrian-2009]

Dim Whitty,I see You can ''cut & paste'',it`s a start,..But,you Are Not a Mind reader,.. What I mean to say IS " I `ll take my chances on my beliefs,..and you take yours,..If I`m right,I`ll be fine,.But,if You are wrong,..You`ll be like the rich man begging for Lazarus for a sip of relief,..So,go on blaspheming,and don`t forget the only '' unforgivable sin'',..

[likeitis5050]

That''s fine, so long as ALL religious material is removed and not just selected or targeted doctrines. There are just as many whacked out Christians in prisons as any other doctrine misinterpreted by maniacs. The most benign of doctrines can become a hatchet in the hands of the criminally insane. But I would wager a year''s salary that will NOT be the case in the end. Chaplains can''t resist self-promotion.

[iceman_1960]

In addition to the well known atheist or agnostic scientists, or Einstein, who professed philosophical pantheism, there were some great believing scientists.

James Clerk Maxwell, the Scottish physicist with the best mathematical genius in modern times, was a devout Christian. [Said Einstein, "The work of Maxwell is the most profound and the most fruitful that physics has experienced since the time of Newton."]

"From the start of his childhood, religion touched all aspects of Maxwell''s life. Both his father and mother were devout churchgoers (Presbyterian and Episcopalian) and instilled a strong faith in their son. All information available suggests that neither in his adolescence, nor in his later years, did Maxwell ever reject the fundamental principles of his Christian faith. Ivan Tolstoy, author of one of Maxwell''s biographies, remarked at the frequency with which scientists writing short biographies on Maxwell often omit the subject of his religion."

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_clerk_maxwell

[mitch0927]

tuckerndfw , comments like yours just proves you are just plain ole stupid.....

[iceman_1960]

"So,go on blaspheming,and don`t forget the only ''unforgivable sin'',.."
- Posted by neobrian at 11:54 AM : Sep 10, 2007

Don''t even start...

That topic has caused more pain, even provoking suicides in impressionable adolescents, than any other in the history of theology.

Bertrand Russell points out that Jesus Christ could not have been a good or kind-hearted man, to have inflicted such bizarre nonsense of the human race.

I agree. It was a sadistic thing to do.

[ioweign]

You''''re right. But they have to take it ALL away - so the ACLU can''''t claim d i s c r i m i n a t i o n!!!
Posted by infidel_us at 11:35 AM : Sep 10, 2007

You are right infidel_us, you can not single out one group over another. Alberto is resigning over that very issue with the fired attorneys.

[boldwin223]

My ancestors came for Germany in the 1750''s seeking to own land and have a better life. Religion had nothing to do with why they came. This ideal that the US was formed for freedom of religion is a myth.

[sharncedar]

Wow, the FBI is pretty much admitting that most people in prsions would get more from Islam than from the state religion (greed a nd money-worship as far as I can tell). Wow, that''s really crazy. They have brutalized and mistreated so many Americans, up to 2 million in prison today, they are actually terrified that those mistreated, brutalized victims of capitalism might somehow get organized, that they might stop fighting each other and find the self-discipline to organize themselves. Though I highly doubt it, the prison system is designed around breaking the moral fiber of a man. In prison, any kind of violence or perversion is encouraged, it is only decency or gentleness or kindness which is punished and ruthlessly weeded out.

Wow, the FBI is pretty much admitting it is on a campaign to terrorize Americans in prison, to weaken them by keeping religion away. It is kind of sick. Just when you thought it couldn''t get any worse, that maybe we are not diving head-first into fascism, the system slaps you awake.

[iceman_1960]

Ironically, America''s first prisons were run by the Quakers, and consisted of putting the convict in solitary confinement with nothing but a Bible to read.

Needless to say, the convicts tended to go insane after a while.

A good set of weights and exercise apparatus is the best thing for them.

[mitywhity]

My ancestors came for Germany in the 1750''''s seeking to own land and have a better life. Religion had nothing to do with why they came. This ideal that the US was formed for freedom of religion is a myth....Posted by boldwin223.........Goody for them, Yay! So because they just came for the resources that makes the Puritans, the Reformed Baptists, the Methodists, the Lutherans, The Episopalians, etc. just go away. And I''ll just suppose that they wrote all this down for you that nobody they knew were fleeing persecution from religious thugs in Europe. Scan their letters for us all to read so that your family''s experience can negate mine and anyone else''s.

[zendigity]

What ever happened to the concept of rehabilitation?

Sooner or later someone''''s bound to say it...

Why don''''t we eliminate the prison system and just start gassing the prisoners and burning their corpses in large ovens...

Oh...that seems like something more in line with 2012''''s election campaign...

[iceman_1960]

I read that in some prisons where the so-called "chain gangs" have been brought back, there''s actually a waiting list of convicts wanting to get put on them.

They think of that kind of work as another form of weightlifting.

[mitywhity]

The more important headline related to that non-story is that prison officials are attempting to help Christians (primarily the pope) stem the flood of people fleeing from Christinity...Posted by tuckerndfw...True Christians will flee the Pope''s tyrranical control over their lives and minds. They call us born-agains, "mind-controlled idiots" and the like, but do you know who controls the mind of the unbeliever? Yeah, I know...I do, no one controls me, blah, blah, I am my own master, blah, blah. You better wake up.

[lars008-2009]

it is fascist nazi terrorislam stupid%u2026.

non muslims of the world unite... fight against the tyranny of the fascist nazi terrorslam imperialist empire of the darkside...

I was a fanatic...I know their thinking, says former radical Islamist
By blaming the Government for our actions, those who pushed this "Blair''s bombs" line did our propaganda work for us.
More important, they also helped to draw away any critical examination from the real engine of our violence: Islamic theology.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=465570&in_page_id=1770
Bless the Beasts and Children
Fascist nazi terrorslam kills every man woman and child in the village again%u2026 typical mo for terrorslam%u2026
http://www.michaelyon-online.com/wp/bless-the-beasts-and-children.htm

Our Prophet commanded us to fight the kaafirs when we are able and to attack them in their homelands and to give them three choices before we enter their lands: either they become Muslim and be like us, sharing our rights and duties; or they pay the jizyah (poll tax) and feel themselves subdued; or they fight, in which case their wealth, women, children and homes become permissible as booty for the Muslims.
http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=13759&ln=eng&txt=before%20islam%20arabia%20pagan

the truth about fascist nazi terrorislam...
http://www.terrorismawareness.org/what-really-happened/

[iceman_1960]

RE: "What ever happened to the concept of rehabilitation?"

It depends on the level of the prison. At the level where the most hardened felons are sent, most of the prison staff take a cynical view of rehabilitation. Said one, "The only rehabilitator is age. When they get too old to run out of the bank, they stop robbing banks."

But for lower level prisons with a lot of first time and nonviolent offenders, rehab does work quite often.

[hwy71so]

That''''s exactly how Europe used America. They sent the religious fanatics to the new world to express their psychosis, which is why we''''re near to imploding now.
Posted by Spectrum108 at 11:23 AM : Sep 10, 2007

That''s funny right there. Shows how much you remember from studying history in school. Most people fled to the "New World" to escape religious persecution. They were tired of being told how they HAD to worship; Church of England, Catholic, Quran, etc... They established here, per the Constitution, that we should be allowed to worship without the government interfering. Incidentally, by the government removing religious documents and disallowing prayer, etc in school, they are interfering; violating the Constitution.

[mitywhity]

Ironically, America''''s first prisons were run by the Quakers, and consisted of putting the convict in solitary confinement with nothing but a Bible to read.

Needless to say, the convicts tended to go insane after a while.

A good set of weights and exercise apparatus is the best thing for them.

Posted by Iceman_1960.......................So the Bible makes people go insane and you got that documented fact from history. Sure. Another cheap swat at God. God will not be mocked. Chain-gangs are long overdue for certain offenders. At the most they''ll cut a little gas and pick up some trash. Good enough for ''em.

[iceman_1960]

"But for lower level prisons with a lot of first time and nonviolent offenders, rehab does work quite often."

lars008, for example.

He was released from prison after serving time for lewd behavior and public nudity, after he promised to spend his days copy/pasting and distributing a whole lot of foolish neocon propaganda on the Internet.

So rehab does work sometimes.

[sy2502]

Bring back forced labor for prison inmates, so they have no time or energy to do drugs, stab each other and become religious fanatics. And they will be paying for their room and board.

[iceman_1960]

"Posted by Iceman_1960.......................So the Bible makes people go insane and you got that documented fact from history."
- Posted by MityWhity at 12:29 PM : Sep 10, 2007

Solitary confinement with just one book to read, is what did it.

I''m sure if they only had, say, the Complete Book of TV Bloopers and Practical Jokes to read in solitary, they would have gone nuts as well.

[gunownerdan]

Why do people need to be responsible for their own actions when they can just pray to some god for forgiveness of sins?

[iceman_1960]

RE: Post by Iceman_1960 at 12:32 PM : Sep 10, 2007


Just kiddin...

[gunownerdan]

I just spoke to Allah,
He said they are all out of virgins up there in heaven so you Muslims can stop blowing yourselves up now.

[iceman_1960]

"Why do people need to be responsible for their own actions when they can just pray to some god for forgiveness of sins?"
- Posted by GunOwnerDan at 12:41 PM : Sep 10, 2007

''Cuz you can never be sure you''re praying to the right one.

I mean, what''s Jimmy Swaggart going to say if and when he finds himself at the River Styx some day, and Charon the Boatman is demanding an obol to take him over to the other side, to be judged by Rhadamanthos, Minos and Sarpedon ?

[iceman_1960]

"I just spoke to Allah,
He said they are all out of virgins up there in heaven so you Muslims can stop blowing yourselves up now."
- Posted by GunOwnerDan at 12:45 PM : Sep 10, 2007

All out of virgins ?

What about Janet Reno and her cousins ?

[gunownerdan]

Janet Reno?
The closest she''s ever going to get to heaven is when she was burning innocent women, children, and senior citizens at Waco.

[mlbarrett66]

I am suspicious about anyone in our government selecting the religious materials that someone can see or not see, whether or not they are in prison. Everywhere we turn today it seems that the rights that we hold dear and that others once respected us for maintaining are being infringed or removed by well-meaning officials who wear blinders as their rhetoric is not matched by their deeds. It is this denial of rights that ultimately breeds terrorists (See Alan Krueger: "What Makes a Terrorist"). I am reminded of the Nixonian phrase, expressed by the illustrious AG John Mitchell, "Watch what we do and not what we say." When the world watches it must cringe.

[lars008-2009]

Posted by Iceman_1960 at 12:32 PM : Sep 10, 2007

hahahahahaha

dicewoman haji reduced to personal attacks... lol

hahahahahaha

why haven''t you strapped a suicide murderer bomb to your arse so you can get your 72 virgins haji...

hahahahahaha

ask your idiot fascist nazi terrorislam mulla to go first haji... lol

tell haji??? why has there been not one cleric to be a suicide murderer??? does he know there are no 72 virgins??? lol

hahahahahaha

BOOM

[cathaleen]

This will get the ACLU all worked up.

[olgreyghost]

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;..."

But who cares? It''s only the Constitution and besides, they''re a bunch of criminals, right?

Ready to ski?

[klingon69]

The more important headline related to that non-story is that prison officials are attempting to help Christians (primarily the pope) stem the flood of people fleeing from Christinity.
Posted by tuckerndfw at 12:02 PM : Sep 10, 2007
To start with Catholicism is not christianity. The Holy Roman Catholic Church, was started by the Roman Emperor as a way to tap into the new beliefs that were sweeping the known world at that time. Much like the changing of the sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, because they wanted seperation from the Hebrew religion that held its observance of the sabbath on Saturday. Much of the earlier Roman belief system was adopted from the Greeks and the names changed to suit the roman populace, again a shift, and the powers that be changed the names to include, the virgin Mary, and others. However the Catholic, Anglican and offshoot Episcopalian(sp) still hold idols and religious symbols as holy icons.

[klingon69]

My ancestors came for Germany in the 1750''''s seeking to own land and have a better life. Religion had nothing to do with why they came. This ideal that the US was formed for freedom of religion is a myth.
Posted by boldwin223 at 12:12 PM : Sep 10, 2007
The country was not founded on freedom of religion, although it is the first part of the FIRST admendment. At the time the Catholic and Anglican churches held more power than most of the monarchies. Those who did not agree with the Catholic views, or maybe wanted to be a little more free, were persecuted. That is why the pilgrims came from Europe to America.

[averjane]

This is just another excuse non-believers will use to rid the world of religion. It''s not going to happen. It''s not like the whole prison system is full of Muslims so why are they really doing this? Also, don''t we have freedom of religion in this country? They are not afraid of the Islamic religion because everyone knows they''re nuts. I think it''s the religion that teaches about the one true God, Yahweh that they''re really trying to get rid of. They choose to ignore because they want to believe He does not exist. Well, didn''t anyone ever tell you fella, you have the "freedom" to choose whatever you want to believe in. That''s why He created you in His image. He does not want a mindless robot let alone someone who doesn''t choose Him over themselves. To Him, that is the ultimate act of worship for someone to "choose" Him; to choose to believe in Him. We are the most precious creation to Him. It is a priceless thing we give to Him; ourselves. That''s why He sent Jesus to die for us; to give us a way back to Him. He is a Holy God, there is non other. You don''t realize how special you are to Him. He continually goes out of His way to get you back. Read about how He loves you. But wait a minute, the prisoners will no longer be able to do that because all religious materials are being removed. What about when they start to dictate to you what you should read. If you think religion makes people crazy, see what happens when you take away thier religious rights!

[agnim]

"It''s a bid to stop prisons from becoming breeding grounds for radical religious beliefs"

LOL

So some are finally coming to their minds that the christian and islamic RELIGIOUS RUBBISH and mental poison do **** up minds. LOL

[agnim]

"This will get the ACLU all worked up.
Posted by cathaleen at 01:35 PM : Sep 10, 2007"

Right! LOL

The ACLU (Association for Cultural Lewdness Unlimited) will be so worked up that they will insist on putting their kiddie porn in the prisons instead.

[toolmangler-2009]

When are these power hungry idiots going to learn, "The more you try to suppress something the larger it grows"? Prohibition of alcohol and Narcotic Drugs didn''t work, Taxes on tobacco, gasoline, Liquor did not work, Big Brother won''t work either but it will be tried.