Incarceration Postcard

cell_block_no_11_new_prison_1_27_07, originally uploaded by jacksonista.

Before Uncle Jimmy tires to bust out of the clink he might try to get in touch. If he's in the Michigan State Prison at Jackson he can do just that with this handy postcard. (He could even circle his cell in red marker!)

As I understand it, Jacksoners refer to the prison by its address on Cooper Street. Of all of Michigan's prisons, the Jackson facility is located in the most urbanized area (it is also likely the largest concentration of correctional facilities in the state, followed by Ionia).

The political implications of prison location are somewhat interesting. It seems that prisons tend to be placed in rural areas where they artificially boost the population. This website shows examples in Michigan, New York, Ohio, and lots of other states. Furthermore, it looks like the number of prisons (and prisoners) has escalated dramatically in the past 20 or so years. Investigating further into New York I discovered that the state has a maximum security facility solely for women.

*Old News: San Pedro in La Paz, Bolivia; where inmates pay to rent their cells with money they earn in the prison's economy

The End of the World

Intensidad... o Lago Fagnano, originally uploaded by Any Manetta.

Ushuaia, Argentina is the southernmost city on the planet. The lonely town on Tierra del Fuego is serviced by the Southern Fuegian Railway, more popularly known as the End of the World Train. The narrow gauge railway was built to service the penal colony of Ushuaia and aid in the construction of a full prison there. The penal colony has since shut down and the train is now a tourist attraction for visitors to Argentina's southernmost lands.