“Nearly one out of every 100 people in the United States is in a prison or jail.” ~ Prison Policy.org, 2024

This statistic, terrifying as it is, fails to take into account the millions politely imprisoned in elderly, medical, homeless, and assisted living facilities with “no unsupervised exits” ~ nor the further millions in potential imprisonment in bulletproof glass and steel low income housing buildings with master locks behind their front counters.

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Recorded Reading (1:47): https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/u1qzf1l03c01w3k982ksi/Scary-Statistics.mp3?rlkey=1bbxne3e92fzztrep018w6rbc&dl=0

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Scary Statistics

Our land, formerly of the free and brave,
Had better look its central self to save
For in this country there no longer be
Sufficient reason to call ourselves free

One of each hundred we’ve imprisoned, ay
One of each hundred has been locked away —
And those whose somewhat slightly milder fate
Is to our justice system to relate

By house arrest, parole, probation, are
Even again more numerous by far:
Those sentenced to report unto the State
One — unbelievable! — in thirty eight!

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Until removal of the stalker/targeter/vandal/arsonist following her allows her to approach any landlord ~ even for a private parking space ~ and to begin once again to create professional connections and to rebuild her life, this poet presently lives homeless and at a fraction of her nation’s poverty level.

Arts patrons may visit http://www.UgiftABLE.com , using code #72D-31S, or choose to send a personal check to the poet’s ABLE account. It takes about two weeks for the poet to be notified of your patronage.

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