The Good: The prison system in the United States is currently in rehabilitation mode. This means teaching, training, and hopefully changing convicts to be responsible citizens. This is all well and good in theory, but the sad truth is when most convicts are released back into normal society, they reoffend because they can’t find work anywhere. These “frequent flyers” take up room in the system, making prisons overcrowded and the whole rehabilitation aim pointless.

Why should this matter to you though? These are convicts; it’s better that they stay locked up where they can’t hurt anyone, right? Well wrong. If any of the rehabilitation strategies are going to work then convicts need a place to go. If you have filled out a job application you have probably seen the box that asks if you have been convicted of a crime, by law ex-cons must answer yet. Sadly, by telling the truth many of these “rehabilitated” people are denied a job. To change this, Philadelphia’s mayor has introduced a plan that would give businesses who hire ex-cons a tax break. This program will not only allow ex-cons to be successful, contributing members of society, but it will also ease jail overcrowding by lower the repeat offender rate. Let’s hope that this policy becomes the newest thing in all cities in America.

The Funny: Last year a very smart and talented nine-year-old tricked his mother and airline security. The boy, Semaj Booker, used his power of persuasion to hop on a flight from Washington to Arizona and then caught a connecting flight to Texas before being found by authorities. This year, Semaj did it again, getting through security at the Seattle-Tacoma airport before he was detained by authorities. Children like these restore my faith in our generation; if they can make it past security and sneak onto two airplanes than good for them. I think the only reason Semaj was caught this time is not improved security (since he did make it past them without a boarding pass) but the fact that he tried to scam the same airline twice. Semaj’s mom says he doesn’t like living in Tacoma and wants to live with his grandfather in Dallas, and that that is the reason he keeps pulling these stunts.