9 ms·

I am the one who hired Preston. Whatever he has done in the past, I have all the evidence in the world in front of me to assure me that he has a transformed hea

I am the one who hired Preston. Whatever he has done in the past, I have all the evidence in the world in front of me to assure me that he has a transformed heart. It is not a common thing to see, but here the fruits are clear. We are happy to have him with us.

abxyz 1y ago
If you're going to extend kindness to Preston then perhaps a little kindness towards others wouldn't go a miss either. Preston isn't rare, the prison system is filled with normal kind hearted people who were unfortunate in life and things went awry. Everyone deserves a chance, not just someone who can provide economic value to you.
- kelstar18 1y ago
  Showing compassion to one person doesn’t deserve criticism for not saving everyone.
  - abxyz 1y ago
    I'm responding to the claim that it's uncommon for someone in prison to have a good heart.
    - kelstar18 1y ago
      Purporting that to be a "claim" would be - in my opinion - an incredibly disingenuous reading of the poster's comment. Remember the HN commenting guidelines: "Assume good faith."
      - abxyz 1y ago
        That is the good faith reading. The comment isn't open to interpretation. What could the meaning be if not that Preston is an uncommon example of a prisoner?
        kelstar18 1y ago
        If you don't believe that language is open to interpretation I'm not sure there is anything more to be gained from this dialog. Have a good day.
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
- glommer 1y ago
  You seem like a very bitter person trying to find issues where there are none.
  - abxyz 1y ago
    You could have said this: "I am the one who hired Preston. Whatever he has done in the past, I have all the evidence in the world in front of me to assure me that he has a transformed heart." Instead, you had to drag down others, the people who you haven't blessed with your benevolence. "It is not a common thing to see." You are being praised for showing kindness to one of us (a nerd, a programmer) while disparaging the others. You can show kindness to Preston without condemning the others. Ask ChatGPT to explain exceptionalism to you if you still do not understand. Every person in prison is a person who can change given the opportunity. Preston isn't uncommon, Preston isn't rare or exceptional, Preston is the average prisoner: someone who, when given an opportunity, has been able to reform. You can celebrate Preston without disparaging his less fortunate cellmates. The only rare thing here is that he was given an opportunity (and for that you should be praised).
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
giraffe_lady 1y ago
So you've spoken to the wife?
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- ty6853 1y ago
  The vast vast majority of DV complaints are unsubstantiated, so speaking to the wife is generally a poor predictor of whether the presumption of innocence will be overcome.
  - BryantD 1y ago
    Cites, please? A quick skim of the literature doesn't support this and I'm dubious, but I'm willing to be proven wrong.
    - ty6853 1y ago
      Here's an example in connecticut[]. DV applications: ~8800 DV ex parte granted (no chance for defendant to defend him(her)self): ~5100 DV final order granted after defendant able to defend him(her)self): ~3200 So for example in CT on just a civil standard, only 2/3 of the accusers were able to get even a temporary order when the defendant had zero chance to tell their side of the story. Once the defendant was able to come to court and defend themselves, only about 1/3 of them made it to a final order. And that was by the much weaker civil rather than criminal standard. [] https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tYBTsF7-px-3lCnBFOolTdj5KbTb9SaJ4_gGf5ADiVA/pubhtml https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tYBTsF7-px-3lCnBFOol...
      - BryantD 1y ago
        Sincere thanks! Some notes: in Connecticut, restraining orders can be granted for a variety of reasons, not restricted to domestic violence alone. Fairly close correlation but it does include, for example, stalking. It seems unwise to assume that restraining orders alone represent the entire count of domestic violence complaints that reach the legal system. For example, surely domestic violence arrests should be counted? Which seem to be a much higher count than restraining order applications -- 24,850 DV arrests in 2011 vs. 9033 DV applications. I'm not sure how to count the 32,111 "Family Violence Protective Orders" in 2011; are they the result of arrests? Are they yet another possible outcome of law enforcement involvement, separate from either a requested restraining order or an arrest? There are way more reasons a restraining order might not make it to a final order besides "the requestor was proven wrong." I'd want more detailed data here before reaching a conclusion. Otherwise, this assumes that failure to grant a restraining order proves lack of DV. I am not sure that it would change the percentages you've shown significantly -- we're all aware of cases where restraining orders weren't granted with very bad results, but there's always a tendency to report on the most clickbaity outcomes. Still, worth digging into that one a bit more. Again, appreciate the cite.
svennidal 1y ago
If there wouldn’t be chances after transforming, there wouldn’t be any reason to transform. Thank you for making society a better place.
ilc 1y ago
Good man. I've worked with a man who did time. I never knew until he told me, and once he did, I didn't give a rats ass. I knew the person, and whatever was done in the past. Is the past. He's done his time. It is not mine to add penalties over what the state imposed.
busterarm 1y ago
Thank you for having a strong constitution here. It's obvious from the comments in the thread that the internet hate mob still wants its pound of flesh and for Preston to be judged for life regardless of current circumstances. They don't realize how damaging their posts are to people who have done wrong in the past and want to change their lives. Once again I am ashamed to be part of the Hacker News community, but thank you for your fairness and goodheartedness.
b3lvedere 1y ago
Thank you for giving the man a chance.

abxyz 1y ago

If you're going to extend kindness to Preston then perhaps a little kindness towards others wouldn't go a miss either. Preston isn't rare, the prison system is filled with normal kind hearted people who were unfortunate in life and things went awry. Everyone deserves a chance, not just someone who can provide economic value to you.

kelstar18 1y ago
Showing compassion to one person doesn’t deserve criticism for not saving everyone.
- abxyz 1y ago
  I'm responding to the claim that it's uncommon for someone in prison to have a good heart.
  - kelstar18 1y ago
    Purporting that to be a "claim" would be - in my opinion - an incredibly disingenuous reading of the poster's comment. Remember the HN commenting guidelines: "Assume good faith."
    - abxyz 1y ago
      That is the good faith reading. The comment isn't open to interpretation. What could the meaning be if not that Preston is an uncommon example of a prisoner?
      - kelstar18 1y ago
        If you don't believe that language is open to interpretation I'm not sure there is anything more to be gained from this dialog. Have a good day.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
glommer 1y ago
You seem like a very bitter person trying to find issues where there are none.
- abxyz 1y ago
  You could have said this: "I am the one who hired Preston. Whatever he has done in the past, I have all the evidence in the world in front of me to assure me that he has a transformed heart." Instead, you had to drag down others, the people who you haven't blessed with your benevolence. "It is not a common thing to see." You are being praised for showing kindness to one of us (a nerd, a programmer) while disparaging the others. You can show kindness to Preston without condemning the others. Ask ChatGPT to explain exceptionalism to you if you still do not understand. Every person in prison is a person who can change given the opportunity. Preston isn't uncommon, Preston isn't rare or exceptional, Preston is the average prisoner: someone who, when given an opportunity, has been able to reform. You can celebrate Preston without disparaging his less fortunate cellmates. The only rare thing here is that he was given an opportunity (and for that you should be praised).
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]

giraffe_lady 1y ago

So you've spoken to the wife?

deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
ty6853 1y ago
The vast vast majority of DV complaints are unsubstantiated, so speaking to the wife is generally a poor predictor of whether the presumption of innocence will be overcome.
- BryantD 1y ago
  Cites, please? A quick skim of the literature doesn't support this and I'm dubious, but I'm willing to be proven wrong.
  - ty6853 1y ago
    Here's an example in connecticut[]. DV applications: ~8800 DV ex parte granted (no chance for defendant to defend him(her)self): ~5100 DV final order granted after defendant able to defend him(her)self): ~3200 So for example in CT on just a civil standard, only 2/3 of the accusers were able to get even a temporary order when the defendant had zero chance to tell their side of the story. Once the defendant was able to come to court and defend themselves, only about 1/3 of them made it to a final order. And that was by the much weaker civil rather than criminal standard. [] https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tYBTsF7-px-3lCnBFOolTdj5KbTb9SaJ4_gGf5ADiVA/pubhtml https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tYBTsF7-px-3lCnBFOol...
    - BryantD 1y ago
      Sincere thanks! Some notes: in Connecticut, restraining orders can be granted for a variety of reasons, not restricted to domestic violence alone. Fairly close correlation but it does include, for example, stalking. It seems unwise to assume that restraining orders alone represent the entire count of domestic violence complaints that reach the legal system. For example, surely domestic violence arrests should be counted? Which seem to be a much higher count than restraining order applications -- 24,850 DV arrests in 2011 vs. 9033 DV applications. I'm not sure how to count the 32,111 "Family Violence Protective Orders" in 2011; are they the result of arrests? Are they yet another possible outcome of law enforcement involvement, separate from either a requested restraining order or an arrest? There are way more reasons a restraining order might not make it to a final order besides "the requestor was proven wrong." I'd want more detailed data here before reaching a conclusion. Otherwise, this assumes that failure to grant a restraining order proves lack of DV. I am not sure that it would change the percentages you've shown significantly -- we're all aware of cases where restraining orders weren't granted with very bad results, but there's always a tendency to report on the most clickbaity outcomes. Still, worth digging into that one a bit more. Again, appreciate the cite.

svennidal 1y ago

If there wouldn’t be chances after transforming, there wouldn’t be any reason to transform. Thank you for making society a better place.

ilc 1y ago

Good man. I've worked with a man who did time. I never knew until he told me, and once he did, I didn't give a rats ass. I knew the person, and whatever was done in the past. Is the past. He's done his time. It is not mine to add penalties over what the state imposed.

busterarm 1y ago

Thank you for having a strong constitution here. It's obvious from the comments in the thread that the internet hate mob still wants its pound of flesh and for Preston to be judged for life regardless of current circumstances. They don't realize how damaging their posts are to people who have done wrong in the past and want to change their lives. Once again I am ashamed to be part of the Hacker News community, but thank you for your fairness and goodheartedness.

b3lvedere 1y ago

Thank you for giving the man a chance.