Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane alternative to jail

Re:Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane... by phaedradiana on Tuesday March 20, 2018 @03:17PM (#16631661)

We agree on general concern about for profit prisons. Diana and I met working at a non profit. She founded the Ella Baker Center and I worked in the labor movement. However, we created a company with those values because we believed this put us in the best position to scale the solutions we believed in.

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Re:Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane... by decebalus1 on Tuesday March 20, 2018 @04:22PM (#16632206)

> However, we created a company with those values because we believed this put us in the best position to scale the solutions we believed in.

You could just have created a non-profit and reinvest all money - way easier to scale. Values mean shit to the shareholders who invested in you :) They care about returns. I can only image what kind of monsters are born when blindly hunting for profit. Actually, I don't have to imagine, I just need to look at the current for-profit rehabilitation industry. Not saying you're the same, you're probably not but you will at some point yield decision power to the for-profit interest of the company. And let's assume this picks up and becomes immensely successful. What's stopping the company from hiring lobbyists to support legislation which keeps people 'in the system'?

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Re:Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane... by evolve2k on Tuesday March 20, 2018 @05:15PM (#16632732)

Addressing some concerns here (which I don't think will go away as you become more successful), consider registering as a Public Benefit Corporation or at least announcing that that is in your game plan.

Ref: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public-benefit_corporation

For background:

A Public Benefit Corporation makes it explicit legally for corporations to act morally, ethically and responsibly in regard to society, the environment, the natural world and the world at large.

The Certificate of Incorporation must list the company's altruistic goals and overall mission statement. However, in every other manner, the structure of a Public Benefit Corporation can mirror the structure of any type of Corporation.

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Re:Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane... by alex_young on Tuesday March 20, 2018 @05:18PM (#16632765)

This is a pretty weak line of reasoning IMHO. There are plenty of non-profit organizations which scale very large and address large societal problems. For instance, most hospitals.

Why couldn't the same thing be done to solve this problem, especially given your concern for eliminating perverse incentives in the justice system?

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Re:Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane... by module0000 on Tuesday March 20, 2018 @05:35PM (#16632912)

Are you offering hospitals as a good or as a bad example?

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Re:Launch HN: Promise (YC W18) – Cost-effective, more humane... by frgtpsswrdlame on Tuesday March 20, 2018 @03:31PM (#16631772)

What is your general concern about for-profit prisons?

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