One thing continually brought up as a negative is Charlie Crew's ignorance of new technology. "It's like living in the future!" No, prison is not a vacuum, unless you make it one. Although it isn't a given, it is believably possible that this particular character wouldn't keep up with the little changes in society. In what ways would prisoners find out about camera phones and instant messaging?

Television, new inmates, and visits/phone calls/letters with outside family/friends.

Charlie, being both a quirky odd person AND an ex-cop would easily have isolated himself from day to day prisoner conversation. Seeing as his wife and partner abandoned him for guilty/dead, it isn't likely he had any outside correspondence. And given his obsession with fruit and quoting Zen proverbs, it isn't likely he gathered round for the daily viewing of Oprah. It's likely the only time he ever came out of his shell and really listened to what anyone was saying was with his lawyer, and its doubtful they had time for small talk.

That's how I see it.

-THE Ted

I agree with you. From the flashbacks it looked like he withdrew into himself to stay mentally healthy. Everything I know about prison, I learned from Oz and you are correct, I can't see him sitting around with all the other scrubs watching "Miss Salley" (oprah) and socializing. I think he exercised, read and thats about it. Sad. I really love his character and feel badly for what he must have gone through in prison. I also think he has some smoking chemistry with his partner. Can't wait to see what develops. :)Ali

?
I don't get it.

Hi, I was referring to the HBO prison drama "Oz". The prisoners used to sit around and enjoyed watching the fictional television show "Miss Sally". I couldn't picture Crews doing this while he was incarcerated. :)Ali

Crews spent 23 hours a day in solitary, for his own protection, for the rest of his life sentence. That's either in the pilot or I read it on the NBC page... but that's why. He only had the zen book and the four walls.

Thanks, Ali! I thought maybe it was some mean pop culture name describing Oprah.

Actually the bio page states that he was in solitary for only a few years of his sentence. It was there that he discovered a Zen book, and decided that if here and now was all he had then he would live amongst people and he asked to be transferred to Gen pop.

Also, he had to be in Gen pop to meet Ted and be able to protect him.

I still think that it makes sense that Charlie didn't keep up with the technology outside because he didn't have any hope of ever getting out.
Why punish himself?
It would be like looking at something that he knew he couldn't have.

And the fact that all the people on the outside that he loved or trusted seemed to have deserted him, or betrayed him....well, who would he call?

Yeah, that is totally believable. I just got out of prison 2 years ago after seven years. While I knew about the internet and email from tv, radio, ect., it is totally different when you are actually trying to use it and figure it out. When I got locked up I had a cell phone that was so big I had to carry it in a bag. Now I got a phone that emails, has pictures and video - ****, i can even watch tv on the **** thing. It took my forever to figure it out! And the stuff about the mental flashbacks, that happens to me a lot, too.

The only thing that isn't believeable is his lack of anger. After doing seven years I was mad as **** at everyone and everything, and I was not an innocent man wrongfully convicted. I still have a great deal of anger and hostility and all that.

It took me about a year to get used to things again and being a normal person.

Thanks for the insights, Major. And glad that you are doing well now.

Oh, I dunno...I saw me some evidence of anger in the men's room scene in the "Fallen Woman" episode last night.

Heh. True.... But, the Major is talking about something different. Yes, Crews was a bit "upset" to put it mildly. However, an angry, rage-filled institutionalised person is.... Well.... Different. Not quite sure how to articulate this one, but the anger that someone who's done time is different than "normal" anger. That kind of anger just doesn't have a safe outlet. I would venture to say that Major might have more than a little clue about that sort of thing.

Balance

the Dave

I am an educated mom of 4 boys, 2 of whom are teenagers. Ipods were on to their 3rd model before I even knew what they were. I just got my first cell phone 2 months ago. I think technology is one of those "need to know" areas. If you have no need for a gizzmo or gadget, you don't learn about it. I now need a cell phone, so now I have learned how to use one. Before this, I couldn't even get one to dial correctly. Like I said, I have a college degree, but it's from pre-internet. My boys are teaching me all of the wonderful things that my computer can do for me to make my daily life more fulfilling and streamlined. I venture to say that Charlie probably had no "need to know" desire. And I doubt that his lawyer would have pulled out her phone to take his picture while visiting him. It just probably never came up. I think there are a lot of things that we take for granted just because we knew about them when they happened. Was Charlie made aware of the Oklahoma City bombing? Or even 9/11? Do they notify prisoners about major news events, (those w/o access to tv)? I like how the show makes us think of things like that. What other things have happened in the US or world during the last 12 years, besides technology, that Charlie (or someone in a similar situation) wouldn't even be aware of? I especially got a tickle from his interaction with his car phone, when he was being called. I think if my car started talking to me it would freak me out.

I think there's a fine line here. If you apply some sort of 'is-this-the-way-it-would-happen-in-real-life' litmus test to what you see, you're doing the show (and yourself) a semi-injustice. Granted, there has to be plausibility to avoid being laughed off the air, but I suspend some of that for the overall enjoyment of the show.

I am loving Life.

Chris in NH

I know many people in "The Real World" who have no idea how to even turn on a computer. It isn't part of their work life, and they just are not interested in learning how to work one. When I tell them of the sites that I often surf, they look at me as if I have no life.

It is all a matter of where your priorities lie. Where your interests lie. You either embrace technology or you get along without it.