The Atlantic - Latest Comments in Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

Dwayne Betts — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 17:08:19 -0000

Thanks David. You see, I'm a sports fan at heart. But I fixed that.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

Bruins2Lakers — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:22:28 -0000

Damn! There goes some really cool hoops talk!

Thanks for your insightful blogging and if you do make it to the west coast, maybe you can stop by my modern lit class, and don't worry, 1/5 of them have been in and out of juvie, so you'd be a tremendous source of inspiration.

My college roommate married her high school sweetheart who at the time was serving 7 years for 1/2 a joint found in a search warrant in Texas, 1973. She got him freed, they traveled to Iowa to get their masters' degrees and he's been teaching criminology for years in Kentucky.

A the dude says in la Bamba, "Life's a trip, Carnal."

Best of luck!

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

DaveinHackensack — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 13:48:37 -0000

Leon Panetta, my friend. Good luck with the book.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

lizkdc — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 21:04:37 -0000

Huge congrats. My instincts on coming down hard on anyone, even youths, who do violence against people are pretty hard ass, but you told your story with clarity and dignity. Thanks and I'll remember it.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

thefoulness — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 14:25:11 -0000

Co-sign being bummed that there's no west coast on the tour. It was a pleasure reading you this past week, and can't wait to read the book. Great stuff, Betts. And congrats on the degree.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

Sam — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:48:01 -0000

Dwayne, all the best. As someone who works with the schools on Rikers Island, I'm interested to hear your story. I'll try to catch you in NY, and if not, I'll at least get a copy of your book.

Your education post got a lot of comments (more than a couple by me). I hope you checked them out, especially the article BobTX referred to from the NY Times Mag in 2000. There are so many people who think they have the answer in education, and the issues so often go beyond what we can see on the surface.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

irishpirate — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:19:24 -0000

Good luck out there.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

Seekonk — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:11:39 -0000

Big Congrats, Dwayne. I'll look for your book and your future work.

Re: Last Dance and A Question of Freedom

Hicks — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:05:58 -0000

I'm bummed there's no west coast on the book tour. It's been a pleasure reading your thoughts, rants and all.