When you spent 29 years in prison.

I read a story about a man in the USA, about a Mr. Randolph Arledge who in 1984 was convicted to 99 years in prison for the aledged murder of a woman in Texas. After 29 years new DNA tests proved that he was innocent and he was released from prison. He is now 58 years old, meaning that he spent half his life in prison. Innocent. That is serious, very serious.

When I read that, I also thought: what can such a man do after being released? He's been out of the loop of humanity most of the time. Is his driver's licence still valid? He needs to get a new house and get settled again - at that age. He's probably going to have a major problem finding a job as his skills have most certainly gone to waste over the last 3 decades where computers have taken a flight and society has evolved in a massive way (which I think isn't always for the best, but that aside).

It does seem that he won't have many financial worries for now, a released prisoner will receive up to $80,000 (€60,000) per year that (s)he was held wrongly. He'll need that though, to get that what's left of his life back on track.