Why is Michigan's Prison System Called a Department of "Corrections"?

 A few weeks ago, a buddy of mine (JT) was in the prison chow hall about to sit down when an officer told him he couldn't do something he was doing or was about to do. JT responded, "Is that a rule?" He didn't understand why he was being corrected for something that was not breaking the rules. 

Another officer standing by piped in and said, "You've been in prison long enough to know, we make up our own rules." JT was obviously unhappy about this statement, especially given the truth of it. Prisoners are expected to follow the rules, but then officers (and often administrators) make up rules when it's convenient. They also flout their own rules openly and without any consequences. 

This morning, another buddy of mine (ST) had a unique callout on his itinerary. It didn't say what the callout was for, just that it was in the gym at the same time we normally have our gym time. So, he went to the gym in his shorts and t-shirt, but he was stopped at the door. 

"Why aren't you wearing your blues?" the officer asked brusquely, referring to our prison "dress" clothes. ST replied that the callout said nothing about wearing blues and, in fact, said very little about what the callout was for. 

"I don't care," replied the officer. "I said you have to wear blues, so you have to wear blues. Go back to your unit." Without arguing, ST returned to our housing unit, but did not go back to the callout. It said nothing about being mandatory. 

The problem is that some callouts specify, "Wear State Blues" or "Mandatory callout." Others say nothing of the sort, so it leaves us prisoners unsure of what is required and when. There's no consistency in application of the rules we do have, let alone when officers decide to make up rules. 

Prisons, like any other institution, need rules to run efficiently and effectively. But when officers or administrators decide to make up random rules and enforce them randomly and inconsistently, it leads to chaos. It also leads to prisoners increasing their resistance towards authorities, because those authorities abuse their power and maintain a double standard for themselves. These don't seem like good outcomes for a prison environment. 

I'm not an expert in prison operations, but common sense says that if you're going to punish people for breaking the law, you ought to teach them the importance of following the rules. You do this through proper modeling (officers following the rules guiding their own behavior), through consistent application of rules, and through following proper protocol in setting rules in the first place. 

Unfortunately, Michigan's prison system is reactive and retaliatory instead of proactive and just. Its a "do as I say, not as I do" approach to corrections. Now, why do we call this system "corrections"?