PRIVATE PRISONS

Federal and state governments have and still are strapped for cash. The cry the past thirty years has been PRIVATIZE! Farm out certain services to the private sector. Supposedly the job will be done better and cheaper.

 

The package sold with regard to prisons. Privatized prisons came into being.

 

A private prison is defined as a facility/place in which individuals are physically confined or incarcerated by a third party that is contracted by a government agency.

 

How did private prisons come about?

 

Start first with the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Amendment that freed the slaves. Contrary to popular belief, the Thirteenth Amendment did not free all persons from slavery.

 

The pertinent section of the Thirteenth Amendment is as follows. “1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, EXCEPT AS PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME WHEREOF THE PARTY SHALL HAVE BEEN DULY CONVICTED, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” (emphasis added) The emphasized portion is referred to as the Punishment Clause.

 

Businessmen and plantation owners knew at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation that all men free was around the corner. Who was going to work the factories and fields cheaply? Such persons were instrumental in having the punishment clause included in the free the slaves amendment.

 

Slavery therefore is still legal as punishment for a crime.

 

The Thirteenth Amendment was ratified at the end of the Civil War. Beginning in 1868, convict leases were issued to private parties to supplement their work forces. The convicts were referred to as a chain gang. Chain gangs remained in place in decreasing numbers into the early 1950s.

 

The 1980s brought with it congested prisons. New jails and increased staff were required to support the war on drugs.

 

Private prisons have grown and multiplied since that time. With little oversight/scrutiny by any government. The federal and state frame of mind was we are paying you to take this headache off our hands…..do it and do not bother us.

 

The first modern private prison company was the Correction Corp. of America for Hamilton County, Tennessee. Within a few years, the State of Tennessee turned all its jails over to Corrections Corp. of America to operate.

 

Corrections Corp. of America is the largest or one of the largest such companies in the United States. Within two decades, the Correction Corp. increased its profits by 500 percent. In 2011, it took in $5 billion in revenue.

 

Wall Street became aware in 2009 of the profitability of private prisons. Millions of dollars were invested and continue to be invested. Wells Fargo alone has $106 million invested in two jail companies.

 

Today, 20 percent of federal prisoners and 7 percent of state prisoners are confined in private prisons.

 

Private jail companies are no different than any other major corporation. With the big dollars, comes big lobbying with Congress and in state capitals. Also national and regional meetings in exotic locations where legislators and other influential government persons are entertained.

 

Four types of legislation sought to be influenced on a consistent basis include longer sentencing bills, later parole legislation, three strikes and you’re out which leads to lifetime incarceration, and the lengthening of infraction sentences. While today’s mood is to decriminalize and lower/eliminate prison confinement, the jail companies are working in the other direction. With success.

 

Private prisons on the surface appear to be cost effective for cash strapped states. The private industry sold the states a bill of goods. We can do it better and cheaper.

 

Their track record stinks.

 

Poor training of personnel has led to violence and escapes. Food not the best nor the most recent. Proper medical care lacking. Female prisoners raped. Paroles granted later than the normal time. Prisoners charged for their upkeep. Failure to pay results in time being added on to a sentence.

 

Private prisons are increasingly being used as immigration detention centers.

 

Private prisons are selective as to which prisoners they will take. They are not interested in high coast inmates. The disabled, elderly and HIV-positive for example. The private prison companies only want the healthiest and youngest prisoners.

 

State and county governments are not happy with private prisons after having lived with them for several years. Private prison companies require the governmental agency to guarantee a certain number of occupied beds. If at any given time the occupancy rate falls below the contracted number, the private prison company charges for the empty beds. With crime down and fewer persons being sentenced to jail, such is putting a strain on state and county monies.

 

There is another problem. Brings back into play the slavery issue.

 

Private jail prisoners work like employees in a factory. Except they either do not get paid or get pennies in effect. The prison companies have contracted with outside corporations to produce certain goods. They cannot meet required deliveries. The reason again less crime and fewer people going to jail.

 

Certain private prisoner companies make uniforms for popular restaurants like McDonald’s and Applebee’s.

 

As a result, private prison companies are threatening to sue states and other governmental agencies for lost profits. Another way of saying they will sue unless they get more inmates. To be used as free labor.

 

An interesting observation. The Civil War and the Thirteenth Amendment were to have freed the slaves. Blacks were the slaves at the time. Today, there are more blacks in jail. Blacks still persecuted. Blacks still not free. Blacks slaves of the Thirteenth Amendment which was adopted to free them.

 

Finally, corruption. On a scale guaranteed to astound you.

 

Mark Ciavarella, Jr. was a Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Judge. He recently was sentenced to 28 years in jail.

 

From 2003 to 2008, he took close to $1 million in bribes from a private prison company to send 4,000 children to juvenile detention centers. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court threw the convictions out. However such did little good as a practical matter. The 4,000 had already served time in situations where they normally would not have. Like talking back to a teacher.

 

Another Lucerne County Judge, Michael Conahan, was also sentenced to a lesser term for basically the same crimes.

 

Ciavarella is referred to in Luzerne County as the “Kids for Cash Judge.”

Whether judges or government officials, bribery corruption as committed by the two judges has to be merely the tip of the iceberg.

 

My advice to all. Do not be in a hurry to privatize anything. Tell your elected officials so. Whether private prisons, Social Security, pension funds, or what have you. Man has a darker side. It occasionally surfaces where big dollars are involved.

THE STEALING OF AMERICA

Money controls elections. Election results provide control of Congress, the decision making process of government. Results even control Presidents.

 

There is an old saying…..He who pays the fiddler calls the tune. How true!

 

Big money controlling the government has resulted in elected politicians becoming feudal serfs of those who have the money. Elected officials no longer represent the people. Major corporations and the rich reap the benefits of laws that make it easier for them to increase their net worth and profitability. To the detriment of the American people.

 

Former President Carter recently said that the United States was an oligarchy. He was correct. He said the United States became that way because of unlimited political bribery. Correct again.

 

Carter claims that large unlimited contributions by the rich are “…..a complete subversion of our political system as a payoff to major contributors.” He observed that elected officials consider “…..unlimited money as a great benefit to themselves.”

 

Our elected representatives are dance house ladies willing to dance with anyone who can pay their way. Major corporations and the rich buy all the tickets.

 

Million dollar contributions are the direct result of Citizen United decided several years ago. Recall, corporations are persons, they have a right to be heard, etc. Called freedom of speech. Citizen United and subsequent decisions paved the way. The modus operendi. Contributions would be to super PACs. The money in turn found its way into candidate’s coffers. All legal.

 

For years, the United States recognized the danger of large amounts of money influencing elected persons. Contributions were limited. Today, unbridled.

 

A perfect example is Hedge-Fund magnate Roger Mercer. He donated $11 million to a super PAC supporting Ted Cruz. If he had donated directly to Cruz’s campaign, his contribution would have been limited to $2,700.

 

Who is screwing who here?

 

Today, there are three ways to make contributions to candidates.

 

The first is the old fashioned method of personal direct payment. Limited by law. The $2,700 thing. The second is the relatively new super PAC indirect way which permits corporations and the rich to give unlimited dollars into the millions. The third involves contributions via non profit groups. Referred to as 501(c) (4) contributions. Disclosure not required.

 

Quite frankly, the nonprofit one confuses me. I cannot figure it out. All I know is that the contributor to the nonprofit fund is not disclosed. Important to those who do not want the public to know who they might be trying to influence or buy.

 

Analyzing which candidate is taking in the most money is difficult. Direct contributions are one item. Super PACs another. Considered separately for accounting and disclosure purposes.

 

Via the direct contribution route Hillary Clinton as of 7/31 had raised. $47.5 million. She had raised twice as much as any other candidate. Jeb Bush raised only $11.4 million re the direct donation route. A far cry from Clinton’s $47.5 million. However, Bush had raised considerably more when super PAC monies were considered. Bush had raised $103 million as opposed to Clinton’s $15.6 million.

 

Scott Walker announced his candidacy on July 13. Within days, Wisconsin billionaire Diane Hendricks contributed $5 million to the Walker Super PAC. In two weeks, Walker took in $20 million total via super PAC contributions. He even announced he was going to finance his candidacy with super PAC dollars rather than direct contributions.

 

Walker appears to be a favorite among super PAC contributors. His Wisconsin governor years have been supported by the Koch brothers. In addition to the $5 million Hendricks contribution, Marlene Ricketts gave $4.9 million. The owners of the Chicago Cubs $2.5 million.

 

Then there are those candidates who have few if any supporters with the big bucks. Bernie Sanders, for example. He raised $15.2 million via direct contributions. Significantly less from super PAC monies. Direct contributions represented 76 percent of the $15.2 million.

 

Ted Cruz has taken in $38 million via super PAC contributions. Glad to receive the money. However, he is right up front condemning the process. An intelligent man. He speaks effectively out of both sides of his mouth. He recently said, “Lobbyists and career politicians today make up what I call the Washington Cartel….. (They) on a daily basis are conspiring against the American people…..career politicians’ ears and wallets are open to the highest bidder.”

 

Joe Biden says that “…..where the money is, there’s almost implicitly some string attached.”

 

John Dingell, the 29 term Democratic Congressman from Michigan, recently stated, “…..our government has largely been put up for sale.”

 

John Kerry in his farewell remarks to the Senate in 2013 said, “…..alliance of money…..is steadily silencing the voice of the vast majority of Americans…..corrosion of money in politics…..muzzles more Americans than it empowers…..an imbalance that can only sow the seeds of unrest.”

 

In 2009, a year after the bank created recession, John Durbin said, “The banks…..are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill…..they frankly own the place.”

 

The America we knew is gone. Do we want it back? If so, we have to work for it. Citizen United must be reversed. Only the Supreme Court can do it. Which means the next member of the Court has to be a Democrat. Get involved. Watch for whom you vote. Party affiliation should not be the guiding force in who to vote for. Make candidates keep promises made. Let them know you are watching.

 

Keep in mind that money talks, bullshit walks. Another reason Citizens United has to go.

 

It is said we have become a 1 percent / 99 percent society. Things are bad. For the people. Not the rich. Some say power still resides with the people. It has only diminished. I say under present circumstances less power is no power.

 

We are supposed to be and once were a government of the people, by the people, for the people. We have become a government of the rich, by the rich, for the rich.

 

Is this what we want?

WE LOST OUR WAY…..

We lost our way. I am not telling you anything you do not know. Our values have changed. We are in a downward spiral.

 

Examples are rampant.

 

Hitting us in the eye constantly these days is the police/black problem. Actually, a police v. citizens’ problem regardless of color. Police historically served to protect the people. Today, they are the enemy. The police concern is for their personal safety first. Not those they are sworn to protect.

 

Shootings aside, a more obvious example is what occurred recently in Tampa. A detective on a robbery call was driving an unmarked vehicle. He hit a pedestrian, Did not stop nor report the incident to his superiors. The pedestrian was decapitated.

 

It took almost ten days for his superiors to determine he might be the bad guy. The dead man’s blood was the same as the droplets of blood on the police vehicle. They still have not arrested him.

 

Authorities tend to whitewash police incidents.

 

Secret Service and other federal officials party with prostitutes in foreign countries. The services of the ladies generally paid for by drug cartel persons.

 

The recent Charleston shootings bring to our attention an FBI foul up.

The FBI is purportedly the best of the best. The FBI did the check up of the killer when he sought to buy the gun. An error was committed in the Charleston killer’s case. The FBI failed to disclose all details of the young man’s criminal record. A proper disclosure would have resulted in a rejection of the gun sale. The gun used to kill the nine people.

 

Court decisions in most instances have gone from bad to worse. People have lost faith in the judicial process. Especially United States Supreme Court decisions. We have been plagued in recent years by bad decisions. An example being Citizens United which opened the door to permitting corporations and the rich to make unlimited contributions to political candidates.

 

Money buys elections. Congress a perfect example. Even Presidents to an extent. Politicians are influenced by those who contribute large sums to them.

 

Politicians lie to us. Even a President of the United States. Bush 2 and weapons of mass destruction.

 

Computer hacking now a way of life. Especially government and corporate records. Just last week, it was announced that the 4 million turned out to be 21 million persons who had their personnel files held by the government hacked. Congress fails to allocate enough monies to keep security systems up to date. Corporate America fails to do so also. Money spent on security takes away from profit.

 

Hatred and bad blood permeate our society. People do not differ merely from thoughtful political perspectives. Their differences are driven by a hatred for the other side.

 

There was a time we fought wars to win them. No longer. Now wars seem to be fought merely to maintain the status quo.

 

God has become a part of our political back and forth. Church leaders have become participants re public issues before the media. They spend more time in public view than in their pulpits. The clerics pursue dogma and policies that do not fly with Church members. Following which the clerics wonder why their churches are empty.

 

Unions were once strong. Over the years, they have been crippled. Cut off at the knees.Starting with Reagan’s handling of the air comptrollers. The unions had become too strong and needed to be cut down to size. However not so much that they could become extinct.

 

Unions are a necessary ingredient when it comes to workers’ rights. Corporations are not going to worry about the welfare of their employees. Profit is their concern. Unions must be revitalized to keep employers honest in employee dealings. Do not expect employers to police themselves.

 

We read about the Greeks not paying taxes. We have the same problem right here in the United States. Trillions of dollars of corporate profit and the profits of the rich sit untaxed in off shore accounts. The corporations and rich not paying their fair share.

 

We like to think the United States is a God fearing nation. The good book says we are our brother’s keeper. How does that line up with a Republican party that wants to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

 

I could go on and on. The point has been made.

 

Some will disagree with my observations. Some a few, some many. The examples are everyday realities, however. They hit us right in the face. They cannot be denied. As long as we are willing to see that which is. And not what we want to see.