Tom:

To say that Elizabeth Dole is a principled conservative just because she voted against the rescue/bailout bill gives her more credit than she deserves. She's a neo-con of the worst order and she's in virtual lock-step with the Bush Administration. Her voting record in agreement with the Bush Administration in her 6 years in the Senate is upwards of 90%.

She is also a fraud. Prior to her first run for the Senate, she was a DC and a Kansas denizen. Bob Dole was Senator from 1969 to 1996, and she married him 1975. She's held a number of jobs, such as running the Red Cross, Secretary of Transportation and Labor, all in Washington, DC. Her contact with North Carolina in her adult life is minimal, even though she was born here. She somehow satisfied the technical requirements of residency in 2002 and won Jesse Helms' seat. That makes her a carpetbagger. Now she is down a 3 or 4 points to a complete unknown (Kay Hagan) in her run for re-election. She does nothing on principle, she's just running for re-election.

Richard Graham
Raleigh, NC

(This is a condensed version. A full length format is available upon request)

In 1852, the San Quentin prison gaveAmerica its initial taste of the privatization of prisons. Due to a vast amount of scandals and unfit practices, the control of this vicious enterprise was quickly handed over to the State of California. (1 Corrections in the 21st Century") Unfortunately, following the Civil War (1865), these slave factories were introduced once again back into America's culture, imprisoning predominately black men (95% in GA), occasionally for "pet thievery", a fictitious crime where innocence was often difficult to prove, forcing these once freed slaves to perform a new legal form of slave labor. The cotton picking, mining, and railroad industries profited and benefited immensely due to the birth of slavery contracts (1868) which were awarded to private corporations. (2 The New Georgia Encyclopedia) . This produced legalized slavery once again, which primarily benefited the minute elitist society.

For more than 100 hundred years, the privatization of prisons virtually became extinct. Not until the 1980's, during the "strict on crime" Ronald Regan administration,
did America see these demonic organizations appear once again on our soil. They initially focused their efforts mainly in southern states (FL, AL, TX), with CA, AZ, and NM as future target areas. (3 Western Prison Project) The California budget for corrections rose from $675 million in 1980 to 4.6 billion in 2000. (3 WPP).

In 1998, private prisons contributed more monetary substance to California political candidates than to all other states combined, which totaled more than a quarter of a million dollars (63% for CA Democratic candidates, vs. 55% CA Republican) "with 82% of the money coming from Correctional Corporations of America…and 92% of their selected candidates won." (3 WPP) But at that time, Correction Corporation of Americas' rate per share on the NYSE December 15, 2000 was a dismal $1.87 (4 NYSE: CXW, 2000) as the industry leader.

Here in Oregon, republican ex-State representative Kevin Mannix, urged Nike to not ship their sneaker producing plants to Indonesia, stating benefits of "eliminating transportation costs" by using "competitive prison labor" right in our backyards. Prior to that boldly blunt statement, Mr. Mannix brought Measure 40 (1996) to the Oregon ballot, which imposed mandatory minimum sentences for certain crimes. It became State law, and then temporarily suspended (overturned in a supreme court decision in 1998 Arnatta vs. Kitzhaber. But then in 1999, the implementation of Measure 69-75 (which was heavily funded by two millionaires) included past ideas proposed by Mannix. Lobbyists for private prisons advocate strict mandatory sentences, life terms (3 strikes rule), and treating juveniles as adults in court.

State and federal prisoners usually receive the federal minimum wage for their labor efforts, with the exception of Colorado ($2 per hour). The highest rate for labor in private prisons is in Tennessee (owned by CCA). In TN, prisoners receive 50 cents per hour for what they refer to as "highly skilled positions". In Colorado private prisoners only earn around 17 cents an hour, for six hour days. Private prisons offer globally competitive slave wages at home, which appeals to multiple multi-national corporations, by eliminating their expensive transportation expenses.

In 1998 a federal judge in Texas ruled that overcrowding in TX prisons was "cruel and unusual punishment". So the "CCA", along with good old "sheriffs in poor counties", signed contracts to construct new prisons and share the revenues with both parties. This significantly expensive prison expansion project was backed by "Merrill-Lynch, Shearson-Lehman, American Express, and Allstate." (5 Atlantic Monthly, 1998) This modern slavery has actually enabled companies like IBM and Compaq to slash labor costs, and eliminate local factories which assemble circuit boards, and move their operations into the private Lockhart Texas prison.

Along with helping corporations save money, private prisons often construct prisons in communities that are economically depressed, which will obtain local support with a false promise of assuring secure, well-paying jobs in an otherwise unhopeful failing community. CCA provides an abundance of benefits and promises on their official website. They offer "reduced costs", with operating costs that are "20% lower" than the states in which they operate in. They also offer "financial strength and indemnification…well-managed and fiscally sound, CCA indemnifies government reducing inmate liability." CCA can build prisons extremely fast (12-24 months), verses the government (36-40) to fulfill your immediate containment needs, if this administration ever wishes to schedule another "1786 Annapolis meeting" as a retaliation to another rebellion by the overly oppressed common man. CCA also mysteriously claims that they "founded the private prison industry in 1983." (7 CCA, 2007)

By the year 2000, a majority of these companies were facing numerous lawsuits, due to extensive violence administered by their staff, and demonstrated extremely poor financial returns for investors. In 1998 Geo Group (formerly known as Wackenhut Corrections) was repeatedly accused for abuse of children held in their prisons. Geo Group paid "$1.5 M to settle a suit filed by 12 girls who were sexually physically and mentally abused by staff in the Coke County Juvenile Justice Center." Even though a guard pled guilty, the prison company was granted immunity, and Geo Group was not blamed for any wrong doing. (8 "Juvenile Offenders and Victims", 2006) Also in 1998, the Justice Department sued the State of Louisiana over another Geo Group facility which enslaved young juveniles. The primary demand of the law suit stated, "the State and Wackenhut to: stop using corporal punishment, excessive force, and gas grenades." (9 DOJ: Justice Department Sues,) Prior to September 11, 2001, Geo Group (formerly known as Wackenhut Corrections) reported a minuscule stock price of $2.1666 a share on May 26, 2001 (4 NYSE: GEO, 2001).

You would assume that these corrupt detention centers would surely dissolve back into the abyss they crawled out from. But somehow in 2003, approximately one out of three juvenile prisoners (30,000) in the U.S. were held in a private prison facility. (8 "Juvenile Offenders and Victims", 2006). Today in 2007, 10 states send "between 20% and 50% of their inmates to private jails",compared to only 5 states in 2005. (10 US Bureau, Corrections NM) Texas leads the nation with possessing the most private slave factories, totaling more than 40. (7: CCA, 2007) Today, New Mexico holds "42% of its state inmates in private prisons, which is the highest rate" in the nation. (10 Corrections NM, 2007)

The U.S. is experiencing the largest prison build up in recorded history, now the world leader despite having only 5% of the worlds population. The prison population has more than quadrupled since privatization has been aggressively intergraded into our society. According to a to the U.S. Department of Justice, "1 out of every 32 people in this country was either incarcerated, on probation, or on parole in 2005) (11 DOJ) No other society has locked up so many of their own citizens in the history of mankind..

The Geo Group, along with CCA, were prominently featured in a recent Smart Money
magazines' May 2007 issue. Geo Groups' stock price has risen from a mere $2.1666 in 2001, to $31.33 (or potentially $93.99 due to 3 splits in the past 1.5 years) in 2007. (4 NYSE:GEO, 2007) CCA (2 in industry now) stock value has also risen astoundingly from $1.87 (2000) to $28.59 (or $57.18 due to 1 split 4 months ago) in 2007. (4: NYSE: CXW, 2000, 2007) This astronomical financial growth should have contributed to hundreds, even thousands of well-paying jobs for localcommunities, especially for people in rural Texas..

Geo Group currently has only "10,253 employees", while CCA reports "15,000" on their website (Reuters reports "16,000" for CCA). In a 2005 internal review by the Florida Dept. of Management Services, discovered that "Geo Group and CCA were allowed to over bill the State by $13 million." The report also stated that "the State paid CCA and Geo Group for guards who did not exist." (12 AFSCME, Empty Promise 5).

In November of 1999, Oregon voters gave birth to the Oregon Corrections Enterprises (OCE). The OCE is responsible for creating and maintaining relationships with "private sector businesses to achieve mutual business goals." OCE also controls 17 businesses connected to correctional facilities throughout the State, ranging from "commercial laundry to telecommunication centers." (13 State of OR, Legislative Committee, 2004)

Today in Oregon, Multnomah County has been unable to obtain the necessary funds to open Wapato Jail since it was constructed in 2004. Geo Group has proposed to lease an existing jail (Inverness Jail) and double its prisoner capacity, and pay rent to the county. By allowing this to transpire, Wapato Jail would finally open. Multnomah County Sheriff Bernie Guistio is in fully in favor of opening a "prison for profit" here in Portland.

We are probably actually only a few months away from achieving this horrific transformation in our community. Today Oregon is witnessing the highest increase (33%) for State funding for corrections development in the nation. The explanation of this vastly unpredicted increase was attributed to "The need for more prison beds is expected to continue (OR) primarily because of provisions that set specific minimum sentences for major crimes." (14 National Conference of State Legislatures, 2007) Unless a drastic change in our legal system is present in the imminent future, our next generation won't have to worry about going to school or finding a job, all they will be concerned with is avoiding private slave prisons (a.k.a. concentration camps). Well, at least you know what stocks (GEO, CXW) to bet on for guaranteed high return, if you're satan.

Peace and Love to all,

Alexander Krokus
Portland, Oregon

Condensed References:

(1) (Schmalleger, F., Smykla, J., 2007, 2005, 2002, "Corrections in the 21st Century",.New York: McGraw, pg. 552.

(2) (Todd, W, "The New Georgia Encyclopedia", 2005,

www,georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=2635

(3) Bridgette Arabi & Edwin Bender, 2000, Western Prison Project & Western States Center, Section II (3-9), Section IV (11-23), "The Prison Payoff, The Role of Private Prisons",

(4) NYSE: GEO, May 26, 2001, October 30, 2007, NYSE: CXW, December 15, 2000, October 30, 2007.

(5) Atlantic Monthly, December 1998

(6) House Judiciary Justice, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on Private Operation of Correctional Facilities, "Statements by Charles H. Logan", PhD., Visiting Fellow, Federal Bureau of Prisons, March 14, 1991.

(7) CCA, "Why do business with CCA?", www.correctionscorp.com/whycca.html

(8) "Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 2006 National Report", Partnership for Safety and Justice, Justice Matters Spring 2007, pg 15-16.

(9) Justice Department Sues, Files for Emergency Relief to Protect Juveniles in Louisiana's Jena Juvenile Justice Center, www.usdoj.gov/opa/pe/2000/March/155cr.htm.

(10) State of New Mexico Report to Legislative Finance Committee, Corrections Department, Review of "Planning Efforts and Over site of Private Prisons", May 23, 2007, Report 7-04, U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics 2005, pg 15-16.

(11) U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau Justice Statistics, "Incarceration Rate 1980-2005", Correctional Populations in the U.S. and Prisoners in 2005. www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/glance/tables/incrttab.htm

(12) AFSCME, "Empty Promise 5: Private Prisons Save Taxpayers' Money"

(13) State of Oregon, Legislative Committee Services, "Prisons", May 2004, Vol. 2, Issue 1, pg. 2.

(14) National Conference of State Legislatures, "State Funding for Corrections in FY 2006 & 2007", www.ncsl.org/programs/fiscal/correx07.htm

Naomi Wolf about the Active Denial System. It used to be secretive, but I saw it recently displayed on a network news program. One guy in a truck can zap a crowd with microwaves and give them the sensation of being on fire.

Now, if we rise up they can non-lethally zap us down. By the way, no one mentioned or asked if the power of the ray can be amplified to make it a death ray.

Have a great day.