By The Red Wolf

It’s always funny seeing the portrait of Governor Schwarzenegger hanging over the main desk at my Parole office. Everytime I go in, I can’t help but wonder if the administrators put it up because of some state law, or because it’s just proper in the grand sense. The history between the C.C.P.O.A (the California Corrections Peace Officers Association) and the Governator is an unhealthy one. They disagree over just about everything. But the portrait’s there and I view it as a symbol of something that is supposed to be done for our failing State; perhaps a reconciliation of ideals for betterment of us all.

For as long as I’ve been keeping track of their relationship – and the prison problem entirely – Arnold has been proselytizing over ways in which to fix this very unemphasized dilemma. Our prisons are in absolute shambles, if you didn’t know, and I suspect the overall public is an apathetic on it all. It’s not entirely unwarranted: they hear that “something is wrong” and then there are some discussions, and then finally some minor solutions – none of which solves anything. The elementary logic is high, but with all those reality T.V. shows, the chance of public awareness is running low.

This situation has now become “the Prison Question” in the Golden State. And it’s actually very simple, but with such an insidious Union running the whole show with a tyrannical monopoly, it’s difficult to get the definite answer. Someone in our Congress protests, and out come the threats of lawsuits or recalls, and our politicians turn yellow, and that’s all we hear about it without really understanding the true nature of the problem itself.

There might be a silver lining coming soon though, as Schwarzenegger is out of office in one year (give or take). So he’s got nothing to lose. At his recent State of the State address, he openly endorsed the idea of privatization of inmate lock-ups to save money and allocate more funds to higher education. The privatizing probably won’t happen over here, but more than likely occur out-of-state; as his emergency 2006 declaration authorized. That also has since been struck down by the Courts as unconstitutional. Again, the perpetual madness shows itself in the form of endless litigation, and we are stuck in a game of “he said, she said”. And as before: no solution.

For this scenario, nothing will be heard except for the cries coming from the Guard’s Union. They have long been opposed to inmate transfers, or housing them in private institutions. That is that elementary logic, the one that root criticism confirms – Money. Is. Involved. As an illustration, and taking from Dan Morain’s reporting on the recent developments; three years ago the Corrections Corps of America (private) had signed a $20 million dollar contract with the State. That came out to 900 inmates at four lock-ups, and $63 per head per day. That deal has since evolved into 10,000 inmates, at $72 per head per day, at an overall cost of $632 million. Staggering, but not surprising.

Crime is a valuable commodity these days. Disturbingly, those numbers are comparatively small when viewed side-by-side with the ones the Union are working with. Those crooks take up 10 percent of the annual budget; house 175,000 inmates in a space designed for 100,000; are constantly demanding more, and have done what scientists are only now discovering: less than absolutely nothing! Zero. Zilch. Some idea to reduce the embarrassing recidivism rates, no?

Their monolithic influence was so great they could even squeeze into bed with former Governor Gray Davis. He was bought and paid for with a $251,000 contribution – in one day! They also tied some strings to his hands and made him sign a 37 percent pay increase, while shutting down five private prisons.

Anyone seeing a pattern here? Where are the representatives who are discussing bloated budgets, corrupted officials with obvious conflicts of interest, or the general welfare of society? The question that must be asked for anyone who cares: what is the incentive for the prison authorities – either State or Private – to start working on reforming inmates? The answer: none! Crime does pay. And until we realize that, there won’t be much hope at all.

Personally, I believe that since inmates are sentenced in State Courts, they should be housed in State prisons. Theoretically, that would also imply a certain amount of transparency and accountability. It just doesn’t happen with the C.C.P.O.A. Perhaps a temporary private hand-over would be in order, to be replaced as soon as more competent guards are hired.

Maybe Schwarzenegger needs to read some of the editorials. After all, he is being called the new “lame duck” politician who couldn’t do a darn thing for our troubled state. Maybe he’ll gather some of that old courage we all saw in the theater, and so something before history remembers him as a pathetic onscreen he-man who couldn’t deliver in the real world.