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Already Changing Their Tune
Well that didn’t take long at all. Ohio, with its anti-union, pro-corporate governor John Kasich, is planning on selling 5 state prisons to private companies who won’t perform to the same standards as the state or save money. But the administration was convinced they offered some sort of cost-savings (despite a plethora of research to the contrary), and initially said the state would earn $200 million from the sale of the prisons. But it turns out they now only expect to earn about $50 million, 1/4 of what the originally thought they’d get.
And if that wasn’t enough, there’s this story from today discussing how special interests are ramping up their lobbying efforts in the state, hoping to woo the conservative governor. It should come as no surprise that Kasich’s close personal friend for decades, and former chief of staff for 20 years, formed a lobbying company after Kasich won the election. A lobbying company that represents, among others, CCA, the company from which Kasich’s new director of the DOC came, and who will be bidding to purchase the state prisons.
Welcome to privatized utopia.
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Same old story “Privatize” every state (that the people’s taxes already have paid for) asset and sell it to a private company for a short term small gain in revenues..
Just ask Chicago how privatizing their parking meters has gone.. Seems the citizens/small business owners are having major remorse as they keep having to pay higher fees every year for street parking making it less likely that people will use them thus driving away customers from the small business owners…
This sure smells like “SHOCK DOCTRINE” to high heaven… And we are in the midst of it in our own country…
Next week – the Washington Monument, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Grand Canyon. Step right up for great bargains. s/
haha.
Except not so funny.
Monument’s won’t rake in the money.
Neither will tourist attractions.
But bridges, like roads, that’s the big cash cow.
That’s money in the bank. Every year, they can just pump it. That’s guaranteed ever-increasing profits.
Taxpayer money built them. Taxpayer money maintained them.
And then … taxpayer get jacked every time they use them.
Turnpikes and bridges are great cash cows. Just sit back and watch the money roll in.
And they are great bargains. For the reasons listed above. And due to the recession and cash-strapped states, ie. the BS excuse they give, the politicians sell them for pennies on the dollar to their friends.
Invest in a politician, and you can steal legally.
Are you sure that snark tag is necessary?
“Invest in a politician, and you can steal legally.”
I love it: can I steal that and use it as a sig line in email?
The private prison trend is very Stalinist. Think about it.
.
It wouldn’t take much money or time in this shitty economy that they’ve created,
for the Evil Ones to staff their Gulags with like-minded goon squads,
good family men all, all authoritarian followers, all knowing if they don’t play along
they could easily replace the man they just helped kill.
Of course. Knock yourself out.
But it’s like saying water is wet.
But ya, go for it.
Which of course is the point.
They have brought back workhouses and poorhouses.
They’re just called corporate prisons.
Defense Contractors Using Prison Labor to Build High-Tech Weapons Systems
http://www.alternet.org/rights/150777/defense_contractors_using_prison_labor_to_build_high-tech_weapons_systems/
Prisoners Help Build Patriot Missiles
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/03/prisoners-help-build-patriot-missiles/
US Army Recruits Prisoners to Make Body Armor For As Little As 23 Cents An Hour
http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2011/03/15/us-army-recruits-prisoners-to-make-body-armor-for-as-little-as-23-cents-an-hour/
Why are Prisoners Building Patriot Missiles?
http://www.minyanville.com/businessmarkets/articles/defense-industrial-base-defense-budget-defense/3/7/2011/id/33198
And this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Google it.
Essentially slaves.
Also,
Former Mayor Daley is an idiot for doing that.
Morgan Stanley originally bought the rights, but then they sold them to a conglomerate in Baharain (of all places). Now, if people want a parade and/or block party in Chicago, they have to get permission from the company in Baharain.
it’s a truly screwed up situation, and it also shows this privitization stupidity is bipartisan.
I firmly believe that these private prisons will soon be turned into debtors’ prisons. We are headed to a nightmare scenario and all these so-called tea partiers taking their marching orders from the brothers Koch are so mentally challenged that they think the new reality they are creating will apply to them as well as the rest of us. The brothers Koch will kick them to the curb as soon as their goals are met.
good point janeane – the stupidity certainly crosses party lines. NM saw a lot of private prison construction under a democratic govenror, Hawaii’s democratic leadership has been sending prisoners to mainland private facilities for years. Money talks, and when these companies spend the unlimited amounts they’re not permitted to spend to help get these folks elected, it only makes sense that politicians would do favors once they arrive in office.
But at least in the prison arena, republicans seem much more enthusiastic about privatizing everything they can get their hands on.
for way more on this trend, you should check out a blog run by a fellow named Bob Sloan called Federal PIECP and Program Violations, found here:
http://sloan-wwwpiecp-violations.blogspot.com/
Great article. I love the line, “The public administration element of certain things the government does is important, even essential, to those goods. Publicness emphasizes accountability, voice, transparency, rules and claims using reasons that go beyond the self”
But the point is important here; that the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has worked to increase criminal sentences, and is now working on privatizing parole, all in order to turn more taxpayer dollars over to the private sector. ALEC is a terrible, seedy organization that literally allows business leaders and lobbyists from every major company in this country to write legislation, then helps them get it passed in state legislatures. They also are the group behind the attacks on unions that have taken place in Wisconsin, Florida, Ohio, Maine, and elsewhere. They’re funded by the Kochs and basically every major company you can think of. And they’re literally the most subversive force in state politics today.
Thanks for the link.
Also want to say thanks to you.
Because of people like you and namely your diaries, is the reason I know anything about this. If folks like you didn’t bring this to light here, many of us would still be ignorant about this insanity. Thanks and keep writing about this stuff.
np. I’m still kinda shocked that people want to listen to me vent about it at this point. But I’m glad you, and others like you, are listening.
I also will add a note of thanks for all the great work you do, WhyIHateCCA. Your work has helped open my eyes on this subject, so keep climbing the mountain one step at a time and keep venting.
You are right and will eventually win this fight.
This is already happening in Minnesota. It made the national news about a year ago. The county of Anoka arrests people who have a debt and don’t show up for court to answer the charge to a collection agency. Then when you are in jail they us the bail money to pay to the collection agency.
Each day the “strategists and experts” on the tube are talking about “Civil Unrest” that they see will becoming down the road in the near future because of all of this BS.
A guest from Texas on the “Last Word” yesterday said Rick Perry is trying to sell everything in Texas…working on all the freeways right now.
Unfortunately it’s not just the private ones interested in debtors’ prisons. Cash-strapped states and counties have been increasingly turning to this as a budgetary solution (you know, rather than just NOT locking people up). The ACLU did a big report on it last year:
http://www.aclu.org/prisoners-rights-racial-justice/penny-rise-americas-new-debtors-prisons
geez if you’re gonna spam my posts at least try to improve your spelling and grammar.