I stumbled across this post about the Georgia prison riots at a blog dedicated to Mormonism and radical politics. My mind is obviously too narrow to contain the words “Mormon” and “Socialist” in the same thought, but there’s some good stuff there, like this report from a poster who spent a night in a women’s jail in Georgia:
I didn’t know books would be contraband, a near impossibility. When I saw how much these women loved to read, I told them I’d mail them some books, only to discover that to give these women books I would have to come in person during visiting hours and give one at a time. There is, of course, no library in the jail. The aim of the place is to punish, shame, and deprive.
[…]I didn’t know that 19-year-old Katie has been waiting for a trial date for six months now so the State can figure out if she actually stole that Wii or not. Katie was going to nursing school and caring for her two-year-old daughter when she was arrested, and because her parents now have this little girl to care for they can’t afford bail. It’s like a debtor’s prison: the longer you’re in there, the less likely you’ll be able to afford to get out. Katie, who seems tough, capable, stoic, cries when she speaks of her daughter. She told me she thought she’d be fine when she learned her mother and daughter could visit her twice a week, but she fell apart when she instead was only allowed to speak through a telephone to their images on a television screen. This is the case for all of them in Muscogee County Jail.
(via Reddit)
curtis
Actually, early mormons practiced a form of communal living under what was called the “Law of Consecration”. All property belonged to the church and was distributed as needed throughout the community. Several western settlements tried living under the law of consecration, but it always failed, predictably. I believe that mormon doctrine says that when Jesus returns the law of consecration will be restored to the earth. They take great pains to draw distinctions between their beliefs and communism or socialism, but the fundamental similarity is obvious to any neutral observer.
russell
Now that is some mormonism I can get behind.
The prison regime in this country is unutterably fucked up. For reasons that escape me, Americans love to punish people.
gene108
We punish “them”. We never punish “us”.
“They” are shiftless, lazy, crooks, who by their nature are prone to crime and intellectually quite dumb. “They” cannot be rehabilitated because by their nature they are not as bright and as hardworking as “us”.
What choice do we have as a society, when we have to deal with “them”, but to punish “them” and hope they, through their limited faculties, can learn some lesson not to do criminal activities again?
The “us” versus “them” mindset, I think, underlies why Americans are so against social safety nets and other government roles that would make things better for everyone; “they” do not deserve it, so “we” should not give it to them, even if it hurts “us”.
Xenos
Has the word ‘soc()ialist’ been unbanned by the spamfilter? I have been seeing in the comments lately, and was wondering.
As for leftist religious folks, this was not so unusual not that long ago. Wish I had a great theory or understanding of why this is no longer the case, but it seems tied to perverse turn many American institutions took when Reagan ascended to the presidency. It is like the entire country woke up one day and decided that if that mook could be president then the country was screwed and we all need to get our piece before the place goes fully to hell.
Edit: nevermind – still banned.
gene108
Until you know someone, who gets into the maw of the criminal system, you don’t really appreciate how incredibly powerful the government is and how little power you have.
Money mitigates this to a great extent.
If you don’t have money, you are totally on the mercy of the government to do the right thing; for someone who is doing their job to look beyond what they need to do to clock out at the end of the day and take some individual concern about you as an individual. That sort of person, on any job, is exteremely rare and if you don’t have the money to post bail and hire yourself a good attorney, that’s what you are hoping for comes along to save yourself from whatever mercy the state feels like showing that given day you go before the court.
SFAW
gene108 @ #2-
Ah, that explains why the banksters never really get punished. Since they’re incredibly smart and hard-working. and are apparently Masters of the Universe, they should be allowed to continue staying out of jail. So I guess Rick Santelli’s gentle remonstrance can be applied, not just to the economy, but to the Social Condition as well.
And all along, I’d been thinking what an insufferable prick Santelli was, and how he should consider himself fucking lucky that he gets paid pretty well for a no-value-add “job”, and how he should adjust his attitude accordingly. Shows how little I know or understand about Teh Real World.
Folderol & Ephemera
@gene108:
“A liberal is a conservative who’s never been mugged. A conservative is a liberal who’s never been arrested.”
WereBear
Correction: Conservatives love to punish people.
Probably because they were harshly treated when they were “bad.”
Ross Hershberger
I’ve stumbled across a lot of things in the ‘tubes but never a blog about Mormonism and radical politics. How does that happen?
SFAW
You gotta know the secret handshake. And get your Angel Moron-i Secret Decoder Ring PDQ!
comrade scott's agenda of rage
They don’t call it the Prison Industrial Complex for nothing.
My brother, a former Asst Attorney General in Arkansas has always told me that the legal system is not your friend. Stories like these are the rule, not the exception. That’s why our legal system is another form of class warfare. If you can’t afford good lawyer(s), you’re fucked.
mtraven
Another strange thread in the rich tapestry that is Mormon culture.
Agoraphobic Kleptomaniac
Don’t worry, even so called liberal mo’s don’t know this website exists. I’ve shown it to several of my more open minded mo friends and they think it’s some sort of joke site.
rnoble1983
I read through most of the post thinking I was reading about a prison in Georgia the country and former Soviet state. When I saw the Wii mentioned I thought, “maybe Georgia is more developed then I thought.” Then I saw Muscogee County and I thought, “well I guess that makes sense as well.”
Adam C
As a Canadian kid, I was “anti” American. I’d cheer against you at the Olympics, make “ignorant American” jokes, deride your foreign policy, whatever. You were an easy target, it was defiant, counter-cultural, kind of cool. And immature.
As I grew older, I reluctantly faced some facts: Canadians weren’t really any better in a lot of ways, there are many, many, wonderful and smart Americans out there, and some American institutions such as the governance system really are superior. Certainly it’s more productive to criticize myown country and try to make things better.
Now I apologize, because over the last 10 years (and especially since the 2004 election) I’ve been changing back. Stories like Katie’s remind me: your country is fucked up.
mutt
Jeez, dot call it a “prison riot”- its something far, far more ….dangerous to this whole rotten prison industry-
http://blackagendareport.com/?q=content%2Fga-prisoner-strike-continues-second-day-corporate-media-mostly-ignores-them-corrections-offi
http://hiphopandpolitics.wordpress.com/2010/12/12/day-3-of-historic-prison-strike-in-georgia-blacked-out-by-media-guards-committing-violence/
geg6
Well, if there can be such a thing, I have a happier prison story that is perfect for the War on Christmas.
I am loving this guy:
http://pandagon.net/index.php/site/comments/festivus_in_many_ways_more_real_than_those_boring_old_religious_traditions/
c u n d gulag
Heaven forbid we allow books or classes for those in prison. That might educate them and improve their lot in life, and we can’t have any of that now, can we?
I used to teach college courses in a Maximum Security in NY for 3 1/2 years in the late ’70’s to early ’81.
Then Reagan came in.
The program went out.
And the fact that the recidivism rate was a fraction of that of prisoners who went back out with an Associates or BA or BS, didn’t matter.
We must punish, punish, punish! Say these moral Christians.
someofparts
You know Adam C, not along ago I would have agreed with you and then jokingly asked if you would help me move to Canada.
Now it’s beginning to sink in that when we in the U.S. destroy this economy it is going to fuck with your Canadian economy big time too.
So, instead of asking to immigrate, please let me just offer my apology for what our deadly soon-to-be ex-country is about to do to your innocent bystander country.
p.a.
Many of the early utopian socialist societies were religious. It is a bit of right wing framing to identify socialism strictly with governments and statist economics. I don’t know (or care) if Mormon tithing is required or just requested (with a good bit of social pressure included), but they do provide many social services from the church’s funds. Many of the private societies’ ‘socialist’ functions were subsumed by governments when the private institutions were overwhelmed by the public need.
Ross Hershberger
Evidence that the criminal justice system exists only to punish the poor: The hand slap that Rush L. got for doctor shopping and gobbling narcotics with both hands didn’t even sting.
If he’d been some homeless guy they’d have tossed him in the clink so deep his Christmas cards would come in April.
But not an upstanding Law’n Order conservative.
And who thinks Tom Delay will ever be punished for money laundering?
Nope.
Porco Rosso
The Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints has always been about Godly communism. Thus the notion of Godless communism has always been repellent.
Look up Brigham Young and the United Order
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Order
Shane in Utah
In the mid-sized city in northern Utah where I live, the buses are free. How’s that for Mormon socialism?
Jay in Oregon
@Porco Rosso:
Which is funny, because one of the biggest asshole wingers I know is a Mormon. (To be fair, he’s not a particularly good Mormon.)
tesslibrarian
NPR did a series of reports on the problem of bail as a class issue. They focused on Lubbock, Texas, but I’m sure it’s the same everywhere, certainly in Georgia.
Part 1:
Bail Burden Keeps U.S. Jails Stuffed with Inmates
Part 2:
Inmates Who Can’t Make Bail Face Stark Options
Part 3:
Bondsman Lobby Targets Pretrial Release Program
ETA: These were from January of this year.
Porco Rosso
@Jay in Oregon:
The Republicans started out by opposing the twin barbarisms of slavery and polygamy.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/harp/1128.html
ItAintEazy
Morgan Stanley financial adviser only gets misdemeanor charge on hit-and-run case. Why? Because the prosecutors say a felony charge will “affect his job.”
rf80412
@Porco Rosso: That’s probably how they square their socialist religious teachings with their reactionary politics and love of cowboy capitalism: “No socialism until everyone converts!” But after you convert you won’t dare challenge what the Mormon hierarchy says, and they didn’t become multi-millionaires by sharing and caring.
All wrapped up with a neat little bow.
Calouste
So Madoff gets 150 years for stealing about $18 billion and this woman has already done 6 months while she hasn’t even been convicted of stealing about $300?
Remember kids, small crime doesn’t pay.
Paul in KY
@Adam C: Typical Canadian: apologize as you’re telling us how fucked up we are :-)
The Other Chuck
Know what would be great? If someone could be assed to take about 30 seconds to edit the filters so that we mere peons could post the word soci@lism with correct spelling. Cute little site dysfunctions lose their charm when they start having birthdays.
DJ Adequate
Well, I am pretty much a Mormon socialist. I image many LDS living in Europe or Canada are as well. But Utah, and the US West, tends to raise up unthinking wingers — who don’t seem to much understand politics or their own theology.
Kat
Great interview today at DemocracyNow.org:
Prisoner Advocate Elaine Brown on Georgia Prison Strike: “Repression Breeds Resistance
At least four prisons in Georgia remain in lockdown five days after prisoners went on strike in protest of poor living and working conditions. Using cell phones purchased from guards, the prisoners coordinated the nonviolent protests to stage the largest prison strike in U.S. history. There are reports of widespread violence and brutality by the guards against the prisoners on strike. We speak to longtime prison activist Elaine Brown of the newly formed group Concerned Coalition to Respect Prisoners’ Rights. [includes rush transcript]