Politicicing Inside
Laurel Highlands Prison
By: George Feigley
Cofounder
Many of the guards at the Laurel Highlands prison are far
right-wing political dupes. Oppressing prisoners is just part
of their philosophy. They subscribe to a philosophy of oppressing
all the little people - except themselves!
Laurel Highlands is a sort of prison hospital in Southwestern Pennsylvania near Somerset. It's one of the places where old, sick, infirmed and hopeless prisoners are sent to die. Because the prisoners are so feeble, they make ideal targets for the guards' abuses. Virtually all Pennsylvania prison guards are bullies and thugs. Those at Laurel Highlands have an easier time than most others. The prisoners are in such bad physical condition that the staff can easily cause them serious problems. The guards don't miss an opportunity. Laurel Highlands prison has hundreds of Afro-American prisoners, but only a total of 2 Afro-American guards. The whole community including the prison staff is racist. Women, once barefoot and pregnent, now fair a lot better. From the superintendent down, women flock around the prison like sea gulls on a city dump. One poor old bleach-blond fancies herself a political preacher, an expert on all things Republican. In true Republican fashion, she seems to have made it her mission to bully and browbeat prisoners into Republican totalitarianism. The old girl's name is Burger. Apparently she can't afford to have a first name, or she's afraid to use it. She calls herself "Officer Burger." The title "officer" apparently makes her feel important. Lost of Republicans have a need to feel important. We didn't bother to look up the crone's name in the employee list. She's not that important. We'll just call her "off." On one occasion "off" was shrilly haranguing an older black prisoner about the great evils of what she called the "welfare system." Admittedly, the prisoner was neither bright or clever. Indeed he was a pest who suffered from mental and psychological problems. That made him a perfect victim upon whom to hammer her political abuses. While she lounged around for over half an hour doing nothing except demeaning the prisoner, she preached that every person had to work. Every person had to support himself and it was a great crime for persons to be cared for by others. This from a woman who's essentially a ward of the taxpayers. It seems like a very self-contradictory position for a Pennsylvania prison guard. None of them actually work. Nobody is more lazy and no body is more addicted to huge state hand-outs. In the course of her diatribe she did more that simply talk down to the Afro-American. She arrogantly badgered and lectured him on her distorted view of politics. She loudly called the prisoner names and criticized him. He and other needy persons were "stupid" and "lazy." She railed about how "wrong" he was about everything he was saying, whatever that may have been. "Off" used the opportunity to scold the black man as if he were a presumptuous child, and to impose her political mania upon him. It was not until other prisoners spoke up that she backed down somewhat and revised some of her most extreme remarks. "Officer" Burger certainly has a lot of company with her bullying bigotry. Another aging and self-important guard, Eisler, also works on the same hospital unit. Among other things, he forces prisoners to watch FOX "news" propaganda. Perhaps his intent is to indoctrinate them with nonsense. He scolds the Hispanic prisoners not to speak Spanish. While he speaks no American Indian tongues, he insists that they speak "American." He's been heard making racial slurs and demeaning remarks about some prisoners. Eisler expresses little interests in the abuses or expenses of big business, big oil or the very serious abuses of the Republicans in government. Instead, he screams about "people who don't work." While he collects healthcare from the taxpayers, he objects to others having healthcare. He espouses his bigotry and his hatred. It's a very limited, narrow view; better to have persons homeless than persons housed, better to have persons sick than well, better to have persons ignorant that well schooled. It's the Republican platform! Big oil stealing $1000 from him is less important than some black guy needing $1 of "welfare." Don't think that these two examples are unusual. There are many thousands of Department of Imprisonment employees who, like all Republican sheep, follow wherever their Judas-goat lords tell them to go. To sane persons, it's mystifying why so many persons vote against their financial and political self-interests. Apparently, they're just dumb as a crate of Styrofoam, or maybe it's just hatred. Republican politics isn't about reason and thought. It's about hate and harm.
"He hath a good judgment You are welcome to use or re-publish
any of our material.
|