TIMOTHY J. MUISE
LONG-TERMERS REPRESENTATIVE
NORFOLK LIFERS' GROUP
P.O. BOX 43
NORFOLK, MA
02056-0043

*****

ARROGANCE PERSONIFIED
AND THE
DOWNFALL OF CIVILIZATION

by Timothy J. Muise

*****

Her air of disgust permeates the room. How dare the peasants ask for my attention? Don't they know I am queen? You can almost hear these thoughts in the air. Her kingdom of dirt is muddying around her, as alcohol seeps from her pores, but her entitlement is no less brazen as she scolds the surfs and steps on the slaves.

Is this some fallen Monarch or misguided royal inheritor? No. It is the deputy superintendent of Massachusetts largest prison, dictator or communist malfeasant can do the countries they terrorize. Is this an over-the-top take? Absolutely not. The streets of our cities and towns are plagued by crime due to the attitude of indifference and disdain that those who are charged with rehabilitating offenders posses. Today's gang violence is a direct result of nonsensical tough on crime laws that were implemented on the heels of the crack cocaine epidemic here in Massachusetts in the 1980's. The "Tours through the circles of hell" and "Joy of breaking rocks" philosophers of William Weld and the employees hired during that error have proven fatal in so many communities, yet these evil dinosaurs of that era still roam the prisons ruining anything positive that may spring up through the resistance that is corrections today.

All the politically correct buzz-words have made some things sound better, but putting lipstick on the pig does change the fact that it is a pig. It is delusional to think we have "correctional institutions". We have "prisons". It is foolish to call a guard a corrections officer. A warden is a warden, not a superintendent, this is not high school, but the most egregious semantic con game is to call a prisoner an inmate. This place may seem like an asylum on many days, but we must never forget we are prisoners. To me what that means is that if you crack the gate I will run out. I am held against my will.

Most of society believes that the prison system offers opportunities for men to change, or to "rehabilitate" as they put it. If they knew the truth they would be outraged. Folks like our queen ensure that any positive undertakings are stomped out with the furor of a jackbooted Nazi. How dare the prisoners want to change?

ARROGANCE PERSONIFIED...
Page 2.

The corrections system of today is merely a "jobs program" for DOC employees. The protection of the public safety has been replaced with the protection of the goose which lays the golden egg of DOC "money for nothing". A resume'? Who needs it. Work ethic? What's that? Qualifications? All you need is a pulse. Our queen is a glaring example, but her royal court of failure runs deep and you cannot believe the excess of unneeded staff in a system which has clearly displayed its failure by having the highest prison suicide rate in the nation as well as top the heap recidivism rates. As our queen prances through her self-created court of misery men exit the prison gate angry and unprepared, with society waiting for their wrath. Our queen declares, "Let them eat cake!"

The downfall of every human civilization started with the abuse of people who were somehow deemed "less than". When there exists the realization that you are failing, subconscious or cognitive, fear of that failure can manifest in efforts to lower others in an attempt to make yourself appear "higher". This is the psychological profile of today's corrections system. The 20 plus year veterans of this failure do all they can in an effort to suppress the self-esteem of the prisoners. Their failures can somehow be justified if the prisoner is made to be an animal, something less than human, who can never be redeemed. The true sadness of this fantasy is that the opposite is the truth. Men and women crave redemption. They thirst for the chance to improve their circumstances. Success could be the rule, not the exception, but folks like our queen will not allow this to be. Today's civilization, under the leadership of her majesty, has made the prisoner the person who they will "feed to the lions" on their way to the downfall of this civilization. This type of hatred, for any class of humans, surely leads to that downfall.

The "queen" is certainly a metaphor for many of the employees of the DOC. She is indeed a real living, breathing person, but she also represents all that is fatally wrong with corrections. Why do I make it sound so personal? Because it is. One of the coping mechanisms I have had to develop in order to deal with the frustration of my circumstances is to use writing as a way to release my anger. My words may seem an attack, they are, but my attack is meant to bring light into a dark room where evil surely lives. I make no case that prison frustration is any different than free world frustration, pain is pain after all, but many times prisoners have limited avenues to "calm the beasts". I can't take a stroll in the middle of the night or swim in the cold ocean until I feel refreshed. Sitting down and banging out a brief piece about some insane action or even can make it all better for me, put it all in perspective so to speak, but I must admit I like taking a shot at the queen. I think she deserves it and if she falls once out of her high horse saddle it will bring me satisfaction. I pray that her heart warms, but then I pass the ammunition!

ARROGANCE PERSONIFIED...
Page 3.

Now is the time to strip the queen of her crown. The sobering reality of redemption must be driven into her cold and evil heart. All whom she represents, all the malfeasants and evil doers, must be crushed by the weight of her dying ego. Civilization must be raised up upon the mountain that will rise from the ashes of the fallen abusers. The hearts of the captive must be freed from the bondage of imposed failure. The unfettered power of the abusive jailer queen over her captives must be replaced with opportunity and compassion. We can save the world from sure disaster. Let's tell the story of the evil queen. Let's wipe the lipstick off the pig. Join us in bringing salvation and redemption. Hope can and will replace hopelessness if we work together. We are powerful and the queen must bow to the true ruler, honorable men and women who desire to change. We will never let anyone tell us that the desire to change the world is too lofty of an ideal. Never fear being powerful, and that power will start with our personal change and efforts to dethrone all the evil kings and queens.

Authored by
Timothy J. Muise

"Who shall stand guard to the guards themselves?"
Chazal