#105

Of Pigs and Men - part 1
by Nate A. Lindell #303724
WSPF P.O. Box 9900
Boscobel, WI 53805, USA

http://betweenthebars.org/blogs/5401

[photograph of baboons picking through trash]
Photo from p.14 of the Nov./Dec. 2012 issue of Saudi Aramco World, courtesy of the National Wildlife Research Center, Taif, Saudi Arabia saudiaramcoworld.com, saworld@aramcoservices.com

As soon as I saw this photo, I thought of the guards in my prison, always talking about working overtime, trying to stuff themselves with as much "food" as they can while at society's dump. But they're just the lower level of the "Beast", the prison-industrial complex. At the higher levels, prisoncrats also gorge on garbage, as do many prisoners (especially drug dealers + pimps, anyone making a living from degrading other people). This gives 'em all strong incentive to tolerate garbage. The degradation of humanity.

The delusions of "liberty + justice for all" promoted by U.S.A. fanatics stops many Americans from realizing what's going on with its criminal injustice system, as does its status as the last remaining superpower. And FEW people realize our (prisoners') daily reality, let alone the big piggish picture. One saving grace is that at least in the U.S., FOR NOW, we can tell the world about this career crime against humanity through a blog.

Soon we may do much more. Surely it violates some international treaty on human rights what goes on every day here: keeping mentally ill people here by deliberately mislabelling them as sane (see, e.g. www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=22710 by Bill Lueders), shooting them with pepperball guns, using tazers on them, beating guys who don't even resist, lying about us engaging in misconduct to keep us here, subtly enticing us to attack + harass each other rather than staff, feeding us puny portions of food, leaving us naked in cold cells, not allowing us to touch out loved ones on visits, keeping some (e.g. me) in this supermax for over 11 years... etc... etc.

In Jogi v. Vogues, 480 F.3d 822 (7th Cir. 2007), my federal court of appeals noted that rights guaranteed by treaties the U.S. has ratified may be enforced under 42 U.S.C. 1983, the U.S. Civil Rights Act, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1331. Game, on! Tips welcome!

Nate