PONDERINGS FROM THE ETERNAL NOW

Sr. Carol Gilbert, O.P.
Early October 2003

1. Issued one pair of steel-toed shoes (men's)
   Shower thongs - $.90
   Tennis shoes - $50. - $70.
   Boots - $70 and up (special order)
2. No free typewriter or computer available
   Typewriter Ribbon - $7.50
   Lift-off Tape - $1.25
3. No lock is provided for our small lockers. Stealing is rampant.
   Cost of lock - $7.00
4. Thin cap and garden gloves provided - no scarf.
   Hat, Gloves, Scarf - $20.
5. Issued one pair of men's long underwear
   Long tops - $8.
   Long bottoms - $5. (both men's)
6. Headphones and radios control the TVs and Videos in housing units and chapel
   Headphones - $30. - $50.
7. 24 over the counter common meds are sold. This is where you are sent to treat yourself
   Yeast infection medication - $13.
8. Grey sweat-shirts and sweat-pants are allowed after 4:00 p.m. and on weekends.
   Cost - $14.20 each … more for larger sizes (men's)
9. Fruit and fruit juices are sold weekly for those who can afford and want fruit more than once a day or so.
10. Wash is done in the main laundry, but only the clothes they issue are so washed. In the housing units:
    Wash - $.40, Dry - $.40,
    Laundry soap - $2. - $6.
11. Fans, alarm clocks, watches, sunglasses - all must be purchased.
12. Families need an extra stamp and envelope because money orders are no longer sent to the inmate with a letter. All money orders go to a National Lock Box in Marietta, GA

And, of course, selling one's body for pay is the last resort for some of these women.

This gives you an idea of how the poor remain poor since average jobs are $5.25 - $18.00 a month unless one works for the prison industry UNICOR for slave wages. If any fines or restitution are owed money is taken monthly from these wages. Life can be unbearable for these poor women.

Well, this is prison! Read on… The October 6 issue of The Nation has an article from Christian Parenti…"This unit's rifles are retooled hand-me-downs from Vietnam. They have inadequate radio gear, so they buy their own unencrypted Motorola walkie-talkies. The same goes for flashlights, knives and some components for night-vision sights. The low-performance Iraqi air-conditioners and fans, as well as the one satellite phone and payment cards shared by the whole company for calling home, were also purchased out of pocked from civilian suppliers."

Makes one wonder what the difference is between the Prison-Industrial-Complex and the Military-Industrial-Complex? Who said we should follow the money trail?

I close with these words from George Orwell:

"In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act."

Deep peace.  Carol