Swampland – Pt. 2: Rats

            Years ago, my younger son – then in Kindergarten – came home and announced at dinner that his best friend wasn’t speaking to him. When we inquired why, he matter-of-factly announced, “I told the teacher on him.” My immediate reaction was right out of “Sopranos”: “Son, dead finks can’t squeal.” He laughed and for weeks after that, as we would run around the yard, I would hear him giggle and repeat my words over and over, “dead finks can’t squeal.” It also gave my then wife and I a chance to instill a life lesson on our son, one I had to call on a number of times since my arrest: Namely, unless there is an imminent danger of harm to someone, I won’t be a teller.

            Rats – no one in prison is as despised as a rat, a guy who goes to those in charge and tells on his fellow inmates. And yet, this system couldn’t survive without guys ratting each other out. There is no honor in telling. Usually the guy doing the telling is already implicated in his own wrongdoing. “Tell us what you know and we’ll go easy on you.” Too often, that is what passes for “good” police work.

            In here it happens daily. And, it’s usually the guys who beat their chests the loudest and say they hate guys who talk. Case in point – two idiots in here (Heemer and Fat Dom) steal a case of laundry detergent from the loading dock. Why? Who knows. The dock area has a camera and when the case turned up missing, “let’s go to the video tape.” Both knuckleheads are locked up for theft. Here’s where the “rat” comes to play.

            Fat Dom is a scumbag. There’s no other way to say it. He tries to act like one of the five percenter philosopher kings, spouting off multi-syllable words, which he neither understands nor correctly pronounces, yet he is one of the most ignorant men I have ever met in my life. He sells out Heemer. Before you know it, Fat Dom is out of the hole – guilty plea on a theft charge and loss of a little good time (but hey, his “bid” ends in May!). Heemer? He’s being transferred. The irony is, Heemer is a follower. Dom is the truly corrupt one. But Dom regularly is in the officers’ ears so his behavior is overlooked.

            And that’s the problem with Rats. You never know when they’ll come after you. Piss one off and your name gets in front of the officers.

            What does it say about the system that they rely on guys telling on each other to maintain order? George Orwell, in his classic novel “1984” described power vesting in “Big Brother” who knew your every move, even your thoughts. And “Big Brother” made sure folks told on each other. Big Brother is alive and well in here and relying on dishonest, dirty inmates to tell on other inmates. It’s just another sign of how dirty this place is.

           

Convict Cable

Prison has cable and prisoners have TV’s. To a good many people, that will come as a surprise. Our prison here is on “Corrections Cable”. We get basic channels, bare minimum, and the inmates pay for it, not individually but with the “slush fund” the prison collects from overcharging on commissary (for a detailed explanation on the commissary and cable contracts read my previous post – “Contracts 101”).



TV watching is a prime past time in here. Inmates can buy a color TV (13 inch) through commissary for over $200. The TV is specially manufactured for prisoners. It’s made out of clear plastic so officers can see inside to make sure there’s no contraband stored in the case. The same TV in a catalog lists for $89.


You order your set, wait two weeks and then you walk across the compound to personal property and pick it up. The property officer puts “security” stickers around the case (stickers removed, you get an alteration charge) and engraves your name on the set to prevent theft. You also need to order a surge protector, coaxial cable (to hook your set up to cable) and a headset. Prison rules prohibit you from watching your set without headphones. After spending your $300 for the full “set up” you’re ready for TV.


Of the 96 bunks in this building, there are 92 individual sets. We get the four major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox). Then there are the specialty channels: CNN, TBS, TNT, CW, A & E, Univision (Spanish), PBS, Health Channel, ESPN & ESPN2, BET, Spike, and Lifetime.


The two “eye opening” prison experiences for me have been watching guys line up for ice cream on Tuesday nights and seeing all the sets tuned to Lifetime. There is something off kilter about guys sitting on their beds, eating butter pecan ice cream, intently watching “Army Wives” on Lifetime. To be fair, most guys watch Lifetime because the women are hot.


The other big channel is Spike. Spike is all bikinis, guns, cars and action movies. Two weeks ago, Stallone’s newest “Rambo” came on Spike. From the corner of the building, P or V or E (pick a letter; it’s someone’s name!) yelled out “Rambo on 10”. Within nanoseconds 50 sets turned to Spike.


You can spot the child molesters. They love cartoons (no joke) and avoid any show with bikinis (Spike had “Ms. Hooters” contest on a month ago, the “game guys” all had “You’ve Got Mail” on).


TV is really mind numbing. There are guys that lie in bed all day (except for meals and bathroom breaks) switching from “Jerry Springer” to “Wife Swap”. They know every channels programming schedule by heart. Their TVs remain on 24/7 except during “standing counts” (there are only 3 of these each day).


If you are shocked that prisons allow inmates to have TVs and cable, think of the alternative. 96 guys living on top of each other, many guys angry at the treatment they received in court, feeling wronged, pissed off at the world. Guys with kids put in bunks next to child molesters; Bloods next to Crips; and you hire two female COs to keep the peace. TV does more to keep the building quiet than 10 Cos could do.


I used to be a big TV guy before I got arrested. Now, I check the scores on ESPN at 5:30 in the morning and then the local news and headlines. With the exception of an hour a night, my TV is off. There are too many books to read, stories to write, crossword puzzles to work, law work to handle; to dull my mind with TV.


Don’t get me wrong, I love a couple of shows. Besides sports and news my “picks” for TV: any Gordon Ramsey cooking show; “The Mentalist”; “The Office” (Tuesday night 3 hours on TBS, just an FYI); “The Closer”, “Rizzoli and Isles”, and “House”. I’m just trying to keep my mind fresh to get through each day. Gotta go, “Big Brother” is coming on.