Wall Street Makes the Soap You Drop in Prison

Or is that Wall Street Makes the Soap, the Prison and the Laws that put you there. Yeah, that's more like it.

Many people in the United States are aware that we have a boat-load of people in prisons. However, many people are not aware that we have more people in prison than any other country in the world, even though we have only 4.5% of the world's population. Being an Amerikan and all, I was a little bit disturbed by this information when I learned of it several years ago. Further, even though it upset me, the anger I fostered was for our government, thinking that they had all these ridiculous drug laws, etc., and just chalking it up to how legalese and corrupt our government is becoming. Well that was half the truth.

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Today, my curiosity led me from an article on drones on the Candian/US border, to drug trafficking, to Afghanistan opium fields, to increase drugs in the US, to increase in prison population to ... get this, Wall Street. So, here is the skinny.

The Players

As a result, private-prison stocks are selling at unusual -- and untenable -- discounts to their historical multiples or value. The three biggest companies are Corrections Corp. of America, which controls 39% of private-prison beds, Geo Group, which runs 25%, and Cornell, with 10%. While their stocks have rebounded recently, they still trade at 12 to 18 times what each is expected to earn in 2010 -- compared with multiples pushing 30 before the financial crisis.
...
Besides, private prisons earn steadily recurring revenue, impervious to seasons or business cycles. Customers don't defect easily to competitors. And the facilities tend to be durable, low-maintenance and quite immune to changing architectural whims.

Original Source: online.wsj.com...

So, let take a look at this Corrections Corp. Of America.

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According to my research, Corrections Corp. of America (CCA) (www.correctionscorp.com...) is the largest of the private prison companies out there, and with the CEO blazing trails through Wall Street, there are many following suit. From their website:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – CCA CEO and President Damon Hininger has been named among America's "20 Most Powerful CEOs Age 40 or Under" by Forbes Magazine. The list features the nation's leading group of young top executives of the country's biggest publicly traded companies by market capitalization, as of Feb. 11, 2011.

Wow, look at those profits ...

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I bet Damon Hininger's parents are proud of the fellow. The interestingly, let's have a glance at the shareholders of CCA:

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Not suprisingly, many of these companies have adresses on Wall Street - or to that effect - and several in the Private Contractor/Military Industrial Complex. General Electric is even a shareholder. However, don't for one minute cast worry for any corruption, as stated by Wellington Management (second largest shareholder of CCA):

Our private and independent ownership model appeals to clients who place a high priority on confidentiality, and our sole business focus on institutional investment management ensures there is no conflict of interest.

Look, it is just a business model folks, nothing wrong with that. We save you money per person ... but wait, how many persons do you need? Obviously, they save costs to run a prison, on a per person basis, however, they are in the business of growing their market share, which means more joes like us.

Lobbyist Laws?

It is not uncommon for lobbyist to write much of the laws that pass through congress.

It's time for Wall Street to see if it can get its money's worth in Washington. Over the last 10 years, banks and other financial companies have poured $1.7 billion into the coffers of congressional candidates, most of that going to members of the House and Senate financial committees. Usually, The New York Times reports, this cash flow has bought banks and their allies preferred treatment in D.C.

Original Source: www.thedailybeast.com...

ALEC has taken credit over the years for many of the kinds of state [laws] that have greatly expanded our prison population … and caused so much racial disparity," says Judith Greene, a policy analyst with Justice Strategies, a nonprofit criminal-justice policy research group.

Original Source: www.diversityinc.com...

Making Soap and Other Goodies

What has happened over the last 10 years? Why are there so many prisoners?

"The private contracting of prisoners for work fosters incentives to lock people up. Prisons depend on this income. Corporate stockholders who make money off prisoners' work lobby for longer sentences, in order to expand their workforce. The system feeds itself," says a study by the Progressive Labor Party, which accuses the prison industry of being "an imitation of Nazi Germany with respect to forced slave labor and concentration camps."

The prison industry complex is one of the fastest-growing industries in the United States and its investors are on Wall Street. "This multimillion-dollar industry has its own trade exhibitions, conventions, websites, and mail-order/Internet catalogs. It also has direct advertising campaigns, architecture companies, construction companies, investment houses on Wall Street, plumbing supply companies, food supply companies, armed security, and padded cells in a large variety of colors."

According to the Left Business Observer, the federal prison industry produces 100% of all military helmets, ammunition belts, bullet-proof vests, ID tags, shirts, pants, tents, bags, and canteens. Along with war supplies, prison workers supply 98% of the entire market for equipment assembly services; 93% of paints and paintbrushes; 92% of stove assembly; 46% of body armor; 36% of home appliances; 30% of headphones/microphones/speakers; and 21% of office furniture. Airplane parts, medical supplies, and much more: prisoners are even raising seeing-eye dogs for blind people.

Original Source: www.globalresearch.ca...

Anyway, here is what pisses me off the most. Corporations have taken over as an "esteemed citizen" in our legal system, often with more rights than we have as persons. Further, time and time again you see corporations getting off easy, where you would never see that with respect to an individual citizen. Take for instance this ruling yesterday involving a Pharmaceutical Company and Vaccines:

The Supreme Court has just ruled a federal law bars lawsuits against drug makers for the serious side effects from childhood vaccines. In a 6-2 vote, the court held that drug maker Wyeth can not be held liable in Pennsylvania state court for the health problems a now 19 year old suffered from a vaccine in infancy.

Original Source: www.glgroup.com...

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Well, I guess I knew this all along, but now I know. Everything is a business model. Our government being rigged and corrupt is just half of it ... Wall Street is the other half.

Here are some similar threads by other ATSers that you might like for further reading:
1 in 100 Americans in Prison: www.abovetopsecret.com...
Elderly dying in Prisons: www.abovetopsecret.com...
Prison Population to drop: www.abovetopsecret.com...

reply to post by alyoshablue


flagged for an excellent presentation , i used to work for a prison that housed both federal and state housed
inmates , they were a private prison received so much money per head and the inmates did not benefit from
any of it, bad medical, little food, hardly any programs , it is just all about the money.

Alyo, You have hit the nail on the head. I thought about a thread and may still start one but anyone who can not see that we have hit the basics of a police state is asleep. We are bought and sold to the corps. Our reps. have decided that we are property, a commodity to be bought and sold to the highest bidder. Matbe some day the sheeple will wake up.


Stars and Flags for the OP.

reply to post by IgnoranceAssassin


It's always about the money, isn't it? It just makes me sick "these people" don't care one iota about anything but their pocketbooks! This is why we lose more of our constitutional rights everyday. Sad, sad, sad.

We need a brew baker out there, The same must be here in canada, something that nobody cares about filling coffer's pockets again there just worst than criminals, its haveing the oppertunities to do and know better less ignorances, the element is more greed.