The state of Florida has introduced the first faith-based penitentiary in the U.S. Doug Sanders, consistently the best reporter at the Globe and Mail, files this report, Florida Puts Felons in God's Big House.
Now, it may just be my suspicious mind, but this initiative clearly signals another notch of degradation in the changing role of goverment: state social programs recede and religion replaces the state. Lawtey Correctional Institute is the name of the new prison and Florida intends to make it the first of many faith-based institutions. In fact, the government of Florida seems pretty content to get out of many of what used to be called its responsibilities and to let religious organizations take over. Every department is now required to have a "'faith-based co-ordinator' who is expected to reach out to churches, synagogues and missionary groups and encourage them to make bids to offer government services in exchange for grants from Washington." And why not? With $200 million in grants offered by the federal Office of Faith-Based Initiatives, what cash-starved state government wouldn't want to get in on the action?
American history and mythology have always closely interlinked church and state. Prisoners have frequently been the test subjects of various social experiments from medical procedures to current call centre practices. Why not do away with any sembalance of secularity and combine the two for good? Move the courts to churches, bring priests in to pray for the accused, post some commandments of varying severity, find an oracle to make decisions and crucify a couple of murderers on TV as examples.
Too bad if you're not a christian, but think of the synergies of a merger between church and state. It seems like the ultimate end to our simultaneous race to the bottom of service and the common good and race to the top of centralized power and accumulated assets.
Perhaps the last laugh of globalization is the emerging, unintended splashback. Powerful nations engineered agreements to put them at an advantage. They saw themselves as masters of their domain, imposing their will upon others. But in practice, exports do not occur in a vacuum. For every Hollywood movie sent to Indonesia, a Nike sneaker comes back; we understand this part of the equation. But what about the unforeseen imports: a servant class, decaying infrastructure, environmental degradation, an isolated, protected elite, a theocracy? It seems that from this vantage point, globalization has become more than economic integration. It has become integration.
If current trends continue a new word will have to be invented to describe the balance of power and rule in this new society. The new word could combine the traits of oligarchy (a small cabal), gerontocracy (the elderly), timocracy (the propertied class), plutocracy (the wealthy) and, of course, theocracy (religious law). Any suggestions?
Posted by James Sherrett at March 18, 2004 02:47 PMDoes this mean that they're going to take the time to teach all religions, like Islam, or Jedi, which is becoming popular, or even satanism?
All forms of religion.
If not, does that mean that the government will be controlling what passes as an acceptable religion? In the land called "the home of the free."
Do you think they'll take the time to teach the important lessons, like "shall not bear false witness," "let he without sin cast the first stone," or will those reflect badly on the government?
Just my thoughts after reading the article.