Once upon a time, it was the land of opportunity; now California is faced with being the land of inmates' releases. Its future, California's future, looks to be bleak with more than the potential of becoming the land of pandemonium, more drug dealers and users, theft for normal criminal minds' reasoning as well as drug users' needs to fill their habit, prostitution, harassment, panhandling, shoplifting, broken business windows, auto break-ins and the list goes endlessly on.

At one time Ventura was known for "Come here on vacation and leave on probation". That has not been true in recent history, in fact, just the opposite.

Over the past few years, the Ventura police do their job and continuously arrest troublemaker. They, the troublemakers, then were taken to jail where the courts and the jails let them out due to the lack of room. Many of the lesser menaces to our society were released out onto the streets and go about doing what they do - commit crimes. They, society's menaces, know the jails are crowded and so they don't care if they are picked up for petty theft to somewhat larger offenses because, they know they'll be set free. Over time, the news media has in part reported these stories.

With tens of thousands of California inmates receiving a get-out-of-jail free pass, what was already a difficult cycle for police and other law enforcement peacemakers as well as the court systems, the cycle will more than likely become insurmountable.

A few years ago, Jim Monahan and Neil Andrews both long-term Ventura City Councilmen had their vehicles stolen - Monahan in Oxnard while eating at a reputable restaurant and Andrews while parked by the Ventura County Courthouse. Then the publisher of Town Biz 101's practically restored 1979 Datsun 280ZX sports car was stolen out the City Parking Structure in Downtown Ventura. Many others, too, had reported similar incidents. A major Ventura County auto sting involving at least a hundred police officers took place within the year. The question here is whether that sting and many others like it will unravel with the get-out-of-jail free passes.

More recently, several businesses had their stores/restaurants broken into with item stolen especially computers and the like.

Plans were on the table to enlarge the Todd Ranch Jail (a Ventura County jail facility) off of HWY 126 going to Santa Paula. Those plans now are on the far, far back burner. The existing jails in Ventura County like most of the rest of the State of California are crowded due to lack of jail space. With the California budget cuts, it looks like a long way into the future before funds will be available to do the additions so badly needed to the jail.

We at Town Biz 101 are still trying to locate information on whether there is an existing study regarding cost effectiveness: the costs of incarcerations verses the recycling criminal processing, i.e., the cost incurred by extra police force presence, crowded court personnel cost and more.

Much of the above was posted to Town Biz 101 on June 6, 2009 long before the get-out-of-jail-free passes were issued.

What's your take? Email us your opinions and solutions to: flyerettenews@live.com or townbiz101@hotmail.com

So the headlines of the Article read: "AIG Bonuses are called Outrageous but Legal". I agree, why should the people that were instrumental in causing the American Government to give them $180 Billion dollars as a bailout get anything?

As ridiculous as this bonus thing is, it pales in comparison to THE MONEY THAT POLITICIANS SPEND BEFORE EACH ELECTION in order to get themselves a job that pays less than $200,000 a year. The Woman and Ex-CEO Meg Whitman (a Billionaire), who wants to be the next California Governor, is spending, she says, upwards of $100,000,000 to get the position. A big chunk of her campaign money is coming from "out-of-state" sources that are trying to help sway the California election.

The soon to be Ex-Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, spent over $45,000,000 dollars to sway the California Public. President Obama passed all other presidential rivals in a record-setting 2008 U.S. election campaign that generated $1.7 billion in spending by candidates.

If all the money spent in a four-year election cycle were added up, I believe there would be enough money to drag the United States out of debt.

Rellis Smith
rellis39@sbcglobal.net
www.californiachile.com.