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Alcatraz used to be the nation’s most feared prison. Now it’s a tourist site. And not a very good one at that. President Trump’s proposal to reopen it has been reflexively opposed because it comes from him, because his Democrat opponents have become members of a pro-crime party and, more practically, because Alcatraz was closed down for a reason.
The official reason is that Alcatraz became an albatross, an expensive white elephant with a bad reputation for the prison system, that everyone was happier getting rid of. The Kennedy administration in particular wanted to be seen as more progressive and Alcatraz flew in the face of its liberal agenda.
Alcatraz was indeed expensive to run. Some of that was due to the environment. Seawater took its toll and has taken its toll since. But some of that also came from efforts by the Bureau of Prisons to overcome the prison’s bad reputation by trying to turn it into a showpiece. Alcatraz went from being one of the hardest to one of the softest prisons at least as far as how the prisoners were catered to by the system.
None of it worked because the real violence and ugliness in Alcatraz came from the nature of the men trapped inside.
Financially there are good arguments to be made against reopening Alcatraz, but they miss the point.
President Trump understands that prisons are meant to be a deterrent. And the Alcatraz reputation is a deterrent. Much like Gitmo, now being used for foreign gang members, Alcatraz was a place no one wanted to be sent. That’s why President Trump has proposed reopening Alcatraz.
Prisons are not tourist destinations. The Alcatraz reputation may help deal with some of the current crime wave.
We took a ferry boat from Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco out to Alcatraz once.
Actually a good swimmer could easily make it from Alcatraz to shore.
I visited Al Capone’s cell when I was there 🙂
I can’t remember exactly how Alcatraz was transformed from prison to tourist attraction, but I remember it was a big thing for American Indians for awhile, and got a lot of coverage in the newspapers.
Easily? I severely doubt it. An experienced Olympic swimmer, maybe. If the strong current doesn’t pull you out of the bay, hypothermia will likely kill you.
only one inmate ever made the swim to shore – in 1963 – he was found near the golden gate bridge, almost too weak to move – that’s why Alcatraz was closed in 1963.
The two Anglin brothers and Frank Morris made their escape (1962) by holding on to a rope as the prison boat went back to shore, dragging the men thru the bay so that they didn’t have to swim against the currents -Smithsonian Channel show. A picture of the Anglin brothers in Brazil in 1975 confirmed their escape from Alcatraz, as digital analysis of their faces from this photo matched the analysis of their faces from their prison photos – Smithsonian Channel. The inmates remained under the radar of the feds because they never contacted any relatives directly; their Xmas cards to their mother were hand delivered to her mailbox without any post marks from the post office – probably delivered to her by a close friend of the Anglin brothers, Fred Brizzi. the pilot who probably flew them to Brazil – Smithsonian Channel. Around 2012, I think, one of the Anglin brothers wrote a letter to a SF newspaper and said he was willing to turn himself in if they in turn would treat his cancer. The feds refused, probably because they would be too embarrassed to have to admitted that they couldn’t catch these guys after 50 years.
Prison stuff and inmates interests me because I’ve run into them during my life – I had one inmate from Alcatraz in one of my college classes during the 70’s (Frank Hatfield, inmate # 1296). And then by chance, even though I’m not in law enforcement and I’m not a prison guard, my job took me out to a State prison in Cal for 20 years – working with the inmates elbow to elbow.
if you keep your eyes on Christ you can walk across that water – but one millisecond of doubt you’re in the drink – Us humans are not that faithful
They could always check the tide tables and swim in the summer when the water isn’t so cold. There are lots of sharks in the bay but they aren’t man-eaters.
Can anyone remember back to when the Indians took over the place and demanded it be returned?! They left when their Food was cut off
Wat choo talkin’ bout Willis? There were never no buffaloes on that island.
I walked through Alcatraz, the cells, solitary, the yard, the dining area, etc. Smaller than I thought it would be. We went to the family quarters as well. Pretty sparse.
The only place we couldn’t go was beneath the first floor. Too dangerous.
I would not want to spend more than the couple of hours allotted to tourists. After that it got boring. I can only imagine someone facing an actual sentence of 25 years or more, especially in solitary.
I think it’s perfect for jihadists and leftists.
This was very useful info for anyone considering spending more than a couple of hours at Alcatraz. Thanks. I’ve changed my vacation plans as a result and will be vacationing at Riker’s Island instead.
Trump claims he wants to cut back on Federal spending, but rebuilding and maintaining Alcatraz will be going in the opposite direction. The worst problem, cost wise, is created by the rust, deterioration and decolorization caused by seawater, ocean spray and constant high winds across the bay. Not a good idea to reopen this phantom from yesteryear.
The Birdman of Alcatraz(Robert Stroud) was not the man depicted in the movie and he didn’t have Birds in his Cell
I think if these criminals are that bad and that dangerous the death penalty is a better less costly alternative.
BS! This is just Trump grandstanding again. This is Trump on his power trip.
I am a republican who voted for Trump three times, but this is getting old! The idiotic tariffs, the moronic symbolic name changing of the Gulf of Mexico, and the rest of the executive order rampage is starting to get on normal peoples nerves, not just crazy leftists.
Of course Daniel Greenfield is going to think this is a good idea. Greenfield has no ability to be critical of anything Trump does. If Trump wants to build a prison made of cheese on the moon, Greenfield will dutifully sing his praises!