A prison guard's aversion to snitches ...

From Patriotic Rants, read a former prison guard's tale of guarding a snitch in federal witness protection, written by a California parole officer, blogger, and Grits reader. While writer J.J. King, certainly no liberal softy, says he understands snitches must be used, he declares:

I have an old prison guard's aversion to snitches. My feeling on the subject is that when one makes the decision to violate decent society's mores and break the law for a living, one should at least have the decency to embrace "the code".

The code is simple: stand up crooks don't tell on their partners, or any other criminals for that matter. This is beside the point, and it is just my opinion, but the prison system of old was a much safer place when inmates practiced the code.

Read the whole thing to learn how snitching can endanger more than just the snitch. BTW, see also King's terrific Katrina-inspired post questioning whether California has adequate evacuation plans in place in case the prison-laden Tulare Basin floods -- areas near the prisons flooded in 1997.