back to:

The Chain-Gang Choir.

Background.

These great and United States have long relished the tradition of enlightened punishment in the penal system. But thankfully that has all changed in recent years. Due tho the wonderful innovation of privatized correctional facilities, prisoners no longer must suffer by languishing in their cells, forced to read books, study law or write their memoirs about why they chopped up that family with a screwdriver and an awl. Now these poor souls can toil and labor for you at the fantastic pay rate of 6 cents an hour. They enjoy the whipping anyhow. Keep up the good work, boys!

The Event.

On March 11, 1997, The Order of Ten-Fat-Tigers organized an event of a different sort. Unlike those crowd pleasing re-enactments of violence and death, the Order decided to utilize the prowess of their shrill voices.

Shuffling down the UW's Library Mall came five denim-clad prisoners with tools in hand. Following with a careful eye was "Chancellor WARDen" utilizing a deliciously clever spoof of Chancellor Ward's name. Someone among the crowd was rumored to have chuckled at the intelligent pun.

The first prisoner, #35529726, began singing a beautiful ode to the beleagured masses after which #48364401 began a pale cover of "Strangers In the Night." Finally the Warden himself burst into a gleeful song that went to the tune of Gilbert & Sullivan's 1893 classic, "Modern Major General." The lyrics were modified to accomadate accusations of the UW Chancellor's alleged pedophilliac tendancies. Finally, as usual, Mr. Granby acended the Library Mall rostrum and burst into yet another lunatic sermon. [text]

But for this particular event, the Order did not go unnoticed. All four daily papers in Madison, the Badger Herald, the Daily Cardinal, the Capital Times and the Wisconsin State Journal published photographs of the event. And to top it off, it was also covered by the good people at Channel 15 NBC News.

The ritual sacrifices to the Media Gods did not go unnoticed. Religion DOES work.

SEE:

Those wacky prisoners. [37k]
Those wacky prisoners bowing before the benevolent Exalted Cyclops. [21k]
Prisoner 35529726 singing. [21k]
Prisoner 48364401 singing. [22k]
The Warden singing. [20k]
Our media-whoring. [24k]

back home.

tft@stdorg.wisc.edu