Tuesday, April 29, 2008

little billy

via boingboing: a radar magazine story reports on bill geerhart, an unemployed thirtysomething, who sent letters to oprah winfrey, donald rumsfeld, and larry flynt while posing as a ten year old. "little billy" also sent letters to (and received responses from) richard ramirez, charles manson, ted kacynzski, and eric menendez.

this is an old bit, perhaps best executed in don novello's classic the lazlo letters. the prisoners' responses weren't terribly revealing, since billy's short letters didn't give them much to work with. that said, i'm just a bit more sympathetic to clarence thomas after reading him tell billy that he likes egg mcmuffins and pretty much everything at mcdonalds.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I do not think this is cruel and unusual. I have worked in the correctional field in Texas and I have actually had inmates who have gained weight while in lock up. It is the responsiblity of the jail to provide with basic life needs. It is not thir job to maintain everyones demand on calorie count per day unless it is ordered by a docotr. The menus in a county fanility are to be approved not only by the Texas Jail Standards and im sure there is one similer in your state but it is alose to approved by a dietcian as well. If every inmate in the facility was getting the same meals as the inmate in which we speak then this is not cruel and unusual it seems to me this is the typical inmate who is looking to find or get something out of the county. If he was that concerned with his diet and his healt he would not be the size he is out in the free world or he would ask to seek medical attention if he feels there is other issues going on with him. Please choose something else to grip and complaine about besides the food or calories in jail clearly you dont care out in free world.