FORBES: Duluth is one of the best places to go to prison!

According to FORBES, Duluth is home to one of the Top 12 places to do time:

"The days of 'Club Fed'-- think golf courses and lobster bakes -- are long gone. But minimum security facilities, known as federal prison camps, are the best suited for disgraced CEOs and other white-collar criminals. In theory, inmates in these camps show no risk of violence or escape. Both shoe-mogul Steven Madden and Martha Stewart are FPC alums.

Why are prison camps the way to go, if you must go at all? Among other perks, federal prison camps have a relatively low staff-to-inmate ratio, dormitory-style accommodations and little to no fencing. In fact, inmates could walk away from these camps. Few do, however, because recaptured inmates face severe consequences."

This facility was built long after I left Duluth, so I didn't really know about it, until fairly recently. I saw it listed on a link of "FEMA Concentration Camps" on some goofy conspiracy site. These are the places that "Enemies of the State" will be incarcerated when the Illuminati/Communists/United Nations/NeoCons/Choose Your Favorite Boogie-Man, take over the United States.

I stumbled upon the camp while chasing down a rumored new Coney Island emporium. The front gate looked fairly inviting, except the "Do Not Enter" sign just a bit behind the large sign illustrated above. So, I followed a side road and ended up circumnavigating the entire site.

It was quite small and looked less secure than most scrapyards I've seen. In fact, most of the fencing was plain chain linked with no barbed wire. I actually saw inmates jogging along a track wearing MP3 players. Some were playing basketball. The one 'secure' area had regular barbed wire, not razor wire. I didn't stop and take photos of the camp proper, because stopping and taking photographs while circling a prison in a blacked out car with out of state license plates didn't seem like a smart thing to do. However, I did stop at the front gate for photos. No one stopped me or followed me out of the area.

FPC Duluth, Minn.

Location: Duluth, Minn. (formerly Duluth Air Force Base)

Opened: 1983

Population: 899

Prisoner Perk: Duluth has a stash of instruments for inmate use, including a piano, drums and acoustic guitars.

Population data as of April 13, 2006

Sources: Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Prison Guidebook

As to the other Top 12 places:

If you've got to do time …
Prison	Perk
FCI Ashland, Ky.			Wellness program
FCI Bastrop, Texas			Easy airport access
FCI Dublin, Calif.			Bookmobile service
FPC Duluth, Minn.			Musical instruments available
FCI Englewood, Colo.			Pool, ping-pong, foosball
FCI Lompoc, Calif.			Gym, tennis courts
FPC Montgomery, Ala.			Career retraining
FCI Otisville, N.Y.			Active Jewish religious program
FPC Pensacola, Fla.			Day jobs at the Navy base
FCI Sheridan, Ore.			Learn to be a fitness trainer
FCI Texarkana, Texas			Track, bocce pit, basketball court
FPC Yankton, S.D.			Music lessons, intramural sports

I wonder if Willie Nelson (who is playing in Duluth tonight) knows that if he had gotten Fed time for possessing weed, fate could have had him playing in Duluth anyway?