The Texas Legislature will most likely cut funding to about 680 libraries this session. Librarians rallied on the steps of the Capitol a couple of weeks ago, but you probably didn't see it or read about it. I had a hard time finding any coverage. Texas currently ranks 46th in the nation on library funding.

What we do rank high on is prison population. Depending on where you read it (and you should ask Grits For Breakfast for the actual fact), Texas prisons are between 95 and 99 percent capacity.

So, instead of having these big old buildings all over the place filled with books and periodicals, converting them to prisons is an obvious answer. These spaces could relieve the pressure on the Texas Prison System with minimal effort and expense to the state.

In addition, the long term and recurring cost savings of cutting public libraries completely from the state budget would offset initial conversion costs of these facilities and realize a cost savings within a few short years

Damn, we are so smart. It's not even 9 a.m. and we've solved two state problems. Who gives a shit about books anyway? We like putting people in the pokey. We're kinda confident we'll see a lot of the folks we are used to seeeing in the Pink Dome today we'll be seeing behind bars pretty soon.