Right-wing judge tosses bipolar teen in boot camp

Bucks County, Pennsylvania, is known for its corrupt GOP machine that locks kids away for nothing. In 2005, the county falsely convicted a teenage boy of threatening to blow up his school all because he wore a "Joe Canadian" shirt. (The conviction was later overturned.) And now the county is embroiled in a scandal in which a teenage girl was sent to a wilderness boot camp.

In May, Republican Judge Robert Mellon sent a 16-year-old girl to the camp because she has bipolar disorder. Wilderness boot camps are a national scandal - part of the teen gulag racket that I've lambasted for years. Wilderness camps have caused the deaths of quite a few teenagers.

And bipolar disorder is not uncommon, especially among teens. Being bipolar is certainly not a crime.

But in BushAmerica, once you're born, you're pretty much government property, and you can be sent anywhere. The system doesn't have your best interests in mind. The system is built on greed and control, and if you're unwilling or unable to be exploited as a disposable spoke in the capitalist tire, there's a chance you'll find yourself locked up.

After the girl was placed in the boot camp, her mother asked Democratic County Commissioner Diane Marseglia to intervene. Marseglia, a licensed social worker, then contacted other officials about the documented dangers of sending a bipolar teen to a boot camp.

But then the county GOP machine totally lost its shit. Right-wing judges accused Marseglia of interfering with the judge's order. Now - all because Marseglia disagrees with them - the judges want court oversight over the agency that represents at-risk young people.

How's that for interference?

Marseglia noted that the Republicans' tantrum is fueled by partisan politics.

Now the teenager has been assigned a new attorney, because her old lawyer was obviously so inadequate.

I honestly don't think the judge in this case had the teen's best interests in mind at all. This sounds like just another remake of a tired old story that's been played out all over America countless times in recent decades. But this time, a county commissioner stood up and did the right thing by expressing her concerns about boot camps - and got promptly raked through cess over it.

In summary, the commissioner criticized boot camps, and then a right-wing judge totally went bonkers. Which shows you how far the Party is willing to go to protect the teen gulag racket.

(Source: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-2bucks.6506990jul17,0,2436238.story)