In particular, the complaint centers upon how the Securitas Security Services USA Inc. operates within the geothermal region. The situation demonstrates such a high level of incompetence it is hard to fathom.

While this situation should have been eradicated a long time ago, it is refreshing after nearly two years of campaigning to get the attention of government authorities. This comes more than a year after the Fox News Channel visited Middletown for its annual western festival. Unfortunately, correspondent Adam Housley did not bring a camera crew with him when he came to visit. Otherwise, the embarrassing security operation at The Geysers might have ended up on worldwide television and possibly led to the immediate dismissal of Securitas.

According to the Attorney General Office's letter, my complaint has been forwarded to the Energy and Corporate Responsibility Section. This section uses complaints to develop information about patterns or practices of employer misconduct that might indicate the need for a formal investigation or law enforcement action by their office.

Once the pattern is discovered, what originated as a private dispute may become a matter of broad public interest and thus warrant the Attorney General's intervention under state and federal laws. When his office files legal action, it is done on behalf of the collective legal interests of the people and is primarily directed at ending ongoing legal activity.

What is needed at this point is more letters going to the Attorney General from people who are opposed to cosmetic security at The Geysers. Of course, it helps to have some degree of credibility when writing a letter of complaint.

So, I encourage folks to drive up Socrates Mine Road, off Highway 175 until you get to Post 3 and look around. Ask the guard on duty such things as: Why is there such a big gap in the gate bars? (I doubt anyone cares.) Was that power line actually installed by a Calpine maintenance crew to the telephone pole for no other reason than to attach a buzz zapper? (Yes, it was. I was there during installation.)

Does Securitas actually monitor traffic within The Geysers' two-county area with just ONE vehicle – a radar-equipped personal vehicle? (Yes, it is installed in the personal vehicle of the security supervisor.) Does Securitas purposely NOT have a back-up clearance authorization plan of its own to assist Calpine's independent contractors who come to work within The Geysers? (Yes, it does because such work would take away from Securitas' other revenue-generating activities OUTSIDE The Geysers.)

If you are opposed to a security operation being used moreso to lower the liability insurance rates of a corporation than providing comprehensive security, I encourage you to let your outrage be known.

Here is the address:

Edmund G. Brown, Jr.

Attorney General

Public Inquiry Unit

P.O. Box 944255

Sacramento, CA 94244-2550

The people of Lake and Sonoma County certainly deserve better than what Securitas delivers.

Lamar Morgan lives in Hidden Valley Lake. He formerly worked in security at Calpine.

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Donna Christopher - Had Faux News Author | 01-19-2008 10:30:55 done a video report on Securitas it would have resulted in a No Bid security contract in Iraq for them. Remember, this is BushWorld.

smurf - camel dropping alert! Registered | 01-19-2008 11:01:18 I'm sorry Lamar, but we'll need to see those camel droppings first before the letter get's mailed, and you stay away from the zoos! Great, now the bloated state burocracy is involved, that gaurentees nothing will get done, but it will take a long time to do it and it will cost a lot of money-thanks Lamar! One more small step backwards in the battle to balance the state budget due to paranoia and spite, mixed with an over-active imagination.

lamar - Fraud and Stupidity Author | 01-19-2008 12:36:39 This is not about camel droppings and a possible Bin Laden attack on The Geysers. This is about corporate greed and economic stupidity. How did Calpine get in bankruptcy in the first place? Does anyone here even know? It had to do with the borrowing of money to pay bills and the fact that some of that money went to Enron for bogus energy contracts. Now, you cannot simply borrow money from banks forever without paying it back...with interest. Well, Calpine got in a situation where it was borrowing money just to pay back interest on borrowed money. And, Enron was part of the reason why that occurred. Well, if you are a smart company the last thing you want is for someone who is scheduled to get work done inside The Geysers to be denied access. Denying someone who has traveled a long way to get the job done is costly for both the contractor and Calpine. Why? Because it ends up costing the contractor more time and money to get the job done. That extra expense is going to be past along to Calpine. That is the reason a back-up security clearance procedure is so important. But, Securitas does not even have one. Why don't they have one? Because they are not interested in doing a thorough job for Calpine as much as they are using The Geysers to process work OUTSIDE The Geysers to generate more revenue for Securitas. Make no mistake, the Securitas operation is inept so far as providing good security is concerned. And, this is not by accident. This is by design. The world's largest geothermal operation should be a shining example of good security, not an embarrassment. You have the Attorney General's mailing address above. Write him and let him know that you disapprove of the way Securitas does business. Remember, there is no place for cosmetic security in a post-911 world. And, as Ernon taught us here in California only too well, there is no place for FRAUD in Corporate America! Hey, Hey. Ho, Ho. Securitas has got to go...from The Geysers. Your help is needed to make that happen. Please write the Attorney General.

smurf - earth to lamar: Registered | 01-20-2008 00:58:00 !: the geysers have no strategic or sybmolic value and as a terrorist target have zero value as well because you could blow every one of those wells to bits and no one would notice outside of calpain. Nobody has and nobody will attack the place(s), and calpain dug it's hole by building WAY to many new power plants at the same time while everyone else was doing the same thing because the state is run by morons and so is corporate America-including Calpain. One more thing: if you EVER use the "post 911 " line again you will be ridiculed mecilessly and frequently as should anyone who buys into any of that "everything changed on 911" crap, the excuse used by more liars, theives and traitors than any other.

lamar - Common Sense, Please Author | 01-21-2008 21:49:07 Did you read my second post? This situation is about corporate greed and economic stupidity. Question: Why have security at The Geysers at all if it is not needed? Answer: To lower corporate liability insurance rates for the corporation there should an accident occur. Well, accidents have occurred. People have died. Did Securitas have anything to do with preventing the accidents or allowing them to occur? Absolutely not. But, the corporation is going to get a break because Securitas was on duty and established a cosmetic presence. The fact Securitas guards wear a uniform is just about the only significant thing one can say about them. The sharing of traffic information is always handwritten and reconciled by the main office 8 to 24 hours after-the-fact. There is no back-up clearance procedure to prevent contractors from being denied access to do their work. It is a very sloppy operation. What is really sad is that this sloppiness is no accident. It is by design. Even as a cosmetic security operation, Securitas gets low marks. If you were to ever venture up Socrates Mine Road to Post 3 you might better understand. It is not really about security at all. And, that should be a BIG PROBLEM. And, the problem has a name - FRAUD. In case you are not aware, fraud is a crime. People go to jail for fraud. In fact, the Enron scandal caused a lot of problems - all related to fraud! Yes, some corporate execs actually went to jail. Bottom line, the people who work within The Geysers, the personal property owners who hunt there and the contractors who travel long distances to do work there deserve better. I am going to do my part to see that they get it. I certainly appreciate the support given thus far by the State Attorney General. I hope to be hearing from the Governor, the Dept. of Homeland Security and the bankruptcy judge for Calpine from the Southern District Court of New York in the not-too-distant future. Stay tuned.

CantStandWhiners - Whining and Stupidity Registered | 01-30-2008 01:23:28 God I love this country where our First Amendment gives whiners like Lamar the right to spout off in a public forum with his sophomoric views about what constitutes adequate security at a thermal energy facility. And what was it again that qualifies him to make a threat vulnerability study and pronounce security at the Geysers to be “cosmetic?” Oh, that’s right, he is a former guard. When the letter from the Attorney General’s office arrived, I can imagine him trembling with excitement as he opened the letter and then rushed to his computer to knock out his “press release.” I can visualize him gleefully hunched over his computer keyboard, excited beyond belief at the prospect of sharing this magnanimous event with everyone. And what was the event? He got a form letter back from the Attorney Generals office after only two years of campaigning to get their attention. Some might applaud his tenacity while others might see it for what it is; some pretty serious obsessive-compulsive behavior. But hey I’m not a shrink; I’m just a guy who can’t stand whiners. Does Lamar really think the state of California is going to devote precious resources to investigate his silly, so-called "cosmetic" security concerns? So what if Calpine only provides security to achieve a lower liability insurance rate? Wouldn’t that be the prudent thing to do in such a sue-happy culture? Is there something criminally irresponsible about that? Although I have no idea if they do it for this reason or not, I do know that most responsible businesses do exactly the same thing and there is absolutely nothing sinister or fraudulent about it Let’s not forget about the installation of a bug zapper. Surely that calls for an investigation on a scale comparable to Watergate. Next thing you know he will want congressional hearings on the bug zapper caper. Oh, and then there’s those poor unfortunate delivery contractors who are occasionally inconvenienced because a Calpine employee isn't around to vouch them into the site. Surely that requires a massive infusion of funds to automate the process and create a system that provides instant communication capabilities via wireless technology with all the truckers in American. 10-4, Good Buddy. Maybe Lamar could write a grant for this so we taxpayers could pay for it. In the "post 9-11" environment, as Lamar so dramatically puts it, Calpine is expected to belly up funding to install a new gate barrier because it’s such a lucrative target of opportunity that some terrorist might drive an explosive laden vehicle through it? At a gate that's manned by a uniformed guard? Give me a break! This guy needs to get a life and realize the good citizens of Lake County have better things to do with their time than support his neurotic whining and petition the State Attorney General to investigate such alleged misdeeds. Lamar sounds like a guy with a serious axe to grind, an inflated sense of self importance and someone who doesn’t have a clue about how the private sector or the security industry operates. And if by Lamar’s own admission, he truly has been engaged in a two year letter writing campaign over this issue, he's in serious need of therapy. Anyone know a good shrink? I can't stand whiners!

lamar - Fraud is still a crime Author | 02-13-2008 22:23:03 There seems to be some misunderstanding here. The issue is fraud. And, the last time I checked, fraud was still a crime. How would you feel if you went through airport security and all the equipment that scanned your luggage was simply cosmetic? Yes, you went through the process of taking off your shoes, etc. But, it really did not mean anything regarding your personal safety. You see, the folks running the airport were not really interested in your personal safety as much as they were saving money on their liability insurance rates. All that really mattered to them is that you THINK the scanners are REALLY doing the job. It does not really matter that you as a passenger on the airplane are inconvenienced or that the equipment is cosmetic. What matters is that the airport is saving money. Is that okay with you? After all, if the security operation only needs to look like it's working, is that adequate? Or, do you feel cheated and betrayed? Well, that is pretty much the situation at The Geysers. What is really pathetic here is not simply that Calpine is satisfied with the Securitas cosmetic security operation, but that this pathetic operation is costing both Calpine and its independent contractors money due to its total lack of a back-up program. Believe me, if you had traveled for eight hours by car to do a job within The Geysers and you could not return again for SIX MONTHS - and were denied access after waiting one and one-half hours - you might be more than a little upset. If you happened to have also been told that your one-and-only Calpine contact had decided to take the day off, you might be livid! Well, this actually happened. Here is something else to consider: exposing employees to hypothermia is against OSHA rules. Securitas management at The Geysers is so inconsiderate that it not only is on record of exposing employees to hypothermia, but suspending them for losing consciousness. Beleive it or not, the insanity does not stop there. The Securitas management opts to give its guards sugar cookies in light of a Christmas bonus. When the employees who happen to have diabetes do not eat the cookies, management gets angry. One has to wonder how Securitas trains its management people. It certainly appears Securitas management treats their guards like they are less than human. As a security service contractor, Securitas apparently has a low regard now only for its responsibilities to Calpine, but to its own employees. Should this be allowed to continue? I don't think so. The Attorney General for California seems to be in agreement. Yes, some people really do believe FRAUD is a crime and something needs to be done about it. Stay tuned. More news as it develops.

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