WISE FIX: PRISON WATCHDOG IS BACK

As a rookie governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger has sometimes steered a
wavering course.

But it is better to backtrack to undo a misstep than to stick with a
mistake for fear of appearing inexperienced.

So congratulations to the governor for re-establishing the
independence of the Office of the Inspector General, which watches
over the prison system, and for vowing to increase its budget.
Schwarzenegger had originally called the office a ``waste'' and had
proposed to absorb it into the Youth and Adult Correctional Agency.

Reports from the Inspector General show that it will pay off
financially by ferreting out waste and will pay off ethically by
blowing the whistle on misbehavior by guards and administrators.

And actually fixing problems, as opposed to staking out positions and
rejecting all criticism, will pay off for Schwarzenegger.