The Republican governor of California, some yahoo by the name of Arnold Schwarzenegger, has spent his entire governorship besieged by the state's budget crisis. Apparently bent on being remembered as the governator who terminated any chance of California ever returning to fiscal stability, Schwarzenegger just announced his intent to pour $65 million into a new pet project.

What could possibly justify adding to California's $19 billion (with a "B") budget deficit? Could he be worried about a declining, once-premier state university system? Might the governor be interested in restoring state employees to full-time status? Is it possible he's investing in California's deteriorating infrastructure?

No. Schwarzenegger is building a new death row.

Isn't capital punishment expensive enough? California already spends over $100 million annually on capital punishment. Even if you set aside the facts that death doesn't deter criminals and is distributed in a racially discriminatory way, investing more in California's death penalty is utterly ridiculous. Considering that the state has only executed 13 people since 1976, even the most staunchly pro-death advocates have to be scratching their heads about Schwarzenegger's latest move.