One of Santa's best suppliers may be the Uncle Sam

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Dec 22, 1999

BOSTON (AP) -- Uncle Sam has a few hints for Santa Claus. Government agencies around the country are hawking all kinds of holiday gifts, from coroner's toe-tags in Los Angeles to jelly cupboards handcrafted by prison inmates in Thomaston, Maine.

At the Massachusetts Capitol, there are Statehouse T-shirts at a pre-holiday clearance price of $5 and Christmas ornaments depicting the USS Constitution for $35.

The Los Angeles County coroner's office gift shop sells an apron with "spare" hands and ribs sticking out of its pockets and a personalized toe-tag key chain, along with about another 70 items.

"We're featuring a body bag this year," said Scott Carrier, Los Angeles County coroner spokesman. The black garment bag, which has the LA County Coroner's seal on one side and a chalked body outline on the other, goes for $18.

One of Massachusetts' more unusual gifts had to be discontinued in 1973 when Albert DeSalvo, thought to be the Boston Strangler, was stabbed to death in prison. DeSalvo made and sold ladies' choker necklaces.

"It's a cruel bit of irony that the alleged Boston Strangler was making a not-insignificant amount of money off of these women choker necklaces," said Joseph Landolfi, a former researcher for the Department of Correction.

"I wish I'd bought one."

For the cheapskate, the government even has free gifts, according to Matthew Lesko, author of Information USA and Getting Yours. Ten western states, for example, offer free Christmas trees grown on government land.

Still struggling to find the perfect Christmas gift for that special someone?

How about a set of hurricane shutters, a gleaming new smoke detector with extra batteries or a yearlong flood insurance policy?

All are on the Federal Emergency Management Agency's official list of suggestions for "special gifts that keep your loved ones safe from disaster."