Saturday, December 31, 2011

Republicans compared

The New York Times today had a two page spread comparing the Republican candidates on issues.  I’m not including the link--it is too depressing for anyone to read.  Candidates were compared on abortion, taxes and spending, regulation, entitlements, Afghanistan, torture, Iran, energy and the environment, and immigration.  
Amazingly, almost every candidate is somewhat reasonable on one of those issues.  For example, Rickie Santorum says that mass deportations are not the answer to illegal immigrants, Ron Paul says flat out that waterboarding is torture, and Romney admits the world is getting warmer, although he is not sure human activities are responsible.  Of the seven candidates, only Michelle Bachman was absolutely terrible on every issue.
If you are a Republican reading this (or if you are a Democrat who is thinking about re-registering for the primary season), here is my latest ranking from least to most objectionable.
Huntsman--an intelligent and relatively reasonable conservative, who, because he is both intelligent and reasonable, is running last in the polls.
Paul--he’d legalize marijuana.  I know he’d get rid of the Federal Reserve Bank, but on free speech and torture he’s good.  On the other hand, he violates his libertarian principles by his opposition to abortion.
Romney--the probable nominee, but I understand why so many Republicans don’t like him.  He is a slimy guy, a liar, and a trimmer.  The only reason I’d put him third is because he might be better as president than he is now, although he might be worse.
Perry--we have already had a really dumb president from Texas.  One is more than enough.
Gingrich--as one of the Romney attack ads says, this guy has more baggage than the airlines.  He creeps me out.
Santorum--he would be at home as one of the enforcers in the Spanish Inquisition.  
Bachman--OMG
Stacked up against these seven, President Obama is so good.  I have been critical of the President in the past on a number of issues, but given his Republican opposition, we must reelect him.  We must.
Finally, Happy New Year!  

Friday, December 30, 2011

Woody Guthrie

Folk singer Woody Guthrie (1912-1967) was from Oklahoma, but many Oklahomans are uneasy with him.  After all, he was friendly to the Communists, supported labor unions, and had a sticker on his guitar that said, “This machine kills fascists.”
Now George Kaiser, ranked by Forbes magazine as the richest man in Oklahoma, is building an exhibition and educational center in Tulsa to house the Guthrie archives and honor the man.  
Oklahoma was not always the conservative state it is today.  It was a hotbed of  populism in the late 1800s and radicalism in the Thirties.  It may be ironic that the richest man in Oklahoma is honoring a singer noted for his defense of the downtrodden, but in any case Guthrie deserves the honor.  
But now it’s time to sing:
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.
There was a high wall there that tried to stop me;
Sign was painted, it said private property;
But on the back side it didn't say nothing;
This land was made for you and me.
In the squares of the city, In the shadow of a steeple;
By the relief office, I'd seen my people.
As they stood there hungry, I stood there asking,
Is this land made for you and me?
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the Redwood Forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

A new low

Yesterday the Times News, a newspaper based in Lehighton, Pennsylvania, ran what I think is the most tasteless editorial cartoon I have ever seen in a mainstream newspaper.  It pictures President Obama sitting in the Oval Office saying, “Of the greatest presidents I think I’m number four.”  A man in a chair across from him holding a sheet labeled “approval” replies:  “Most Americans think you are a number two.”
Just think.  The Times News is saying the President of the United States, the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, the man elected to office by the voters of the United States, is “shit.”
This cartoon is not only in poor taste, it is positively juvenile.  I have sent an email to the editor expressing my opinion.  If you would like to do likewise, you can write either to the editor Bob Urban at <burban@tnonline.com> or the Times News itself at <tneditor@tnonline.com>.  

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

A visit to the Frick Collection

Linda and I drove to Manhattan today to see the Frick art collection.  The Frick in question is Henry Clay Frick, partner of Andrew Carnegie.  In 1892 Frick hired Pinkertons to break a strike at the Homestead Steel Works near Pittsburgh.  The Pinkertons floated down the river on a barge and engaged in a pitched gun battle with the workers, killing four of them.  Eventually the governor called in the militia, but the strike and the union were broken. It wasn’t until 1936 that the steelworkers of America were again able to form a strong union.
  
According to the interpretive film we saw, Frick was so unpopular in Pittsburgh that he had a mansion built in New York on 70th Street across from Central Park, and that house is where the collection is located.  Frick used his millions to purchase Rembrandts, Turners, Vermeers, Goyas, Corots, and other famous European artists.  He also bought some pretty junky stuff, like a whole pile of Fragonards, which I wouldn’t walk up to the goat pen to see.  On the whole, however, the art is well worth a visit.  In fact, one Vermeer alone was worth the visit.
When Frick died his will directed that the art be available to the public, and the museum does a good job in presenting it.  I’ll allow that Frick did a good deed.  Nevertheless, he was a rotten S.O.B.  The art doesn’t change that.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Judicial bypass

A number of states, including Pennsylvania, have adopted laws mandating that teenagers must obtain their parents’ permission before getting an abortion.  The U.S. Supreme Court has noted that in cases where the teenager is pregnant because her father had sex with her, or where the teenager may be beaten by the parents, to ask the parents for permission makes no sense.  In those cases, the pregnant teenager can go to a judge and explain the problem, and the judge may grant permission for an abortion.  Most judges do so without question.  This is known as the “judicial bypass.”
In March 2010 an Allegheny County judge actually ruled that a teenager could not get an abortion without telling her parents because if she didn’t tell her mother, she was too immature to have an abortion.  I guess the judge thought she was not too immature to raise a child.
Last week the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in a burst of good sense, ruled that:  “Every minor who seeks judicial authorization for an abortion does so because she lacks or elects not to seek parental consent.  Thus, a minor’s failure to consult with her parent cannot serve as the basis for denying a petition.”

Well, yeah.

Monday, December 26, 2011

Global Warming, Again

When the woman who proofreads my posts heard I was blogging about global warming, she said, “Didn’t you just do that?”
But get this.  In an article about mountain climbing in the sports section of today’s New York Times, David Breashears, who has reached the top of Mount Everest five times, said he noticed water running at 26,000 feet on the last ascent.  Water running means ice melting--at 26,000 feet.  Mr. Breashears was quoted:  “It was astonishing to see running water that high.”
The policies we need to adopt to reduce global warming would help to reduce our balance of payments, reduce air pollution, preserve West Virginia mountains, save lives,  help endangered species, and, ultimately, save our planet.  Five of the six Republican presidential candidates not only don’t see a connection between human activity and global warming, but also deny the very fact of global warming.  This is nuts.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

A different time

We are listening to Truman, David McCullough’s Pulitizer-Prize-winning biography, read by the author himself.  I’ve always admired Truman, and the book is increasing my  admiration considerably.
One of the most striking aspects of the book is the way Republicans and Democrats in Congress were able to work together and respect each other.  Here’s a small example.  During his Senate career Truman chaired a special Senate committee to investigate inefficiencies and fraud in military contracts.  The committee, which included Republicans and Democrats, did an amazing amount of work, saving billions of dollars and the lives of many soldiers.   The committee reports were approved by unanimous vote.  These were members of Congress who put the country ahead of partisan advantage.  What a concept.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Christmas Eve

A friend of mine recently said, “I feel so sorry for atheists.  They don’t have many holidays.”  I explained to him that he shouldn’t worry.  I celebrate them all.  Kwanza, Hanukkah, Eids, Festivus--what’s not to like.  Besides, the message of Christmas is a good one.  Peace on earth, good will to men and women.  
To me, Christmas is a secular holiday.  I don’t worry about keeping Christ in Christmas, although I do have some concern about keeping Christ in Christians.  In the meantime, happy holidays to all of you, no matter what your persuasion.

Friday, December 23, 2011

The 99%

We were eating pancakes and bacon in Central Lunch, the little restaurant by the railroad tracks in Weissport, and it hit me that not a single resident of Weissport was in the 1%.  Weissport is a small borough of about 800 people, and none of them would qualify.  Then I thought about Carbon County itself.  Obviously I don’t know even half of the 62,000+ residents, but I would bet that we don’t have 620 people in the 1%.  I’m fairly sure we don’t even have 62, or one-tenth of 1%.  
So isn’t it amazing that we have thousands of residents registered in a party that doesn’t represent them.  Why would anyone in Weissport support a party that backs policies dedicated to helping the richest 1%?  I don’t get it.
By the way, the Central Lunch makes great pancakes.

P.S.:  I did credit the wrong Bush for endorsing Chicken Poop Romney.  Thanks to Geojr for the correction.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

House Republicans Cave on Payroll Tax

I clicked on Yahoo and that was the headline that popped up on the website.  It was an early Christmas present.  House Republicans cave....  Way to go, President Obama.  
On another note, George W. Bush today endorsed Chicken Poop Romney.  It takes one to know one.  The man most responsible for the current economic debacle is endorsing the man who will make things worse.  No surprise there.
Also, House Republicans Cave on Payroll Tax.
One more time:  House Republicans Cave on Payroll Tax.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

You can't beat somebody with nobody

I’m distantly related to Rep. Heffley.  My cousin Ted explained it to me one time; I think Heffley’s mom and I are second cousins.  Mr. Heffley has a nice family; I try never to insult him personally, and criticize only his political activities.  Having said that, I think he has been a terrible state representative for the citizens of our district.  
He’s been in office for a little more than a year.  In that time he has supported a measure to privatize state liquor stores, a move that will cost the state money in the future, cause 5000 people to lose their jobs, destroy neighborhoods, and increase crime and alcoholism.
He supports a school voucher program that will harm public schools, he supports legislation that will suppress the vote, he voted for a blatant gerrymander to strengthen his voter base, he has scapegoated immigrants, and his environmental record on fracking is a travesty.  There’s more, but I try to keep these posts short.
The best time to beat a legislator is at the end of his or her first term.  After that the advantages of incumbency--the pork barrel grants and the financial support from special interests--almost assure reelection.  In addition, Rep. Heffley won in a non-presidential election when Democrats stay home.  In 2012 Democrats will be turning out to vote for the President and Sen. Casey, and that helps other Democratic candidates at the bottom of the ticket.  
Here is the problem.  November is less than a year away, and no challenger has stepped forward.  What we need is a young, preferably married, preferably female,  intelligent, articulate, candidate who has a lot of money and is willing to work very hard.  Also acceptable is an older, single, male, intelligent, articulate candidate who is willing to work very hard.  Get your resume in now.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

The Fall of Newt

In 1994 when the Republicans took over the House, much of the credit went to Newt Gingrich, a major force behind the “Contract With America,” a ten-point plan that Republicans promised to introduce after they won the election.  It was a brilliant strategy; Republican congressional candidates ran as a national team with a common platform, while Democrats ran their usual separate and uncoordinated campaigns and lost the House for the first time in 40 years.
One of the by-products of that campaign was a new level of campaign nastiness.  It was not enough to defeat Democrats, they had to be demonized.  Gingrich was one of the architects of this demonization.  He is still doing it, attacking President Obama for holding a “Kenyan anti-colonial” world view and calling him a “food stamp president.”
Now the voters of Iowa are being bombarded by anti-Gingrich ads.  Perry, Paul, Bachman, and Romney are all piling on.  Gingrich, partly as result of all this negative campaigning, is dropping quickly in the polls.  Lacking organization and money, he is on his way out.
Cliches spring to mind.  What goes around comes around.  Live by the sword; die by the sword.  As ye sow, so shall ye reap.   

Monday, December 19, 2011

Mr. Romney

I suppose readers have noticed that I try to keep my message reasonable and rational.  I usually refer to people, including people I really dislike, as Mr. and Ms.  I don’t use bad language or gratuitous insults.  In Romney’s case, however, I have decided call him what he is--chicken poop.
First, here’s what he says about President Obama:  “There is such a feeling that President Obama has to be removed from the White House and we have someone who believes in American principles there again, that we’ll come together.”  Note the not-so-sly reference to Obama as “the other,” the guy who really lacks American values. This is an echo of the Heffley campaign slogan in 2010--”He’s one of us.”  It is not enough to criticize your opponent, you must demonize him.  Romney is saying President Obama is un-American.
Secondly, Romney’s campaign used a clip of Obama saying, “If we keep talking about the economy, we’re going to lose.”  When it was pointed out that Obama was quoting a campaign aide of McCain, Romney refused to pull the ad, and his campaign staff was delighted that the spot received even more coverage.  Romney said, “We obviously got under their skin.”  
Thirdly, an article today in the New York Times entitled “Buyout Profits Keep Flowing to Romney,” noted that when Romney quit the Bain company in 1999 he signed an agreement which literally provides him with literally millions of dollars a year.  He is obviously not in the 99%.  How does Bain make all that money?  In many cases by consulting with companies and recommending lay-offs.
From now to the election, I will end my politeness in Romney’s case.  Henceforth he will be referred to as “Chicken Poop Romney.”

Sunday, December 18, 2011

But still it warms

Methane gas is now escaping from the Arctic permafrost.  Justin Gillis wrote in Saturday’s New York Times about how plants that have been frozen for 30,000 years are now melting and releasing carbon dioxide and methane, both greenhouse gases.  
As the earth warms, more gas will be released, causing even more warming.  We are entering a dangerous feedback cycle, in which warming causes the release of gases that increase warming.  Meanwhile the ice melts, so less of the sun’s rays are reflected back, which means more ice melts.
This is not some esoteric theory.  We can see climate change in hundreds of ways--changes in plant and animal distribution, shrinking of the Arctic ice cap, weather anomalies, drought and rainfall patterns disrupted.  We know global warming is occurring.  We have strong evidence, given the increase in greenhouse gases since the industrial revolution in the late 1700s, that human activity is causing this global warming.
In spite of that evidence, Bachman, Perry, Gingrich, Santorum, Paul, and Romney deny that global warming is a problem.  (The exception among Republican candidates is Huntsman, stuck in single digits.)  
I am reminded of what Galileo is reported to have said when he was put on trial for saying the earth moved around the sun.  To save his life, he said the earth was the center of the universe.  After he recanted, he is reported to have muttered under his breath, “But still it moves.”  I don’t care how many stupid Republican candidates deny global warming.  Temperatures are still getting warmer.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Line after line in the sand

The proposed Keystone XL pipeline will accelerate greenhouse gas problems.  President Obama delayed the project until more studies could be done, and he said he wold veto any bill that fast-tracked the project.  In the recently passed tax cut extension, the Republicans added a provision to fast-track the pipeline.  The President said he would sign the bill.
On another issue, President Obama said he would veto a bill that extended Guantanamo and gave the military the authority to try American citizens.  The Republicans added a provision to do that to the military appropriations bill.  The President said he would sign the bill.
The Republicans don’t believe these threats.  They know the President will cave.  He draws a line in the sand.  Then he draws another line.  Then another.  I know he has a big heart and a large brain.  It’s another part of his anatomy I worry about.

Tomorrow:  The permafrost melts while six Republican presidential candidates deny global warming.

Friday, December 16, 2011

7 and 7 billion

The San Diego Zoo has two aging white rhinoceroses.  A zoo in the Czech Republic has one.  Four, minus their horns, are in a breeding facility in Kenya.  (The horns are used in aphrodisiacs, which is why the rhinos are almost gone.) Two of Kenya group have been mating, but the last baby white rhino was born in 2000, so it looks like extinction is inevitable.  This information came from the latest issue of Sierra, and I have no reason to doubt it. 
Meanwhile the 7th billion human baby was born earlier this year.  Demographers estimate that of all the humans that have existed on earth, one in fifteen is alive today.  I’m thinking that aphrodisiacs are the last thing we need.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Bankrupt

American Airlines, with over four billion dollars in the bank, declared bankruptcy recently.  It was losing money, and, as James Surowiecki explained in the most recent issue of the New Yorker, by declaring bankruptcy, the company will be able to cut its debt and tear up its union contract.
The bankruptcy declaration was not seen as immoral.  American Airlines is not seen as a deadbeat company.  Instead, financial analysts see the bankruptcy as a good business decision, a smart move, justified by economics.
As Mr. Surowiecki points out, a home buyer who owes fifty percent more than his or her house is worth should, as a smart business decision, walk away from the home.  Why continue to pay good money for a relatively worthless piece of property?
The main reason more home buyers don’t default is because of the stigma attached.  The head of the Mortgage Bankers Association said people who default were sending the wrong message “to their family and their kids and their friends.”  This is the same Mortgage Bankers Association that did a short sale of its headquarters, dumping it for thirty-four million dollars less than the mortgage value.
Let me sum it up.  If you are a large company and declare bankruptcy, you are making an astute business decision.  If you are a home buyer who owes a large amount of money on a home that has dropped in value and you walk away, you are an immoral deadbeat.  That is the way free enterprise works in America.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Wine tasting

My friend George is a vintner of some renown who wins all kinds of awards at various fairs.  He makes a wonderful apple wine, and he combined that with a mulberry brandy he also produced.  I believe the ratio was 90% apple wine, 10% mulberry brandy.  It has a fairly high alcohol content.  He gave me a bottle to sample, and that stuff is excellent.  I’m still sampling, and I am way beyond politics.
Tomorrow:  The difference between American Airlines and a homeowner who defaults.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Too Many People

Primitive people with a very low level of technology can nonetheless destroy their environment by sheer numbers.  If they exceed the carrying capacity of their habitat, they will eventually starve, but that won’t happen until they have hunted down all the animals and eaten all the plants.
The world obviously has too many people.  Given the large amount of resources many of us use, the pace of environmental degradation is ever faster.  The earth has no place untouched by humans--mid-ocean, top of Mount Everest, South Pole, or Amazon jungle--all are affected, polluted, and overrun with our species.
China might be a major source of greenhouse gases, but at least it is one country that is trying to control its population, and doing a reasonably good job of it.  What are we doing?  
I’m a member of the Sierra Club, the Audubon Society, and Nature Conservancy.  None of those groups advocates population control.  Perhaps they saw what happened to Planned Parenthood, demonized by the Republican congress and presidential candidates.  Perhaps it is easier to talk about endangered species than it is to talk about limiting the number of kids people should have.  
We had better start talking about this topic.  Our churches need to examine their policies, which are more in line with repopulating the western world after the Black Death than living in a world of seven billion people and counting.  Our politicians need to address this issue.  Finally, our environmental groups need to risk unpopularity and lead the dialogue.  Nothing else we do for the environment will have the same lasting impact as a reduction in population.

Monday, December 12, 2011

The glass is half empty

I’ve always been an optimist.  When Kennedy was elected, I thought the U.S. had moved into a new era.  (I was 18.)  In the late ‘60s, I thought we would remake America.  When the USSR broke up, I believed the world would address real problems like over-population and environmental degradation.
What is the biggest problem facing the world today?  Global climate change.  Not Ron Paul vs. Newt Gringrich.  Not 9% unemployment.  Not Mexicans crossing the border, or the problems with the Euro, or the war in Afghanistan.  The world is getting warmer, and the implications for the world’s ecosystem are life-altering. 
The 17the conference of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Durban, South Africa, wrapped up on early Sunday.  The discouraging results were reported on page 9 in today’s New York Times.  
The good news.  Negotiations will continue.  The bad news:  “the actions taken at the meeting...would not have a significant impact on climate change.”
My grandson Gavin is five years old.  When he is 50, in 2056, he will be asking, “Why didn’t people care?  Why didn’t they do something?”  Gavin, I have no answer to that.  I’m really sorry.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

ALEC

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been writing model laws for Republican state legislators for years.  It links legislators with representatives from corporations and right-wing think tanks, and it is a major force in crafting laws that push conservative causes.  
The latest issue of Governing magazine features an article by Alan Greenblatt entitled “Right-Minded” that details the activities of ALEC.  I have discussed ALEC before, but here is an update.  Among the policy areas ALEC is working on are these:
• Health care:  It has put out a guide entitled:  “State Legislators Guide to Repealing Obamacare.”  
• Global warming:  It calls efforts to regulate greenhouse gases a “train wreck.”
• Immigration:  Arizona’s discriminatory law, copied in part by Alabama, was crafted by
ALEC.
•  Voter ID:  Here I will quote from Greenblatt’s article:  “In more than 30 states, legislation was introduced this year to mandate or strengthen requirements that voters produce state-issued photo identification.  Many of the bills were based on ALEC model legislation and became law in a half-dozen states.,  Other bills addressed matters such as shortening voting periods and tightening registration requirements.”
Two thoughts come to mind:
1.  Why don’t liberals have a similar organization?  Why are we always left in the dust? Why don’t we ever think long term?
2.  Why aren’t the machinations of ALEC exposed?  Few people read Governing magazine.  Why don’t our newspapers and television stations report on this stuff?  Is Rep. Heffley a member of ALEC?  Is Sen. Argall?  Do they support ALEC’’s goals?  Do we voters have any power whatsoever?  Actually, I think I know the answer to that last question.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Dobie Gray

In 1973 I brought home an album by Dobie Gray entitled “Drift Away.”  I was living in Alameda with my ex-brother-in-law Bill along with Jim, a co-worker at the TRW warehouse in Oakland where I was working at the time.  
Jim, who was black, initially made fun of the album, but the three of us listened to the title song over and over.  Bill died a few years later, and I lost track of Jim, but when I read that Dobie Gray had died earlier this week, that whole period of my life came flooding back.
Here is the chorus of “Drift Away”
Oh, give me the beat boys and free my soul
I wanna get lost in your rock n roll
And drift away
Give me the beat boys and free my soul
I wanna get lost in your rock n roll
And drift away.
I’ll return to politics tomorrow.

Friday, December 9, 2011

The magic button

Suppose there was a magic button.  The button only responded to Republicans in the House and the Senate.  If they pushed the button, unemployment would go down, the economy would improve at a steady rate, and the U.S. would begin its climb out of the current recession.  
Do you think Republicans would push that button?
This week they rejected President Obama’s nominee to head up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  This was one of the centerpieces of the Obama administration’s policies; it was designed to bring the financial institutions that helped to cause the current crisis under control.  Because of Republican opposition, Elizabeth Warren was not even nominated for the post, and now Republicans have blocked the new nominee, Richard Cordray.  It’s nothing personal.  What they demand is changes in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to render it toothless.  
Two conclusions can be drawn.  First, Republicans represent financial institutions, not their customers.  Second, the last thing Republicans want is for the economy to improve.  They will do what they can to prolong the recession in order to win the 2012 presidential and congressional elections.  They put electoral victory ahead of everything else.  They are putting party ahead of country.  You know that as well as I do, even if you are a Republican.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

A cold day in Hazleton

Linda and I drove to Hazleton this afternoon for a demonstration in front of our Congressman Lou Barletta’s office.  The demonstration was sponsored by the Northeast Pennsylvania AFL-CIO; we were representing the Carbon County Labor Council.  
It was so cold in front of that office, and we weren’t prepared.  I ducked into a nearby Salvation Army thrift store and bought gloves and a cap.  I also wore a coat and tie--it’s my belief that you are much less likely to get arrested if you are wearing a tie.
The demonstration was to urge Barletta to support President Obama’s proposal to extend unemployment benefits.  After we stood on the corner of Church and Broad Streets for about 15 minutes, we went inside to confront the “flak catcher,” a young district representative, who took our names and addresses.  I told him I thought Congressman Barletta was not representing the people who elected him.  My sign, by the way, said “Hey Lou!  Represent us; not the 1%.”
I doubt if we had much of an impact, but I now have warm gloves and a nice cap, all for $2.00.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

The recruitment pool

Who can realistically run for President?  U.S. Senators, governors, certain generals, successful CEOs with nationwide reputation, and members of the U.S. House of Representatives, although the last group is seldom successful.  Any native-born citizen who is 35 years old may run for President, but the group who has any chance of actually winning is relatively tiny.
Who can realistically run for U.S. Senate?  Members of the House, governors or other state-wide officials, CEOs, generals and admirals, and certain state legislators.   This subset is larger than that for President, but still rather small.  The name given to people who stand a chance to be elected to a certain office is “the recruitment pool.”
The lower the office, the wider the pool.  For example, borough council candidates include men and women who are active in volunteer work, teachers, business owners, labor union leaders, planning commission members--just about anyone who wants to make the effort to walk door-to-door and print up a few flyers.  
A party that hopes to win the higher offices has to start years earlier at the lowest levels of government.  It has to place its members on planning commissions, school boards, borough councils, and boards of supervisors.  It cannot think only of the next election, but must think of elections twenty or thirty years down the pike.  
In Carbon County I believe the Republicans are thinking long term. They get the recruitment pool concept.  I’m not so sure about the Democrats. 

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

The National Hockey League

As you could probably guess, I’m not a huge sports fan.  I was in graduate school at Penn State for five years and never attended a football game.  When I lived in California I went to four Oakland A’s games and one Golden State Warrior’s game.  While I can tell you who Michael Vick is, I’ve never seen him play.  When I taught at San Jose State, I paid no attention to the San Jose Sharks.
Nevertheless, I have opinions.  I don’t think Andy Reid should be fired.  I’ve never accepted the designated hitter.  And I think the National Hockey League needs to have its collective head examined.
I just finished reading a three-part series on the life and death of Derek Boogaard, an enforcer for the Minnesota Wild, who died on May 13 at the age of 28. His brain had degenerated under constant blows to the head.  
Each team in the National Hockey League has an enforcer whose job it is not to play hockey, but to fight.  The NFL says there is no proof that these fights lead to brain damage.  Anyway, the fans love the fighting.  
This reminds me of the claim by tobacco companies for years that there was no proof that smoking caused lung cancer.  As for the fans liking the fights, obviously fans like dog fighting, but we still make it illegal.  Hockey, in my admittedly untutored opinion, can do without the fisticuffs.  College hockey does.  Olympic hockey does.  It is time for the NHL to grow up.

Monday, December 5, 2011

"Working the ref"

When the manager of a baseball team comes out of the dugout to remonstrate with the umpire about a call, the manager knows that the call won’t be changed.  It is the same when a quarterback argues with the referee about failing to throw a flag on a late hit.  What they are doing is trying to influence the next call.  By making the official aware of their unhappiness, they may get more favorable treatment the next time.  It’s called “working the ref.”
When conservatives attack National Public Radio or the New York Times for bias, those media outlets may feel the need to prove their fairness.  News stories that could remotely be  construed as liberal are toned down; conservative journalists or columnists are hired. 
The reality is that conservatives dominate American media, and I am not only referring to Fred Reinhart’s Times News and Rupert Murdoch’s Fox.  The Project for Excellence in Journalism looked at the content of 11,500 media outlets and found stories that were critical of President Obama outnumbered favorable ones by four to one.  Even during the week Osama bin Laden was killed, the press was unfavorable to the President.  
Over and over we keep hearing about the “liberal media.”  I’d like to find out where they are hiding.

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Drug addiction on the farm

I don’t think I’m being overly dramatic when I say that if I had been born prior to the development of antibiotics, I probably wouldn’t be alive today.  That is equally true for many of my acquaintances.
As wonderful as they are, however, we don’t routinely consume antibiotics without a prescription for a specific malady.  Diseases would soon become resistant to treatment.
Studies done by the F.D.A. recommended the same type of policy for animals--specific antibiotics for sick animals on a case-by-case basis.  This is a change from present agricultural practices; 80% of the antibiotics used in this country are consumed as animal feed supplements to make the animals grow bigger and faster.
Now the F.D.A. has issued voluntary guidelines to discourage antibiotics in feed.  The agency is asking the drug companies to limit themselves.  Do you think that drug companies in association with the industrial and corporate agriculture which now produces most of the meat consumed in this country will change their policy voluntarily?  I’m guessing not.

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Donald Trump, Moderator

This morning Linda told me the moderator of the next Republican debate would be Donald Trump. I exploded, “Why would they use that clown?  He’s a (insert adjective modifier of the F word here) idiot.”
It turns out that my two favorite Republican candidates agree.  John Huntsman has refused to take part, saying, “We look forward to watching Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich suck up to Trump with a big bowl of popcorn.”  
Ron Paul stated that using Donald Trump as moderator was “wildly inappropriate.”  His national campaign chairman said “The selection of a reality television personality to host a presidential debate that voters nationwide will be watching is beneath the office of the Presidency and flies in the face of that office’s history and dignity.”
Amen.

Friday, December 2, 2011

Two Thumbs Up for "J. Edgar"

I just returned from seeing “J. Edgar,” directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Leonardo DiCaprio.  Hoover served as director of the F.B.I. under eight presidents, and he is largely responsible for making that agency both a modern crime-fighting organization and a major violator of the Bill of Rights.
Hoover began his career working for Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, famous for illegally deporting hundreds of radicals because they were opposed to U.S. government policies. Hoover was responsible for keeping files on the radicals, a habit he never abandoned.  The film notes how he also collected information on various presidents for blackmail purposes to enhance his own power.
Hoover was a master at using crises to undermine due process and legal protections.  The threat of communism was a justification for warrantless wiretaps, the Lindbergh kidnapping provided an opportunity for new federal crimes, and Hoover’s hatred of Martin Luther King led to the illegal surveillance of King’s extramarital affairs.
We’re still doing it, of course.  On November 30 the New York Times published an article entitled “Senate Approves Requiring Military Custody in Terror Cases.”  One of the provisions of the bill would require the government to place into military custody any suspected member of Al Qaeda connected to a plot against the U.S.   44 Republicans voted for the bill along with 17 Democrats; it passed 61 to 37.  J. Edgar would be proud.
Incidentally, Sen.Rand Paul voted against the bill, showing more courage that 17 Democratic Senators.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

How dumb do they think we are?

The map is now official for the new Pennsylvania state legislative districts.  Summit Hill, the area with the highest voter turnout and the highest Democratic loyalty (two features that usually don’t go together), has been carved out of Doyle Heffley’s district.  At least two Summit Hill residents were considering a run at Heffley’s seat; both are now residing in Jerry Knowles’s district.  
I know this is how it works.  In almost all states other than the few that have adopted non-partisan reapportionment commissions, the party in control draws the lines to maximize its power.  I taught American government; I get it.  It’s one more example of a dysfunctional process.  
Let’s review.  Pennsylvania has a governor, house, senate, supreme court, and reapportionment commission controlled by the Republican party.  The state, therefore, will be gerrymandered to benefit Republicans.
Last week Rep. Heffley said the reapportionment was nonpartisan.  Today’s Times News quotes him as saying:  “I would have preferred to keep everything.  I thought the best interest of the 122nd District is to keep it whole.  That’s not possible.”  Later in the same article this sentence appears:  “Knowles indicated that the redistricting effort was a bipartisan effort.”
There’s a picture of Sen. Argall, Rep. Heffley, and Rep. Knowles on the front page.  Knowles looks rather smug.  Argall and Heffley are grinning from ear to ear.