The first Saving our Schools forum was held Nov. 13 at Southern Durham H.S. from 7:00 - 9:00. The event was sponsored and planned by the Young Democrats of NC, and major congratulations are due to Zack Hawkins and Melissa Price.
State Senator Floyd McKissick moderated the event for panelists Dr. June Atikinson, Superintendant of Public Instruction, Donald Berringer, Durham County NCAE, and Durham County School Board members Minnie Forte and Steve Schewel. The attendance was probably less then hoped for, but about 25-30 people were there to soak up the comments from the panelists and to ask them a few questions at the end of the procedings.
I was quite impressed with the knowledge, caring and committment levels of all the panelists. After a couple years of negative news concerning the Durham Bd. of Ed., Forte and Schewel were a breath of fresh air. I was further impressed with the level of funding the schools in Durham obviously enjoy, at least compared to my home, Person Co. One of the Durham folks commented that they were able to put an "extra" nurse in place at Southern H.S.; we have two nurses for the whole of Person County.
Some quick takes:
Frequent high stakes testing was viewed by all panelists as a bad thing, though assessment in general was viewed as necessary.
Statewide drop out rate was a major concern. Dr. Atkinson spoke of instilling the college dream in children as early as possible.
Durham county seemed to have very good programs worked out in collaboration with Duke and NCCU. They also had, or would soon have, "academies" for the construction and medical science professions.
Dr. Atkinson viewed technology as useful especially as regards connecting with today's students, e.g. having teachers give lectures as podcasts or in some other downloadable format.
Training new teachers and retaining the ones we have were mentioned as priorities on a couple of occasions. Improving teacher pay was mentioned as well.
Mr. Berringer stressed reducing class size and allowing elementary teachers some quality planning time.
Dr. Atkinson, Ms. Forte and Mr. Schewel all made mention of forming partnerships with parents and the greater community. Durham Co. has a full time parent liason, and they send a bus out to collect parents on conference days. The idea of a parent getting on a bus to go to a school conference still brings a smile to my face. No excuses!
The Manning decision was mentioned along with school accountability. Forte and Schewel were positive about it since being on Judge Manning's radar was the impetous for much of the improvements they have made in Durham recently.
I am glad I attended. Being around people who care about schools and our future, the children, is refreshing, as is having close contact with state and community leaders who are working to improve our schools. I am doubly pleased the the YDs are the ones getting these discussions going. If I recall correctly, YDs are planning six or so more of these Saving our Schools forums in various locations across NC. Please keep your eyes and ears open and attend one of these events when convenient; providning young people with an education is a necessity, making that a quality education takes commitment from the whole community.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Monday, November 19, 2007
Some Comments from Kerouac
Just before the publication of On the Road made Jack Kerouac famous, he spent a summer on Mt. Desolation as a fire lookout. Desolation Angels (1965) is one of his autobiographical novels that he wrote about the year in his life that followed his summer of solitude. Though known primarily and rightly for novels that are full of parties and wild travels and certainly rather apolitical, Kerouac was too well informed, too aware of the world around him, too well read, to keep the occasional political comment from creeping into his spontaneous prose.
I just finished reading Desolation Angels, and the following passages brought to mind the cliche "the more things change, the more they stay the same."
The passage reminding me of things staying the same is:
"As far as I can see this Forest Service is nothing but a front, on the one hand a vague Totalitarian governmental effort to restrict the use of forest to people, telling them they can't camp here or piss there, it's illegal to do this and you're allowed to do that, in the Immemorial Wilderness of Tao and the Golden Age and the Milleniums of Man - secondly it's a front for the lumber interests, the net result of the whole thing being, what with Scott Paper Tissue and such companies logging out these woods year after year with the "cooperation" of the Forest Service which boasts so proudly of the number of board feet in the whole forest (as if I owned an inch of board altho I can't piss here nor camp there) result, net, is people all over the world are wiping their ass with the beautiful trees-"
The passage below indicates for me a profound change in the United States. Kerouac was, is, very American, and he sometimes displayed a certain optimism, IMHO, regarding America as a whole. This change is the cancer that eats at our democratic souls.
" And I know American is too vast with people too vast to ever be degraded to the level of a slave nation, and I can go hitch hiking down that road into my remaining years of my life knowing that outside of a couple fights in bars started by drunks I'll have not a hair of my head (and I need a haircut) harmed by Totalitarian cruelty - "
The link for these two passages is the word "Totalitarian". While I do not believe that the United States is anything like a totalitarian society, the NeoCons and their toadies, without apology or embarrassment, have pushed the USA down that Road way farther than is necessary, decent or ethical. Our Constitution has been bent and twisted in their rush to power and their wish to consolodate that power. Thier intended destination would be a United States cast in darkness, spreading its malignant policies through out the world; certainly Jefferson, Washington and Madison, and the other framers would not approve. I would add Jack Kerouac to that esteemed list; that NeoCon Road would be one Road that Jack would not wish anyone, or any country, to travel.
Thanks for reading,
Mike
I just finished reading Desolation Angels, and the following passages brought to mind the cliche "the more things change, the more they stay the same."
The passage reminding me of things staying the same is:
"As far as I can see this Forest Service is nothing but a front, on the one hand a vague Totalitarian governmental effort to restrict the use of forest to people, telling them they can't camp here or piss there, it's illegal to do this and you're allowed to do that, in the Immemorial Wilderness of Tao and the Golden Age and the Milleniums of Man - secondly it's a front for the lumber interests, the net result of the whole thing being, what with Scott Paper Tissue and such companies logging out these woods year after year with the "cooperation" of the Forest Service which boasts so proudly of the number of board feet in the whole forest (as if I owned an inch of board altho I can't piss here nor camp there) result, net, is people all over the world are wiping their ass with the beautiful trees-"
The passage below indicates for me a profound change in the United States. Kerouac was, is, very American, and he sometimes displayed a certain optimism, IMHO, regarding America as a whole. This change is the cancer that eats at our democratic souls.
" And I know American is too vast with people too vast to ever be degraded to the level of a slave nation, and I can go hitch hiking down that road into my remaining years of my life knowing that outside of a couple fights in bars started by drunks I'll have not a hair of my head (and I need a haircut) harmed by Totalitarian cruelty - "
The link for these two passages is the word "Totalitarian". While I do not believe that the United States is anything like a totalitarian society, the NeoCons and their toadies, without apology or embarrassment, have pushed the USA down that Road way farther than is necessary, decent or ethical. Our Constitution has been bent and twisted in their rush to power and their wish to consolodate that power. Thier intended destination would be a United States cast in darkness, spreading its malignant policies through out the world; certainly Jefferson, Washington and Madison, and the other framers would not approve. I would add Jack Kerouac to that esteemed list; that NeoCon Road would be one Road that Jack would not wish anyone, or any country, to travel.
Thanks for reading,
Mike
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
FISA Amendments Act be Damned!!
The fourth amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America reads as follows:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Now, good reader, if you please, follow this link and in that excellent article read the details of the FISA Amendments Act. I knew about the telecom facet of the legislation but had no idea as to the potentially radical changes in privacy law that the Act otherwise contains.
This right to privacy, so well stated in our Bill of Rights, is under direct attack by the Bush administration. I find this exceptionally strange, even hypocritical, as the Bush administration suffers few, if any, breaches of its privacy though its business is purportedly that of the people it governs.
The NeoCons like to play the fear card, conjuring up images of Bin Laden and black hooded terrorists in an attempt to justify their power grabs. They cry," We cannot let them win." Well, the terrorists will most certainly win if the Land of the Free becomes the Land of the Gilded Cages.
A law abiding citizen of the USA should not have to suffer unwarranted searches at any time. The original FISA bill allowed for unwarranted searches in extraordinary circumstances but even then the searching organization had three days to get a FISA judge to approve the search.
But this was not enough. An administration that demands accountability in our schools through such short sighted and impractical legislation as No Child Left Behind wishes to go even farther than the original FISA in an attempt to avoid being held accountable itself.
The FISA Amendmenta Act is wrong, it is unAmerican, it is unConstitutional, and I shall attempt to prevent its passage by every legal means at my disposal.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Now, good reader, if you please, follow this link and in that excellent article read the details of the FISA Amendments Act. I knew about the telecom facet of the legislation but had no idea as to the potentially radical changes in privacy law that the Act otherwise contains.
This right to privacy, so well stated in our Bill of Rights, is under direct attack by the Bush administration. I find this exceptionally strange, even hypocritical, as the Bush administration suffers few, if any, breaches of its privacy though its business is purportedly that of the people it governs.
The NeoCons like to play the fear card, conjuring up images of Bin Laden and black hooded terrorists in an attempt to justify their power grabs. They cry," We cannot let them win." Well, the terrorists will most certainly win if the Land of the Free becomes the Land of the Gilded Cages.
A law abiding citizen of the USA should not have to suffer unwarranted searches at any time. The original FISA bill allowed for unwarranted searches in extraordinary circumstances but even then the searching organization had three days to get a FISA judge to approve the search.
But this was not enough. An administration that demands accountability in our schools through such short sighted and impractical legislation as No Child Left Behind wishes to go even farther than the original FISA in an attempt to avoid being held accountable itself.
The FISA Amendmenta Act is wrong, it is unAmerican, it is unConstitutional, and I shall attempt to prevent its passage by every legal means at my disposal.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Of Sushi and Cold Wet Fish
Ah Sushi, one of my favorite foods and here a metaphor for things liked ...
I spent a few hours Saturday down at NCDP hq in Raleigh attending the Fall Teen Dem rally. One of the local teen dems wanted to go so we went. Speakers at the event included Jerry Meek, Larry Kissell, Ed Ridpath, Tricia Cotham and Pat Smathers. The assembled teens also heard from Melissa Price, YDNC VP, and a representative from the Hampton Dellinger campaign. The really cool thing was the fact that dozens of teen democrats from various counties gathered and were enthusiastic about making a change in their communities and participating in the democratic process. They had a breakout session in which they shared ideas for increasing their local club's membership, events to sponsor and which candidates they would like to support.
I would like to comment on state Rep. Cotham's remarks, which were very interesting. Apparently the good ole boys haven't taken too well to having a single, young, female collegue. She reported that snide, sexist and even demeaning comments are made to her with some frequency. So rather than a group of "grandfatherly" elders, some of the older males in our esteemed General Assembly act more like adolescent jerks when out of the spotlight. Rep. Cotham also took some heat for sponsoring anti- bullying legislation that included clauses pertaining to sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation. Some republican GA members thought that it should be open season on gay students as they roam the halls of our schools.
I had good time, got to chat with some of the aforementioned political types and had my hope in the future somewhat restored. Varied and very satisfying, just like a good sushi dinner.
But then there is the Cold Wet Fish of Reality ... which will be things not liked, perhaps by you, the reader.
To be blunt, Jim Neal will not play well in Person Co. or in most rural/suburban counties of NC. I am sure you can surmise the reasons - Chapel Hill liberal, gay, Larry Craig guilt by association, Clinton at the top of the ticket (hey, that is the way it looks now) and Mr. Neal's association with "losers" Kerry and Bowles. Some of these "negatives" (notice quotes) can be overcome if Mr. Neal will make a point of visiting (nearly) every county twice, once in early 2008 and once later in 2008 to become 3-D, to show that he is a caring family man, intelligent with good positions on the issues facing society today. The best way to do that is meeting people face to face and creating positive word of mouth. Bowles was just a face on tv to most North Carolinians who live away from the interstate corridors, and he did not fare well as a result. Mr. Neal must create his own labels, his own political identity, before it is done for him by the attack dogs gathering on the right. I noticed that one of the major political prognosticating websites (Cooks?) just yesterday moved NC to solid rep from leans rep.
Please notice that this is not meant as an attack on Mr. Neal, but is simply a dose of reality. The attacks are coming, the better to prepare strategies in advance to cope with and deflect those attacks so as to lessen the damage and possibly gain some advantage.
Thanks for reading.
I spent a few hours Saturday down at NCDP hq in Raleigh attending the Fall Teen Dem rally. One of the local teen dems wanted to go so we went. Speakers at the event included Jerry Meek, Larry Kissell, Ed Ridpath, Tricia Cotham and Pat Smathers. The assembled teens also heard from Melissa Price, YDNC VP, and a representative from the Hampton Dellinger campaign. The really cool thing was the fact that dozens of teen democrats from various counties gathered and were enthusiastic about making a change in their communities and participating in the democratic process. They had a breakout session in which they shared ideas for increasing their local club's membership, events to sponsor and which candidates they would like to support.
I would like to comment on state Rep. Cotham's remarks, which were very interesting. Apparently the good ole boys haven't taken too well to having a single, young, female collegue. She reported that snide, sexist and even demeaning comments are made to her with some frequency. So rather than a group of "grandfatherly" elders, some of the older males in our esteemed General Assembly act more like adolescent jerks when out of the spotlight. Rep. Cotham also took some heat for sponsoring anti- bullying legislation that included clauses pertaining to sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation. Some republican GA members thought that it should be open season on gay students as they roam the halls of our schools.
I had good time, got to chat with some of the aforementioned political types and had my hope in the future somewhat restored. Varied and very satisfying, just like a good sushi dinner.
But then there is the Cold Wet Fish of Reality ... which will be things not liked, perhaps by you, the reader.
To be blunt, Jim Neal will not play well in Person Co. or in most rural/suburban counties of NC. I am sure you can surmise the reasons - Chapel Hill liberal, gay, Larry Craig guilt by association, Clinton at the top of the ticket (hey, that is the way it looks now) and Mr. Neal's association with "losers" Kerry and Bowles. Some of these "negatives" (notice quotes) can be overcome if Mr. Neal will make a point of visiting (nearly) every county twice, once in early 2008 and once later in 2008 to become 3-D, to show that he is a caring family man, intelligent with good positions on the issues facing society today. The best way to do that is meeting people face to face and creating positive word of mouth. Bowles was just a face on tv to most North Carolinians who live away from the interstate corridors, and he did not fare well as a result. Mr. Neal must create his own labels, his own political identity, before it is done for him by the attack dogs gathering on the right. I noticed that one of the major political prognosticating websites (Cooks?) just yesterday moved NC to solid rep from leans rep.
Please notice that this is not meant as an attack on Mr. Neal, but is simply a dose of reality. The attacks are coming, the better to prepare strategies in advance to cope with and deflect those attacks so as to lessen the damage and possibly gain some advantage.
Thanks for reading.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Beautiful Minds Needed to Reach Across the Divide
Perhaps you were a fan of the movie A Beautiful Mind which was a biographical look at the troubled life of mathematician John Nash. You might be a mathematician yourself, versed in the details of gaming theory, or you might well be sick and tired of so little getting accomplished by the political leaders of this country as they spend more time looking to beat 'the other guys' than they do practicing thoughtful governance.
My guess is that most of you fall into the third catagory. If so, or out of general curiousity, please continue reading below the fold to see what may be done, both theoretically and practically, to get our leaders to lead and so lend hope to our now uncertain future.
Adam Smith posited that self-interest promotes the most efficient use of resources and so results in the best outcome for the wellbeing of the public. John Nash turned that around by suggesting that even in a noncooperative setting (like politics) the best results are attained by acting not with self-interest, but with consideration for the desires and actions of all the players on the field. If I recall correctly, Newt Gingrich accelerated the partisanship in Congress because of two critical chancges he made in the way the House does business. Prior to Gingrich becoming Speaker, all freshmen Reps went through orientation together, getting to know one another, enduring similar hardships and experiences, creating friendships that might last for years. Gingrich had each party run its own orientation, so that there was no chance for cross-party relationships to develop from the start of a congressman's term; the other guys were the enemy right from the start. Gingrich also discouraged congressmen from staying in DC while the House was not in session. This has had the effect of preventing socialization between members of the House and further perpetuating the "Us/Them" mentality. Democrats and Republicans have been fighting for advantage with more vigor, expending ever more energy and resources (increasing cost and decreasing utility) to win. Win what you say, doesn't really matter, just so long as we win. Oh, and before you say it's just the other guys who go out of their way to win, I will remind you of the heavy handedness of the DCCC in 2006.
Hubert Humphrey and Barry Goldwater would go at it on the Senate floor hammer and tongs with rhetorical sparks just a flying, but when off the floor of the Senate they were good friends. So what gets the most reward, or utility, for the most people? Two sides hammering each other with gerrymandered districts, strident labeling, expending resources that could be better spent all which reflect the pure self-interest reflected in the Adam Smith paradigm. In the movie, A Beautiful Mind, Nash's epiphany comes while in a bar when he realizes that his male friends will have a better chance of scoring with a woman if they pursue the less attractive women rather than all competing for the same blonde bombshell. If they do compete for the blonde they will block each other, waste resources and, at best, only one of them will gain any "utility" out of the situation. If they work with each other's goals in mind they will have a greater chance of success.
We need Beautiful Minds, people who will communicate with each other, who will have a rational conversation to learn the motives and desires of the other side so as not to block each other in a way that justs wastes resources. So will you do this? Will you have patient chats with coworkers and neighbors? Will you reach out to the right wing bloggers with class, adding comments and posts that might let them better understand your thinking, motives and desires? Here are some websites you might try this notion out on - Rightmarch.com, Townhall.com, Patriotpost, and the Heritage Foundation.
Also, at every opportunity, please encourage your elected officials to engage each other civily and so work for the best outcomes for their constituents. John Nash is certainly a mathematical genius, but his greatest contribution just might be in providing our crowded society with a model of living that let's us be individuals, with individual goals and aspirations, but working in such a way as to provide the best outcome for all of us who must share life on planet Earth.
My guess is that most of you fall into the third catagory. If so, or out of general curiousity, please continue reading below the fold to see what may be done, both theoretically and practically, to get our leaders to lead and so lend hope to our now uncertain future.
Adam Smith posited that self-interest promotes the most efficient use of resources and so results in the best outcome for the wellbeing of the public. John Nash turned that around by suggesting that even in a noncooperative setting (like politics) the best results are attained by acting not with self-interest, but with consideration for the desires and actions of all the players on the field. If I recall correctly, Newt Gingrich accelerated the partisanship in Congress because of two critical chancges he made in the way the House does business. Prior to Gingrich becoming Speaker, all freshmen Reps went through orientation together, getting to know one another, enduring similar hardships and experiences, creating friendships that might last for years. Gingrich had each party run its own orientation, so that there was no chance for cross-party relationships to develop from the start of a congressman's term; the other guys were the enemy right from the start. Gingrich also discouraged congressmen from staying in DC while the House was not in session. This has had the effect of preventing socialization between members of the House and further perpetuating the "Us/Them" mentality. Democrats and Republicans have been fighting for advantage with more vigor, expending ever more energy and resources (increasing cost and decreasing utility) to win. Win what you say, doesn't really matter, just so long as we win. Oh, and before you say it's just the other guys who go out of their way to win, I will remind you of the heavy handedness of the DCCC in 2006.
Hubert Humphrey and Barry Goldwater would go at it on the Senate floor hammer and tongs with rhetorical sparks just a flying, but when off the floor of the Senate they were good friends. So what gets the most reward, or utility, for the most people? Two sides hammering each other with gerrymandered districts, strident labeling, expending resources that could be better spent all which reflect the pure self-interest reflected in the Adam Smith paradigm. In the movie, A Beautiful Mind, Nash's epiphany comes while in a bar when he realizes that his male friends will have a better chance of scoring with a woman if they pursue the less attractive women rather than all competing for the same blonde bombshell. If they do compete for the blonde they will block each other, waste resources and, at best, only one of them will gain any "utility" out of the situation. If they work with each other's goals in mind they will have a greater chance of success.
We need Beautiful Minds, people who will communicate with each other, who will have a rational conversation to learn the motives and desires of the other side so as not to block each other in a way that justs wastes resources. So will you do this? Will you have patient chats with coworkers and neighbors? Will you reach out to the right wing bloggers with class, adding comments and posts that might let them better understand your thinking, motives and desires? Here are some websites you might try this notion out on - Rightmarch.com, Townhall.com, Patriotpost, and the Heritage Foundation.
Also, at every opportunity, please encourage your elected officials to engage each other civily and so work for the best outcomes for their constituents. John Nash is certainly a mathematical genius, but his greatest contribution just might be in providing our crowded society with a model of living that let's us be individuals, with individual goals and aspirations, but working in such a way as to provide the best outcome for all of us who must share life on planet Earth.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Stands with a Fist or the "Little People" have had enough
You don't have to take it folks. You don't have to stand by and watch bad things done in your communities. I just left a group of people who are a living testament to that fact.
A few of you may recall my previous blog To Live in an Industrial Wasteland which was about, in part, the fact that the company, Republic, that mangaes our (Person Co.'s) landfill wishes to nearly triple the daily tonnage going into said landfill. Over 1400 county residents live within 2 miles of the landfill and their lives are already negatively impacted by the 650 tons that get deposited daily.
We thought the issue had died a timely death a year or two ago when public outcry led by a newly formed grassroots organization appeared to influence the county commissioners enough to get them to vote against the expansion proposal. But one of them changed his mind over the summe of 2007r and so recently our commissioners voted to procede with the process of granting Republic a special use permit that would be their first concrete step in getting all their necessary permits for the planned expansion.
Before the special use permit gets voted on the commissioners have to hold a public hearing. Tonight that grassroots organization invited a lawyer who specializes in this sort of concern to attend a special meeting. At tonight's meeting he was hired to represent the organization and he discussed the legalities and details pertaining the special use permit. As a result, at the public hearing the 17th of this month our county commissioners are going to be in for a surprise for instead of a few locals voicing concerns that they have heard over and over they will encounter 12-15 residents speaking directly to the specific concerns of the relevant ordinances and a lawyer ready to cross examine witnesses testifying for Republic.
I am very proud of to be associated with that group of "little people" who are standing up and taking on the corporate interests and the political sellouts who together ruin lives with their shortsighted greed.
Not on our watch!!!
A few of you may recall my previous blog To Live in an Industrial Wasteland which was about, in part, the fact that the company, Republic, that mangaes our (Person Co.'s) landfill wishes to nearly triple the daily tonnage going into said landfill. Over 1400 county residents live within 2 miles of the landfill and their lives are already negatively impacted by the 650 tons that get deposited daily.
We thought the issue had died a timely death a year or two ago when public outcry led by a newly formed grassroots organization appeared to influence the county commissioners enough to get them to vote against the expansion proposal. But one of them changed his mind over the summe of 2007r and so recently our commissioners voted to procede with the process of granting Republic a special use permit that would be their first concrete step in getting all their necessary permits for the planned expansion.
Before the special use permit gets voted on the commissioners have to hold a public hearing. Tonight that grassroots organization invited a lawyer who specializes in this sort of concern to attend a special meeting. At tonight's meeting he was hired to represent the organization and he discussed the legalities and details pertaining the special use permit. As a result, at the public hearing the 17th of this month our county commissioners are going to be in for a surprise for instead of a few locals voicing concerns that they have heard over and over they will encounter 12-15 residents speaking directly to the specific concerns of the relevant ordinances and a lawyer ready to cross examine witnesses testifying for Republic.
I am very proud of to be associated with that group of "little people" who are standing up and taking on the corporate interests and the political sellouts who together ruin lives with their shortsighted greed.
Not on our watch!!!
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Where are they now ... (aka the Peter Principle lives)
"Brownie, you're doing a heckuva job!!" is one of the saddest catch phrases to come out of the Bush administration. You know why. "Brownie" was sacked and dismissed from government work, but his chief of staff, Patrick Rhode had a different fate. Rhode was the guy who, while New Orleans was drowning, emailed his boss, "Brownie", to say that he was having his hair moussed for a tv appearance rather than coordinating relief for the victims of Katrina. Needless to say he was canned along with his boss and dismissed from government work, right, .... right...???
Wrong. In Jan. 2007 he was hired as a senior advisor to the office of the administrator for NASA. His qualifications: he was an event planner for the Bush campaign in 2000 and prior to that he was a tv reporter. Hopefully he just draws his salary and surfs the internet for hair care products, 'cause I'd hate to think that he's getting paid with our tax dollars and screwing up NASA.
But wait, there's more. The name Hans A. von Spakovsky is not easy to say (or type), but he was counsel to the asst. Attorney General for civil rights from 2003-2005. In that job his speciality was suppressing minority voting rights, and he led efforts to purge voter roles of poor and minority voters. It should come as no real surprise then that he worked for the Bush campaign on the Florida recount in 2000. While he wasn't entirely successful in his efforts to purge voters, fifty percent of the career employees in his section quit on his watch. After his rather nefarious stint in the AG's office he was naturally appointed to the Federal Elections Commission. Fair elections? Impartial monitoring of elections? Expanding democracy by involving more voters in the process? HA!!, ... and HA!! again.
The disdain the Bush administration shows for our country's government and the citizens it is supposed to work for is just unspeakably galling.
The above is taken from the current issue of Mother Jones and therein are more examples similar to the two included here. The author of the Mother Jones article is Joshua Kurlantzick.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Wrong. In Jan. 2007 he was hired as a senior advisor to the office of the administrator for NASA. His qualifications: he was an event planner for the Bush campaign in 2000 and prior to that he was a tv reporter. Hopefully he just draws his salary and surfs the internet for hair care products, 'cause I'd hate to think that he's getting paid with our tax dollars and screwing up NASA.
But wait, there's more. The name Hans A. von Spakovsky is not easy to say (or type), but he was counsel to the asst. Attorney General for civil rights from 2003-2005. In that job his speciality was suppressing minority voting rights, and he led efforts to purge voter roles of poor and minority voters. It should come as no real surprise then that he worked for the Bush campaign on the Florida recount in 2000. While he wasn't entirely successful in his efforts to purge voters, fifty percent of the career employees in his section quit on his watch. After his rather nefarious stint in the AG's office he was naturally appointed to the Federal Elections Commission. Fair elections? Impartial monitoring of elections? Expanding democracy by involving more voters in the process? HA!!, ... and HA!! again.
The disdain the Bush administration shows for our country's government and the citizens it is supposed to work for is just unspeakably galling.
The above is taken from the current issue of Mother Jones and therein are more examples similar to the two included here. The author of the Mother Jones article is Joshua Kurlantzick.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Monday, August 13, 2007
To live in an industrial wasteland
or not. That is the question facing Person County, my home. We already have two large coal fired power plants in place in the northern part of the county; the Hyco lake plant is one of the most polluting power generating facilities in the country. We have a midsized commercial landfill in the southeast corner of the county that handles our trash and some trash from adjacent counties. We also have a Georgia-Pacific paper operation and a few lesser industries already in place.
But changes are coming and the future doesn't look good. Two new asphalt plants will be setting up shop in the county, possibly a quarry (explosions and big trucks on our roads) and the company that runs the land fill wants to triple the daily tonnage going into the landfill. Trucks already run every couple of minutes into the landfill, carrying the 650 tons that get dumped everyday. Recently our county commissioners voted to procede with the landfill expansion process (it's not a done deal ... yet) in spite of long and loud public opposition. The quality of life for those people living in that corner of the county has already diminished greatly due to odors, trash along the roads, noise from the trucks and worry over contaminated water sources. I cannot imagine what their lives will be like if the expansion becomes a reality.
Person County is on the verge of becoming an industrial wasteland, with polluted air and water poisoning our citizens. Children will be especially susceptible to the toxins these corporate operations will pump into our environment; toxins that will persist for decades. According to the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) Person County is already one of the most polluted counties in the nation. We have a higher thasn normal cancer rate. Could the two facts be related? Probably.
What sensible company (i.e. non-polluting) would want to bring their employees and their families to Person County with our stinking air, questionable water quality and the constant cacaphony of explosions and heavy trucks assaulting the ear?
This madness must end if Person County is to have any kind of positive future. We cannot continue down this road any further else the coming generations will flee as fast as they can, for the grass will be greener just about anywhere else.
Thanks for reading.
But changes are coming and the future doesn't look good. Two new asphalt plants will be setting up shop in the county, possibly a quarry (explosions and big trucks on our roads) and the company that runs the land fill wants to triple the daily tonnage going into the landfill. Trucks already run every couple of minutes into the landfill, carrying the 650 tons that get dumped everyday. Recently our county commissioners voted to procede with the landfill expansion process (it's not a done deal ... yet) in spite of long and loud public opposition. The quality of life for those people living in that corner of the county has already diminished greatly due to odors, trash along the roads, noise from the trucks and worry over contaminated water sources. I cannot imagine what their lives will be like if the expansion becomes a reality.
Person County is on the verge of becoming an industrial wasteland, with polluted air and water poisoning our citizens. Children will be especially susceptible to the toxins these corporate operations will pump into our environment; toxins that will persist for decades. According to the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) Person County is already one of the most polluted counties in the nation. We have a higher thasn normal cancer rate. Could the two facts be related? Probably.
What sensible company (i.e. non-polluting) would want to bring their employees and their families to Person County with our stinking air, questionable water quality and the constant cacaphony of explosions and heavy trucks assaulting the ear?
This madness must end if Person County is to have any kind of positive future. We cannot continue down this road any further else the coming generations will flee as fast as they can, for the grass will be greener just about anywhere else.
Thanks for reading.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Ethanol doesn't deliver
Presidential candidates from both main parties are singing the praises of ethanol, particularly the E-85 variant. Iowa, home of the first presidential caucus in the country, just happens to be a corn state. Coincidence? Ummm - of course not.
Legislatures are tripping over themselves passing bills making ethanol the next big thing, the answer than can keep the twin boogeymen of foreign oil dependancy and global warming at bay.
But ethanol is really not all that they want it to be. E-85 vehicles get significantly less miles per gallon than gasoline powered vehicles, 20 - 30% less.
Here is a quote from FactCheck.org:
"The latest Clean Cities Alternative Fuels Price Report, which was issued in March and is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, shows the average retail price per gallon of E85 was approximately 20 cents less than that of gasoline, but ethanol was 66 cents more expensive when measured as a per-gallon gasoline equivalent"
The rest of the factcheck.org analysis can be found here.
Ethanol isn't the answer and looks be another way to continue, and even increase, government subsidies for huge agribusinesses like Archers Daniel Midland. Corporate welfare, such as has been enjoyed by the oil industry for years, is also alive and well in agriculture.
A couple of researchers from Cornell showed that producing a gallon of ethanol took more than a gallon of gasoline. Their findings are considered an exaggeration, but even other researchers who support ethanol say that at best it takes about 3/4 of a gallon of gas to produce one gallon of ethanol. Ethanol which contains 20-30% less energy.
Since it takes at least 3/4 of a gallon of gas to produce a gallon of ethanol it might not ever become cost efficient to use E-85 rather than straight gas or diesel since as the price of gas increases so will the inherent cost of the ethanol. That is an analysis waiting to be done.
An all electric infrastructure for our vehicles is the real answer, probably starting with a plug-in hybrid or the GM Volt within a few years. The problem is that the pesky suns shines near about everywhere and so is available to anyone who might want to get a rack of solar panels and a a storage battery or two with which to power up their car overnight. But then Exxon and/or Archers Daniel Midland would be cut off from their main source of profit (and subsidies) and we can't have that now, can we?
Thanks for reading.
Legislatures are tripping over themselves passing bills making ethanol the next big thing, the answer than can keep the twin boogeymen of foreign oil dependancy and global warming at bay.
But ethanol is really not all that they want it to be. E-85 vehicles get significantly less miles per gallon than gasoline powered vehicles, 20 - 30% less.
Here is a quote from FactCheck.org:
"The latest Clean Cities Alternative Fuels Price Report, which was issued in March and is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, shows the average retail price per gallon of E85 was approximately 20 cents less than that of gasoline, but ethanol was 66 cents more expensive when measured as a per-gallon gasoline equivalent"
The rest of the factcheck.org analysis can be found here.
Ethanol isn't the answer and looks be another way to continue, and even increase, government subsidies for huge agribusinesses like Archers Daniel Midland. Corporate welfare, such as has been enjoyed by the oil industry for years, is also alive and well in agriculture.
A couple of researchers from Cornell showed that producing a gallon of ethanol took more than a gallon of gasoline. Their findings are considered an exaggeration, but even other researchers who support ethanol say that at best it takes about 3/4 of a gallon of gas to produce one gallon of ethanol. Ethanol which contains 20-30% less energy.
Since it takes at least 3/4 of a gallon of gas to produce a gallon of ethanol it might not ever become cost efficient to use E-85 rather than straight gas or diesel since as the price of gas increases so will the inherent cost of the ethanol. That is an analysis waiting to be done.
An all electric infrastructure for our vehicles is the real answer, probably starting with a plug-in hybrid or the GM Volt within a few years. The problem is that the pesky suns shines near about everywhere and so is available to anyone who might want to get a rack of solar panels and a a storage battery or two with which to power up their car overnight. But then Exxon and/or Archers Daniel Midland would be cut off from their main source of profit (and subsidies) and we can't have that now, can we?
Thanks for reading.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
No taxes = no services
The following should run as an editorial in the Roxboro Courier-Times either June 30 or July 4.
Editor
Roxboro Courier Times
Dear Sir,
I prefer elected officials who are responsible, responsive and far sighted, and, as such, I am glad that our democratic county commissioners voted for the recently passed budget.
In the Courier-Times of 6-27-07 both republican commissioners expressed their approval for the increases in financial support to education and public safety yet both opposed the .05/$100 property tax increase. Both republicans attended several budget working sessions, the budget has been available for a month, yet neither could cite a single specific example of the excessive spending they complained about nor did they offer any well thought out alternatives.
Mr. Puryear suggested that the budget should be left as it was but without the .05 increase, running a deficit for the second year in a row and drawing the fund balance down to 15%, which would be at least 10% below recommended levels. Endangering the financial security of the county and procrastinating in such a way seems both irresponsible and immature.
We now have a budget that improves funding for schools and law enforcement, both important economic draws for getting new industries to come to Person County, and improves the long term financial health of the county by restoring the fund balance to near recommended levels.
The average homeowner’s taxes will go up by about $60 a year, and the property tax rate will put Person even with Granville and still way less than Durham and Orange. Caswell is lower than Person but has 70% of the population and a barely positive growth rate.
The future is not revenue neutral. Gas price increases, fickle weather, population increases and inflation necessitate either revenue growth or a decrease in services. I applaud Mr. Lunsford, Mr. Clayton and Mr. Bowes for supporting a budget that takes care of our needs responsibly while ensuring the long term financial health of Person County.
Thank you.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Editor
Roxboro Courier Times
Dear Sir,
I prefer elected officials who are responsible, responsive and far sighted, and, as such, I am glad that our democratic county commissioners voted for the recently passed budget.
In the Courier-Times of 6-27-07 both republican commissioners expressed their approval for the increases in financial support to education and public safety yet both opposed the .05/$100 property tax increase. Both republicans attended several budget working sessions, the budget has been available for a month, yet neither could cite a single specific example of the excessive spending they complained about nor did they offer any well thought out alternatives.
Mr. Puryear suggested that the budget should be left as it was but without the .05 increase, running a deficit for the second year in a row and drawing the fund balance down to 15%, which would be at least 10% below recommended levels. Endangering the financial security of the county and procrastinating in such a way seems both irresponsible and immature.
We now have a budget that improves funding for schools and law enforcement, both important economic draws for getting new industries to come to Person County, and improves the long term financial health of the county by restoring the fund balance to near recommended levels.
The average homeowner’s taxes will go up by about $60 a year, and the property tax rate will put Person even with Granville and still way less than Durham and Orange. Caswell is lower than Person but has 70% of the population and a barely positive growth rate.
The future is not revenue neutral. Gas price increases, fickle weather, population increases and inflation necessitate either revenue growth or a decrease in services. I applaud Mr. Lunsford, Mr. Clayton and Mr. Bowes for supporting a budget that takes care of our needs responsibly while ensuring the long term financial health of Person County.
Thank you.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Friday, June 22, 2007
Dole and Burr buddy up to Big Oil
Yesterday, June 22, our esteemed senators voted against HR 6, the energy bill that was up for a final vote in the Senate, having already been approved by the House. HR 6 does some very nice things that have been needed for a long, long time. It raises the national fuel standards for passenger vehicles 40% and closes the SUV loophole, promotes alternative energy sources, stiffens penalties for price gouging, and promotes ethanol and energy efficient technologies. The CAFE standards (cars's MPG) hadn't been adjusted since 1989, and now even communist China's cars have better overall fuel efficiency than the United States. If American auto makers follow these new standards and don't find a way to weasel out of them as they did in California in the 90's, then by 2020 our cars will be as efficient as China's are now.
Along the way to the final vote, Burr and Dole voted against rasing 29 billion dollars in taxes on the oil industry over 10 years to pay for clean energy promotion. The excuse is that it would hurt the industry and drive up prices at the pump. Of course our dynamic duo must have overlooked the fact that Exxon and friends made 101 billion dollars in profits in 2006.
You may be thinking - "I wonder if Dole and Burr got any donations from Big Oil in their last elections?". Well, yes they did. According to opensecrets.org Dole received over $120,000 in 2002 and Burr got over $220,000 in 2004. They were 11th and 8th respectively on a list of recipients of contributions from the oil industry.
A CBS/New York Times poll taken in April found that 92% of respondents favored higher fuel efficiency standards for cars made in the US (full poll results here ). As their votes reflect a total lack of respect for the views of the people and put the interests of an industry fat with profits ahead of the public interest, Dole and Burr should have some serious political consequences to face come election time. Too bad only Dole will be on the ballot next year.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Along the way to the final vote, Burr and Dole voted against rasing 29 billion dollars in taxes on the oil industry over 10 years to pay for clean energy promotion. The excuse is that it would hurt the industry and drive up prices at the pump. Of course our dynamic duo must have overlooked the fact that Exxon and friends made 101 billion dollars in profits in 2006.
You may be thinking - "I wonder if Dole and Burr got any donations from Big Oil in their last elections?". Well, yes they did. According to opensecrets.org Dole received over $120,000 in 2002 and Burr got over $220,000 in 2004. They were 11th and 8th respectively on a list of recipients of contributions from the oil industry.
A CBS/New York Times poll taken in April found that 92% of respondents favored higher fuel efficiency standards for cars made in the US (full poll results here ). As their votes reflect a total lack of respect for the views of the people and put the interests of an industry fat with profits ahead of the public interest, Dole and Burr should have some serious political consequences to face come election time. Too bad only Dole will be on the ballot next year.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Monday, June 18, 2007
Tax cuts = revenue, not necessarily
Oh course this is the golden excuse republicans give for cutting taxes. They throw a bone or two to the middle and lower classes and then they hack at corporate, capital gains, dividend and estate taxes for all they're worth. Recently John McCain tried to perpetuate the myth that by cutting taxes, the government gains revenue because the economy expands and the private sector ends up paying more in taxes as a whole. This is the foundation of Bush's reasoning behind wanting to make his 2001 and 2003 tax cuts permanent.
The truth is, of course, not mentioned by McCain nor by Bush administration officials. Here's a dose of reality courtesy of Factcheck.org:
In fact, the last half-dozen years have shown us that we can't have both lower taxes and fatter government coffers. The Congressional Budget Office, the Treasury Department, the Joint Committee on Taxation, the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers and a former Bush administration economist all say that tax cuts lead to revenues that are lower than they otherwise would have been – even if they spur some economic growth. (Robertson, 6-11-2007)
The full story with analysis and sources can be found here: http://www.factcheck.org/taxes/supply-side_spin.html
You would have thought that McCain would have known better, and at one time he did as he voted against the 2003 tax cuts. He has become such a toady for the right wing now that he now feels he must genuflect before the altar of supply side dogma.
Next time you hear that "tax cuts = revenues" nonsense just think about that wonderful supply side catch phrase from the Eighties - "Trickle down eoconomics" and remember just who it was that got trickled on then and who it is that is getting trickled on now.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
The truth is, of course, not mentioned by McCain nor by Bush administration officials. Here's a dose of reality courtesy of Factcheck.org:
In fact, the last half-dozen years have shown us that we can't have both lower taxes and fatter government coffers. The Congressional Budget Office, the Treasury Department, the Joint Committee on Taxation, the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers and a former Bush administration economist all say that tax cuts lead to revenues that are lower than they otherwise would have been – even if they spur some economic growth. (Robertson, 6-11-2007)
The full story with analysis and sources can be found here: http://www.factcheck.org/taxes/supply-side_spin.html
You would have thought that McCain would have known better, and at one time he did as he voted against the 2003 tax cuts. He has become such a toady for the right wing now that he now feels he must genuflect before the altar of supply side dogma.
Next time you hear that "tax cuts = revenues" nonsense just think about that wonderful supply side catch phrase from the Eighties - "Trickle down eoconomics" and remember just who it was that got trickled on then and who it is that is getting trickled on now.
Thanks for reading.
Mike
Thursday, June 14, 2007
First post - Leadership (or not)
Hello blog readers. The following are some musings on politics at local, state and national levels. I shall try to relate how politics at the various levels affects individual lives and what individuals can do to cause positive changes through political involvement.
First, I wish to say that the United States of America has exactly the wrong leadership in office at this critical juncture in history. The Bush administration has used misinformation, disinformation, misdirection, fear mongering and lies to keep itself in power. Unfortumately, it took 6 years for America to figure it out. Meanwhile we are involved in a "war" that kills 2-3 american soldiers a day and costs over a billion dollars a week. Evidently the one book W. read was 1984, or perhaps Laura read it to him, for we have as close to an Orwellian situation as a constitutional democracy can become in 6 short years - constant war, information control, limited civil rights and a nebulous and changing enemy to fear.
Now I am all for going after the schmucks that attacked the USA on 9-11, but the waste of thousands of lives and billions of dollars in Iraq could have been averted had this country had a real leader with real vision.
Imagine having 150,000 soldiers and half a trillion dollars at your disposal for four years. What could be accomplished?
With even less resources it would have possible to make a good start in restructuring the energy infrastructure of the United States toward renewable, non-nuclear sources. Improved subsidies for building energy efficient buildings and purchasing hybrid or electric vehicles, improved mileage requirements for all personal vehicles, government incentives to power companies to build wind, tidal, solar and geothermal power generating facilities all could have been a reality after four years of work by leader with vision.
But of course we have an oil man with a penchant for cowboy diplomacy - "If you're not with us you're against us.".
If we had a leaders with vision we could be well on the way to not caring about that nasty black liquid under the sands of the Middle East, and we would have more real security, and our children would have one less mess to deal with.
Thanks for reading.
First, I wish to say that the United States of America has exactly the wrong leadership in office at this critical juncture in history. The Bush administration has used misinformation, disinformation, misdirection, fear mongering and lies to keep itself in power. Unfortumately, it took 6 years for America to figure it out. Meanwhile we are involved in a "war" that kills 2-3 american soldiers a day and costs over a billion dollars a week. Evidently the one book W. read was 1984, or perhaps Laura read it to him, for we have as close to an Orwellian situation as a constitutional democracy can become in 6 short years - constant war, information control, limited civil rights and a nebulous and changing enemy to fear.
Now I am all for going after the schmucks that attacked the USA on 9-11, but the waste of thousands of lives and billions of dollars in Iraq could have been averted had this country had a real leader with real vision.
Imagine having 150,000 soldiers and half a trillion dollars at your disposal for four years. What could be accomplished?
With even less resources it would have possible to make a good start in restructuring the energy infrastructure of the United States toward renewable, non-nuclear sources. Improved subsidies for building energy efficient buildings and purchasing hybrid or electric vehicles, improved mileage requirements for all personal vehicles, government incentives to power companies to build wind, tidal, solar and geothermal power generating facilities all could have been a reality after four years of work by leader with vision.
But of course we have an oil man with a penchant for cowboy diplomacy - "If you're not with us you're against us.".
If we had a leaders with vision we could be well on the way to not caring about that nasty black liquid under the sands of the Middle East, and we would have more real security, and our children would have one less mess to deal with.
Thanks for reading.
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