I'm taking my vacation. Before I do, this important message from Minnesota.
"(Not Matt's voice) Hi, this is Minnesota! Do you realize how cool this state is? It is AWESOME! The Twin Cities alone has enough things to see and do, you'll never get bored. Throw in the majestic beauty of the northland, our sensational lakes, hiking, camping, fishing, Duluth, the prairie, biking, the southeaster river country, the north shore, the Iron Range, golf, theater, the arts, the amazing food and so on and so on. You'll have a great time in Minnesota."
I'm spending some time with my family, disconnecting for a few days. There won't be any updates to Progressive Citizen X in that time, as I have found I can't really relax if I have any work related commitments, but with the Supreme Court rulings coming up, I imagine I'll have some things to say when I get back to the station.
Have a great few weeks and I'll fire this sucker back up right before the 4th.
Friday, June 19, 2015
The Friday Link for 6/19/15
I am going on vacation, so I'm not putting much effort into this one. But with Patton Oswalt, you don't need too!
Here is an entire concert of his. Probably a lot of bad language. You've been warned!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC_nAMjPl8k
Enjoy on your Friday!
Here is an entire concert of his. Probably a lot of bad language. You've been warned!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC_nAMjPl8k
Enjoy on your Friday!
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Die Dumb
I love summer movies. Mind you, most of them are absolute crap films, with God awful writing, massive editing gaffs, missing plot points, and completely unnecessary characters, only in the film because the movie company said they had to be. But I still like them! Summer movies are supposed to be a great disconnect, allowing you to shut down your mind as you enjoy a popcorn and soda, sitting in front of a big screen.
Sometimes the summer movie is shockingly good. Go see Mad Max Fury Road. It's incredible! I'm also excited to see Inside Out.
One summer blockbuster I enjoyed years ago was Die Hard. Bruce Willis starred as John McClain, a tough NYC cop battling a group of 'terrorists' who have taken over Nakatomi Plaza in LA. When it was released in 1988, it was gobbled up as Reagan era propaganda, evoking cheers in the theaters as McClain took out the bad guys. I still like the movie today. It's enjoyable cheese, but the reality it promoted, through influencing other movies, and on culture itself, has contributed to various American ills today. No, I haven't gone bonkers. Die Hard is not responsible for our screwed up society, but it ushered in a new era in our culture which has permeated entertainment and our mindset. Let me elaborate.
First, it started this over the top action genre which has dominated entertainment for 25 years. Before this movie, action films were gritty, dirty and had a level of restraint when it came to action sequences. No one had a guy jump out of a 20 story building and somehow miraculously survive the fall, because they wouldn't have. After Die Hard, a 20 story fall was the dull part of the movie, with disbelief firmly suspended. Most action movies afterwards had laughable scenarios, where the idea of someone surviving was comical. Every Die Hard movie has an action "jump the shark" moment. In the original, it was either when McClain managed to catch the elevator shaft vent, or when he's caught dead to rights as an elevator full of bad guys opens up in front of him, but somehow he runs passed it, hitting his targets while all of their bullets miss. In II, it was the entire movie, but the worst was how long it took for grenades to explode on the plane. III, the fall from the bridge. Both he and Samuel L. Jackson should have died (and roll credits!). IV and V are so bad they make II look believable.
John McTiernan and Jan de Bont created a flashy movie, designed to catch our attention, like a car crash; disturbing, but we can't look away. How many movies came afterwards which were simply pitched as "Die Hard in/or on a blank !"? How many movies were made afterwards where the script was never even a consideration? The laundry list of horrific summer movies trying to copy the original fare is daunting. Thanks Die Hard.
Bruce Willis is actually a very good actor. Twelve Monkeys, The 5th Element and The 6th Sense (numbers, just noticed that) all are great, with him in a very enjoyable roles. His personal politics don't bother me. He's American like all the rest of us, so he can believe what he wants to believe. I just wish he would focus on movies more like Pulp Fiction and less like Armageddon.
But beyond entertainment, Die Hard has contributed to one specific societal problem we have today.
Gun fetishists worship Die Hard, much like greedy pricks worship Wall Street. I talk about this on-air. The NRA, along with the gun and bullet manufactures, have cultivated a fantasy which pathetic losers have gobbled up. If you have a gun on you, and terrorists take over the Mall of America, or the Foshay Tower, or the Xcel Energy Center, you can fight off a group of 20 to 30 trained experts willing to die for their cause with just your six shooter. Actually, even the NRA realizes the six shooter won't cut it anymore, hence why they encourage their delusional followers to carry semi-automatic weapons into Target Stores.
As a veteran who has fired numerous weapons designed to kill other human beings, let me be blunt; if the minute the bad guys started shooting, you didn't turn and try to get away with anyone you could safely take with you, you will likely die, and the weapon you have on you will likely be used to kill other people in the carnage. What do you think, a psychopath who is spraying a room of kids with bullets will give you a courtesy time out, so you can unholster your weapon, turn off the safety, lock and load and target the suspect? No, you will get shot. You might die quick, but then again, you might still be alive, very likely in shock, as the last of your life drains from your body, unable to help yourself, let alone anyone else. If you want to try to help, that's very noble of you, but do not think the gun you have gives you any grand advantage, and be at peace with your God before you try.
Guns do not make you safer. If that was the case, police departments filled with trained experts, many of them wearing guns on themselves, wouldn't be getting attacked. Biker rallies, with hundreds of guns amongst the participants, would be the safest places on earth. Die Hard was a movie; make believe, pure and simple. Please wake up and realize that.
The movie also romances the loser underdog element a little too much for my tastes. How much did John McClain screw up to where to redeem himself he had to beat a group of 20 guys in one building? Must be pretty bad, as he was left back in NYC without the kids, to much of a jerk to be happy for his wife who had been offered a senior executive job at a major international corporation. Not only did he choose his job over his wife and kids, a job he easily could have gotten in LA, but this jerk wasn't even planning on staying with his family when he got there.
You shouldn't have to save Nakatomi Plaza to redeem yourself, and any woman who stays with a 20 time loser, just because she hopes he can get himself in a terrorist take over scenario to prove he's not what everyone already knows he is, is sad. If you have your wife and kids living across the country because you can't accept the fact your wife got a great job offer, maybe you should look long and hard in the mirror and say, "I might be the problem here."
Then again, out side of the gun worship thing, maybe I'm over thinking this. Yippie Kay Yea indeed.
Sometimes the summer movie is shockingly good. Go see Mad Max Fury Road. It's incredible! I'm also excited to see Inside Out.
One summer blockbuster I enjoyed years ago was Die Hard. Bruce Willis starred as John McClain, a tough NYC cop battling a group of 'terrorists' who have taken over Nakatomi Plaza in LA. When it was released in 1988, it was gobbled up as Reagan era propaganda, evoking cheers in the theaters as McClain took out the bad guys. I still like the movie today. It's enjoyable cheese, but the reality it promoted, through influencing other movies, and on culture itself, has contributed to various American ills today. No, I haven't gone bonkers. Die Hard is not responsible for our screwed up society, but it ushered in a new era in our culture which has permeated entertainment and our mindset. Let me elaborate.
First, it started this over the top action genre which has dominated entertainment for 25 years. Before this movie, action films were gritty, dirty and had a level of restraint when it came to action sequences. No one had a guy jump out of a 20 story building and somehow miraculously survive the fall, because they wouldn't have. After Die Hard, a 20 story fall was the dull part of the movie, with disbelief firmly suspended. Most action movies afterwards had laughable scenarios, where the idea of someone surviving was comical. Every Die Hard movie has an action "jump the shark" moment. In the original, it was either when McClain managed to catch the elevator shaft vent, or when he's caught dead to rights as an elevator full of bad guys opens up in front of him, but somehow he runs passed it, hitting his targets while all of their bullets miss. In II, it was the entire movie, but the worst was how long it took for grenades to explode on the plane. III, the fall from the bridge. Both he and Samuel L. Jackson should have died (and roll credits!). IV and V are so bad they make II look believable.
John McTiernan and Jan de Bont created a flashy movie, designed to catch our attention, like a car crash; disturbing, but we can't look away. How many movies came afterwards which were simply pitched as "Die Hard in/or on a blank !"? How many movies were made afterwards where the script was never even a consideration? The laundry list of horrific summer movies trying to copy the original fare is daunting. Thanks Die Hard.
Bruce Willis is actually a very good actor. Twelve Monkeys, The 5th Element and The 6th Sense (numbers, just noticed that) all are great, with him in a very enjoyable roles. His personal politics don't bother me. He's American like all the rest of us, so he can believe what he wants to believe. I just wish he would focus on movies more like Pulp Fiction and less like Armageddon.
But beyond entertainment, Die Hard has contributed to one specific societal problem we have today.
Gun fetishists worship Die Hard, much like greedy pricks worship Wall Street. I talk about this on-air. The NRA, along with the gun and bullet manufactures, have cultivated a fantasy which pathetic losers have gobbled up. If you have a gun on you, and terrorists take over the Mall of America, or the Foshay Tower, or the Xcel Energy Center, you can fight off a group of 20 to 30 trained experts willing to die for their cause with just your six shooter. Actually, even the NRA realizes the six shooter won't cut it anymore, hence why they encourage their delusional followers to carry semi-automatic weapons into Target Stores.
As a veteran who has fired numerous weapons designed to kill other human beings, let me be blunt; if the minute the bad guys started shooting, you didn't turn and try to get away with anyone you could safely take with you, you will likely die, and the weapon you have on you will likely be used to kill other people in the carnage. What do you think, a psychopath who is spraying a room of kids with bullets will give you a courtesy time out, so you can unholster your weapon, turn off the safety, lock and load and target the suspect? No, you will get shot. You might die quick, but then again, you might still be alive, very likely in shock, as the last of your life drains from your body, unable to help yourself, let alone anyone else. If you want to try to help, that's very noble of you, but do not think the gun you have gives you any grand advantage, and be at peace with your God before you try.
Guns do not make you safer. If that was the case, police departments filled with trained experts, many of them wearing guns on themselves, wouldn't be getting attacked. Biker rallies, with hundreds of guns amongst the participants, would be the safest places on earth. Die Hard was a movie; make believe, pure and simple. Please wake up and realize that.
The movie also romances the loser underdog element a little too much for my tastes. How much did John McClain screw up to where to redeem himself he had to beat a group of 20 guys in one building? Must be pretty bad, as he was left back in NYC without the kids, to much of a jerk to be happy for his wife who had been offered a senior executive job at a major international corporation. Not only did he choose his job over his wife and kids, a job he easily could have gotten in LA, but this jerk wasn't even planning on staying with his family when he got there.
You shouldn't have to save Nakatomi Plaza to redeem yourself, and any woman who stays with a 20 time loser, just because she hopes he can get himself in a terrorist take over scenario to prove he's not what everyone already knows he is, is sad. If you have your wife and kids living across the country because you can't accept the fact your wife got a great job offer, maybe you should look long and hard in the mirror and say, "I might be the problem here."
Then again, out side of the gun worship thing, maybe I'm over thinking this. Yippie Kay Yea indeed.
Sunday, June 14, 2015
Ripple Effect
Now that the Minnesota DFL, a political party which walked into this legislative year riding a massive wave of success and popularity, holding the most important office in the state (Governor) and one of the two legislative branches (Senate), with a mandate to continue on the path they paved, with a nearly two billion dollar surplus, and only themselves to get into their own way, now that it's been undone by treachery and personal agenda, the DFL has got to pick up the pieces and move forward. Here are some suggestions on how they can do so, before they get trounced in next year's elections.
1) Senator Bakk needs to either resign or be removed from his Senate leadership position. He's proven to be the worst DFL Senator we could have in that roll. He put his personal agenda ahead of what was best for the state, placing profit margins for a foreign mining company ahead of what's best for the citizens of Minnesota, double crossing many senators from his own party along the way. Bakk had his personal hatred of Governor Dayton played effectively by the GOP, ensuring the compromise bills pushed out of the legislative branch were written from an extremely pro-Republican point of view, intentionally designed to stymy the Governor's political bankroll, a bankroll he had handed to him by the voters last November. When it came to negotiations on the final bills between the Governor and the Legislative Branch, Bakk defaulted to Speaker Daudt (something I presume was motivated by his reluctance to face the Governor in light of such overwhelming betrayal), wasting the powerful position the DFL could've had when it came to toning down the GOP bills. And, even after the damage had been done, as the GOP was popping champaign bottles at their success, Bakk was played one last time in the final hours of the special session, which, in turn, solidified my opinion on why he needs to be removed.
The GOP was ALWAYS going to pass the special session bills they had in front of them. They were. They never dreamed they would get such pro-Republican bills at the beginning of this session. They would've never let these bills slip from their fingers, but when Senator Bakk realized he had lost the faith of his own party during the special session vote for the Environmental and Agricultural Bill, coming up one vote shy of what was needed to pass, he didn't address the concerns of his own party, nor did he call the GOP's bluff, which would've sent them scrambling to pass it. Nope! He unbelievably went hat in hand to the Senate Minority Leader, Republican David Hann, promising him (according to the Star Tribune), "significant tax reductions" during next year's legislative session. That's right, even though the GOP would've never let that bill falter, Bakk failed to realize it and has already promised next years Senate will be driven from a pro-GOP agenda; the Democratic majority in the Senate has already been defeated for 2016.
A majority leader needs to work with the tools he has in his tool box, cultivating a relationship with the other Democratic leaders, to best help him get a DFL agenda pushed through, not allow petty, ignorant, personal vendettas to rule his decision making process. A majority leader needs to put his party's core principles first, for the betterment of the state, not a personal agenda geared to his own benefit. Senator Bakk will likely make a lot of one on one calls to DFL Senators trying to smooth over his atrocious leadership decisions, while pinky swearing he won't double cross the DFL again. Don't trust him. Fire his butt, immediately from the leadership role he does not deserve.
2) Put all DFL Senator's on notice: YOU have chosen to be part of the DFL; act like it. No more of this jumping ship to the GOP if the DFL doesn't give you exactly what you want. All you're doing is selling out the state, and your party, for personal gain. This is a textbook example of how a minority party can use simpletons to become the majority party. We elected you to lead, not be wishy-washy sellouts who are only in it for yourselves. If the bill in front of you erodes the core principles of the party, you vote against it regardless of the amount of hand picked pork the GOP has vowed to give you in return for you selling out your party. This is not about punishing differing opinions, it's about making sure DFL core principles are just that, core principles.
3) There is no off season. You have to be on the offensive for the rest of the year. Even with their success, the GOP has hurt themselves in rural Minnesota by not following through on their campaign promises, and they clearly will never care about Minneapolis, St. Paul, or the first ring suburbs. The GOP is a party which is only strong in wealthy suburban areas, and in extreme, fringe districts that would vote for a turnip with an R next to it (Bachmann). The DFL candidates, whether incumbents or challengers, need to be aggressive, having weekly community gatherings, with local media, talking about protecting education, undoing the damage the GOP has done to the environment, saving the Auditor's office, fixing the transportation problems the state has, and putting forward spending bills which place the middle and lower class first. They need to talk to their constituents about preventing the GOP from taking the budget surplus and giving it away to the wealthiest one thousand individuals in the state. From now until the 2016 session begins, we need to embrace the DFL's populist message and hammer it home.
4) The Minnesota DFL needs to put together a game plan for the 2016 legislative cycle which follows one of two paths.
The first would have the Senate pass the most far left agenda they possibly could. I mean extreme. Why? Not because I'm a socialist (pure capitalist, thank you), but because the GOP House is going to pass the most obnoxiously, far right bills, ever conceived, in 2016. The only way you counter punch them is to go to the negotiation table with the exact opposite.
Imagine a line scale with zero in the middle. On the left, the scale goes from the zero up to 100. Label that side 'the Democrats' (D). Then do the same on the right, going the opposite direction, and label that side 'the Republicans' (R). The House GOP are going to pass bills which will fall on the scale in the +80 to 90 R range. If the DFL comes out with bills that fall on the scale in the +10 to 20 D range, when it comes to negotiations, the end result will be a +30 to 40 R compromise. That's without a Senate Majority leader who can easily be manipulated by the opposition party.
If the DFL passes a +80 to 90 D platform out of the Senate, the end result, after the negotiations with the House GOP, and with a DFL Governor who'll have to sign off on the final bills, would be a +10 to 20 D compromise, where it should be in this current political environment. Considering the potential of a Senate majority leader selling out the DFL, it's a risky move with some lurking pitfalls.
The other path is the safer one; have the Senate Majority Leader and Governor Dayton sit down prior to the beginning of the 2016 session, and at regular intervals during the session, to make sure their agendas match up. Two weeks before the end of session, the Senate Majority Leader and the Governor should have a final game plan session to make sure Speaker Daudt and the GOP know the minimums the DFL need in the bills for them to even have a chance of coming out of the Senate. Make sure the DFL Senators are also briefed on these issues, and listen to their input. When it comes to hammering out the final agendas, the Senate Majority Leader and the Governor act as one, making the GOP concede to the DFL, as opposed to a single individual's cowboy-esque negotiation tactics, which, in turn, dooms the entire DFL platform.
At this point, I think it's safe to say Senator Bakk won't embrace either of these options, so he needs to go. There's a way to re-energize DFL strength, but you're not going to do so with weak kneed, spineless, self serving, grudge holding Democratic leadership who will sell out their own party and side with the opposition at the drop of a hat.
1) Senator Bakk needs to either resign or be removed from his Senate leadership position. He's proven to be the worst DFL Senator we could have in that roll. He put his personal agenda ahead of what was best for the state, placing profit margins for a foreign mining company ahead of what's best for the citizens of Minnesota, double crossing many senators from his own party along the way. Bakk had his personal hatred of Governor Dayton played effectively by the GOP, ensuring the compromise bills pushed out of the legislative branch were written from an extremely pro-Republican point of view, intentionally designed to stymy the Governor's political bankroll, a bankroll he had handed to him by the voters last November. When it came to negotiations on the final bills between the Governor and the Legislative Branch, Bakk defaulted to Speaker Daudt (something I presume was motivated by his reluctance to face the Governor in light of such overwhelming betrayal), wasting the powerful position the DFL could've had when it came to toning down the GOP bills. And, even after the damage had been done, as the GOP was popping champaign bottles at their success, Bakk was played one last time in the final hours of the special session, which, in turn, solidified my opinion on why he needs to be removed.
The GOP was ALWAYS going to pass the special session bills they had in front of them. They were. They never dreamed they would get such pro-Republican bills at the beginning of this session. They would've never let these bills slip from their fingers, but when Senator Bakk realized he had lost the faith of his own party during the special session vote for the Environmental and Agricultural Bill, coming up one vote shy of what was needed to pass, he didn't address the concerns of his own party, nor did he call the GOP's bluff, which would've sent them scrambling to pass it. Nope! He unbelievably went hat in hand to the Senate Minority Leader, Republican David Hann, promising him (according to the Star Tribune), "significant tax reductions" during next year's legislative session. That's right, even though the GOP would've never let that bill falter, Bakk failed to realize it and has already promised next years Senate will be driven from a pro-GOP agenda; the Democratic majority in the Senate has already been defeated for 2016.
A majority leader needs to work with the tools he has in his tool box, cultivating a relationship with the other Democratic leaders, to best help him get a DFL agenda pushed through, not allow petty, ignorant, personal vendettas to rule his decision making process. A majority leader needs to put his party's core principles first, for the betterment of the state, not a personal agenda geared to his own benefit. Senator Bakk will likely make a lot of one on one calls to DFL Senators trying to smooth over his atrocious leadership decisions, while pinky swearing he won't double cross the DFL again. Don't trust him. Fire his butt, immediately from the leadership role he does not deserve.
2) Put all DFL Senator's on notice: YOU have chosen to be part of the DFL; act like it. No more of this jumping ship to the GOP if the DFL doesn't give you exactly what you want. All you're doing is selling out the state, and your party, for personal gain. This is a textbook example of how a minority party can use simpletons to become the majority party. We elected you to lead, not be wishy-washy sellouts who are only in it for yourselves. If the bill in front of you erodes the core principles of the party, you vote against it regardless of the amount of hand picked pork the GOP has vowed to give you in return for you selling out your party. This is not about punishing differing opinions, it's about making sure DFL core principles are just that, core principles.
3) There is no off season. You have to be on the offensive for the rest of the year. Even with their success, the GOP has hurt themselves in rural Minnesota by not following through on their campaign promises, and they clearly will never care about Minneapolis, St. Paul, or the first ring suburbs. The GOP is a party which is only strong in wealthy suburban areas, and in extreme, fringe districts that would vote for a turnip with an R next to it (Bachmann). The DFL candidates, whether incumbents or challengers, need to be aggressive, having weekly community gatherings, with local media, talking about protecting education, undoing the damage the GOP has done to the environment, saving the Auditor's office, fixing the transportation problems the state has, and putting forward spending bills which place the middle and lower class first. They need to talk to their constituents about preventing the GOP from taking the budget surplus and giving it away to the wealthiest one thousand individuals in the state. From now until the 2016 session begins, we need to embrace the DFL's populist message and hammer it home.
4) The Minnesota DFL needs to put together a game plan for the 2016 legislative cycle which follows one of two paths.
The first would have the Senate pass the most far left agenda they possibly could. I mean extreme. Why? Not because I'm a socialist (pure capitalist, thank you), but because the GOP House is going to pass the most obnoxiously, far right bills, ever conceived, in 2016. The only way you counter punch them is to go to the negotiation table with the exact opposite.
Imagine a line scale with zero in the middle. On the left, the scale goes from the zero up to 100. Label that side 'the Democrats' (D). Then do the same on the right, going the opposite direction, and label that side 'the Republicans' (R). The House GOP are going to pass bills which will fall on the scale in the +80 to 90 R range. If the DFL comes out with bills that fall on the scale in the +10 to 20 D range, when it comes to negotiations, the end result will be a +30 to 40 R compromise. That's without a Senate Majority leader who can easily be manipulated by the opposition party.
If the DFL passes a +80 to 90 D platform out of the Senate, the end result, after the negotiations with the House GOP, and with a DFL Governor who'll have to sign off on the final bills, would be a +10 to 20 D compromise, where it should be in this current political environment. Considering the potential of a Senate majority leader selling out the DFL, it's a risky move with some lurking pitfalls.
The other path is the safer one; have the Senate Majority Leader and Governor Dayton sit down prior to the beginning of the 2016 session, and at regular intervals during the session, to make sure their agendas match up. Two weeks before the end of session, the Senate Majority Leader and the Governor should have a final game plan session to make sure Speaker Daudt and the GOP know the minimums the DFL need in the bills for them to even have a chance of coming out of the Senate. Make sure the DFL Senators are also briefed on these issues, and listen to their input. When it comes to hammering out the final agendas, the Senate Majority Leader and the Governor act as one, making the GOP concede to the DFL, as opposed to a single individual's cowboy-esque negotiation tactics, which, in turn, dooms the entire DFL platform.
At this point, I think it's safe to say Senator Bakk won't embrace either of these options, so he needs to go. There's a way to re-energize DFL strength, but you're not going to do so with weak kneed, spineless, self serving, grudge holding Democratic leadership who will sell out their own party and side with the opposition at the drop of a hat.
Friday, June 12, 2015
The Friday Link for 6/12/15
John Cleese had one of the best slams ever on Piers Morgan this week. Here it is:
http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2015/jun/05/john-cleese-twitter-row-piers-morgan
Since he's on my mind, I will make him and the rest of Monty Python the Friday laugh.
This skit is so amazingly well written, even when it get's to outrageously, silly levels, it's still mesmerizing. Palin and Cleese have some of the best comedic dialogue ever written, but it's Eric Idle and the sorely missed Graham Chapman who end up really driving this bit. They are quick elements of the piece, but they are perfect.
I was at the Dudley Riggs show 50 Shades of Gravy recently and was extremely impressed with their ability to work together as a group. Having the performer know how to deliver a quick line that's outrageously funny but doesn't overwhelm the rest of the group is very tricky. In that regards, Monty Python is really there greatest comedy troupe ever. Everyone knew exactly how to play off of the rest of the group.
For your viewing pleasure, let's have an argument! Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y
http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2015/jun/05/john-cleese-twitter-row-piers-morgan
Since he's on my mind, I will make him and the rest of Monty Python the Friday laugh.
This skit is so amazingly well written, even when it get's to outrageously, silly levels, it's still mesmerizing. Palin and Cleese have some of the best comedic dialogue ever written, but it's Eric Idle and the sorely missed Graham Chapman who end up really driving this bit. They are quick elements of the piece, but they are perfect.
I was at the Dudley Riggs show 50 Shades of Gravy recently and was extremely impressed with their ability to work together as a group. Having the performer know how to deliver a quick line that's outrageously funny but doesn't overwhelm the rest of the group is very tricky. In that regards, Monty Python is really there greatest comedy troupe ever. Everyone knew exactly how to play off of the rest of the group.
For your viewing pleasure, let's have an argument! Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Special
Now that we are headed towards a special session, we'll get a final tally of the damage done by a Senate Majority Leader allowing personal feelings to get in the way of doing what is best for the state. It looks like the GOP won another concession, penalties for people who install alternative energy options on their homes. Like I said, it's not enough for the GOP to write legislation supporting their corporate causes. They have to go out of their way to try to hurt Minnesotans who they perceive to be their enemies.
I'm tired of it all. Tuesday morning's 6AM hour was as straight forward as I'm ever going to get. Listen for yourself:
https://soundcloud.com/am950-show-podcasts/the-morning-grind-hour-1-june-9-2015
If you want to hold a leadership position in a government, you can't allow a personal disagreement with someone in your own party to cause so much damage to said party. If Bakk can't work with Dayton, then, personally, I think he needs to resign his position.
Because of this DFL failure, the Democrats don't have a political off season. They have to go on the offensive immediately. The GOP wants the one billion dollar budget surplus that was left untouched, and anything else they can accumulate, to go to the wealthiest 1000. Well, time to start the counter punch.
This state is in desperate need of major transportation upgrades. Roads, light rail, buses, bike trails, sidewalks, walking trails, train service, airports...all of it. Traffic in Minneapolis/St. Paul is amazingly bad, and only getting worse, and most outstate communities have a laundry list of projects they needed done 10 years ago. This is an issue everyone can relate to. The talking point of getting Minnesotans home five minutes faster everyday is a winner.
The day after the special session ends, every Democratic politician in the state, AND any challenger they can find to run in a currently held GOP district, should have a weekly media/community Q&A session on a transportation project in their district that needs updating/upgrading. Have everyone meet them at the road or transit station. Talk about how it's reckless and irresponsible to not fix our failing transportation system when there is a budget surplus going unused.
The politicians should ask their constituents the question, "should that money go to a select few wealthy people, or should it go for the betterment of us all through upgrades in our transportation system?" Come the beginning of the 2016 session, make the talking point of major tax breaks to wealthy people political poison for the GOP.
I hope there is a way to win back the Auditor's Office her ability to protect tax payer dollars, maintain oversight, and fight corruption, through the judicial branch.
What is done is done. Time to regroup and move forward.
I'm tired of it all. Tuesday morning's 6AM hour was as straight forward as I'm ever going to get. Listen for yourself:
https://soundcloud.com/am950-show-podcasts/the-morning-grind-hour-1-june-9-2015
If you want to hold a leadership position in a government, you can't allow a personal disagreement with someone in your own party to cause so much damage to said party. If Bakk can't work with Dayton, then, personally, I think he needs to resign his position.
Because of this DFL failure, the Democrats don't have a political off season. They have to go on the offensive immediately. The GOP wants the one billion dollar budget surplus that was left untouched, and anything else they can accumulate, to go to the wealthiest 1000. Well, time to start the counter punch.
This state is in desperate need of major transportation upgrades. Roads, light rail, buses, bike trails, sidewalks, walking trails, train service, airports...all of it. Traffic in Minneapolis/St. Paul is amazingly bad, and only getting worse, and most outstate communities have a laundry list of projects they needed done 10 years ago. This is an issue everyone can relate to. The talking point of getting Minnesotans home five minutes faster everyday is a winner.
The day after the special session ends, every Democratic politician in the state, AND any challenger they can find to run in a currently held GOP district, should have a weekly media/community Q&A session on a transportation project in their district that needs updating/upgrading. Have everyone meet them at the road or transit station. Talk about how it's reckless and irresponsible to not fix our failing transportation system when there is a budget surplus going unused.
The politicians should ask their constituents the question, "should that money go to a select few wealthy people, or should it go for the betterment of us all through upgrades in our transportation system?" Come the beginning of the 2016 session, make the talking point of major tax breaks to wealthy people political poison for the GOP.
I hope there is a way to win back the Auditor's Office her ability to protect tax payer dollars, maintain oversight, and fight corruption, through the judicial branch.
What is done is done. Time to regroup and move forward.
Sunday, June 7, 2015
More for the Friday Link...on a Sunday
I was in Albertville for the weekend. It was pleasant, as the outlet mall there has brought in numerous businesses, and the drive wasn't too bad. Without traffic, using backroads (because every freaking road was routed onto 169 this weekend), it took 35 minutes to get there. Cute town, lovely church in St. Michael, the neighboring town to the south.
Since I did a fly by Friday Link post as I was scrambling to get up there on Friday, I did want to add a little about Key and Peele. They really are hilarious. Comedians are always a bell weather of the changing times, and if you can glean anything from these two, it's that racial based comedy is changing.
The biggest change Key and Peele represent, to me at least, is how they address the "misinformed, unknowingly racist white guy" aspect of today. Back in the 90's, in the In Living Color days, there were many times where the punchline of the joke was calling out that guy. Key and Peele use that guy as the basis of their joke. The racist zombies is a great example. Racism is bad enough, but what happens when racism is a symptom of becoming a zombie. That skit is really good.
Key and Peele are also known for their skit on Luther, President Obama's anger translator, taking the angry black man bit, and making it smart, excellent political commentary and laugh out loud funny.
They also don't shy away at poking fun at black culture, in a way which makes white America understand it better, and laugh. Guilty as charged. Here is a skit which my kids, white suburban Hopkins kids, think is the funniest thing they have ever seen. I have to admit, I'm rolling with it too. A laugh for a Sunday!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd7FixvoKBw
Since I did a fly by Friday Link post as I was scrambling to get up there on Friday, I did want to add a little about Key and Peele. They really are hilarious. Comedians are always a bell weather of the changing times, and if you can glean anything from these two, it's that racial based comedy is changing.
The biggest change Key and Peele represent, to me at least, is how they address the "misinformed, unknowingly racist white guy" aspect of today. Back in the 90's, in the In Living Color days, there were many times where the punchline of the joke was calling out that guy. Key and Peele use that guy as the basis of their joke. The racist zombies is a great example. Racism is bad enough, but what happens when racism is a symptom of becoming a zombie. That skit is really good.
Key and Peele are also known for their skit on Luther, President Obama's anger translator, taking the angry black man bit, and making it smart, excellent political commentary and laugh out loud funny.
They also don't shy away at poking fun at black culture, in a way which makes white America understand it better, and laugh. Guilty as charged. Here is a skit which my kids, white suburban Hopkins kids, think is the funniest thing they have ever seen. I have to admit, I'm rolling with it too. A laugh for a Sunday!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd7FixvoKBw
Friday, June 5, 2015
The Friday Link for 6/5/15
I'm having to run to a baseball field a long way away, so here it is quick, Key and Peele. These guys are great. I'll write more and post a second scene on Saturday, but for now...racist zombies!
Warning, adult content!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xyhVO-SWfM
Warning, adult content!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xyhVO-SWfM
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Mining for Answers
One thing seems to be clear from the end of the Minnesota Legislative regular session, Polymet Mining of Canada has likely bought and paid for politicians from both major parties in the state. What is most shocking, and unforgivable, is how our DFL Senate Majority Leader seems to have forsaken well established Democratic party platform positions for Canadian mining.
The GOP is easy to understand. Most of what they do is geared towards self fulfillment and punishing perceived enemies. Looking at what they laid out this last session backs that up. They got silencers legalized in the state, pandering to dim bulb voters who only vote how their gun tells them to at night, and to the NRA and all of that sweet, sweet gun and bullet manufacture campaign cash. They went after campaign finance rules, so big money from a handful of individuals can potentially buy the state government for them. They went after public schools and teachers, as they want to redirect tax payer education dollars into the coffers of the wealthiest 1000, and punish the teachers union, one of the last strong unions. They waged war on Minneapolis and St. Paul proper, a region filled with people they want to punish for daring to vote Democrat. Same story, different day; the GOP is easy to understand.
Some of the policy positions the GOP passed need to get signed into law. They really do, as they are the controlling party in the House. As much as I don't like it personally, I accept silencers were legalized, campaign finance rules got re-written and the Governor's education plan was toned down (although with a pile of 1.9 billion in cash, I have no idea why).
It was three other issues that passed which, frankly, scare me. I understand the House GOP's wish list would contain legalizing toxic pollution for corporations ("It's Un-Amercian to not pollute!"), limiting the public's say in environmental regulation ("Constituents having a say...NEVER! Big corporations should always be trusted!") and dismantling oversight of the state ("Corruption is FUN!"), but a DFL leader going along with them, making sure those things got into a compromise bill, and rushed through the Senate before the majority of Democrats had a chance to stop it (the Senate passed it with a handful of Democrats voting along with the minority Republicans) is unthinkable.
But that's exactly what Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk did. Before anyone comes at me, criticizing my calling him out, let me say I don't mind having differing opinions on the Democratic side, but there are some things which make Democrats, Democrats. The appearance of selling out your party for a Canadian mining company is not one of them. I was just as critical when a certain Democratic west metro Senator went after the teachers union.
Governor Dayton vetoed the environmental bill, effectively stopping Bakk and the GOP's anti-environment agenda, which included the Oopsie law, making it legal for corporations to pollute with no recourse whatsoever, and the dismantling of the Citizens Board of the Pollution Control Agency, ensuring corporations are the only ones influencing environmental decisions in the state.
But the third issue, the attack on State Auditor Rebecca Otto, the Democrat, who just won re-election, and the fact they attached it the the omnibus spending bill, is inexcusable. They attached it to that bill because they knew the Governor had to sign it to keep the majority of lights on in the state. Bakk, either stupidly or intentionally, set the Governor up, putting him into the position of being the bad guy if he vetoed the omnibus bill, and dramatically weakening his negotiation position if he demanded the Auditors office's power be reinstated during a special session.
Why did he do this to the Auditor? Former Republican Governor Arne Carlson, a supporter of the Auditors office, sized it up perfectly; since the Auditor serves on the state boards which have a say in mining, and since Rebecca Otto has publicly announced her opposition to the Polymet mine, Bakk went to war with her office, going along with the plan to effectively neuter the oversight agency, crippling her budget, and eventually making her office defacto useless.
A reminder, he is supposed to be a Democrat.
I pray Governor Dayton stays vigilant and refuses to allow a special session to begin without guarantees the Oopsie law, the dismantling of the Citizen Board, and the attack on the Auditor's office are overturned.
Senator Bakk seems to have quickly sold out his Democratic principles. The party needs to take a long hard look at his leadership position.
It's also very clear the mine proposed for the eastern Iron Range was never concerned about the environmental cleanliness and safety of their operation, something they publicly have insisted, but something exposed to be lies when you see their legislative backroom dealings. They planned to try to eliminate any state hurdles, paving the way to unlimited polluting with no accountability. This undeniable reality is something which should negate any further DFL consideration of sulfur mining in Minnesota.
The GOP is easy to understand. Most of what they do is geared towards self fulfillment and punishing perceived enemies. Looking at what they laid out this last session backs that up. They got silencers legalized in the state, pandering to dim bulb voters who only vote how their gun tells them to at night, and to the NRA and all of that sweet, sweet gun and bullet manufacture campaign cash. They went after campaign finance rules, so big money from a handful of individuals can potentially buy the state government for them. They went after public schools and teachers, as they want to redirect tax payer education dollars into the coffers of the wealthiest 1000, and punish the teachers union, one of the last strong unions. They waged war on Minneapolis and St. Paul proper, a region filled with people they want to punish for daring to vote Democrat. Same story, different day; the GOP is easy to understand.
Some of the policy positions the GOP passed need to get signed into law. They really do, as they are the controlling party in the House. As much as I don't like it personally, I accept silencers were legalized, campaign finance rules got re-written and the Governor's education plan was toned down (although with a pile of 1.9 billion in cash, I have no idea why).
It was three other issues that passed which, frankly, scare me. I understand the House GOP's wish list would contain legalizing toxic pollution for corporations ("It's Un-Amercian to not pollute!"), limiting the public's say in environmental regulation ("Constituents having a say...NEVER! Big corporations should always be trusted!") and dismantling oversight of the state ("Corruption is FUN!"), but a DFL leader going along with them, making sure those things got into a compromise bill, and rushed through the Senate before the majority of Democrats had a chance to stop it (the Senate passed it with a handful of Democrats voting along with the minority Republicans) is unthinkable.
But that's exactly what Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk did. Before anyone comes at me, criticizing my calling him out, let me say I don't mind having differing opinions on the Democratic side, but there are some things which make Democrats, Democrats. The appearance of selling out your party for a Canadian mining company is not one of them. I was just as critical when a certain Democratic west metro Senator went after the teachers union.
Governor Dayton vetoed the environmental bill, effectively stopping Bakk and the GOP's anti-environment agenda, which included the Oopsie law, making it legal for corporations to pollute with no recourse whatsoever, and the dismantling of the Citizens Board of the Pollution Control Agency, ensuring corporations are the only ones influencing environmental decisions in the state.
But the third issue, the attack on State Auditor Rebecca Otto, the Democrat, who just won re-election, and the fact they attached it the the omnibus spending bill, is inexcusable. They attached it to that bill because they knew the Governor had to sign it to keep the majority of lights on in the state. Bakk, either stupidly or intentionally, set the Governor up, putting him into the position of being the bad guy if he vetoed the omnibus bill, and dramatically weakening his negotiation position if he demanded the Auditors office's power be reinstated during a special session.
Why did he do this to the Auditor? Former Republican Governor Arne Carlson, a supporter of the Auditors office, sized it up perfectly; since the Auditor serves on the state boards which have a say in mining, and since Rebecca Otto has publicly announced her opposition to the Polymet mine, Bakk went to war with her office, going along with the plan to effectively neuter the oversight agency, crippling her budget, and eventually making her office defacto useless.
A reminder, he is supposed to be a Democrat.
I pray Governor Dayton stays vigilant and refuses to allow a special session to begin without guarantees the Oopsie law, the dismantling of the Citizen Board, and the attack on the Auditor's office are overturned.
Senator Bakk seems to have quickly sold out his Democratic principles. The party needs to take a long hard look at his leadership position.
It's also very clear the mine proposed for the eastern Iron Range was never concerned about the environmental cleanliness and safety of their operation, something they publicly have insisted, but something exposed to be lies when you see their legislative backroom dealings. They planned to try to eliminate any state hurdles, paving the way to unlimited polluting with no accountability. This undeniable reality is something which should negate any further DFL consideration of sulfur mining in Minnesota.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
The End of the Dance
After taking as much grief as I have about covering the debacle around the Minnesota State High School Dance Line Championship from Valentine's Day night of this year, it finally has come to an end. The Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) has handed down the punishment; a year suspensions for all coaches involved in the bullying and taunting of the Faribault high school team on the night of the competition. Like I said this morning, I completely agree with the MSHSL ruling on this. For more background information, there are a few posts about it the last few months. Please browse.
Before I get into why I did make this story a major issue on my show, let me explain why I didn't make it an issue. I didn't talk about this because I'm a fan of Faribault. I'm not a dance line fan. I'm not trying to make a marginal sport more popular. I didn't talk about it because I needed an easy topic due to not prepping my show. I didn't make this a priority because I dislike the five schools who were caught taunting and bullying.
I also didn't talk about this because I'm afraid of talking about politics. I talk politics constantly on the Morning Grind, and frankly, I'm damn proud of the shows Bryan and I have put together over the last month. We've been the only morning show giving the Democratic leaders of this state a true open forum to talk about the end of session, the last second bills and the special session negotiations. I'll continue to dedicate the majority of time on my show to covering local politics.
Everyday...every single day, I get e-mails and messages criticizing me because I'm not talking about this issue, or that issue. In the last few days, I have e-mails wanting me to talk about bees, mines, parks, too much government, not enough government, South American politics (?!), 9/11 (I get a lot of 9/11 stuff), police violence, native American schools, water quality, this politician, that politician...I can't possibly talk about every issue which is important to every single person.
I also can't just focus on politics all of the time, and will, at times, talk about social issues. I, like many people, have kids, three active ones to be exact, and the social impacts of our schools and our athletics are an issue many people in the Twin Cities and Minnesota are interested in. We talk a diverse range of topics because life today is diverse.
Numerous other media outlets, including KARE 11, Fox 9 and the Star Tribune also covered this story from the beginning, although with varying degrees of agenda behind their editing. Even the MSHSL validated the punishment they handed out by saying this was the worst sportsmanship they had ever seen. It wasn't just me.
Why did I make this an issue? A big reason was the social media posts from February 14th and 15th, social media posts long erased by the cowards who placed them online in the first place, only to realize too late what they had really done. Waking up and reading the vitriolic hatred aimed at a group of high school kids was a rude awakening indeed. The calls for swift and harsh punishment of the Faribault coaches, athletic department, Faribault teachers and administrators, judges from the night's competition, anyone from the MSHSL involved in 'the greatest Minnesota injustice of all time,' and (worst of all) the kids themselves was too much for me to just sit on the sidelines and shrug my shoulders. When I discovered what really had happened that night at Target Center, I was furious. How could coaches and parents be so out of control that they turn a simple dance line competition in theater of the absurd? This was a story that needed attention.
In the end, this story was about some very talented dancers from Faribault getting booed during the competition, bullied and taunted off the floor at their championship moment, harassed throughout Target Center in a Mean Girls script come to life, and then publicly shamed online for 36 hours...for winning fair and square. Isn't standing up for the little guy who is being held back by nefarious forces part of what I'm supposed to do? Shouldn't my show present injustice when it happens? I'll be the first to say; it's not as urgent as other issues, but my daughter wasn't dancing for Faribault on that floor. It was a major issue for the girls, family and school on the receiving end of the negativity deluge. As much as you might not like hearing it, because it's not the one issue you wish I was talking about right as you want me to talk about it, I stand by bringing it to light and talking about it on air.
Now, since there is a resolution, will someone please tell the coaches suspended for a year to sit down and shut up so we can all move on.
Before I get into why I did make this story a major issue on my show, let me explain why I didn't make it an issue. I didn't talk about this because I'm a fan of Faribault. I'm not a dance line fan. I'm not trying to make a marginal sport more popular. I didn't talk about it because I needed an easy topic due to not prepping my show. I didn't make this a priority because I dislike the five schools who were caught taunting and bullying.
I also didn't talk about this because I'm afraid of talking about politics. I talk politics constantly on the Morning Grind, and frankly, I'm damn proud of the shows Bryan and I have put together over the last month. We've been the only morning show giving the Democratic leaders of this state a true open forum to talk about the end of session, the last second bills and the special session negotiations. I'll continue to dedicate the majority of time on my show to covering local politics.
Everyday...every single day, I get e-mails and messages criticizing me because I'm not talking about this issue, or that issue. In the last few days, I have e-mails wanting me to talk about bees, mines, parks, too much government, not enough government, South American politics (?!), 9/11 (I get a lot of 9/11 stuff), police violence, native American schools, water quality, this politician, that politician...I can't possibly talk about every issue which is important to every single person.
I also can't just focus on politics all of the time, and will, at times, talk about social issues. I, like many people, have kids, three active ones to be exact, and the social impacts of our schools and our athletics are an issue many people in the Twin Cities and Minnesota are interested in. We talk a diverse range of topics because life today is diverse.
Numerous other media outlets, including KARE 11, Fox 9 and the Star Tribune also covered this story from the beginning, although with varying degrees of agenda behind their editing. Even the MSHSL validated the punishment they handed out by saying this was the worst sportsmanship they had ever seen. It wasn't just me.
Why did I make this an issue? A big reason was the social media posts from February 14th and 15th, social media posts long erased by the cowards who placed them online in the first place, only to realize too late what they had really done. Waking up and reading the vitriolic hatred aimed at a group of high school kids was a rude awakening indeed. The calls for swift and harsh punishment of the Faribault coaches, athletic department, Faribault teachers and administrators, judges from the night's competition, anyone from the MSHSL involved in 'the greatest Minnesota injustice of all time,' and (worst of all) the kids themselves was too much for me to just sit on the sidelines and shrug my shoulders. When I discovered what really had happened that night at Target Center, I was furious. How could coaches and parents be so out of control that they turn a simple dance line competition in theater of the absurd? This was a story that needed attention.
In the end, this story was about some very talented dancers from Faribault getting booed during the competition, bullied and taunted off the floor at their championship moment, harassed throughout Target Center in a Mean Girls script come to life, and then publicly shamed online for 36 hours...for winning fair and square. Isn't standing up for the little guy who is being held back by nefarious forces part of what I'm supposed to do? Shouldn't my show present injustice when it happens? I'll be the first to say; it's not as urgent as other issues, but my daughter wasn't dancing for Faribault on that floor. It was a major issue for the girls, family and school on the receiving end of the negativity deluge. As much as you might not like hearing it, because it's not the one issue you wish I was talking about right as you want me to talk about it, I stand by bringing it to light and talking about it on air.
Now, since there is a resolution, will someone please tell the coaches suspended for a year to sit down and shut up so we can all move on.
Friday, May 29, 2015
The Friday Link for 5/29/15
This has been a light week on the blog. The hectic, end of school year schedule I mentioned on-air is stretching my family thin. We've been so busy, taking a break has been nice, but with it being Friday, duty calls!
Was there any doubt I would be featuring RiffTrax today? If you didn't hear the excellent hour long visit we had with Bill Corbett on Thursday's show, here is the link:
https://soundcloud.com/am950s-best-interviews/the-morning-grind-bill-corbett-of-mstk3-and-riff-trax
One of the aspects of riffing I talked to Bill about was the writing challenge it presents. Don't fool yourself, it's tough to write a comedic movie riff well.
I'm like everyone else, I occasionally will throw a line at the movie as I watch it. My personal favorite is when you watch The Sound of Music, when Julie Andrews leaves the church to go get married, scream at the TV as they lock the nuns behind the gate, "Back you nuns! Back!" and throw in a few cracking whip sounds. Good Catholic morning show host fun!
There is a real art to be able to consistently write a joke script to go along with a movie. You have to understand the complexities of making movies from every angle, you have to have near savant level knowledge of past and current popular culture, plus your timing has to be exceptional.
It does help to have a God awful movie to tear to shreds. This movie is titled Wonder Women, no not Wonder Woman. You'll want to see this film because it looks horrific, and it's available here:
http://www.rifftrax.com/wonder-women
The below link is a ten minute car chase from the film, apparently staged in the Philippines. The perfect specimen to be dissected!
Warning, it does have some brief sexuality and a bad word or two, but it's a fine piece of viewing. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxsvUafg50w
Was there any doubt I would be featuring RiffTrax today? If you didn't hear the excellent hour long visit we had with Bill Corbett on Thursday's show, here is the link:
https://soundcloud.com/am950s-best-interviews/the-morning-grind-bill-corbett-of-mstk3-and-riff-trax
One of the aspects of riffing I talked to Bill about was the writing challenge it presents. Don't fool yourself, it's tough to write a comedic movie riff well.
I'm like everyone else, I occasionally will throw a line at the movie as I watch it. My personal favorite is when you watch The Sound of Music, when Julie Andrews leaves the church to go get married, scream at the TV as they lock the nuns behind the gate, "Back you nuns! Back!" and throw in a few cracking whip sounds. Good Catholic morning show host fun!
There is a real art to be able to consistently write a joke script to go along with a movie. You have to understand the complexities of making movies from every angle, you have to have near savant level knowledge of past and current popular culture, plus your timing has to be exceptional.
It does help to have a God awful movie to tear to shreds. This movie is titled Wonder Women, no not Wonder Woman. You'll want to see this film because it looks horrific, and it's available here:
http://www.rifftrax.com/wonder-women
The below link is a ten minute car chase from the film, apparently staged in the Philippines. The perfect specimen to be dissected!
Warning, it does have some brief sexuality and a bad word or two, but it's a fine piece of viewing. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxsvUafg50w
Thursday, May 28, 2015
What's Up Bakk?
I have spent two days asking the question, 'what the heck is up with Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk?' Let me get this down in print.
Background information: Tom Bakk is a Senator from the north, the arrowhead region and the very northern part of the state including Ely and International Falls. He IS a Democrat, supposedly, and he is the current Majority Leader in a Senate with a firm Democratic majority.
He is also either incompetent, only in it for his own personal interests, a weak DFL'er who is afraid to be a proud Dem, or, bluntly, a Republican hiding as a Democrat.
Let me run through the reasons I have to question him:
Have I missed anything? What the heck is Bakk doing? Some of his actions seem to be directly linked to pro mining interests, and making sure the mine owners, most of them international mining conglomerates, are getting rewarded first and foremost. The attack on the Auditors office, the removal of the citizens review board and the unbelievable give away to allow businesses that pollute to walk away without any penalties if they just say "oops" before anyone else does, boggles the mind. And this guy says he's a Democrat???
When this is all over, Democrats of the Minnesota DFL need to think about making a leadership change in the Senate. The best you can say is Bakk has horribly mismanaged the power he inherited coming into this session. The worst...well, damage done.
Background information: Tom Bakk is a Senator from the north, the arrowhead region and the very northern part of the state including Ely and International Falls. He IS a Democrat, supposedly, and he is the current Majority Leader in a Senate with a firm Democratic majority.
He is also either incompetent, only in it for his own personal interests, a weak DFL'er who is afraid to be a proud Dem, or, bluntly, a Republican hiding as a Democrat.
Let me run through the reasons I have to question him:
- He starts the legislative session by getting into a fight with Governor Dayton, from his own party, about pay raises for Dayton's administrators, raises his Senate approved the previous session, validating false outrage pushed forward by the GOP and informing everyone he doesn't like Governor Mark Dayton, whether he meant to or not.
- He seems to go out of his way to not take advantage of the clear power the DFL has placed at his feet. He is the majority leader in the MN Senate, one house in the Legislative Branch, with a DFL Governor in the Executive Branch acting as his backup. He should have sat down with Governor Dayton and hashed out a wish list for himself, the Senate and the Governor, two weeks before the session ended. Instead, it sounds like he went out of his way to ignore Governor Dayton's repeated requests for language that needed to be in the bills for his signature to be guaranteed.
- He has allowed a relative political rookie in Speaker Kurt Daudt, a Republican, to run circles around him in the later days of the session, getting played like a fiddle when it came to negotiations between the two houses.
- He allowed extremely anti-Democratic language to be written in the House and Senate 'compromises,' gutting environmental regulations and enforcement, allowing for gun silencers to become legal, re-writing the campaign finance laws of the state, passing educational laws which don't go nearly far enough to meet the needs of the state, and then goes out of his way to shut down the State Auditors office, Rebecca Otto, another Democrat, for what seems like a personal vendetta/pro corruption platform.
- Let me repeat, there is no doubt the 'compromise' bills Senate Majority Leader Bakk passed favored the GOP, undermining his own party, and ignoring the Governor's wishes.
- The 'compromise' bills, when reintroduced into the Senate, were riddled with language which few Democratic Senators seemed privy too. Many of them were dumbfounded by the undermining of their work done by Bakk to reach an agreement with Daudt.
- The Senate Democrats didn't support the 'compromise' bills, but the Senate Republicans LOVED them. They were joined by a handful of Democrats, including Senator Bakk, in passing them.
- This 'compromise' allowed the GOP to take the high road by insisting they were the ones who were bipartisan, putting Governor Dayton on the defensive when it came to vetoes.
- In the negotiations for the special legislative session, Senator Bakk has decided to not be part of those negotiations, instead deferring to Daudt to be the sole negotiator for the Legislative branch, all while maintaining he will support the Governor at the end of the day. This tactic has given Speaker Daudt FAR more power than he should have as leader of one house of the Legislative branch, and the minority party in state government, and has weakened the Governor's ability to get the Democratic platform passed.
Have I missed anything? What the heck is Bakk doing? Some of his actions seem to be directly linked to pro mining interests, and making sure the mine owners, most of them international mining conglomerates, are getting rewarded first and foremost. The attack on the Auditors office, the removal of the citizens review board and the unbelievable give away to allow businesses that pollute to walk away without any penalties if they just say "oops" before anyone else does, boggles the mind. And this guy says he's a Democrat???
When this is all over, Democrats of the Minnesota DFL need to think about making a leadership change in the Senate. The best you can say is Bakk has horribly mismanaged the power he inherited coming into this session. The worst...well, damage done.
Friday, May 22, 2015
The Friday Link for 5/22/15
Matty tired...
After two weeks of great shows, insane politics, and running my kids around, I burnt myself out tonight getting helicopters out of my gardens.
Punt!
Here is the funniest MST3K short. It's the one filmed at Iowa State about going to college, 'The Home Economics Story'. I'll leave you with "look, look, look at my crotch!"
Have a great Memorial Day weekend!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibUsglYe4r0
After two weeks of great shows, insane politics, and running my kids around, I burnt myself out tonight getting helicopters out of my gardens.
Punt!
Here is the funniest MST3K short. It's the one filmed at Iowa State about going to college, 'The Home Economics Story'. I'll leave you with "look, look, look at my crotch!"
Have a great Memorial Day weekend!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibUsglYe4r0
On Camera
Last night, I went to the liberal news website Raw Story and discovered something which instantly got my finger a clicking! "Video posted...Minnesota High School Student blaming minorities for violent crime..."
The story was of a video taken in a public high school classroom, where (what appears to be) a caucasian girl makes some ignorant and stupid arguments about government assistance, immigrants, and crime being committed by "Mexican, Somalia, black" people. It's not intelligent thought's finest moment, but it is what it is. The girl is challenged numerous times in the classroom, but seems committed to her ludicrous beliefs.
I'm not quite sure what to think about this video, but I don't like the video itself. This wasn't some belligerent racist rant in a Target parking lot, the high school debate championship with a full auditorium, a high school jock bragging falsely about sexual exploits on social media or kids getting caught using a phone app to send racist tinged messages. This is a group of kids in a closed classroom having a discussion about immigration policy. Regardless of the girl's sincerest beliefs, there is a racist element to what she's saying, but she's also a high school kid, the textbook definition of foolish. Isn't high school and college, supposedly, the years where you find out the stuff your parents have indoctrinated you with was really their opinion and not necessarily the real world?
I remember my youth in Edina being told by some that Uptown was the 'inner city,' with gangland shootouts, drugged out vagrants and rampant crime. Then I went there with a church youth group to hand out literature, and realized how wrong they were. Uptown in the 80's and 90's wasn't the glorified mall it's become today, but it wasn't nearly the dystopian hellscape I was lead to believe. It was alive and vibrant, full of unique everything. I loved it, realizing the stale malls and retail chains of my upbringing had little of the pure energy I never knew I craved. I never looked back.
The Raw Story article makes a misguided attempt at laying the blame for this girls comments at the feet of an obscenely conservative news media. I agree the media in this country is owned by conservative interests, but this girl learned this stuff form her life, whether it was mom and dad, grandpa, church, or cable news. These are the beliefs she has been surrounded by, and she really does believe them. Her willingness to share them so earnestly and freely is all the proof I need she's just repeating what she's been taught at home.
So, how do we look at this video? Regardless of how much we disagree with some people, a person has a right to teach and educate their kids, in their private home, how they choose. We should NEVER think we can regulate non-illegal, private residence behavior. This girl is headed into a yard full of rakes placed there by the people who have filled her mind with such absurdities, but for her to grow, she needs to walk into a few of them, like the one in her classroom, and take the sting back home and ask whomever has lied to her, "why did you tell me that?" It's called growing up. Yes, she may refuse to educate herself on the realities she becomes jarringly aware of, but that's her right, as a private individual. Doesn't mean we have to like it. That's our right, too.
This was also in a classroom in a high school. This reeks of private agenda to embarrass and humiliate this girl. We should be able to educate people who are misinformed without a public shaming which could haunt this girl for years. Maybe honesty, respecting each other, and what should or shouldn't be made public can be the next discussion that class has.
The one good aspect of the video is the kids themselves had the discussion. A young man in the classroom challenges her silly arguments, and this leads to conversation. Reality based human interaction is what this girl needs, and the bite of being rebuked by her peers might be enough for her to start asking the questions she needs to start asking.
The story was of a video taken in a public high school classroom, where (what appears to be) a caucasian girl makes some ignorant and stupid arguments about government assistance, immigrants, and crime being committed by "Mexican, Somalia, black" people. It's not intelligent thought's finest moment, but it is what it is. The girl is challenged numerous times in the classroom, but seems committed to her ludicrous beliefs.
I'm not quite sure what to think about this video, but I don't like the video itself. This wasn't some belligerent racist rant in a Target parking lot, the high school debate championship with a full auditorium, a high school jock bragging falsely about sexual exploits on social media or kids getting caught using a phone app to send racist tinged messages. This is a group of kids in a closed classroom having a discussion about immigration policy. Regardless of the girl's sincerest beliefs, there is a racist element to what she's saying, but she's also a high school kid, the textbook definition of foolish. Isn't high school and college, supposedly, the years where you find out the stuff your parents have indoctrinated you with was really their opinion and not necessarily the real world?
I remember my youth in Edina being told by some that Uptown was the 'inner city,' with gangland shootouts, drugged out vagrants and rampant crime. Then I went there with a church youth group to hand out literature, and realized how wrong they were. Uptown in the 80's and 90's wasn't the glorified mall it's become today, but it wasn't nearly the dystopian hellscape I was lead to believe. It was alive and vibrant, full of unique everything. I loved it, realizing the stale malls and retail chains of my upbringing had little of the pure energy I never knew I craved. I never looked back.
The Raw Story article makes a misguided attempt at laying the blame for this girls comments at the feet of an obscenely conservative news media. I agree the media in this country is owned by conservative interests, but this girl learned this stuff form her life, whether it was mom and dad, grandpa, church, or cable news. These are the beliefs she has been surrounded by, and she really does believe them. Her willingness to share them so earnestly and freely is all the proof I need she's just repeating what she's been taught at home.
So, how do we look at this video? Regardless of how much we disagree with some people, a person has a right to teach and educate their kids, in their private home, how they choose. We should NEVER think we can regulate non-illegal, private residence behavior. This girl is headed into a yard full of rakes placed there by the people who have filled her mind with such absurdities, but for her to grow, she needs to walk into a few of them, like the one in her classroom, and take the sting back home and ask whomever has lied to her, "why did you tell me that?" It's called growing up. Yes, she may refuse to educate herself on the realities she becomes jarringly aware of, but that's her right, as a private individual. Doesn't mean we have to like it. That's our right, too.
This was also in a classroom in a high school. This reeks of private agenda to embarrass and humiliate this girl. We should be able to educate people who are misinformed without a public shaming which could haunt this girl for years. Maybe honesty, respecting each other, and what should or shouldn't be made public can be the next discussion that class has.
The one good aspect of the video is the kids themselves had the discussion. A young man in the classroom challenges her silly arguments, and this leads to conversation. Reality based human interaction is what this girl needs, and the bite of being rebuked by her peers might be enough for her to start asking the questions she needs to start asking.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
Thank God For Governor Mark Dayton
Things have been coming at me so fast and furious the last 36 hours, with the close of the 2015 Legislative session, I have a headache.
It all boils down to this; the Minnesota House Republicans, led by Speaker Kurt Daudt, went into negotiations with the Democratic lead Minnesota Senate, led by Senate Majority Leader Bakk, with a few goals in mind. They waited until the very end to make their 'compromises,' so bills would get rammed through without anyone really seeing what was in them. They snuck Republican wish list items into the bills, like dismantling the power of the Auditors office, legalized gun silencers, and weakening clean up rules for polluters, but the end goal was simply to bide their time. The MN GOP want the massive budget surplus the state has, 1.9 Billion, to go to the wealthiest 1000 in the state, for their 'implied quid pro quo dance.' They never intended to use the surplus for the betterment of Minnesotans, but when they realized most Minnesotans weren't on board with their plan, they decided to wait it out. Their hope is through the current tax system that created the surplus in the first place, and through cuts they are making in programs, just because they are mean spirited Republicans, the surplus will be a lot bigger next year, making their insistence of handing the surplus over to the wealthiest 1000 easier for their voting base to swallow.
I'm not quite sure what Senator Bakk was thinking. It seems he was either incompetent and allowed this to happen, or, even worse, was opportunistic and got enough direct political hand outs for himself to make him forgo sanity.
Today, the GOP, and the state media which panders to them unabashedly, started to make it seem like the GOP was more than willing to work with the Governor, even though the bills the GOP passed tell a completely different story.
Then came Governor Dayton, who did the equivalent of putting Speaker Daudt over his knee and spanking him. He immediately vetoed the Education bill, releasing the very clear e-mails he had sent Speaker Daudt and Senator Bakk last week about what had to be in the bills for his signature. He also laid out potentially more vetoes, something he knows has teeth because the House DFL, after being completely disrespected by Speaker Daudt, is not about to help him override the Governor's vetoes.
Governor Dayton knows the Executive branch of the state is the strongest elected position in Minnesota, he knows he has a mandate from the people with his large re-election margin, he's not afraid of the Republican party, especially not a jackass like Speaker Daudt and he has nothing to lose. He will get his way on these bills and he'll make you cry if you try to stop him.
It all boils down to this; the Minnesota House Republicans, led by Speaker Kurt Daudt, went into negotiations with the Democratic lead Minnesota Senate, led by Senate Majority Leader Bakk, with a few goals in mind. They waited until the very end to make their 'compromises,' so bills would get rammed through without anyone really seeing what was in them. They snuck Republican wish list items into the bills, like dismantling the power of the Auditors office, legalized gun silencers, and weakening clean up rules for polluters, but the end goal was simply to bide their time. The MN GOP want the massive budget surplus the state has, 1.9 Billion, to go to the wealthiest 1000 in the state, for their 'implied quid pro quo dance.' They never intended to use the surplus for the betterment of Minnesotans, but when they realized most Minnesotans weren't on board with their plan, they decided to wait it out. Their hope is through the current tax system that created the surplus in the first place, and through cuts they are making in programs, just because they are mean spirited Republicans, the surplus will be a lot bigger next year, making their insistence of handing the surplus over to the wealthiest 1000 easier for their voting base to swallow.
I'm not quite sure what Senator Bakk was thinking. It seems he was either incompetent and allowed this to happen, or, even worse, was opportunistic and got enough direct political hand outs for himself to make him forgo sanity.
Today, the GOP, and the state media which panders to them unabashedly, started to make it seem like the GOP was more than willing to work with the Governor, even though the bills the GOP passed tell a completely different story.
Then came Governor Dayton, who did the equivalent of putting Speaker Daudt over his knee and spanking him. He immediately vetoed the Education bill, releasing the very clear e-mails he had sent Speaker Daudt and Senator Bakk last week about what had to be in the bills for his signature. He also laid out potentially more vetoes, something he knows has teeth because the House DFL, after being completely disrespected by Speaker Daudt, is not about to help him override the Governor's vetoes.
Governor Dayton knows the Executive branch of the state is the strongest elected position in Minnesota, he knows he has a mandate from the people with his large re-election margin, he's not afraid of the Republican party, especially not a jackass like Speaker Daudt and he has nothing to lose. He will get his way on these bills and he'll make you cry if you try to stop him.
Friday, May 15, 2015
The Friday Link for 5/15/15
I love baseball. It's my favorite sport, hands down. I love the complexity of it, how it's a team sport played by individuals, where every play is unique, but is viewed as part of the overall game, and you're only as good as your last pitch, throw or hit.
My son is a far better baseball player than I ever was. He has tremendous power and has turned into a pure hitter. He will hit a few home runs this year. He plays outfield, 3rd, 2nd and 1st and he is a pretty good pitcher too. Not tonight though. He got shelled tonight, but most of the runs were unearned. His team can take a few innings to get going. Regardless, it's a tremendous way to spend two and a half hours on a warm day.
When I was a player, I was more concerned about the dandelions and bugs than the ball rolling past me in the outfield. I was a human Ferdinand, more focused on the beauty around me than the sporting task at hand.
Since it is the baseball season, let me go to one of the all time great comedy bits, 'Who's on First!' Abbott and Costello are among the all time greats. Listening to some of their radio shows on satellite radio is pure joy, and I'll always remember the Saturday afternoon movies of them as a kid. They are clean, and hilarious. Their comedic timing was the greatest of all time, and they were just tremendous partners, playing off each other to perfection. They are also the consummate example of why you practice, as they could have never done most of their bits without hours of work to make them perfect.
This bit where they discuss the unusual names of the baseball players on their team is their most popular skit they ever did. This is the extended version, which I feel is best, and it does lead to a great trivia question: who's the only position player you don't find out the name of? (by the way, that is not a trick question). Listen and you can find out. Play ball! It's your Friday Link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTcRRaXV-fg
My son is a far better baseball player than I ever was. He has tremendous power and has turned into a pure hitter. He will hit a few home runs this year. He plays outfield, 3rd, 2nd and 1st and he is a pretty good pitcher too. Not tonight though. He got shelled tonight, but most of the runs were unearned. His team can take a few innings to get going. Regardless, it's a tremendous way to spend two and a half hours on a warm day.
When I was a player, I was more concerned about the dandelions and bugs than the ball rolling past me in the outfield. I was a human Ferdinand, more focused on the beauty around me than the sporting task at hand.
Since it is the baseball season, let me go to one of the all time great comedy bits, 'Who's on First!' Abbott and Costello are among the all time greats. Listening to some of their radio shows on satellite radio is pure joy, and I'll always remember the Saturday afternoon movies of them as a kid. They are clean, and hilarious. Their comedic timing was the greatest of all time, and they were just tremendous partners, playing off each other to perfection. They are also the consummate example of why you practice, as they could have never done most of their bits without hours of work to make them perfect.
This bit where they discuss the unusual names of the baseball players on their team is their most popular skit they ever did. This is the extended version, which I feel is best, and it does lead to a great trivia question: who's the only position player you don't find out the name of? (by the way, that is not a trick question). Listen and you can find out. Play ball! It's your Friday Link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTcRRaXV-fg
An Old Friend
In case it wasn't clear by my two week, fan boy, on-air crush, I'm a huge fan of Rush, the Canadian prog rock trio (not the other one). They were just in town for their 40th Anniversary Tour, but in a bit of an odd twist, not the 40th anniversary of the band itself. The 40th they're celebrating was the 40 years of the current line up, with Neil Peart, the second drummer of the band. The original drummer left after Rush's first album and Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson luckily happened to stumble upon a guy who would become one of the top three rock drummers of all time. Add to that Geddy making a solid argument for greatest rock bass guitarist of all time, and Alex as top 20 rock guitarist of all time, and you begin to understand why the fans love of this band.
My first time being aware Rush existed was back in Rhode Island. Jamie Radamcher was a kid ahead of his time. In 1980, this kid was the first of my friends to get into the Lego building sets, making them according to instructions and then never playing with them, just staring at them. He'd get so angry if we touched them. He also was the first kid I knew who was into Dungeons and Dragons. In the summer of 80, I was over at his house, not playing with the Legos, when the local rock radio station played Spirit of Radio. Jamie went nuts. He said, "it's so cool Rush is getting played on air." I had no idea why this was cool. I remember Spirit of Radio getting played, and when Tom Sawyer came out the next year, it was everywhere. I then moved to Georgia for two years and heard nothing.
I had moved back to Minneapolis in 1983, and two of Rush's videos were in heavy rotation in the early days of MTV; Subdivisions (this band was WAY ahead of everyone else on their criticism of suburban culture, something apparent every time I drive past a strip mall full of chain restaurants and chain stores) and Distant Early Warning (one of the first songs to make fun of the constant 'be afraid of nukes' mantra which fueled Reagan era policies).
Steve Clay, a good friend of mine in high school and a HUGE Rush fan (he was at the concert on Tuesday too), convinced me to go to see the Power Windows Tour in March of 1986 at the old Civic Center. I was sold as soon as the Three Stooges theme played. Back then, Rush was big enough to have a good set of hits, which they played most of (except for Fly By Night), and they could still revisit favorites without feeling like they left anything out. Last Tuesday, they skipped over five albums completely and still played for near 3 hours, omitting at least 10 of their most popular songs. I'm not complaining, the R40 tour was amazing.
Tuesday was my 10th Rush concert. I pray they keep playing together for as long as they can. Every time I listen to an album or see them live, it's revisiting an old friend. I have other artists I love, and I've been to fantastic non-Rush concerts, but Rush will always be my favorite.
My first time being aware Rush existed was back in Rhode Island. Jamie Radamcher was a kid ahead of his time. In 1980, this kid was the first of my friends to get into the Lego building sets, making them according to instructions and then never playing with them, just staring at them. He'd get so angry if we touched them. He also was the first kid I knew who was into Dungeons and Dragons. In the summer of 80, I was over at his house, not playing with the Legos, when the local rock radio station played Spirit of Radio. Jamie went nuts. He said, "it's so cool Rush is getting played on air." I had no idea why this was cool. I remember Spirit of Radio getting played, and when Tom Sawyer came out the next year, it was everywhere. I then moved to Georgia for two years and heard nothing.
I had moved back to Minneapolis in 1983, and two of Rush's videos were in heavy rotation in the early days of MTV; Subdivisions (this band was WAY ahead of everyone else on their criticism of suburban culture, something apparent every time I drive past a strip mall full of chain restaurants and chain stores) and Distant Early Warning (one of the first songs to make fun of the constant 'be afraid of nukes' mantra which fueled Reagan era policies).
Steve Clay, a good friend of mine in high school and a HUGE Rush fan (he was at the concert on Tuesday too), convinced me to go to see the Power Windows Tour in March of 1986 at the old Civic Center. I was sold as soon as the Three Stooges theme played. Back then, Rush was big enough to have a good set of hits, which they played most of (except for Fly By Night), and they could still revisit favorites without feeling like they left anything out. Last Tuesday, they skipped over five albums completely and still played for near 3 hours, omitting at least 10 of their most popular songs. I'm not complaining, the R40 tour was amazing.
Tuesday was my 10th Rush concert. I pray they keep playing together for as long as they can. Every time I listen to an album or see them live, it's revisiting an old friend. I have other artists I love, and I've been to fantastic non-Rush concerts, but Rush will always be my favorite.
Monday, May 11, 2015
No Good Answers
Corey Lee Claflin, when he was 24, sexually assaulted a 6 year old girl. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison in May of 2003. After he served two-thirds of his term, he was put into a supervised program with strict rules. He was labeled at that point a Level 1 predatory offender. While in this supervised environment, he violated rules relating to having a device with internet access, having pornography, and, most disturbing, having contact with children in some form. He was sent back to prison for the violations, but he did not receive any additional time to his original prison term. He was re-assessed as a Level 3 predatory offender, the level with the highest likelihood of re-offending. Next Monday, Corey Lee Claflin is scheduled to be released after serving his 12 year term. He'll be free, and he'll be moving into my neighborhood, living a block away from my house.
There are no words to summarize my frustration.
How is this guy even getting released? Aren't there supposed to be far harsher penalties in cases like this? When he was sentenced to 12 years, it probably seemed like a long time. If someone told you today you had to go away until 2027, it'd sound like an eternity, but in reality, it's not that long. Politicians talk about getting tough on crime but imposing life sentences for sex crimes usually runs into three problems.
First, cookie cutter solutions rarely are effective. If you create a life sentence for sex crimes, you're saying a 21 year old guy, who walks into a bar, has a few drinks with a woman, goes back to his place for consensual sex, only to find out she was 15 and using her sister's ID at the bar, that he should somehow serve the same amount of prison time as a serial rapist. We need to have guidelines which allow our judiciary to sentence accordingly, but it's still a head scratcher how a guy who sexually assaulted a 6 year old only got 12 years.
Second, if you start making sex crimes life sentences, people are going to start asking why other crimes are not life sentences too. Bankrupting thousands of people through a Ponzi scheme, beating your wife and kids, drunk driving for the 2nd time, cheating on your taxes. I guarantee I can find someone who could make a decent argument why the people who perpetrate those crimes should get far harsher penalties too. Do we really want 3-7% of the population serving life sentences behind bars?
Thirdly, AND the main reason we don't have far harsher mandatory penalties for sexual offenders, is because the harsher the mandatory penalty, the harder it is for wealthy people to buy their way out of it. There are just as many sexual predators who live in wealthy white suburbs as there are in the inner city. With a good lawyer and some big checks, wealthy people can make their cases disappear before a trial. Even if they're convicted, they can use their money to argue their sentences should be served in a treatment/spa facility in Florida, not a prison. And, with money, they can contest their predatory offender status, getting released as a Level 1, where few in a community are aware their neighbor is a predator (more on that later).
The Hopkins Police and the Minnesota Department of Corrections had a community meeting about Mr. Claflin, giving some basic background information and fielding questions from the masses. The numbers are disturbing. One in five girls are sexually assaulted, 1 in 7 boys. One in six women, and 1 in 33 men. This is an epidemic in this country and these crimes are not just being perpetrated by the same five or six people. There are far more predatory offenders in the US than we realize, and, very likely, one within a few blocks of you right now. Reminder, once these criminals are released, without any further supervision, there are limited restrictions to where they can go.
Are we going to tell criminals upon being released they're not allowed to go home, to live with their parents, their family, on their own property? This is what is happening in our neighborhood. Claflin has family who still lives here, in a house which is a cliche; dark brown, unwelcoming, not a lot of windows, unkept yard, creepy. The corrections officers said the best chance for him to not re-offend is to be in a supportive environment with family. I'm not going to argue that point, but I just wish his supportive environment wasn't so near my house.
Some aren't shy about threatening him. I've heard people suggest they'll attack him, release their dogs on him, and one person sitting next to me at the meeting eluded to "whatever it would take" to get him out of the neighborhood. The police took a beating in the meeting as well, with angry residents accusing them of somehow being complacent in Claflin's return home. I imagine some people's ferver is being fueled by sexual assaults they'd endured themselves years ago, and they don't like the calmness of their lives being disrupted with a reminder of their own violation. If twelve years is not long enough for them, why should it be long enough for Claflin?
I stood up at the meeting and saluted the police for letting us know about all of this, and reminded the audience we should be thankful they disseminated this information. Law enforcement is promising to be diligent, insisting they will act immediately if Mr. Claflin steps a millimeter out of line.
The Department of Correction's spokeswoman pointed out the improvements they've made in regards to treating Level 3 offenders. In the early 90's, the rates of recidivism were around 16% after three years. Today, 98% of Level 3 predatory offenders have no relapses of behavior in the same three year stretch. That's impressive, but it doesn't stop fear, something pointed out with scary glee by one woman at the meeting. "This guy could come out of prison and rape someone within minutes of coming home. What if Claflin is that guy???" She had a little too much eagerness for her potentially being the person who gets to say "I told you so!"
I like to think of myself as rational and educated. I strive to be logical and think things through, but in reality, I'm just a scared and freaked out by Mr. Claflin's violation potential as anyone else. I've a 13 year old son, daughters 10 and 8, and a wife. I don't want to see them attacked or violated. It's easy to have a calm debate about something when you're standing a safe distance away. It's far harder when it's a block away from you.
Let me get back to the comment I made about sexual predators being everywhere. They are. It's just a fact, but as I've told some west metro friends who don't live in my neighborhood about Mr. Claflin's return, the reaction has been jaw dropping. "Oh, Hopkins is falling off the map, it's the ghetto, it's a slum, it's a shame at how bad things have gotten in that town." These reactions are similar to the ones many of my neighbors have gotten too.
Let me explain something; Hopkins is not only middle class, it's an upper middle class community. It really is. Is it as gilded as the self inflated provenance and mansions of Edina, Minnetonka, Eden Prairie or Wayzata? No, but because it's surrounded by such wealth, the perspective is skewed. It does have a slightly higher representation of lower income families and minorities, but it's still not even close to a fair representation of the race and class breakdown which is America. As much as the more pricey zip codes and school districts look down upon Hopkins, there are far more communities looking up at the wealth Hopkins has.
Ghetto and slum? When I hear people use such terms as ignorantly as they do, it tells me far more about them. If you have zero experience with ghettos or slums, it's probably best to not loosely brandish the term, like you're an authority on the matter. Frankly, you look like a stupid, racist jerk.
Sexual predators are everywhere, in every community. The important thing is to be safe and use common sense. Talk to your kids. Have them use the buddy system when they are going somewhere. And most important, give your kids the attention they deserve. The predator's most effective weapon to lure victims, regardless of whether it's in the lowest income area or in most gold plated of opulent communities, is to give potential targets the attention they are starving for, the attention the potential victims are not getting in their lives. Pay attention to your kids!
I love my neighborhood. We have very good property values, near non-existent crime, some level of economic and social diversity, and it's welcoming, clean and beautiful. Last night we had a block party and it was full of warmth and friendliness. We're not going to allow one individual to define our neighborhood or who we are. I'm proud of where I live.
But, I'm still extremely frustrated. At the end of the day, there are no good answers.
There are no words to summarize my frustration.
How is this guy even getting released? Aren't there supposed to be far harsher penalties in cases like this? When he was sentenced to 12 years, it probably seemed like a long time. If someone told you today you had to go away until 2027, it'd sound like an eternity, but in reality, it's not that long. Politicians talk about getting tough on crime but imposing life sentences for sex crimes usually runs into three problems.
First, cookie cutter solutions rarely are effective. If you create a life sentence for sex crimes, you're saying a 21 year old guy, who walks into a bar, has a few drinks with a woman, goes back to his place for consensual sex, only to find out she was 15 and using her sister's ID at the bar, that he should somehow serve the same amount of prison time as a serial rapist. We need to have guidelines which allow our judiciary to sentence accordingly, but it's still a head scratcher how a guy who sexually assaulted a 6 year old only got 12 years.
Second, if you start making sex crimes life sentences, people are going to start asking why other crimes are not life sentences too. Bankrupting thousands of people through a Ponzi scheme, beating your wife and kids, drunk driving for the 2nd time, cheating on your taxes. I guarantee I can find someone who could make a decent argument why the people who perpetrate those crimes should get far harsher penalties too. Do we really want 3-7% of the population serving life sentences behind bars?
Thirdly, AND the main reason we don't have far harsher mandatory penalties for sexual offenders, is because the harsher the mandatory penalty, the harder it is for wealthy people to buy their way out of it. There are just as many sexual predators who live in wealthy white suburbs as there are in the inner city. With a good lawyer and some big checks, wealthy people can make their cases disappear before a trial. Even if they're convicted, they can use their money to argue their sentences should be served in a treatment/spa facility in Florida, not a prison. And, with money, they can contest their predatory offender status, getting released as a Level 1, where few in a community are aware their neighbor is a predator (more on that later).
The Hopkins Police and the Minnesota Department of Corrections had a community meeting about Mr. Claflin, giving some basic background information and fielding questions from the masses. The numbers are disturbing. One in five girls are sexually assaulted, 1 in 7 boys. One in six women, and 1 in 33 men. This is an epidemic in this country and these crimes are not just being perpetrated by the same five or six people. There are far more predatory offenders in the US than we realize, and, very likely, one within a few blocks of you right now. Reminder, once these criminals are released, without any further supervision, there are limited restrictions to where they can go.
Are we going to tell criminals upon being released they're not allowed to go home, to live with their parents, their family, on their own property? This is what is happening in our neighborhood. Claflin has family who still lives here, in a house which is a cliche; dark brown, unwelcoming, not a lot of windows, unkept yard, creepy. The corrections officers said the best chance for him to not re-offend is to be in a supportive environment with family. I'm not going to argue that point, but I just wish his supportive environment wasn't so near my house.
Some aren't shy about threatening him. I've heard people suggest they'll attack him, release their dogs on him, and one person sitting next to me at the meeting eluded to "whatever it would take" to get him out of the neighborhood. The police took a beating in the meeting as well, with angry residents accusing them of somehow being complacent in Claflin's return home. I imagine some people's ferver is being fueled by sexual assaults they'd endured themselves years ago, and they don't like the calmness of their lives being disrupted with a reminder of their own violation. If twelve years is not long enough for them, why should it be long enough for Claflin?
I stood up at the meeting and saluted the police for letting us know about all of this, and reminded the audience we should be thankful they disseminated this information. Law enforcement is promising to be diligent, insisting they will act immediately if Mr. Claflin steps a millimeter out of line.
The Department of Correction's spokeswoman pointed out the improvements they've made in regards to treating Level 3 offenders. In the early 90's, the rates of recidivism were around 16% after three years. Today, 98% of Level 3 predatory offenders have no relapses of behavior in the same three year stretch. That's impressive, but it doesn't stop fear, something pointed out with scary glee by one woman at the meeting. "This guy could come out of prison and rape someone within minutes of coming home. What if Claflin is that guy???" She had a little too much eagerness for her potentially being the person who gets to say "I told you so!"
I like to think of myself as rational and educated. I strive to be logical and think things through, but in reality, I'm just a scared and freaked out by Mr. Claflin's violation potential as anyone else. I've a 13 year old son, daughters 10 and 8, and a wife. I don't want to see them attacked or violated. It's easy to have a calm debate about something when you're standing a safe distance away. It's far harder when it's a block away from you.
Let me get back to the comment I made about sexual predators being everywhere. They are. It's just a fact, but as I've told some west metro friends who don't live in my neighborhood about Mr. Claflin's return, the reaction has been jaw dropping. "Oh, Hopkins is falling off the map, it's the ghetto, it's a slum, it's a shame at how bad things have gotten in that town." These reactions are similar to the ones many of my neighbors have gotten too.
Let me explain something; Hopkins is not only middle class, it's an upper middle class community. It really is. Is it as gilded as the self inflated provenance and mansions of Edina, Minnetonka, Eden Prairie or Wayzata? No, but because it's surrounded by such wealth, the perspective is skewed. It does have a slightly higher representation of lower income families and minorities, but it's still not even close to a fair representation of the race and class breakdown which is America. As much as the more pricey zip codes and school districts look down upon Hopkins, there are far more communities looking up at the wealth Hopkins has.
Ghetto and slum? When I hear people use such terms as ignorantly as they do, it tells me far more about them. If you have zero experience with ghettos or slums, it's probably best to not loosely brandish the term, like you're an authority on the matter. Frankly, you look like a stupid, racist jerk.
Sexual predators are everywhere, in every community. The important thing is to be safe and use common sense. Talk to your kids. Have them use the buddy system when they are going somewhere. And most important, give your kids the attention they deserve. The predator's most effective weapon to lure victims, regardless of whether it's in the lowest income area or in most gold plated of opulent communities, is to give potential targets the attention they are starving for, the attention the potential victims are not getting in their lives. Pay attention to your kids!
I love my neighborhood. We have very good property values, near non-existent crime, some level of economic and social diversity, and it's welcoming, clean and beautiful. Last night we had a block party and it was full of warmth and friendliness. We're not going to allow one individual to define our neighborhood or who we are. I'm proud of where I live.
But, I'm still extremely frustrated. At the end of the day, there are no good answers.
Friday, May 8, 2015
The Friday Link for 5/8/15
David Letterman is getting ready to leave the air, but he still keeps doing it better than pretty much anyone else. Last night Tina Fey was his guest and proceeded to remover her dress and give it to him. It was a bit, but it was a really good bit.
It's hard to relay how important David Letterman was. When he started his Late Show on NBC (after someone thought him hosting a daytime TV show was a good idea. It bombed, but did win two Emmy's), Carson was still king, but 'safe.' Carson was brilliant, and beloved by the parents and grandparents who watched him religiously. Letterman was for the college and high school kids. His instant popularity with younger viewers brought so many people to late night viewing. Today, it's hard to think about television mostly being just late news, movies and sign offs.
He was so good, leading a polished show which looked like it was done by the seat of their pants with a bone dry budget. They had very intelligent writers who looked at comedy and the talk show format in a very different light. Chris Elliot, man on the street interviews, throwing stuff off of buildings and just plain goofy stuff were common highlights. Plus the music he would book was unheard of by most of America.
I remember my friends setting their VCR's to tape him, getting up the next morning and watching, talking about all the bits and jokes. It was a generational thing, as my parents hated him back then. They could not figure out why anyone watched him. I know they wouldn't remember their dislike of him from back then, as he has become the old guard of late night today.
This is why many people, including myself, feel as if Letterman was betrayed by NBC, when they handed the Tonight Show to Jay Leno. I understand they wanted a 'safe' host that would keep the moms and grandmas watching, but they brutally stabbed him in the back and lost their cool edge. I mentioned in a past Friday link the Conan situation, yet another betrayal by Leno. When it came to Fallon, there was no way they were going to let Jay come back a third time. Fallon is quite good, but he is 'safe' too. His real talent is taking relatively safe activities and making them seem edgy.
Going back to those first years, it's hard to remember what it was that first got us all talking about Letterman, but you couldn't miss the buzz the day after he debuted the velcro suit. Here is that classic bit, still as funny as ever.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9uxxqKGmYg
It's hard to relay how important David Letterman was. When he started his Late Show on NBC (after someone thought him hosting a daytime TV show was a good idea. It bombed, but did win two Emmy's), Carson was still king, but 'safe.' Carson was brilliant, and beloved by the parents and grandparents who watched him religiously. Letterman was for the college and high school kids. His instant popularity with younger viewers brought so many people to late night viewing. Today, it's hard to think about television mostly being just late news, movies and sign offs.
He was so good, leading a polished show which looked like it was done by the seat of their pants with a bone dry budget. They had very intelligent writers who looked at comedy and the talk show format in a very different light. Chris Elliot, man on the street interviews, throwing stuff off of buildings and just plain goofy stuff were common highlights. Plus the music he would book was unheard of by most of America.
I remember my friends setting their VCR's to tape him, getting up the next morning and watching, talking about all the bits and jokes. It was a generational thing, as my parents hated him back then. They could not figure out why anyone watched him. I know they wouldn't remember their dislike of him from back then, as he has become the old guard of late night today.
This is why many people, including myself, feel as if Letterman was betrayed by NBC, when they handed the Tonight Show to Jay Leno. I understand they wanted a 'safe' host that would keep the moms and grandmas watching, but they brutally stabbed him in the back and lost their cool edge. I mentioned in a past Friday link the Conan situation, yet another betrayal by Leno. When it came to Fallon, there was no way they were going to let Jay come back a third time. Fallon is quite good, but he is 'safe' too. His real talent is taking relatively safe activities and making them seem edgy.
Going back to those first years, it's hard to remember what it was that first got us all talking about Letterman, but you couldn't miss the buzz the day after he debuted the velcro suit. Here is that classic bit, still as funny as ever.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9uxxqKGmYg
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
The Scariest Weather Video Ever
In conjunction with the blog post, The New Not-Normal, I wanted to put up what I consider to be the scariest weather video I have ever seen. It may not look like much, but it's terrifying to me.
This time lapse video was taken by a camera aimed toward the east in Madison, Wisconsin. What you see is Hurricane Sandy coming ashore. As this cloud bank moves over Wisconsin, the hurricane eye itself is slamming into New Jersey. This could be the largest storm I have ever seen.
The time lapse gives this storm the anger you'd expect. As Wisconsin sees the edge of this, remember that Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey are all covered by this monster, and that's only half of the storm!
Tornados don't scare me too much. You really have to be unlucky to get tagged by one of them. Lightning? I wear rubber soled shoes. Blizzards, heatwaves, flash floods? I am cautious, but nothing scares me like hurricanes. I live in Minnesota to make sure I don't experience another one in my life. Minnesota is also good for avoiding earthquakes too.
Nature always wins.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvN0IwzdFNo
This time lapse video was taken by a camera aimed toward the east in Madison, Wisconsin. What you see is Hurricane Sandy coming ashore. As this cloud bank moves over Wisconsin, the hurricane eye itself is slamming into New Jersey. This could be the largest storm I have ever seen.
The time lapse gives this storm the anger you'd expect. As Wisconsin sees the edge of this, remember that Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New Jersey are all covered by this monster, and that's only half of the storm!
Tornados don't scare me too much. You really have to be unlucky to get tagged by one of them. Lightning? I wear rubber soled shoes. Blizzards, heatwaves, flash floods? I am cautious, but nothing scares me like hurricanes. I live in Minnesota to make sure I don't experience another one in my life. Minnesota is also good for avoiding earthquakes too.
Nature always wins.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvN0IwzdFNo
The New Not-Normal
Last weekend was delightful. It was warm and sunny. My whole family spent the daylight hours outside gardening and playing, with a baseball game for my son taking place on Sunday in spectacular conditions. There was only one slight problem; it was all wrong. The temperature was more common for early June, not early May, and the plants and trees are all about two weeks ahead of their normal growth cycle.
This nicer weather is an ignored truth, the new not-normal. People aren't alarmed when the temperature is supposed to be 60, but it's 75. The temperature differential, along with extremes in precipitation and storms, are painting an undeniable picture of a changing world right before our eyes, but when the problems of climate change are separated from each other, the warming temperatures just become a pleasant respite most of the time. Climate change isn't just warming, but the warming is the most obvious day to day symptom, and the easiest to dismiss.
Back in March of 2003, we had a two week span of very warm temperatures, with the high temps on two of those days being around 70. That was 30 degrees warmer than it supposed to be. No one really complained, as a matter of fact, most people reacted as though it was free sex and candy days, frantically grabbing scissors to make cut offs, as their shorts were still deeply buried in boxes, months away from being dusted off. I myself went and walked Lake Calhoun numerous times over that stretch, watching the snow frantically melt with a smile on my face. Every year since, we've had a stretch of late Winter/early Spring days where it is freakishly warmer than it should be.
Since April 1 of this year, most of the days have been above average temperature, and most of them were 6 or more degrees above normal. Eleven days since April 1 have been 15 degrees or warmer than they should be. On April 1, it was almost 40 degrees warmer than average, April 12, 23 degrees warmer, April 14, 19 degrees, May 3, 17.
On May 14th, 2013, we hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the metro area, another 30+ degree warmer than it's supposed to be day. People hated it. Most had just taken the winter covers off their air conditioners, not realizing they'd have to fire them up so early. No one smiled that day. If we had a two week stretch of 105 or higher temps in the Twin Cities in July and August, 30 degrees warmer than it should be, just like March of 03, people wouldn't be happy. They would say, "this is wrong. Why doesn't someone do something about it?" But then comes 80 degrees in late September, and the stress and strain of the extreme summer heat disappears.
There's a financial impact which is ignored too. The AC bills for a two week stretch I described would bring a level of concern to the kitchen table, but it's the larger weather related impacts we need to start seeing. A few winters ago, we didn't have snow. No snow in Minnesota should terrify people, but instead we went about giggling and playing, acting like it was a nice break from the normal. Then came the consequences. Businesses who depend on snow (ski resorts, snowmobile manufacturers, snow plows, snow blower makers) all had massive economic downturns, leading to layoffs and lost revenue. It nearly broke some communities, AND it was due to climate change. But wouldn't you know, a more normal snow the next year and the downturn becomes a distant memory, until the next Winter without snow.
When we have a year's worth of rain fall in a three week span, followed by extreme drought for the rest of the year, people look at the end of the year totals and shrug their shoulders saying, "it works out in the end." Even hurricanes, one of the most destructive forces on the planet, after they scrub a large portion of a state clean, are only remembered for a limited time by the individuals it directly effects, and hardly at all by the parts of the country the storm missed. Sandy really messed up New Jersey, but how many Republicans didn't care one iota about the massive devastation, instead only accusing Gov. Christie of being a traitor for needing Federal assistance. Still today, there are portions of the East Coast which have not been repaired. For a shocking amount of people, it's easy to overlook.
There's a definitive trend to the temperature fluctuations, but when you add in the bizarre precipitation variances, the super storms, the unusual weather patterns (both warmer and colder), and then factor in the financial impacts to our economy, we should all be very concerned.
Then again, maybe you should just go out and enjoy the nice weather while it lasts. Considering Climate Change legislation has the same chances as a snowball in hell (insert Senator Inhofe joke here), it probably won't be too long before the new not-normal is impossible to enjoy.
This nicer weather is an ignored truth, the new not-normal. People aren't alarmed when the temperature is supposed to be 60, but it's 75. The temperature differential, along with extremes in precipitation and storms, are painting an undeniable picture of a changing world right before our eyes, but when the problems of climate change are separated from each other, the warming temperatures just become a pleasant respite most of the time. Climate change isn't just warming, but the warming is the most obvious day to day symptom, and the easiest to dismiss.
Back in March of 2003, we had a two week span of very warm temperatures, with the high temps on two of those days being around 70. That was 30 degrees warmer than it supposed to be. No one really complained, as a matter of fact, most people reacted as though it was free sex and candy days, frantically grabbing scissors to make cut offs, as their shorts were still deeply buried in boxes, months away from being dusted off. I myself went and walked Lake Calhoun numerous times over that stretch, watching the snow frantically melt with a smile on my face. Every year since, we've had a stretch of late Winter/early Spring days where it is freakishly warmer than it should be.
Since April 1 of this year, most of the days have been above average temperature, and most of them were 6 or more degrees above normal. Eleven days since April 1 have been 15 degrees or warmer than they should be. On April 1, it was almost 40 degrees warmer than average, April 12, 23 degrees warmer, April 14, 19 degrees, May 3, 17.
On May 14th, 2013, we hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the metro area, another 30+ degree warmer than it's supposed to be day. People hated it. Most had just taken the winter covers off their air conditioners, not realizing they'd have to fire them up so early. No one smiled that day. If we had a two week stretch of 105 or higher temps in the Twin Cities in July and August, 30 degrees warmer than it should be, just like March of 03, people wouldn't be happy. They would say, "this is wrong. Why doesn't someone do something about it?" But then comes 80 degrees in late September, and the stress and strain of the extreme summer heat disappears.
There's a financial impact which is ignored too. The AC bills for a two week stretch I described would bring a level of concern to the kitchen table, but it's the larger weather related impacts we need to start seeing. A few winters ago, we didn't have snow. No snow in Minnesota should terrify people, but instead we went about giggling and playing, acting like it was a nice break from the normal. Then came the consequences. Businesses who depend on snow (ski resorts, snowmobile manufacturers, snow plows, snow blower makers) all had massive economic downturns, leading to layoffs and lost revenue. It nearly broke some communities, AND it was due to climate change. But wouldn't you know, a more normal snow the next year and the downturn becomes a distant memory, until the next Winter without snow.
When we have a year's worth of rain fall in a three week span, followed by extreme drought for the rest of the year, people look at the end of the year totals and shrug their shoulders saying, "it works out in the end." Even hurricanes, one of the most destructive forces on the planet, after they scrub a large portion of a state clean, are only remembered for a limited time by the individuals it directly effects, and hardly at all by the parts of the country the storm missed. Sandy really messed up New Jersey, but how many Republicans didn't care one iota about the massive devastation, instead only accusing Gov. Christie of being a traitor for needing Federal assistance. Still today, there are portions of the East Coast which have not been repaired. For a shocking amount of people, it's easy to overlook.
There's a definitive trend to the temperature fluctuations, but when you add in the bizarre precipitation variances, the super storms, the unusual weather patterns (both warmer and colder), and then factor in the financial impacts to our economy, we should all be very concerned.
Then again, maybe you should just go out and enjoy the nice weather while it lasts. Considering Climate Change legislation has the same chances as a snowball in hell (insert Senator Inhofe joke here), it probably won't be too long before the new not-normal is impossible to enjoy.
Monday, May 4, 2015
The Fraud that is the Minnesota GOP
The Minnesota GOP, since winning the state House last November, has tried to portray their image as pro-Minnesota business, pro-worker, and pro-out state, rural communities. They've insisted the small towns of the state have been ignored by the big, bad Twin Cities metro for too long, and they were going to make Minneapolis/St. Paul pay, but once again, the Republicans have shown their true colors. The Minnesota GOP is only in politics for the wealthiest of the wealthy and for their own self promotion.
First, some background on a current issue which exposes the Right as the frauds they are. Chinese steel has been flooding the world market, propped up unfairly by the Chinese government. As the world prices have bottomed out, the Minnesota steel and taconite industry is feeling the pain, with layoffs announced across the Iron Range. Minnesota Democrats came up with a good idea; they introduced a bill making American-made steel the only steel to be used in Minnesota public works projects. Great idea, as it puts American products first, helps Minnesota's mining industry, and might prevent some of the layoffs.
The Republicans in the MN House voted the bill down.
It would be simple to call the GOP hacks, but lets break down their motives:
1) The GOP will do everything in their power to make sure any rural districts represented by the Democrats, including many of the districts on the Iron Range, get nothing which may be perceived as helping their constituents. They had success in 2014 by playing the anti-metro card, and if they can make rural districts with DFL Reps. languish in an economic downturn, they might be able to win those seats in 2016. You just have to convince the voters to forget the Republicans were the ones who voted to hurt them.
2) If they can make them desperate enough, the miners of the northland might become a louder voice in support of the sulfide mining operation proposed for the Ely area. This type of mining is an environmental disaster, and has never, NEVER, been done safe and clean. The mine will poison the pristine northland, and as the environmental dangers become more widely known, public sentiment is turning against it. Creating loyal foot soldiers, desperate for any job they can get, might help the Republicans pro-sulfide mining cause.
3) A main reason the GOP voted down help for the Iron Range was because they didn't want their corporate executive puppet-masters to have to pay a slightly higher price for steel. They contend they're pro-America, but 'America First' is only a campaign slogan for the right. If profits are involved, the Republicans will always take the cheap side, even if it goes against the best interests of their own state. Because of their blind allegiance to corporations, and Chinese steel, the MNGOP is anti-Minnesota worker and anti-Minnesota products.
What this latest example shows is the complete lack of interest MN House Speaker Kurt Daudt and the rest of his tea party underlings have for the citizens of Minnesota, regardless of where they live. The Republicans don't care about rural Minnesota. They were the ones who torpedoed major aide to the rural communities in last session's bonding bill, they're the ones who've failed to follow through on any of their campaign promises to the rural communities in the funding bills they just passed this session, and they're going to continue to go out of their way to make life as miserable as they can for rural Minnesota, hoping they'll blame the DFL, the one party who has delivered for all Minnesotans.
It should be noted the Republican bills passed by the state House this session show a clear hatred of the Twin Cities metro area too. Why anyone not ultra wealthy in either city limits, or in the suburban communities, would vote for the GOP is a mystery.
Rural Minnesota, the Republicans aren't going to help you unless you're one of the wealthiest 1000 in the state. If your bank account doesn't have more than six figures in it, you won't see any help from the GOP. The Republicans need you to indiscriminately vote for them, and will keep feeding you lies so you stay obedient. When you wake up to that fact, and stop buying the right's lies, then you'll see more positive change, just like you did under the Democrats the last two years.
First, some background on a current issue which exposes the Right as the frauds they are. Chinese steel has been flooding the world market, propped up unfairly by the Chinese government. As the world prices have bottomed out, the Minnesota steel and taconite industry is feeling the pain, with layoffs announced across the Iron Range. Minnesota Democrats came up with a good idea; they introduced a bill making American-made steel the only steel to be used in Minnesota public works projects. Great idea, as it puts American products first, helps Minnesota's mining industry, and might prevent some of the layoffs.
The Republicans in the MN House voted the bill down.
It would be simple to call the GOP hacks, but lets break down their motives:
1) The GOP will do everything in their power to make sure any rural districts represented by the Democrats, including many of the districts on the Iron Range, get nothing which may be perceived as helping their constituents. They had success in 2014 by playing the anti-metro card, and if they can make rural districts with DFL Reps. languish in an economic downturn, they might be able to win those seats in 2016. You just have to convince the voters to forget the Republicans were the ones who voted to hurt them.
2) If they can make them desperate enough, the miners of the northland might become a louder voice in support of the sulfide mining operation proposed for the Ely area. This type of mining is an environmental disaster, and has never, NEVER, been done safe and clean. The mine will poison the pristine northland, and as the environmental dangers become more widely known, public sentiment is turning against it. Creating loyal foot soldiers, desperate for any job they can get, might help the Republicans pro-sulfide mining cause.
3) A main reason the GOP voted down help for the Iron Range was because they didn't want their corporate executive puppet-masters to have to pay a slightly higher price for steel. They contend they're pro-America, but 'America First' is only a campaign slogan for the right. If profits are involved, the Republicans will always take the cheap side, even if it goes against the best interests of their own state. Because of their blind allegiance to corporations, and Chinese steel, the MNGOP is anti-Minnesota worker and anti-Minnesota products.
What this latest example shows is the complete lack of interest MN House Speaker Kurt Daudt and the rest of his tea party underlings have for the citizens of Minnesota, regardless of where they live. The Republicans don't care about rural Minnesota. They were the ones who torpedoed major aide to the rural communities in last session's bonding bill, they're the ones who've failed to follow through on any of their campaign promises to the rural communities in the funding bills they just passed this session, and they're going to continue to go out of their way to make life as miserable as they can for rural Minnesota, hoping they'll blame the DFL, the one party who has delivered for all Minnesotans.
It should be noted the Republican bills passed by the state House this session show a clear hatred of the Twin Cities metro area too. Why anyone not ultra wealthy in either city limits, or in the suburban communities, would vote for the GOP is a mystery.
Rural Minnesota, the Republicans aren't going to help you unless you're one of the wealthiest 1000 in the state. If your bank account doesn't have more than six figures in it, you won't see any help from the GOP. The Republicans need you to indiscriminately vote for them, and will keep feeding you lies so you stay obedient. When you wake up to that fact, and stop buying the right's lies, then you'll see more positive change, just like you did under the Democrats the last two years.
Friday, May 1, 2015
The Friday Link for 5/1/15
I've been in absolute heaven today as I embraced my inner geek. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron was a very good movie. Matt's review - different from the first, but it had to be. Where the first movie established the Avengers, the second movie embraces the concept of an ever changing, ever morphing team. They started by wrapping up a lot of story lines still open from the previous films, created a self contained plot of an sentient robot (Ultron) coming alive and deciding humanity needs to end, and finished with not only a sensational battle scene with Ultron and his robot army, but they nicely set up the next few movies, primarily Captain American Civil War, Doctor Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and Thor Ragnarok. The battle scenes are pure summer blockbuster madness at it's best, and three in particular are unbelievable. The plot is not the deepest, but I think it's best to save the deeper thinking for the individual character movies. Go see it, it's amazing.
I still want to bring a little humor to Friday, and it would seem only fitting to focus on the latest top notch correspondent from The Daily Show leaving. I did think about posting the Judith Miller interview Jon Stewart did, but there was no humor in it, just the sad twisting in the wind of a fake journalist, too desperate to hide her own culpable behavior.
Samantha Bee was sensational. Her segments were usually either silly or sarcastically serious. Her bit, a one woman show ripping on Fox News' The Five, was sensational, and she was probably the best women's issue reporter on TV, fake or real.
Here are two of my favorite Samantha Bee moments. The first is her pointing out a woman's right of Choice is not only about abortions and birth control, but also a woman choosing to have her child. Her pointing that out to GOP convention goers in St. Paul in 2008, trying desperately to get the right to use the word "Choice," was epic.
http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/bfqbbx/bristol-palin-s-choice
The other bit is one of the funniest things I have ever seen, but not necessarily because of Samantha. Her 'Long Island as the 51st State' story is littered with some of the dumbest human beings on the planet. Even her double takes at the ever dumber responses from the meatballs she found to interview are priceless.
http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/kctbhb/long-island-wants-to-secede
I am worried at whether The Daily Show will be half the shell of its former self. Not only with Stewart's departure, but the additional losses are not easily replaceable either. On that sad note, I hope you have a nice weekend.
I still want to bring a little humor to Friday, and it would seem only fitting to focus on the latest top notch correspondent from The Daily Show leaving. I did think about posting the Judith Miller interview Jon Stewart did, but there was no humor in it, just the sad twisting in the wind of a fake journalist, too desperate to hide her own culpable behavior.
Samantha Bee was sensational. Her segments were usually either silly or sarcastically serious. Her bit, a one woman show ripping on Fox News' The Five, was sensational, and she was probably the best women's issue reporter on TV, fake or real.
Here are two of my favorite Samantha Bee moments. The first is her pointing out a woman's right of Choice is not only about abortions and birth control, but also a woman choosing to have her child. Her pointing that out to GOP convention goers in St. Paul in 2008, trying desperately to get the right to use the word "Choice," was epic.
http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/bfqbbx/bristol-palin-s-choice
The other bit is one of the funniest things I have ever seen, but not necessarily because of Samantha. Her 'Long Island as the 51st State' story is littered with some of the dumbest human beings on the planet. Even her double takes at the ever dumber responses from the meatballs she found to interview are priceless.
http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/kctbhb/long-island-wants-to-secede
I am worried at whether The Daily Show will be half the shell of its former self. Not only with Stewart's departure, but the additional losses are not easily replaceable either. On that sad note, I hope you have a nice weekend.
Monday, April 27, 2015
Supporting the Troops
Mike Huckabee is a jackass.
I probably could leave it at that, and most would nod in agreement and go about their lives, but I'll explain further. Mike Huckabee is a jackass, this time, because of comments he made during a radio interview in regards to people joining the military.
During the interview, Huckabee made numerous comments; about how the President has ordered all Bibles hidden in the military, that military chaplains are prevented from praying to Jesus, and there's an overall hostility to Christians in the US military today. Basically he made up a bunch of stuff that old, white voters want to believe about the President and ran with it. He lied, Huckabee is liar, and I encourage him to take me to court and prove that Obama has ordered all the things he alleged. If I'm wrong, he has me dead to rights, but I won't hold my breath for a court summons.
The overall insanely stupid argument Huckabee is making is that you shouldn't join the military until President Obama is out of office, as the current military is hostile to Christians. Mike Huckabee believes a Conservative President would place Christian soldiers over all others, restoring the armed forces of the United States to some Christian standard he thinks is supposed to exist. With that sentiment, Huckabee joins the dumbest of the dumb, a guy so tone deaf to anything but his own talking points, he doesn't hear the disrespect his comments have for the men and women who have fought for the Stars and Stripes.
Currently, the military has 61 "Available Emblems of Belief for Placement on Government Headstones and Markers." Here is a link: http://www.cem.va.gov/hmm/emblems.asp That's right, the US military recognizes 61 different headstone markings, not just the numerous Christian denominations, but Jewish, Muslim, Atheist, Hindu, Wiccan, Native American, Shinto, and even the Hammer of Thor, to name just a few options.
The military doesn't have these options just for show. They have people buried in military cemeteries, people who fought in combat, who died protecting America and her interests, who fought for the Red, White and Blue, who were proud Americans, whose gravestones have these symbols on them. The military is not a Christian fighting force, and anyone who even indirectly implies something so outrageous is disrespecting the honor and valor those military personnel earned, whether in combat or during peacetime. To even suggest any non-Christian soldier is a lesser soldier, or less patriotic, is moronic.
Maybe Mike Huckabee wants to go into the military cemeteries of this country at night, under cover of darkness, with mallet and chisel in hand, and desecrate the graves of our military, in an attempt to remove the symbols he has deemed too blasphemous. Maybe he'll grab a shovel and dig up the non-Christian military dead and chuck them over the cemetery wall. In his world, you can only be Christian and proud of the military. It's all or nothing. Anyone who died serving our country but dared participate in the freedom of religion this country supposedly embraces, deciding to be a different religion, or not embrace a religion at all, is apparently not worthy of Mike Huckabee's respect.
In review, Mike Huckabee is a jackass.
I probably could leave it at that, and most would nod in agreement and go about their lives, but I'll explain further. Mike Huckabee is a jackass, this time, because of comments he made during a radio interview in regards to people joining the military.
During the interview, Huckabee made numerous comments; about how the President has ordered all Bibles hidden in the military, that military chaplains are prevented from praying to Jesus, and there's an overall hostility to Christians in the US military today. Basically he made up a bunch of stuff that old, white voters want to believe about the President and ran with it. He lied, Huckabee is liar, and I encourage him to take me to court and prove that Obama has ordered all the things he alleged. If I'm wrong, he has me dead to rights, but I won't hold my breath for a court summons.
The overall insanely stupid argument Huckabee is making is that you shouldn't join the military until President Obama is out of office, as the current military is hostile to Christians. Mike Huckabee believes a Conservative President would place Christian soldiers over all others, restoring the armed forces of the United States to some Christian standard he thinks is supposed to exist. With that sentiment, Huckabee joins the dumbest of the dumb, a guy so tone deaf to anything but his own talking points, he doesn't hear the disrespect his comments have for the men and women who have fought for the Stars and Stripes.
Currently, the military has 61 "Available Emblems of Belief for Placement on Government Headstones and Markers." Here is a link: http://www.cem.va.gov/hmm/emblems.asp That's right, the US military recognizes 61 different headstone markings, not just the numerous Christian denominations, but Jewish, Muslim, Atheist, Hindu, Wiccan, Native American, Shinto, and even the Hammer of Thor, to name just a few options.
The military doesn't have these options just for show. They have people buried in military cemeteries, people who fought in combat, who died protecting America and her interests, who fought for the Red, White and Blue, who were proud Americans, whose gravestones have these symbols on them. The military is not a Christian fighting force, and anyone who even indirectly implies something so outrageous is disrespecting the honor and valor those military personnel earned, whether in combat or during peacetime. To even suggest any non-Christian soldier is a lesser soldier, or less patriotic, is moronic.
Maybe Mike Huckabee wants to go into the military cemeteries of this country at night, under cover of darkness, with mallet and chisel in hand, and desecrate the graves of our military, in an attempt to remove the symbols he has deemed too blasphemous. Maybe he'll grab a shovel and dig up the non-Christian military dead and chuck them over the cemetery wall. In his world, you can only be Christian and proud of the military. It's all or nothing. Anyone who died serving our country but dared participate in the freedom of religion this country supposedly embraces, deciding to be a different religion, or not embrace a religion at all, is apparently not worthy of Mike Huckabee's respect.
In review, Mike Huckabee is a jackass.
Saturday, April 25, 2015
Why You Condemn
A story from this week you might have seen pop up on your news feed is the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the genocide, slaughter, and systematic killing of one and a half million Armenian Christians. Two things I want to point out about this story. First is the number. One and a half million people were targeted solely because they were Armenian, accused of working against Turkish interests. This ethnic/religious cleansing is one of the worst historical injustices, ever.
The second is the word I intentionally used to describe the carnage, genocide. This was genocide, without a doubt, but for some reason Turkey, the United States, and other countries refuse to label these deaths correctly.
There is no vindictive pride in my voice when I bring up an injustice, like what happened to the Armenia Christians, and call it a genocide. It's what it was. The history of the world is full of cases where governments and people have attempted to eliminate other groups of people, whether their false validation was due to the religion they practiced, the geographical region they came from, a false superiority ingratiated, or the color of their skin. The United States government was truly horrible to the Native American population which resided here centuries before sails came from Europe. What we did to them was genocide. I'm not trying to shame my ancestors by pointing that out. They shamed themselves. What I am trying to do is acknowledge the horror, putting it in context, a scream to all, in an attempt to make sure we never revisit an abomination like it again. If all voices do the same, we'll go along way to ensure it never does.
In his justification for his atrocious actions, Adolf Hitler, in 1939, specifically pointed to the slaughter of the Armenian Christians and said: "who still talks nowadays about the Armenians?" He used the world's silence on that slaughter to defend his own crimes against humanity. No, the Turks did not cause the Holocaust and World War II, but the world's neglect to condemn the genocide from 100 years ago was used as corroboration to authorize the Nazi's actions.
The failure to stop the genocide of nearly 6 millions Jews is the world's darkest legacy, a legacy which should hang heavy on all of our hearts. That was genocide, as was what happened to the Armenians. End of story.
We should never candy coat history, regardless of whether it's among the world's worst failures or smaller in scale. We should always label history truthfully and accurately. It's why what we did after 9/11 needs to be labeled torture. It's why the war in Iraq should be labeled unjustified. It's why the use of drones in combat zones should be labeled unsupervised and extremely reckless. It's why the collection of data on all Americans the last 12 years should be labeled repulsive. And it's why we must label the deterioration of the rights of workers in this country as repugnant. If we don't, how long before someone else uses the actions of others to justify their actions?
Take my pleas as my voice to be added to the choir, an attempt to ensure we don't repeat bad history.
The second is the word I intentionally used to describe the carnage, genocide. This was genocide, without a doubt, but for some reason Turkey, the United States, and other countries refuse to label these deaths correctly.
There is no vindictive pride in my voice when I bring up an injustice, like what happened to the Armenia Christians, and call it a genocide. It's what it was. The history of the world is full of cases where governments and people have attempted to eliminate other groups of people, whether their false validation was due to the religion they practiced, the geographical region they came from, a false superiority ingratiated, or the color of their skin. The United States government was truly horrible to the Native American population which resided here centuries before sails came from Europe. What we did to them was genocide. I'm not trying to shame my ancestors by pointing that out. They shamed themselves. What I am trying to do is acknowledge the horror, putting it in context, a scream to all, in an attempt to make sure we never revisit an abomination like it again. If all voices do the same, we'll go along way to ensure it never does.
In his justification for his atrocious actions, Adolf Hitler, in 1939, specifically pointed to the slaughter of the Armenian Christians and said: "who still talks nowadays about the Armenians?" He used the world's silence on that slaughter to defend his own crimes against humanity. No, the Turks did not cause the Holocaust and World War II, but the world's neglect to condemn the genocide from 100 years ago was used as corroboration to authorize the Nazi's actions.
The failure to stop the genocide of nearly 6 millions Jews is the world's darkest legacy, a legacy which should hang heavy on all of our hearts. That was genocide, as was what happened to the Armenians. End of story.
We should never candy coat history, regardless of whether it's among the world's worst failures or smaller in scale. We should always label history truthfully and accurately. It's why what we did after 9/11 needs to be labeled torture. It's why the war in Iraq should be labeled unjustified. It's why the use of drones in combat zones should be labeled unsupervised and extremely reckless. It's why the collection of data on all Americans the last 12 years should be labeled repulsive. And it's why we must label the deterioration of the rights of workers in this country as repugnant. If we don't, how long before someone else uses the actions of others to justify their actions?
Take my pleas as my voice to be added to the choir, an attempt to ensure we don't repeat bad history.
Friday, April 24, 2015
The Friday Link for 4/24/15
It's been pretty light this week on the blog. I could make up some lie about doing something important, but all I did was lounge on the couch, watching Orphan Black and eating my middle class tax break Funyuns and Yoo-Hoo (Thanks MNGOP!). I promise blog posts ripping on Huckabee and the racist Representative from Becker sometime this weekend.
It's been nice to revisit my old friend the TV, now being presented in a wide variety of formats. I binge watched the new series from Yahoo Screen, Other Space, which my guest from Thursday's show, Trace Beaulieu, is a cast member. I knew after the Morning Grind on Thursday, I wanted to feature Trace in some capacity on this week's Friday Link. Other Space is brand new, and very good. Here is a link for the series:
https://screen.yahoo.com/other-space/
I highly recommend the entire season, but episode three and four are especially great. By the way, if you didn't hear the interview from Thursday's show (I sound like a 13 year old at a One Direction concert), here's the link for it:
https://soundcloud.com/am950s-best-interviews/the-morning-grind-trace-bileau-april-23-2015
I thought about featuring Cinematic Titanic as well this week, the revisiting of movie riffing from Trace, Joel, Josh, Frank and Mary Jo, but there are two problems with doing so. The first is I featured them on a Friday Link awhile back, posting one of their promos for Rattlers. I don't want to go to the well to often. Plus, I really encourage you to buy the entire DVD collection and prepare yourself to laugh your caboose off. Go buy them all! OBEY ME!
http://www.cinematictitanic.com
So let me go back to the golden days, to June of 1991, a revisit one of my all time favorite Mystery Science Theater 3000's. Cave Dwellers! Never has a nipple made a funnier doorbell sound. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKO6M8heGU0
It's been nice to revisit my old friend the TV, now being presented in a wide variety of formats. I binge watched the new series from Yahoo Screen, Other Space, which my guest from Thursday's show, Trace Beaulieu, is a cast member. I knew after the Morning Grind on Thursday, I wanted to feature Trace in some capacity on this week's Friday Link. Other Space is brand new, and very good. Here is a link for the series:
https://screen.yahoo.com/other-space/
I highly recommend the entire season, but episode three and four are especially great. By the way, if you didn't hear the interview from Thursday's show (I sound like a 13 year old at a One Direction concert), here's the link for it:
https://soundcloud.com/am950s-best-interviews/the-morning-grind-trace-bileau-april-23-2015
I thought about featuring Cinematic Titanic as well this week, the revisiting of movie riffing from Trace, Joel, Josh, Frank and Mary Jo, but there are two problems with doing so. The first is I featured them on a Friday Link awhile back, posting one of their promos for Rattlers. I don't want to go to the well to often. Plus, I really encourage you to buy the entire DVD collection and prepare yourself to laugh your caboose off. Go buy them all! OBEY ME!
http://www.cinematictitanic.com
So let me go back to the golden days, to June of 1991, a revisit one of my all time favorite Mystery Science Theater 3000's. Cave Dwellers! Never has a nipple made a funnier doorbell sound. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKO6M8heGU0
Monday, April 20, 2015
The Aggressive Progressive
I love passion. Heart is what makes us more than analytical robots. Dreams, goals, and hopes are necessary for the betterment of human kind, and it's one of the reasons I find myself on the Progressive side of politics. I don't ever want to squelch an individual's enthusiasm, but we have to have a talk.
Last week, an individual, Doug Hughes, landed a gyrocopter on the Capitol grounds in an effort to bring awareness to the toxic nature of excessive money in politics. He wanted to deliver 535 letters to every member of Congress, but his letters won't ever get to the addressees. They instead will go to an evidence locker to be used against Mr. Hughes at his trial. Why? Because regardless of how much you like his message, he picked a horrible way to deliver it, evacuating the Capitol building as fears of a potential terrorist strike were taken seriously. Not exactly harmless fun.
I've come under attack myself for not promoting Mr. Hughes as a true American hero. I won't praise him. Even though his message is one I whole heartedly agree with, the truth is, his reckless and ignorant method of making his point needs to be condemned. He endangered the lives of numerous people and caused a panic. What he did was no better than an expert in world policy explaining his brilliant strategy for peace, while performing a public act of self gratification. The benefits of his peace plan get lost in the insanity surrounding his delivery method.
This is what got James O'Keefe in trouble with members of the far right in this country. Conservatives loved his edited tapes and how he embarrassed left leaning causes, but when he broke into Senator Mary Landrieu's office and tried to bug her phone lines, even they backed away, quickly, from his criminal actions. When it's violating Federal laws, even they had to call him on it. Imagine what Mr. Hughes' champions would be saying if instead of campaign finance reform, he was preaching for more open gun laws, mandatory Christian religion, or trickle down economics. Would they still be applauding his initiative then?
And this doesn't even take into account the fact Mr Hughes has diminished the entirety of the campaign finance reform movement. The people who love the Citizens United ruling want to dismiss, diminish, berate and belittle their opponents and now they can by just using Mr Hughes as an unhinged poster child. And, he has shown people who might want to initiate a terrorist strike on the Capitol building a way to get real close. Good thinking!
Still, even though I'm stating valid negatives, it doesn't stop the fervent left from insisting I'm wrong for not worshipping this guy. With my disagreement, they completely dismiss my opinion, and no longer see me as one of the few left leaning radio voices still on-air. They don't see me agreeing with them 90 to 95% of the time. Nope, I become the instant bad guy, no better than the conservative media in this country because I didn't espouse Doug Hughes as a modern day founding father.
Liberal radio in this country has taken it in the trousers. LA and New York have far larger liberal populations than Minneapolis/St. Paul, but they can't support a liberal talk station? San Francisco, Miami, Houston or Denver can't support one? The truth is they can, but because there is a concerted effort to limit the populations exposure to left leaning opinion, radio stations in those markets opt to carry the fourth or fifth conservative talk or sports network. There's no way possible they're getting better ratings or making more money with such superfluous fare.
As there are fewer and fewer left leaning talkers in the US, a small, passionate element of the far left wants the remaining to become something they dream of, the plucky broadcaster who has their peach crate and old Marconi microphone, setting up shop wherever there's trouble in this world, an electric picket line, with angry fist ready to be waived in whatever direction they feel injustice is coming from. I love a good left leaning, modern day William Jennings Bryan, populist like the next guy, but that political and social landscape doesn't exist anymore. It's an adage of a time gone by, like the guy who wants to save the farm by getting a curtain, cow, and a banjo, putting on a show to stave of the bank from foreclosing.
When you try to tell them it won't work, how you can't sell that stream of outrage as a viable product, or if you just point out their heroes did something foolish on the way to immortality, they double down, accusing you of being no better than Fox News. They become committed to fighting with outlets which closely mimic their beliefs because it's easier to attack the ones willing to give them a podium, as opposed to fight the overwhelming conservative media machine which would never even let them in the door.
Progressives have to 1) understand the political playing field, 2) understand the modern rule book of how the game is played, and 3) be smart. Get rid of your "strongly worded memos' and climactic 'Revenge of the Nerds' speeches. It's Democrats using an antiquated playbook which is one of the main reasons they've fallen so far out of power in the last 40 years. Stand up for what you believe in and don't back down, but if you're reckless, you endanger the issue, movement or remaining few public outlets you have left. Progressives aren't going to regain control by sitting in a reclining chair eating Funyuns and Yoo Hoo, but they surely won't make legitimate gains by buzzing secure Federal government buildings in a homemade flying machine. This is going to take a modern game plan and lot of hard work. Think about the fight in Minnesota to get rid of the anti-gay marriage amendment in 2012, and double it. It's a good starting point.
I stand by my critique. Doug Hughes was a fool and shouldn't be hailed as a conquering hero. If that's what turns you against me, so be it. Meanwhile, I'll hang onto my passion and dreams; of one day seeing a Progressive movement which doesn't get stuck in individual self promotion and fulfills the potential it has always danced around, becoming the party which leads America, as a whole, into a better future.
Last week, an individual, Doug Hughes, landed a gyrocopter on the Capitol grounds in an effort to bring awareness to the toxic nature of excessive money in politics. He wanted to deliver 535 letters to every member of Congress, but his letters won't ever get to the addressees. They instead will go to an evidence locker to be used against Mr. Hughes at his trial. Why? Because regardless of how much you like his message, he picked a horrible way to deliver it, evacuating the Capitol building as fears of a potential terrorist strike were taken seriously. Not exactly harmless fun.
I've come under attack myself for not promoting Mr. Hughes as a true American hero. I won't praise him. Even though his message is one I whole heartedly agree with, the truth is, his reckless and ignorant method of making his point needs to be condemned. He endangered the lives of numerous people and caused a panic. What he did was no better than an expert in world policy explaining his brilliant strategy for peace, while performing a public act of self gratification. The benefits of his peace plan get lost in the insanity surrounding his delivery method.
This is what got James O'Keefe in trouble with members of the far right in this country. Conservatives loved his edited tapes and how he embarrassed left leaning causes, but when he broke into Senator Mary Landrieu's office and tried to bug her phone lines, even they backed away, quickly, from his criminal actions. When it's violating Federal laws, even they had to call him on it. Imagine what Mr. Hughes' champions would be saying if instead of campaign finance reform, he was preaching for more open gun laws, mandatory Christian religion, or trickle down economics. Would they still be applauding his initiative then?
And this doesn't even take into account the fact Mr Hughes has diminished the entirety of the campaign finance reform movement. The people who love the Citizens United ruling want to dismiss, diminish, berate and belittle their opponents and now they can by just using Mr Hughes as an unhinged poster child. And, he has shown people who might want to initiate a terrorist strike on the Capitol building a way to get real close. Good thinking!
Still, even though I'm stating valid negatives, it doesn't stop the fervent left from insisting I'm wrong for not worshipping this guy. With my disagreement, they completely dismiss my opinion, and no longer see me as one of the few left leaning radio voices still on-air. They don't see me agreeing with them 90 to 95% of the time. Nope, I become the instant bad guy, no better than the conservative media in this country because I didn't espouse Doug Hughes as a modern day founding father.
Liberal radio in this country has taken it in the trousers. LA and New York have far larger liberal populations than Minneapolis/St. Paul, but they can't support a liberal talk station? San Francisco, Miami, Houston or Denver can't support one? The truth is they can, but because there is a concerted effort to limit the populations exposure to left leaning opinion, radio stations in those markets opt to carry the fourth or fifth conservative talk or sports network. There's no way possible they're getting better ratings or making more money with such superfluous fare.
As there are fewer and fewer left leaning talkers in the US, a small, passionate element of the far left wants the remaining to become something they dream of, the plucky broadcaster who has their peach crate and old Marconi microphone, setting up shop wherever there's trouble in this world, an electric picket line, with angry fist ready to be waived in whatever direction they feel injustice is coming from. I love a good left leaning, modern day William Jennings Bryan, populist like the next guy, but that political and social landscape doesn't exist anymore. It's an adage of a time gone by, like the guy who wants to save the farm by getting a curtain, cow, and a banjo, putting on a show to stave of the bank from foreclosing.
When you try to tell them it won't work, how you can't sell that stream of outrage as a viable product, or if you just point out their heroes did something foolish on the way to immortality, they double down, accusing you of being no better than Fox News. They become committed to fighting with outlets which closely mimic their beliefs because it's easier to attack the ones willing to give them a podium, as opposed to fight the overwhelming conservative media machine which would never even let them in the door.
Progressives have to 1) understand the political playing field, 2) understand the modern rule book of how the game is played, and 3) be smart. Get rid of your "strongly worded memos' and climactic 'Revenge of the Nerds' speeches. It's Democrats using an antiquated playbook which is one of the main reasons they've fallen so far out of power in the last 40 years. Stand up for what you believe in and don't back down, but if you're reckless, you endanger the issue, movement or remaining few public outlets you have left. Progressives aren't going to regain control by sitting in a reclining chair eating Funyuns and Yoo Hoo, but they surely won't make legitimate gains by buzzing secure Federal government buildings in a homemade flying machine. This is going to take a modern game plan and lot of hard work. Think about the fight in Minnesota to get rid of the anti-gay marriage amendment in 2012, and double it. It's a good starting point.
I stand by my critique. Doug Hughes was a fool and shouldn't be hailed as a conquering hero. If that's what turns you against me, so be it. Meanwhile, I'll hang onto my passion and dreams; of one day seeing a Progressive movement which doesn't get stuck in individual self promotion and fulfills the potential it has always danced around, becoming the party which leads America, as a whole, into a better future.
Friday, April 17, 2015
The Friday Link for 4/17/15
Mel Brooks made the funniest movies. At points they are so offensive to everyone it's unbelievable they were released, and no one else today could EVER get away with trying to remake them. I look at them not only as outrageous comedy, but movies that helped move the country forward.
The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein, some of his earliest movies, are all riots. Another one I like is History of the World Part I, a movie which I remember some people insisted the Monty Python guys ripped off with Meaning of Life. I don't see it, but ironically Brooks took The Producers and, with the help of Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane, made a musical for the ages, only to be followed up afterwards by Spamalot from parts of the Monty Python crew.
After History of the World, he started to fall off as far as the bang for the buck he got with his movies. The last one I saw which I thought had any good laughs was the one I am bringing up tonight, Spaceballs. This Star Wars rip off had a lot of laugh free zones, but was saved, single handedly, by Rick Moranis. His Dark Helmet, a Darth Vader inspired character was brilliant. What's funny is his facial expressions throughout the movie, like a janitor who has taken over the battleship and realizes he is woefully outmatched, but it doesn't stop him from trying. Brilliant!
Here is a clip of the movie where Dark Helmet takes the controls. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk7VWcuVOf0
Warning - one bad word for sure.
The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein, some of his earliest movies, are all riots. Another one I like is History of the World Part I, a movie which I remember some people insisted the Monty Python guys ripped off with Meaning of Life. I don't see it, but ironically Brooks took The Producers and, with the help of Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane, made a musical for the ages, only to be followed up afterwards by Spamalot from parts of the Monty Python crew.
After History of the World, he started to fall off as far as the bang for the buck he got with his movies. The last one I saw which I thought had any good laughs was the one I am bringing up tonight, Spaceballs. This Star Wars rip off had a lot of laugh free zones, but was saved, single handedly, by Rick Moranis. His Dark Helmet, a Darth Vader inspired character was brilliant. What's funny is his facial expressions throughout the movie, like a janitor who has taken over the battleship and realizes he is woefully outmatched, but it doesn't stop him from trying. Brilliant!
Here is a clip of the movie where Dark Helmet takes the controls. Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk7VWcuVOf0
Warning - one bad word for sure.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Tax Day
I'll be honest, it does sting to write out the checks (one Federal, one to Minnesota) on April 15th. In my case, due to my personal circumstances, it's usually four figures, but I do it, and frankly as easy as it is to complain about it, the evidence of my tax dollars being wisely spent are all around me.
It's amazing the bang for the buck you get from your taxes. Mostly everything used for transportation of any kind (roads, sidewalks, bike paths, nature trails, street signs, traffic lights, bridges, rest stops, mass transportation, airports, harbors, trains, ect.), almost all emergency services (police, fire, water rescue, hazmat teams, partial funding for ambulances, air evac, forest fire fighters, military, national guard, ect.), public education (schools, some colleges, libraries, after school programs, some pre-school programs, continuing education, ect.) public entertainment (parks, nature areas, developed lakefronts, public docks and launches, stadiums, community bandshells and stages, public art, public gardens, national monuments, historical areas, ect.), needed services (post office, job training and placement, healthcare, medicare, medicaid, social security, the current inadequate veterans services, food stamps, housing assistance, community advisory programs, ect.) the stuff you take for granted (sewers, water services, mosquito control, plowing, fishery programs, wildlife management, the weather service, ect.). And then there is the safety and security provided by the military, a security most of the world doesn't have, a security many, including the vast majority of our ultra wealthy, take for granted. Plus there are thousands of other government services I'm not mentioning which are covered completely, mostly or partially by these two checks. Yes, I look at the money I spend and realize only a fool would think they don't get an incredible return on investment.
Before you blindly rail against your taxes, stop and think. Are you going to be the guy who demands their taxes back, and then wonders why their street hasn't been repaired. Are you going to be the guy who insists you shouldn't have to pay for education because you don't have any kids, but then complain about how hard it is to find affordable, educated, trained, competent people to provide services for you. Are you the guy who insists government stay out of your life, and then bemoan when the DNR has not stocked your lake with the fish you want to catch. You want to complain about your taxes, fine, but don't be a surprised when I remind you of everything your tax dollars pay for.
It's amazing the bang for the buck you get from your taxes. Mostly everything used for transportation of any kind (roads, sidewalks, bike paths, nature trails, street signs, traffic lights, bridges, rest stops, mass transportation, airports, harbors, trains, ect.), almost all emergency services (police, fire, water rescue, hazmat teams, partial funding for ambulances, air evac, forest fire fighters, military, national guard, ect.), public education (schools, some colleges, libraries, after school programs, some pre-school programs, continuing education, ect.) public entertainment (parks, nature areas, developed lakefronts, public docks and launches, stadiums, community bandshells and stages, public art, public gardens, national monuments, historical areas, ect.), needed services (post office, job training and placement, healthcare, medicare, medicaid, social security, the current inadequate veterans services, food stamps, housing assistance, community advisory programs, ect.) the stuff you take for granted (sewers, water services, mosquito control, plowing, fishery programs, wildlife management, the weather service, ect.). And then there is the safety and security provided by the military, a security most of the world doesn't have, a security many, including the vast majority of our ultra wealthy, take for granted. Plus there are thousands of other government services I'm not mentioning which are covered completely, mostly or partially by these two checks. Yes, I look at the money I spend and realize only a fool would think they don't get an incredible return on investment.
Before you blindly rail against your taxes, stop and think. Are you going to be the guy who demands their taxes back, and then wonders why their street hasn't been repaired. Are you going to be the guy who insists you shouldn't have to pay for education because you don't have any kids, but then complain about how hard it is to find affordable, educated, trained, competent people to provide services for you. Are you the guy who insists government stay out of your life, and then bemoan when the DNR has not stocked your lake with the fish you want to catch. You want to complain about your taxes, fine, but don't be a surprised when I remind you of everything your tax dollars pay for.
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