Like a clock that does not run, President Barack Obama is only right twice per day. So his Persian New Year message to the Iranian people on March 20 was one of those times.
The Iranian government and especially Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad underestimated the ability of Obama to deliver a message directly to the Iranian people with Farsi subtitles. The timing was the beginning of the festival of Nowruz, a 12-day holiday that marks the arrival of spring and the beginning of the next year on the Persian calendar. Ahmadinejad and his advisors are not the first people to underestimate Obama and his communications ability.
“We have serious differences that have grown over time," said Obama. “My administration is now committed to diplomacy that addresses the full range of issues before us, and to pursuing constructive ties among the United States, Iran and the international community. This process will not be advanced by threats. We seek instead engagement that is honest and grounded in mutual respect.”
Obama is lucky to follow George W. Bush again, who labeled Iran a country in the “Axis of Evil,” but drew no distinction between Ahmadinejad’s nuclear ambitions and the people of Iran. Obama’s approach is both carrot and stick.
Obama said, “The United States wants the Islamic Republic of Iran to take its rightful place in the community of nations. You have that right -- but it comes with real responsibilities, and that place cannot be reached through terror or arms, but rather through peaceful actions that demonstrate the true greatness of the Iranian people and civilization. And the measure of that greatness is not the capacity to destroy, it is your demonstrated ability to build and create.”
The response of the Ahmadinejad government was both immediate and extreme. Washington must stop accusing Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons and supporting terrorism, charges Tehran denies. What they do not deny is Iran’s desire to destroy Israel.
"Obama has talked of change but has taken no practical measures to address America's past mistakes in Iran. If Mr. Obama takes concrete actions and makes fundamental changes in U.S. foreign policy toward other nations including Iran, the Iranian government and people will not turn their back on him," press adviser Ali Akbar Javanfekr told the state-run English-language Press TV satellite station.
The danger for Ahmadinejad is that the Iranian people may turn their back on him when they could vote again for reformers. That is the real value of the Obama message.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
New & Improved Links
A few regular visitors will notice that I have purged links to content that is almost never updated and added links to content which changes daily. Those who visit only when I post something outrageous and newsworthy will not notice.
There are new Wisconsin links and national links. New Wisconsin links are No Runny Eggs, Jo Egelhoff, Wisconsin Policy Research Institute, Recess Supervisor and Fighting Bob. I did not add more liberals because I find them mean and predictable. Sometimes contributors to Fighting Bob and Truth Dig get that way. My friend Paul Soglin is willing to offend both liberals and conservatives but is rarely mean.
Both Shark & Shepherd author Rick Esenberg, a current law school professor and Stanley Kutler, a retired law school professor who sometimes posts on Truth Dig, are smarter than me on legal issues. Not that it takes much to be smarter than me.
Among my national links, I have added Mark Steyn, Truth Dig and Andrews America. When Mark Steyn substituted for Rush Limbaugh, I found him so ironic and funny. I consider John Andrews, who I have known since 1981, to be a friend and mentor.
The ironic thing is that Kutler and Andrews are associated in different ways with the Nixon Administration. Andrews was a young speechwriter in the Nixon White House. It was Kutler who sprung the White House tapes in 1996. Andrews is mentioned three times by Nixon and is taped appearing in the Oval Office only once. Other speechwriters were Ray Price, Pat Buchanan and Bill Safire.
There are new Wisconsin links and national links. New Wisconsin links are No Runny Eggs, Jo Egelhoff, Wisconsin Policy Research Institute, Recess Supervisor and Fighting Bob. I did not add more liberals because I find them mean and predictable. Sometimes contributors to Fighting Bob and Truth Dig get that way. My friend Paul Soglin is willing to offend both liberals and conservatives but is rarely mean.
Both Shark & Shepherd author Rick Esenberg, a current law school professor and Stanley Kutler, a retired law school professor who sometimes posts on Truth Dig, are smarter than me on legal issues. Not that it takes much to be smarter than me.
Among my national links, I have added Mark Steyn, Truth Dig and Andrews America. When Mark Steyn substituted for Rush Limbaugh, I found him so ironic and funny. I consider John Andrews, who I have known since 1981, to be a friend and mentor.
The ironic thing is that Kutler and Andrews are associated in different ways with the Nixon Administration. Andrews was a young speechwriter in the Nixon White House. It was Kutler who sprung the White House tapes in 1996. Andrews is mentioned three times by Nixon and is taped appearing in the Oval Office only once. Other speechwriters were Ray Price, Pat Buchanan and Bill Safire.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Barack Obushma
Expectations of those who flocked to Washington and tuned into television around the country for the Inauguration of President Barack Obama are so high, they are bound to be disappointed by the Obama Administration.
Expectations were similarly high for George W. Bush to be transformative in 2000. He worked with Democrats as Governor of Texas so many thought a new spirit of bipartisanship was coming. The Bush Administration squandered opportunities to reach out to Democrats in Congress and were buffeted by events at home and abroad. They failed to privatize parts of Social Security instead of pushing for immigration reform. Then the unexpected events of Hurricane Katrina, the attacks on 9/11 and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq completely changed the nature of the Bush Administration. They came to Washington to change it and ended up being changed by Washington.
Events are also against the Obama Administration, which is largely peopled by Clinton retreads. Congressional Democrats have priorities which will outlast Obama. Republicans could find their footing again as the party of ideas. If the Obama Administration becomes incremental in its approach to policy, it dashes hopes by supporters for sweeping change.
The Great Depression started with a Wall Street panic worsened by raising taxes and barriers to imports. President Obama and Congressional Democrats could make things worse. On the other hand, federal deficits undermine the ability for President Obama to deliver on expensive promises. Democrats are in a box and risk alienating supporters. Hostility of Obama and Congressional liberals to life and gun rights means that voters for which these are important will be more motivated in the next election.
During the campaign, Joe Biden was criticized for saying that the new President would be tested by a manufactured crisis and that it would not be clear that President Obama was right. “Gird your loins,” he said, sounding less like a candidate for Vice President than an eccentric uncle. It is a dangerous world; maybe a rogue nation will exert power over a neighboring democracy or there will be an attack on American soil. Obama will close Camp Gitmo in a year and take 16 months to remove combat troops from Iraq. They are in danger of figuratively hanging the “Mission Accomplished” sign on an aircraft carrier.
Liberal voters hated George W. Bush, but the continuation of Bush policies at home and abroad by President Barack Obama could result in him becoming Barack Obushma.
Expectations were similarly high for George W. Bush to be transformative in 2000. He worked with Democrats as Governor of Texas so many thought a new spirit of bipartisanship was coming. The Bush Administration squandered opportunities to reach out to Democrats in Congress and were buffeted by events at home and abroad. They failed to privatize parts of Social Security instead of pushing for immigration reform. Then the unexpected events of Hurricane Katrina, the attacks on 9/11 and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq completely changed the nature of the Bush Administration. They came to Washington to change it and ended up being changed by Washington.
Events are also against the Obama Administration, which is largely peopled by Clinton retreads. Congressional Democrats have priorities which will outlast Obama. Republicans could find their footing again as the party of ideas. If the Obama Administration becomes incremental in its approach to policy, it dashes hopes by supporters for sweeping change.
The Great Depression started with a Wall Street panic worsened by raising taxes and barriers to imports. President Obama and Congressional Democrats could make things worse. On the other hand, federal deficits undermine the ability for President Obama to deliver on expensive promises. Democrats are in a box and risk alienating supporters. Hostility of Obama and Congressional liberals to life and gun rights means that voters for which these are important will be more motivated in the next election.
During the campaign, Joe Biden was criticized for saying that the new President would be tested by a manufactured crisis and that it would not be clear that President Obama was right. “Gird your loins,” he said, sounding less like a candidate for Vice President than an eccentric uncle. It is a dangerous world; maybe a rogue nation will exert power over a neighboring democracy or there will be an attack on American soil. Obama will close Camp Gitmo in a year and take 16 months to remove combat troops from Iraq. They are in danger of figuratively hanging the “Mission Accomplished” sign on an aircraft carrier.
Liberal voters hated George W. Bush, but the continuation of Bush policies at home and abroad by President Barack Obama could result in him becoming Barack Obushma.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Falk’s 911 Albatross
On the last day of her life, University of Wisconsin senior Brittany Zimmerman, 21, called 911 from her cell phone about noon on April 2, 2008. She was knifed to death in her apartment near campus a short time later.
Police arrived nearly an hour later when her fiancée found her lifeless, bloody body. Zimmerman’s death and the failure of the 911 system to dispatch officers sooner shocked both Madison and her hometown of Marshfield, Wisconsin.
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk repeatedly denied that there are any problems at the 911 center and said Zimmerman hung up on 911 operators. Falk defended 911 Director Joe Norwick until Falk announced she will seek another four-year term in 2009, when she suddenly announced Norwick’s “retirement.”
Even now Falk says a nationwide search for a 911 director resulted in Norwick being selected. This is hard to believe because Norwick was the chief Dane County Deputy to former Dane County Sheriff Gary Hamblin. It is more likely that Hamblin could arrest someone in Falk’s family and the price was continued employment for Norwick. Norwick was unable to tell the Dane County Board how many calls the 911 center received per month after Zimmerman’s death.
Falk’s version of events and repeated denial that the 911 system erred in handling the Zimmerman call appear to be lies. Local reporters have heard the tape of Zimmerman’s call when the warrants in her case became unsealed in error. A struggle and her screams are plain in her call.
The Zimmerman call was cited as the public blackest eye and Falk the leading public enemy in an Isthmus reader poll but the 911 center has mishandled more calls. Two escalating noise complaints came from neighbors of Lake Edge Park between 9 and 10 p.m. on November 11 with no officers sent. A call came about 11 p.m. that there was an unconscious man in the park. There had been a fight and one of the combatants was dead.
Although Falk is wearing the 911 albatross around her neck, her announcement to seek another term in the April 2009 election scared off other Democrats. Mismanagement of public safety and the 911 system are key issues in the campaign of Nancy Mistele against Falk.
Falk’s response to Mistele, a former Dane County school board member, was to say that Mistele lost twice and is an extremist. Most know Mistele lost twice trying to topple Democrat State Senator Jon Erpenbach, is in the private sector and is a moderate Republican. Other candidates are possible.
Apparently Falk forgot that she also lost twice. While serving as Dane County Executive, she lost for Wisconsin Governor in 2002. In 2006, Falk beat the incumbent Attorney General in the Democratic primary before losing to Republican JB Van Hollen, angering some liberals. It does not seem like Falk really wants to be Dane County Executive. Some consider her to be an extremist on environmental and social issues.
Neighborhoods in Madison that considered themselves safe are increasingly plagued by burglary and violence. Falk is only one more bungled 911 call from what many consider a politically fatal third strike.
Police arrived nearly an hour later when her fiancée found her lifeless, bloody body. Zimmerman’s death and the failure of the 911 system to dispatch officers sooner shocked both Madison and her hometown of Marshfield, Wisconsin.
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk repeatedly denied that there are any problems at the 911 center and said Zimmerman hung up on 911 operators. Falk defended 911 Director Joe Norwick until Falk announced she will seek another four-year term in 2009, when she suddenly announced Norwick’s “retirement.”
Even now Falk says a nationwide search for a 911 director resulted in Norwick being selected. This is hard to believe because Norwick was the chief Dane County Deputy to former Dane County Sheriff Gary Hamblin. It is more likely that Hamblin could arrest someone in Falk’s family and the price was continued employment for Norwick. Norwick was unable to tell the Dane County Board how many calls the 911 center received per month after Zimmerman’s death.
Falk’s version of events and repeated denial that the 911 system erred in handling the Zimmerman call appear to be lies. Local reporters have heard the tape of Zimmerman’s call when the warrants in her case became unsealed in error. A struggle and her screams are plain in her call.
The Zimmerman call was cited as the public blackest eye and Falk the leading public enemy in an Isthmus reader poll but the 911 center has mishandled more calls. Two escalating noise complaints came from neighbors of Lake Edge Park between 9 and 10 p.m. on November 11 with no officers sent. A call came about 11 p.m. that there was an unconscious man in the park. There had been a fight and one of the combatants was dead.
Although Falk is wearing the 911 albatross around her neck, her announcement to seek another term in the April 2009 election scared off other Democrats. Mismanagement of public safety and the 911 system are key issues in the campaign of Nancy Mistele against Falk.
Falk’s response to Mistele, a former Dane County school board member, was to say that Mistele lost twice and is an extremist. Most know Mistele lost twice trying to topple Democrat State Senator Jon Erpenbach, is in the private sector and is a moderate Republican. Other candidates are possible.
Apparently Falk forgot that she also lost twice. While serving as Dane County Executive, she lost for Wisconsin Governor in 2002. In 2006, Falk beat the incumbent Attorney General in the Democratic primary before losing to Republican JB Van Hollen, angering some liberals. It does not seem like Falk really wants to be Dane County Executive. Some consider her to be an extremist on environmental and social issues.
Neighborhoods in Madison that considered themselves safe are increasingly plagued by burglary and violence. Falk is only one more bungled 911 call from what many consider a politically fatal third strike.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Raising Taxes a Resort Wisconsin Democrats Will Visit
Wisconsin’s estimated current $5 billion deficit defies quick fixes. It did not happen overnight. However, a report from the union-dominated Institute for Wisconsin’s Future and the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families says it can be fixed in one year by delaying some tax cuts, raising others and taxing things that are not taxed now.
The report calls it “tax reform,” but it is really a menu of tax hikes. Other states facing such large deficits might ask state employees to work one free day per week, offer early retirement or extend a fiscal year to another quarter to improve revenue. Wisconsin, the report says, is not trying to raise enough revenue so we should pay higher taxes.
Democrats, who now have a majority in the Wisconsin House and Senate thanks to union money and volunteers, say that raising taxes that you and I pay should be a last resort. That is a Wisconsin resort which Democrats will visit.
How did we get here? When Jim Doyle was elected Wisconsin Governor in 2002, Wisconsin faced a $3.2 billion shortfall. Doyle blamed it on former Governors Tommy Thompson and Scott McCallum. Low-hanging spending fruit was picked. Gradually, the Doyle Administration “borrowed” from other funds to paper over subsequent operating deficits. Last year, the Governor and legislature raised fees $763 million on registering cars, getting vital records, dry-cleaning clothes and applying to public universities.
The big ticket tax hikes put forth in the report are raising the state sales tax to six percent ($850 million), extend the sales tax to business and professional services ($468 million), bring back the sales tax on motor fuel ($403 million), eliminate state income tax refundable credits ($321 million), eliminate the marriage credit ($275 million), increase the top rate of the state income tax from 6.75 percent to 7.75 percent ($180 million) and reinstate Wisconsin’s inheritance tax ($120 million).
In my case, whatever I save from lowering the state income tax in my bracket could be more than offset by higher sales taxes. A Princeton University study says Wisconsin citizens with higher incomes than mine vote with their feet to leave the state to be replaced by citizens with lower incomes. That means that tax increases will never yield as much as promised.
Families struggling to pay bills, buy food and put gas in the car, cut back where they can. Increasing their taxes penalizes them and increasing taxes on their employers might cause more workers to lose their jobs, too. Republicans will find new backbone in the minority to stand with families. Raising taxes is a sure way for Assembly and Senate Democrats to become the minority again in 2010.
The report calls it “tax reform,” but it is really a menu of tax hikes. Other states facing such large deficits might ask state employees to work one free day per week, offer early retirement or extend a fiscal year to another quarter to improve revenue. Wisconsin, the report says, is not trying to raise enough revenue so we should pay higher taxes.
Democrats, who now have a majority in the Wisconsin House and Senate thanks to union money and volunteers, say that raising taxes that you and I pay should be a last resort. That is a Wisconsin resort which Democrats will visit.
How did we get here? When Jim Doyle was elected Wisconsin Governor in 2002, Wisconsin faced a $3.2 billion shortfall. Doyle blamed it on former Governors Tommy Thompson and Scott McCallum. Low-hanging spending fruit was picked. Gradually, the Doyle Administration “borrowed” from other funds to paper over subsequent operating deficits. Last year, the Governor and legislature raised fees $763 million on registering cars, getting vital records, dry-cleaning clothes and applying to public universities.
The big ticket tax hikes put forth in the report are raising the state sales tax to six percent ($850 million), extend the sales tax to business and professional services ($468 million), bring back the sales tax on motor fuel ($403 million), eliminate state income tax refundable credits ($321 million), eliminate the marriage credit ($275 million), increase the top rate of the state income tax from 6.75 percent to 7.75 percent ($180 million) and reinstate Wisconsin’s inheritance tax ($120 million).
In my case, whatever I save from lowering the state income tax in my bracket could be more than offset by higher sales taxes. A Princeton University study says Wisconsin citizens with higher incomes than mine vote with their feet to leave the state to be replaced by citizens with lower incomes. That means that tax increases will never yield as much as promised.
Families struggling to pay bills, buy food and put gas in the car, cut back where they can. Increasing their taxes penalizes them and increasing taxes on their employers might cause more workers to lose their jobs, too. Republicans will find new backbone in the minority to stand with families. Raising taxes is a sure way for Assembly and Senate Democrats to become the minority again in 2010.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
UW Football: Ending with a Whimper
The turning point of this University of Wisconsin football season was the second half of the game at Michigan. The Badgers squandered a 19 point halftime lead only to lose that game.
Wisconsin’s Homecoming victory 27-17 over Illinois and 35-32 over Minnesota were reminders of how the Badgers have so dashed expectations in the 2008 season. So this team is bowl-eligible at 6-5. Big deal. Four wins were against non-conference patsies and a blow-out of hapless Indiana.
The Badger offense can not sustain time-consuming drives to wear down superior Big 10 defenses and scored mostly on field goals by Philip Welch. This means that the defense is on the field too much. Although the Badger defense is good, they have a tendency to give up the big play, especially against the spread offenses which now dominate the conference.
Previous Badger football teams found new ways to win close games. This team finds new ways to lose. Home field advantage meant little this season. True, the Badgers kept it fairly close to Ohio State before losing badly to Penn State. The drama of the Badger Band this year mirrored the drama on the field. Jump Around, indeed.
I am old enough to remember when the Badgers coached by John Jardine were bad enough to open the seasons of college football powerhouses. The home game scores were so one-sided that everyone came to see the band and stayed for the Fifth Quarter even if the buzz had worn off.
As I said, I’m looking forward to the end of the football season so we can again focus on men’s and women’s hockey. Basketball is here.
Wisconsin’s Homecoming victory 27-17 over Illinois and 35-32 over Minnesota were reminders of how the Badgers have so dashed expectations in the 2008 season. So this team is bowl-eligible at 6-5. Big deal. Four wins were against non-conference patsies and a blow-out of hapless Indiana.
The Badger offense can not sustain time-consuming drives to wear down superior Big 10 defenses and scored mostly on field goals by Philip Welch. This means that the defense is on the field too much. Although the Badger defense is good, they have a tendency to give up the big play, especially against the spread offenses which now dominate the conference.
Previous Badger football teams found new ways to win close games. This team finds new ways to lose. Home field advantage meant little this season. True, the Badgers kept it fairly close to Ohio State before losing badly to Penn State. The drama of the Badger Band this year mirrored the drama on the field. Jump Around, indeed.
I am old enough to remember when the Badgers coached by John Jardine were bad enough to open the seasons of college football powerhouses. The home game scores were so one-sided that everyone came to see the band and stayed for the Fifth Quarter even if the buzz had worn off.
As I said, I’m looking forward to the end of the football season so we can again focus on men’s and women’s hockey. Basketball is here.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Say Nothing against Obama
Most people have now seen the rants by angry voters at a John McCain town hall meeting in Waukesha on Thursday, October 10, urging McCain to be tougher against Barack Obama and his associates at the third and final Presidential debate. Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle, other Obama surrogates and the mainstream media have described the anger and fear of the election of Barack Obama as racist at best and threatening at worst.
Many liberals blame conservative talk radio hosts for whipping up this anger. There are some who believe everything that entertainers say about Obama and Joe Biden on the radio, just as many liberals believe everything that is posted against McCain and Sarah Palin on the Internet.
Because I live and work in a non-partisan Madison establishment, I am surprised when people without prompting express to me their hatred for McCain and Palin. They have even turned down change involving Alaskan quarters, which are the newest state quarters issued. There is no value in arguing or letting these people know that I am a Republican. Only other Republicans and a few colleagues know that I have attended the last three Wisconsin Republican conventions and that I have a McCain sticker on my car.
It is true that the electoral map seems to be trending for Obama. If Obama wins the Presidency, there would be no shortage of mischief Congressional Democrats could wreak upon job providers and our economy. If this results in my paying less in taxes while others I love pay more, then it is typical Democratic class warfare.
In general, though, I am not afraid of a President and Congress controlled by leftist Democrats. Nothing galvanizes us in the opposition like being shut out of power. When Jimmy Carter was elected President in 1976, the House and Senate were controlled by Democrats. This led to the election of President Ronald Reagan and a Republican Senate Majority in 1980. When President Bill Clinton was elected President in 1992, the House and Senate were controlled by Democrats. It led to the Republican takeover of the House and Senate in 1994.
A couple of weeks ago, I drove northwest of Medford for a family gathering. Starting about in Waupaca along Interstate 39, I never again saw a single Democratic sign. If Obama wins Wisconsin, it will because their campaign turns out more votes in population centers than McCain does in the suburbs and the small towns.
Democratic voters tend to be fair weather voters and a smaller voter turnout tends to favor Republicans. I still hope for blowing and drifting snow on Election Day in Wisconsin.
Many liberals blame conservative talk radio hosts for whipping up this anger. There are some who believe everything that entertainers say about Obama and Joe Biden on the radio, just as many liberals believe everything that is posted against McCain and Sarah Palin on the Internet.
Because I live and work in a non-partisan Madison establishment, I am surprised when people without prompting express to me their hatred for McCain and Palin. They have even turned down change involving Alaskan quarters, which are the newest state quarters issued. There is no value in arguing or letting these people know that I am a Republican. Only other Republicans and a few colleagues know that I have attended the last three Wisconsin Republican conventions and that I have a McCain sticker on my car.
It is true that the electoral map seems to be trending for Obama. If Obama wins the Presidency, there would be no shortage of mischief Congressional Democrats could wreak upon job providers and our economy. If this results in my paying less in taxes while others I love pay more, then it is typical Democratic class warfare.
In general, though, I am not afraid of a President and Congress controlled by leftist Democrats. Nothing galvanizes us in the opposition like being shut out of power. When Jimmy Carter was elected President in 1976, the House and Senate were controlled by Democrats. This led to the election of President Ronald Reagan and a Republican Senate Majority in 1980. When President Bill Clinton was elected President in 1992, the House and Senate were controlled by Democrats. It led to the Republican takeover of the House and Senate in 1994.
A couple of weeks ago, I drove northwest of Medford for a family gathering. Starting about in Waupaca along Interstate 39, I never again saw a single Democratic sign. If Obama wins Wisconsin, it will because their campaign turns out more votes in population centers than McCain does in the suburbs and the small towns.
Democratic voters tend to be fair weather voters and a smaller voter turnout tends to favor Republicans. I still hope for blowing and drifting snow on Election Day in Wisconsin.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Have Democrats Learned Nothing?
Choosing Delaware Senator Joe Biden to be the Vice Presidential candidate by Illinois Senator and Presidential candidate Barack Obama was an electoral mistake for several reasons. The last two unsuccessful national Democratic tickets were two Senators, even though one was already a sitting Vice President. Obama could have chosen a Governor or someone else with management experience.
Although Democrats believe that the ticket of Vice President Al Gore and Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman should have won in 2000 had the Republicans not “stolen” Florida, Gore-Lieberman ultimately lost to a Republican ticket which featured Governor George W. Bush of Texas and Wyoming Congressman Dick Cheney. In 2004, Democrats nominated two more U.S. Senators, Kerry-Edwards against Bush-Cheney.
Why do Democrats keep nominating U.S. Senators even though they do not win? Democrats keep trying to recreate the coalition that was successful in 1960, when Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy chose Texas Senator Lyndon Johnson as his running mate. Winning Texas was more crucial to making Kennedy President than Kennedy’s celebrated victory over Republican nominee Richard Nixon in the televised debate.
When Democrats won the White House in 1992, they broke out of the habit of nominating two U.S. Senators. They chose Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton and Tennessee Senator Al Gore.
Choosing someone like Biden, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 1973, undermines the Obama message that Washington is broken and change is about the future. It is also hard to imagine a Vice Presidential candidate who makes Barack Obama look younger and inexperienced, being old enough to be Obama’s father. Joe Biden has a long record of public service, speaks in public better than Obama, made disparaging statements about Obama when Biden was a Presidential candidate and is a gold mine for opposition researchers.
Republican nominee and Arizona Senator John McCain will nominate a running mate last. It is unlikely that McCain will choose a running mate who does not have executive experience.
By choosing Joe Biden, Barack Obama might have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.
Although Democrats believe that the ticket of Vice President Al Gore and Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman should have won in 2000 had the Republicans not “stolen” Florida, Gore-Lieberman ultimately lost to a Republican ticket which featured Governor George W. Bush of Texas and Wyoming Congressman Dick Cheney. In 2004, Democrats nominated two more U.S. Senators, Kerry-Edwards against Bush-Cheney.
Why do Democrats keep nominating U.S. Senators even though they do not win? Democrats keep trying to recreate the coalition that was successful in 1960, when Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy chose Texas Senator Lyndon Johnson as his running mate. Winning Texas was more crucial to making Kennedy President than Kennedy’s celebrated victory over Republican nominee Richard Nixon in the televised debate.
When Democrats won the White House in 1992, they broke out of the habit of nominating two U.S. Senators. They chose Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton and Tennessee Senator Al Gore.
Choosing someone like Biden, who has served in the U.S. Senate since 1973, undermines the Obama message that Washington is broken and change is about the future. It is also hard to imagine a Vice Presidential candidate who makes Barack Obama look younger and inexperienced, being old enough to be Obama’s father. Joe Biden has a long record of public service, speaks in public better than Obama, made disparaging statements about Obama when Biden was a Presidential candidate and is a gold mine for opposition researchers.
Republican nominee and Arizona Senator John McCain will nominate a running mate last. It is unlikely that McCain will choose a running mate who does not have executive experience.
By choosing Joe Biden, Barack Obama might have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Journalists for Obama
Writing in the July 14 National Review, Weekly Standard contributing editor Noemie Emery compares how symbiotic the relationship was between Theodore Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy and the press and that now the press has become the cheering section for Barack Obama. Emery’s article can be found at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_13_60/ai_n27925970.
Roosevelt and Kennedy cultivated relationships with journalists of their day and became President at 42 and 43, respectively. Both had aggressive personalities, came from successful business families and had a history of military service. Roosevelt had San Juan Hill; Kennedy had PT 109.
Now many journalists have become so effete and self-important, they are ceaseless in their indictments of the evil Republicans and the values of Americans in flyover country. Many journalists came from humble origins to rise through education and experience to their positions.
When they look in the mirror, they see Obama as a reflection of themselves. No experience in the military or business, they believe that Americans cling to guns and religion out of bitterness. A rise from humble origins through education at Ivy League Schools, Obama is just like them – cool, distant and a critic of the status quo.
Roosevelt and Kennedy were never depicted as the second coming of the Messiah with a halo over their heads. It is journalist cheering of everything Obama does and says that makes it seem as if he is divine.
Roosevelt and Kennedy cultivated relationships with journalists of their day and became President at 42 and 43, respectively. Both had aggressive personalities, came from successful business families and had a history of military service. Roosevelt had San Juan Hill; Kennedy had PT 109.
Now many journalists have become so effete and self-important, they are ceaseless in their indictments of the evil Republicans and the values of Americans in flyover country. Many journalists came from humble origins to rise through education and experience to their positions.
When they look in the mirror, they see Obama as a reflection of themselves. No experience in the military or business, they believe that Americans cling to guns and religion out of bitterness. A rise from humble origins through education at Ivy League Schools, Obama is just like them – cool, distant and a critic of the status quo.
Roosevelt and Kennedy were never depicted as the second coming of the Messiah with a halo over their heads. It is journalist cheering of everything Obama does and says that makes it seem as if he is divine.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Madison’s Traffic Problems
Madison has some unusual traffic problems even in summer with most of the University of Wisconsin students away for the summer. It will be worse when the college kids return.
I have lived all across the country, including in cities that dwarf Madison. I also have driven on several college campuses. Madison’s traffic problems were especially noticeable when I drove to central Wisconsin and back, arriving in Madison near bar time on Saturday. Clusters of pedestrians were jay-walking at random.
When the college students return, they pose unusual traffic hazards. Jay-walking students now have their eyes and ears glued to cellular phones instead of watching out for cars. A number of foreign students appear to have obtained their driver licenses by correspondence courses because they seem not to know how big their cars are to drive or park.
Although operating autos safely on the Beltline is an area of emphasis in public service announcements, speed and using turn signals is still random. The speed limit on most of the Beltline is 55 mph. I usually drive 60 mph and am often passed on both the right and left by people driving at least 70 mph.
I work on Mineral Point Road near the Beltline. I currently take the Beltline to work to avoid the construction backup at Mineral Point and Gammon. When there is no road construction, I can get to work in 10 minutes by taking Mineral Point Road. The posted speed limit on Mineral Point is 40 mph. Some drive 50 mph but some drive 30 mph. This is also true of University Avenue between Whitney Way and near campus.
What especially galls me when I am walking is the sheer number of those riding bicycles on the sidewalk. I am not heartless; I am fine with parents and little kids riding on the sidewalk. When I was a student, a lucky few were bicycle enforcement officers, empowered to write tickets for riding on the sidewalk, blowing through red lights and riding in an unsafe manner. Bicyclists operated safely to avoid tickets.
Tickets seem in short supply in Madison for autos and bicycles operated unsafely, however. Police in Madison seem to have their hands too full to respond to anything but accidents instead of preventing them.
I have lived all across the country, including in cities that dwarf Madison. I also have driven on several college campuses. Madison’s traffic problems were especially noticeable when I drove to central Wisconsin and back, arriving in Madison near bar time on Saturday. Clusters of pedestrians were jay-walking at random.
When the college students return, they pose unusual traffic hazards. Jay-walking students now have their eyes and ears glued to cellular phones instead of watching out for cars. A number of foreign students appear to have obtained their driver licenses by correspondence courses because they seem not to know how big their cars are to drive or park.
Although operating autos safely on the Beltline is an area of emphasis in public service announcements, speed and using turn signals is still random. The speed limit on most of the Beltline is 55 mph. I usually drive 60 mph and am often passed on both the right and left by people driving at least 70 mph.
I work on Mineral Point Road near the Beltline. I currently take the Beltline to work to avoid the construction backup at Mineral Point and Gammon. When there is no road construction, I can get to work in 10 minutes by taking Mineral Point Road. The posted speed limit on Mineral Point is 40 mph. Some drive 50 mph but some drive 30 mph. This is also true of University Avenue between Whitney Way and near campus.
What especially galls me when I am walking is the sheer number of those riding bicycles on the sidewalk. I am not heartless; I am fine with parents and little kids riding on the sidewalk. When I was a student, a lucky few were bicycle enforcement officers, empowered to write tickets for riding on the sidewalk, blowing through red lights and riding in an unsafe manner. Bicyclists operated safely to avoid tickets.
Tickets seem in short supply in Madison for autos and bicycles operated unsafely, however. Police in Madison seem to have their hands too full to respond to anything but accidents instead of preventing them.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Missing Some Things about the South
I lived in the Deep South for four years. There are some things I miss, but others not so much, in Wisconsin-speak.
Chiefly, I miss the food and drink. Even the best barbecue in Madison is not nearly as good as third-tier barbecue in the South. I miss Community Coffee with chicory. (Yes, I could buy it online.) I miss going to the grocery store, using a buggy instead of a cart, and choosing among two or more brands of sweet tea. I miss the guitreau at Mike Anderson’s with an appetizer of gator bits. I miss fresh hush puppies. I miss Milo’s and real Popeye’s chicken with fresh red beans and rice as a side.
I miss “y’all” instead of “you guys.” Collective is “all y’all.” I miss Baptist pastors who make invitations. I have yet to see an “altar call” in the North. I miss being called “Tiger” because I am wearing purple and gold in Louisiana. I miss Tiger Stadium, which is easily three times louder than Camp Randall.
There are a few things I do not miss. When I first moved to the South, I thought “Sir/Madam” was a sign of respect. Now I know it is rote superficial politeness. In the North, it is replaced by real politeness that seems rude by Southerners. I do not miss how far right Republicans were in the South, where symbolic religious issues often take the place of solving real problems. I was considered a liberal because I was insufficiently extreme. I do not miss voting on long tables with no privacy.
I do not miss people who tailgate at 90 mph on the interstate, then dart suddenly right and down an exit. I do not miss cars and people festooned with Alabama, Auburn, NASCAR Numbers and Christian Fish.
More than anything, I do not miss the weather in the South. It was usually too hot for my Northern blood. In the South, a hot day might be 100 and children and the elderly are warned not to go outside because the air quality is poor. In the North, a hot day might be in the high 80s but a cold day might be -40. I prefer four seasons to the green and brown seasons.
Chiefly, I miss the food and drink. Even the best barbecue in Madison is not nearly as good as third-tier barbecue in the South. I miss Community Coffee with chicory. (Yes, I could buy it online.) I miss going to the grocery store, using a buggy instead of a cart, and choosing among two or more brands of sweet tea. I miss the guitreau at Mike Anderson’s with an appetizer of gator bits. I miss fresh hush puppies. I miss Milo’s and real Popeye’s chicken with fresh red beans and rice as a side.
I miss “y’all” instead of “you guys.” Collective is “all y’all.” I miss Baptist pastors who make invitations. I have yet to see an “altar call” in the North. I miss being called “Tiger” because I am wearing purple and gold in Louisiana. I miss Tiger Stadium, which is easily three times louder than Camp Randall.
There are a few things I do not miss. When I first moved to the South, I thought “Sir/Madam” was a sign of respect. Now I know it is rote superficial politeness. In the North, it is replaced by real politeness that seems rude by Southerners. I do not miss how far right Republicans were in the South, where symbolic religious issues often take the place of solving real problems. I was considered a liberal because I was insufficiently extreme. I do not miss voting on long tables with no privacy.
I do not miss people who tailgate at 90 mph on the interstate, then dart suddenly right and down an exit. I do not miss cars and people festooned with Alabama, Auburn, NASCAR Numbers and Christian Fish.
More than anything, I do not miss the weather in the South. It was usually too hot for my Northern blood. In the South, a hot day might be 100 and children and the elderly are warned not to go outside because the air quality is poor. In the North, a hot day might be in the high 80s but a cold day might be -40. I prefer four seasons to the green and brown seasons.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
“Over the land of the free and the home of the brave”
July 4 for many Americans is a beery day of sports, food, boating and fireworks. Historically, of course, July 4, 1776, is the date we declared our independence from Great Britain when this was a risky proposition.
It is such an American holiday. Because it falls on a day off, I will get holiday pay even though I am not working. On the last Independence Day, my younger boy, Eric, was out of the country.
This July 4 has special significance for me because Jens Michaelsen is at sea, not at home on Oahu. Actually, he will be under the Pacific Ocean for several months with more than 100 of his closest friends. While his service is safer than those who serve on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is not without risk. He is serving on a boat that was launched and decorated for service during the Cold War before he was even born.
We all weep for the family and friends of those who become casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those of us who are parents never want to bury our children. Some who serve in the Middle Eastern have marked several Independence Days there. However, they are all volunteers.
Jens is a volunteer, too. He enlisted shortly before he was 18 and turned 23, also at sea. Here is a recent picture of him with his girlfriend.
It is such an American holiday. Because it falls on a day off, I will get holiday pay even though I am not working. On the last Independence Day, my younger boy, Eric, was out of the country.
This July 4 has special significance for me because Jens Michaelsen is at sea, not at home on Oahu. Actually, he will be under the Pacific Ocean for several months with more than 100 of his closest friends. While his service is safer than those who serve on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is not without risk. He is serving on a boat that was launched and decorated for service during the Cold War before he was even born.
We all weep for the family and friends of those who become casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those of us who are parents never want to bury our children. Some who serve in the Middle Eastern have marked several Independence Days there. However, they are all volunteers.
Jens is a volunteer, too. He enlisted shortly before he was 18 and turned 23, also at sea. Here is a recent picture of him with his girlfriend.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Arrest in One of Three Big Unsolved Madison Murders
Madison police chief Noble Wray announced Friday that Madison police have arrested a suspect in the murder of hospital equipment salesman Joel Marino. Adam Peterson, 20, was arrested in the metro Twin Cities area. His father told the media that Peterson attended the University of Wisconsin briefly.
Marino was stabbed January 27, 2008, in a quiet working-class lakeside neighborhood. He bled to death en route to a nearby hospital emergency room. The killer left behind a backpack, a hat and a knife in a rush to escape. DNA evidence from the objects matched Peterson.
Meanwhile, Kevin and Jean Zimmerman are suing Dane County and a 911 dispatcher for dropping their daughter Brittany’s cell phone call shortly before she was murdered. Wray said there is not current DNA evidence tying Peterson to Zimmerman’s murder.
Marshfield native and University of Wisconsin molecular biology and immunology student Brittany Zimmerman, 21, was murdered before noon on April 2 2008, in her West Doty Street apartment. It is known that she called 911 just before she died. Zimmerman then either hung up or operators hung up on her; this may never be known. Operators at the 911 system neither called her back nor sent police officers to the Global Positioning System location which all cellular phones now provide. The dispatcher in question was transferred to a county child support agency and might have government immunity for work in the 911 center.
It is likely that a homeless man broke into Zimmerman’s apartment to steal and that she surprised him, leading to her being stabbed. The wrongful death suit by her parents says Madison did not curb homeless people in Zimmerman’s campus neighborhood, Dane County knew it did not have enough dispatchers and they were not trained well. Isthmus reported months ago that dissatisfaction and employee turnover at the 911 center were both rampant. Poor training was cited by many who left.
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk has been dogged by contradictory comments about the Zimmerman call and the 911 system. So has Joe Norwick, director of the Dane County 911 system. At a County Commission meeting after the Zimmerman death, Norwick did not to know how many calls were made to the center monthly and how many are from cell telephones or landlines. Wray, irate about the 911 center not dispatching police to the Zimmerman scene, has pointedly asked how many calls for help in Madison did not result in police being notified. Falk has expressed confidence in Norwick, a former deputy sheriff.
It is possible that Falk and Norwick will receive subpoenas to testify in a Zimmerman trial. That would be embarrassing to both and it would not be surprising if each turns on the other to assess blame.
We are also coming up on the one-year anniversary of the murder of Kelly Nolan, 22. UW-Whitewater student Nolan disappeared from State Street near bar time on June 23, 2007, triggering a national man-hunt similar to that for Natalee Holloway, when she disappeared in Aruba. Nolan’s decomposing body was found in the woods near Oregon, Wisconsin, about a week later. It is not known if there was DNA evidence.
There are other unsolved murders in Madison but murders on campus or downtown explode the myth that Madison is somehow immune from this violence. It is comforting to those of us who are harsh critics of Madison liberals that an arrest was made in the Marino case. Now the Nolan and Zimmerman cases demand attention.
Marino was stabbed January 27, 2008, in a quiet working-class lakeside neighborhood. He bled to death en route to a nearby hospital emergency room. The killer left behind a backpack, a hat and a knife in a rush to escape. DNA evidence from the objects matched Peterson.
Meanwhile, Kevin and Jean Zimmerman are suing Dane County and a 911 dispatcher for dropping their daughter Brittany’s cell phone call shortly before she was murdered. Wray said there is not current DNA evidence tying Peterson to Zimmerman’s murder.
Marshfield native and University of Wisconsin molecular biology and immunology student Brittany Zimmerman, 21, was murdered before noon on April 2 2008, in her West Doty Street apartment. It is known that she called 911 just before she died. Zimmerman then either hung up or operators hung up on her; this may never be known. Operators at the 911 system neither called her back nor sent police officers to the Global Positioning System location which all cellular phones now provide. The dispatcher in question was transferred to a county child support agency and might have government immunity for work in the 911 center.
It is likely that a homeless man broke into Zimmerman’s apartment to steal and that she surprised him, leading to her being stabbed. The wrongful death suit by her parents says Madison did not curb homeless people in Zimmerman’s campus neighborhood, Dane County knew it did not have enough dispatchers and they were not trained well. Isthmus reported months ago that dissatisfaction and employee turnover at the 911 center were both rampant. Poor training was cited by many who left.
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk has been dogged by contradictory comments about the Zimmerman call and the 911 system. So has Joe Norwick, director of the Dane County 911 system. At a County Commission meeting after the Zimmerman death, Norwick did not to know how many calls were made to the center monthly and how many are from cell telephones or landlines. Wray, irate about the 911 center not dispatching police to the Zimmerman scene, has pointedly asked how many calls for help in Madison did not result in police being notified. Falk has expressed confidence in Norwick, a former deputy sheriff.
It is possible that Falk and Norwick will receive subpoenas to testify in a Zimmerman trial. That would be embarrassing to both and it would not be surprising if each turns on the other to assess blame.
We are also coming up on the one-year anniversary of the murder of Kelly Nolan, 22. UW-Whitewater student Nolan disappeared from State Street near bar time on June 23, 2007, triggering a national man-hunt similar to that for Natalee Holloway, when she disappeared in Aruba. Nolan’s decomposing body was found in the woods near Oregon, Wisconsin, about a week later. It is not known if there was DNA evidence.
There are other unsolved murders in Madison but murders on campus or downtown explode the myth that Madison is somehow immune from this violence. It is comforting to those of us who are harsh critics of Madison liberals that an arrest was made in the Marino case. Now the Nolan and Zimmerman cases demand attention.
Monday, June 23, 2008
A Remembrance of George Carlin
News that George Carlin has passed away moves me to remembrance. He was more than a comedian to me, although I found him funny. When I was about 11, I bought “Class Clown.”
As an actor, he was also important in the lives of my children. When Jens and Eric were little, they watched “Shining Time Station,” the PBS show which included the animated Thomas the Tank Engine stories. It featured a mother and her children living at a train station run by a character called Mr. Conductor. For several years, Mr. Conductor was Ringo Starr. For a couple of seasons, Mr. Conductor was George Carlin.
When Jens and Eric were a little older, we watched the two Bill and Ted movies. In “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”, George Carlin plays Rufus, sent from the future to keep Wyld Stallions together.
Among the bits of “Class Clown,” were the seven words you can not say on television. That would be fuck, shit, piss, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker and tits. It was in Milwaukee that Carlin was arrested for using them in public. When I hurt myself or when I discovered that my kids had thrown away the operating system on my Macintosh, I would explode in the seven words out loud or abbreviate it just to fuck, shit, piss. My kids heard this so often, they started to abbreviate it FSP. When I was in public, I would think it without saying it out loud.
Although George Carlin has passed away, he lives on in me and in the lives of my children.
As an actor, he was also important in the lives of my children. When Jens and Eric were little, they watched “Shining Time Station,” the PBS show which included the animated Thomas the Tank Engine stories. It featured a mother and her children living at a train station run by a character called Mr. Conductor. For several years, Mr. Conductor was Ringo Starr. For a couple of seasons, Mr. Conductor was George Carlin.
When Jens and Eric were a little older, we watched the two Bill and Ted movies. In “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”, George Carlin plays Rufus, sent from the future to keep Wyld Stallions together.
Among the bits of “Class Clown,” were the seven words you can not say on television. That would be fuck, shit, piss, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker and tits. It was in Milwaukee that Carlin was arrested for using them in public. When I hurt myself or when I discovered that my kids had thrown away the operating system on my Macintosh, I would explode in the seven words out loud or abbreviate it just to fuck, shit, piss. My kids heard this so often, they started to abbreviate it FSP. When I was in public, I would think it without saying it out loud.
Although George Carlin has passed away, he lives on in me and in the lives of my children.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Happy Birthday, Petty Officer Michaelsen
My older son, Jens, is 23 today.
People who know ask if I have sent him a card and present or called him. Jens has asked his grandparents and me to resist sending him a card or presents until he is back on shore in early July. I have bought a card and picked out presents.
I have not called him. Although he has great cellular phone coverage, the signal does not carry to underwater in the Pacific Ocean. If you are so inclined, you can send birthday greetings to Jens at michaejm@bremerton.navy.mil
People who know ask if I have sent him a card and present or called him. Jens has asked his grandparents and me to resist sending him a card or presents until he is back on shore in early July. I have bought a card and picked out presents.
I have not called him. Although he has great cellular phone coverage, the signal does not carry to underwater in the Pacific Ocean. If you are so inclined, you can send birthday greetings to Jens at michaejm@bremerton.navy.mil
Friday, June 20, 2008
Was Tamara Greene Killed by Kwame Kilpatrick?
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was in his first term and Tamara Greene, a stripper known professionally as Strawberry, allegedly performed for a party at the Mayor’s mansion in September 2002. Supposedly, Mrs. Kilpatrick had been out of town and came home unexpectedly and confronted Greene. In this theory, Greene was executed because she knew too much about sex, politics and power in Michigan’s largest city.
What is undisputable is that Greene died in a hail of drive-by gunfire about 3:40 in the morning on April 30, 2003. In the driver seat, she was shot 18 times; three shots were fatal. Her boyfriend, Eric “Big E” Mitchell was hit by five bullets but he survived. The bullets were .40 calibers, fueling many to believe that the killer was a Detroit police officer. Detroit police are armed with a .40 caliber Glock.
There are problems with this conspiracy theory, however. There is no evidence that Greene ever performed at the mansion or that Mrs. Kilpatrick walked in on the party. A number of weapons fire .40 caliber bullets but Glocks are common on the mean streets of Detroit. Nevertheless, the conspiracy theory survives because of Kilpatrick’s legal problems, which is recounted better at http://spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=13016. Some believe that Kilpatrick fired Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown because he headed an investigation of the mansion party and Greene’s death.
This is news again because a judge in the suit brought by Greene’s relatives against the city for failing to book her killer asked for homicide files and text messages related to her death. Detroit says the pagers used in 2003 were discontinued in 2004 and there are no longer any records of text messages. Detroit also fought turning over the files, saying police have new leads.
Detroit police say they have new leads, five years after the crime? In 2003, Detroit was in the grip of a murderous rampage which periodically plagues big American cities. Greene was Detroit’s homicide number 113 of 366 in 2003. About half were never solved, including hers.
This is what we know from corroborated testimony by Mitchell and another stripper who was present at a party in Southfield, a suburb just across Eight Mile Road from Detroit. Greene danced for drug dealers, thugs and well-known street toughs in early April 2003. A short man with a light complexion and a record for selling cocaine wanted to have sex with Greene. When she refused, he blackened both her eyes. A giant of a man, Mitchell fought with the smaller man and prevailed.
Greene’s leased BMW was shot-up about a week after the party. Her replacement Buick was idling in gear in front of Mitchell’s home in Detroit when she died so it meandered down the street. Mitchell said he saw an arm with a light complexion holding a pistol out the window of a passing sport utility vehicle and dove for cover in the foot well.
A professional hit would not have left Mitchell alive as a potential witness if Greene was the intended target. Whoever fired the shots sped off instead making sure Greene and Mitchell were both dead, which is why the killing looks more like retribution for the Southfield party and less like a professional job by Detroit police.
What is undisputable is that Greene died in a hail of drive-by gunfire about 3:40 in the morning on April 30, 2003. In the driver seat, she was shot 18 times; three shots were fatal. Her boyfriend, Eric “Big E” Mitchell was hit by five bullets but he survived. The bullets were .40 calibers, fueling many to believe that the killer was a Detroit police officer. Detroit police are armed with a .40 caliber Glock.
There are problems with this conspiracy theory, however. There is no evidence that Greene ever performed at the mansion or that Mrs. Kilpatrick walked in on the party. A number of weapons fire .40 caliber bullets but Glocks are common on the mean streets of Detroit. Nevertheless, the conspiracy theory survives because of Kilpatrick’s legal problems, which is recounted better at http://spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=13016. Some believe that Kilpatrick fired Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown because he headed an investigation of the mansion party and Greene’s death.
This is news again because a judge in the suit brought by Greene’s relatives against the city for failing to book her killer asked for homicide files and text messages related to her death. Detroit says the pagers used in 2003 were discontinued in 2004 and there are no longer any records of text messages. Detroit also fought turning over the files, saying police have new leads.
Detroit police say they have new leads, five years after the crime? In 2003, Detroit was in the grip of a murderous rampage which periodically plagues big American cities. Greene was Detroit’s homicide number 113 of 366 in 2003. About half were never solved, including hers.
This is what we know from corroborated testimony by Mitchell and another stripper who was present at a party in Southfield, a suburb just across Eight Mile Road from Detroit. Greene danced for drug dealers, thugs and well-known street toughs in early April 2003. A short man with a light complexion and a record for selling cocaine wanted to have sex with Greene. When she refused, he blackened both her eyes. A giant of a man, Mitchell fought with the smaller man and prevailed.
Greene’s leased BMW was shot-up about a week after the party. Her replacement Buick was idling in gear in front of Mitchell’s home in Detroit when she died so it meandered down the street. Mitchell said he saw an arm with a light complexion holding a pistol out the window of a passing sport utility vehicle and dove for cover in the foot well.
A professional hit would not have left Mitchell alive as a potential witness if Greene was the intended target. Whoever fired the shots sped off instead making sure Greene and Mitchell were both dead, which is why the killing looks more like retribution for the Southfield party and less like a professional job by Detroit police.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Don’t They Get It?
An item in the Local section of the Wisconsin State Journal said a Madison driver was arrested for operating under the influence (OWI) and operating a motor vehicle without a license. He has been convicted four times for driving under the influence. With last Saturday’s stop, he has a total of three OWI charges pending.
He has seven OWI charges? That means he has driven drunk more times but he was only caught seven times. Each of these times, he was supposed to have an alcohol usage assessment. Current state law should send you to prison after the fifth conviction, sooner if you cause injury or death to someone else.
There are other drivers who have multiple OWI charges. According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, there are about 23,000 drivers with three or more convictions. They also say that the median Blood Alcohol Content level of those convicted of OWI is .017, more than twice the legal limit. Wisconsin Mothers Against Drunk Driving says that 50 percent of all Wisconsin traffic deaths are alcohol-related.
Most of us who live in Wisconsin have driven to or from a place when we should not. Most of us have driven at a time when few cars are on the road and so far or fast so that we have never had an accident. It is not a driving problem, however; it is a drinking problem.
Unfortunately, it is something I know about. I was a binge drinker in college in Madison but I did not have a car in college. I was 22 and working in Minnesota when I was picked up for DWI for the first time in 1980. Driving school reduced the charge. I had a DWI in Virginia about a year later, which was knocked down by my attorney to reckless driving when I went to driving school and AA for six weeks. I became much more responsible.
After my divorce, I gradually lost control of my drinking. My final DWI came in Michigan in 1997, when I received my best and most honest alcohol assessment and was “sentenced” to AA for one year. I have been continuously sober since Jan. 18, 1998. If I never have my first drink, I will never have 20. I do not mind being around people who are drinking, which in Madison is just about everyone.
I had three charges of driving drunk before I became sober. How do people have many OWI convictions and are not able to realize that their problem is alcohol, not driving?
He has seven OWI charges? That means he has driven drunk more times but he was only caught seven times. Each of these times, he was supposed to have an alcohol usage assessment. Current state law should send you to prison after the fifth conviction, sooner if you cause injury or death to someone else.
There are other drivers who have multiple OWI charges. According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, there are about 23,000 drivers with three or more convictions. They also say that the median Blood Alcohol Content level of those convicted of OWI is .017, more than twice the legal limit. Wisconsin Mothers Against Drunk Driving says that 50 percent of all Wisconsin traffic deaths are alcohol-related.
Most of us who live in Wisconsin have driven to or from a place when we should not. Most of us have driven at a time when few cars are on the road and so far or fast so that we have never had an accident. It is not a driving problem, however; it is a drinking problem.
Unfortunately, it is something I know about. I was a binge drinker in college in Madison but I did not have a car in college. I was 22 and working in Minnesota when I was picked up for DWI for the first time in 1980. Driving school reduced the charge. I had a DWI in Virginia about a year later, which was knocked down by my attorney to reckless driving when I went to driving school and AA for six weeks. I became much more responsible.
After my divorce, I gradually lost control of my drinking. My final DWI came in Michigan in 1997, when I received my best and most honest alcohol assessment and was “sentenced” to AA for one year. I have been continuously sober since Jan. 18, 1998. If I never have my first drink, I will never have 20. I do not mind being around people who are drinking, which in Madison is just about everyone.
I had three charges of driving drunk before I became sober. How do people have many OWI convictions and are not able to realize that their problem is alcohol, not driving?
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Sex, Lies and Evidence
Just when one thought nobody could be as foolish as former New York Governor Eliott Spitzer, two sex scandals in Michigan have Democrats there reeling. I lived in Lansing for 15 years and I have never seen anything like it.
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick had an affair with his chief of staff, Christine Beatty. Usually, what consenting adults do behind closed doors would not matter so much except Kilpatrick is guarded by 50 Detroit police officers. Among big city mayors, such a large security detail is unusual.
This affair came to light in a police investigation of the security detail and irregularities in the Mayor’s Office. Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown was fired. In a deposition related to Brown’s firing, both Kilpatrick and Beatty said under oath they were not romantically involved. Inconvenient evidence included more than 1,000 amorous text messages between Kilpatrick and Beatty on Detroit equipment. In public, Kilpatrick said Brown was fired for cause. Other text messages from Kilpatrick asked his staff to retroactively come up with reasons for Brown’s ouster.
Brown and another fired officer were awarded $8.4 million. Outside counsel at the trial cost Detroit taxpayers another $845,000. Kilpatrick and Beatty have been indicted on charges of conspiracy, perjury and obstruction of justice. Kilpatrick has been seen with his wife. Beatty is no longer his chief of staff and is looking for work.
Kilpatrick is the son of U.S. Representative Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, a Detroit Democrat. Kwame Kilpatrick’s rise has been meteoric, becoming Detroit Mayor at only 31. Now public sector union leaders have called on him to resign and a recall petition has been filed. Brown is mulling a race for Congress against Kilpatrick.
Michigan Democrats were reeling from the charges against Kilpatrick when another sex scandal unfolded. Tom Athans, husband of U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), was questioned by police in Troy, a Detroit suburb, after leaving a motel where he gave $150 to a prostitute for a sex act. Troy police were trying to break up a prostitution ring and do not prosecute customers who cooperate, as Athans did when police stopped his Cadillac Sedan Deville. In the motel room, police found sex toys, condoms, a laptop and $431 in cash.
If Athans were only the husband of a U.S Senator, it would be embarrassing to the couple. However, Athans is also a key figure in liberal talk radio. He was formerly vice president of pre-bankruptcy Air America and CEO of Democracy Radio. He now heads Talk USA Radio, based in Washington.
If this happened to a Republican or a figure in conservative talk radio, it would dominate the news. There would be calls for resignations and Congressional hearings.
Athans said he found the prostitute on Craig’s List. It is not certain which is more embarrassing to Athans: falling into a Troy police sex sting or paying only $150 for a prostitute. At least Spitzer spent more than Athans. It seems like the City of Detroit, however, has spent so much thus far that Spitzer’s amount looks paltry.
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick had an affair with his chief of staff, Christine Beatty. Usually, what consenting adults do behind closed doors would not matter so much except Kilpatrick is guarded by 50 Detroit police officers. Among big city mayors, such a large security detail is unusual.
This affair came to light in a police investigation of the security detail and irregularities in the Mayor’s Office. Deputy Police Chief Gary Brown was fired. In a deposition related to Brown’s firing, both Kilpatrick and Beatty said under oath they were not romantically involved. Inconvenient evidence included more than 1,000 amorous text messages between Kilpatrick and Beatty on Detroit equipment. In public, Kilpatrick said Brown was fired for cause. Other text messages from Kilpatrick asked his staff to retroactively come up with reasons for Brown’s ouster.
Brown and another fired officer were awarded $8.4 million. Outside counsel at the trial cost Detroit taxpayers another $845,000. Kilpatrick and Beatty have been indicted on charges of conspiracy, perjury and obstruction of justice. Kilpatrick has been seen with his wife. Beatty is no longer his chief of staff and is looking for work.
Kilpatrick is the son of U.S. Representative Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, a Detroit Democrat. Kwame Kilpatrick’s rise has been meteoric, becoming Detroit Mayor at only 31. Now public sector union leaders have called on him to resign and a recall petition has been filed. Brown is mulling a race for Congress against Kilpatrick.
Michigan Democrats were reeling from the charges against Kilpatrick when another sex scandal unfolded. Tom Athans, husband of U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), was questioned by police in Troy, a Detroit suburb, after leaving a motel where he gave $150 to a prostitute for a sex act. Troy police were trying to break up a prostitution ring and do not prosecute customers who cooperate, as Athans did when police stopped his Cadillac Sedan Deville. In the motel room, police found sex toys, condoms, a laptop and $431 in cash.
If Athans were only the husband of a U.S Senator, it would be embarrassing to the couple. However, Athans is also a key figure in liberal talk radio. He was formerly vice president of pre-bankruptcy Air America and CEO of Democracy Radio. He now heads Talk USA Radio, based in Washington.
If this happened to a Republican or a figure in conservative talk radio, it would dominate the news. There would be calls for resignations and Congressional hearings.
Athans said he found the prostitute on Craig’s List. It is not certain which is more embarrassing to Athans: falling into a Troy police sex sting or paying only $150 for a prostitute. At least Spitzer spent more than Athans. It seems like the City of Detroit, however, has spent so much thus far that Spitzer’s amount looks paltry.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
“Damned Dirty Apes”
News that Charlton Heston has passed away moves me to reflection. He was an actor who played historic figures such as Moses, El Cid, Jonah Ben Hur, Cardinal Richelieu, John the Baptist, “Chinese” Gordon, Michelangelo, Marc Antony and Henry VIII. He won the Oscar as Best Actor in 1959 for “Ben Hur.”
I have not seem all of Heston’s films. I have seen many several times, including seeing “Ten Commandments,” “Three Musketeers,” and “Planet of the Apes” in movie theatres.
Madison liberals tend to remember him as a conservative and President of the National Rifle Association. They tend to forget that he was President of the Screen Actors Guild and a civil rights activist before many of them were born.
I have not seem all of Heston’s films. I have seen many several times, including seeing “Ten Commandments,” “Three Musketeers,” and “Planet of the Apes” in movie theatres.
Madison liberals tend to remember him as a conservative and President of the National Rifle Association. They tend to forget that he was President of the Screen Actors Guild and a civil rights activist before many of them were born.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
John McCain: Back from the Grave
Nothing has surprised me more than the rebound of John McCain’s campaign from near bankruptcy last fall to front-runner status after wins in New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida and several states on Super Tuesday.
I have been a McCain supporter since he did some campaign events for Joe Schwarz for Congress in Michigan in 2004, Schwarz having been the chair of McCain’s upset of George Bush in 2000 and also my friend since 1986. Schwarz, McCain and my older son also have the US Navy in common.
The McCain campaign never responded to my snail mail offering to volunteer as needed. Things looked so bleak and under-funded at Team McCain last fall that I scraped the McCain sticker from my car. I was prepared for someone else to win the Republican nomination for President, such as Fred Thompson, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney or Rudy Giuliani.
It annoys me that conservative pundits talk about McCain as if he is not a conservative Republican, with a lifetime rating of 82.3 from the American Conservative Union and a recent rating of 88 percent from the National Taxpayers Union. They tend to focus on the 10 percent of items with which they disagree with him instead of the 90 percent where they do agree. They talk about him wanting to close Camp Gitmo or end waterboarding as if he had never been a prisoner of war and never undergone torture.
Despite endorsements by major political figures and newspapers, I think it is not true that McCain is the choice of liberals, party insiders or big government conservatives. He is still refreshingly insurgent and able to reach across the aisle to work with the other party, unlike the current President or the two surviving Democratic candidates for President.
Mike Huckabee’s contribution to this race is both the quip that he wants to be the guy with whom you work, not the guy that laid you off, and siphoning off enough value voter support that Romney might have otherwise won.
It would not surprise me if Mike Huckabee becomes the Vice Presidential nominee. He is not a political hitman in the style of Dick Cheney and his value to the ticket would be to attract value voters who felt taken for granted by Bush/Cheney.
Can John McCain raise enough to be competitive with the Democratic nominee? He probably can.
I have been a McCain supporter since he did some campaign events for Joe Schwarz for Congress in Michigan in 2004, Schwarz having been the chair of McCain’s upset of George Bush in 2000 and also my friend since 1986. Schwarz, McCain and my older son also have the US Navy in common.
The McCain campaign never responded to my snail mail offering to volunteer as needed. Things looked so bleak and under-funded at Team McCain last fall that I scraped the McCain sticker from my car. I was prepared for someone else to win the Republican nomination for President, such as Fred Thompson, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney or Rudy Giuliani.
It annoys me that conservative pundits talk about McCain as if he is not a conservative Republican, with a lifetime rating of 82.3 from the American Conservative Union and a recent rating of 88 percent from the National Taxpayers Union. They tend to focus on the 10 percent of items with which they disagree with him instead of the 90 percent where they do agree. They talk about him wanting to close Camp Gitmo or end waterboarding as if he had never been a prisoner of war and never undergone torture.
Despite endorsements by major political figures and newspapers, I think it is not true that McCain is the choice of liberals, party insiders or big government conservatives. He is still refreshingly insurgent and able to reach across the aisle to work with the other party, unlike the current President or the two surviving Democratic candidates for President.
Mike Huckabee’s contribution to this race is both the quip that he wants to be the guy with whom you work, not the guy that laid you off, and siphoning off enough value voter support that Romney might have otherwise won.
It would not surprise me if Mike Huckabee becomes the Vice Presidential nominee. He is not a political hitman in the style of Dick Cheney and his value to the ticket would be to attract value voters who felt taken for granted by Bush/Cheney.
Can John McCain raise enough to be competitive with the Democratic nominee? He probably can.
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