Come On. Play By The Rules!

While our attention is turning more and more to the primaries, one might ask what our elected officials still in Washington are doing these days? Hmmm. Let me see, there are hearings about steroid use in baseball. They want hearings looking into the alleged cheating by the New England Patriots.

Ironic, isn't it? The "Patriots"? And who is in charge these days? The Democrats. Apparently cheating is a big deal to them, right? Maybe not.

The Democrat Party penalized Michigan and Florida for moving their primary process forward. The states wanted to have more of a say. Instead they were stripped of their delegates. One hundred fifty six for Michigan, two hundred ten for Florida. The candidates agreed not to campaign in either state. Why there were Democratic ballots even issued is beyond me, but they were and people voted or caucused and Hillary won; her name remained in Michigan and she held fund raisers in Florida. Nice number of delegates. Even with the screwball way they divvy them up, it could mean the difference between winning and losing.

Now she's demanding those delegates be seated at the convention. The opposition is calling foul and the Party leaders are wringing their hands, "Oh, what to do!" These states are too important to be left out.

Tough. They knew the penalty and chose to proceed. They don't want the trouble or the expense of a "re do". The whole situation strikes me as a bunch of kids being allowed to make up the rules as they go along.

Everyone should have anticipated trouble with this one. If the Democrats in those two states have a problem with the rules let them take it up with their leaders. If the Democrats truly want to move the country forward, want "change we can believe in" they won't ask a candidate to compromise his chance to win because the other has her nose out of joint or is losing without those unseated delegates. If they do, the message being sent to all those young and first time participants is it is all a fairy tale; it's nothing more than the ultimate betrayal and political business as usual.

It will be tough getting them back. That would be tragic.

Terror Of A Different Sort

Imagine this scenario. A large agricultural based conglomerate hiring non-citizens to do the work U.S. citizens won't. Right. All those "illegal" pickers that swarm across the Mexican border and fan out across the country like mosquitos over a stagnant pond.

Wrong. Try the citizens of the Marshall Islands swarming to a small town in northwestern Arkansas to work for Tyson Foods. Why? Because it's a better life than they had.

It's not that they as a people aren't welcome. It's what they've brought with them. Leprosy. Yep. The town of Springdale, a bit over 60,000 strong, has an outbreak of leprosy, not to mention 100 cases of tuberculosis.

How do these people get in? Politics mostly. In a nutshell, if approved for entry they may live, study and work in the U.S. for an unlimited amount of time.

Their "traveling companions" get a free ride and as I see it, the way panic and misunderstanding begins. The imagery of leprosy conjurs up thoughts of leper colonies. I shuddered at the thought. Then did a little research.

It seems the disease is more disfiguring than fatal. This is an extreme, untreated case. Though it can be spread, it is not done so easily and it it can be treated effectively with antibiotics.  The progression can be stopped, the damage can not be undone.

It is a disease slow to develop and symptoms may not appear for up to seven years after infection, according to the Merck Manuel. So here you are. The Marshall Islands have the highest incidence of leprosy anywhere in the world. The Islanders are flocking to Springdale looking for the American dream.

All concerned are living a nightmare.

It Isn't Dogs That Are Dumb...

Once again I get to point out the value of reading both local newspapers. The Press headline reads Idaho senate votes 31-4 in favor of dogfighting measure. The Spokesman reads Idaho Senate OKs dogfighting bill. This is long awaited legislation that will make dogfighting a felony with good healthy penalties. Five years in prison and $50,000 in fines.

The Press article goes on to state that some backers want to be able to target illegal gang and drug activity that often accompanies the dogfighting.

"Wow," I thought. They finally get it. Then I went on to read greater detail in the Spokesman. It seems Senator Jeff Siddoway, R-Terreton, feels the legislation goes too far by putting it into the ranks of a felony. He is quoted as saying, "It's not just Michael Vick and the big shots - it's what if your teenage son and my teenage son decide to have a dogfight back in the back alley?"

I was dumbfounded. He doesn't get it at all! Nor does Senate GOP Caucus Chairman Brad Little, R-Emmett, who went on to defend the bill by saying, "This isn't two kids out in the back alley that go 'Sic 'em, Rover'..."

What kind of fathers are these? What kind of boys are they raising?? Don't they realize that kids pitting their pets against one another is how it starts? I'm glad the Idaho Senate has been embarrassed into undertaking this legislation for the sake of the dogs. I'm angry that these elected officials are doing this for nothing more than political expediency. I'm embarrassed that their spoken words reveal such a lack of comprehension about what they're doing.

Once again I find myself wondering what I'm doing in what too often resembles Appalachia west.

REAL"istic" ID

This is what happens when you put a lawyer in charge of something outside his area of expertise. Chaos. Why doesn't the Department of Homeland Security just decide issuing National ID cards is the way it's going to be and be done with it? We're headed in that direction anyway.

We have new passport regulations that require the imbedding of an identity verification chip. How safe does this keep us? About as safe as the new drivers license rules to permit boarding planes, entering federal buildings, etc.

The thing that is curious to me is the time frame between the conception of these bright ideas and the actual implementation. The passport deadline keeps getting pushed back because of the overload of applications. So what happens in the meantime? All holders of those old style passports must be potential terrorists?  Never mind that nothing has happened.

One of the drivers license requirements is that drivers born after December 1, 1964 have to get a more secure license in the next six years.  Six years?   What all can happen in six years??

States who are finding this a financial burden are required to apply for a temporary waiver. If they do not, Homeland Security will punish we citizens. Residents will have to use a passport (if they can get one) or a newly created Federal passport card (National ID??) if they want to avoid a "vigorous" secondary screening at airport security.

Way to go. Inconvenience us some more. Impose more personal indignities upon us. Scare us just a little bit more. Nice.

By the way. Make sure each and every employee of the Federal government has to meet the same criteria, especially members of Congress.

All Thumbs!

A new law has gone into effect in our neighboring state of Washington. No more text messaging while driving. The problem is the law is a "secondary" law; you cannot be pulled over for that alone. If you run a red light and it's found you've been text messaging then you're in trouble!

Why this has gone into effect before the no talking on a cell phone while driving law slated for July is beyond me but if it too is slated to be a secondary law, why bother? Hub tells me it's all the legislature could get. If true I suggest each and every member be tested as to their ability to do either well. If the majority pass, well I guess I have no argument.

I listened to the people on the street interviews. There were the usual rants about one more "civil right" being denied us. Then there were the comments by the young. It's an old folks' problem. Seems we're so electronically deficient we just aren't able to text and chew gum at the same time. We can't handle a faster paced life anymore. Sluggish reflexes, don't you know.

I've a slightly different take on it. My reflexes are just fine thank you. Much better than the person whipping out of a side street or parking lot happily chatting away and totally oblivious to the fact someone else is on the road and actually has the right of way.

I think it's more a sense of invincibility. The young are full of it; we more mature types realize with each passing day we are not. For the young this sense tends to peak around graduation time. Drinking, driving, talking, texting - they all take lives. If drinking and driving is primary why not texting and talking?? How many more youngsters would live to begin life as an adult?

Anyone who rides in a vehicle on a roadway is at risk without the added distractions of talking and texting. If you're a victim of an accident because of it I doubt you'll think the offense "secondary"!

License To Kill?

As I continue to age and facing my mortality becomes more and more common place with every ache and pain, I find myself wondering how I can expect to prolong what time I have left. The "system" has deemed us expendable. The pharmaceuticals have priced us out of needed medications. Doctors don't want us because the very safety net we rely on, Medicare, has so short changed the medical profession we are no longer profitable. Our well being is, of course, secondary.

Well, I'm not so sure I want them either. I have not missed the steroid scandal prevalent in professional sports nor drug abuse by a certain element in the world of celebrities. Where do they get their drugs of choice? From Doctors!

Now the ultimate insult. Washington state officials have reinstated the license of a doctor accused of contributing to the death of four patients, improperly medicating five more, over prescribing narcotics and other restricted drugs and ignoring evidence of addiction and drug abuse in others.

Oh, he has restrictions placed upon him. He cannot prescribe medicine and he cannot supervise physician assistants. Yet he can practice medicine? How? And why? With big brother looking over our shoulder with every step we take, why is this man allowed to continue in practice, such as it it?

Me? I think I'm ready to take my chances with big dog's vet!

Vigilanteism Cyber Style

During the days of vigilanteism in Montana it was not to be taken lightly. The participants were so effective the Sate Police honored them by having their motto emblazoned on their badge. 3-7-77 - 3 feet wide, 7 feet deep and 77 inches long - for the graves of those they hung. Swift and sure if not always just.

Let us hope we frequenters of the Internet are not following in their footsteps though it seems we may be. I wrote not long ago of the tragic results of cyber stalking and bullying done by adults to a 13 year old child. A bogus account was set up on MySpace by the parent of a teen to learn what another was "saying" about her daughter. They were even neighbors. The "creation" was a sweet talking boy friend who turned nasty and cruel. The end result for the impressionable insecure young girl was suicide. No crime, however, had been committed. I cannot disagree that a suicide comes from a variety or reasons; but this action certainly added to the child's duress.

I called for the tightening of the laws. As ugly as that story was, it seems to be getting worse.

Now self appointed avengers are after the perpetrator. According to an editorial by Barbara Shelly of the Kansas City Star, these folks have published the name, address, phone numbers and photos of the accused family. They have fled their home, their daughter is living away from them for her own safety; they've had to close their business.

Part of me wants to cheer them. The despicable behavior of that "mother" deserves something more than a pass! But not this.

It opens the door to frightening prospects. It too is cyber bullying and stalking. As the column points out they have reduced themselves to the same level. It also signals to any crack pot out there that has a grievance against any one of us they have carte blanch to go after us.

Internet regulation will come sooner than later if this escalates. The article urges parents to protect their children from "fantasy lives" by getting involved in their real one.

The same might apply to we adults too, though most of the bloggers I know also have real lives and live them quite fully. That is not necessarily protection against those "out there" who would do us harm. I reiterate it is why many of us choose near or complete anonymity.

For you state legislators who are out and about looking for fodder for upcoming sessions - enforceble laws against cyber stalking and bullying might be worthy.

A Bridge Too Far?

First, you have to understand the way the powers that be around here think. Big and glitzy is good.

This is northern Idaho. Hunting and fishing territory and more outdoor retailers than you can shake a stick at. But when Cabela's showed an interest those powers started throwing concessions at them like confetti at a parade.

Cabela's wanted it's own intersection off I-90. No problem! The final agreement was that they would build it themselves and by so doing would not have to pay sales tax to the state until they recouped the cost. The customer, of course, still pays the tax.

Wonderful. The store is about to have it's soft opening and droves are expected. There is just one small problem. The new intersection has yet to be built and a bridge that has to be utilized for access is failing. Remember Minneapolis a few months ago??

It seems, too, that the bridge is in Washington which adds another layer of bureaucracy to the process. Traffic studies predict 200 customers a day. Another bridge of the same design just three miles away failed back in 1992. Weight restrictions have been rushed into place. Those pesky motor homes are heavy, don't you know. I'm not an engineer, so how do they enforce those weight restrictions anyway??

Okay, the store opens today, Friday. The commissioners will try to keep the weight restrictions in place until the bridge is replaced in about three and a half years. Three and a half years!

It is to take approximately one and a half years to actually build; it is not slated to begin until 2010 and environmental concerns could delay it even more. Yep, all those cars from a collapse would surely pollute the river!

In all the articles I've been reading about this issue, there has been nothing about a time line for the new intersection.

How much increased stress will the bridge be able to withstand and for how long? Realistically?

Oh well, Idaho has its new Cabela's and a whole slew of new service sector jobs. Washington will get the law suits. And we put into office the folks who think these things through. Sheesh.

Idaho Hall Of Fame "*"

Some months ago Senator Larry Craig was voted into the Idaho Hall of Fame. Long before his current notoriety.

The induction ceremony is coming up. Senator Craig has not withdrawn his name nor has the organization done so for him. That's their call. I have my own.

The argument is that before any of the current flap came to light Craig had made tremendous contributions to the state of Idaho. I'll have to take their word on that. Haven't lived here long enough to know. However, to be included in a hall of fame it would seem to me character should be part of the criteria.

Here is a man called upon to immediately resign from the U.S. Senate by its leadership. He did not. When it occurred to him he might be able to reverse his guilty plea he merely hinted at an "intent" to oblige. Then he set a deadline that if reversal of his guilty plea hadn't been resolved by September 30th, he'd then resign. He did not.

The plea reversal was denied. He now tells us he will finish out his term but will not seek another. Should he be believed?

It occurs to me that this "in your face" behavior of his is payback to his senate colleagues who were so quick to throw him under the train. But he rolled out the other side. Now he's going to get them! And the people of Idaho in the process.

What was it Kahn said, in the Star Trek movie, The Wrath of Kahn? "Revenge is a dish best served cold."

How cold is it to stand next to his fellow inductees: Governor Butch Otter, Lt. Gov. Jim Risch, Boise State football coach Chris Peterson and Director of the Idaho National Lab nuclear and energy research center, John Grossenbacher? What a cold hearted affront to these men and the Hall of Fame.

I hope they put an asterisk after his name. What he has done is put Idaho on the map but certainly not in a manner in which I can take pride.

Suddenly all our friends realize it's where we live. If I get one more e-mail asking me what our stance is...

Blurred Vision

C-span and 24/7 news channels are two of the worst things that have ever happened to politics. It has long been lamented that news and entertainment have been blurred. "Personalities" as news anchors. The same has happened with our politicians.

Put a camera in the vicinity of any number of them and they are drawn like bees to honey. Take any Congressional hearing as an example. They are all so busy pontificating for the cameras little gets done.

With this comes, as with many "personalities", inflated egos and a total disregard for anyone other than self. Embarrassment and shame are no longer in their vocabularies.

My previous diatribe on his total lack of judgement aside, I wonder that Craig has no shame. He has humiliated his wife, his children and himself. He has made a mockery of his political party and his state. Yet he does not have the good grace to retire with some degree of dignity. Ego.

It isn't just Larry Craig. It's the David Vitters, Rudy Giulianis, Ted Stevens, William Jeffersons and yes, Ted Kennedy from decades ago and Bill Clinton for their "in your face" behavior with full expectation of a pass. Far too often they get one.

Celebrities have gotten away with it for years. Politicians as celebrity now seem to have joined the ranks of the immune.

Well, I'm not immune to it; I'm sick of it. Also, with a new lens in my eye my vision is no longer blurred. I can only hope the same is true for the rest of Idaho voters if this man chooses to further embarrass us by seeking re-election. If not, shame and embarrassment will be front and center in my vocabulary.

Which Larry Will We See Tonight?

"I am not gay; I have never been gay." Okay, that makes it easier on your wife and kids.

"And the people of Idaho deserve a senator who can devote 100 percent of his time and effort to the critical issues of our state and of our nation." That should be a comfort to we citizens. What happened to that thought?

I understand Larry Craig wanting to clear his name if in fact he did nothing wrong. I do not want him as one of my Senators while he is trying to do so.

The recorded police interview that we have been subjected to ad nasuem is not the sum total of the evidence. The written report is far more detailed - and damning.

What is most troublesome, however, was the information revealed by Jeffrey Toobin, the CNN legal guru, on Anderson Cooper last evening. The incident occurred on June 6. The plea was a form to be signed and mailed in. It was. Dated August 1. That's six weeks in which Craig could have consulted all the legal consul necessary. Attorney client privilege would have kept it quiet.

He chose not to. I do not care about the reason. I do care about his ability to reason and vote for the best interests of the citizens of Idaho. The shadow has been cast. It will not go away. Many of his colleagues will bear a grudge for his latest actions. Should he remain in the Senate he will be marginalized. That is not in our best interest.

You signed a form stating your guilt. Why is anyone's guess. Reverse it if you can. But honor your intent to resign. If you do not it will be my dollar that's paying your salary and my dollar thats picking up your perks and benefits while you play "I'll show them!"

I resent that.

Judgement Call

Should Larry Craig run for re-election? No. Should he resign his seat in the Senate? Yes. It has nothing to do with whether he is gay or not. It has nothing to do with his being a hypocrite. If we used that as a basis for ousting legislators we'd have none.

It has to do with judgement. I am quite tired of the "Oh woe is me, I've shamed myself, my family, my state. Please, please forgive me though I've really done nothing wrong. It's just a huge misunderstanding!" Please.

If you truly were not soliciting sex yet accepted a fine and a suspended jail sentence without advice from counsel and don't consider that poor judgement, it's just plain stupid.

If the police report is accurate, it appears to me you're sorry because you had a lapse in judgement and got caught. Pure and simple. Otherwise you'd not have been engaging in the activity in the first place. Because of that you have no business legislating how others should live their lives. Actually, you've no longer that right.

Have you ever really looked at the expressions on the faces of the wives who stand, trying to maintain some sense of dignity, by their side? Those faces tell it all.

We have three openly gay members of Congress. Two Democrats and one Republican. They cover a cross section of states with varying attitudes: Massachusetts, Wisconsin and Arizona.

They were placed in office by an informed electorate. They didn't have to lie or obfuscate. Those who do ought to keep their arrogance and egos in check; keep their personal lives just that - personal. And behind closed doors. Not in public venues. We shouldn't have to explain it to them! If they were savvy enough to get elected, they should be savvy enough to handle their personal behavior!

There is a line from La Cage aux Folles,"Life's not worth a dam till you can shout out I am what I am." Will we see the day when a man or a woman can shout that line without fear or repercussion? That their lust for power or fame or whatever drives them isn't determined by their personal preferences or inclinations? Or indeed, how they were born?

Perhaps. But to reap the rewards of position they bear the responsibility of maintaining their own dignity and privacy and decency. Then, perhaps, we'll be more inclined judge them on their abilities alone.

We deserve no less.

We Actually Elect These Guys

Idaho - one of two states where dog fighting is not a felony. Of course the Vick case has brought it to the fore.

The effort had been made before but our local legislator from a couple of miles up 95, Athol, squelched it. His reason was concern about overloading our prisons by creating another felony. This from a man who hadn't paid his federal taxes for 7 years when elected to our state house because he didn't think the feds had a constitutional right to collect them. Right. Do these folks give any thought to what they say?
If there are so many people involved in dog fighting that it would over crowd our prisons, should it not indeed be a felony?

There is another aspect to this issue that hasn't been getting a lot of play but that we ought not forget; the number of child molesters who have a history of animal cruelty. Some thirty percent. I popped my zip code into a state registry and find we have 29. Athol has 10. This is not the county nor the state - just my zip code and Athol. It may not seem like a lot but it is a statistic worth pondering; a statistic that is known.

This is in a rural area where the dirt roads lead to shanties with junkers covered in camouflage and sporting the stars and bars; where black helicopters fly and one is told to "pack" if you're going deep into the woods looking for huckleberries.

You think there just might be some dog fighting back in there?

Oh, yeah. About those over crowded jails. A local handy man is serving fourteen days for violating the open container law - a walking violation; not driving. Fourteen days!

Remember, We Elected Them!

Whew! I had expected the week between Christmas and New Years to be slim pickings on the local news front, but boy! Newly elected officials haven't even taken office yet and they're proving already that they have utter contempt for those who elected them. And the ones leaving office are still playing the blame game and pouting as they head for the exit. If I didn't live here I'd be laughing. It's like an ongoing soap opera. Unfortunately, I do live here.

First we have the flap over our Governor elect Otter's oath of office that the AP broke. He is refusing to allow the public or media to attend his swearing in ceremony which, by law, must be held the first Monday of January. New Years Day.

"It's not trying to be exclusive. It's not trying to rope anybody out," said Jon Hanian, a spokesman for Otter. "That's just the way he wants it and that's the way it's going to be."

I suppose allowing at least the Press to witness the official swearing in might make his Otterness late for the flight that will take him to Phoenix to watch Boise State play in the Fiesta Bowl. Of course football is far more important than the official assumption of office.

Red flag? You bet. If this is an indication of how the state is going to be run, watch for open meeting violations, a thumb of the nose to public tradition and questionable priorities.

Then there is the changing of the guard among our county commissioners. Ill will runs so deep here that the two commissioners who were defeated have refused the customary help to their replacements during the transition. A new commissioner is taking swipes at the remaining incumbent and none of them share the same priorities.

This should make for a smooth running county. But then, what's new?

Two commissioners are leaving office. Mr. Johnson is still licking his wounds and Ms. Brodie is taking the executive director's job with Concerned Businesses of North Idaho - an organization she was at odds with during her tenure as commissioner. This too should be interesting.

And last, but not necessarily least, our Prosecutor is smacking the knuckles of the Lake City Development Corporation for violation of open meeting laws. It will probably have as much effect as the hiatus with pay he has his deputy on for having circulated sexually explicit e-mails around various county offices.

If I had the time I'd try to script this and present it to our local access television station. It has to be better than city council meetings.