A couple of stories in the New York Times caught my eye this weekend, when I wasn’t grading some final papers for the year. One story highlights the impact of the recession on poor African-American families, focusing on Memphis:
Not so long ago, Memphis, a city where a majority of the residents are black, was a symbol of a South where racial history no longer tightly constrained the choices of a rising black working and middle class. Now this city epitomizes something more grim: How rising unemployment and growing foreclosures in the recession have combined to destroy black wealth and income and erase two decades of slow progress.
The second is an incredibly tone deaf piece about the plight of incredibly wealthy parents to teach work ethic to their children:
“As a parent who has worked his whole life and has had a little bit of success in my career, one of the huge life lessons I learned early on is the value of a dollar,” said Mr. Hayworth, whose bank is based in Coral Gables, Fla. “Particularly for children of upper-middle-class and affluent families, there’s no perspective on value. When the new Range Rover pulls into the driveway, there’s no concept of how many hours of hard work went into owning that vehicle.”
But the fact that she does not have to work is exactly what worries Mr. Hayworth and many other affluent parents. The recession and tight job market have made it imperative to teach their children the value of work. They worry about that, it seems, more than about any short-term swings in their portfolios.
Oh, the never ending struggle of the wealthy.
On the heels of Brad Johnson’s arrest news, some more bad news for the candidate for the District 5 PSC seat: he hasn’t raised any money:
Bill Gallagher, a Helena attorney running in Western Montana’s District 5, reported Thursday that he’s raised $13,800 in campaign funds through Sunday, including $7,000 of his own money.
That’s almost seven times the amount raised by his Republican primary opponent, former Montana Secretary of State Brad Johnson, who had garnered only $2,100 in campaign funds, including $1,500 from his own pocket.
While it’s fair to say that no one is raising a ton of money for these primaries, Johnson’s case seems exceptional. He’s a former statewide officeholder for the GOP, the kind of person you’d expect to be able to raise at least a little coin.
Of course, looking at Johnson’s web site might have led prospective donors to reconsider.
Do Montana Republican politicians not understand the relationship between alcohol and intoxication? From the Billings Gazette, we learn that another Republican has some issues with alcohol:
Brad Johnson, a former Montana secretary of state and a Republican candidate for Public Service Commission in District 5, has been charged with drunken driving after he was stopped last week on U.S. Highway 12 east of Helena.
The most amazing part of the story isn’t that Johnson wasn’t in a boat or even that his BAC was three times the legal limit; it’s that he doesn’t seem to believe that he did anything wrong:
Johnson, 59, said he’s convinced he was not in violation of Montana’s DUI law, although a breathalyzer test showed his blood-alcohol content at 0.24 percent – three times the legal limit for drunken driving.
"The thing that has really come out of this experience for me is, that I think it’s incredibly stupid to have so much as a sip of alcohol and get behind the wheel," he said. "I’ll never let it happen again."
A sip? By most definitions, a sip doesn’t mean 12-15 beers or other drinks. This isn’t a joking matter—assuming the allegations are true, Johnson endangered lives, and lacks the judgment to be elected to office.
At what point does party that claims to represent law and order actually start to follow it?
Last month, I sent out a questionnaire about domestic issues to each of the Democratic candidates running to unseat Representative Rehberg. While I did receive a full set of responses from the Gernant campaign, I did not get a response from Melinda Gopher or Dennis McDonald. Sam Rankin did call, and told me that he had made a pledge not to speak until after the primary.
I’d like to thank Tyler Gernant and his campaign for their responses, which are posted below.
1. As a teacher, one of my primary concerns is the federal role in public education. How would you change the federal role in public education, specifically No Child Left Behind? Do you support the new Race to the Top Initiative?
As the son of a high school math teacher, public education has played a central role in my life. Over the course of the last ten years, the federal government has played an increasingly dangerous role in our public education system. Starting with the No Child Left Behind Act, local control is being replaced with federal mandates. While the Race to the Top Initiative has some positive aspects in terms of rewarding innovation and achievement in schools, I fear that it is another "top down" approach to education, placing power over local education in the hands of the federal government. We need to re-address the federal government’s role in education. Our nation needs, and benefits, from having the best public education system in the world. Our national economy, our security and our future depends on it. However, local communities, school administrators, teachers and parents are the best judge of what works best in local schools. Too often now, our teachers must "teach to the test" so students and schools meet No Child Left Behind standardized test scores. This model prevents local schools and teachers from using their own innovations and creativity. We need to help our children develop a life-long interest in learning. What’s needed is federal support of education with local control. Our communities must be trusted — and can be trusted — to provide the best education for local children.
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Dennis is back at it again, demagoguing an issue to appeal to Mark French
voters and the squirt gun brigade at the Liberty Convection. The imaginary issue he’s tackling this time? Social Security benefits for illegal aliens. From Rehberg’s press release:
“It’s no wonder this country has a serious problem with illegal immigration,” said Rehberg, the co-chairman of the House Northern Border Caucus. “As long as we’re rewarding people for breaking the law by letting them count income earned through illegal work toward future Social Security benefits, people are going to keep coming. On the one hand, we’re telling foreigners not to risk their lives attempting sometimes deadly border crossings, and on the other hand we’re giving them a check when they get here. Talk about sending the wrong message.”
I’m pretty sure that Representative Rehberg doesn’t understand how Social Security works. It’s not quite like being a gentleman goat farmer—the checks for Social Security don’t come immediately. Somehow, I doubt the Social Security officials are waiting at the border to hand out checks or that most aliens come here for the allure of Social Security benefits in 40 years.
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How much attention should the media and political establishment keep paying the far right fringe in this country? Despite cries of liberal media bias, every little “rally” of 20 or so people at the Capital seems to get front page attention and every pronouncement by self-appointed spokesmen for right wing makes its way into the news.
It’s a tough call. On one hand, these groups are clearly more attention than they deserve. The much ballyhooed Liberty Convention in Missoula this weekend, which claimed to be preparing for 5000 attendees came up a little short:
The two-day gathering in Missoula was predicted to bring 5,000 attendees of Tea Party-affiliated conservative groups, according to Ravalli County organizer Mona Docteur. The Friday night and Saturday morning sessions each had about 5 percent of that goal.
I know the rhetoric is exciting. It’s exciting to hear speakers talk about “Karl Marx Republicans” and and compare the current political climate to Romanian soldiers killing Ceauşescu and the Vigilantes killing Henry Plummer.
But as amusing as they may be, it might be time to stop giving them so much attention. There were no doubt more people at the Missoula Target Saturday than attended the Liberty Conference; it’s time to adjust the coverage accordingly.
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