Sunday, August 30, 2009

Told you so.

A couple of days ago, I wrote about the latest in Republican scare tactics on health insurance reform - namely a fundraising solicitation by the Republican National Committee. In said fundraising piece, phrased as a survey, the RNC states that under the Democratic plan for health insurance reform:
GOP voters might be discriminated against for medical treatment in a Democrat-imposed health-care rationing system.

Today, the AP has ahold of it, and the RNC's answers are less than forthcoming. In fact, they're downright shady. Go read it for yourself. I'd quote from it, but the AP hasn't quite adjusted to the world of blogs, and they get grumpy about quoting their content. (I promised JMac I'd try not to get us sued this week.)

Anyway, this is important. The distortions (and that's putting it politely) being spewed out about health insurance reform are well-established (death panels, anyone?), but usually they're limited to random crazies at town halls, or television talking heads like Rush, Hannity, or Glenn Beck.

Now however, you have a lie that can be instantly proven false, being pushed by a much more credible source - the Republican National Committee - i.e. the national Republican Party.

Is this a sign of desperation? Or is Michael Steele truly just that insane? In any event, the RNC has been politicizing this event from day one - it's all they've got. Remember, these are the same guys who brought you a budget with no actual numbers in it.

Now they're bringing you health care pushback with no real truth to it.

The read

From my Sunday column in the Athens Banner-Herald ...

Likewise, it's why the argument that private developers should do more to provide affordable housing for those displaced by gentrification can't be rationalized using basic economic principles.

Offering quality affordable housing means offering below-market rents to low-income individuals. Unfortunately, there's no profit motivation behind that proposition, meaning such efforts are almost completely nonexistent in the private sector. In fact, it's why we have public entities and nonprofit organizations such as the Athens Land Trust, the Athens Housing Authority and Habitat For Humanity, among others, working to fill this gap.

Profit potential drives investment decisions, and the market offers no incentive to minimize displacement or offer affordable housing options.

And while a pair of recent studies from Lance Freeman, an assistant professor of urban planning at Columbia University, and Jacob Vigdor, a professor of economics at Duke University, have suggested displacement from gentrification is statistically overstated, the financial pressures put on low-income individuals in these areas remain very real.

It can be argued, then, that gentrification is less the result of the private market functioning as it theoretically should, and more the result of inaction in the public sector. If there is little economic incentive for the private market to alleviate the burdens that come as a result of redevelopment, then that incentive must be created through public policy or, in some cases, fostered through regulation.

Friday, August 28, 2009

On 50-year-old houses

Athens-Clarke County District 10 Commissioner Mike Hamby said, contrary to published reports, a proposal to grant an individual commissioner the ability to block the demolition of any building in Athens-Clarke County that is more than 50 years old is not on the table.

The proposed demolition delay ordinance, though, would let any individual commissioner temporarily stop the owner of a structure that is more than 50 years old, listed on the National Historic Register or is on a future list of historic buildings from tearing it down, regardless of whether the building is in a local historic district.

According to Hamby, the Legislative Review Committee, of which he serves as chairman, is not considering any measure that would permit a commissioner to block the demolition of any structure that is more than 50 years old. He said the idea was briefly discussed at the reported meeting, but dismissed by a majority of those present as not viable.

As a result, the focus of the historic preservation efforts would be beefing up protections for buildings located in nationally designated historic districts or are part of the National Historic Register. In addition, various options are being explored to identify various buildings in the community that might warrant protection but are not listed in either of those registries.

As an example, Hamby said there is an old school house located at or near the Athens-Clarke County landfill. It is not located in either a local or national historic district, but might be a structure the Historic Preservation Committee would be interested in cataloging and protecting. In addition, he said it would not be a large group of structures that would be targeted ...

There would be a very small group of buildings and structures that would fit into these guidelines, and it probably would be determined by the (Historic Preservation Committee). This isn't about blocking a demolition in Cedar Creek or Forest Heights.

A local historic district designation grants the Athens-Clarke County Commission the right to approve or deny demolitions, relocations or significant renovative work for structures in that targeted area. The national historic districts lack the same protection, which is a primary reason why there is a moratorium on demolition along Milledge Avenue as that area is currently in the process of earning a local historic district designation.

Berry challenges account

Regarding the jail, Sheriff Scott Berry comments on the article and accuses Blake of misquoting him ...

I spoke to the author of this article at length, and I am sure he missed something in his notes. It is incorrect to say that we "never" housed Clarke Co inmates. Both Sheriff Edwards and I know that is not true. We have housed inmates back and forth for 17 years. I told the reporter that we had in fact housed small numbers of CC inmates both before our new jail was built, and after. We have been ordered by Judges to house CC inmates when there was a need to do so as well. It is not unusual at all for Sheriffs to house inmates in another jail on a short term, no contract basis. We have done the same for Morgan and Greene as well. When a Sheriff contracts to house inmates, generally speaking the contract provides that the receiving Sheriff will guarantee a certain number of beds to the sending Sheriff. That is what we have done for Fulton County.

That's an interesting take

Blake's article on the jail is one of the best reports on it that I've seen in a long time ... primarily because it finally starts calling out Athens-Clarke County Sheriff Ira Edwards for not utilizing its neighbors in housing prisoners.

Give it a read.

And, regarding this point ...

Although Ocilla is a four-hour drive from Athens, local lawyers have not complained that their clients are missing court dates or being late because of the distance, (Athens-Clarke County District Two Commissioner Harry) Sims said.

Local attorney Bill Overend, a much-rumored candidate for Athens-Clarke County Comission District Seven (should current commissioner Kathy Hoard opt to step down at the end of her term), told me he had some disagreements with some parts of that assessment.

Overend said the primary complaint among many local attorneys is that the distance between Ocilla and Athens-Clarke County results in limited access to clients who may be housed in the Irwin County facility. A one-hour visit with a client who is housed in Irwin County automatically becomes an all-day investment, thus hindering the ability of attorneys to do work on other cases.

(At Overend's request, the original post has been amended to incorporate his fuller thoughts on the subject.)

Just a heads up

We've got a morning full of meetings - and a delay due to Blogger and Gmail problems - but there's also a full plate of stuff worth diving into today ranging from the North Oconee principal fiasco, the jail situation and the proposed historic preservation ordinance.

Glad we could clear that up

Words of wisdom this morning from the Twitter feed of John Oxendine:
Oxism #1: What a person has done in the past is an indicator of what they will do in the future.

So, one presumes that, if elected Governor, John Oxendine will:
Cool. Glad we could clear that up.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

More on health care, or perhaps "morons on health care"

Two quick things of note, for those of us who can't get enough of health insurance reform:

This is an actual question from an actual survey (read fundraising solicitation) sent out by the actual chairman of the actual Republican National Committee.

I don't know which depresses me more, the fact that the whizkids at the RNC actually think people will fall for this, or that fact that, at least as far as their base is concerned, they're right.

Hello, new meme.

And this is an actual quote, from an actual United States Senator, who was actually elected by people to actually represent them, and actually gets to vote on health care:

"I don't have to read it, or know what's in it. I'm going to oppose it anyways."

-- Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), quoted by the Express-Star, on the health care reform bill.


There you go. There you have it. The entire Republican anti-health insurance reform strategy.

Stupid Republican survey via Wonkette, stupid Republican quote via Political Wire.

Newspapers behaving badly.


I don't like Mark Penn. Neither do a lot of other people, especially Hillary Clinton supporters. Penn, if you don't recall, was Hillary's "Chief Strategist" during the 2008 campaign, and was responsible for pursuing a strategy that was fundamentally flawed, and could've in fact cost her the nomination. This, it should be noted, is not a gray area, or post-election Monday-morning quarterbacking. Mark Penn's caucus/primary strategy was predicated on states' convention votes being winner-take-all (like the electoral college), rather than proportionally divided. (I.e., if Obama gets 60% of a state's primary vote, and Clinton gets 40%, then Obama would get approximately 60% of the delegation's votes at the convention, and Clinton would get approximately 40%.) This is not arcane knowledge.

So I don't like Mark Penn. But he's done well for himself, landing a column in the Wall Street Journal, based on his book, Microtrends. And, he's still got his gig as a muckety-muck at one of the largest PR firms in the world.

And this is what happens when those two worlds collide in spectacular fashion. Let's refer to Gawker.com, shall we?
Mark Penn's latest (old, and none too insightful) 'Microtrend' column is about "glamping"—glamorous camping. It ran last weekend. By Monday, according to an internal email obtained by Gawker, Burson was already trying to recruit companies from the industry featured in the column as clients. Burson Executive Vice President (and former Bill Clinton speechwriter) Josh Gottheimer urged Burson's senior staff—including Founding Chairman Harold Burson, US President & CEO Patrick Ford, and others, to use Penn's column as a tool to approach clients in the camping industry about business. Not only that—he recommends that Mark Penn "send a note" to the CEO of these potential clients requesting a meeting.

That is (or should be) a no-no. A lot of people don't trust the news media anyway, and this doesn't exactly help the situation. The fault doesn't fall completely on Penn. Sure, he wrote the column, and one presumes that with his vast experience, he understands the difference between shilling and commentating. In any event, by accepting the offer to write, and presumably be paid for that writing, for the WSJ, he is agreeing to hold himself to the same standard that any reporter or commentator would be held to.

No, the lion's share of the fault lies with the WSJ. The journalistically responsible thing for the WSJ's editors to do would be to fire, or at least suspend, Penn for this. But that's not what they did. Again, Gawker:
Today, WSJ spokesman Robert Christie explained the results of the paper's thorough investigation like so: "Mark has assured us that through our conversations that he's complied with his conflict of interest policy. He does not have any glamping clients nor did they target them before the column appeared."

Unacceptable. As Gawker points out:
This was the Wall Street Journal's first real test of journalism ethics under Rupert Murdoch's ownership. And, surprisingly, they've ... failed, big time. [FYI, I took out a curse where that ellipsis is. -ed.]

Amen. Anyway, I'm not a professional journalist, but mine host here at the Trestle is, and perhaps he'll weigh in later.



News to us

According to Fresh Loaf, Rep. Keith Heard is running for Insurance Commissioner ...

This time out, (Mary) Squires is much better positioned to make it through next June’s primary. For starters, she has only one declared opponent so far, state Rep. Keith Heard, D-Athens. And, unlike several of the Republicans going for the job, she’s an insurance industry veteran, serving as executive director of the Georgia Society of Professional Benefit Administrators, a trade and lobbying organization. (Heard, too, it should be noted, has worked in insurance.)

Heard has been rumored to be interested in the Insurance Commissioner's post, but there's been no concrete announcement yet. This campaign site lists him as a candidate as well, but there's been nothing locally to report of.

Credit where credit is due

If you're not reading Left on Lanier, you should be. It's a good local progressive political blog, covering events in the Hall County area.

So, the fellas up there have a little story on their hands about Rep. Nathan "Sweetheart" Deal. Seems that Deal has been caught red-handed by the AJC using his influence to make his own business thrive. As the good folks at Left on Lanier point out, the story broke on Saturday, August 22, and since then, it's been covered by the AJC, Creative Loafing, and even the Duluth Weekly. But the two major news outlets up there, the Gainesville Times and Access North GA didn't use a drop of ink (digital or otherwise) on it until yesterday.

To me, this is part of what citizen journalism ought to be about - holding your journalists accountable. Left on Lanier did just that, in spades. They contacted the Times, and posted both their original email and the (somewhat shady) response from the newspaper.

Once the story got some semblence of coverage, the fellas at LoL (sorry, I know), are doing exactly what they should do - being highly skeptical about the tone. Looks like the Congressman's hometown news orgs are giving him a pass.

One thing that the fellas were perhaps too polite to mention, but I will. According to multiple newspaper citations, Harris Blackwood, until very recently the political reporter for the Times, is Deal's spokesman. As the church lady would say, "how conveeeeeeeeenient!"

Stop digging ... please

Via Dan, John Osborne's reader comment at the Athens Banner-Herald web site which, for all we know, might have sealed the deal regarding his placement on leave from the school system.

In which the new guy addresses Marine drill sergeants and gives credit where credit is due.

Two small items from yesterday that made me happy:

No major malfunction here, Drill Sergeant!

Maybe you've heard of R. Lee Ermey, or as he calls himself, the "Gunny." Chances are, even if you don't know the name, you know the face, the voice, and his star turn as Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in "Full Metal Jacket." (I tried to find a scene to quote or embed from YouTube, but I don't think JMac would appreciate me turning his blog into an NC-17 zone.)

Anyhoo, Ermey, a former Marine, has made quite a career for himself playing loudmouthed, hard@ss authority figures, and, in recent years, actually playing himself as host of "Mail Call" and "Lock and Load" on the History Channel. This a guy who, on a daily basis, glorifies the American military. One presumes that Ermey would be about as right-wing as they come.

So, I was pleasantly surprised, since the Gunny is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me (what can I say, he's charismatic), to find out that he's on the record and thoroughly unwilling to take any guff from the birthers. Here's what he had to say.
"I haven't heard about those guys [US soldiers refusing to deploy because they question the President's citizenship]. If I do run across them though, trust me, I'll square them away."

The Gunny also had a few kind words for the man in the Oval:
"I think our president is doing a commendable job. … We're continuing to take care of the terrorist situation."

Nice to defy stereotypes sometimes, isn't it?

[HT: @JoshLanier, story here]

The Governator and the garage sale:

Credit where credit is due, right? And California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger deserves some. Seems that the state of California is addressing some of its budgetary woes by having a garage sale. (Also ebay and Cragislist.)

Now, let's be fair, this is about PR far more than it's about actually bringing in enough revenue to even partially mitigate California's budget problems. But sometimes, a little PR is a good thing. This sends a message to Arnold's constituents - at least he's doing something. And it gives him another way to poke back at his (often Republican) political adversaries who have checked some of his more progressive budget reforms over the years.

Local angle: We oughta do this in Athens. Again, not for revenue, or even for PR. Just for the comic relief.

Obvious questions

Um, Fulton County? But not Athens-Clarke County?

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

If you don't mind

If you have a moment, go vote for my buddy C. Trent in the Cincinnati Innovation contest.

CREW takes on Deal

Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington has filed a complaint against Rep. Nathan Deal, who also just happens to be running for governor.

From the press release ...

Today, CREW filed a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics against Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA) for violating House rules and federal law by intervening with Georgia political leaders to preserve a program that financially benefits him.

This past weekend, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Rep. Deal, along with his business partner Ken Cronan, owns a lucrative business, Recovery Services, Inc., that - through a no-bid contract - provides inspection stations to the state for the inspection of salvaged vehicles. The business earned $1.4 million between 2004-2008 and Rep. Deal personally took home $150,000 a year.

In 2008, Georgia Revenue Commissioner Bart Graham took over responsibility for the inspection system and found the operational costs and locations of the inspection stations to be too costly and restrictive for the state of Georgia and its residents. Comm. Graham decided the best course of action was to reform the system and award contracts through a competitive bidding process.

Rep. Deal and his staff, with assistance from Georgia Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, then arranged meetings with Comm. Graham at which Rep. Deal and his chief of staff were present, to persuade him to reconsider his decisions, including the proposed elimination of $1.7 million that has been allocated for the program. After Comm. Graham's plan was passed by the Georgia House, Rep. Deal's chief of staff used
his House email to contact Georgia state officials to ensure the state Senate did not pass the cut in the program. The money for the program was eventually kept in the budget.

Rep. Deal may have committed a federal crime by using his position and congressional resources to engage in self-dealing, thereby depriving his constituents of his honest services. By using congressional resources, including House computers and staff time to pursue his business interests, he violated the federal law and House ethics rule requiring taxpayer funds be applied only to official business. By using his position to force Comm. Graham to meet with him and his chief of staff to discuss his personal business, and by contacting other Georgia politicians to influence a vote on a state budget matter, Rep. Deal violated the House rule prohibiting members from using their positions to obtain financial benefit. Finally, Rep. Deal's course of conduct violates the House rule requiring members to act in a manner that reflects creditably on the House.

Couple of things

- The Liberal Lion passes on. Well done good sir.

- Arguably, the Athens YWCO site is more feasible, but the fact that it would, you know, cost money ought to rule it out. If that site is purchased, then the proposed tennis center would have to return to the list of voter-approved SPLOST projects for its next round as there currently is only enough funds to cover either the acquistion of property or the construction of the facility, not both. As a result, I say go for the Southeast Clarke Park.

- Also, that said, despite Blake's best attempts to provide some measure of education to how the SPLOST project works, the commenters at the Athens Banner-Herald are absolutely convinced there's a way this thing can be nixed ... which, of course, it can't.

- Creative Loafing is going corporate thanks to its acquistion by Atalaya Capital Management in yesterday's auction. The alternative newspaper chain, which has six papers across the country, has been in bankruptcy for roughly a year. The Atlanta Creative Loafing won't move as had scheduled, and, as of now, no layoffs are expected.

The read

From my mid-week column in the Athens Banner-Herald ...

That's why it's especially distressing to see that states such as Georgia, with the highest number of uninsured folks, are also the ones that have the highest percentages of people who believe the lies circulating regarding the proposed reforms.

While there are ample reasons for this frustrating reality, one that can't be ignored is Georgia's obvious lack of responsible elected leadership at both the federal and state levels. There are too few who dare to challenge the status quo, and too many who are willing to hide behind scurrilous attacks in the name of personal political preservation.

This isn't a new, policy-specific problem. State politicians have a rich history of systematically ignoring the plight of those in poverty, while showering attention on the well-connected.

More than 1.3 million Georgians, or a little more than 14 percent of the state's population, live below the federal poverty line, and almost 20 percent of Georgia's children live in poverty. More than 21,000 people are homeless in Georgia. Additionally, Georgia has the second-highest number of homeless children in the nation, according to a study by The National Center on Family Homelessness.

According to the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, 10,268 families are currently on the state's Temporary Assistance for Needy Families child-care support waiting list, primarily because the state allocates less than 10 percent of its available federal money to fund the program. That paltry total puts Georgia in the bottom quarter nationally in terms of funding support.

Yet, despite disparities like these, the state seems to be sitting on its hands.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Good idea, flawed concepts

This is an interesting idea, to say the least, and I'll give the Athens-Clarke County Commission ample credit for trying to get ahead of the curve here.

All that said, I think it's got some apparent flaws based on this reporting.

For instance, I'm not entirely supportive of the concept of granting a singular commissioner the right to delay a demolition. I understand the rationale for doing so - that it will provide a quick means to protect a demolition - but I think it consolidates too much influence into one commissioner's hands.

In addition, I think this general concept is flawed ...

Otherwise, when a landowner applied for a demolition permit, planners would look up whether the building qualifies as historic. If so, they would notify commissioners. If none of them flagged the property, the demolition could move forward; but if a commissioner objected, a permit would not be issued for 60 days.

The delay would give county officials, and possibly historic preservation activists, time to find an alternative, such as a buyer who would rehabilitate the building. The commission also could unilaterally designate the building as historic and prevent the demolition, even if the owner objected.


This is after-the-fact legislating, and I'd rather see the comprehensive audit that will be conducted of the older structures in the community utilized as a proactive planning tool by giving officials an up-to-date database of buildings that are deemed historic. From there, the commission will have ample data to be able to set up more stringent guidelines, or outright bans, regarding demolitions on those districts as a whole.

The key would be having this information prior to any potential demolition. It seems to me that if this information is available and made public, that will inform potential buyers about what the community expects them to be able to do or not to do with a particular property.

The concept of coming in after a sale and then declaring a property untouchable, however, is problematic because it punishes the buyer for something he/she wasn't aware of anyway. If the property wasn't deemed historic, but then achieves that status after its acquisition by another party, that sets up the potential to put the buyer at a significant disadvantage (and, unless a comprehensive inventory of properties is conducted, could bring the business of in-fill development to a screeching halt).

From the annals of bad ideas

Wow.

Not saying I won't give it a try though ...

An Oak Grove Primer

The ongoing attempts to bring an additional grocery store to the westside of Athens-Clarke County appear to be reaching an end with the rezoning request from Oak Grove slated to be approved at an upcoming meeting of the Athens-Clarke County Commission meeting. This project, a controversial one given its deviation from the original village concept promoted by the development's original builders and its location in the community's 'Greenbelt' region, has been twice been reviewed by local staff, approved and denied by the Athens-Clarke County Planning Commission and been the subject of serious negotiations between commissioners and the project's builders.

It's been a rather confusing journey, so consider this a brief primer on the process.

At its May 7 meeting, the Athens-Clarke County Planning Commission voted 4-3 in favor of Oak Grove to recommend approval to the rezoning and amendments to the Future Development Plan. This vote was on the proposal from the Oak Grove developers as is, with some conditions as noted by Athens-Clarke County planning staff.

The rezoning request was tabled by the Athens-Clarke County Commission in its June meeting, leading Mayor Heidi Davison and other commissioners to enter into negotiations with the developers to find a suitable compromise, particularly given the hesitancy of many on the commission with the proposal.

The initial plans for Oak Grove, when it was first pitched to the community, called for a pedestrian-friendly community center to serve as the neighborhood's anchor.

The original developer, however, has left the Oak Grove project and a new builder, Jon Williams, has served as the principal agent since then. The community center morphed into a standard strip mall anchored by a grocery store (Publix is the name bantered around in most of these discussions). The negotiations yielded a better result including more preserved greenspace, a reduction in drive-throughs, less parking and additional tree buffers (to name a few things).

Understandably, though, it remains sort of a mixed bag given its location in the 'Greenbelt' area of the community and its still heavy reliance on vehicular traffic rather than pedestrian traffic. Over at Flagpole, Ben offered some valid criticism that centered on the premise of Oak Grove, and not necessarily the project itself ...

The thing is, the location was precisely the problem back in 2000, when citizens rose up en masse to oppose the Jefferson Road development that was contrary to the new land-use plan then in the works. The concern is no less relevant now, even if our commissioners are hearing more (a lot more) from westsiders desirous of a grocery store than from the smart-growth advocates who elected them all. The irony is that the present Commission most likely wouldn’t have approved the original planned development for Oak Grove in 2000, and absolutely wouldn’t have approved the partial rezone to Commercial-Neighborhood in 2004. Now commissioners feel stuck, like they have to grant the developers’ requests because of what came before. But why not see Oak Grove for what it is? The present owners’ purchase was a bad investment in a community that values its greenbelt. And in Athens, at least, bad investments don’t deserve bailouts.

Still, the compromise was considerably better than the initial proposal, and Ben even conceded the project would be approved easily in the July meeting. And while the commission had the project before them on the table and was gearing up for a vote, Athens-Clarke County staff intervened and suggested the compromise be returned to them for additional technical review.

While not an unreasonable request on its surface, it was one that came roughly at the 11th hour, meaning the additional review by staff and the Planning Commission would result in more delays on the project.

And it was something that Athens-Clarke County District 10 Commissioner Mike Hamby registered his displeasure with ...

After we made the motion last time with a set of different changes, we sent it back to staff for review, and I was mistaken in thinking that a review meant a review. I guess I'll learn my lesson now. I am bothered because we spent four meetings on this - and at least two to three hours per meeting - meeting with the residents of Oak Grove, and this concern is brought up now? Right before this meeting? It would have been nice to know this at the first meeting ... Whichever way you come down on this, I just think we need to treat them fairly, and by doing this, I just don't think we're treating them fairly.

Considering the Planning Commission had previously recommended approval for a less-than-desirable, the compromise's passage seemed certain, right?

Well, not so much.

Just three months later after recommending approval, the Planning Commission voted 3-2 for denial.

Those who opposed the initial version of the project held rank in the August meeting when the more community friendly compromise made its way back to them, only this time they were buoyed by poor attendence. Jonathan Biron and Bradd Stuart voted against the development in both instances, with Steve Martin opposing it on May 7 and Lucy Rowland taking his place on August 6. Martin was absent from the August meeting, while Rowland was serving as the non-voting chair for the May meeting.

Biron's opposition to the project was recorded in the May minutes ...

There is an amenity for people who live in this area, but I want Athens to be a beacon for the whole state. By copying things that exist in so many places, I don't think it is. I want Athens to be better than everywhere is. This is an improvement. We've asked them to meet the standard conditions and I'm glad the development team has done what we asked them to do. I've been remiss in not requiring much more from the beginning, saying that meeting that kind of standard is going to be enough, because in the end I don't think it is enough for me.

In the summary for the August meeting attached to the Planning Commission's recommendation to the Athens-Clarke County Commission, Biron's position was unchanged ...

Mr. Biron stated that this is an improvement, but not incredibly different than the last plan. The overall nature of it is not substantially better. The lighting for this is crucial.

Scott Weinberg and Gene Sapp, who both supported the rezoning request at the May meeting, were absent from the August meeting, thus tipping the scales in favoring of those opposed to the project. Weinberg offered these thoughts at the May meeting ...

I think it's what we asked for. I think they've done everything we asked for. I'm going to vote for it. I hope you guys will realize that this is not going to save Athens; this is not going to destroy Athens; it's going to make the Oak Grove neighborhood what it was supposed to be in the first place - a neighborhood. It's also going to help a lot of people who live in the area.

It should be noted that, in both instances, planning staff recommended approving the rezoning with conditions. And, given that the Future Development Plan was modified by the Athens-Clarke County by a 9-1 vote (with District Six Commissioner Ed Robinson dissenting), the project, after its long procedural journey, appears headed for approval.

But, then again, we thought that just a month or so ago.

Couple of things

- I don't really get this. It just seems like a cop-out after losing a couple of games to your cross-town rival.

- Jim Luken has been a strong mayor for Watkinsville, and the community is arguably better off after his service. He'll be missed, but he's due some quality down time. Well done.

- Now, if only there was someone to replace him ...

- Supporters of health care reform are organizing a counter-protest to an anti-reform rally this weekend in Oconee County. It also talks about how a mini-public insurance option is thriving in San Francisco with ample support from the business community.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Some health care stuff

Back from a little mini-vacay, so here's some health care stuff I've been sitting on for a couple of days:

Get local - show your support in the O.C.
Got plans this Saturday? You do now. Do this, please, if you care about health care. From an email from Jonathan Veit, chair of the Oconee County Democrats:
For those who have not heard, area Republicans, using the title "Citizens For Ethical Government," have organized what they are calling "Oconee Healthcare Reform Protest." The organization has invited all area Republicans. The event is scheduled to take place at Oconee Veterans Park (OVP) [Here's a map. -ed.] on Saturday, August 29th at 10:30 am. Invited speakers include Paul Broun, Bill Cowsert, Bob Smith, and Rob Peecher (publisher of The Oconee Leader).

The Oconee County Democratic Committee is organizing a "counter presence" or "counter protest" to the upcoming health insurance reform protest that is being organized by area Republicans. Our goal is to peacefully promote the idea of health insurance reform and dispel the many myths that are being spread. Therefore, we plan to be at the entrance of the OVP at 10:00 AM on 8/29 and will hold up signs that state our support for health insurance reform. The Oconee County Democratic Committee invites all area Democrats to join us. Please bring a sign!

If you are worried that the debate over health insurance reform is being controlled by the other side, then please join us in this peaceful protest. "Citizens For Ethical Government" chose Oconee County for this event because they think it will be comfortable for them to protest in this overwhelmingly Republican County. It has been reported that they had 400 people at their most recent "Tea Party" rally at OVP. Let's show up in big numbers and show them that we are not afraid to stand up for what is right.

This is important.
The folks who are pushing the loud and sometimes threatening protests against health insurance reform (who are, conveniently enough, the ones who stand to gain the most from defeating any effort to reform America's health insurance system) have been successful in recent weeks in framing the debate along their terms. If you believe that we need real reform now, please take an hour or so of your Saturday and go show Oconee County that there's a real movement for health insurance reform.

Can a public option work in America?
Well, in certain parts of America, it seems as though the answer is "yes." Consider the case of San Francisco's "Healthy San Francisco" program, which I found out about recently. Here's a really nice write-up about it by Art Levine over at In These Times. An excerpt:

While not technically insurance, the program provides subsidized care to San Francisco residents at approved clinics and hospitals--and pays for it with a small, graduated tax on employers.

And guess what? Businesses haven't lost jobs as a result, and private insurance companies are still flourishing.

What's interesting about this program is that it's being promoted not just by the usual progressive subjects (labor unions, prog-bloggers, Gavin Newsom, etc) but by a fellow named William Dow, who in addition to being a professor of health care economics at Berkeley, was also a member of the Council of Economic Advisors under of all people, George W. Bush. (I can only imagine that he wasn't the most popular CEA member with the administration that hired him.) Dow, along with an economist with the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment and a doctoral student in health economics, wrote all about it in a New York Times op-ed this weekend. And I quote:
[R]oughly 20 percent [of businesses in San Francisco] have chosen to use the city’s public option for at least some of their employees. But interestingly, in a recent survey of the city’s businesses, very few (less than 5 percent) of the employers who chose the public option are thinking about dropping existing (private market) insurance coverage. The public option has been used largely to cover previously uninsured workers and to supplement private-coverage options. (Emphasis added. - ed.)
Well, I'd call that one "myth busted." In SF at least, business owners are not taking advantage of the public option by dropping coverage for already-covered employees.

So, is San Francisco a microcosm of America? Will the public option work in the nation at large as well as it appears to be working in San Francisco? Truth be told, I couldn't tell you, and neither could William Dow, I imagine. But it's certainly food for thought.

Conservation is key

Via Fresh Loaf, it would be well worth your time to check out Sen. Jeff Chapman's take on how to address the state's water crisis ...

... retrofitting all outdated appliances and fixtures with water efficient models could provide an additional 35 percent savings in household consumption. The State should initiate a pro-active program, with special emphasis on the metro region, which rewards home and business owners with tax credits upon the installation of water efficient fixtures. Along these same lines, the State should provide incentives for new development to include water efficient measures, such as designing homes and neighborhoods to capture and reuse storm water and gray water on site.

Valid questions

My unpleasant and unfortunate experience with customer service this past weekend did get me thinking about 'Cash For Clunkers' since, well, that started the devolution of that particular conversation.

My friend's observations revolved around his personal ideological predisposition to the program itself - which is something I wholly respect, but don't think is a valid enough reason to either praise or denounce the program - and the more concrete discussion of whether or not the program worked to help the economy.

My answer to him, and the one I restate here, is 'well, yes ... and kind of.'

On the whole, I think it's difficult to argue that 'Cash For Clunkers' has not been a success given the three primary reasons it was introduced in the first place - spurring sales, removing non-fuel efficient vehicles from the road and replacing them with more fuel efficient ones, and cleaning out a backlog of inventory from dealers nationwide. On all three fronts, the program has done just that.

It hasn't been without some quirks, however, and they range from the government woefully underestimating the popularity of the program, thus dramatically understaffing its needs, to dealers struggling to handle the sheer volume of sales and, in turn, passing on incomplete or inaccurate reimbursement requests to program administrators. These quirks, which necessitated many of the dealers having to front money and wait for the reimbursement, have proven to be problematic.

And, judging by most accounts, they've either been dealt with or are currently being dealt with. That's not to minimize the legitimate concerns these quirks have raised, but it's also important to remember that folks are working hard to fix an unprecedented program that is only a few months old.

One of the things I'm curious to see is an excellent observation raised by The Atlantic's Derek Thompson, which is whether or not the program merely moved what would be the expected sales from the third and fourth quarter of this year into a rapid, one-month time-span. It's a more than valid point, though I'm somewhat skeptical it was truly the case given the still shaky consumer confidence ratings, the threat of a jobless recovery and backlog of inventory.

Even if it does prove to be true, however, I suppose it could be argued the program spurred folks to purchase more fuel-efficient vehicles, which would be a net-plus in the grand scheme of things (though, to be fair, isn't necessarily a valid economic argument for the program).

Truth be told, I think it will be more clear later in the year. Despite the massive spurring of sales, much of the reimbursement money has not been allocated yet, thus making it difficult to see the total economic benefit given the impact of the subsidy. Likewise, despite this being a case of immediate fiscal stimulus, seeing its impact on the overall economy won't be truly felt for another month or so (since economies, you know, are big things).

More on Simonton Bridge Road

I've linked to this before, but it's worth doing again.

Brian's take on the proposed road projects is well worth the read, and not just because he's an elected official in Watkinsville who, you know, deals with this kind of stuff. He's got some good insight on the flaws in some of the projects and the validity of others.

Also worth noting that the Watkinsville City Council voted unanimously to register its opposition to the four-laning of Simonton Bridge Road, and Brian points out that, based on a conversation with Emil Beshara, Oconee County's Public Works Director, that the project wasn't anything any of them asked for ...

When I mentioned this to Emil, he stated that his (the county's) intention was to just widen and add turn lanes to Simonton Bridge (not four lanes!) and that this was not being done "for economic development purposes." Obviously, something was lost in communication to GDOT and MACORTS, as the plans clearly suggest four laning and adding turn lanes to the road.

Um, OK

Sen. Eric Johnson apparently thinks quite highly of himself ...

Johnson reminded the audience during his speech that as governor, he would not pull his punches when it comes to topics he’s passionate about.

“I’m pretty direct,” he said. “People tell me I’m the political equivalent of Jack Bauer on 24.”


Following this statement, Johnson also noted that his mother has frequently told him that he is 'the best Little League third baseman she's ever seen!'

Well taken

Paul Krugman, right as usual.

Couple of things

- I think Athens-Clarke County is doing an excellent job of getting ahead of the curve when it comes to reducing its pollution, and I also agree that most of the changes that can make a difference will come from national legislation, not local action plans. All that said ... nonattainment is still nonattainment, isn't it? It would make more sense to do everything you can do not have those days of violation, thus ensuring you're off the list. A proactive plan is a much-needed thing, but if it's proactive and you're still in non-compliance (hypothetically speaking of course), why should the restrictions be easier? Particularly if the goal of the restrictions is to reduce pollution? At the end of the day, shouldn't it come down to what's actually happening and not what you're aiming to have happen?

- Eh. Given that smoking is behind inside all campus buildings, I just am not convinced of the rationale that smoking needs to be completely banned on campus, including in exterior spaces.

- Then again, regarding revenue, if you want to ban it then jack up the fines for doing so and direct that money to the local and state governments.

- Not a bad editorial on water, and I say again ... desalination. I've become fascinated by the idea, albeit a costly one. But why not invest your resources into develop a statewide series of pipelines, reservoirs and the like that funnels water from the Atlantic Ocean to be used by the entire state? It would reduce the need to rely on existing river systems, and put us ahead of the curve on what will be, in the future, a viable means of using and distributing water.

- An informative read on the opposition to many of the proposed road projects in the area, and let me lend my voice to the growing chorus of those opposed to the widening of Simonton Bridge Road. Such a move will literally wipe out large chunks of historic buildings and private property in and near Watkinsville. It's a flat-out awful idea.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Lessons in poor customer service

Part of the job of being someone who offers opinions on politics (or entertainment, sports, etc.) is that, from time to time, you have folks who disagree with you. And, if you write a column (as I have done recently) or publish a blog (as I currently do), you might just get recognized when you go out in public.

Back when I covered high school athletics, I was recognized quite frequently when I'd go out, largely based on my weekly football picks column. You'd be surprised how many folks would be very upset when I'd pick against their particular school. Hell hath no fury like a Cedar Shoals fan scorned.

Still, I'm not sure if anything really prepared me for the angry confrontation I faced this morning by the owner of a local store.

I've considered this particular individual a friend for quite some time, and I've frequented and promoted his business on numerous occasions. And, to be clear, I still think he is genuinely a good guy who runs a good business.

Now, in the understanding of this story, it's important to understand the context - I was patronizing his store with my two-year-old daughter in tow. Be sure to keep that in mind throughout this retelling.

Upon entering, I was greeted not with my name, but rather by 'here's the famous columnist.' I laughed it off, but I recognized right off the bat that he was somewhat tenser than normal. Because we've known each other for some time, we tried to catch up on a few things, and he asked how business was going for me as I did for him. My response is, well, the same for everyone who is a self-employed consultant these days which is 'well, it's just a rough economy.' I talked about how a lot of folks were cutting back and a lot of folks weren't hiring.

Unfortunately, I had just opened the door to what would turn out to be a rather unpleasant, and at times unnerving, political discussion in the middle of his store. He used my comment on the realities of the economy to launch into his many disagreements with President Obama.

After a few general statements about spending and taxes - all of which I just politely nodded to - he went after 'Cash For Clunkers.' He discussed how he didn't like subsidizing the purchase of cars for people he didn't know, doubted its economic viability and didn't think it was doing anything to create jobs (all valid concerns, to be sure). This went on for a few minutes, with my daughter wiggling in my arms, and I offered what I thought was an innocent observation based on my father's experience with the program.

My father, for those who don't know, works as a controller for a Ford dealer. He thinks there is some value to the program because it has helped spur sales dramatically, though he does think it is somewhat slow and cumbersome. He attributes those features to it being a start-up public program that didn't anticipate the rush of sales, as well as difficulties in local dealers with compliance.

So that's what I said.

And his response was a rather dismissive 'well, no disrespect to your father, but I don't believe that at all.'

At this point, my better sense should have recognized he was very angry about something, and whether it was a legitimate frustration with politics or something that was completely unrelated, it was obvious it was clouding his judgment. Instead, in my honest appreciation of debate and discussion (and arguably egged on by the thinly veiled shot at my father's intelligence), I tried to point out what I felt were the positives of the program (i.e. spurring sales for a slumping industry, moving less fuel-efficient vehicles off the road), though, to be fair, I did so rather clumsily.

Safe to say, he wasn't having any of it. So we danced around this for some time, and it reverted back to his displeasure with subsidizing the purchase of vehicles for other people. In what I thought would be a valid counterpoint, I noted that government doesn't actually work like that in most cases. It isn't as if we get to pick and choose where our tax dollars go, and that just as he has a valid philosophical disagreement with, say, 'Cash For Clunkers' I knew a lot of people who didn't support The War In Iraq.

I suppose in hindsight, I should have recognized that, despite the truthfulness of that observation, it was not an effective way to calm down an increasingly tense discussion. His response was 'those people protested the war, and I'm protesting this ... are you against free speech now and are you saying I can't speak out about it?'

Growing more uncomfortable by the minute and sensing his rising agitation, my response was 'not at all' and I said such dissension is good ... and if he disagrees with the policies going on he ought to speak out and go vote in 2010 and 2012.

Let's just say it went dramatically downhill from here.

He glared at me, offered a mocking laugh and said 'oh we will, you can bet your bottom dollar on that one.' And then he angrily thrust his hand toward me and said 'I'll bet you five dollars that your guy gets thrown out on his a-- in 2012.' I laughed, in a sad attempt to diffuse the situation, and he persisted by saying 'Do it ... shake my hand and bet me $5 right now.'

I declined to take the bet because, well, it's hard to predict what's going to happen in two or four years in our political environment and, of course, I was holding an impatient two-year-old. He seized on this as an apparent justification of his line of argument and said 'you won't do it because you're scared and you know I'm right.'

So now I'm getting kinda upset with this whole situation. Not only am I very bothered by his increasingly agitated tone, but I'm rightfully angered that he's doing it when I'm patronizing his store with my daughter.

My response was to say that Obama's poll numbers were low because his support among Democrats, his natural base, had fallen by 10 to 15 points in the past month given their frustration with the health care debate. His numbers with Republicans had bottomed out, as we'd expect, and his independent numbers were in flux given the various attacks on the reform proposals and their uncertainty with his leadership on the economy.

Pass health care, I argued, and his numbers rise among both Democrats and independents. Watch it fail, and Obama and Democrats are going to suffer.

He countered by, for all practical purposes, labeling me an elitist. He said that folks were sick and tired of arrogant people like me and Barney Frank talking down to honest, well-meaning people with questions.

At this point, I was absolutely done.

I responded with 'what in the hell are you talking about ... some lady who doesn't know what she's talking about compares the president to Adolf Hitler and she gets called on it, and that's arrogance?'

To which he angrily said, with a finger jabbing in the air at me, 'It's pure arrogance on Barney Frank's part' and, at that point, I responded with 'whatever, I'm leaving.' He quickly follows me from behind the counter, grabs the door to prevent me from leaving and says 'we're just having a philosophical debate, and you lose your cool and want to storm out?' Of course, the sheer insanity of that comment made me even angrier, and I'm not entirely sure what I said though I know it involved a few choice words and the fact that I thought this was poor behavior on his part considering I had my daughter with me in his store.

I can concede that I probably should have headed off the conversation way before it took such a turn for the worse. I can also concede that I should have worked that much harder to keep a level head, not only for the sake of my argument, but, most importantly, for the sake of my daughter.

Yet ... outside of my final, frustrated outburst, I'm hard-pressed to really see what I did wrong. I tried, perhaps imperfectly, to civily counter some of the arguments he was making and, in areas where appropriate, concede that he had some legitimate concerns. It's just that he wasn't interested, at all, in having that type of conversation.

He was angry, and he decided to throw that anger at me ... even if it meant acting in a wholly irresponsible way toward a parent with a child who was visiting his place of business. And I think it's the latter that really angered me the most.

I can accept (and encourage) having folks challenge my political views, and I'm more than willing to admit that I've been stumped, befuddled and outright lost in debates over politics and policy. However, to show such anger to a friend who is visibily trying to keep a two-year-old from turning his store inside out - a two-year-old who is laughing, drooling and repeatedly saying 'Daddy's beard ... Daddy's beard' - is absolutely beyond me.

The anger and condescending approach he took toward the discussion, and his insistence on perpetuating it - and, on more than one occasion, using physical intimidation to try and get his way - in the presence of my daughter, was deeply disturbing.

Safe to say, I'm going to take some time away from visiting his store.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Couple of things

- Charlie Maddox, who ran against Mayor Heidi Davison in 2006, was not reappointed to a fourth term as the executive director of the Athens Housing Authority. Maddox is giving it another try for mayor in 2010, and there's ample speculation this was a political move against him. Of course, that's a simplistic line of reasoning, and Davison's rationale for the non-appointment is perfectly logical (and non-political, particularly given the fact Maddox was reappointed in 2004 prior to the 2006 election).

- Martin critiques Ben Harbin at Tondee's Tavern.

- It ain't perfect, but at least they're matched up near existing holidays.

Music for the moment

Hell On The Heart by Eric Church
Lonesome, Orny And Mean by Waylon Jennings
A Pirate Looks At 40 by Jimmy Buffett
Slow Train by Shooter Jennings
Can't You See by The Marshall Tucker Band

Worth a read

Agree or disagree, this is worth a few minutes of your day. Likethedew.com traces 2009's health care vitriol back to Richard Nixon, Harry Dent, and the infamous "Southern Strategy."

"The debate has nothing to do with the cost of drugs, rationing medical care, or that constantly flogged waiting list for elective surgery. Its tap root reaches deep down into a steaming pile of racial muck dropped more than 60 years ago."


Here's the link again.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

In which the new guy shamelessly plugs some malarkey he put on another blog...

Ben Harbin is a hypocrite. I wrote about it here. That is all.

An honest question?

Understand that I'm saying this as the son of someone who is the controller at an auto dealer, but ... why exactly should auto dealers be 'mad' when they are the ones ultimately causing the delay?

The shallowness of John Linder

It must be nice to be an elected Republican official, particularly one in Georgia. Because, by being one, you're afforded the right to literally say the craziest things in the world and have them be accepted as fact.

I can't even begin to express the frustration, disappointment and outright concern I have for the future of civilized and rational dialogue in this nation if shoddy journalism like this continues to go on unabated, and we keep electing politicians like Rep. John Linder who is more interested in absolutely and unequivocally making stuff up rather than debating the issue at hand ...

A final consideration, Linder said, is the cost of administering a health care program. He said liberals argue that the government could provide health insurance much more cheaply than those “rich, greedy, rip-off insurance companies.”

“If you add the fraud from Medicare and Medicaid to the cost of administering it, they’re about 12 percent higher than those rich, greedy rip-off insurance companies,” he said “because they’re incompetent at detecting fraud.”


Let's leave aside the fact that his own prescriptions for addressing this issue are either tantamount to being band-aids on the problem or outright mischaracterizations of a much more complicated, intertwined debate (thinking that tort reform is the magical answer to all our woes is just flat-out wrong and suggests a intellectual shallowness that staggers me).

Linder here suggests there is ample fraud existing in Medicare and Medicaid, and that by attacking this fraud we can bring down health care costs dramatically. Of course, he offers no evidence for this and reports indicate that this 'fraud' actually pales in comparison to the projected costs of both reform and non-reform scenarios. But, assuming Linder's non-sourced accusation is accurate, it's important to remember this ... eliminating fraud and waste in Medicare and Medicaid is currently included in all five versions of the reform bills.

This is the opposition to health care. It's void of new ideas and, to compensate, it relies on flat-out falsehoods that, if said with some measure of authority, are pathetically accepted as truths.

Town halls in The O.C.

Lee Becker picks up on the fact that Jim Luke and Margaret Hale have agreed to hold town hall meetings.

I'd bet the former follows through with it, though the latter - despite much public bluster about input - doesn't.

Um ...

Is it just me or shouldn't this be, you know, a pretty big deal? If the Bush Administration was raising the terror alert status willy-nilly to suit his own political fortunes - including just prior to a closely contested election in 2004 - then shouldn't that be something worth looking into?

And, given that Tom Ridge resigned shortly afterward and has apparently stated that his resignation was tied to this, wouldn't that explain why Sen. John McCain's political advisors - the veterans of the Bush campaigns - were so opposed to him being on the ticket?

To-do. Next week.

Here's some stuff you might want to do.

Saturday, Aug. 22
David Poythress is bringing his campaign for Governor to Oconee County. (Don't ask him about any of the other Democratic candidates - that seems to be a sore spot with him.) He'll be chilling at the Springhill Suites, 3500 Daniels Bridge Road in Watkinsville. The Poythress folks didn't tell us what time he's dropping by (at least not in the email I got), so maybe just hang out. Bring a book or something. Just got an email from the campaign. He'll be there from 10am until noon.

Wednesday, Aug. 26
The once (and future if he gets his way) Governor of Georgia, Roy Barnes stops by UGA to rap to the kids. You can stop by too, even if you're not young. If you get a chance to ask him a question, ask him how he managed to keep a straight face in Sonny's water briefing the other day. Here's your 411.

UGA Student Learning Center, Room 248
6pm-7pm6:30 pm
Click here for more information.


Oh yeah... free pizza, too.

Thursday, Aug. 27
The Clarke County Democrats are meeting on Thursday night at the Clarke County Courthouse (5th floor) at 6pm.

Must read

If you haven't done so yet, read this post by Blake.

It's worth your while.

Morning Bear Grylls update

Well, this is awesome and disturbing all rolled into one.

Mischaracterizations (again)

The various mischaracterizations of the proposed reforms of health care continue, and today we've got Tim Bryant at 1340-AM, a buddy of mine, inaccurately describing the plan in one of his news reports.

During a news break on 960-AM, Bryant leads off his segment by saing 'This from the government that wants to run your health care ...' and then proceeds to play a clip from Ray LaHood, the Secretary of Transportation describing the process to secure additional reimbursements for 'Cash For Clunkers.' Of course, it's misleading for three primary reasons.

The first is the obvious - the government isn't trying to take over your health care. Rightly or wrongly, the public insurance option would only be eligible for a fairly small group of individuals in the country (less than 10 million). The overwhelming majority of folks will see no change in their current insurance status, while others will merely receive a subsidy, based on a sliding scale, to assist them in purchasing private insurance.

Secondly, comparing this program, which includes a litany of checks and balances in the system - coupled with the aforementioned limitations on who is eligible for the public option - with 'Cash For Clunkers' is apples and oranges. There was little limitation on who could participate in that program, meaning there was a massive rush of interested consumers (who also took advantage of limited promotions offered by the private dealers aimed at maximizing their purchasing power). The system got swamped early, but is being sorted out. It's only fault is that it's been too successful.

Thirdly, the government already provides health insurance in a variety of ways ranging from single-payer-style Medicare to the veteran's services that parallel the British form of health care. Given those various offerings are consisently viewed as wildly successful and feature high levels of consumer satisfaction, suggesting otherwise is foolish.

Couple of things

- I know there are a lot of folks who will be in for a shock when they get their property tax bills, but there's been a ton of information out on this in the past few months so should it really be a 'shock' in the grand scheme of things? Everyone affiliated with the various local governments have been scrambling to notify residents of the impending increase from the state government, so hopefully folks have had time to get ready for it (and will remember in 2010 that Republicans in Atlanta passed this increase).

- Still waiting on The Classic Center's parking deck.

- Five candidates to replace Sen. Ralph Hudgens, and the new guy wants to reform the state income tax code (good!) by abolishing it and replacing with a higher, regressive sales tax (bad!).

- This apparently went down last night as, after all the thunder and lightening, I was fully expecting a good soaking rain. Of course, it just rolled on over with nary a drop of water ...

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Nice

I really, really like Rep. Anthony Weiner.

In fact, this is the exact same debate I had with some family members recently who, just like Joe Scarborough, failed to answer Weiner's question.

For the Wrangler crowd

Hillary's take on Brett Favre is a must read.

Why Barney Frank rocks

The most spectacular response by a congressman in the health care debate.

Just saying

It seems as if some of the anger regarding Kathy Cox's winnings is terribly misplaced, and by that I mean it's foolish to say the mean, old bankruptcy folks are acting irresponsible in this.

If anything, shouldn't Cox shoulder this blame? For starters, why wasn't the money allocated for these schools sooner, thus releasing the funds from her possession?

And - without being too blunt - if she wasn't bankrupt, this wouldn't be an issue. But, she is, and bankruptcy law is bankruptcy law, and her promises to give the money away don't mean anything. Her family owes a lot of people money, and when you owe a lot of people money you aren't afforded the luxury of being able to donate large sums of cash to charitable organizations, albeit very worthy ones. You settle up your debts and then you get to make those types of decisions, not the other way around.

To-do. To-night.

A public service message for those of us who think that 47 million uninsured Americans is a simply unacceptable thing in this day and age.

Organizing for America: Call for Volunteers at Ciné in Downtown Athens Wed, August 19th
Local Health Care Campaign to Expand District Wide


OFA-Athens health care campaign, made up of local volunteers with Organizing for America, a project of the Democratic National Committee created by President Obama's political team, announces a call for volunteers at the Ciné in downtown Athens, Ga on Wednesday, August 19th from 6pm to 9pm. Interested folks can go to http://ofavolunteer.us or if interested in the related film project, http://ofarsvp.us

SEC blinks on social media

So, a couple of days ago, I wrote that the SEC had a somewhat backasswards approach to social media, as evidenced in their revised media policy. Well, we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief, since the conference has blinked bowed to pressure clarified their policy. Again, sez the SEC:
“No Bearer may produce or disseminate in any form a “real-time” description or transmission of the Event (i) for commercial or business use, or (ii) in any manner that constitutes, or is intended to provide or is promoted or marketed as, a substitute for radio, television or video coverage of such Event. Personal messages and updates of scores or other brief descriptions of the competition throughout the Event are acceptable.

Whew. Or something. Politics coming soon. I promise.
[Again, Mashable]

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

More like it

Things like this and this are very encouraging.

No Jane in 2010

Blake says Jane Kidd won't be running for U.S. Senate in 2010, and that she's even asked the 'Draft Jane Kidd' site creator to take down the page.

You've got to be named either Sam Nunn or Roy Barnes to credibly challenge for that seat, so it's a perfectly logical move on her part.

Truthfulness

Yep. This is about right ...

As you can see, and as Politifact editor Bill Adair has noted, the claims of Republicans and opponents of health care are much more likely to be false than true. Overall, 76% of their claims (16 of 21) are either “false ” or “pants on fire.”

They are also more likely to be false than are claims of Democrats and supporters of reform. Overall, 28% (5 of 18) of Democrats’ claims are “false.”

Finally, Obama has been more truthful than either Republicans/opponents or other Democrats/supporters: 22% of his claims have been “false” (2 of 9); more than half have been “mostly true” or “true.”

Ezra Klein roundup

I apologize for having lots of health care discussion here, particularly when I like to utilize this forum for local news and commentary, but, you know, it's kind of the biggest domestic policy debate the country's had in roughly 20 years.

That said, a few things worth reading from Ezra Klein, who is one of my favorite bloggers ...

- His take on 'Founding Fathers worship' in this day and age.

- ]The Liberal Revolt' and why this is a campaign for something and not a negotiation with someone.

- A handy flowchart that shows how non-complicated the actual reform proposals are (though there's a typo at the bottom as the those three times the federal poverty level or below are eligible for subsidies, not those above).

- Sen. Kent Conrad's inability to do math and why a public insurance option ought to just wind up on the Senate floor for an up-or-down vote, thus daring any Democrat to filibuster it.

From the mailbag

Reader JS offers an alternative view on President Obama's health care politics ...

Over the past two years, I have been consistently frustrated by the steps taken by this man. When the Clinton campaign was brutalizing him over non-issues, he kept his cool and won the nomination ... and I would have slapped her down twice as hard and probably lost.

When the McCain campaign picked Sarah Palin, he plowed ahead and watched that duo self-implode and won the presidency ... and I would mercilessly attacked McCain for making such a bonehead move and turned off voters.

When Republicans were chastizing the stimulus, he still sought there advice and put together a massive jolt for a depressed economy that, given all the recent indicators, is beginning to pay off ... and I would have charged ahead by demonizing those opposed to the stimulus.

I'm just saying, time and time again I've been baffled by his actions, and time and time again, he's proven all of us wrong. I just have a hunch that we ought to trust the guy on this one.

Nicely done

Let me also say kudos to Blake for his reporting on this. It's sad that we haven't seen this kind of fact-checking more frequently in the national media, and it's kinda depressing we have to even acknowledge it.

Still, given the climate, pat him on the back for correcting Linder on two things ...

Some of that fear, especially among senior citizens, has resulted from an often-mischaracterized proposal to reimburse doctors for end-of-life counseling sessions. The sessions are designed to help patients write living wills addressing topics such as whether they would want to be resuscitated or kept on life support.

Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin recently called such sessions a "death panel" that would decide whether elderly people receive medical care, an assertion Linder said was "a little over the top." But such rhetoric can be effective, he said.

"I think she's crazy like a fox," he said.

Speaking about the cap-and-trade bill - a measure that caps greenhouse gas emissions and allows companies to buy and sell credits allowing them to pollute more - Linder called man-made climate change "a superstition."

"There is zero science - zero science - behind the notion that humans are causing this," he said.

Numerous national and international scientific groups, however, say the evidence is strong that Earth's climate is changing because of human activity
.

Linder's just making up stuff and, as I have previously argued, it's imperative that folks call out falsehoods when they crop up.

Couple of things

- Ugh. this sounds more than awful. Thoughts and prayers with their family.

- Nancy Denson sets the record straight on who's to blame for the upcoming property tax hikes.

- I differ with a few folks on this, but I think this is an interesting idea. As long as its not an exclusionary system, like the Lake Oconee Academy fiasco in Greene County, and as long as it doesn't water down the academic components in the school system, I think moving to a community-wide charter system isn't a bad idea at all. It appears some of the checks are in place, so let's see what happens.

- Ah Rep. John Linder ... willfully admitting that deliberately misleading tactics can be a useful political tool aimed at killing popular legislation. Awesome. And, again, we want to negotiate with these guys?

The read

From my mid-week column in the Athens Banner-Herald ...

Then there's folks like 69-year-old Larry Deland of Snohomish, Wash., who said he would be "screwed" if the government took over his health care - thus suggesting he was willfully ignoring the fact that, via Medicare, the government already provides him and anyone over the age of 65 with health insurance.

That's one of the most puzzling elements in this absurd spectacle. A much-needed overhaul of our health care system, aimed at controlling rising costs for middle-class families and expanding coverage for the uninsured, is getting heavy criticism from the only segment of the American population that, thanks to Medicare, enjoys controlled costs and universal coverage through government participation.

More succinctly, a group of folks with coverage much of the rest of the nation is clamoring for seem determined to derail the reform effort, based on falsehoods fed to them by right-wing talking heads.

Monday, August 17, 2009

A little more

Here's some clarification of my views on this.

Let's be clear, this isn't about legitimate and valid differences regarding policy. It isn't even necessarily about the tactics of the Republicans, however dishonest and frustrating they may be. This about Democrats empowering those absurd views by giving them a place at the table when, it's painfully obvious to literally every other person on the planet, that the Republicans aren't worthy of that seat.

My argument all along has been that a bipartisan compromise would be ideal, but it shouldn't come at the expense of crafting the most sound policy possible and it shouldn't be delivered by slicing away the key provisions favored by the majority party (particularly if some of these provisions are backed by more than 70 percent of the nation).

Given the existing environment, such a rational dialogue and effective compromise simply doesn't exist.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Republicans' top negotiator in the Senate, has stated that he'd vote against legislation for health care reform even if it included all of the things he'd like to see in it ... if the rest of his party opposed it.

Various Republican officials and pundits, after being very supportive of end-of-life counseling earlier this summer, have now reversed position and are content in falsely characterizing the proposals as 'death panels' charged with a systematic execution of the elderly.

And, most recently, the Republican National Committee issued a press release in opposition to health cooperatives, thus suggesting another flip-flop as numerous Republicans have said all summer they'd be open to supporting this as an alternative.

Now, one can only assume that Sen. Max Baucus, the Democrats' chief negotiator on the Senate Finance Committee, gets it ... particularly since he proposed a Medicare-style public insurance option last year when Democrats lacked a filibuster-proof majority. Likewise, we can be hopeful that this fruitless pursuit of bipartisanship will be abandoned given that the other side simply isn't willing to enter into the debate in good faith.

It's awful being so right

Remember when I said this?

Well, here we go again.

Seriously, why is any Democrat entertaining any idea these jokers are putting forward?

Bizarroworld, in which the new guy is pleased with Lynn Westmoreland and peeved at the SEC.

So, as JMac mentioned on Friday, I'm the new guy, picking up some of his slack as he gets the Cover Two rolling. And, in true JMac style, I've got a "couple of things" on my mind. Let's get right to it, kids.

An SEC letdown that doesn't involve Vanderbilt's O-line:

I'm an SEC fan through and through, which is why this gets under my skin. The SEC is expected to release its updated media policy pretty soon, and if they have their way, don't even think about using Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, or any other social media outlet to talk about their football games. Earlier this month, the SEC informed its member schools about the policy. Sez the Conference:
“Ticketed fans can’t produce or disseminate (or aid in producing or disseminating) any material or information about the Event, including, but not limited to, any account, description, picture, video, audio, reproduction or other information concerning the Event.”
Hrmph. So, let's break this down briefly. Following the terms of this agreement, if I'm at a Georgia game, I can't take pictures, shoot video, or even change my Facebook status to "Martin Matheny just watched Caleb King make Tennessee's defense look dumb."

You'd think that after so many examples (here's one) of big organizations who think they can control social media, the aforementioned big organizations would learn a thing or two. Apparently, not so much.

SEC FAIL.

(Got this from Mashable)

Signs of the apocalypse, or at least that the health insurance reform debate has jumped the shark:

Rep. Lynn Westmoreland is being rational.

Sorry if you just spit coffee all over your keyboard. I'll wait while you grab a paper towel.

Lynn Westmoreland is being rational. No, seriously. Here's the La Grange News over the weekend:
U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, one of President Obama’s most vocal critics, said he does not believe the health-care bill being debated in Congress includes provisions for a “death panel,” where a group would decide whether the elderly and infirm are worth the cost of medical expenses.

The second-term Republican congressman from Grantville said he is opposed to the plan, but doesn’t believe the nation’s elderly would be in danger.
He also is not, apparently, a birther:
Westmoreland said that unlike the “birther” movement, he’s taking the president’s word that he was born in the United States.

“All I can do is take him at his word,” Westmoreland said. “I think if he wasn’t a U.S. citizen, the McCain campaign would have more than looked into it.”
Congratulations, Lynn Westmoreland, on being noticeably less crazy than most of your colleagues, not to mention your party's most recent Vice-Presidential candidate.