Here is one of my all time favorite Broadway songs, from the musical "Fiorello", based on the life of New York mayor Fiorello LaGuardia. "Politics and Poker" puts party politics in an appropriate perspective.
As the election year begins, I'd like to paraphrase Margo Channing from All About Eve: Fasten your safety belts, it's going to be a bumpy 2012.
Heaven help us.
I am a conservative, pro-life, Roman Catholic. Over the course of a fairly long life, I can count the number of Democratic Presidential candidates I have voted for on one hand, with more than one finger left over. In my hometown, though the elections are nominally non-partisan, I am presumed to be a Republican. I have, more than once, been invited (by quasi-personal looking correspondence), to contribute to the George W. Bush Presidential library.
I have begun this post in this manner for a reason. I must add, that I am, by trade, a trial lawyer. Do I represent insurance companies in trial? No. Do I represent Barbie in trial when she sues Bratz for billions of dollars of dolly royalties? No. Do I represent Bratz? No. Do I represent BP in trial when it tries to limit its exposure for damages caused by the Gulf oil spill? No. Do I represent BP when it tries, in a trial court, to foist its responsibility for the the Gulf oil spill on any other supplier, equipment manufacturer, engineering firm, maintenance contractor, blah, blah, blah, it can? No.
I represent injured, imperfect, common people who have been hurt in various ways through no fault of their own. So, that makes me and my views, in the eyes of those who pay the noble trial attorneys described in the previous paragraph, beneath consideration and beneath contempt.
Well, be that as it will. But the truth is that politically, I fit the stereotype of what was once called a moderate Republican than anything else. And as such, I must say I am shocked and saddened by what has become of the Republican Party.
My perception of the current GOP can best be shown in this clip. I must say I came upon it innocently enough. I am a fan of British actor Geoffrey Palmer, and my wife and I are currently working our way through all the episodes of the BBC series, As Time Goes By. It is a comedy series in which Mr. Palmer and Judi Dench play separated lovers who are reunited when they are in their very late 50s. As the series went for 13 seasons, we are now watching them play the same people in their late 60s, early 70s. This is about as benign a form of entertainment as one can find this side of a Misterogers rerun.
Back in the early to mid 1970s, Mr. Palmer played a rather daft character in the series the Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, with that great comedic actor Leonard Rossiter playing the title role. In this clip, Mr. Palmer (Jimmy) tells Mr. Rossister (Reggie) about the weapons he is stockpiling to fight for Britain in the upcoming conflict with the forces of Anarchy. AS a "Papist", unfortunately, I am included among those forces. Notice he didn't say "trial lawyers". Take a look, and see if you aren't put in mind of the current crop of Republicans.
As they say in England, when much vexed: "Oh, dear, dear, dear.
Glenn Beck's last show for Fox was this past Thursday, June 30, 2011. Before he goes off too far into the sunset, to write other books, perhaps (I read his Common Sense--very common, though not much sense), I'd like to post this Disney cartoon remix by rebelliouspixels, posted on Youtube. From the clip's description:
"A re-imagined Donald Duck cartoon remix constructed using 50 classic Walt Disney animated shorts from the 1930s through 1960s. Donald's life is turned upside-down by the current economic crisis and he finds himself unemployed and falling behind on his house payments. As his frustration turns into despair Donald discovers a seemingly sympathetic voice coming from his radio named Glenn Beck.
Will Donald's feelings of disenfranchisement lead him to be persuaded by his radio's increasingly paranoid and divisive rhetoric? Or will our favorite Disney duck decide that this voice is not actually on his side after all? Watch and find out!"
Glenn did a reply on his show. You can find it on Youtube as well.
Very well done--the remix, not necessarily the reply.
Over many years, I have heard those, allegedly in the know, state that the following will "create jobs" in Michigan:
Cutting taxes on business.....will create jobs.
Taxing those on fixed incomes (so we can replace the revenue lost by cutting taxes on business).....will create jobs.
Deregulation of business.....will create jobs.
Protecting executive bonuses of bailed-out businesses like Goldman-Sachs.....will create jobs.
Tax breaks for oil companies.....will create jobs.
Eliminating the right of workers to collectively bargain....will create jobs.
Tort reform....will create jobs.
Drug company immunity....will create jobs.
Cutting worker's benefits....will create jobs.
Cutting worker's pay....will create jobs.
Cutting health care benefits.....will create jobs.
Abolishing trade unions.....will create jobs.
Granting broad powers to appointed emergency financial managers in place of officials elected by voters....will create jobs.
Legalizing drugs, prostitution and/or building a casino in every Michigan city.....will create jobs.
Investing in our youth (while cutting funding for education and increasing college tuition).....will create jobs.
Indeed, if we deregulate, cut taxes, pay and benefits enough, companies like Nike won't need to ship manufacturing jobs to third world countries anymore. They can keep third world jobs with third world pay right here.
When companies like General Electric pay no federal tax, while John and Jane Q Public pay plenty, it seems difficult to imagine how much more "business friendly" we can make things.
When Michigan cuts business taxes while shifting the tax burden to retirees on fixed incomes, it seems difficult to imagine how much more "business friendly" we can make things.
When insurance company sponsored "tort reform" measures deny innocent injury victims access to the courts, while the makers of Barbie and Bratz dolls sue each other for hundreds of millions of dollars in a kids' toy turf war, it seems difficult to imagine how much more "business friendly" we can make things.
When the government bails out a failing Goldman Sachs which allows the company to pay out millions in bonuses to executives, it seems difficult to imagine how much more "business friendly" we can make things.
When we all make Wal-Mart level wages with no benefits, it seems difficult to imagine how we will buy the Nike shoes we and our kids will be making in our local factories.
When economic times are tough, people will listen to all sorts of claptrap that promises relief-Glenn Beck alert.
Lyndon Johnson once said: "Did you ever think that making a speech on economics is a lot like pissing down your leg? It seems hot to you, but it never does to anyone else." I'd like to amend that a bit. "If a speech on economics seems hot, realize that someone may be "peeing" on you.
Andy Borowitz does a funny piece indicating that Glenn Beck is moving to the Sci Fi Network. From the article (which is a spoof, as true as it might sound):
"Speaking at a press conference announcing the move, Mr. Beck told reporters, 'The best part of this deal is that I won’t need to change my format at all.'
Mr. Beck said that his program was 'a perfect fit' for a schedule of programming packed with aliens, paranoid conspiracy theories and alternative universes."
In Michigan, the Governor has the ability to exert a great deal of influence on the state's legal system by his (or her) unrestricted right to make appointments to fill judicial vacancies. Such vacancies can be created several ways (retirement, resignation, appointment of a sitting judge to other political office, death, etc.).
The appointments, are, without exception in my memory, given to members of the Governor's political party, though, at election time, the judicial ballot is nominally non-partisan (though how that is consistent with Supreme Court candidates getting on the ballot through political party nominations is beyond my simple understanding).
The opportunity for a Governor to advance his political agenda for decades, through the use of the judicial appointment power, is enormous. For instance. when Governor John Engler, a Republican, left the Governor's office in 2004, four of the seven members of the Michigan Supreme Court (Cliff Taylor, Maura Corrigan, Stephen Markman, Robert Young) had been appointed by him to that Court. All four of those justices obtained their first experience as judges through Governor Engler's appointments.
The influence, euphemistically speaking, of Governor Engler's appointments continues to be felt in this state.
For career political types, the importance of the judicial appointment power is immense.
I can imagine what career Michigan Republicans must be feeling right about now. Governor Snyder, consistent with his promise to make cuts in Michigan government (and elsewhere) in his budget, has declined to fill two recent vacancies on the Michigan Court of Appeals.
From the Detroit News article on this issue, quoting chief of staff and general counsel to the Supreme Court Matthew Schneider (didn't he use to play for the Red Wings?).
"We are over-judged." (Yike. I think we might be over-chief of staffed and over-general counselled as well. ed,)
"We need to right-size our judiciary so that taxpayers aren't spending any more money on judgeships than they absolutely have to."
Schneider said fewer cases and fewer people are the main factors at work, though growth patterns in the state mean more judges are needed in certain areas while fewer are needed in others.
In my opinion, the fewer cases are chiefly due to the Engler's appointees' antics. They have been "right-sizing" justice for Michigan's citizens for many years. Perhaps they were just ahead of the curve.
Anyway, hats off to Governor Snyder for acting consistently with his promises, when the pressure from party members must have been intense to continue "business as usual", at least in this regard. I think John Engler may want to talk to Mr. Snyder very soon.
The second caption is my own spin on this. But wait a minute. This is a cheap shot. I mean, really. A response from the Forum of Commerce: "These guys have jobs. And with the competition we have from the Phoenicians, who get 18 beats a minute out of their galleys and we can't get any more than 15 out of these slackers, we have been getting killed in the foreign markets. With cutbacks in the military budget, we aren't conquering countries like we used to, so the slave supply is way down. But, since collective bargaining is gone we can expect kids and women back on these benches before long. And thank Jupiter we don't have benefit and legacy costs to worry about any more. We don't need to worry about finding limes to prevent scurvy. Scurvy, schmurvy. I am sorry, I got carried away. But, with Rome back to being a "Right to Enslavement" Empire, soon everybody will be saying that Rome is a great place to do business."
When the teacher wrote the three branches of government (executive, legislative, judicial) on the blackboard, the little fella in the front row asked: "What about business--which branch is that?"
I wonder what the teacher answered. How about: "Well, Johnny, business uses its money and tries to control them all."
