I am a lifelong non-smoker,and there are days when I
would ban tobacco from ever being sold--due not just to its
cancer-causing nature, but to the dozen of toxic chemicals therein (some
of which we do not even fully understand.) But to ban people from buying tobacco until they are 21 is NOT the way to go.
In many states you may vote at 18. Now we have declared that being able to smoke is more important than being able to vote. You can enlist and be drafted at 18, fight and die for your country, but you can't smoke along the way. Pure asinine stupidity on the part of a bi-partisan
Congress that voted these new limits as part of a huge spending and
"clean up the year-end business" massive bill that defied all "germane"
rules, as well as voting $1.4Billion of your money
and mine to build a border wall that from day-one Trump and the GOP had
promised Mexico would pay for. (And by the way it was the Dems that pushed this
thru in a spirit of compromise.)
So much for promises.
So much for compromise, which as with everything else in Washington, and life, has its limits. All of which have now gone up in smoke..at least until we are all 21.
I'm just sayin'...
Monday, December 30, 2019
Thursday, December 19, 2019
I Was Wrong!
In a recent blog I said something about we needed to
thank Gov. Bevin one last time. His ill-fated attempt to challenge his
close election cast a light on our really bad election recount laws, and
it looked as if the General Assembly might
take a long overdue crack at modernizing them. Then, our departing guv issued a whole series of
pardons and commutations, almost all of which have aroused great
controversy. Thanks again, sir, for casting light on our antiquated laws
here, with the hope we may see improvements.
And yet---allow me to point out, that not all of these were truly bad. In one case he commuted the life sentence of a man convicted of murder in Northern Ky. years ago. It was a death case, and all the good lawyers of the area refused to take his case (Ky. Bar are you listening?) He was assigned a young public defender who had never tried a death case, and a second local lawyer who had no office, no phone and who got business passing out his cards in local taverns. Surprise! The guy was convicted. I do not know if he was guilty or not, but I know he did not get a fair trial. This commutation was definitely in order---which is why we have the system. Let it be noted the attorney's office that got the conviction (for you and me) still insists it was a fair trial!!!
As to pardons, the entire national system needs overhauling, not just because Trump is threatening to make a mockery of it, but because ever since Ford pardoned Nixon (without a trial!)--and lost his re-election, lawyers have complained about the system, and done NOTHING.
Item 2:
The annual list of top US firms who paid NO federal taxes in 2018 is out, and it should make your blood boil. Some in Congress (and Democratic candidates in the debates) complain about this..but there haven't been changes in years. Among those on this list of great public sinners are:
Gannett (owns the Courier-Journal, awaiting editorial here. Yeah.)
DowDuPont
Duke Energy
Prudential Financial
Eli Lilly
Goodyear
Chevron
Delta
Netflix
General Motors
MGM
American Electric Power
Starbucks
Amazon
McKesson (of oxycontin fame)
Please ask your Congressional candidates where they stand on this issue in the election next year.
Item 3:
All I want for Christmas is some radio station in Central Kentucky to play classical music at least part of the day and night. Are you listening my friends at WUKY-FM???
I'm just sayin'...
And yet---allow me to point out, that not all of these were truly bad. In one case he commuted the life sentence of a man convicted of murder in Northern Ky. years ago. It was a death case, and all the good lawyers of the area refused to take his case (Ky. Bar are you listening?) He was assigned a young public defender who had never tried a death case, and a second local lawyer who had no office, no phone and who got business passing out his cards in local taverns. Surprise! The guy was convicted. I do not know if he was guilty or not, but I know he did not get a fair trial. This commutation was definitely in order---which is why we have the system. Let it be noted the attorney's office that got the conviction (for you and me) still insists it was a fair trial!!!
As to pardons, the entire national system needs overhauling, not just because Trump is threatening to make a mockery of it, but because ever since Ford pardoned Nixon (without a trial!)--and lost his re-election, lawyers have complained about the system, and done NOTHING.
Item 2:
The annual list of top US firms who paid NO federal taxes in 2018 is out, and it should make your blood boil. Some in Congress (and Democratic candidates in the debates) complain about this..but there haven't been changes in years. Among those on this list of great public sinners are:
Gannett (owns the Courier-Journal, awaiting editorial here. Yeah.)
DowDuPont
Duke Energy
Prudential Financial
Eli Lilly
Goodyear
Chevron
Delta
Netflix
General Motors
MGM
American Electric Power
Starbucks
Amazon
McKesson (of oxycontin fame)
Please ask your Congressional candidates where they stand on this issue in the election next year.
Item 3:
All I want for Christmas is some radio station in Central Kentucky to play classical music at least part of the day and night. Are you listening my friends at WUKY-FM???
I'm just sayin'...
Monday, December 9, 2019
Thank Gov. Bevin One More Time
In his brief thought about challenging the vote in
the legislature, he pointed out a glaring deficiency in our election
law. After a recanvass (a check of the vote math) there really isn't any
other way to make sure a close race is right; except
by asking the legislature to validate the results. Then begins an
arcane procedure which has already caused 1 murder and puts Kentucky
down in history as the only state whose governor was assassinated while
in office. (Google: William Goebel)---brought about
by the same election law STILL on our books, and which needs to be
changed.
Hopefully the next General Assembly will come up with better, modern ways to resolve a close race--which we seem more and more to be in risk of having. And while they're at it, some other changes need to be made.
For example:
1---asking Congress to make federal election days national holidays, especially the November general one.
(2---asking UK NOT to play a basketball game November election night.)
3--adopt Automatic Voter Registration, urged by the League of Women Voters and many similar groups, which may increase voter turnout (which is our real problem!!)
4--re-register ex-felons who have not served time for a violent offense when they have served their time.
5--let people register to vote who come to the polls election day, with sufficient ID
6--and, most important, pass The National Popular Vote resolution (as 16 other states, including 4 small ones such as Kentucky ) that says our electoral votes will go to the candidate who has the largest national votes cast--once the number of states passing this plan exceeds the required electoral college majority needed (273). States with 74 more votes are needed and such a resolution is being urged in more than that number of states,and Kentucky should be one of them---otherwise the entire idea of "One person, one vote" goes down the drain and democracy is the poorer.
It has happened too many times already..including the Trump-Clinton election, where Mrs. Clinton got almost THREE MILLION More votes than Mr. Trump, but still lost--because of a 2 century old "college" which isn't one and has no sense behind it in 2020.
Thanks, Gov. Bevin for reminding us.
I'm just sayin'...
Hopefully the next General Assembly will come up with better, modern ways to resolve a close race--which we seem more and more to be in risk of having. And while they're at it, some other changes need to be made.
For example:
1---asking Congress to make federal election days national holidays, especially the November general one.
(2---asking UK NOT to play a basketball game November election night.)
3--adopt Automatic Voter Registration, urged by the League of Women Voters and many similar groups, which may increase voter turnout (which is our real problem!!)
4--re-register ex-felons who have not served time for a violent offense when they have served their time.
5--let people register to vote who come to the polls election day, with sufficient ID
6--and, most important, pass The National Popular Vote resolution (as 16 other states, including 4 small ones such as Kentucky ) that says our electoral votes will go to the candidate who has the largest national votes cast--once the number of states passing this plan exceeds the required electoral college majority needed (273). States with 74 more votes are needed and such a resolution is being urged in more than that number of states,and Kentucky should be one of them---otherwise the entire idea of "One person, one vote" goes down the drain and democracy is the poorer.
It has happened too many times already..including the Trump-Clinton election, where Mrs. Clinton got almost THREE MILLION More votes than Mr. Trump, but still lost--because of a 2 century old "college" which isn't one and has no sense behind it in 2020.
Thanks, Gov. Bevin for reminding us.
I'm just sayin'...
Tuesday, December 3, 2019
My Turn
Our election is over. Lots of views on why what happened, happened.
Gov.- elect Beshear thinks he won because he kept it local, talked about family issues across the dining table, turned his school teacher base out, avoided nationalizing it. Gov. Bevin had other views, but I'm going to agree with Beshear and add one point: years ago in a similar race in Ohio the Dem incumbent lost, and when asked why, he replied with remarkable (and true) candor, "people voted against me." This was so unusual at the time it made the national press and the network evening newscasts.
So, I think, it was with Bevin, a guy who seemed to go out of his way to insult people, make totally UNnecessary inflammatory statements, toss his own Lt.-Gov. candidate in an historic row which went to the courts--and triggered her base staying home. Bevin lost a N. Ky solidly GOP county for the first time in years. and came out of other more recent Republican strongholds with diminished margins. Fayette & Jefferson counties provided extra margins over 4 years ago for Beshear, and so the deed was done.
Note for Rep. Comer and Sec. Quarles--if you consider a run in 2023, remember for the 2nd straight time a GOP guv got only one term. The situations were very different, but (...)
That said, allow me to point out that for all his gaffes and un-political behavior, we all owe Gov. Bevin a debt of gratitude. He focused as a laser on the overwhelming need for pension reform, and he was right. That will be his legacy, and one hopes the new guv and legislature can carry on and do something practical about the dire situation; which past guvs and legislatures of both parties failed to do.
Now we can keep a weather eye on the new split-responsibility in Frankfort and hope the need for pension reform, and a lot of other issues, gets statesmanlike consideration, not just partisan posturing for 2020 and beyond.
Will the Kentucky media, my colleagues, be up to their job of keeping tabs on the new administration in Frankfort. With the Loss of some major reporters, Tom Loftus of course, I wonder. We can hope the broadcast media do a better job, and wonder whether the new player in town, WLEX under new ownership, will seize the opportunity of opening a bureau in the Capital, which WKYT has allowed to languish.
Hopefully, though staff and budget have been reduced, we may still count on KET to cover the legislature as ably as it has done in the past. Now, more than ever, we need this gem of Kentucky. (And speaking of "gems", I hope you all saw the 25th anniversary show of KET's Kentucky Life. What a joy and what great reasons to be proud of being a Kentuckian. If you didn't, it is on again Thursday the 5th at 9:30 p.m.with more repeats later, and a DVD available for purchase. Please take a look, and wonder why our Lexington stations don't emulate this type of commonwealth feature reporting.
I'm just sayin'...
Gov.- elect Beshear thinks he won because he kept it local, talked about family issues across the dining table, turned his school teacher base out, avoided nationalizing it. Gov. Bevin had other views, but I'm going to agree with Beshear and add one point: years ago in a similar race in Ohio the Dem incumbent lost, and when asked why, he replied with remarkable (and true) candor, "people voted against me." This was so unusual at the time it made the national press and the network evening newscasts.
So, I think, it was with Bevin, a guy who seemed to go out of his way to insult people, make totally UNnecessary inflammatory statements, toss his own Lt.-Gov. candidate in an historic row which went to the courts--and triggered her base staying home. Bevin lost a N. Ky solidly GOP county for the first time in years. and came out of other more recent Republican strongholds with diminished margins. Fayette & Jefferson counties provided extra margins over 4 years ago for Beshear, and so the deed was done.
Note for Rep. Comer and Sec. Quarles--if you consider a run in 2023, remember for the 2nd straight time a GOP guv got only one term. The situations were very different, but (...)
That said, allow me to point out that for all his gaffes and un-political behavior, we all owe Gov. Bevin a debt of gratitude. He focused as a laser on the overwhelming need for pension reform, and he was right. That will be his legacy, and one hopes the new guv and legislature can carry on and do something practical about the dire situation; which past guvs and legislatures of both parties failed to do.
Now we can keep a weather eye on the new split-responsibility in Frankfort and hope the need for pension reform, and a lot of other issues, gets statesmanlike consideration, not just partisan posturing for 2020 and beyond.
Will the Kentucky media, my colleagues, be up to their job of keeping tabs on the new administration in Frankfort. With the Loss of some major reporters, Tom Loftus of course, I wonder. We can hope the broadcast media do a better job, and wonder whether the new player in town, WLEX under new ownership, will seize the opportunity of opening a bureau in the Capital, which WKYT has allowed to languish.
Hopefully, though staff and budget have been reduced, we may still count on KET to cover the legislature as ably as it has done in the past. Now, more than ever, we need this gem of Kentucky. (And speaking of "gems", I hope you all saw the 25th anniversary show of KET's Kentucky Life. What a joy and what great reasons to be proud of being a Kentuckian. If you didn't, it is on again Thursday the 5th at 9:30 p.m.with more repeats later, and a DVD available for purchase. Please take a look, and wonder why our Lexington stations don't emulate this type of commonwealth feature reporting.
I'm just sayin'...
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