Almost-

Still no word from Senator Reid, but I did get a response from his Deputy Director of New Media. Check it out-

Hi Tony,

Saw your post about Sen. Reid taking a stand on NV tourist destinations from today. I wanted to share more good news from the Senator’s office.

Sen. Reid took another step toward terminating the Yucca Mountain project by working with Sec. Chu and Pres. Obama to eliminate funding to pursue a license application for Yucca in the ‘11 budget. http://bit.ly/LprGC

The operating funds were slashed so significantly that there’s really no way that Yucca Mountain can continue as a project. That being said, what funds are left, will be used to wind down the project.

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns about any of this news. Happy to help.

Best,
Erin
--
Erin Cochran
Deputy Director of New Media
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid

Now, pair this with today's headline in the Review Journal.

Raise your hand if you think this is a Power Play. Yes, with funding slashed, Yucca Mountain is effectively at a standstill, but it's not defeated.

I think this is being played up in the media solely to garner votes, because Senator Reid knows he needs them. As with the legislation about Las Vegas a a legitimate business destination for the government, it looks to me like Harry is painting a very big picture of himself to show his constituents.

If, however, he's sincere and genuine, if Yucca Mountain is done and our economy gets the booster shot it needs from government travel. I'll be happy, and my opinion of the Senator will have changed dramatically.

What do you think? Has Harry Reid come into his own, or is he a Peacock-man?

Positive news about Harry Reid

Seems Reid is planning to take a stand for Nevada.

Simmer down, simmer down.

The Reno Gazette Journal reported on their website that Senator Reid is drafting an act to protect known tourist destinations like Las Vegas and Miami from government discrimination.

According to the article however, says Reid's staff found documentation from the Department of Justice that prohibited conferences and the like in big tourist cities dating back to the Bush Administration. Why didn't Harry know about it until now? You really have to wait for the Wallstreet Journal to dig up some dirt before taking some initiative? Or it's just a hot-button issue, so now you have to do something so you look good.

Seriously though, Senator, if you can actually get something done here, I'll be very impressed. As soon as I post this, I'm going to send the Senator a link to my page, copy and paste the text in the body of the e-mail, then post his response the day I get it. We'll see if we can get some discourse going with the Senator.

I've got some readers that should really be talking to Senator Reid, and I'd love to see what his reaction to all of you is. So, make sure to leave a few comments.

Stimulus Czar

There's a quick story with no details whatsoever in the Review Journal today, just mentioning we may be getting a Stimulus Czar. Oh, okay, that- Wait. What!? Who's bring idea is that?

Jim. Gibbons. The Captain Hammer to my Dr. Horrible.

The text reads, "Without an endorsement, the three-member Board of Examiners unanimously sent the request by Gov. Jim Gibbons to the Legislature's Interim Finance Committee for consideration." Why?

This is telling me, with all the money we pay in taxes, we don't have a qualified grant writer who can absorb some of the duties presented by keeping track of the stimulus money?

Many of the people I talk to who own or manage businesses are in the middle of a hiring freeze. Every time they lose an employee, the survivors in the department just have to pick up the slack. It's hard. It isn't any fun, but it's necessary because it saves money. Why doesn't the State have a similar mentality?

Also, I've paralleled the Federal Government with George Orwell's 1984 numerous times, now I'd like to draw your attention to Franz Kafka's The Castle. The Castle is a satire, playing out the evils of bureaucracy. In the story, for every elected official there are two or three appointed ones, sound like the definition of a Czar to you?. They're trusted experts in their fields, appointed for their expertise. and they spin a web of red tape to prevent the protagonist from accomplishing even the simplest tasks.

What makes the stroy such a powerful metaphore is not the total lack of progress, but eponimous Castle itself. The town in which the story is set is poverty stricken, wood buildings, shacks for homes, and a single, grimy, dirt road for a street. But the government building, sitting at the head of the town like Oz's Emerald City, is opulent, grandiose in its extravagence. The officials, and their attending czars, live in The Castle, conduct their business there, and rarely leave its confines. So, they lose touch with the outside world, and use every resource to expand and improve.

The Castle is an obvious metaphore for the establishment. If the government appoints Czars, who of course hire aids, then they, in the interest of self preservation, have to say, X-ammount of dollars should go to the hiring and retention of czars. It behooves them to make their superiors think czars are an excellent idea. Thereby, they expand and use up more resources, and it turns into a vicious circle.

So, excellent readers, now we come to the point where I ask for your input. What's your opinion of appointed officials? Do you trust Jim Gibbons enough to have him just appoint someone to manage the money Nevada's federal stimulus dollars? Am I just being paranoid because bigger government gives me an itchy trigger finger? You tell me.

Who will be Nevada's next leader?

Following my lead, the Las Vegas Sun and Las Vegas City Life questioned what Harry Reid' warchest of $25 million will mean in the next election. (Sun, City Life)

Granted, $25 mil is an incredible sum for a state election. Money is good for making sure the public remembers your name, but how much good will it do if the public already remembers your name and it leaves a bad taste in their mouths when they do?

The way I see it is, Harry Reid has one strength to run on. He's the Senate Majority Leader. Yucca Mountain "no longer being viewed as a viable repository for nuclear waste" in March will probably help him in this regard.

This, however is not what's going to help him the most. The biggest beast in his corner is the GOP's inability to produce a stronger candidate. If they were able to find a capable local who wanted the job, Reid would be in trouble. Republicans from all over the country would be throwing dollars our way just to get the guy out of office.

If that were the case, and the Republicans had some sort of secret weapon, money would mean relatively little with a 30-something percent approval rating and his ability to constantly draw fire from both sides, Nevadans are just looking for an excuse to chuck the guy out.

That being said, I want to thank everybody for commenting so deliciously on Friday's post, and I encourage you to keep it going on today's. Everyone knows I'd appoint my horse a senator before voting for Harry, so I want to know, are there any Reid supporters in the audience? I'm not looking for someone to ridicule, I just want to know what people see in the guy.

If you aren't white, it's your fault. No excuses.

In today's Review Journal, we find that the school district again fell short of the expectations set forth by the No Child Left Behind Act. This means that we'll be put on a Federal Watch List, which lines us up for repercussions in the future if we don't improve. The school district says overall performance has improved; the reason we've been placed on a watch list is due to the poor performance of student subgroups.

That warrants saying again. Overall, we've done better, but student subgroups not performing to standard are the reason we've been placed on the federal watch list.

The NCLB Act is a government mandate to record the differences between children of different races and household income levels. Please, somebody tell me they see how utterly wrong that is. But that's not half of what upsets me in this article. Here's what kills me:

"School district officials, who released the results for each school and the district itself on Thursday, blamed the failure in math and English testing not on the performance of most schools, which have improved overall, but on the performance of student subgroups."

That's a straight quote from the article. The school district is blaming the failing scores on the minority/low income/handicapped kids. I think the school district should be appalled that they're being asked to view their students as race and class based statistics. Instead, they're embracing it and using it as a scape goat.

Measuring these differences sounds like some kind of bizarre scientific experiment, reminiscent of Nazis attempting to prove the Jews were subhuman.

So, if the Federal Government and our school district are going to play it that way, I want an explanation. You're telling me minority and low income students aren't performing as well as others. Which ones are messing us up? And why exactly is that? Perhaps poverty is linked to intelligence on a genetic level, and that's why poor people are poor. They just can't help it. They're bred into it and have no chance of escaping it. Or maybe you're going to tell me that one race is inferior to another?

What say you, reader? Anyone agree with measuring academic aptitude based on race or income? I won't rag on you, I'm genuinely interested in hearing a positive aspect of it. Leave your comments.

Titus' stance on healthcare- Prudence or Pomp?

It's probably pretty obvious that I would disagree with Dina Titus on issues of fiscal policy. Imagine my surprise when I opened up this morning's Sun and read she not only wasn't supporting the new taxes going to pay for healthcare reform, but actually joined with 19 of her colleagues to oppose Nancy Pelosi in a letter.

I was genuinely impressed. That is, until I continued the article and was reminded, oh yeah, she's a friggen politician.

In parts of the article, it seems like she may in fact be concerned with the fate of small business, but she quickly degenerates to pandering. She's quoted as saying, "Families like that," I can only assume she means $280,000+ households, "probably have two kids in college, a house that's upside down, a car payment." There are lots of families in that same situation in every income level.

She doesn't seem to get the potentially crippling effect that even a small tax increase can have on a small business that right now, is struggling to survive.

What's worse, at the end of the article, she pretty much says she's just putting up token resistance for show. Check it out:

Titus: That wasn’t an indictment of the bill; it was a statement that we can do better.

Las Vegas Sun: So if taxing people earning $280,000 or households earning $350,000 is in the final bill, it’s not a deal breaker?

Titus: “That’s right.”

Dina Titus, Folks. I understand being a politician is a job like any other, you have to keep your boss happy, and it's got to be rough when your boss is a mass collective. But still, we don't elect politicians to be told what we want to hear. We're Americans. We respect people who do what they believe is right, even if we disagree with it (barring the KKK and the Nazis).

Since we're on the issue of healthcare reform and taxes, and I've been getting some action in the comments section, what do you think? It looks like healthcare is getting an overhaul no matter what. Assuming that's the case, where do you all think the money should come from?

Private tutors for Clark County

Another story dealing with No Child Left Behind this morning on the pages of the Review Journal. You might remember my previous commentary on the subject matter. It's no secret, I'm vehemently opposed to it.

We'll be getting our results as far as how well we stood up to the restrictions set forth by the Federal Government tomorrow, and according to the article, it's a gloomy forecast.

The bright side is, we'll be getting money from the Federal Stimulus Package regardless, and that's something; we won't be destitute. The article says the Nevada Department of Education is choosing to use the money on private tutors, and I think their heart is in the right place.

In my experience as a teacher, kids of all ages benefit from close attention. My theory is, parents don't care enough to get involved with their kids' schoolwork, thus, the students are starved for attention.

There simply isn't enough time in the school day to take care of every student's needs one on one. So, if we can't force parents to be parents, some individual tutoring will certainly help. The article says we'll get $6.9 million, which averages out to $1,400/student, which equates to about 24 tutoring sessions in a school year, depending on how much the tutor charges.

Granted, that number is pretty weak, over a 9 month school year, that's less than one hour/week. However, not every kid will need tutoring, and not every kid who needs tutoring will want to participate. With that kind of funding, students who will benefit from a tutoring program should be able to have a one hour tutoring session with a decent tutor once/week. And that really is enough to make a difference.

In my opinion, that's only the 2nd best thing they could do with the money. $6.9 million is a lot of money. That's enough to employ nearly 200 starting teachers. Granted, there are over 300 schools in Clark County. But, not every school is grossly overcrowded. Distributing 200 new teachers among the schools with the densest classroom populations has enormous potential.

Remember, it's your school district, funded by your money. If you have kids, and you want to see improvement, tell the School District how you want them educated. Here's a link to the CCSD's Curriculum and Professional Development department. Pick someone and tell them what you think.

Grammar Judgement

This week's City Life introduces our first female Chief Judge of the Las Vegas Municipal Court, Betsey Kolkoski. If the name looks familiar, it's because Judge Kolkoski has made the news several times for championing DUI anti-recidivism causes for years in Southern Nevada.

Kolkoski granted an interview to City Life, in which she says a lot. That's really the only way to describe it, there are just so many words, all pointing in different directions.

Now, in spirit, I like what she's saying. She talks about fiscal responsibility on the part of the Judicial Branch. That's what we need right now. She also explains the benefits of house arrest in the case of misdemeanor crimes, as the incriminated must pay the court for the ability to serve time at home.

I know many people dislike the idea of house arrest, as they say they don't feel safe knowing criminals may be living just down the street, but violent crimes never garner such a light sentence, nor do sex crimes. Typically, such sentences are reserved for light misdemeanors committed by people unlikely to become repeat offenders. Removing these low-risk culprits from the prison system saves the penal system considerable sums of money.

So, overall, I'm happy with Judge Kolkoski, unless I focus on what she's actually saying. Every sentence is full of off phrasing and qualifiers, and descriptors like "extraordinarily good." Describing someone as "extraordinarily good" means they're probably luminous and zip around on white wings.

Here's a snippet of the article: I have a preference for using house arrest. I would like to see an enhancement in the house arrest program. I would like to see the city use the house arrest program more because it's really basic math.

That's verbatim. I didn't a or remove a single word. The teacher in me wants to take a red pen to my computer screen right now.

I'll stop my rant on Judge Kolkoski, as I was not the one interviewing her. I have great faith in City Life, but if there's even a slight chance that she was misquoted, then she deserved the benefit of the doubt.

Plus, I've always been a Spirit of the Law kind of guy anway. So, we wish you the best, Judge Kolkoski.

Keep in mind, I toutor for 75/hr. I'm just saying, if you're interested.

Pass (on) the OJ, please.

I remember watching the Low Speed Chase in 1994. It took up more of my day than it really should have.

I remember Kato Kaelin, Judge Ito, Robert Shapiro and even that Simpson was seeing a Playboy model when he was accused of the double murder. Why do we remember these names and faces so many years after the fact? Why did we all become media zombies, tuning in to watch OJ coverage day after day after day?

Even now, more than a decade after the trial, we're still trying to cash in on this guys media-worthiness. A story in the Review Journal is trying hard to get me to care that OJ Simpson is trying to get released on an appeal bond.

Simpson was convicted of stealing sports memorabilia last year and is serving time in Northern Nevada. It just doesn't have the sex appeal of a murder case, sorry RJ.

I think(hope) Simpson has lost that certain something that captured the nation just a few short years ago, but, if you insist on trying to milk the poor guy for ratings, you're going to need Mark Furhman and Johnnie Cochran. It wouldn't hurt to thrown some racial tension in the mix guys.

I mean, Simpson wasn't the only factor of that circus that made for good viewing. If you're going to assault us with mind candy, make sure you include all the ingredients.

Controversial Financing Plan

The local labor union offered yesterday to loan the city up to 50% of a $250 million project- a brand new City Hall, on 1st. and Clark.

We'll try something different today, some real journalism. I'll give you some facts, and you tell me how you take them.

This is specifically to get some more comments going. The more I know about how you feel as readers, the better I'm able to direct my stories.

The Local 872 is willing to make this loan, citing public works projects from the Great Depression. This paints President Obama as the new FDR, allowing his Stimulus Plan to be drawn as parallel with Roosevelt's New Deal.

The practice is not unheard of, the laborers need to work, it's the unions job to ensure they do. But our unions are not always so altruistic. In the 60's, right here in Vegas, the Teamsters loaned considerable sums of money to Big Guns in the Mob to get the ball rolling on some of Old Vegas' glitziest casinos. This, in turn, puts Oscar Goodman in the same light as the mythical Jimmy Hoffa.

I'll keep my opinions to myself for now, but will gladly weigh in, in the Comments section if we get a good discussion going.

I'd be especially interested to hear something from a Laborer's point of view, if any member of the local 872 are hiding out in the readership.

Gibbons- Live

Who said the GOP is the party of rich old guys? Looks like our esteemed governor is hip and with it. That's right, he's opened himself up to the wide world of Social Networking.

When I opened the paper this morning, and read that particular tidbit, I didn't really believe it. And, since I didn't have a Facebook account myself, I had to sign up for one myself, just so I could see what the Governor was up to.

I went away feeling disappointed, as he has no updates, and not even a nifty Gibbons picture to appease all his fans.

I did find, after searching the governor's name, five specifically anti-Gibbons groups on facebook. No pro-Gibbons groups, but the governor has amassed 170 supporters, including yours truly since starting his page on the 3rd. While I'm not a Gibbons fan, I'm all for supporting Republicans trying new things, to appeal to younger and broader audiences.

I don't think the GOP has much of a chance in that instance, however, as when an interested party searches for Governor Gibbons, they're presented with a choice between his simple American Flag icon, and the picture for the "IMPEACH Governor Gibbons" group, which is a highly appealing shot of the politician as The Dark Emperor, Darth Sidious, shooting Force Lightning from his fingertips. It's hard not to click on that.

In any case, best of luck, Governor. Hope that whole Dark Lord of the Sith thing works out for you.

If you feel like looking up your friendly neighborhood Chronicler up on Facebook, click here.

Harry Reid is not a gangsta-ass nigga.

As the public scrambles for jobs and the media cries Doomsday every evening on the news, The Las Vegas Review Journal tells us our esteemed senator, Harry Reid, projects his campaign funds will reach $25 million by the time November of next year rolls around.

That's all well and good, Mr. Senator, but seriously, you gotta rub it in? I do understand campaigning is expensive, if you have any hope of getting elected. But seriously, $25 million?

Here's the thing, the gist of the article is: Harry Reid doesn't need such an astronomical campaign fund, he's just flexing what he's got to deter anyone from running against him. However, it also stresses that the Republican party really doesn't have any candidates strong enough to oppose the incumbent senator.

Now, if that's the case, and the opposition can't produce a champion, is it prudent for your message to be: Hey, Everyman, I have more money at my disposal than you do in your wettest dreams.

Granted, it isn't your money to spend, really. It belongs to the people that want to keep you in office, and has to be used to that purpose. But still, that's a huge figure to be touting. Not to mention the fact that some people may find the strategy of "Don't run against me, cause I have more resources," rather distasteful.

In a perfect world, an incumbent senator would be able to run on his track record, not just hope he's scaring away the competition.

I think some wisdom from the Hip Hop world is most applicable here, Senator. Real gangsta-ass niggas don't flex nuts, cause real gangsta-ass niggas know they got 'em, or so say The Geto Boys.

Is you a real gangsta-ass nigga, Harry?

Nevada wins 2nd place!

In sucking.

National Journal Online rated Nevada #2 in its list of most dysfunctional states. Among its criticisms it lists Brian Kroliki and Catherine Cortez-Masto, one of whom may at some point face criminal charges about which no one will ever hear. That's valid, if not major, and I commend NJO for doing their homework.

Most of the rest of the article slams Governor Jim Gibbons. Gibbons is a straight-up joke, and any national exposure he gets for clowning around as leader of my state, I'll support. Remember, Kids, Gibbons has a 10% approval rating. Ann Coulter has a higher approval rating among socialist democrats than Jim Gibbons has with the people who elected him.

I don't think the article is completely valid, however, as it cites Mayor Oscar Goodman as a factor in its "Criminality" section. Yes, Mayor Goodman is a former mob lawyer. No, we as Las Vegans don't care. Mayor Goodman loves Nevada and he knows his way around the political circuit. Many Las Vegans would vote for Oscar no matter what he was running for, Mayor, Governor or King of Siam, it really doesn't matter. His charisma and excellent taste in Gin makes him our hero.

Lastly, I see two mentions of Republican Senator John Ensign. Granted, his affair is almost entirely glossed over, for which I'm thankful, as I'm sick of hearing about that. However, Harry Reid is conspicuously absent from NJO's list of grievances.

Reid draws fire from every corner of the political arena for his lukewarm politics. Indeed, Criticisms of Harry Reid get their very own entry on Wikipedia. If for no other reason, Reid should be mentioned for claiming not to know he couldn't use campaign money to buy Christmas gifts for his staff. C'mon, Guy, it's scary to think a senator doesn't know that money from X can't go to fuel Y. You've got an important job, Harry. Pay attention.

It's a scary World Wide Web out there

Interesting that's it's called a "web". It's like a sticky-steel net, covering the world. And you're so enmeshed in the threads, that you can never get out. The more you struggle, the more tangled you become, so it's best just to lay down and accept it. Embrace your doom, Kids.

An interesting combination of stories in this week's Las Vegas City Life. If you haven't picked up a copy yet, you should. This week the publication focuses on the Internet, more specifically, your glaring lack of privacy. One short, but powerful blurb informs us that the NSA is teaming up with the Chinese government (and others) to fine tune ways of tracking what you do through your online habits.

This weeks main story, really hammers the point home. It cites an incident in which the Review Journal turned over names of readers to law officials. It's a well written piece, and really makes you think, "If I've heard this all before, why does it bother me every time I hear it again?"

It's because you get too comfortable. The Internet is how you stay in touch with the world, even your friends and family. How many blogs do you read daily? How many Tweets do you get? The Internet makes you feel secure. It gives you the grave illusion that you're still connected to the human experience.

Connection may be the crux of this little commentary. Humans are essentially pack animals. We want to be close and together and feel that love-warmth all the time. Even at work. Even at 3:00am sitting on a plane, waiting to pull up to the gate. Even when you're sitting at lunch with a friend, you still want to be connected to those other friends who aren't around. It's this need that's led to chat rooms, Internet connections on your phone and sites like Twitter, which allow you to tell the world what you ate for lunch today.

Precisely because we feel this need for constant connection, marketing firms, criminals and the Government have us by the balls. We love the Internet so much, we can't get rid of it; even though we know it detaches us from reality, and is a gateway for the world into our private lives.

To illustrate the point, I reference another article in this week's City life. Within pages of the huge article explaining how none of us are safe on the web, comes this lovely little piece introducing a new Vegas-based rant site: socialslum.com. It's a forum to which you can go to say all the terrible things you always wanted to say, but haven't ever had the guts to actually get out.

Hate Mormons? No problem, there's a spot for you. Hate fate people? It's cool, so does that guy. Go talk to him. Hate women? So does everybody else. Let's talk about it. It's okay, nobody knows who you are. Don't get me wrong. I'm all about your right to make base comments about other races or cultures. 1st amendment, Baby. I just think, if you're going to talk smack, man up and be proud of it. Anonymous insults are slimy and cowardly.

It's a wonder how a site based on anonymity can even get off the ground. What really worries me is that there's a Drug Slum, on which people openly ask for drugs and suppliers. People will find out about it through this issue of City Life, not bothering to read the articles about the non-existence of Internet privacy. They're going to get busted, and then be outraged.

I don't want to be an alarmist though. Remember, there's more of us than there are of them, and we pay their paychecks. If you don't like what your government is doing, change it.

Until the ball gets rolling, check out this last story in City Life, about how to protect yourself.

Good Luck.

More School District News

KXNT reports today that School District Superintendent Walt Rulffes offered to take a 10% pay cut.

I have mixed feelings about the fact that the Superintendent is making $300,000+/year, but I really commend him for leading by example. Taking a $30,000.00 pay cut could, ostensibly, save a starting teacher their job.

You're a stand up guy, Walt.

That's racist. No, that's progress.

It seems the school district has fallen short of the expectations set forth by the No Child Left Behind Act, the bane of most competent school district employees. If you don't know any teachers, do yourself a favor. Find one. Take him or her out to lunch and ask her to explain it to you. You'll be in for an hour-long roller coaster. Trust me.

According to an article in today's Sun, the school district stood up to the, sometimes unreasonable, guidelines of The Act for the past two years. Looks like this year, we didn't do so hot. I'm sure someone, somewhere will link it to the economy or an underfunded school district, but let me focus your attention a little.

According to the same article, federal education law dictates schools will be evaluated based on the performance of subgroups of students. Subgroups meaning, whether or not they're in Special Ed., their English fluency, their family income and, of course, their ethnicity.

Reading that makes me salivate. You're telling me, the government mandates that we record the difference between little black kids and little white kids? Really? Cause when I was growing up I was taught to ignore the color of someone's skin, and told that there wasn't any difference between me and my friends who weren't white.

You know, differences between races are only going to be there as long as we acknowledge them.

The following lines only get better. If the school district fails to get up to scratch, they're put on a "watch list" (their term, not mine). And after two consecutive years of inadequacy, the district in question incurs penalties, the most severe of which are a takeover by the state, and then federal government.

Yes, if your schools can't cut the muster, you may be facing the eventuality of sending your special little boy or girl to a school run by the federal government, where learning is fun, because if you say it isn't, they take away your chocorat for the week.

That's about the scariest future ever proposed to me. But, that in itself might be a thoughtcrime.

In any case, have a doubleplusgood day.

Ensign...Again.

I tried, really, really hard to find some pertinent political news to talk about today without resorting to Doug Hampton's interview dealing with John Ensign's affair with his wife, but our beloved crusading senator is on the front page of the Review Journal and the Sun. And of course, City Life, has to weigh in, because that's what they do.

So, if my three favorite news sources have latched onto the story, why don't I want to talk about it? Simple: I'm not a friggen gossip columnist.

I understand that cheating on a spouse usually involves elaborate ongoing lies, and lying is (ostensibly) not what we as Americans look for in our politicians. But every time something like this hits the press it's always a "sex scandal". The headlines don't read: Senator lies to wife, is he lying to you? They read more like tabloid hearsay.

Today's top stories are all about Doug Hampton giving juicy details, how many times did the senator text message Mrs. Hampton? What did he say? Things which have no baring on anything and are really, nobody's business.

I commend Steve Sebelius for at least making his article in City Life about integrity instead of a lurid romance tale.

Since the newspapers only report on what you, Consumer, want to know more about, and since your interest in people like Senator Ensign should be mainly political, am I to understand that a person's sex life impacts what kind of leader they are?

Of course it does.

After all, Churchill favored doggie style, and everyone knows that's one of the main reasons London was able to survive when Germany was dropping bombs on their women and children.

Come on, People, sensationalism isn't a great thing. We all know the Senator was unfaithful, do with that what you will. If you think that makes him a liar or a hypocrite, don't vote for him. But don't give in to temptation to gossip.

How many of you know a couple who's had to deal with infidelity? Was it easy for them? Did you hound them for details? Imagine if their dirty laundry had been plastered on billboards, or your neighborhood watch group held an emergency meeting to discuss it?

Senator Ensign, his wife and his former mistress are all normal people. Give them some courtesy.

Final thoughts:

Doug Hampton: Shame on you. We all know your wife cheated on you. That's too bad, but you're a bastard for opening your closet door and letting the Media Wolves in for a bite.

Senator Ensign: Maybe you'll think twice about calling folks out for their sexual practices. Hope you learned something.

Uh, yeah, Jake, Tina, you don't work here anymore. Didn't you read today's paper?

The County Commission has decided not to cut the social services budget. Commissioner Giunchigliani instead, questioned the wisdom of positions like Public Information Officer and Human Resources Assistant.

I understand the importance of humanitarianism, taking care of the elderly and the destitute. And if you’re interested in the full story, as reported by the Review Journal, click here.

What I’d like to call your attention to is the aforementioned section of the above article: Chris Giunchigliani said, in a public forum, that she doubted the validity of some of the county’s employees’ positions.

That’s rough, commissioner. Have all the Public Information Officers been informed that they should be proving themselves, cause they’re on thin ice right now? Did you let all your HR managers know that they need to brush up on lower level functions, because they may be losing their assistants?

Things like this make me wonder how much time any politician spends thinking. When you obtain a political position, does that filter between mouth and brain just shut down? Or do they really think it’s okay to say whatever you like, and deal with damage control later.

Or, an even scarier thought, does Commissioner Giunchigliani believe announcing company cutbacks to the local newspaper with the highest readership to be the most prudent way to let people know their jobs may be in danger.
Seriously, read a management book or two. The grapevine is the first thing you’ve got to get a handle on to be an effective leader.

To relate that back to the article, which talks about how the County Commission’s heartstrings were tugged until they gave in on the social services budget, were the Commission’s decisions even responsible?

Slip-ups like that are small, Commissioner, but they chip away at the trust (what’s left of it) we’ve placed in those who govern us.

Next time, pause, think for a sec, and then speak up. You’ll be doing all of us a favor.

Judgement

There's a great story to get you thinking in the Las Vegas Sun this morning. There's a proposal in the works to have judges appointed by a committee instead of elected by nevadans, like they are now.

There's obvious good and bad to this. Specialized committees are subject to bribery, nepotism and any other form of corruption. However, Nevadans rarely take the time to research who they're voting for.

Putting that responsibility in the hands of a few, could result in better judges, as those few will probably know what they're talking about. But, that just seems so unamerican.

when did we, as a people, decide we wanted to have everything done for us? How many of you balance your checkbook on a regular basis? Or do you just trust the bank to get it right? That's not good, Folks.

I know it sounds jaded, but what happened to the old "If you want something right, you have to do it yourself" credo? I want us to have responsible, knowledgeable judges. But I want us to elect them. If I had my way, every voter would sit down and do some research before heading out the door to cast their ballots. I mean, it's easy enough to find both sides of any argument nowadays. 5 minutes with Google will tell you anything you want to know.

So, that only leaves the question, is that concept of voters being in control more or less important than having competent judges. I don't know. Put the power to appoint judges in the hands of a few, and they'll inevitably become corrupt. Leave it to the voters, and whomever can raise the most campaign money will probably get the job.

Honestly though, I think I'd rather leave it in the hands of the uninformed voters. I know it's not right to argue the slippery-slope, but to me, it's scary to think about what else a lazy American populace might place in the hands of appointed officials. Something to think about, anyway.

What do you want to remember?

Our first story this week comes from Las Vegas City Life. It talks about the future of West Las Vegas, the area around Washington and M.L.K.

This area of town has suffered from Big Dreams Syndrome for a long time. Policymakers and community leaders give us grandiose ideas of putting this area of town through some sort of renaissance. The problem is lack of funding, and lack of interest by people who have funding.

Enter the Main Street Program. They preserve historically significant areas of the United States, taking old, rundown communities and making them new again.

I get where you're going, Guys. Your heart is in the right place. This endearing little microcosm deserves a break. But is this what we want people to remember about Las Vegas? Not Downtown? Not Boulder Highway (trash now, but think Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas)?

Chances are, one way or an0ther, these are going to be your dollars at work. Think about the one place you'd preserve as a landmark that screams Las Vegas history to you, and remember, it's your city, make sure it turns out how you want it.

No Rant Today

I'm pretty spent after my last two rants about the brotherly nature of Man (1,2), so I wont rail at you again today. It's the 4th of July, Independence Day. The day when we as Americans gather to drink beer, grill and burn things.

Independence Day has always been one of my favorite holidays, and, in honor of Chicago, it happens to be a Saturday. So, for those reasons, I'll leave you with a short list of movies to watch until it gets dark and the sky bursts into a shower of gold, green, red and violet.

1. Independence Day

Enjoy

Faithism?

I went back to throw a link to yesterday's post on the Review Journal and Sun websites. I reread all of the comments that prompted me to write the post in the first place. And it really pissed me off.

Look, Mormons are a little weird because they don't drink and have "family values", I get it. I mean, if they just weren't so proud of their integrity, they'd be okay, right? They should have the decency to keep their high moral standards behind closed doors where no one has to look at them and feel bad, like good, decent folk.

Seriously, if one more person tells me Mormons have a "holier-than-thou" attitude, we'll throw down. I'm not LDS. But lots of my friends are. They're open about their faith, but they aren't pushy. Religion has become taboo in America. If anyone even mentions their church in a public setting, they're one of those people, and if they're actually proud of their church and their belief, well that's just crass; a social faux pas. Grow up.

One more thing, when did it become okay to single out a group and make fun of them in a public forum? Nobody, nobody would have the balls to start making black jokes or gay jokes on a newspaper's website. But Tony, religion is different. Okay, I get that, but if someone started slandering Jews or Muslims in a well-read public forum, some advocacy group or another would rear their head and breathe fire.

This isn't a call to action. Don't e-mail the RJ or the Sun telling them you're mad as hell. If you do that, they'll either do away with the comments section under each story, or moderate them so heavily that they'll lose their purpose. Those comments sections get people thinking and talking about what's going on in their communities.

Instead, this is a call not to be a punk. Got a problem with an entire religion? So did Hitler, keep your bonehead opinions to yourself.

Cheers, Salt Lake

This is typically a Nevada blog, but a couple stories in the Review Journal and the Sun caught my attention. It wasn't the subject matter so much as the ensuing string of comments (links: Sun, RJ) that made me want to post.

Seems Salt Lake is relaxing its drinking laws just a bit. Visitors won't have to fill out applications or pay a nominal fee (usually $10 to $15) before entering the bar or pub of their choice. The headline of the article reads, "Salt Lake won't 'turn into Vegas'.

From the back and forth slander, it looks like that rubbed some people the wrong way. So, without rehashing the comments blow-by-blow, I'll just give some of my general thoughts on some Utah/Vegas/LDS issues.

Salt Lake City does not want to be Las Vegas any more than Las Vegas wants to be Salt Lake. I'm not just talking about the LDS kids in Salt Lake. There are plenty of Catholics/Non-Denominationals/Jews/Agnostics that live in Salt Lake, enjoy the artsy, very laid back atmosphere and wouldn't take the Vegas lifestyle if you offered it to them on a golden platter.

Salt Lake is probably not relaxing their booze laws to attract a drinking crowd. They only want to lessen their unfriendly stigma so they can attract more tourists in general. Salt Lake is not a party town, but it is pretty, it does have a cool college scene, and it is a cool place to visit if you know any locals that can show you around.

Utah requires all draft beer to be 3.2% ABV However, bottled beer, served at beer or bought in liquor stores is not subject ro such restrictions. Colrado, Oklahoma, Minnesota and Kansas are also under the same 3.2 restriction. The difference is, Utah makes great beer. Squatters is consistently tasty with signature strong, hoppy beers. Wasatch brewary is continually excellent, not to mention clever, with beers like 1st Ammendment Lager and Polygamy Porter.

But Utha's true gem is Uinta Brewing Company. I've never been disapointed by their sizable array of beers, and I was blown away last year when I tried their anniversay Barly Wine. It's incredible, rich armoa and almost sweet pallet are mouthwatering; not to mention the toasty 9.8% alcohol content.

I'm going to post this as a stick in the eye to all the haters on the Sun's website. Hopefully, we'll get some meaty followup in the comments section.

It hurts less if you're shot by a minor...

In today's Review Journal, we read abour Gerald Davison pleading guilty to first degree murder. Davison is 17 years old. This come on the heels of an article in Las Vegas City Life detailing our County's reluctance to allow youth probation officers the right to organize.

I was a substitute teacher for a while. A few times I taught kids that had been kicked out of regular school either for drugs or violence. The school had metal detectors and officers "wanded" all the kids before they got to the class room. The teacher I was in for had the classroom set up in such a way that her desk was part of a barricade, along with a television stand, a bookshelf and two overturned tables. She also left explicit instructions not to allow pencil shapeners, as the children would attempt to use them as weapons.

These are the kids that got kicked out of school and are trying to come back. You think the ones on probation are better or worse? I won't make a blanket statement, but you can guess which way I'm leaning.

Now, Ron Newman and his fellow juvenile probation officers want to organize so they can get things like bullet-proof vests and extendable batons. My feelings on unions aside, it seems like the County should think ahead a little.

Do you send a construction worker on a jobsite without a hard hat? You ever seen a lion tamer without a whip and a chair? It seems to me that some kevlar should be standard for the work environment when you're talking about the guys who go out and round up gun toting children.