Veterans

1. The City of Leavenworth is proud to host "The oldest Veterans Day observance in the nation and the largest parade west of the Mississippi.", later today.  LINK.

2.  Is the recent phenomenon of sports players kneeling during the playing of the national anthem disrespectful to veterans?

**yeah, let's go there.**

• It is apparent that this practice is successful as far as getting attention to the players.  Not sure how effective it is to what they say their cause is (either racial injustice or perceived slights or resisting current POTUS)
• Short term, it's a relatively inexpensive way to protest.  Long term, it's risky, also see the career of Kapernick, C.
• Reminds me of when the Dixie Chicks exercised their 1st Amendment rights to diss President GW Bush...and country music stations exercised their rights to play other people's music.
• There is injustice (although not as bad as a century ago, still a problem) that needs to be addressed.  But I don't think the protests or the picket signs across from the police station are changing anything.
• I'm very curious as to the reaction if a Jehovah's Witness was playing in a major US sports league and refused to stand and salute the flag on religious grounds. Also see WV State BoE vs Barnette in 1943.
• If I was the NFL commissioner, I'd be more worried about concussions and head trauma.
• Way way too late for the commissioner to shut the door on this.  Any decision now would alienate millions of fans one way or the other. And team owners could've made league rules in 2017 offseason, but didn't.
• The actions of Kaepernick, Peters, etc. should be of far less concern to fans and owners than the actions of Carruth, Belcher, etc.
• President Trump's decision to double down on demanding respect to the flag and the anthem...it's starting to sound like Daniel 3.
• What belongs to Caesar, and what belongs to God?

Replacing Winner-Take-All

So, using Wikipedia's pages for the results for all the presidential elections since Dewey Defeats Truman (1948), I ran an experiment.

Experiment:  For each state and the District of Columbia,
Electoral Votes are assigned using Largest Remainder Method, () dividing total votes per candidate by electoral votes; then rounding up or down depending on the remainder.

If the resulting electoral votes don't reach a majority...
  Using 12th Amendment...
  Each state gets 1 vote, voted if the state doesn't have a deadlock where D's = R's.
  If there's a Southern Democrat that the state voted for, the Southern Democrat gets the vote.

Result Summary
1) Any candidate who got 50% of the PV won the Proportional-EV, but never received more than 334 EV.
2) John Kennedy got 49.72% of the PV, and won with 270 P-EV (269 needed to win in 1960)
3) Any candidate who got less than 49.6% of the PV failed to win the Proportional-EV, and it went to the Congress.

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Year	Winner	EV	PV	P-EV Leader	P-EV Score	House	Senate
1948	Truman	303	0.4955	Truman	258-226	Truman 22	Barkley 54
1952	Eisenhower	442	0.5518	Eisenhower	291-240
1956	Eisenhower	457	0.5737	Eisenhower	295-230
1960	Kennedy	303	0.4972	Kennedy	270-262
1964	Johnson	486	0.6105	Johnson	320-215
1968	Nixon	301	0.4342	Nixon	235-225	Humphrey 22	Muskie 57
1972	Nixon	520	0.6067	Nixon	334-203
1976	Carter	297	0.5008	Carter	273-263
1980	Reagan	489	0.5075	Reagan	276-224
1984	Reagan	525	0.5877	Reagan	320-218
1988	Bush	426	0.5377	Bush	290-248
1992	Clinton	370	0.4301	Clinton	236-197	Clinton 30	Gore 57
1996	Clinton	379	0.4923	Clinton	267-224	Dole 28	Kemp 55
2000	Bush	271	0.4787	Bush	264-261	Bush 28	50-50
2004	Bush	286	0.5073	Bush	280-258
2008	Obama	365	0.5293	Obama	289-248
2012	Obama	332	0.5106	Obama	276-260
2016	Trump	304	0.4598	Clinton	261-259	Trump 32	Pence 52

---

1948 Truman, 8 PEV short, only wins 22 states in 1948.  If Truman is unable to get Thurmond to back him with his 3 states, then his VP Barkley becomes President with 54/96 Senate.  (Senate only gets to pick between 2)
    Possible VP for PREZ

1968 Nixon, 35 PEV short (thanks George Wallace, who goes from 46 EV to 78 PEV), only wins 18 states in 1968.  Even if Wallace's 6 states back Nixon, Nixon still only gets to 24.  If Wallace goes with Humphrey, who had 22 states, Humphrey gets the White House.  Otherwise, Muskie, Humphrey's VP candidate, becomes president with the backing of 57 Senators.
    Possible SWITCH, Possible SWITCH VP for PREZ

1992 Clinton, 34 PEV short (thanks Ross Perot, who goes from 0 EV to 105! PEV), wins in the House with 30 states.  VP Gore advances with 57 Senators.

1996 Clinton, 3 PEV short (thanks Ross Perot, who goes from 0 EV to 46 PEV) loses in the House - Dole and the Republican Revolution have 28 states and 55 Senators, giving Dole/Kemp the win.
    SWITCH

2000 Bush43, 6 PEV short (still close, Bush43 264 from 271; Gore 261 from 267; Nader! 13 PEV from 0), advances with 28 states in the House.  VP Cheney and Lieberman sit at an impasse at 50-50.  Unsure whether Gore would be able to cast tie-breaking vote; or whether Jeffords, who would later defect in mid 2001 would switch for Lieberman.
    Possible SWITCH VP

2016 Trump, 11 PEV short - and Clinton 9 PEV short.  Trump has 32 states, and Pence has 52 senators, putting the current administration in.

---

Agents of Wrath

There is only one county in the United States in which there are two death chambers, that is, two places where a prisoner condemned to death may meet his fate.  And since I'm blogging about it, my readers would correctly assume that I'm referring to the county I currently reside in, Leavenworth County, Kansas.

Surprisingly, USP Leavenworth (the famous one) isn't one of those places.  The Federal Bureau of Prisons conducts executions in Indiana, most notably the Oklahoma City bomber.  However, military executions and state executions would take place within 10 miles of my house.

Military executions take place at Fort Leavenworth's US Disciplinary Barracks.  Although there hasn't been an execution at Fort Leavenworth since 1961, 6 men are on death row, including the soldier responsible for the Fort Hood attack.

If the state of Kansas chooses to actually execute any of the 9 or 10 men on death row, they'd be transported to Lansing - the prison that my father worked at for 25 years.  The "new" death chamber has never been used.  Also, it's been since the 1960s since Kansas carried out an execution.

Earlier this year, there was conversation that one of the military prisoners, convicted of rape and murder in the late 80s, might finally have his sentence carried out.  It gave me a chance to contemplate the issue of capital punishment.  Another pause for thought occurred when the Charleston shooter unsuccessfully tried to avoid a death sentence earlier this year.

Unfortunately, it can be agreed that the death penalty is not consistently applied in a fair, just, timely manner.  And although I've used the phrase "Needle of Justice™" in regard to lethal injection...justice and the death penalty have a strained relationship in our country.

The problem of crime in our country, the value of human life (used in arguments for and against the death penalty), the inconsistencies, and the delay..,

Even if I remain in favor of the death penalty, I don't have to like it, and I don't have to be comfortable about it.

But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God's servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. - Rom 13:4

Where did the truck commercials go?

As I told my friend, one thing that bothers me is that...
the set of skills and butt-kissing required to win a major party presidential primary campaign is different than...
the set of skills and butt-kissing required to win a general presidential campaign, which is different than...
the set of skills and butt-kissing required to effectively serve as president.

Here's the venn diagram, in my opinion.

O      O      O

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Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence. - John Adams

There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics. - Attributed to Mark Twain.

A friend of mine discussed Kansas school funding.  He discussed the proportion of Kansas revenues going to education, several various rankings of educational outcomes, and comparisons between teacher pay and the high-end superintendent/administrator positions.

There's a big lawsuit "Gannon" in the Kansas Supreme Court, in which the two sides are throwing numbers at each other in an attempt to determine whether the state of Kansas is adequately funding education.

And, if the court finds that the funding isn't adequate, the state of Kansas is looking at some sort of court-mandated tax increase.

*******************************************

Fighting the narrative...you might be able to throw statistics at it, but you have a small chance.  The problem is, no one wants news anymore.  Just the story.  Just the lead.

Fighting the revolution...I see one chance on the political front...and it involves a unified front - across many red red states - saying in one voice, "hell no, we won't go."  It involves standing up to the media, the sports world, and the zeitgeist.

Fighting the government overreach...A convention of the states making an amendment to strengthen the 10th Amendment...to allow states to do whatever the hell they want...that has a small chance.  But...it could get the marijuana lobby and the religious right lobby on the same page...

*******************************************

I looked at my choices on my ballot for President.  Hell no, hell no, no, hell no.  I only trust two of them to not get us involved in another war.  I only trust one of them to care about religious liberty.  I only trust two of them to care about strict constituionalist justices.  But in all, none of them are worthy of my oval.

*******************************************

Rent out Texas, live in hell.

Last year, Sporting KC beat Houston on their way to winning US Open Cup 2015. Since the Cup is geographically divided, not a surprise that we got a rematch. But Houston pulled the 3-1 win earlier this week, advancing to the quarterfinals, the first playoff win for Houston over Kansas City (any sport) since both ALDS (KC Royals 3-2) and Wild Card weekend (Chiefs 30-0).

Politically... If it came down to SCOTUS, it would be easy. Governor Johnson would probably put Ron Paul on the bench...
But there's things on the LP platform that I disagree with.  Frankly, it's a crap and diamond smorgasbord, almost a "Satan sandwich", to borrow the quote from the congressman in the next state.  Long story short, might write in Bill Pratt for President.

Sometimes, I feel like I could write attack ads for both sides. Disconcerting feeling when I grab my No.2 pencil and fill out my ballot.

And even if I was running a campaign...I don't know the best ways to motivate the base and win undecideds. (Van Damm's 20%)

Title quote from General Sheridan, in regards to part of his jurisdiction after the Civil War: "If I owned Texas and Hell, I would rent Texas and live in Hell.

Orlando

1st. I've already heard enough of the comments that are more fit for Westboro signs than this blog. And although I'm aware of the logic behind it...the next one who says something like that might get a "Fine, if you're going to quote the verse, take the rest of it and see who else will be spending eternity in the smoking section." from me.
And the people who my friends are willing to give a "maybe they'll change their mind" to...it makes me sick.

2nd. There are two lines that slant downward on my chart, and I bring them up often discussing mass shootings. In the United States, gun violence is down over the last 20-25 years. General violence is down over the last 20-25 years. Mass shootings are way up over the last 20-25 years. My brother has often lamented about what kind of world his young daughters are inheriting. He's a wise man. On the overall, it's a safer world than the world we grew up in, although a few of the dangers have increased.

3rd. Orlando just isn't another city to me. I have a couple connections to this mourning city. My parents met in Orlando. And I can reasonably assume that I was actually conceived there. And that city is the last place I flew to during my programming career, for a conference discussing and testing various wargames and their interaction. Orlando is the southernmost place I've ever visited.

4th. There are people who want to remind us that Isis is at war with the West. If the actions of the Orlando shooter are to be considered an act of war, then what is the appropriate response? Should there be a responsive declaration of war from our Congress, in accordance with our constitution? Should we be running more drone strikes and airstrikes against Isis targets? Should we bring in more special forces to sneak in and kill Al Qaeda and Isis number twos? (most dangerous job ever: Isis or Al Qaeda number two) Or is this a time to order boots on the ground and reconquer the territories held by ISIS, create a new secular state, and make it so unfriendly to Jihad either by running a religious test and only letting pacifist imams into the territory, or else make it clear that radicalization will not be tolerated. How we would threaten that is a fair question. I don't know if these are good ideas. It is just various options we can talk about.

5th. I occasionally wonder if we are giving these rascals too much credit. Perhaps their names should be not in their own echelon of criminal behavior, but merely call them criminals. Not terrorists, although their actions do scare the hell out of us. And perhaps deny them even the connection to the faith which they claim, and which others claim they pervert. Call the murderer just another criminal. Deny him in death any glory.

Finally. "Guns don't kill people, people kill people."
Guns just make it easier to kill people, hurt people, or threaten people.

Scatterbrained.

It's a lot easier to blog about my past, guided by a hand-picked list of events and tunes #mondaymelody starting July 4; than it is to blog about my present or my future.

Going for the old bullet points method.

• One of my kids has a peanut allergy that has accelerated quickly.  Packing benadryl, inhaler, epi-pen, and reading labels thoroughly.  But...I'm scared.  And after what happened this week - the worst reaction yet - I've never seen any of my children in that much danger before.  
• This whole summer job thing is bringing in some serious cash for my kids.  Molly works with Ivy at the grocery store, and she's rocking in the bakery & deli.  Noah and Olivia are helping one of our friends in church with some yardwork.  And the younger three (Noah, Olivia, Zack) are hitting downtown on the weekly Shopper route each Tuesday.  
• I'm posting a lot of political thoughts under the hashtag #ksleg on my twitter feed.  Being somewhat neutral on the twitter, although for multiple reasons, I know who I'm voting for the 41st House District.  #teamtony
• Copa America.  As of posting, the US needed a result to advance to the bracket phase, which would probably mean a matchup with Brazil at New Jersey's Metlife Stadium.  We've almost beat Brazil a couple times, but it's Brazil.
• Watched Agenda 2: Masters of Deception last week.  tl;dr - Author makes somewhat convincing case that USA is being prodded in multiple directions away from liberty and towards ever-increasing gov't, potentially ending with the US turning into a socialist/communist country.  
• I spend a hell of a lot of time in my car making small trips.  1 mile to my wife's job; 3 miles to my job; 3 miles to Wal-Mart; 1 mile to church; 1 mile to my kid's self-defense class; all those miles on the previously mentioned Shopper route.  Even without a 45-mile one-way commute, I'm still going less than a week between refilling my gas tank. #firstworldproblems
• I miss Xanga.  #2eprops
• My grandparents...that might be worth breaking the Saturday rule.  #06/16/56

America the Great?

Is America a great nation?

I hear many people wanting to talk about how America was once great and is now not great, or how America has fallen from greatness. And I'm left to wonder, how do you define greatness?

Possible answers:

Economy. Gross national product, exports, per capita income, upward mobility, strong middle class, low income inequality, employment, low inflation??

Military strength.  Largest army, most advanced weapons, plenty of nukes in the silos, winning the wars the nation chooses to fight?

Is it defined by following a moral code, or by religion?  Is it because America is good? Being a "Christian nation", whatever the hell that means? Leading the world in the new morality, treating everyone with equality? Holding on to the old morality? More progressive? More socialist? Less progressive? Less socialist? Low crime? High adherence to a religion "and I don't care what it is"

To those who claim that we were born a Christian Nation, although I understand your arguments in favor of that, I have to question how deep the Christian ethic sunk in, in a nation whose history is splattered with the blood drawn from the whip on the back of the black man, and the blood of the red man as we crossed the borders and broke every treaty we made with them. 

Thoughts about Americans and guns

This one isn't the neatest, but I just have a lot of thoughts about this subject. I can't do the research that I would like to do to isolate the variable solve the equation to solve the world's problems with my mad mathematics skills. But I'm just tired of Facebook messaging relatives in the same state as a mass shooting.  (Over a hundred miles away, need to brush up on my geography)
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I am bothered by not only the phenomenon of mass shootings, but the fact that in regards to violence, mass shootings are a minority of the crime, a minority of the victims, and yet these idiots who have obtained there 15 minutes of fame by shedding much blood in a short time, have skewed the conversation about violence in our country.
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In general, the NRA voters treat the multitude of privately owned guns as a vaccine against tyranny and crime. But although we are willing to entertain conspiracy theory and bad statistics about physical vaccines (MMR HPV etc), the NRA voters consider the gun sacrosanct, and arm to be pushing against Perhaps my friend is right, In Guns We Trust.

If guns are the vaccine against tyranny, I feel it be appropriate to question whether the vaccine is doing any good, the way you hear innumerable complaints about government over reach. And I think it is fair to ask whether the near universal availability of guns in our country is fueling an increase in crime or a decrease in crime. Start with the statistics of more guns than people in this country, include the decrease in the crime rate in the last 20 years, and go draft Nate Silver and his stat heads.

Our nation is an outlier when you compare the per capita income and the homicide rate. Countries that are as rich as us have lower homicide rates...
Is it the poor parts of our country, is it the disintegration of families and morals, is it the...
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Or, the other question, to what extent does the near universal access to firearms increase the success rate of suicide?

Political musings, a year out

Maybe I should've waited until a month before the Kansas caucus on March 5 '16...
But I went to isidewith.com , and put in my stances and relative weights and found out which candidate I'm closest to.

WHAT???  Are you kidding me?

In my estimation, I think the religious right is losing the p.r. battle badly... more and more, I'm hearing things which can be summed up as "how can you be a Christian and a republican", including questions about Trump, immigration, racial issues, healthcare, economics, war, etc.

In many areas, to question anything is so frowned upon, that you either become lockstep with the majority opinion, or you get bunched with the fringe.

And it's worth wondering how so many Christians can come up with so many different reasons why they vote as they do.

And, how do we as persons and how do we as the deciders of who governs us, how do we do our part to make "Thy Will Be Done, on earth as it is in heaven" ?

In regards to which entity will lead to more human flourishing...I don't trust the market, I don't trust the government. And that seems to make me a stranger to both sides of the political spectrum.

Skeletons

" for, believe me, Hester, though he were to step down from a high place, and stand there beside thee, on thy pedestal of shame, yet better were it so, than to hide a guilty heart through life."

Another celebrity has had their  name dragged straight to mud after despicable actions in a prior decade.  And after their history as "family friendly", their image has been shattered.
Their friends are being questioned in whether they knew, whether they even want to be associated with the fellow.  Television shows are being pulled off the air, as if a damnatio memorae is the only option.

This isn't the first time. By my recollection, at least the third time in the last twelve months.

And, even in this decade...some lines may not be crossed without consequences.  Some sins are...
...unforgivable.

Living near a military base, I've had friends and colleagues who have discussed the process of getting a security clearance. And, over and over again, I hear them say that one of the things they look for, is if they have a secret they're unwilling to disclose, either to them or to their loved ones. The sort of skeleton in the closet that could be used to blackmail somebody.

For various reasons, including a deep reticence at having our past went over with a fine tooth comb, I don't expect to ever put my name on a ballot again.

And if anyone offers to put my family on a reality show...

Ape: George, remember everything I told you about Queensbury rules and fighting fair?
George: Uh-huh.
Ape: Well, now's a good time to forget it.

Can't we all just get along?

I once said, "I think our national news is too person-oriented."


Two years ago, a different case was in the news.  It got the attention, the rage (not quite the RAGE™), and the water-cooler talk.

And another one gone, and another one gone.  Another one bites the dust.


And...it's went from "if it bleeds, it leads", to "if it's a black man killed by a white man, it leads."






And, thanks to the 24hour news cycle, I can't tell if things are better than they were 40 years ago.  I don't have the time or the access to well-formatted, peer-reviewed statistical information to figure out whether we've gone from bad to worse, or worse to bad (on television!)






My kids don't understand racism.  They're aware of it, but why someone would choose to have racist tendencies and thinking...is beyond them.  My contemporaries at my job are the same way. 


I used to believe that we were closer to the point where "my four little children will grow up in a world where they are judged not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."  I still feel that we are closer, but...


I can't deny the pain and rage with every one of these injustices.
And I know that these injustices have to be named, shamed, and quashed.
And I know that I'm not qualified to speak on this subject - serious melanin shortage.


But...


Can't we all just get along?

Fill in the oval entirely

This municipal and school board election (Leavenworth, Kansas, April 2015), will be the most complicated April election I've dealt with since '05.

In '07, it was easy.  Vote for my friend for mayor, who would end up winning by three votes, put me on the council, and regret ever putting his own name on the ballot.  Small town politics were not friendly to him.

In '09, it was easy.  Vote for my friend for mayor, and vote for me for City Council.  Finished 5th in a two man race, but since five spots were open, I was on the Council.

In '11, it was easy.  Vote for my friend for mayor, and vote for me for City Council.  Finished 6th in a four man race, and since five spots were open, I was off the Council.

In '13, it was easy.  Vote for my other friend for mayor (the first friend would've declined, even if he'd been written in), and vote for me for City Council and School Board.  Even did a reddit **AMA**

Finished in distant fourth place for three seats on the school board, and a three way tie for fourth for City Council. Lost a tiebreaker draw.
This election, I know nobody on the ballot. So I'm actually voting in the character and the issues.

Wish me luck.

City Commission: six candidates for three seats.
School Board: five candidates for four seats.

Random blurb Saturday

With my change to day shift, my blogging will change. My afternoons are no longer spent alone or sleeping for the night; my nights are no longer alone or awake; my days are now being traded in the common barter of employment.

However, I hope to continue leaving my thoughts in this mostly forgotten corner of the internet.

Father of two teenagers? I'm getting old.

A petition supporting a bill that already has the governor's support and 5/8 of the upper house...seems to be a waste of ink.

The only question left is whether Thoreau's quiet desperation is still a common phenomenon or not.

The problem with the world is that everyone is convinced that they have THE TRUTH. The ignored set of facts or principles, or the particular way to read divine inspiration, that make everything make sense, and that the world would benefit from understanding. And they think every dissenting truth is bullshit, deception, and ignorance.

47%

The October Surprise of the 2012 Presidential Campaign occured in the middle of September, when remarks made by Republican candidate Mitt Romney at a fundraiser were released.  Governor Romney, in the recorded remarks, conceded the 47% of Americans who don't pay income tax as votes for the Democratic Party. 

An American's tax burden is seen in more places than just the 1040 form.  An American pays taxes when he makes purchases - sales tax.  When he receives his paycheck - the withholdings.  When he owns property - the property tax. 

But, just to make life simple, I borrowed an online tax calculator and did some plug-and-play.  For a family of 6, how much would I have to make to owe $1 in federal income tax.

With all the deductions, child tax credit, etc. .. I would have to make $67,167 to owe any federal income tax.

I may be part of Romney's "47%", but I didn't vote for President Obama...or Governor Romney.

9/17/89

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several states, or by conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress; provided that no amendment which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article; and that no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.
--Article V, US Constitution

Various groups, usually interested in limiting the power of the federal government, have looked towards Article V of the US Constitution, specifically the part in which 34 states can theoretically force Congress to call a convention for proposing amendments to the Constitution.

Over the decades, they've sought various remedy, various amendment.  From the popular election of Senators, to term limits, to a balanced federal budget.  In over 200 years, there hasn't been a convention called yet, although it sounds like the drums are beating just a little louder for something.

Can you get 34 states to call for one, in a single voice, in an unignorable voice?  I doubt it.  I don't see a reason strong enough to get 34 states - 67 or 68 state legislative bodies (depending on whether Nebraska gets in on the fun) to call for an Article V, at the same time, in the same voice, with the same resolute demand that would be required to get Congress to listen.  War?  Nope.  Corporate power?  Nope.  Income inequality?  Nope.  Moral issues?  Nope.  Feds spying on my e-mail?  Nope.  Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act?  Nope.  Marijuana?  Nope. 

And...even if you did.  Even if you got 34 states to, in a single voice, in a near simultaneous show of fraternity, demand an Article V Convention...I see a different set of problems.  1) Getting the conventioneers to agree on amendments to submit to the states.  2) Getting anyone to give a damn.  All we need is one celebrity with her hypno-butt, and even Fox News will be all over the shaking rear, instead of Philadelphia II.  Besides, no one watches C-SPAN.

Finally, if an amendment made it out, you'd need 38 states to ratify it.  HA!  You don't have 38 states that agree on weed, presidential candidate, or even same-sex marriage. 

IF an amendment that comes from an Article V convention is ratified by 38 states before my 40th birthday, I'll print out this blog entry, put ketchup on it, eat it, and post it on Youtube.

Happy Constitution Day. (9/17)

Ab Uno Disce Omnes

I think.

I don't know, but I think.

I think our national news is too person-oriented.

Sixteen thousand murdered in a year, and we hear about (maybe) five cases.  Is it because they were famous? Or because they were in Florida, where you can get cameras in the courtroom?  Or because they were young?  Perhaps it makes good television, but...

Our reaction to the death of Trayvon should be different if he is one of a thousand 'self-defense-gone-wrong white kills black' vs if he is the only one.  But I'm not the one to say who the greatest threat to the American black male.
* Although Moynihan was right.

The President keeps using Aurora, Sandy Hook, etc. to argue for gun control.  Why?  Because they made the news?  Because it got the news for weeks?  What about the other homicides on those days?  What about the other folks shot dead on a busy news day?  And what about the inconvenient fact that for every two homicides, we have five suicides? 

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At time of writing, we're hearing of a celebrity's bizarre behavior.  (By now, we're probably on to another celebrity.)  What makes it so newsworthy?  Is it because we're such a quiet world that we need five minutes per hour in a 24 hour news cycle to discuss it?  Like the media, news makes news.

I risk the danger of the three types of lies, but I don't believe in the anecdotal as much as I believe in the statistic.  And, although "When one man dies it is a tragedy, when thousands die it's statistics." ... National news, and world news should be about the bigger picture.


Another thing...forgetting for a minute the bold headlines.  And, going against everything Han Solo said...
for my sister, how dangerous would (a trip to India) / (service in US military) / (time in college) / boring life in suburbia ?

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Ab Uno Disce Omnes, from one learn all.  Specific incident, general truth.

I dissent.

The Honorable

"I am indebted to no man, and only to one woman — my dear wife — as I begin this very difficult job" - President Ford

Six years ago, Todd Smith (my neighbor around-the-block) said he was going to run for mayor.  My wife and I cast votes for him, and he won by three votes.  He anticipated a mass exodus from the council, and I told him, "If you run out of better folk to fill the vacancies, you can give me a call."

A year later - in March 2008, he did give me that call, and in April 2008, I took the oath of office, filling a seat on the Severance City Council.  We talked politics, tried to do things differently...and in the end both of us saw the darker side of politics.  Both of us handed in our resignations (for different reasons), and took a back seat.

Todd and I had a few other conversations - I had the privilege of telling him that he'd been written in to the mayor's seat for his third term in 2011.  But, our friendship was strained by the politics...he was tired of it all.  And, having little in common besides politics, we haven't spoken much since.

He did wish me well in the 2013 election, "make sure you draw the right straw".

It's unlikely, but I've made it clear that if I ever become mayor, and if I then have to fill a vacancy on the council, my first call will be to Todd.  A favor I might never be able to repay...but I wish I could.

The style and etiquette manuals state that the mayor of a city is entitled to the title "The Honorable."   And although some people use that term derisively, I respect the men who have taken on the heavy responsibility of leading our town.  

Here's to the Honorable Todd Smith, thrice elected to the mayor's chair in Severance, KS.

All politics is local

I spent two years licking my wounds after an election ass-kicking.  In a city election in Severance, you can vote for up to five folks.  In 2011, 1st place got 28 votes, 5th place got 20 votes...and I got 10.

I stewed.  I watched city council meetings, watched the mayor's chair vacated 3 times, watched my name not get called as a possible replacement for council vacancies.  I figured I could do as good a job as mayor as any of the other gentlemen to sit at the head of the table.

And, as the calendar turned over to 2013, I had one major choice to make:  run for council for a 3rd time; or make a bold move and run for mayor.  Two events tipped the scales - a personal crisis, and a call from a neighbor who announced her intention to challenge the incumbent, asking if I'd be running for council.  OK, 3rd time for council.

Then, as the filing deadline approached and nobody filed for school board (3 seats in south district), I figured...ah, what the hell, someone's got to make sure the kids are being  taught right.  So I doubled down, and ended up spending $10 at the county courthouse to file for a seat on the city council; and a seat on the school board.

Even did an IAmA about it.

From multiple sources, I learned one thing.  The town, and the south half of the school district...think I'm nuts.  That certain people thought campaigning would make me look even more annoying.

I finished a distant 4th place for school board.  134, 132, 114, 17. 

And the 9 votes I received in the city council tied for 4th with two incumbent write-ins on the city council.  The tiebreaker was handled by the county commission, and my name was the one of the three not drawn.

Introduction to Saturdays With Steve

Welcome to Saturdays with Steve. I'll be posting on Saturdays (not necessarily every Saturday) blog posts concerning any of seven different topics. This one serves as an introduction and a brief preview of coming attractions. Alphabetically,  

Depression. About two years ago, I was diagnosed as being clinically depressed with suicidal ideations. I've been fighting depression since my senior year at college. I often envy the Star Trek Vulcans, able to completely overcome emotion with logic.  

Family. I have a twin brother. I'm the oldest of ten siblings – five sons, five daughters. I'm married. I have a step-daughter, two sons, and a daughter. In 2013, my first niece and nephew were born (a 2nd nephew due later this year)

Genius. Graduated from Missouri Western at 19y 5m old, Bachelor's in Computer Science, graduated summa cum laude. Took SAT in fall 1995, got 660v 790m. Have some symptoms of Aspergers', but no conclusive or official test/diagnosis.

Politics. Appointed to fill a vacancy on a city council in April 2008. Re-elected in April 2009, with a 5th place finish. Unsuccessful runs for city council in 2011 and 2013 – finished 6th both times. Interested (and disgusted) with US politics at all levels. Cast a ballot in the 2012 general election voting for no Republicans (a first)  

Sports. I root for Sporting KC, Utah Jazz, KC Chiefs, KC Royals, and KU Basketball. I've pointed out that part of SKC's success and popularity involves the Royals' almost thirty years w/o a playoff appearance and the Chiefs' almost twenty years w/o a playoff win.  

Technology. Bachelor's in Computer Science, almost nine years as a computer programmer. Blogged on and off for years. A few random observations about 21st century technology and how it affects us.

Truth. When I was young, I thought I knew everything. I'm not old yet, but I'm already convinced that not only do I not know everything, I'm not sure if it's possible. I wonder which denomination got it right, the implications if Augustine screwed up NT canon, and how much our faith has changed over the centuries.


A lot of these are written ahead of time, because...otherwise, it's not "Saturdays With Steve."  And it puts a little less pressure on me to produce.  (Maybe)

This idea - blogging on up to seven different topics a week - might be stupid, might be interesting.