July 27th, 2009 – A Mixed Bag
After a relatively quiet weekend, the papers are bursting with opinions, much like Mother Nature does in spring, when it sends daffodils and other delights bursting through the earth. Of course, our material is still mired in the mud…We hear headlines about how Obama has invited the “guys” (Sgt. Crowley and Prof Gates ) over for a beer. But that’s not the way I recall it…seems to me, toward the end of the press conference, Pres Obama said, as an aside, that Crowley had mentioned something about a beer at the WH. Any deductions of what that seemed to suggest had Obama back-pedaling even further, although now he’s seen the light and is embracing the idea, even promoting it as his own. The real kicker is the obscene words that flowed from Professor Gates:
- “I am pleased that he, too, is eager to use my experience as a teaching moment, and if meeting Sgt. Crowley for a beer with the president will further that end, then I would be happy to oblige,” Gates said in a statement on TheRoot.com, an Internet newsletter he edits. (for Reuters)
So now you have Gates implying that Obama wants to use Gates’ experience as a teaching moment. hmmm. What do you think: teaching our young how NOT to challenge a law enforcment officer? Maybe about how NOT to comment on a situation when you don’t have all the facts. hmmmm, What could it be? Sure, there will be extremes – but that is not this case, this instance, this moment
And is Sgt Crowley going to cave to social pressures and go “make nice” when he has been severly wronged? Any such attempt to “make nice” would send a wrong signal to everyone who supports law enforcement organizations. Wives, childlren, teachers, pastors, small business owners, etc. We abide by the law and an officer’s authority becasue this is the basis of civility within our social structure.
On to healthcare. Great writeup in WSJ’s Notable & Quotable with Clifford Asness, writing at stumblingontruth.com. And another great column “Dr. Obama’s Tonsillectomy”. Truth is, I can’t recall the government has ever taking anything, and converted it into a model of efficiency. Ever. Feel free to correct me, but I don’t see it.
And lastly, as it’s bedtime here, I see Unions’ Labor Chiefs are doing better than the workers….hmmm. and that’s a surprise to someone? Oh yes, Let’s take one last minute to look at SEIU. Verbatim from WSJ: Union officer benefits are also far more generous than anything dues-paying workers enjoy. Consider again the SEIU, probably the country’s most powerful union. Their officers and employees get a yearly 3% cost of living increase, but SEIU members get none; officers qualify for an early pension at 50 or after more than 30 years of service, but workers can’t retire early with a pension; officers qualifying for disabilitiy retirement after a year’s service, but workers need 10 years. In the land of union retirement, some workers are more equal than others.