Oh, those zany Republicans - Once more!

The Reps say “The American people don’t want a government shutdown, and they don’t want Obamacare,” aka, the Affordable Care Act, aka Romney Care (See Massachusetts health care plan under Romney).

So their answer to this contrived issue is to shut down the government    But oh, not for certain things. Just "non-essential services" like Parks, but you may be ok if you're in the military. Probably prison guards get to stay on the job, but haven't seen anything about that.

The mail will get through (Yay for the Postal Union!), but don't try to buy a house. 

Oh and about that pesky debt ceiling? As CNN reports:

                "Like the potential shutdown, this is also a Washington-manufactured                   crisis. And it too is being used for leverage to undermine Obamacare." 

And guess what most of "Obamacare" is funded from taxes, fees and other programs that will not shut down. So talk about your manufactured crisis!  This is all for show, and more political posturing by the GOP.

Oh, those zany Republicans!

More Creepy (and creeping) Republicanism

View this disgusting ad. It's got everything, sexism, racism, lies, fear mongering. Oh, those zany Republicans!   Creepy Uncle Sam anti-Obama care ad

If you liked Citizens United, you'll love this one

In October, the U.S. Supreme Court will take up what amounts to an extension of the Citizens United ("corporations are people, my friend!") decision which allowed unlimited corporate contributions to independent expenditure committees, in an appeal by the Republican National Committee, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Alabama businessman Shaun McCutcheon, who claim that political contributions should be treated as "core political speech"according to the L.A. Times on September 21, 2013.

This means that in Federal races, while individual maximums would say in place, maximum allowable totals will be erased. Now, a individual can only give a total of $46,000 to all Congressional candidates or $74,000 to to all political parties. Under the new rules, they can give the maximum allowable for each race up to $3.6 million.

This will be a boon to the Parties, particularly the Republican Party, which the majority of the wealthy call home. Someone like the Koch Brothers can each throw in the $3.6 million to the party, while giving unlimited amounts to SuperPACs. 

The ones with the most money don't always win (think Meg Whitman and Carly Fiorina in California in 2010), but that much money does have a chilling effect, and it also can buy a lot of TV time and billboard space to spread their fear messages, a Koch brother and Republican Party specialty.  This is one to watch. And just in time for Halloween.

Teen Curfews - Not the way to curb crime in Oakland

Every few years the idea of a teen curfew raises its ugly head in some City or another. Now it's Oakland. Keep kids off the streets and they will stay away from crime. Not so. First of all, it's just plain unenforceable. Second, studies have found, and Oakland seems ripe for this, that such laws are enforced selectively and discriminatorily.

Also see this New York Times article.

Most important, it's likely unconstitutional as hell, although different state courts have ruled in different ways. So far, the matter has not been taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court.  (And I hope it doesn't get there soon, or we can guess what the 5-4 decision might be.) The time, place and manner provision of the 1st Amendment comes into play here. But seriously, kids go out, they go to movies, events, their friends' houses and heck yeah, to party. When I started high school in Michigan, we'd stay late for play practice, then go get something to eat. Or we'd go to a movie, then hit the pizza place. Rampaging teen mobs? No, just kids being kids. They deserve the same 1st and 14th Amendment protection adults do.

It's a broad brush aimed at a narrow issue. Several years back, I represented a teen against just such a curfew. The city in question caved and changed its curfew laws.

Yes, some are on the books. When we moved to Massachusetts, I was shocked to find out they had a curfew for teens.  That's why, on prom night, they locked us in the school building and after feeding us the classic rubber chicken, had us watch Sound of Music at midnight. Then they "entertained" us in some other ways I no longer remember, until 5 AM, when we were released, no longer a danger to society or to ourselves.

To this day, when I accidentally tune into a radio station and hear that there is yet another sing along Sound of Music somewhere, I cringe.

Got crime? Get real solutions. Enforce the laws you have. Don't make new ones that oppress innocent kids so you can scoop up a few (potentially) guilty ones. 

Everyone's a Campaign Consultant - Choose yours wisely

Have you noticed how many new campaign consultants pop up every year? Is this the hot new career move, or what? For you candidates or potential candidates out there, vet carefully.  Does your consultant have a track record? A winning one that is. Does he/she have experience in your type of race? Cost isn't everything. Winning is.

Why anyone wants to join this profession is beyond me. It's tough. It's fast. It can of course be heady and ego-boosting when your candidate wins. Are some consultants past thir sell-by date?

Age isn't the issue; recycled campaign ads, generic mail messages, lackluster attention to detail. Those can be clues. Sometimes the "Young and hungry" are going to give you better, more personalized service.  Sometimes it's the experienced team that specializes in your campaign. This cycle (2013) is set, but 2014 and beyond is just getting shaped up.

There is an art to campaigning. Less is more, and all that. If your message is more words than pictures, you may have a problem. If your signs are unreadable, you just wasted a bundle. How much is the commission (if any) your consultant adds to the cost of print, media or other materials? Is a flat fee a better deal?

And if you're a woman, consider a female consultant who "gets" your particular needs. Still ask all the pertinent questions. But women helping women is still a good thing in this male dominated world of politics.

Ask these questions and more at the beginning of the relationship. And you can always break up if the "fit" isn't right. 

Mixed Bag - Miss America reflects Diversity, but it's still the same old show

Now we have an Indian American Miss America, which on the one hadn is great. The pageant is reflecting diversity at last. And the nastiness that goes with it. Of coiurse maybe that's because a lot of the fans of this type of beauty pageant are the same people who like to ogle scantily clad girls on the beach or catcall women from their perches on concstruction sites and big trucks with booming basses.

But to me, it's a mixed bag. Contestants still have to parade around in swimsuits (now "only" 15% of the points are awarded for the swimsuit competition, according tohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miss_America Wikipedia ) ball gowns (20%), and answer generally insipid questions on current events (5%; the other 60% divided between talent and personal interviews. Obviously this Miss America, Nina Davuluri, is no bimbo whose breathless goal in life is "world peace," (not that that's a bad goal, but it's also a stock answer to the predictable questions). She's aiming to be a cardiologist, which the scholarship money winners receive will surely help with.

But, must we continue to stereotype women, of any nationality, with the need for Barbie type good looks and toothpaste ad smiles to make them acceptable? To be fair, there's a Mr. America contest too, for bodybuilders who sport overdeveloped muscles and are just as stereotyped, if not worse.

Real men, real women, should not need to enter body-centric contests to prove themselves or attain higher education.

Maybe it's time for a "Real American" contest. Would the winner be an overweight, undereducated non-voting fast food eating TV watching individual symbolizing  the worst of middle-America, or a member of one of the fast growing minority populations who so many of the haters of an Indian American Miss America consider too outside the mainstream to even consider?

Should you leave one elected office to pursue another in your first term?

Sometimes, people get the bug to move up the food chain in politics before they are ready. Or before their constituents are ready for them. If you're in your first term in a modest local office, school board, city council, sewer board, it might not be the best move to mount a run for State Senate.

I could say it all depends, and it does, of course. Everything is relative. But it's unusual to make such a leap unless you are particularly suited for the new office.  Those who voted for you the first time around are likely to see you as personally ambitious, not publicly minded. There are exceptions of course. If an open seat comes up and you ARE particularly suited for it, have done your homework, are exceptionally charismatic or have a compelling argument to make or issue to back that no one else can do, go for it.

But don't let your ego outrun your ability. Humility does not necessarily disqualify you from holding higher office. Hubris might just tank your political career in its infancy.