Romney

Mitt Romney seems like such a nice guy, I’d like to be his friend.  He probably has his neighbors over for cookouts, which I’d like.  Maybe he’d let me swim in his pool. 

He’s good-looking, easy on the eyes and has a pleasant voice.  Perhaps he sings in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.   He always looks well-put together in his Brooks Brothers clothes, unlike Rick Perry who always looks bacon-grease-slick in his more expensive, perfectly tailored suits.  Perry looks like a televangelist on a healing streak.

Gingrich 

He walks like an old man.  Actually, he doesn’t walk; he waddles at a slow pace, from side to side.  The only other candidate approaching Newt’s circumference is Rick Santorum, who is otherwise presentable.  Santorum looks like a robber-baron who should have a cigar in his mouth.  Newt just looks like a robber.  He probably stole the tacky suit he’s wearing, but why would he?

Others tomorrow

Oh, really.  And who cares?  Well, I’ll just have to see.

Stay tuned.

Paul

     HOW GOOD A JOB IS THE PLAINVIEW SCHOOL district doing educating our students? 

     Not very well if you listen to only one side of the ongoing argument, which is all we’ve really heard.   And that’s only the case if you are willing to judge based on anecdotal evidence from a small number of complaining parents who’ve been allowed to hide behind their anonymous comments printed in the Plainview Daily Herald. 

     Well, you say, what about the poor ratings of our school by the Texas Education Agency?  Doesn’t that count for something? 

     Maybe.  Maybe not.

     The issue of quality education in a large and diverse school district like ours is a complex one. Many factors—some beyond the control of the administration or the school board—can contribute to a district-wide poor rating. Diagnosing the problem is not as easy as pointing a finger at the administration or the trustees or the teachers. It’s just not that simple.

     Judging effectiveness is complex and problematic and will always involve a wider range of measures than examinations and test results—one of those measures being old-fashioned common sense.

     We all know teachers at all levels in our system who are outstanding in their fields of study and in their ability to teach and who care deeply about our children. Doesn’t that count for something? I think it does.

     The district is graduating college-ready seniors year after year. They are admitted to colleges of their choice and go on to graduate and professional schools. Doesn’t that count for something? I think it does.

     Superintendent Ron Miller and High School principal Lisa Kersh have remained silent in the face of  accusations made by parents.  That’s as it should be. They would be well-advised to continue to avoid any public comments that could be identifiably traceable to any student, even if the student’s parent or guardian should first publically identify the student.  They would violate state and federal law to do otherwise.

     This should be Mr. Rascon’s final term as school board president.  He has obviously not had any success at bringing a badly divided board together—though I don’t know of any evidence that it’s been his fault.  It’s  an honor to be president,  but the office is not one that should be held onto, or sought after, as a position of power. In fact the president has no more authority than any other trustee.  He helps the superintendent formulate the board agendas and presides at the meetings.  That’s basically it.  The board should pass the honor around and give others a chance to serve.

     Trustee Brandon Brownlee scheduled a public forum for next week in order to give his constituents an opportunity to express their opinions about school district issues, but then—and wisely, I might add—he changed his mind and cancelled the meeting, saying he would reschedule it with the permission, and hopefully the cooperation, of the whole school board, which he hopes  to obtain at its next meeting.

     I hope that he will reconsider the timing of such action.  We are into a long hot summer.  Teachers are on vacation and  other school personnel, as well as parents of students, are going and coming.  Fall—after school is well underway—would be a better time.     

     I’m a skeptic by nature, and yet I believe that in short time many of what presently seem to be hot-button issues mainly can be resolved.  No one should transfer their children or move their families into another school district solely over a flap like this.  To those of you who are genuinely concerned about your children’s welfare, I say give it a year before you make the decision to move them to another school district.

     On the other hand if you’re a parent who’s already made that call because you sincerely believe it’s in the best interest of your child, or if you’ve just got a mad-on at PISD that you can’t get over—whichever—I  say  best wishes and good luck to you.

Paul

     SOUTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR MARK SANFORD becomes more pathetic day-by-day thinking that love justifies everything—even stupidity.

     He seems to relish in telling everybody the details of his extramarital sexual encounters, sounding like a 16-year-old boy bragging to his friends after his first date in his old man’s car.

     Most recently ABC News video-recorded an interview with him in which for four hours he sat on a sofa maudlinly describing his "soul mate" relationship with the enchantress Maria, for whose charms he sold his life and soul to the Devil.

     His latest revelation is that Maria of Argentina is not the only "other woman" (than his wife) he’s had affairs with over the years.

     But this affair (with Maria) was special. "This was a whole lot more than a simple affair; this was a love story," Sanford told the Associated Press. "A forbidden one, a tragic one, but a love story at the end of the day."

     And the violins begin.

     Oh, Governor, that is so touching and we’re sooooo relieved. We knew deep down that your and Maria’s affair had to be more than just a succession of base and tawdry assignations . . . you know, nothing at all like New York Governor Spitzer’s patronizing a real certified hooker, for heaven’s sake!

     About those other affairs the Gov said, "I never crossed the ultimate line" with those women. He "crossed lines" with women other than his mistress but never had sex with them, adding that he did "let his guard down" with some physical contact.

     What, Governor, did I hear you say? ". . . crossed the ultimate line . . .?" ". . . let (your) guard down with some physical contact?" Are you out of your freakin’ mind?

     All I can say is bring in the clowns and the double-entendres. Let the guffawing and leg slapping begin.

     South Carolina state senator Larry A. Martin said of the governor’s interview: "What we saw in that interview was just him being irrational. The very idea that he would be that candid, that frank, that brutally honest about his feelings for the woman in Argentina versus his wife versus the other girlfriends, I just find that incredible. Rational people don’t do that."

     "He doesn’t need to be talking to reporters," Martin said. "He needs to go find him some professional help. That’s just the facts."

     He might benefit from professional help at some point in the future, but he’s not ready for it now . . . not yet.

Paul

     Mark Sanford

     The Governor doth apologize too much, methinks.

     Or so Hamlet’s Queen Gertrude might have said about South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford’s flurry of pathetic atonements delivered to whoever would look his way after his return from a five-day tryst with his mistress in Buenos Aries.

     He made sappy out-of-place apologies to two cabinet secretaries, which is quite puzzling, as they had nothing to do with the affair. To the head of the State Law Enforcement Division, who had caused an official search for the governor, Sanford said, “I owed it to you, Reggie, for putting you in a bad place.”

     Oh, please, governor, it was his job! How was he hurt?

     Then he apologized to another cabinet member whose staff had unwittingly helped arrange a tryst for the governor while planning a trip for him to South America.

     In my opinion, he doesn’t owe anyone an apology unless he caused that person pain in some way. Synthetic atonement doesn’t wear well on anybody, anywhere, especially when repentance issues from being caught and not from guilt and conviction.

     But giving the appearance of being in need of forgiveness creates the image of being a needy person in general. Needy people always seem like victims. Bingo! VICTIM . . . the magic word, his salvific status.

     Yep, the goob has actually morphed (in his mind) into a victim who deserves our sympathy and he’s playing the role to the hilt. It’s as if he were the center of the universe and while he has the attention he’s going to make the best of it. He’s in love and that trumps all. Nothing else matters. He feels young and free . . . even carefree.

     He thinks he’s poetic, that Maria’s a poem and wife Jenny is prose. He’s wrong on all three assumptions.

Paul

     Addendum: “JS” made the following comment to my previous post about Governor Sanford. I think it merits “above the fold” placement. Thanks JS for your contribution:

      This is such a sad story. Especially for the wife and children. It was a selfish choice to become involved in a relationship outside his marriage and somewhere inside him he had to know that he was forever changing how those who loved him would view him. It cost him more than he probably even yet realizes. His children and wife will never see him in the same light. The public will not either but that is a lesser consequence. My dad taught me that integrity is doing the right thing even when no one is looking. Sanford clearly lost integrity and no longer has the respect of those around him. I doubt the stolen moments with the mistress can make up for that. Maybe it has always been that politicians and even the public in general think that their private life has no reflection on their public life but in my mind, it is who we are in those private moments that measure who we really are.—JS

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford announced yesterday that for the past year he had been having a sexual liaison with an Argentine woman named Maria. He calls it an affair that started as a friendship eight years ago and then developed into something "much more" last summer. You remember, don’t you, what a long hot summer that was?

The married governor said that’s when it "sparked," and he then referred to the past year as the "sparking" time—a galactic sophomoric choice of words that’s already giving him grief in the media with more sure to come.

The Gube . . . you know, class, from gubernatorial . . . would have us believe that he and his paramour established their loving relationship through eight years of email back and forth between Buenos Aries where she resides, and South Carolina where he rules.

Uh . . . better make that ruled. State lawmakers are starting to ask critical questions about whether the cheating governor can or should serve out his term. Political opponents in Columbia and surrounds are already demanding his resignation. The Washington Post quoted a Sanford adviser as saying the Gube is not considering resignation.

Well of course he isn’t—not yet anyway. But wait until the other shoes begin to drop.

Shoe number one: hot photos of Maria, will appear first in the National Enquirer and then in rapid succession in the general media—not all at once but day-by-day, or more accurately, drip by drip. Likely she’ll be pretty (she’d better be), but it will not be a pretty story.

Shoe number two: pics of both of them in bathing suits on the beach happily watching her sons splash in the Atlantic—almost like a tourist promo for a luxury Buenos Aries hotel.

Shoe number three: juxtaposed to shoe number two—above the fold on the same page—a shot of Gube’s family, perhaps at first just his four young boys and later of his wife, Jenny.

Shoe number ten: Oh, did I skip a few shoes? You noticed.

It’s not because I couldn’t imagine any more, it’s just that I got tired of typing the innumerable possibilities.

I may add more tomorrow or I may just wait and watch with you as it all plays out in the media . . . drip by drip by drip.

Paul

     I can’t write with enough unction to adequately express my sorrow and compassion for the two journalists captured, tried and convicted last week by the North Korean dictatorship of Kim Jon Il and for their families who abide anxiously in wait on word of their evolving fate.  

     Short of death itself of one’s offspring, what greater anguish could befall a parent than to see a precious child—daughter(s) in this case—locked away in a hellish jail in an enemy land, denied justice and bereft of rescue?

     The uncertainty of it all, not knowing but wildly imagining what torment of all kinds they might be enduring at the hands of their captors. 

     I’d propose to God for mercy, I’d consort with the devil for a deal. 

     The fact is though, the devil has no power to make a deal and though God does, we never know if he will or not.  While we wait and suffer, is mercy delayed mercy denied?  So it seems.  Where is our faith, where is mine?

     Confounding the heartache are unanswered questions: when arrested were the women tempting fate, taking unreasonable chances, were they actually over into enemy territory, did they contribute to their own predicament?

     Those facts are unclear. Not that it matters. Our sympathy subsists.

     But we know they were there voluntarily—they didn’t have to go—working for and presumably being paid by a U. S. television company to produce a commercial product.

     One of the women is the mother of a four-year-old daughter; the other has a threatening medical condition.  Surely they would have taken those issues into account before they went.  They must have been aware of the potential personal danger and consequences of misjudging their position on the ground as they ventured near the border.

     Even if they were abducted and dragged across the border for the arrest to appear “legal,” the two must surely have calculated the risks of even entering the danger zone in the first place.

     And, yet, they evidently assumed those risks.

     But not that it matters.  We all live lives of contradiction. 

     Our sympathy will be for them, our thoughts and prayers with them until they are safely home.

Paul

     RENOWNED SAN ANTONIO MATHMETICIAN Cal Newkirk posed this question in an email, knowing that I couldn’t resist talking about attorneys:

I do not know if you take blog requests, but I heard something on the news recently that made me do a double take.  The story goes that two attorneys, Ted Olson and David Boies, who were courtroom adversaries in the Gore vs Bush case in Florida are teaming up to go up against the recently passed Proposition 8 concerning gays’ right to marry in California.  Is such a thing normal?  How can they cooperate with each other when they must have huge egos?  Will they conduct themselves like team tag pro wrestlers?  You are one of those guys.  Want to enlighten us lay people?

     Well, Cal, you elevate me to a much higher power than I can even aspire to achieve when you place me in the category with those guys.  Isn’t “higher power” a math term?  If not, maybe I should say that you “squared” me.  Whatever, to be in the company of  those guys would be an honor.

     There’s really nothing mysterious about what they are doing.  Even though these pros generally march to ideologically different drummers, having an occasional common objective is not uncommon for the super lawyers.

     Of course the common denominator of all lawyers is money.   They charge for their talent, their services.  Olson and Boies are both talented.   They were hired to represent a client.

     Both lawyers indicated they believe their lawsuit challenging Proposition 8 could ultimately wind up before the Supreme Court, and they expressed confidence they would prevail, even with a court many consider conservative and unfriendly to the issue.

     “It’s not about liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican,” said Olson. “We’re here in part to symbolize that. This case is about the equal rights guaranteed to every American under the United States constitution.”

     The lawsuit filed by the two prominent lawyers seeks an immediate injunction against Proposition 8 until the federal case is resolved.  In the lawsuit, Olson and Boies argue that relegating same-sex couples to domestic partnerships instead of giving them full marriage privileges violates the equal protection and due process clauses of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

     I don’t know much about Olson, but Boies is a brilliant strategist whose mastery and understanding of the law is exceeded only by his flamboyant style and flair for presenting it in the most compelling way for his client. 

     Nevertheless, I’d rather have only one of them representing me.  Responsibility divided can  result in effort being diluted.  You referenced “huge egos.”     One must wonder which of them would prevail if they disagreed on an issue.  On the other hand, if they are as smart as I make them out to be, presumably they would always come to the “right” decision and be in no disagreement.

     The case will be interesting to follow if only to observe the attorneys.

Paul

     I DON’T WANT TO BE ANOTHER Heloise or Martha Stewart but when I do run across a life-helpful bit of information, I want to pass it along. You know, like, things that do work and things that don’t. So, for your edification and entertainment this Saturday morning, here goes:

Abreva. It really does work and it works fast. For cold sores, fever blisters and the like on the lips or mouth. But beware the sticker shock: it costs $17.00 at Wal-Mart for less than an ounce of the cream. That’s a smaller tube than the tiniest Blistex.

BUY IT ANYWAY. A little bit goes a long way. Warning:   It did not work on my I don’t think it works on herpes. Check with your physician first to see if it will.

Graham Crackers. Nabisco Honey Graham is the only brand to buy. The store’s house brand tastes like cardboard.

Heart Balance Smart Right Buttery Spread is highly recommended by some heart specialists because they have never tasted it.

Get Rich Quick.  Preparation “H” Ointment in the tube smells just like new car-seat seat leather. Exactly like it in fact. And I know where it can be bought in 55-gallon drums way below wholesale. It could then be repackaged into quart jars and sold to used-car dealers to apply to the worn-out leather seats of old cars to make them smell like brand new.  There are millions to be made!

You,  sucker friend, already see where I’m going with this, don’t you! You’re not too bright perceptive and you know a slick smart idea when you see one. You also know a straight shooter, too—one like me.

Now, here’s the trick deal. All you have to do is send me your check for $10,000, and I’ll rip you off cut you in. It’s as simple as that. You can be sure you’ll be taken well taken care of. Incidentally, my crack broker Freddie Mac Frank who’s back out of jail thinks this is a steal of an real idea.

Lastly (as the preachers like to say), this bit of advice from my brother-in-law who knows everything and moves around a lot:  “Don’t ever accept a certified letter; no good news ever comes by certified mail!”

Paul

AND IN MIDLAND TEXAS—Happy Birthday Karylyn!

A HIGH STAKES DRAMA FEATURING AL GORE and his company, Current TV, and two of their employees is being played out in a North Korean courtroom at this very moment. Gore and his business interests are not personally in jeopardy, but the lives of the two American journalists who work for him are.

     The two women, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, have been held in North Korea for ten weeks on charges of illegal entry and spying and were scheduled to go on trial today. If convicted on the charges against them the two could face years of hard labor in prison.

     When arrested the American journalists were working on  a story for former vice president Al Gore’s Current TV about the illegal trafficking of North Korean girls who flee to China to escape the oppressive dictatorship of Kim Jon Il.

     While reportedly traveling along the China-North Korean border, Lee and Ling were arrested by North Korean police and detained on accusations of spying.

     Families of the reporters wait half a world away, hoping for leniency by the North Korean government. 

     Half a century ago, we fought the North Koreans and kind of won, kind of lost. A tenuous peace has prevailed since then under a 1953 truce that ended the war.

     We now know that North Korea is assembling a long-range missile capable of reaching U. S. shores and is preparing to test-fire more missiles. Last week the North did underground nuclear testing, and U. S. military officials believe that an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the U. S. will soon be ready to launch.

     It is against this geo-political backdrop that the fate of the journalists has become a bargaining chip in play between North Korea and the United States. Aside from exercising diplomacy there’s nothing that can be done but to let North Korea’s justice system—if they have one—play out.

     Or is there?

     Former Vice President Al Gore, on whose behalf the women were risking their liberty and possibly their lives to get a story for his television company, has millions and minions at his disposal and surely must feel some responsibility to help gain their freedom.

     He should take a page from H. Ross Perot’s playbook. Remember him? The unsuccessful candidate for president several years ago?  Here’s what Perot did when a similar fate befell his employees while working for him on foreign soil.

     Billionaire Perot owned a company called EDS. In 1979 two of its employees were imprisoned by the government of Iran over a contract dispute. Perot planned and financed a dramatic, breath-taking rescue. Using chartered planes and commando-like tactics, Perot and his team, led by retired U.S. Army Special Forces Colonel Arthur Simons rescued his men.

     A best-selling book about it, On Wings of Eagles, by Ken Follett, gives all the details.

     Mr. Gore, I bet one of your minions can find you a copy.

Paul