Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell Endangers Children’s Health for Political Posturing
Alaska is a land of extremes, both good and bad. We have the most coastline, the most islands, the best fishing, the most park land, and I can confidently say the most natural wild beauty of any state in the nation. On the flip side, we have the most earthquakes, the most infant botulism, the most alcoholism, the most mosquitoes, and the worst rate of chlamydia of any state. We’re second in the nation for gonorrhea. ~Chlamydia The state has been first or second in reported rates of chlamydia every year since 2000, state public health officials said. Alaska’s rate…
I Agree: “Darn it, Let’s Raise Taxes”
By Ken Morris According to House Speaker John Boehner, “You can’t raise taxes in the middle of a weak economy.” Echoing that talking point, newly elected Tea Party Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Illinois), in an interview with ABC, claimed, “Every time we’ve cut taxes, revenues have gone up, the economy has grown.” Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) attacked the president’s April tax speech by suggesting that everyone knows, “Raising taxes … will do little to reduce the deficits and debt that are, at their root, spending problems.” If I and many economists, including Paul Krugman (who wrote, “Darn It, Let’s Raise Taxes”),…
Say it Ain’t So, Joe! Co-Author of Leaked Palin Book Speaks Out
By Ken Morris, co-author of Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin, A Memoir of Our Tumultuous Years Mudflats Friends: When I first appeared on Jeanne’s ground-breaking pages well over one year ago, I wrote about participating in the eBay auction to buy a meal with Sarah Palin to benefit a worthy veterans’ charity. A short time later, after losing that auction to what looked like a rigged bid, I then offered through Mudflats an additional $200,000 to that charity if Sarah would answer civil question over a second meal, on the record, with the likes or Jeanne, Rachel Maddow, Shannyn Moore, and Keith Olbermann. While…
Boots on the Ground – Scott Walker Cuts the Cheese
Wisconsin’s Walker Cuts the Cheese A most powerful stench sponsored by Koch Industries, et al. By ‘Anonymous Cheesehead’ On Friday, February 11 an e-mail from Governor Scott was sent to me and 382,780* State of Wisconsin employees outlining Walker’s plan to address the state’s “very serious and undeniable financial challenges” including how Wisconsin “face[s] of budget deficit of $136.7 million” in the current fiscal year. (*Full and part-time employee data retrieved from the US Census Bureau.) Despite Wisconsin Club for Growth’s TV and radio ads depicting state employees as having an unfair advantage and gliding through the recession without sacrifice,…
Senator Mark Begich Fights for Flight
Alaska is different. It’s said a lot, and it’s true. Things that work in the contiguous 48 states don’t necessarily work here. The lack of understanding by those “Outside” of this phenomenon contributes to Alaskans’ slightly xenophobic, and more than slight libertarian bent. “Get off my tundra, you meddlesome kids.” Nothing defines Alaska quite so much as the gigantic size and small population. We are far flung, and disconnected. When 1500 miles separates two towns, it’s hard to remember you’re supposed to be in the same state. Alaska is larger than many countries, and pretty darn empty when it comes…
FEMA Called to Save Anchorage from Mayor Dan Sullivan
Yes, Mayor Dan Sullivan is so inept, and his priorities as the Chief Executive of Alaska’s largest city are so destructive and unsafe, yet another government agency has had to step in and save Alaskans from their elected leaders. Once, it was the FBI saving us from the legislature. Now, it’s FEMA saving us from the Mayor of Anchorage. The worst mayor in America is officially now a federal disaster. Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan said Thursday that the city has been awarded a $5 million federal grant to hire firefighters over the next two years. The grant will fund 15 to 26 firefighter…
Muni Fees May Force School District Cuts *UPDATE*
My now-13-year-old daughter expressed a great deal of angst this past summer over attending middle school in a different school zone. She can be somewhat shy so my husband and I were a little concerned. As it turns out, my daughter is excelling in seventh grade! She has been on the honor roll both quarters, she’s in several accelerated classes, she’s doing really well as a clarinet player in the band (she has a solo in an upcoming performance) and she’s made some friends in the new school while still keeping up with her old friends. My husband and I…
Voices from the Flats – I Me Mine: The Unholy Trinity Of Ayn Rand
By Don Millard (@OTOOLEFAN) “Run for your life from any man who tells you that money is evil. That sentence is the leper’s bell of an approaching looter.” – Ayn Rand Ayn Rand was out of her Vulcan mind. This is a simple fact that can be verified by anyone with even minimal Google skills. She was the Albert Schweitzer of Selfishness and the Mother Theresa of Greed all rolled into one. This, naturally, makes her a hero to the Right and qualifies her for sainthood. Too bad she was an Atheist. Her philosophy, so she said, was one of…
Sarah Palin's "WTF Moment."
I’ve been regularly blogging about Sarah Palin since before she got the VP nod. And it takes a lot for me to be flabbergasted by anything she says. At this point, I kind of feel like I’ve pretty much seen it all. I have a big callous on my brain where all the Palin information is stored. But once again, I’m proven wrong in my assumption that she’s bottomed out; that she has become more of a caricature of herself than Tina Fey could ever be; that whatever tentative grip with reality and mental stability that she may have one…