Apologies in advance as my schedule will make the V&S a bit spotty over the next few weeks.
– Marco Rubio is officially a candidate for the presidency. He seems to have rehabilitated his standing to the point where he should be considered, at the least. a solid tier two candidate at this juncture.
– I guess somebody else also announced her candidacy. Matt Walsh argues that no, it isn’t time for a woman president.
It’s time, instead, for a competent and honest adult of either gender to be president.
Competent and honest are not words I’d use to describe Hillary.
– The Maryland couple who had a run-in with CPS when their kids were caught walking by themselves once again had a run-in with the authorities.
Danielle Meitiv, the “Maryland Mom” just called. She and her husband are on their way to the CPS “Emergency Crisis Center.” Why?
The police picked up the kids when they were outside AGAIN sometime this afternoon, and this time the cops TOOK THEM WITHOUT TELLING THE PARENTS.
The kids, ages 10 and 6, were supposed to come home at 6 from playing. At 6:30, Danielle says, she and her husband Sasha were pretty worried. By 8, they were frantic. Only THEN did someone from the CPS Crisis Center call the parents and say that the police had picked the children up. The kids are at the Crisis Center. (Danielle thinks that the center must be a place that is open on weekends to intake kids from dangerous situations.)
Evidently a “concerned citizen” dropped a dime on the kids. Nothing says “concerned” as much as calling the cops when you see kids walking by themselves instead of, you know, checking in on the kids yourself. And while most of the comments I’ve read are supportive of the Meitivs, it’s clear that there are a not inconsiderable people who will be elbowing themselves to the front of the line when the police state victory parade comes marching through town.
– Fr. Z asks if you pray for the priests who administered your sacraments. This gave me pause as I considered that two of the priests who gave me my sacraments (or initally gave me the sacraments) are no longer priests. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that priests are people with temptations, anxieties and fears like the rest of us, and they they need our prayers and support.
– John Lillis writes of a dinner engagement with Glenn Beck. Beck’s schtick wears thin after awhile, even if his heart is often in the right place.
– The Mariners turned a 2-1 double play, and that may have been the first in MLB history.
– Somebody compiled a video showing all of the scenes involving Severus Snape in chronological order. Fascinating display of character development.
“Evidently a “concerned citizen” dropped a dime on the kids. Nothing says “concerned” as much as calling the cops when you see kids walking by themselves instead of, you know, checking in on the kids yourself. And while most of the comments I’ve read are supportive of the Meitivs, it’s clear that there are a not inconsiderable people who will be elbowing themselves to the front of the line when the police state victory parade comes marching through town.”
Indeed, I see it all the time in my practice. I then think how my brother and I were sent to the grocery store to buy items when we were about 7 and 8. During the summer we would be tossed outside to play and only allowed in at lunch or if it rained. I thank God that my childhood was a half century ago and not now. The world has gone mad.
The Meitivs live in Montgomery County, Maryland. Their first run-in with
CPS and the police occurred when their children were seen walking home
unaccompanied from a park one mile from their home. Interestingly enough,
the Montomery County School District’s criterion for deciding if elementary
school children are eligible to ride the bus is that the children must reside
over a mile from their school. To my knowledge, the police and/or CPS are
not rounding up those children walking the mile to and from their schools.
Why do you suppose that is?
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It astonishes me that those children were not allowed to call their parents
for four hours while being held by CPS. I’m hard put to come up with a
reason for that other than outright malice on the part of CPS.
I have some wonderful priests in my life who were such holy men during their time on earth that I am still asking them for help with our family temporal problems. I prob didn’t pray for them much if at all during the time of their earthly ministry. But my husband and I feel so so blessed to have these good men in heaven who still love us and our now grown kids. We do still include ALL of “our” priests and nuns in our rosary, but we remember ESP Fr Michael Kelly with thanksgiving
Nightline just did a segment on the family. The kids got “busted” walking home from the same park. The interesting thing is the guy who dropped the dime on the kids was out walking his dog. The kids stopped to pet it while they were on their way home.
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It seems to me society put that guy into a bit of a catch-22 as well. You’re a guy out walking his dog, and you’re concerned about these two kids out on their own, but how much interaction do you dare have with them, since a guy out walking his dog is the kind of “threat” to these children that resides in too much of the popular imagination?
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We’re all strangers in danger now.
It is of utmost need that Our priests be assisted as much as possible in the care of their parents–who are often old and sickly–in order to allow them to focus upon their flock more.
Check with your pastor–it may mean little more than an occasional ride to the doctor’s office or to the grocery store.
Finding Hillary!
What words WOULD one use to describe Hillary if competent and honest are not true to her core?
All of the words I find to describe her are not flattering. She is a “mother.”
It’s the best one I could find.
Hillary will keep the abortion faucet on even though her campaign message is “pro-family.”
Her defeat will help the innocent ones.
Thumb’s up to her loss as president hopeful; http://www.lifenews.com/2015/04/13/unborn-babys-thumbs-up-sign-during-ultrasound-saves-her-from-abortion/
She, Hillary, is a threat to family.
Thumbs up to her future losses as DNC pick.
Wagers the Metivs have a neighbor who does not care for them. The CPS should not be pouring rubbing alcohol on that particular flame.
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It seems to me society put that guy into a bit of a catch-22 as well.
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He’s not in a Catch-22. He’s just an ass.
– Marco Rubio is officially a candidate for the presidency. He seems to have rehabilitated his standing to the point where he should be considered, at the least. a solid tier two candidate at this juncture.
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According to whose criteria? The man is a sometime solo practice lawyer whose principal skill seems to have been a talent for politicking in the Florida legislature. He’s been in Congress all of four years, got snookered by Charles Schumer, and tried to cover his humiliation by assiduous lying. (See Mickey Kaus on this point). The precedent set by Obama has encouraged candidacies like that of Rubio and Cruz which are wholly inappropriate. Cruz needs to go back to Texas and run something before he reaches for the Presidency and Rubio would do everyone a favor by getting out of public life completely. With Perry, Huckabee, Jindal, and Walker in the race, these men are not needed.
When the priest washes his hands & says his silent prayer, I join in by praying, “Lord wash away this priest’s and all priests’ iniquities & cleanse them from their sins.” Not sure if it’s effective, but it’s something.
I’m hard put to come up with a reason for that other than outright malice on the part of CPS.
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News flash: the social work ‘profession’ is populated with ticket-punchers and ideologues without a coherent skill set or good judgment. It only exists as a ‘profession’ because there are state licensing boards and vocational training programs. Look at the course lists of some of the programs for an itinerary of humbug.
I think the Repubs have some very solid candidates, although I am not a bug Rand Paul backer due to his position on Israel and his libertarian social stances. (I often refer to libertarians as “responsible anarchists”.) BUT I would vote for Paul or any of the Repub candidates over the “Witch of Chappaqua”. I like Walker, Carson, Rubio et al !!
I agree that Rubio’s executive experience (or lack thereof) places him outside of the elite, though his time as speaker of the Florida House of Representatives at least gives him a leg up on Obama (low bar indeed). He’s middle of the pack to me because while there are four or five preferable candidates, I’d still easily pick him ahead of Bush, Christie, Huckabee, Carson, and Paul, and especially so over those last three.
In the incident involving the “free range” children, there is one facet of which I have yet to see discussed in all the blogs. Should a child of 10 have responsibility for caring for a 6 year old? What burden does this place on the 10 year old child? Maryland law prohibits leaving a child alone in the home under 8 years old and also prohibits any child under 13 from being able to care for another child. Children should grow up in a loving safe environment and allowed to be children while “free rangeing” under the watchful eye of an adult. The age where most moms were at home with their children and and kept a watchful eye and ear out while we “free ranged” with our friends has long passed. Unfortunately today there are a lot more dangers both outside the home and inside the home (internet) that can steal a child’s innocence. “Free range” children like all children thrive when given sensible and loving guidance in a safe environment. The number one factor that leads children into trouble is too much unsupervised free time with their peers. It’s tough being a parent, perhaps the Meitivs should spend more time being one then leaving it up to their 10 year old son.
. Should a child of 10 have responsibility for caring for a 6 year old?
This is a rather gross overstatement. The ten-year old was not babysitting the younger sibling, but was rather accompanying the child to and from the playground. I don’t think that is an unreasonable amount of responsibility for a 10-year old, although that is a decision for parents to make on their own based on their child’s maturity level.
Unfortunately today there are a lot more dangers both outside the home and inside the home
This is simply not true. Every statistic shows that children are safer today than they were decades ago. What is different today is that we have a 24/7 media environment that plays on parents’ fears and leads them to believe that there is a predator lurking on every corner. I’m also not sure what relevancy the internet has in this discussion other than to suggest that there’s another reason children should be made to play outside.
It’s tough being a parent, perhaps the Meitivs should spend more time being one then leaving it up to their 10 year old son.
This statement and this attitude disgusts me. Hovering over your child isn’t parenting. Children need time on their own, unsupervised, to develop and learn life skills. The implication that the Meitivs are not “real parents” because they don’t spend every waking second of their day watching their kids is based on an idea of parenting that is stooped in fear and over-concern.
It’s amazing to reflect on my own childhood. My mother was (and frankly still is) an excessive worrywart. Yet, even she allowed me to play on my own, even to the point of walking with my friends to the playground. All that she required was that I let her know where I would be. If she could let her children play unsupervised, any parent can.
Should a child of 10 have responsibility for caring for a 6 year old?
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My mother (b. 1930) walked her sister (b 1936) home from their suburban school and was expected to keep track of her, at a time and place she’ll tell you parents were anxious and protective about many things (as in, for example, prohibiting their children from climbing into swimming pools re infantile paralysis). You fancy someone should have called social services on my grandparents? My sister and I were permitted to play with neighborhood children we’d only just met without any parental supervision from anyone in that very same neighborhood more than 25 years later. And it’s located in…Montgomery County, Md.
I’d still easily pick him ahead of Bush, Christie, Huckabee, Carson, and Paul,
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I’ve never understood the hostility to Huckabee, and it’s never been explained to me by partisan Republicans (unless random epithets counstitute an explanation). Bush, Christie, or Huckabee would be preferable to Rubio just on grounds of preparation. As for policy preferences, his fandango with Charles Schumer should disabuse anyone of the notion that there’s much there behind the Ken-Doll visage. He needs to go back to Miami, find a law firm or real estate brokerage to work for, and live a quiet life.
It’s tough being a parent, perhaps the Meitivs should spend more time being one then leaving it up to their 10 year old son.
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The critic Joseph Epstein once said that he and his brother were part of the background of his parents life, not front and center, and it was not a bad place to be. He offered that he was more demonstrative with his children than his (Canadian Jewish) father could have imagined being, but that he said ‘I love you’ so often to his boys they must have wondered if they meant it. Reflecting in particular what my aunt recalled of adolescent life ca. 1942, what my mother recalled ca. 1947, and my mother’s assessment of her children’s ca. 1978, and my aunt’s assessment of the ways of the younger generation with their children, I do not think the society has been on an upward trajectory in the quality of life it provides the young. Much of the enhanced attention seems like wheel-spinning.
PJ,
Thank you for entering into the discussion. I will address your responses:
Should a child of 10 have responsibility for caring for a 6 year old?
Gross overstatement? I don’t imagine or believe that a 6 year old is just as responsible as a 10 year old. So who would you put in charge of the walk to and from the park?
Unfortunately today there are a lot more dangers both outside the home and inside the home
I stand by this statement and I draw your attention to this: http://www.missingkids.com/KeyFacts
It’s tough being a parent, perhaps the Meitivs should spend more time being one then leaving it up to their 10 year old son.
“This statement and this attitude disgusts me. Hovering over your child isn’t parenting.”
You must get upset a lot but I agree with you that hovering is not parenting and I did not promote that in my first post. My parents did not hover over me or my siblings but all the parents in the neighborhood did keep an eye out and an ear open for us when we were around. That is what I was suggesting the parents do and you can’t do that a third of a mile away.
I stand by this statement
In other words facts don’t persuade you. I recognize that this is probably pointless as you’ll just ignore it, but here are actual data points:
http://www.freerangekids.com/crime-statistics/
Statistics on child pornography are disturbing, but again – what does this have to do with children playing unsupervised outside? It’s also not exactly surprising that there are higher incidences of illicit internet usage considering that ubiquitous usage of the internet has been a thing for less than a generation. Again, I would suggest that getting children outside seems like a logical solution.
all the parents in the neighborhood did keep an eye out and an ear open for us when we were around.
Which is great, and is something we’ve actually lost. I would take a gander that none of them, if they had genuine concern, would choose to call the police rather than assisting the children themselves.
That is what I was suggesting the parents do and you can’t do that a third of a mile away.
You have ignored numerous other people recounting how their parents indeed let them wander off for greater distances than this. As I said, even my neurotic mother (God love her) allowed me considerable room to roam on my own without her immediate supervision. You may elect to keep a tighter leash on your children, but don’t pretend that this has been the norm for most of human history.
By the way, I was upset at your implicit assumption that the Meitivs were bad parents. Do I need to refresh your memory:
It’s tough being a parent, perhaps the Meitivs should spend more time being one then leaving it up to their 10 year old son.
That sentence does more than imply that you do not believe the Meitivs are good parents because they do not follow your restrictive definition of what good parenting is. That is obnoxious.
PZ
I deal in facts all day long. Crime maybe down but it is no where near the level it was when we were growing up. If you really want to deal in facts , lets make them specific to this case. This incident happened in Silver Spring, Maryland in the area of park near Fenton and Easley streets according to a Washington Post article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/montgomery-county-free-range-children-taken-into-custody-again/2015/04/12/39987b08-e188-11e4-905f-cc896d379a32_story.html
Now using a free application that is at my fingertips and should be on every parents computer: https://www.crimereports.com/
Enter the cross streets and let’s see what is really going on in the neighborhood.
Scroll out and look at the number of reported crimes and look specifically at the little red triangles which represent registered sex offenders. I count at least 7 within a third of a mile.
Now as far as ignoring numerous other people relating how their parents let them free range; I did not ignore them. I believe that I correctly interpreted their trip down memory lane as STORIES of how they were raised in the PAST, and not really relative to what is going on TODAY. As much as one could wish things were just like they used to be does not make it so. One who believes as much might be referred to being mentally unstable and definitely not in touch with reality.
Now it seems that because of my input you are directing some pent up anger at me and finding my remarks obnoxious. That certainly is your right, but I find it hinders open dialogue when one starts down the path of harsh responses.
I think that one should be empathetic to the parents who were reportedly searching for hours for their children and as a parent one should be upset with the authorities for their lack of due notification. We will not know all the reasons this occurred until all the facts are in. I will propose that it may turn out to be a break down in communication between the police and the Department of Social Services.
Having experience in these matters I can say that the police are not baby sitters and that they are required to notify DSS. Once DSS is notified then it is their responsibility for the investigation and follow up. My experience has been that DSS is overworked and understaffed and are not timely when it comes to responding. It seems at first that a lot of this could have been handled better. If the police had taken them home and found that the parents were not; the officer(s) could not leave the children on their own in the house due to Maryland law. One should not be so anxious to jump to conclusions by forming their opinion based on what passes as news today which is presented more to excite than inform. Recent events in Ferguson MO and in Florida with Mr. Zimmerman make my point. Thank you.
Jim, it would save everybody here a lot of time if you’d just write, “I have my vision of reality, and I’m sticking to it.”
I happen to live pretty close to where this all happened and know these neighborhoods well. I don’t need a website to tell me what’s happening in that neck of the woods because that is part of my reality. There is no particular threat unique to that part of Silver Spring that would make me uneasy to have an older kid (read ten or so) walk through unattended. This ain’t the ghetto. And as for the sex offender registry, I’m sorry, but the majority of the time those who are registered are not what one would call threats, especially not to children. A 19 year old who has sex with a 17 year old is on that registry for life. What was initially an idea based in good intentions has become a perversion, snaring far too many people who should not be lumped in with true threats to the community.
As much as one could wish things were just like they used to be does not make it so. One who believes as much might be referred to being mentally unstable and definitely not in touch with reality.
The same could be said for someone who insists that it is much worse despite all evidence to the contrary. So by your own definition you just might be mentally unstable.
Now it seems that because of my input you are directing some pent up anger at me and finding my remarks obnoxious.
You keep ascribing motives and feelings to me that frankly I don’t have. Once again, for the final time, any slight irritation I have with you is due to the attitude you took with regard to the Meitivs. You essentially said that they were not good parents simply because they allowed their children to walk a moderate distance, unsupervised. That is abhorrent. I’m not angry with you, but your attitude is one that I find deeply offensive.
One should not be so anxious to jump to conclusions
And maybe one day you will take your own advice.
Crime maybe down but it is no where near the level it was when we were growing up.
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Mean homicide rates have declined by half in recent decades are now about what they were in 1962. They’ve scarcely been lower than that at any time in living memory. I believe the frequency of rape has followed a similar pattern. Index crime rates in general (which include murder, rape, robbery, burglary, auto theft, assault, and larceny) have declined in frequency by about 30% in recent decades and are, I believe, around about where they were ca. 1973 (but with a greater bias toward property crime than used to be the case). I believe Dr. Zummo was born ca. 1978, so he never lived in that state of the world. Unless you’ve migrated from one sort of locale to another or once lived in an eccentrically tranquil locale, index crime rates ‘no where near’ what we experience today would not have been a part of your upbringing if you are under 55.
Recent events in Ferguson MO and in Florida with Mr. Zimmerman make my point.
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Just how? You’ve cherry-picked from the last 3 years two odd cases, one a justifiable homicide of a local hoodlum who committed a petty robbery and then attacked a cop and another a justifiable homicide of a petty hoodlum who was practicing his MMA moves on the local neighborhood watch captain. The number of justifiable homicides by police in an ordinary year in this country is around about 300 or so. The number by the general public is, I believe a two-digit figure. Neither has anything to do with hazards peculiar to unaccompanied children.
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I believe that I correctly interpreted their trip down memory lane as STORIES of how they were raised in the PAST, and not really relative to what is going on TODAY.
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One of my “stories” was from around 1970. We are not living in a more crime-ridden world now than we were then, just a world in which social workers are more officious and random members of the public have worse judgment.
The homicide rate in 1967 when I was 10 was 6.2 per 100,000. In 2013 it was 4.5.
PZ,
I am speaking of facts and offering information and you insist on spouting your opinion and offering remarks that are not true; ie “A 19 year old who has sex with a 17 year old is on that registry for life.” This is NOT A CRIME ANYWHERE! So you know not of what you speak.
You are free to differ with me as you like but get you facts straight first.
I am not being “Chicken Little” saying the sky is falling and crime is off the hook, but I do know that the general public has no idea of how much chaos that police officers protect them from everyday. Legally police officers do not have responsibility for your personal safety. You do and for your children.
Art,
My childhood stories would be from the 50’s and 60’s. I have children older than both of you and I have been in law enforcement since 1971. My reference to Ferguson and Florida were in reference to jumping to conclusions and assumptions before all the facts are in as to what was done by law enforcement and DSS in this case. I believe that you missed that and once again proved my point.
Once again I will ask the question how can you come to the aid of your child if needed when you are a third of a mile away? For any reason, regardless of what the crime stats are and the likely hood of harm from another person.
The average citizen can’t tell you what is going on around them beyond 7 yards. Just look around and see the number of persons distracted by their portable electronics. How can a parent tell what is going on around their child from a third of a mile away? Is it worth sticking to your “free range” program if something happens to one of your children. I am not promoting “helicopter parenting” by any means just suggesting a little closer surveillance than a third of a mile and letting a 10 year old be a 10 year old without the worry of being responsible for his 6 year old sister. To me it’s just common sense and the way it should be.
BTW I am not a fan of the “Nanny State” trying to regulate everything either.
Jim claims to have worked in law enforcement, yet is seemingly unaware of the crime of statutory rape. Should I have made 19 and 16 the age difference to bring the point home a little more clearer? The point is that many people are on the sex offender registry for reasons that have nothing to do with the reasons most people are truly concerned about, especially as related to children.
But you’re more interested in arguing about picayune points rather than addressing the more general point, which is that your picture of society and the dangers faced by children is greatly exaggerated. You offer up these elaborate scenarios where children past the age of reason are going to be in these completely helpless scenarios because mommy and daddy are not around at all times. You can choose to live in fear and subject your loved ones to that if you wish, but the rest of would prefer to raise our children based on an honest and sober assessment of the world as it actually is. Is there the a slight possibility that my child may come to harm? Perhaps. But there’s a chance – a significantly greater one, in fact – that they will be killed in a car crash. I’m still going to get behind the wheel with them.
I will not hold my children hostage and refuse to grant them reasonable amounts of autonomy because there is a one in a million chance that something bad might happen if I do.
Art, My childhood stories would be from the 50’s and 60’s. I have children older than both of you and I have been in law enforcement since 1971.
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A typical American man with a child older than yours truly would be about 81 years old, Mr. O’Neill. In 1971, the military would not accept enlistments from men past their 36th birthday, but the police department you joined would, even though you could remember nothing of the Depression or the war. A police force made up of amnesiac middle-aged men sounds like it would be real effective.
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My reference to Ferguson and Florida were in reference to jumping to conclusions and assumptions before all the facts are in as to what was done by law enforcement and DSS in this case. I believe that you missed that and once again proved my point.
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Actually, the police department in Sanford, Florida and the local prosecutors office decided in a matter of a couple of weeks that Mr. Zimmerman was not culpable. The 17 month long legal extravaganza was sheer wheel spinning for the rabble. As for Ferguson, the security cam photos showing Michael Brown strong-arming the convenience store manager were available within days, much to Eric Holder’s dismay. The public prosecutor’s office embarked on an elaborate process (quite unnecessary and atypical) because of the rabble. What point do you fancy you’ve proved??
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Once again I will ask the question how can you come to the aid of your child if needed when you are a third of a mile away?
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Needed for what?
Jim claims to have worked in law enforcement, yet is seemingly unaware of the crime of statutory rape
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Or of crime statistics. Or of his retirement benefits. The median retirement age for police officers is about 55.
“I’ve never understood the hostility to Huckabee, and it’s never been explained to me by partisan Republicans (unless random epithets counstitute an explanation).”
Background: I was a county coordinator for Huckabee in his US Senate race, and again in his Lt. Governor’s race. I worked my heart out for him in a county that had no elected Republicans and that had had an inactive county Republican committee for about 30 years. In his Lt. Governor’s race, I knew he was going to win because in that yellow dog Democrat county, where they had cheated in the absentee ballot box, Huckabee had garnered almost 50 % of the vote. I lived under his Lt. Governorship and his 2 terms as governor of Arkansas.
Now the reasons why people go beserk over Huckabee.
1. State government continued its steady growth under his leadership.
2. He had promised not to raise taxes, so he raised EVERYTHING else you can possibly raise as governor of our state (fees, fines, etc., etc., etc….)
3. He portrays himself as a conservative Republican when he is simply a pro-life, pro-second amendment Democrat.
4. He thinks government is to be used as a resource to meet peoples’ physical needs as if he were still running a church trying to meet people’s needs. Example: Under his leadership, the state made a deal with a private utility company in which the utility was to require everyone in the state to pay a fee on their utility bill. This fee, that the private company collected and handled, was to be put into a fund out of which the utility would “weatherize” the poors’ homes and save the poor money on their utility bills. This is vintage Huckabee. It was just fine with him to use government to force people to give money to a cause that he deemed worthy. If you didn’t pay the fee demanded by the utility that went to pay for work on others’ homes, even though your home might need repair, you got your utility cut off. The year that went into effect, there were tens of thousands of Arkansans who got their utilities cut off. I am still angry about this. I think finally, someone sued and a court ended that joke of a government program several years later. Huckabee is more than happy to forcibly spend other people’s money.
2) Huckabee created (at the time) the largest addition to a socialized medical program in our state’s history during his tenure. Again, he was using the force of government to require us to be charitable.
3) Huckabee and his wife, Janet, are very thin skinned and vengeful. I know this first hand. If you criticize them or disagree with them on policy they will cut you off and do their best to pay you back later—no matter how long it takes. There was no compromise with him as governor. You either supported what he wanted and all of what he wanted, or you were the “enemy.” His chief of staff would tell you that “you are either with Mike Huckabee or against Mike Huckabee.”
4) When he ran for Lt. Governor the first time, he was paying his wife with campaign money to produce his campaign media spots, as they had no income and had to make their house payment.
5) Huckabee focused solely on himself as the head of the Republican party in this state while he was governor. The party structure was completely neglected and fell apart during his tenure.
6) Not even 50% of Arkansans go to college, however, Huckabee pushed avidly for our state to pay for the college tuition of the children from other nations who were here illegally. It fell flat. (Again I point out that he avidly advocates for the force of government being used for mandated forms of “charity” which is a liberal Democrat/Socialistic tendency.
7) Huckabee, again confusing his role as governor with that of a pastor, released a prison inmate who worked at the governor’s mansion during Huckabee’s tenure. He said that we had to give people the opportunity to show that they had repented of their evil deeds and be forgiven. The released prisoner went to another state, raped, and killed a woman.
There is more. However, you get the idea.
Well, I forgot to mention something the Democrats are sure to bludgen Huckabee with. Again,confusing his political position with that of a church pastor, he decided to release a prison that worked at the governor’s mansion. When the family who had been harmed by this prisoner promptly had a very public, very attention grabbing fit–if I remember correctly, they demanded to have a face to face meeting with Huckabee who refused the meeting as he was wont to do when someone had a viewpoint differring from his–Huckabee gave some his reasonings for the release in the terminology of the church. He indicated that prisoners had to be able to redeem themselves and be forgiven–given a chance for hope–or why hould they even attempt to rehabilitate themselves? The criminal was released on Huckabee’s watch, went to another state, raped and killed a woman.
1. State government continued its steady growth under his leadership.
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The ratio of state and local public employee compensation went from 14.4% to 15.4% of total compensation between 1997 and 2007. Domestic product attributable to state and local government went from 9.1% to 9.4%. The Democratic Party controlled the Arkansas legislature the entire time he was in office.
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If you didn’t pay the fee demanded by the utility that went to pay for work on others’ homes, even though your home might need repair, you got your utility cut off.
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How large was the fee?
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Huckabee created (at the time) the largest addition to a socialized medical program in our state’s history during his tenure. Again, he was using the force of government to require us to be charitable.
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Hmm. You’d like the state legislature to eliminate Medicaid. In re I take it you regard programs which were precursors to Medicaid (e.g. state asylums and tuberculosis sanitoria) were also illegitimate. In addition to which public schools, which provide a service which can be purchased on the open market and which have you paying taxes to educate the children of freeloaders are also illegitimate. You’d like common provision in the realms of medical care, long-term care, and schooling to be eliminated. Good luck with that.
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When he ran for Lt. Governor the first time, he was paying his wife with campaign money to produce his campaign media spots, as they had no income and had to make their house payment.
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Was did she do this work for the campaign committee or not?
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Huckabee focused solely on himself as the head of the Republican party in this state while he was governor. The party structure was completely neglected and fell apart during his tenure.
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What was the partisan balance in the state legislature in 1996? What was it in 2007?
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6) Not even 50% of Arkansans go to college, however, Huckabee pushed avidly for our state to pay for the college tuition of the children from other nations who were here illegally. It fell flat. (Again I point out that he avidly advocates for the force of government being used for mandated forms of “charity” which is a liberal Democrat/Socialistic tendency.
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His position was sentimental, as was Gov. Perry’s. Do you have an issue with in-state tuition for anyone else? State institutions providing schooling?
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Huckabee, again confusing his role as governor with that of a pastor, released a prison inmate who worked at the governor’s mansion during Huckabee’s tenure
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The future behavior of discrete individuals is always a matter of actuarial calculation, whether you’re considering them for reprieve, commutation, or parole. In irreducible number will re-offend. The only way around this problem is to never release anyone.
Re: your last response. You asked, so I told you.
“1. State government continued its steady growth under his leadership.
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The ratio of state and local public employee compensation went from 14.4% to 15.4% of total compensation between 1997 and 2007. Domestic product attributable to state and local government went from 9.1% to 9.4%. The Democratic Party controlled the Arkansas legislature the entire time he was in office.”
Obviously, someone has been provided with talking points. I sat in state committee meetings with a political organization of which I was a member that reviewed every single increase in every single state agency’s budget every year Huckabee was governor. Sorry if your single selected stats do not impress me. Also, do you happen to have the percentage of increase in every single interaction citizens had with their Arkansas state gov’t, such as fees/licenses, etc., that increased during his tenure? P.S. Those fees never went back down.
“His position was sentimental, as was Gov. Perry’s. Do you have an issue with in-state tuition for anyone else? State institutions providing schooling?”
Sentiment be damned. Everyone can claim sentiment when they are trying to use government’s coercive power to force you to pay for their charitable projects. It would have been my cold hard cash that I earn by the sweat of my brow–not sentiment that paid for it. Now, Huckabee is very wealthy–do you know if he has paid any illegal children’s college tuition or is he only interested in other people paying for it? By the way, I give to charities on a regular basis that minister to such children and have worked with them directly on a daily basis for years. I do not want my government choosing my charities for me. (Again a repeat of that same refrain.)
And re: the Democrats controlling the Arkansas legislature during H’s
tenure-which is true. The Democrats controlled the Congress when Ronald Reagan was president. However, RR got his reducing government agenda accomplished. So I guess we should expect Huckabee to be a failure as president if he has to deal with a Democrat congress as well?
Also, if Huckabee had actually participated in party building as the leader of the Arkansas Republican Party when he was the head of it, he might have had more Rs to work with in the legislature. Instead, he focused soley on his own political career–and gained a lot of ground considering the fact that when he was first elected to office he could hardly pay his mortgage on a regular home–and by the time he left office about 10 years later–he was buying a $700,000 home in a uppity area of Little Rock as well as other purchases.
“How large was the fee?”
It doesn’t matter how large the fee was. The government is not there to be used as a means to redistribute wealth and force citizens to give their money to what government considers to be its mandatory charity projects. Period. Not one single penny. The Bible says that charity is to be given willingly…Not coerced by the force of gov’t nor the force of not being able to function in your own home due to the “fee” which was really a “government forced charitable fine.” Years later when that process was declared to be unconstitutional I never got a single dime of my “fees” that I had paid returned to me. Do you think government should be used as a vehicle to force people to be charitable? Obamacare is a prime example of this. Just think how much charity he could come up with as president!
“Hmm. You’d like the state legislature to eliminate Medicaid.”
It was not a medicaid program. Though it was supported by mandatory tax dollars. Again, using gov’t to force people to be charitable–you notice the pattern.
“Was did she do this work for the campaign committee or not?”
I’m not sure that I understand your question. But she was directly involved in the mass media campaign and ,to my knowledge, was being paid for it ostensibly because they had a mortgage to pay.
“Huckabee focused solely on himself as the head of the Republican party in this state while he was governor. The party structure was completely neglected and fell apart during his tenure.”
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“What was the partisan balance in the state legislature in 1996? What was it in 2007?”
It was the party structure across the state–the volunteers and little old ladies who ran the Republican Women’s clubs, and those who had kept the party together and fought the good fight to get Huckabee elected to governor the first time around who were pushed out of the way. After being pushed out of the way and ignored, the volunteers who would have assisted the party to become a majority party much sooner gave up and quit as a whole. There was quite the money scandal down at the state party headquarters during this time. It was not pretty. During the time Huckabee was governor, he very publicly ignored more than one national Republican figure who visited the state, who could possibly be a contender against Huckabee in a presidential race. I was in the state campaign headquarters of a Republican governor candidate when word was received from Huckabee that he would not be attending such an event after all–a few hours before the event–after Huckabee had promised to attend the fundraising event for an extended period of time. Again, it was not pretty and was seen to be downright malicious and manipulative.
Speaking of money problems, I organized and held a fundraiser during his first run for governor in which I personally handed him and those with him around $1000 in event ticket fees and cash which never made it to the campaign headquarters–at least, it didn’t make it on their official records when I looked at them later. That infuriated me, as you can imagine.
“The future behavior of discrete individuals is always a matter of actuarial calculation, whether you’re considering them for reprieve, commutation, or parole. In irreducible number will re-offend. The only way around this problem is to never release anyone.”
The greatest predictor of future behavior is past behavior. People who have already committed crimes are likely to repeat them. The intensity of repeat offenses often increase over time. “Actuarial calculations” are no comfort to the individuals nor their families whom this particular criminal harmed. Reprieve, commutation, and parole be damned. If they don’t want to be in prison–don’t offend. If they are there–don’t let them out. The people of this state have passed legislation just to make sure that criminals are required to serve even part of their actual sentence. Huckabee had no excuse for not meeting with the family of those this criminal harmed when Huckabee was considering releasing the criminal. The state government is not built for redeeming people. That process lies elsewhere and now we have a raped and dead woman as evidence. And for the last time on this post–I will point out that the state is not a church.
Obviously, someone has been provided with talking points.
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No, I went to the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis interactive data site and pulled some Arkansas numbers and noodled around with them in a spreadsheet.
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The Democrats controlled the Congress when Ronald Reagan was president. However, RR got his reducing government agenda accomplished.
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You can review aggregate expenditure levels or you can review the menu of agencies. The Reagan Administration had some successes in cutting select domestic discretionary programs (a modest fraction in a world of entitlements) and in initiating regulatory changes. That’s it. If the infrastructure is still there, the Party of Crime can just restore the cuts when they get the chance. It’s hard to think of an agency the Reagan crew were able to waste. The National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities, Claiborne Pell’s pet projects, should have been easy kills. They still exist 34 years after Mr. Reagan’s inauguration.
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It was the party structure across the state–the volunteers and little old ladies who ran the Republican Women’s clubs…
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I see 260 words of chatter yet you did not answer my question, which can be accomplished with one short sentence.
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People who have already committed crimes are likely to repeat them….The state government is not built for redeeming people
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And the implications of that probabalistic statement are what, that you keep them locked up indefinitely?
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Huckabee had no excuse for not meeting with the family of those this criminal harmed when Huckabee was considering releasing the criminal.
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Meeting with that family would have told Huckabee precisely what about (1) the offenders respect for prison rules or (2) the likelihood of the offender doing something in the future?
“Meeting with that family would have told Huckabee precisely what about (1) the offenders respect for prison rules or (2) the likelihood of the offender doing something in the future?”
Since you are a researcher, look up the names of the families that were harmed, contact them, and ask them first hand what they would have shared with Huckabee.
“I see 260 words of chatter yet you did not answer my question, which can be accomplished with one short sentence.”
Because of your inability to communicate in public forums without resulting to personal insults I ceased to respond to your individual comments to answer your specific concerns long ago. My motivation is so that anyone else who might be interested sees the response.
Because of your inability to communicate in public forums without resulting to personal insults I ceased to respond to your individual comments to answer your specific concerns long ago. My motivation is so that anyone else who might be interested sees the response.
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Whatever.