Today I received the following email:
“Dear Ralph,
I read your top 10 reasons Ben Chandler should run for governor and was a little disappointed because you did not list anything he has accomplished while in the US. House.
Has he accomplished anything? Or, are you just saying he should take advantage of the, well deserved, anti-GOP climate? Personally, I am sick of candidates running for governor that have no accomplishments. It seems every governor Kentucky has had in the last 20 years has only had ME-ITIS and hasn't done a damn thing for the constituents. So, do you mind listing 10 positive accomplishments Rep. Chandler has under his belt? Or, can you? “
First of all, I don’t agree with every position Ben Chandler takes, but here are ten Chandler votes in the House of Representatives. I can salute all ten votes.
NO 6/29/06 Vote 352: H RES 897: Providing for Consideration of the Bill (H.R. 4761) to Provide for Exploration, Development, and Production Activities for Mineral Resources on the Outer Continental Shelf, and for Other Purposes
NO 6/29/06 Vote 351: H RES 896: Providing for Consideration of the Resolution (H. Res. 895) Supporting Intelligence and Law Enforcement Programs to Track Terrorist Finances Conducted Consistent With Federal Law and With Appropriate Congressional Consultation and Specifically Condemning the Disclosure and Publication of Classified Information
NO 5/10/06 Vote 135: H R 4297: Extended the Bush tax cuts.
NO 2/1/06 Vote 4: H RES 653: Cut nearly $40 billion from the federal budget by imposing substantial changes on welfare, child support and student lending programs.
NO 9/29/05 Vote 506: H R 3824: Would have forced the government to compensate property owners if development plans were stymied by attempts to protect endangered species and would have given political appointees more power to make decisions about which species and areas would be subject to government intervention aimed at protecting plant and wildlife.
YES 7/26/06 Vote 405: H R 5319: Deleting Online Predators Act
YES 7/26/06 Vote 404: H R 5337: National Security Foreign Investment Reform and Strengthened Transparency Act
NO 7/28/05 Vote 445: H R 6: Offered tax breaks and incentives in what supporters said was an effort to spur oil and gas companies to provide innovative ways to reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil, conserve resources and reduce pollution.
YES 12/14/05 Vote 630: H R 2863: Supported a ban on cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of detainees held by U.S. forces and to requires the military to follow the Army field manual for interrogations
YES 5/24/05 Vote 204: H R 810: Would have repealed restrictions on federal spending on embryonic stem cell research.
And while we are talking about reasons to support Chandler, let’s not forget that as Attorney General he took on sitting Democratic Governor Paul Patton by indicting four of Patton’s staff in a campaign scheme to get around spending limits. Patton pardoned the four and Chandler called for Patton’s resignation.
"He (Patton) has substituted his judgment for that of a jury before evidence was ever heard," Chandler said. "This causes a further loss of faith in our leaders in government and in our political process. I believe Governor Patton, through today's action, has again betrayed the trust and confidence of the people of Kentucky."
And while I am a partisan, and Ben Chandler is not perfect, he’s a damn site better than the yahoo we have sitting in Frankfort today.
By the way here are a few of Congressman Ernie Fletcher’s votes in the US House.
YES on banning Family Planning funding in US aid abroad. (May 2001)
NO on raising CAFE standards; incentives for alternative fuels. (Aug 2001)
NO on prohibiting oil drilling & development in ANWR. (Aug 2001)
NO on starting implementation of Kyoto Protocol. (Jun 2000)
NO on campaign finance reform banning soft-money contributions. (Feb 2002)
NO on banning soft money and issue ads. (Sep 1999)
YES on capping damages & setting time limits in medical lawsuits. (Mar 2003)
NO on allowing reimportation of prescription drugs. (Jul 2003)
YES on making the Bush tax cuts permanent. (Apr 2002)
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Comair Flight #5191
Until now I have refrained from commenting on Comair Flight #5191. But today’s Herald Leader has a large amount of ink devoted to the subject. The contents of the paper on this subject underscores why a large number of readers dismiss opinions from the paper.
First my friend Richard Dawahare commented on the disaster:
“Then I wondered why the gates of our emotions should hinge so surely on our personal connections with those who die. After all, we are all brothers and sisters, and each life is equally precious. So while it is understandable that we feel more strongly about those who are close to us, familiarity is no prerequisite for human empathy.
Thus does another catastrophe put in perspective the supposed hot issues of today, unmasking the truly trivial nature of our daily dramas.
In this light, the hiring debacle in Frankfort pales in importance.”
Richards’s comments bring in to perspective a lot of the ranting this blog and others have done on the corrupt administration in Frankfort.
On the facing editorial page were these comments:
First the lead editorial criticized the Governor and Fayette County Coroner.
“Just the facts
That's what the National Transportation Safety Board has provided the public as it sorts through the circumstances that led to Sunday's crash of Comair Flight 5191, which it took off on the wrong, shorter runway.
The governor and the coroner should follow that example. Although well-meaning, both have added to the angst and confusion.”
Second this from the Editorial Notebook:
“PROTECT VICTIMS' LOVED ONES FROM LEGAL PREDATORS
All across Central Kentucky, people have responded to the loved ones of the Comair crash victims, offering food, shelter, prayers and counseling.
Another way to give aid: protecting them from lawyers' solicitations.
Federal law limits contact by lawyers for 45 days after a disaster and imposes a $1,000-a-day fine for violations. Kentucky court rules forbid direct contact when the lawyer has no prior direct relationship with the prospective client.
There may come a time when these families will seek legal counsel. But they are likely still adjusting to the shock and waiting to bury their loved ones and looking for answers to questions about the crash.
Don't allow them to become prey to lawyers who would break the law."
Third, proving that the advertising department does not share the deep concerns of the editorial staff, there is a full page advertisement on page B7, from The Johnson Law Firm.
“Call now to have and experienced attorney familiar with aviation disasters discuss you case with you and answer any questions you may have.”
Turning the page there is a quarter page advertisement from Chalik & Chalik Law Offices.
“The Law Offices of Chalik and Chalik send our thoughts and prayers to the families of the victims of Comair Flight 5191.
We can help.
We are a family owned wrongful death and injury law firm with our offices here in Lexington.”
Two points:
One, the Herald Leader should practice what it preaches and not accept advertisements from legal vultures circling Flight 5191.
Two, while I am strongly against the Republican backed idea of Tort Reform. Which is really a means of removing from corporations any responsibility for harm they many cause a private individual.
But Lawyers like Chalik & Chalik and The Johnson Law Firm certainly make it harder to argue against Tort Reform.
First my friend Richard Dawahare commented on the disaster:
“Then I wondered why the gates of our emotions should hinge so surely on our personal connections with those who die. After all, we are all brothers and sisters, and each life is equally precious. So while it is understandable that we feel more strongly about those who are close to us, familiarity is no prerequisite for human empathy.
Thus does another catastrophe put in perspective the supposed hot issues of today, unmasking the truly trivial nature of our daily dramas.
In this light, the hiring debacle in Frankfort pales in importance.”
Richards’s comments bring in to perspective a lot of the ranting this blog and others have done on the corrupt administration in Frankfort.
On the facing editorial page were these comments:
First the lead editorial criticized the Governor and Fayette County Coroner.
“Just the facts
That's what the National Transportation Safety Board has provided the public as it sorts through the circumstances that led to Sunday's crash of Comair Flight 5191, which it took off on the wrong, shorter runway.
The governor and the coroner should follow that example. Although well-meaning, both have added to the angst and confusion.”
Second this from the Editorial Notebook:
“PROTECT VICTIMS' LOVED ONES FROM LEGAL PREDATORS
All across Central Kentucky, people have responded to the loved ones of the Comair crash victims, offering food, shelter, prayers and counseling.
Another way to give aid: protecting them from lawyers' solicitations.
Federal law limits contact by lawyers for 45 days after a disaster and imposes a $1,000-a-day fine for violations. Kentucky court rules forbid direct contact when the lawyer has no prior direct relationship with the prospective client.
There may come a time when these families will seek legal counsel. But they are likely still adjusting to the shock and waiting to bury their loved ones and looking for answers to questions about the crash.
Don't allow them to become prey to lawyers who would break the law."
Third, proving that the advertising department does not share the deep concerns of the editorial staff, there is a full page advertisement on page B7, from The Johnson Law Firm.
“Call now to have and experienced attorney familiar with aviation disasters discuss you case with you and answer any questions you may have.”
Turning the page there is a quarter page advertisement from Chalik & Chalik Law Offices.
“The Law Offices of Chalik and Chalik send our thoughts and prayers to the families of the victims of Comair Flight 5191.
We can help.
We are a family owned wrongful death and injury law firm with our offices here in Lexington.”
Two points:
One, the Herald Leader should practice what it preaches and not accept advertisements from legal vultures circling Flight 5191.
Two, while I am strongly against the Republican backed idea of Tort Reform. Which is really a means of removing from corporations any responsibility for harm they many cause a private individual.
But Lawyers like Chalik & Chalik and The Johnson Law Firm certainly make it harder to argue against Tort Reform.
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