Dakota Today

**We will miss a couple of characters

Notice of two characters dead today or earlier. Molly Ivins of Texas and a whole lot of interesting newspaper columns died today of breast cancer which she had been fighting for years. And, George V. Cunningham also died recently according to a David Kranz column in the ARGUS today.

Here is a link to Firedog Lake Blog with a photo and some bits of Molly Ivins columns.
LINK in new win-- Molly Ivins Death Noted at FireDog Lake Blog

Molly Ivins was a reminder that despite the presence of the Bushes in the White House, there was at least some intelligent life in Texas. That will not probably be so obvious from now on however.

I took a photo of the photos in the Argus column of George Cunningham and one of the Buttons from his campaign the Argus used. Someplace I may have one of those buttons or stickers.

George V. Cunningham was a character to say the least. I talked to him a few times back in the days when he was working for George McGovern. He had some good stories of campaigns and campaigning. Can't remember much of them however. He also told some stories about days at USD in Vermillion and sneaking into one of the sororities..perhaps Theta Tau..to raid their refrigerator late at night. That may have ended when crumbs were spotted or a hell hath no fury like a woman situation and new locks were installed.

I would guess that a few of George McGovern's campaign coups probably had the hand of George Cunningham behind them. That might have included getting some veteran to resign from a veterans committee slurring McGovern in a way similar to the Swiftboating of Sen. Kerry. McGovern also filled the front pages of SD newspapers when he came back from a national convention early because of the very serious problems in South Dakota. I don't know, but I suspect George V. would have had more than one merry twinkle in his eye during those days. A neighbor worked with him up in Pierre during the Ralph Herseth Administration. I guess I should see if he can remember any of the stories that used to make us all laugh.

Politics can be clean, dirty, irrelevant, deadly serious, inane, calculated, accidental or just about anything and in nearly every area of life and polity; but some of the people involved are truly fascinating and interesting people.

George V. Cunningham and Molly Ivins were part of political processes, news and opinions. In their own ways they were true characters. They will be missed, but also too soon forgotten. That is the nature of poltics.

Enough of this. If you missed the first two parts, you don't want to miss the remaining parts of the PBS program on the Supreme Court. I don't remember a whole lot of the Constitutional Principles course I took with Doc. Farber lecturing at USD, but the cases sounded familiar. I don't think many people fully realize what Supreme Court decisions have done to make our country what it is today and the many jigs and jogs of those processes and participants from the very beginning of the US until now. PBS is bringing the dry pages to life. Schools should be buying the book and the DVD of the series to give their students a chance to get a feeling for the function of the most important appeals court in the US.

**Stay tuned for a few comments on some really ..well dumb..things I see on TV and read in the papers---Doug Wiken

**Mercury Rising Blog redesigned

Looks like Phoenix Woman etal have redesigned the Mercury Rising Blog. From news there it appears that Molly Ivins will not live much longer because cancer has spread through her body. Take a look

LINK opens in new win-- Mercury Rising Blog

Now, I suppose the links at left need some more review too. A blogger's work is never done, but I don't think I will be washing any Vista windows anytime soon. Bill Gates may be smarter than the average bear, bt now and then he says things that don't seem to make much sense. Now he is claiming that people don't think of their computers by their manufacturer's name, but by the operating system on those packages.
Hmmmm??

Weather is changing. Front must have moved through here. Snow flurries seemed more like a snow storm for a few minutes this morning.

**Stay tuned for a change in local brown to a sinister white---- Doug Wiken

**Another SD Blog..John Zilverberg shows signs of bullheadness..amazing

South Dakota has another blog. John Zilverberg of the purebred cattle ranch and business at Highmore is spreading his opinion around at LINK in new win--- MY OPINION BLOG by John Zilverberg

It sure looks like the blog of a typical SD rancher. Pretty much conservative, but maybe not too well informed, but with a lot of opinions. Maybe he will have a bit of the humor that the cartoonist Zilverberg demonstrated in farm and ranch cartoons.

Anyway, he has a couple posts that have a germ of good sense. We don't need to turn the US into a Tower of Babel in the interests of political correctness. Zilverberg is pushing the English language legislation. Sounds like a darn good idea to me too. I detest product manuals with a dozen language versions of mediocre instructions because the multiple languages mean that none of the versions are much good.

More seriously, the federal government by allowing a porous open border dumps a huge unfunded mandate unto states for education, health, and court costs, etc...ad infinitum. George Bush however hasn't presented anything that will do one thing in the way of legislation and regulation but maintain cheap union-breaking labor by uneducated legal and illegal aliens. He also hasn't presented anything in the way of aid to state education and health systems to cover the costs of cheap labor for the corporations that dump money by the ton into Republican presidential and senate campaigns.

I am in favor of an elevated electric train runing on a concrete roadbed about 20 feet off the ground. No sense just building a wall when a railroad can be built. And, all the anti-terrorism blather coming from Bush, Inc. is meaningless unless our borders are closed. Borders should be essentially shut down until the entry of illegal aliens is stopped dead.

Well, take a look at Zilverberg's blog and give him some sensible comments so he doesn't think all the wingnut right crap he sees on Fox and hears from Limbaugh makes sense and he turns into another Sibson searching for truthiness in all the wrong places.

**Stay tuned before it gets to damn cold to type..frigid SD weather is predicted--- Doug Wiken

**Poll, What do you think about the SD Legislative Hearing

Below is a simple poll on the wisdom of the SD Legislature getting involved with a hearing/star chamber on the Sutton-Wiese Legislator-Page matter. It is a test of the BlogPoll System. May not be here very long, depending on complications of this system, etc. Some of these polling systems are a lot more trouble than the results are ever worth. Try it anyway. See if it works. Probably too few options and too simple, but this really is a test.

Well, that's that. but, as "John" mentioned in a comment on a previous post here, Rush Limbaugh was ostensibly upset because Limbaugh thinks Chet Brokaw terribly slanted a story because it did not note that both Sutton and Wiese are DEMOCRATS until the 19th paragraph of the AP story. I guess Rush wasn't concerned that the SD Legislature being predominately REPUBLICAN since that was not mentioned at all.

Limbaugh probably doesn't understant that unless Sutton has been labeled a REPUBLICAN, there was no reason to mention his party since nearly everybody in South Dakota is probably aware there is a very high probability that no REPUBLICAN would ever be investigated by the REPUBLICAN legislature or the REPUBLICAN Attorney General and his REPUBLICAN DCI.

Also, don't hold you breath waiting for Rush Limbaugh to plow through the whole story on REPUBLICAN Roger Hunt and his flaunting of SD law.

**Stay tuned even if the snap "tests" here are just too tough for your cat or dog---Doug Wiken

**Curse the names Gary Moore and Lee Schoenbeck as SD Legislature sinks in its own cesspool

I would think South Dakota Senators of both parties would be cursing the day that they ever heard the names Lee Schoenbeck (R) and Gary Moore (D).

The Republicans in Congress thought they had the world by the tail when they started their campaign to impeach Bill Clinton for sexually-challenged ethics. Had Larry Flynt a few more months to dig around and more of the window-peepers would have found themselves hoisted on their own petards*

There are no winners in this. A general said that Bush was sending troops to Iraq on a "fools errand".

Republican Schoenbeck of Watertown and Democrat Moore of Yankton sent the SD Senate on a "fools errand".

Very frankly, I am glad I am not a South Dakota senator forced into making a decision on this mess.
Perhaps they ought to consider "admonishment" rather than "censure"?

With Sutton as well as Clinton, no matter what is or is or was (or the meaning of "is") not significant about the sex issues involved, getting into the situation at all raises serious doubts about their ability to make rational decisions on other more serious actual matter of state issues as well.

Finding a legislator, lawyer, minister, or even a newspaper man (or writer of pious, pompous blogs) drunk raises the same kind of questions.

On a somewhat lighter note, I never can remember how to spell "petard" it always seems it should be "pittard" until I check the spelling. An online dictionary produced the altogether too appropriate etymology quoted below. It has serious implications for the South Dakota legislature.

Etymology: Middle French, from peter, to break wind, from pet expulsion of intestinal gas, from Latin peditum, from neuter of peditus, past participle of pedere, to break wind; akin to Greek bdein to break wind. (Merriam-Webster)

***Stay tuned. The world will keep spinning, the sun and moon will rise, and the wind will break no matter what happens in Pierre, SD on this or any other "issue"---Doug Wiken

**The First Political Rule..Sutton Never Heard It?

South Dakota legislative star-chamber is poking and prodding into the He said, He said. Apparently Sutton never heard the first Rule of Politics for Males......

DON'T GET INTO BED WITH A DEAD GIRL OR A LIVE BOY

If South Dakota State Senator Sutton ever heard that one, he must have thought it was just a joke.

The legislative hearing is a bad joke if it is not connected to proposed future legislation or legislature rules and regulations. A couple of legislators from both parties should have visited Sutton and said, "We have heard allegations of improper behavior between you and a legislative intern. We don't know if they are true or not, but do us and yourself a favor and stay away from juveniles, pages, and interns or we will revisit this issue in a public hearing."

As a matter of threat to the government and society in South Dakota, this affair is insignificant compared to the effective money-laundering done by a Republican senator pushing a theocratic intrusion of religion into politics. His action is a threat to the transparency of all government and the integrity of the election process. The Sutton-Wiese matter is a family relations problem and not a government problem.

A pandora's box has been opened by the actions of a couple senators followed by the whole body jumping into what has been called by others ...a cesspool. This has dangerous precedents for turning the will of the people in elections upside down by partisan fiat. As Barney Fife said, "Nip it in the bud."

Do that before we are treated in every session with an attempt to disqualify elected members of the legislature for partisan advantage.

*** Stay tuned for something more important...I know it is here somewhere---Doug Wiken

***South Dakota legislature Star Chamber Reports..gotta be a pony here someplace

If you are consumed with curiousity sharing the perverse interests of the South Dakota Legislature, you can get a pretty good text summary at the link below that I found over at PP's Dakota War College Blog.

LINK-- Voices Blog at Argus Leader

That is the first time I have linked to anything at the Voices blog I think. Not a particularly good start.

I am still wondering what legislation can come out of this hearing/investigation/committee/starchamber.

So far with my non-lawyer mind, I have not heard anything that warranted more than a gossip report at Dakota War College. But, unlike the gossip of former PUC member Sahr, there does not seem to be any reluctance to unleash what passes as sordid detail in the SD legislature.

I found newspaper reports that discussion of "penis" word caused some arousal (perhaps wrong word) in the legislature. For a body filled with more than its fair share of male and female pricks, the concern seemed a bit strange.

If the DCI and the AG and the legislature spent as much time investigating the SD economy and tax system, we might have a better state. If they had dug into Janklow's sale of the cement plant, they may have found something. If they considered the links between Barrick Gold and the Bush family, they might have noticed some reason to be concerned that the delay of the Homestake mine to SD might have had some partisan political motivations related to defeating Tim Johnson or Tom Daschle.

If you have time for voice report of the proceedings, find SDPB.org and follow the links.

That of course is rumor..just the thing the SD legislature loves to dig around in.

***Stay tuned---The SD legislature won't even be X-rated in a few weeks---Doug Wiken

***Great collective "YAWN" rattles windows..Kerry Won't Run for Prez

I heard the windows rattle from the seismic shake of the collective yawns that roared across the country when John Kerry decided he did not want another chance to prove he was a mediocre Presidential candidate. Kerry could say "Good Morning" and turn it into insurance policy fine print in seconds.

Kerry won't run for president in '08

By Rick Klein, Globe Staff | January 24, 2007
LINK in new win. Kerry Won't Run..from Boston Globe

WASHINGTON --Senator John F. Kerry plans to announce today that he will not run in the 2008 presidential race, and will instead remain in Congress and seek reelection to his Senate seat next year, according to senior Democratic officials.

Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, plans to say he will remain in the Senate to recommit himself to efforts to extricate the United States from the war in Iraq. His decision to stay out of the presidential race reflects a realization that he would have had an uphill climb in capturing the Democratic nomination, given the other party heavyweights who are already in the race, according to the officials, who spoke to the Globe on condition of anonymity.

Too bad Kerry did not make this decision before he decided to smear Howard Dean in the last election.

Kerry had such an opportunity to so much for the country had he dared to oppose the Iraq War and the Presidential war powers. He has waffled around for months while world-class jerk and ass Lieberman has pissed a hundred times in the poltical and governmental swimming pool.

***Stay tuned, 2008 is a ways off yet---Doug Wiken

**Transcript of the Jim Webb response to Bush SOTU speech Jan 23, 2007

Here is Jim Webb's speech transcript given January 23, 2007 in response to the George Bush State of the Union speech. Transcript is in post continuation.

Just listened to Charlie Rose show. The summary there of the speeches does not make the war situation look good for Bush and may make it a lot better for John Edwards than for Hillary Clinton. Horse race news is already around.

So, the texts are here. Do your own analysis and share your wisdom.

***Stay tuned even if I have run out of non-sleep time and thus words. PS of sorts..we had turn down an invitation to a Listen to the SOTU speech even if hosts offered both diet and regular Pepsi and had anough stale crackers to go along with a very small can of old Vienna weiners and no salsa sauce for anything else.---Doug Wiken

**Bush State of Union Text Jan 23, 2007 ..but big news is Jim Webb

The transcript of the January 23, 2007 State of the Union speech is copied in the continuation of this post. It was more of the same old same old. But, it is here as the White House presented it.

The real news tonight was the Democratic response by Jim Webb. My wife who usually does a pretty good job of ignoring my poltical interests said right after that Democratic response, "That sure wasn't a Joe Lieberman. Hope I never see Lieberman again acting as a Democrat responder."

Well, that comes about as close as my wife gets to complimenting politicians. Sen. Webb apparently ran and won as something of a populist Democrat and he presented his and the Democratic's position very well tonight. Mark Shields called it a "stong message from a strong messenger." Brooks called it "way above average." That probably gets to be about as high a compliment he ever makes for any Democrat.

This was not Joe Lieberman the Republicrat playing the role of a Democrat as he spews the Republican line for corporations. It was not Hillary Clinton double triangulating the issues into meaningless generalities made to appear as if they should mean something to middle-class Democrats even as they are designed not to discougage contributions from the very rich and the very profitable corporations.

Jim Webb almost sounded as good as that guy ...you know, the guy who was a doctor and the governor of a small state...yup...that guy Howard Dean. Someplace there was another fork in the road and yah, let's scream a little. Webb told it more like it is than any Democrat I have heard on national TV for many months or even years.

Maybe when I am not as sleepy, I will try to slog through Bushes speech and find the text of Webb's speech.

**Stay tuned--the tide has not just changed direction, it has changed color and aroma---Doug Wiken
(Bush text is in continuation below)