My column for the Washington County Daily News is online and in print. Here’s a part:
There is something perverse about trying to supplant the people’s elected representatives with an unelected commission. First, the notion that one could assemble a group of people who could make decisions without bias or predisposition is a complete fantasy. Our nation’s founders fully recognized that every person is imperfect and incapable of governing without falling victim, even if only occasionally, to the intrinsic weaknesses of the human condition. That is why they created a system of government where power was constantly diffused, checked, and balanced. Evers’ claim to have gathered an assemblage of noble nonpartisans is either painfully naïve or a prevarication.
Second, the entire purpose of representative government is for citizens to elect representatives to make difficult public policy decisions. These decisions often require the balance of competing interests, spending taxpayer money, protecting individual liberties, predicting policy consequences, and dozens of other factors. We have created an entire system for making laws that is designed to study, debate, and decide on important issues. The push to abandon our system of representative government and replace it with an unelected cabal of conceited commissars is un-American.
I am SHOCKED that a republican thinks that we shouldn’t change a setup that was created by republicans 10 years ago to specifically favor republicans, ultimately drawn up by lawyers. Wow. Call the paper!
The system SHOULD be weighted by population, as well as relative geography and unable to divide up a county. So no carving out specific cities like the republicans did in 2010/11.
From those rules… figure it out.
Oh my, Johnnyv, and the Demorats, who are as clean as a fresh snowfall, would never, ever think of playing politics with drawing up legislative districts.
The horror of it all, just thinking about that.
Mar, I never said that the D’s would do it. The primary job of a politician is to STAY IN POWER. Not do the public’s bidding, but to cover their own ass to get re-elected. This is why you need to give them a boundary to work within.
Johnny: I’m with you on this one. Over 50 of our 72 counties have passed resolutions for non-partisan redistricting. Per a number of polls 60-70% of voters polled also are in favor of the same. Yet out R legislators have stuck their head in the sand and are not heeding the voters. R’s even went so far as illegally hiring several law firms to defend them from anticipated lawsuits. Fortunately the courts over ruled them.
The conceited cabal is all R’s.
Again… my 2 main points… it is a fantasy that anyone can assemble a group of non-partisan/non-biased people, and even if you could, we elect people precisely for the purpose of making public policy decisions. There is no accountability to the people for an unelected group of functionaries.
I’m as non-partisan as they come.
No one should have an issue with me drawing the lines.
-Evers’ claim to have gathered an assemblage of noble nonpartisans is either painfully naïve or a prevarication.
I vote for prevarication. Dems have become downright masterful in their elaborate deceptions of late. These days nonpartisan means committed radical leftist, which in practical terms, means we no longer speak the same language they do. Words mean whatever they want them to mean and reality is whatever they want it to be at any given moment. In the past folks with these conditions would have been advised to seek the help of mental health professionals. Now they’re leaders of a nation.
Let me tell you just how duplicitous the wholly-owned subsidiary of WEAC is. After the 1980 census, the courts ended up drawing the districts. In 1983, after the DPW gained total control of state government, they ripped up that map and hung onto the Legislature for the remainder of the decade. I don’t recall the presstitutes complaining about that.
Not really an accurate portrayal there , steveegg
>R’s even went so far as illegally hiring several law firms to defend them from anticipated lawsuits.
Probably from the real fear and PTSD imposed upon them by the John Doe investigations and raids that were the embarrassment of free democracy everywhere. Remember those turd polisher?
>The conceited cabal is all R’s.
The most conceited and ignorant thing I’ve read all day. Your boy you voted for in the presidential election continues to dictate with his EO pen, and you cry about the big mean R’s. You’re not man enough to understand that.
Elections have consequences.
Too bad you don’t like it.
Geez, Steve’s statement could not have been more accurate.
That it doesn’t fit the altered reality of the lefty universe makes it no less accurate.
Mar, elections do have consequences. But there should still be a framework within to work. Allowing one side to adjust the maps to weigh one side isn’t playing on equal grounds. I wouldn’t want D’s to do it, nor do I want R’s to do it. Make the playing field level. Don’t allow it to be broken up by cities, force it to be by county.
Well, JonnyV, change the State Constitution and you can have it your way.
Here in the real world, we’ll take another decade of (R) majorities.
Johnnyv, in a utopian society, I would agree with you. But most people, Secretary of States and others are elected and others are appointed by partisan mayors or governors. Then the judges who usually get involved are partisan one way or the other.
If you can come up with a solution of completely neutral parties, I am all ears.
“Per a number of polls 60-70% of voters polled also are in favor of the same.”
Ok, prove that. I just found 1 poll, which was a nationwide poll. As reported by the AP, which is not very reliable these days.
So, where are the other polls?
“Per a number of polls 60-70% of voters polled also are in favor of the same.”
I am quite positive that percentage is low. I would bet 80-95% of voters want the districts to be divided in a fair non-partisan manner done within state and national constitutional guidelines. The problem is that half believe Dems and Dem appointees can be non-partisan, and the other half believe the same about Reps and Rep appointees. And the people in the middle who believe neither side is capable of a single non-partisan action know it is a fantasy to begin with, as Owen began with.
Jonnyv
“The primary job of a politician is to STAY IN POWER. Not do the public’s bidding, but to cover their own ass to get re-elected.”
That sounds like you should be in the ‘no trust to any Dem or Rep concerning a non-partisan act’, but you always seem to end up on the Dem side.
“Mar, I never said that the D’s would do it. ”
I notice your placatory head nod against the Dems was not what I think you meant, Freudian slip?
“The system SHOULD be weighted by population, as well as relative geography and unable to divide up a county.”
So the country SHOULD be run by the population centers of the country, heavily weighted to the east and west coasts…I disagree, hopefully for obvious reasons.
The suggestion that “The system SHOULD be weighted by population”, and those arguing against it, lead me to believe that some folks don’t understand redistricting at the state level.
Since 1973, the state has been divided into 99 Assembly districts apportioned amongst the state based on population as determined by the decennial census, for a total of 99 representatives. Senate districts are composed of 3 adjacent assembly districts.
US Representative districts are also determined by population. That is why accurate census data is critical.
Wow, Le Roi just attacked another liberal, Jonnyv.
Must be that full moon.
“Per a number of polls 60-70% of voters polled also are in favor of the same.”
Looks like Le Roi is lying again
So sad since he didn’t have to lie but chose to lie.
I guess Paul is right,he is the punching bafmg for this biog.
Le Roi certainly doesn’t bring intelligence or ethics here. He just brings lies, cowardice and his uneducated 1st grade intelligence here.
So what is the lie, mar? Or did you just have to make a false claim to meet your quota?
Explain how your superior intelligence comes up with “ bafmg” ?
Le Roi, I was simply stating what I feel SHOULD be done. Some of that lines up currently with how things are, some does not.
Tueqas, I don’t trust any Dem or Rep politician. But ideologically I tend to fall closer to the democrat line of thinking. What they SAY and what they DO are always different, on both sides. I believe in a top heavy tax base. I believe in a social safety net. I believe in gun control laws. I believe in access to free education. I believe in voters rights and easy access to voting. I believe in LGBTQ+ rights. I believe we should tax churches and religious institutions. I believe in renewable energies and resources. I believe in universal health care. These things tend to push me more towards democrats than republicans.
Let’s see Jonnyv, don’t trust any D or R, check.
The reason is that they are all caught lying constantly, check.
Top heavy tax base, more or less, check. I believe there are about 50 pages of the 80 some thousand page tax code that applies to 90% of the population. Most of the rest are various tax breaks for the wealthy. I think if everyone ACTUALLY paid the same 25% or so for all income of all types and no hiding or disguising, I would be okay with that.
A short-termed social safety net for the able bodied/brained, sure.
Gun control. I have never owned a firearm, but I believe the constitution and the reasons for the 2nd amendment trumps Government control. We disagree, though I would be okay outlawing vehicle level destruction weapons and that sort.
I believe in free access to childhood education. Once an adult, it is an elective for an individual. You put no cap so I don’t know if we disagree.
Voter’s rights, absolutely and that includes a means where duplicates and votes by the deceased would be caught and subtracted. The ramp up of early absentee voting is not adequately covered. But I don’t think any side is publicly against voting rights, it is a matter of definition and the fact that the people defining the terms are both liars and self interested to make laws that get them re-elected are also the ones who make the laws is criminal. They purposely make them sieve-like and vague to fit their needs and voting strategies.
LGBTQ rights, I don’t know where that problem actually is everywhere. They are not denied ‘rights’ now, they are denied acceptance and I am for preaching acceptance. Unless you are talking about things like ‘girls’ with penises, and no breasts being allowed to compete with the girls for HS and NCAA sports as a right. I am against that.
Churches run on taxed money. Should you be taxed again on your ROTH IRA when you take it? I would not be against them being charged for their picnics, festivals and some of those sorts of things, but the donations of people who earned their money through hard work and want to support a specific belief should not be taxed again(it is also a two way street where church is then given
more clout in Government, taxation=representation). The wealthy are not taxed for their donations, they are given tax breaks for them. Are we taxing every foundation, Feed America, etc. on their donations? If you are lifting tax exemption from every type of org, fine, at least you will be consistent. I disagree with you, though. I am pretty against double triple and quadruple taxing the same money based on its use.
I fully agree with renewable energies and resources.
Universal healthcare requires that the Government will ultimately be able to tell me what I can and cannot do concerning my own health. That is the primary reason I am against it.
More agrees than disagrees. I am not Democrat because I have always hated how they do business more than Republicans. They own fear politics and they use attack and shut up tactics way more than Republicans. I hate Republicans most because they platform on conservatism, but then don’t practice anything like conservatism.
My entire life I have hated Pepsi for the sole reason that they used to do nothing but attack Coke in their ads. Coke always went for uplifting ads. I chose then and have always been a Coke person based on advertising strategy…McDonalds over BK my entire life for the same reason (and fortunate that McDs and Coke ads were both positive while Pepsi and BK were attack ads).
I generally think of myself as fiscally conservative with a progressive attitude towards society in many areas.
I already pointed out your lie, moron. But reading skills are not your strongest point, are they.
“These things tend to push me more towards democrats than republicans.”
Republican, not even close.
Closer to Democrats, yes.
Closer to socialism? Yes.
Closer to communism? Pretty close.
No mar didn’t, probably because you are afraid anything you did would put your level of ignorance on full display yet again.
You know what quotation marks are Le Roi? Do know what a question mark is?
Wherever you got your elementary school diploma, you should return it because they didn’t do a good job teaching you.
Sure do, mar. What’s your point?
And what was the lie you keep jabbering about?
Back up your quote, Le Roi, show me the number of polls that you stated.
No mar, you prove I lied. Back up all your BS.
I already did but I realize you are coward, a liar and your reading skills is as good as Joe Biden tals unscripted.
So, I understand you total lack of comprehension.
Now, it’s late for you. Time to take your sleeping pill washed down with prune juice, your teeth are in cup next to your hospital bed in the nursing home, your diaper is changed and now it’s time to go to sleep.
Just like Senile Joe.
All lies, marsie.
That’s all you got Le Roi?
Must be drunk posting again.
No mar not a drop. But based on the incoherence of your post you had more than a drop. A bucket, perhaps?