Universal Hub points out the ongoing stupidity of the police unions on the civilian flagger issue. Â NECN has video of “off duty cops harassing the flaggers, driving into oncoming traffic. . . the worksite temporarily shut down.”
I can’t say I’m unhappy about these incredibly stupid protests. Â If the police unions were playing this smarter, they’d be more compelling. Â Driving the wrong way down the road makes you wonder why that cop isn’t in jail, not about his detail shift.
Massachusetts is the only state that doesn’t have civilian flaggers at road construction sites. Â It is the only state that has police for all street work. Â Many have tried to change the policy, only to be thwarted by the unions’ clout in the legislature. Â Governor Patrick forced a policy change through a regulation, avoiding the legislature. Â The police union was furious and packed the hearing with hissing, jeering bullies.
Today, a work crew from the MWRA (a state agency funded by state and local tax dollars) was blocked from doing work by police officers (funded by state and local tax dollars).  (link found via universalhub.com)
I’m sure those union members went home with a smile on their face. Â They won the battle! Â Those flaggers didn’t get anything done! Â They got in front of reporters and cameras, and they showed the governor who was boss!
The thing is, the unions completely misjudged. Â Taxpayers and voters are smart enough to see that this is about greed, not public safety. Â Every one of us has driven by a cop on a detail, talking on the phone, sitting in his car, not paying attention to traffic. Â Most of us have seen a cop on a detail on a dead-end street. Â We all know that some road construction requires police presence, but many do not.
Patrick is going to win this issue walking away. Â The unions don’t understand that.
What they also don’t understand is the downstream affects of this very public effort.  Question One is on the ballot in November; it seeks to end the income tax in Massachusetts.  How many voters will watch the news tonight, see the waste of taxpayer dollars, and just decide it’s not worth paying for?  The public unions are lining up against Question One, and they won the battle on the North Shore today.  But did they lose the war?Â
I’ve had the opportunity to both work with Jack Hurd and watch him from a distance. He’s a good person, an excellent listener, a good communicator, and wise in his decisions. I’m proud to support him for State Senate.
I first watched Jack when I was new to Town Meeting, the spring of 2002, and every year since then. He’s covered dozens of issues and covered them well. His website does a better job than I do of detailing his accomplishments.
I first worked with Jack when I started trying to improve the town’s IT department. I had been frustrated with the town’s Data Processing Advisory committee, and was working with Annie LaCourt to get a citizen petition before Town Meeting. Jack met with us, listened to us, and helped us get a compromise that was supported by the selectmen and passed through Town Meeting. He turned what could have been a confrontation into a compromise that moved the town forward. The end result was the consolidation of the town’s IT department under a CIO. That change is reaping huge gains in town productivity.
The skills Jack has demonstrated as Selectman will serve us all well in the State Senate.
By all reports, Ken is a nice guy. His stated positions are very similar to Jack’s – you can compare them here.
I will not vote for Donnelly because I fear that he will be a union mouthpiece. In the last year, he’s received more than $100,000 from unions and union members (you can verify this yourself by reading the state filing reports, or read my analysis, or the Arlington Advocate).
In private discussions with Donnelly supporters, they’ve told me that the unions are supporting him because he’s a good guy, not because he’s going to be totally pro-union. I just don’t buy it. These unions are not shelling out this kind of money because he’s “a good guy.” They’re shelling out this money because they think he’s going to vote their way in the Sentate.
Do we really need another legislator who thinks we need police details at every road construction sites? Why hasn’t the state reined in the Boston fire department? Why does the teachers’ union successfully continue to block any reform efforts that are linked to teacher performance? Why does the state permit the SEIU to bully teaching hospitals?
I think unions have a positive role to play in the state. I support them, in general. However, their role needs to be balanced. The state government is already very pro-union; we don’t need another union voice on Beacon Hill.
My bottom line on Donnelly: he’s going to be a very big friend of the unions, and the unions already have big enough friends.
Three different items today, all about hypocrisy.
It’s one thing to change your mind. I respect it. We’ve all changed our mind at some point. Maybe it’s because of personal experience, or a compelling argument, or learning new facts. Whatever the reason, I respect the evolution of personal opinion.
But what about taking a position just for expediency? In this case, I’m not talking about taking a position just to be well-liked. I’m talking about taking a position so that you can score points/defend the candidate of your choice, facts be damned. I’m talking about looking at some characteristic of a candidate, and then supporting or condemning it, simply because you like or dislike the candidate.
That’s the stuff that I find so appalling. I can’t stand the thoughtless, useless attack for the sake of the attack. If you don’t like a candidate, if you have a problem with their issues, great, I invite you to make your case. But if you’re just yapping because you can, then I invite you to shut up.
Jon Stewart made a montage of people yammering about “the gender card.” He has some great examples of the flip-flopping that I abhor. (hat tip to Matt).
Similar behavior, but different issue: Palin’s grandchild to be. The Globe wrote about some WRKO talk host calling out his listeners as hypocrites:
WRKO conservative talk host Reese Hopkins told listeners 17-year-old Bristol Palin‘s pregnancy makes him question VP hopeful Sarah Palin‘s parenting skills. Angry Republican listeners blew up his e-mail box, claiming Bristol’s condition is family business. And Hopkins, who talked extensively on-air about the suspicious Gloucester teen pregnancy pact, was a little shocked. “You called these girls sluts, you said their parents were horrible,” he said of his listeners. “But in 125 e-mails I have stacked in front of me, you’re telling me [Bristol Palin’s pregnancy] is not a big deal.” Hopkins went back to the e-mails he received on the Gloucester story and compared them to his Palin e-mails. He found 70 listeners who flip-flopped on the teen pregnancy issue and invited them to explain.
Good for him. Frankly, I don’t think any of us can judge any of these parents from this distance. If you judge one, judge them all – you don’t get to cherry-pick the ones you happen to like.
Last, but certainly not least, my friend Darienne weighed in on McCain’s speech at the Republican convention:
“Americans want us to stop yelling at each other, OK?†McCain smiled tonight, looking about as sincere as Steve Martin.
That he expects me to believe that after the spectacle of the past few days may be most insulting of all.
She hit the nail on the head. How can McCain put up a three-day parade of attack dogs, from Romney to Palin, and then pretend that it’s not what he wanted to happen? I guess you believe him if you want to, but I think his actions speak louder than his words.
Shortly after John McCain selected Sarah Palin as his running mate, a little riot erupted on Twitter.
Little Known Fact: Sarah Palin once bit the head off a live Osprey snatched from the air as it tried to fly off with a fish she caught.
I have no idea where it started, but it took off like wild fire.
Little Known Fact: Sarah Palin’s name is an anagram of Las Piranha.
It’s a game everyone can play. No accuracy required.
Little Known Fact: We can rebuild Sarah Palin. We have the technology.
Movie quotes and geek references are particularly plentiful.
Little Known Fact: Sarah Palin made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs.
Even sports.
little known fact: Bill Belichick has been taping Sarah Palin for years.
Some of them are physically impossible.
Little known fact: like a crocodile Sarah Palin can not chew food and uses a death roll to drown her prey before consuming it
Others are a bit more . . . . adult.
Little Known Fact: Sarah Palin can only climax if there are two moose, $15,000 and a solid gold crucifix in the room with her.
You can see the riot in action by searching twitter. You can even join in yourself! If you do join twitter, follow dunster.
Little Known Fact: Sarah Palin put the ‘bop’ in the ‘bop-shebop-shebop’
I’m pretty much the last person in the world you’d expect to put Paris Hilton on my blog. But this is actually funny.
Earlier this spring, Rep. Charles Murphy gave seven roll call votes – even though he was in the Virgin Islands. I haven’t heard of consequences of the deception, nor have I heard of any changes in the state house. Give credit to Robert David Sullivan and David Bernstein for refusing to let the “ghost voting” issue die.
Watch ’em go in Texas:
Today’s Globe had a note about a slew of Massachusetts politicians who were demanding that NARAL retract its endorsement of Obama. House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, Senate President Therese Murray, and Mayor Thomas M. Menino of Boston, and other legislators said that Obama wasn’t pro-choice enough for them, in part because he voted “present” on a few Republican measures.
So, Obama is smart enough to avoid snares set out by the Republican party, and that means he’s not pro-choice enough? I take his votes as a sign that he can govern with his brain, pick his battles, and know how to avoid stupid no-win battles. Even if you disagree with my take on the votes, what do you have to gain by pointing out the flaws in Obama’s policies at this point? You’re not going to be voting for McCain.
And of course this gem: “We encourage you to . . . wait until the Democratic nominee is clear.” The Democratic nominee is clear. I know that Hillary is still campaigning, but she doesn’t get to say when the race is over. The race is over whether she knows it or not. And, evidently, there are a bunch of people in Boston who don’t know it either!
It just blows my mind that people would expend political capital, take shots at their allies, and otherwise draw attention to an entirely lost cause.
That Globe article had another gem down the page. Attorney General Martha Coakley announced that her superdelegate vote would go to Clinton. Memo to Martha: You’re a bit late to the party; everyone is heading home already. And you showed up at the wrong house.
The quarterly newsletter of the Office of Campaign Finance is often a good read. The stories themselves are boring, but the “Recent Rulings” section is often full of gems. That’s where you see which candidates lost track of the details and which ones are more likely to run afoul of the law. (I was particularly interested in this one because I had heard there were complaints about unreported sign purchases in the recent special election of the 23rd Middlesex House seat. Either the report didn’t happen, or the ruling isn’t out yet.)
This edition has a real howler:
Robert Travaglini, Boston. The committee held fundraisers in 2005, but did not present approximately $80,000 in contributions to the bank for cashing and deposit because these checks were lost or misplaced. OCPF determined that the checks were not cashed by the committee or any other entity.
Our dear former President of the Senate went through the effort of having a fundraiser, convinced 160-plus people to write checks (at the maximum of $500 a pop, presumably), and then. . . . lost them? I must say, that’s a new one – he reported $80,000 in donations, but didn’t have the money!
I hope he hires a business manager for his new lobbying firm.