Final Blog: Stage 8

For the finale of this semester's work and assignment eight, I chose to comment on the excellent work of Nikki Dickerson on her page Home of the Brave in her Another Abortion topic blog.

I had this to say:   "Great blog Nikki! I really enjoyed reading it and your opinion. You definitely seem like you've given this issue some very sound and good thought. That said, I must admit and apologize but I am a little confused as to which bill you were specifically referring to, regarding  that bill on the abortion issue. You’re discussing a bill that is possibly going to pass which can be a game changer but I just don't know which one it is. Link please?

Besides that, I really enjoyed reading your writing very much. It is very easy on the eyes and a good read. My personal opinion on abortion is that although we most certainly should not live in a dictatorship society and a woman should have the right to chose, shouldn’t the fetus have a right too? I honestly and humbly don't believe that abortion should ever be used as a form or method of birth control but women should still have their rights over their bodies too. I guess it is a very sticky subject and topic.

I highly commend your decision to not want to have children if you know that is what you want and your statements of practicing abstinence. People should be responsible in the world to avoid issues like this all together.  Anyway, I really liked the blog and I give it a 9.5 out of 10. Great work!"

Increase The Tobacco Tax Revenue

The Large Tobacco companies are currently contributing a half a billion dollars a year to the state of Texas, as part of a 1998 Lawsuit and the big boys are now wanting the small cigarette manufacturers to pay they're share. That was a good start but they both need to be paying more now, significantly. The Tobacco toxin has zero benefits to anyone and everyone, society, the environment and especially the human body. Since it does nothing good, lets make it do something good. Use it to pay the state further in it's budget crises.

I'm all for people making their own choices and decisions. Free will has to be one of our greatest gifts as people, especially in the free world. As adults we absolutely should be allowed to chose for ourselves and make up our own minds (I was never a fan of being forced to have to ride a bike with a helmet) but that doesn't mean people shouldn't have to pay a lot for something that is bad. In a time when our cities and state need revenue to save the most important functions of society as we see them starting to crumble before our eyes, why not?

It's time for some additional squeezing, across the board. I'm not arguing to make it illegal so I hope my point doesn't get misconstrued. We don't need  to make it illegal but if people are going to chose to partake in past times and leisure activities that involve polluting the environment pretty harshly with cigarette butts and making their bodies unhealthy, they can at the same time contribute positively to society by paying heavy taxes for it and helping to save education and health care. Give it a positive spin.

The large Tobacco companies right now are asking the small manufacturers to raise tens of millions of dollars for the state, which lawmakers agree would be helpful as they prepare to slash health care funding to meet a massive budget shortfall. By all means lets do it. The small tobacco companies on the other hand are saying that this is merely an effort by big companies to snuff out their competition and that they were not part of the '98 lawsuit because they were not engaged in the same misleading practices the big companies were accused of and they shouldn't be subject to their own personal tax. I find that irrelevant and personally unsympathetic in our present and current circumstances. All of this was a topic in an excellent article I recently read on the subject, called "In Hunt for Revenue."

We need to seriously consider further taxing all of the tobacco companies, large and small with heavier taxes. The time is now. Our lawmakers should start making the propositions in lieu of the cuts we've been hearing about. Cigarettes can and should start costing about fifteen dollars a pack. You can smoke if you want, it's not illegal but you should have to pay for it and contribute to funding positive, productive programs and functions for the state. It doesn't necessarily have to be a smoke free society like from something out of the science fiction 1993 movie Demolition Man but if people are going to smoke, again as I have said, they can at the same time further contribute towards funding. At this point I would call it bailing out or saving anyway.

The big companies of the lawsuit were accused of suppressing years of evidence about the dangers associated with smoking and settled a lawsuit in 1998 agreeing to pay Texas more then $17 billion dollars over 25 years, or about 3 billion a year for public health and smoking prevention funds while the small cigarette companies were excluded. Fast forward to 2011 and our state's economy and budget is in peril. Time to up the ante?

Damn straight, go after the Tobacco companies again and without bias- both the large ones and the smaller ones who feel they will not be able to compete. Tax them all and if the smaller ones fail to compete in the business of death dealing, then they will just have to find other means of work. That argument isn't good for today. If the large companies are indeed the only ones that can survive- they can actually help the state's economy with the efforts of the people willing to pay fifteen dollars for a pack to smoke.

Do we really need a highly competitive tobacco industry in the first place anyway? We lost Circuit City a few years back, leaving Best Buy as a primary home electronics store in the industry and we survived. So what if we have less tobacco companies around, a few less brands to select from. There's a bigger picture here.

I don't think we need to stop there though. Booze needs to be taxed heavier. If people want to drink, they can help by paying tax for it. There is a statistic with a large number of drunk drivers being on the roads in Austin on the weekends after a certain hour. Collect money there. Also how about a tax on Soda and junk food. I'm sure I probably sound like a broken record by now because I have been saying it all semester but in my opinion, it's time for people to wake up.

Tax this stuff that is counter productive, don't just start cutting school costs and our educational funding and health care as China prepares to pass the US economy by possibly as early as 2016 and we don't have money to educate our citizens and we all sit and slowly watch America become a third world country. Without a strong economy, we cannot remain the dominant force in the world.

Commenting on a colleague’s work

I posted my comment for stage six assignment on Texas Politics blog by Tri Nguyen. I personally found stage 5 challenging since we were to write an original editorial or commentary and I happened to find my personal think tank to be on empty, without any place to refill for miles. I did what I could with it. I read Tri's and liked how he was basically open and honest with his views and the article came across as very genuine to me. I had this to say on his page:

"This is a good blog Tri and I for one can certainly relate to what you’re saying and where you’re coming from. I haven’t been in Austin my whole life but it’ll be seventeen years this summer and I certainly have seen the changes around town and watched the city grow. Austin in the 90s was certainly different then Austin at the turn of the millennium and that is even vastly different then the Austin, TX we have and love today. The restaurants and venues we have now are all very much different and more retro with a lot of hipster places having sprouted all over town. Austin has certainly become a mini metropolitan city and I for one like the way it is going, I can relate when you say you don’t see yourself leaving anytime soon.

I think you’re right though when it comes to budgeting, job security, health care costs and life certainty and security, not much of the important stuff has changed at all, especially post the .com bust of the early 2000s.

I like the solutions you’re offering, they seem thought out and I see the logic in what you’re saying. I like the notion of allowing citizens to vote on how exactly our government spends our taxes dollars, that would be nice. I personally would vote on making sure those in government weren’t using tax payer dollars foolishly and on frivolous things and that they don’t personally have any golden parachutes. They should be held accountable if they are the ones driving the direction of the ship. If our society is failing, they should be feeling it the hardest.

Anyway, great stuff, great points and opinions and an over all enjoyable article to read. Two thumbs up!"

Texas State Government and Economy: Blogged

     This commentary piece of mine is my original and brief synapses of Texas State Government. I am blogging the facts and simple general information for the reader's pleasure.

So Texas Government happens to be much like our national government for the United States but only on a smaller and more localized scale. Much like the US National Government, Texas Government divides power into three separate branches, the Executive, Judiciary and the Legislative.

The Legislative branch is bicameral like the national government, meaning it is divided into two separate chambers, the Senate and the House of Representatives. So it is just like a 'mini me' version in mimicking the grand scale. It is very important to note however that the term Congress cannot be used to describe the state legislature, as it is used to describe the nation’s legislative branch. The Texas Executive branch is head by the state Governor, who holds executive powers and the state Judiciary system is structured into separate court systems. The roots of the Texas state Government also happens be much like the roots of the United States. Both were bread out of revolution.

The roots of Texas Politics and Government can be found in the early settlers of Texas and the type of society and government that they created. The state's politics have The Texan Creed at it's foundation, which consists of a set of ideas that identify Texans and provide the basis for their politics and which are then filtered through the two primary political parties, Republican and Democrat. Texas has become primarily a Republican dominated state.

To top off the similarities and my basic point that, politics is still politics and the state just has a shrunken down version of the national government, Texas also has a state Constitution. This however has been changed several times, with the current version having been amended over 400 times. Unlike our national Constitution, the Texas State Constitution happens to hold less weight and significance and has been under much scrutiny to be changed yet again. The debates are endless.

As far as our grand land here, Texas is a very proud state. It is huge in size with a land mass area of 267,339 square miles and it is larger then most nations and has various types of landforms such as mountains, plains, hills and plateaus. According to the 2010 Census Data, the population of Texas is over 25 million residents, making it the second most populous state in the nation.

Much of the current political topics in discussion today here in Texas, is the economy. Much like the nation, jobs are on people's minds and their ability to be able to work and pursue happiness. My state economy fact is: The Texas economy is very diverse, being both nationalized and globalized. The fact that the state has weighed such an importance on economic diversity, has allowed many of its cities to become the fastest growing in the nation, cities like Austin, San Antonio and Dallas-Fort Worth.

Our Texas Governor, Rick Perry, has been consistent with going on record stating that the economic growth in Texas has been substantial, with the state continuously creating new jobs. That sounds like a very political statement in my opinion and has some truth. Yet news reports are constantly stating that the state's budget cut plans due to the economy are currently threatening many fields, including education and teachers in Texas are looking at a grim prospective future here in the state.

That’s the politics. People have the power to vote and it is in their hands to get out there and elect representation who is actually concerned with the preservation of society for everyone. Be sure to get registered to vote and fight for your future and get proper representation. It almost feels to me, that as soon as politicians get elected into office, they feel like they have already made it and no longer care about the good of society and are only looking out for themselves and self preservation. Maybe that is harsh and outlandish but I don’t remotely understand how, 'they' can even consider cutting into education? That is the most important resource we can get. The United States used to have more college graduates then any other nation in the world and we now rank ninth. China is prospected to be the economic super power of the future, all the while our politicians seemed to me, only concerned with their current situation and lifestyle and are not looking at the future for everyone. Well I hope that's not the case.

The government has the power to make changes through legislation by proposing bills, to do things such as raise Taxes on things that are sold to generate revenue. I say raise taxes! Raise taxes on things that can be deemed harmful. Things like Tobacco products and cigarettes. Cigarette packets can have taxes raised to something like fifteen dollars for a single pack. Junk food such as soda could be taxed to bring in more money. Obesity is already a problem with our nation and here in Texas it's no different. If people want to eat junk food and get over weight, let them pay tax for it. Heck why not? Better then cutting education, right?? Things like Booze and alcoholic beverages, these have long been sources of many problems in society, raise their tax so that they can also bring in money, says I.

That’s my two cents and commentary with Texas state politics and today’s current event, blogged.

Extortion: Blogged

Scott Henson put this on his weblog Grits for Breakfast. Henson is a former journalist turned opposition researcher/political consultant, according to his profile. His blog is based around the courts and criminal justice system here in Texas. The piece that Henson is bloging about is on the Dallas County’s position in vehicle towing. Basically, Henson found the article that was reported by Kevin Krause surrounding allegations of a former Dallas Precinct Constable, Jaime Cortes, who has since left office last summer.

It's corruption in the police department, as Henson reiterates the tale of how Cortes allegedly abused his position of authority by racially profiling Hispanics in the Dallas area and stole their vehicles by using his towing contractor to impound them. The blog goes on to say how owners of the vehicles that were impounded and robbed, were never contacted with the whereabouts of the vehicles and by the time some had found out, the towing fees were too high for them to claim them. Unfortunately, neither the blog or the article by Krause, fail to give a detailed account of how Cortes actually pulled this scam off. What was the basis of getting the vehicles towed in the first place?

Henson rehashes the story somewhat verbatim from the original article by Kevin Krause, of which I posted above. Reading Henson's work, the story goes and can be summed up with a class-action lawsuit being threatened against the Dallas County on behalf of the vehicle owners by Accion America, a small Dallas based group formed to protest restrictive laws. The ordeal has since become a battle over towing contracts with Dallas Constables. The Dallas County officials have since agreed not to auction vehicles impounded by Cortes. The article states that the new Precinct 5 Constable, Beth Villarreal, who defeated Cortes last year and is now responsible for the vehicles, has halted auctions until she has seen and reviewed paperwork on all of more then 5,000 vehicles impounded under Cortes.

That is about the jest of it in terms of summarizing. I find it very disturbing that Cortes was able to impound over 5,000 vehicles illegally. That number is staggering. Henson's blog here is obviously dependent on the information posted in Kraus's article, which leaves me actually asking many questions, like how much money is Cortes estimated to have earned from those 5,000 vehicles impounded?

The intended audience for the information presented should be anyone and everyone. This is just astounding and sad, how ordinary citizens can be targeted and robbed of their own property, in scams orchestrated by those abusing positions of power. It's the corrupted preying on the weak. This crime has another name besides the obvious fraud committed; it's Grand Theft Auto in my book. Cortes my not have been out there at night breaking car windows and hot wiring them but his subtle tactics were the same means to the end in my opinion.

I like this blog that Henson has made and I think anyone can take something away from it. It's a good read on the topic of justice and victimization here in Texas. These are things everyone should and would be concerned about, I would think. The allegations are very serious and criminal and I would be shocked if charges weren't brought to the accused. The situation is definitely a little more then frustrating and probably feels more like a bad dream. For the people whose cars were impounded, it's not like they would be able to claim insurance on the vehicles for being stolen. I like when Henson says how disgraceful this situation is for a law enforcement agency. He does an excellent job commending the reporter Krause and hails him as a hero for breaking the story.

In reading and reviewing the blog, I feel it does well in dispersing the information. I found the commentary and quotes were handled well. It is written well and what I would call an easy read with no real complaints. I find myself agreeing with Henson's points and I like how he makes the positive stand for the people with sound logic. He posts a grand tale of good vs. evil, of which theses citizens are being treated not unlike those in a third world country and certainly not like citizens of the United States of America or this great state of Texas.

Henson's credibility is solid enough based on the information from his profile, as well as the blog site being regularly updated and having information with valid sources on it. His point that this type of behavior needs to be screened to make sure this isn't happening else where is simply a no brainer. He says Dallas Constable investigations of illegal towing should be replicated elsewhere in state. I would be mortified to find more corruption in our system along these lines and others. I personally feel that the weight of crimes committed by those in positions of authority and power should be much heavier and stricter then those of a common citizen, to discourage such behavior. My grade for his blog is an A.

Chopping block: Eliminate the death penalty

This Texas Politics article by Bobby Cervantes from the San Antonio Express News posted on 02/25/2011 discusses the suggestion to eliminate the death penalty in Texas.

The article discusses, how although the notion is already a long shot, if not a shot in the dark, in the 'tough-on-crime Texas' state, there has been no statewide study on the total cost of capital punishment on the state's budget to date yet and it would be in the state's interest to do so. The argument states that now is a perfect time for a re-evaluating the necessity for capital punishment, being that it is very, very expensive on the state and the costs only seem to continue to rise. This piece suggests, that by eliminating the death penalty, the effect will help contribute in saving the state a lot of money and improve the Texas economy.

The evidence and numbers presented are said to vary by many anti-death groups but a common estimate is 1.2 million dollars per capitol case, from start to finish and often times more, when including post conviction litigation costs including the execution itself. This estimated figure can be multiplied by the 315 Texas offenders currently on death row to see a clearer picture on the size of the impact that this is having on the economy.

The argument that was made in part by the author for presenting the article and mainly from a reader, whom the author cites as making the original suggestion, says that the Texas economy is currently struggling and the costs for capital punishment are only going to continue to go up and so now is the ideal time to consider changing the state's very firm position on the topic and issue.

I have to say that I disagree 100%.

Capital punishment is a sensitive issue and should be treated as such since we are dealing with life and death, issues of morality, governing society and consequences from citizens' actions when horrible and unthinkable deeds are done to other people. That said, I don't believe that the economy or financial revenue is a valid enough reason to make such a drastic change to the system that is in place. The state may presently be in a bind needing money but problems like that will always come and hopefully go with the times and can be addressed in other ways, with other solutions and this proposal, although might help, would not fully fix the current problem of the economy on it's own.

Money should not be a reason to change our moral standards of dicipline and ethics of right and wrong and certainly not worth bargaining over issues of principles, otherwise we are just simply selling our souls or whoring ourselves out like prostitutes as a society.

If we were to make a change like that, it should not be for monetary gain at all but instead change it for an ideal of better morality and better principle, or leave it for the ideal that it is best in place to preserve a safer and more secure world to live in, where the weight of one's actions comes with heavy consequences, up to and including fatality.

Capital punishment- the death penalty for crimes committed, weather you believe in it or not, or support it or not, just needs to remain something that is not changed as a way to save ourselves money, even when we need it, or to help balance our pocketbooks and reduce deficits. There are other ways and things the state can do for that, there are other corners that can be cut, taxes to be levied in balancing the budget and other taxes that can be raised, before we sell off our most sacred ideas on government and lifestyle.

The writer's suggestion can also easily be perceived as a smoke screen and a hidden agenda, by those that oppose the death penalty all together. The reason given is not good enough for me.

We could tax the price of tobacco even further to something like fifteen dollars for a single pack of cigarettes to raise additional money, or the state legislature could propose to tax the cost of booze and alcoholic beverages even further as well. We could levy a sales tax for on-line purchases of things that are bought on websites such as Amazon.com or eBay that currently have no sales tax associated with buying items. Furthermore, the citizens of this state could even hold our government representatives responsible and their jobs accountable for the current state of the economy, by voting to change political power as a statement of example of what happens when government doesn't do it's job.

What we should not do, is allow our own moral codes of conduct, to be put up on a chopping block and to be bought and sold, in such a fickle way, as if we have lost our dignity and humanity all together. The decision regarding weather or not capital punishment is alright, should not be a topic associated with finances at all, regardless of the current dilemma of the state economy, especially since it currently does not hold the single power to make or break it.

Not a fair exchange.

Rural schools, communities suffer in the face of Texas' budget cuts

$10 billion proposed reduction in direct school aid could drive small, rural school districts out of business. This Statesman article by Kate Alexander, discusses how
lawmakers are now considering a two-year budget proposal that is without the ten billion dollars owed to school districts under our current law, this would amount to a fourteen percent reduction in total state and local education spending. The schools across Texas will be struggling at best, without money to operate and continued funding to teach the future leaders and residents of the state.

This news article addresses the state of emergency that the schools of Texas are in at this time, as well as small communities, specifically one that is in a path of decimation and obliteration in the face of Texas budget cuts by state lawmakers. These are same lawmakers tossing around these proposals, who were voted into office by the trusting citizens and voters of the state, elected to enhance and preserve the quality of life, not cause it to suffer.

The article I feel is important in a very ambiguous way, but I feel a major point I want to air out is that this is what happens when the people and citizens, fail to exercise their democratic power to vote, or do so properly over they're state and local governments. It's what designates the jobs of these lawmakers. They need to be held accountable. It is also important because as a resident of Texas, this is affecting everyone directly or indirectly. Oddly enough, it still remains that the same incumbents and political regimes continue to rule the politics of this state.

Miles is the small town and target in the spot light here, built in 1904 it is home to a traditional vintage opera house along the red-brick main street once showcased "The Mikado' by Gilbert Sullivan and the oratory Mark Twain. There is clearly a lot of history, heritage and pride for the towns people there. They now pack the school auditorium a few blocks away for every student play and band performance, "it's the only show in town" they proclaim. For residents of this tiny West Texas farming community, the school district is central to their identity, history and way of life.

Miles now faces a serious threat to it's survival from the school budget cuts taking place in the Texas Capitol. The possibility of reduction and loss of state aid has superintendents across Texas fretting about school closures, layoffs and fewer programs for students. For Robert Gibson, the superintendent of Miles says the worst case scenario could mean the end of his town. Under the proposals floating around the Capitol, the district could be out as much as 15 percent of its total budget.

Another issue of point to consider is the drawing of districts. Texas' population has grown twenty percent over the past decade, according to estimates from the Texas State Data Center. At the same time, rural communities have held steady in sheer numbers but fallen from sixteen percent to thirteen percent of the total state population.
The more residents in urban and suburban communities mean more representation in the Capitol, a gap that will widen with the decennial redrawing of legislators' districts this year.
The result is that rural school districts that are struggling in West Texas and elsewhere could have their voices drowned out.

Consolidating with another district and closing the schoolhouse doors wouldn't really save much money. Yet it would be even more devastating to Miles than the great drought of the 1950s. "If the school wasn't here," Gibson said, "the community would blow away."

The article is insightful and simply keeping us informed on what is happening within our Government and society right now and the changes taking place. It also hints at the idea of consequences of the legislators gerrymandered districts and non accountability of the same politicians in power. People need to understand that unless they exercise their right to vote, their lives are directly affected and to some degree dictated by someone who is paid a lot of money to do just that. Like a carrot and a stick. Representation for personal way of life is of the up most importance when dealing with government. The vote is our power.