And the winner is…

Posted on January 4, 2016 by bvanrysdam

The Iowa caucuses are almost here (thank goodness) and the political pundits continue to weave their opinions and best guess scenarios on who will emerge victorious, but why? When it comes to Republican candidates, the good people of Iowa have a spotty record of selecting who will win the party nomination.

In 2012, Rick Santorum received 25 percent of the vote along with Mitt Romney. Ron Paul garnered 21 percent with Newt Gingrich, Michele Bachmann and Jon Huntsman rounding out the field. In 2008, Mike Huckabee got 34 percent of the vote, Romney with 25 percent John McCain, the eventual nominee getting only 13 percent.

The 2012 Republican caucuses also had some drama associated it. Initial results showed Romney beat Santorum by just 8 votes, but when the final results came out two weeks later Santorum secured the victory over Romney by a margin of 34 votes with Paul in a strong 3rd. Results were certified by the Caucus but not by the Republican party who declared it a split decision due to missing reports from 8 precincts, however they later certified the caucus as a win for Santorum. The caucus winner changed yet again when the Iowa delegate totals were finally determined giving Paul the win along with several other states that same weekend.

So again, why is Iowa so important? Sure it’s nice to have momentum and winning is always better than losing, but the Iowa caucuses reminds me a lot of pre-season football games. It’s a chance for the candidates to practice and get in shape for the real game; Super Tuesday.

What’s there to fear?

Posted on October 20, 2015 by bvanrysdam

“We have nothing to fear, but fear itself” – FDR

Fear is an incredibly powerful motivator. Fear can influence the decisions we make, even if it makes little sense.

Fear is also a powerful tool in politics. Take two recent examples; Campus Carry and the city of Houston’s embattled equal rights ordinance.

When Campus Carry was being debated in the hallowed halls of the Texas legislature, both sides brought fear into the equation. Those in favor of Campus Carry pointed out that allowing CHL holders to bring a gun into a classroom would make it safer by discouraging anyone from going “postal” while opponents warned it would spark violence during an heated open discourse when opposing views were being discussed.

In reality, neither argument really carries much weight. If someone is set on doing harm, they are not going to worry about a law, or that there may be a person who would be able to stop them. These types of killers seem to relish going out in a blaze of glory. If another student/teacher were to have a concealed handgun, they might be in a position to reduce the carnage, but it also opens up a slew of other questions such as are they trained to react in that type of situation and how will police officers know the difference between the good guys and the bad guys.

Which leads us to equal rights ordinance. Opponents have started running a television ad showing a little girl entering a bathroom stall and about to be attacked by a male. He is presumably in the women’s bathroom thanks to the ordinance. One cannot imagine a more frightening scenario, but how likely would that be?

Do we think this will open the door (sorry) to males having an easier access to assaulting women? Similar ordinances have been passed in Dallas, El Paso and San Antonio with no reported problems. Are we afraid Houston would be different?

And is this just about bathrooms? What about the pregnant women, the disabled, minorities, military veterans and others in this community who may be victims of discrimination? Do we want to have a conversation about that, or is that not scary enough.

I do find it interesting no one seems concerned about a women using a men’s bathroom. I remember during a recent visit to Sienna, Italy, I went to use a public restroom (and yes, it was the men’s room). In many European cities, women act as washroom attendants, making sure the facility is kept clean which in my view is much appreciated. There is usually a plate of coins by the door to tip them for their service.

Some other American tourists came in to the men’s room and were taken back by the fact there was a lady in there. One even commented he had “performance anxiety” and couldn’t go. I hope he still had the decency to tip her.

Here is my fear with this bathroom issue. When I’m at sporting events and other large venues, the line to the women’s room is always ten times longer than the men’s room. I’m afraid women are going to start “identifying” themselves as men just to take advantage of the shorter line and make me wait longer.

The people have spoken (sort of)

Posted on October 14, 2015 by bvanrysdam

There was an interesting study recently conducted in the Lone Star State.

The nonprofit, nonpartisan Texas Lyceum found many familiar answers, including Texans’ identification of immigration as the most important issue facing the state and strong support for children playing football.

But the poll also showed that in a state led by Republicans who oppose gay marriage, 49 percent of Texans support allowing same-sex couples the right to marry legally, as provided by this summer’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling. That is up from 25 percent in 2009.

To no one’s surprise, gay marriage is more divided between the major parties, with 69 percent of Democrats and 31 percent of Republicans showing support for it. Still, the issue is not as black and white as it seems.

The poll also found that 46 percent of Texans support legalizing the use of marijuana, up by 13 percentage points since 2011. Of those who oppose legalization, 57 percent support decriminalization.

Those kind of numbers don’t make Texas a blue state, but it also doesn’t’ make it as red as some people might think. So why do conservatives hold such sway? Two words: voter turnout.

Only 28.5 percent of Texans eligible to vote did so in the 2014 November elections, the second lowest percentage in the country behind Indiana. 32.1 percent voted in 2010, the last time Texas voted for a governor.

There are many reasons why people in Texas don’t vote. Some Democrats blame the new voter ID law. Another thought is that the when one party dominates, there is no real driving need to vote and there is the issue of carving up voting districts by gerrymandering.

Whatever the reason is, I just wish politicians would stop saying “the people of Texas have spoken”. Only the people who bothered to vote spoke. Good for them; shame on the rest.

The poll surveyed 1,000 adult Texans Sept. 8-21. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

Pope Mania

Posted on September 24, 2015 by bvanrysdam

Pope Mania is sweeping the U.S. Not since the Beatles invaded America has the nation gone so bonkers. From Pope Francis Bobble Head Dolls to cookies with his face in the icing (do you really want to bite the Pope’s head?), Americans just can’t get enough of the holy Pontiff.

I find it interesting to watch politicians walk that tight rope between using the Pope to further their agendas, while trying to ignore the issues in which they differ.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz released a statement on how Pope Francis leads on abortion, marriage and religious liberty.

Cruz (or someone in his office) wrote:

Pope Francis has spoken to the world, proclaiming the inherent truth and goodness of life, marriage and religious liberty.

In the first-ever papal address to Congress, Pope Francis continues to blaze a trail by going where no predecessor has been. The media will cover that extensively, but will they cover his trip to feed the homeless in DC, or to meet with students in East Harlem, or to shake hands with prison inmates in Philadelphia? That’s the true heart of the church — beyond any four walls in Congress.

I guess Cruz doesn’t watch much news. If he did, he would see that the Pope is dominating both national and local newscasts that would even make a Kardashian blush.

What Cruz doesn’t mention is the Pope’s view on areas like immigration, the death penalty and global warming and there-in lies the problem. This is not your usual Pope. He has surprised many people with his views on a variety of issues (hey, if a gay person has God in his heart, who am I to judge?) and does not fit into a neat box.

Now to be fair, this tricky balancing act isn’t unique to Cruz. The silence is deafening from Democrats who will tout his holiness’s position on immigration, but fall quiet when he reminds them about the church’s opposition to abortion and gay marriage.

So can the Pope be right on some issues and wrong on others? And, how would we know?

Reality TV gets a little too real

Posted on August 6, 2015 by bvanrysdam

American’s love their reality TV. From The Bachelor/Bachelorette, Big Brother, America’s Got Talent, Chopped, Project Runway and others, viewers are keeping their eyeballs on the boob tube.

That’s why it should come as no surprise that America is obsessed with the latest reality show; the GOP Republican Presidential Nomination race.

The star of this latest show is no stranger to this genre of entertainment. Donald Trump, star of The Apprentice and The Celebrity Apprentice, has literally sucked all the air out of the room with his flamboyant showmanship leaving all challengers to come up with ways to get noticed.

Rand Paul posted a video of him taking a chainsaw to the tax code promising to kill it much like the car salesman in Used Cars.

Lyndsey Graham took to YouTube to teach us all how to destroy your cell phone after The Donald gives out your number on network television. I was shocked that he still uses flip phone from era long, long ago.

And, in what may be the most bizarre episode yet, Ted Cruz posted a video entitled “Making Machine-Gun Bacon with Ted Cruz,” with the final moments showing the junior senator peeling a piece of meat off the barrel with plastic fork, putting it in mouth, and humming, “Mmmm, machine-gun bacon.”

Sadly, all of these demonstrations of statesmanship have had little impact on the polls. Trump still leads by a large margin which leads to the question; why? Do republicans really believe Trump has the right stuff to be president?

My guess is that voters want someone on that campaign trail who is not afraid of having an “oops” moment and really say what they think (even if it’s a bit wacky). They want that infamous off-the-cuff style of talk that Trump is famous for. Immigration, the economy and the other issues of the day will be hit with a barrage of Trumpism’s that will be sure to keep the candidates on their toes.

It truly is Must See TV.

Media bias or stupidity?

Posted on July 30, 2015 by bvanrysdam

There’s a lot not to like about the story of University of Cincinnati Police Officer Ray Tensing being indicted on a murder charge in the shooting death of Samuel DuBose.

Much like the Sandra Brown being pulled over for failing to signal when changing lanes, DuBose was stopped because the car he was driving did not have front license plates. It is hard to fathom how two seemingly innocent events could turn so tragic, but something else caught my eye; how certain media outlets built graphic art to promote their coverage.

As you can see, the photo of Tensing shows him smiling, in uniform with an American flag behind him. DeBose’s photo was a mugshot taken when he was arrested for drug charges.

This of course blew up social media, calling the graphic everything from inconsiderate, to racist, to just plain stupid. Most of the outlets have removed the graphic, but as everyone should know, nothing dies on the internet.

It can be argued the graphic, just like the traffic stops were not meant to internally do harm, but if I was a black man, I think I might feel differently.

A state of confusion

Posted on June 24, 2015 by bvanrysdam

Texas can be a conundrum. Politicians fight to keep marriage between one man and one woman, yet the citizens elect an openly gay mayor to manage its largest city. The governor will sue the federal government at the drop of hat citing the need for local control, then over-turn a local community’s voter approved ban on fracking saying they must abide by Austin rules.

So it might surprise people to know that when it comes to honoring the Civil War, Texas is unexpectedly quiet. Yes, you will find your various statues of Civil War “heroes” along with streets, lakes and parks bearing the name of confederate soldiers, but when it comes to the rebel flag, Texas would rather say no thank you.

For years, the state of Texas has refused to put the rebel flag on its license plates. This caused such a contention among confederate groups that the issue made it all the way to the Supreme Court which ruled that Texas did not violate the First Amendment when it refused to allow the specialty license plates bearing the Confederate battle flag. The court ruled the plates were the government’s speech and are thus immune from First Amendment attacks.

Nine states currently let drivers choose specialty license plates featuring the Confederate battle flag and honoring the Sons of Confederate Veterans, which says it seeks to celebrate Southern heritage (although that could change following the recent events in Charleston). But Texas refused to allow the group’s plates, saying the flag was offensive.

Texas, it seems, has always followed its own path. Before the war broke out, Sam Houston said “I will endeavor to say a few words in behalf of the Union, and the necessity of union to preserve it, which I trust will not fall unheeded.” Not exactly a ringing endorsement of breaking away from the north, but then again, not all Texans felt the same as Houston did.

More Texans care about the Alamo than any Civil War battle and Juneteenth (the day when Texas slaves learned they were free) is celebrated with more gusto than any Civil War remembrance, which again goes to the case that Texas can be a very tough state to figure out.