Senator Conrad Burns: The Face of Corruption

The western face of Washington, DC's "Mount Corruption" portrays the image of Senator Conrad Burns.

"Burns took more money from Abramoff and his clients than any other member of Congress—nearly $150,000, according to Federal Election Commission records. A lawyer familiar with the investigation, who declined to be named discussing an ongoing case, confirms that Burns is under scrutiny for his connections to Abramoff—in particular, whether he and his staff promoted legislation to help Abramoff's clients in exchange for campaign contributions or gifts."

In November the good people of the State of Montana will have an opportunity to restore integrity in the United States Senate by electing a new Senator. Let us all hope that the face of Senator Conrad Burns will be erased from the political landscape.

The New World Trade Center

Bahrain is home to the new World Trade Center. It even includes twin towers.

"Bahrain World Trade Centre nearing completion

The state-of-the-art twin towers of the Bahrain World Trade Centre (BWTC) are nearing completion, the GDN reported. Construction work on the twin towers has been completed and, currently the fixing of the exterior curtain walling system is advancing.

Situated on the Manama seafront and rising 240 metres from the ground, the 50-storey office towers are part of a larger complex, which includes also a modern shopping mall."

President Bush's 2007 Farewell to Grandma Budget

This story is purely satire. The characters presented herein may appear real but they are unreal.

When questioned yesterday on his proposed $36 billion cuts to Medicare over the next five years, President Bush said "I know there are a lot of older Americans who are as concerned as I am about cutting the deficit. And…and…I know some of them are dying to help me succeed in cutting the deficit."

Using strategies proposed by his top adviser Karl Rove, Bush made his comments on the Medicare cuts at an Alzheimer's day care center. Approximately 50 people with Alzheimer's, and 50 faith-based volunteers, were present for the forum titled "Cutting the Deficit for Your Grandchildren." The President was interrupted numerous times by applause from the volunteers.

When asked by a family member of one of the day care center residents if he realized these cuts could lead to the early death of seniors the President said "I understand…Americans understand that we face hard choices. As President, I face many hard choices everyday. But, I know the American people are willing to make the sacrifices necessary for future generations to enjoy the freedoms we all enjoy today."

None of the seniors in the audience seemed fazed by the proposed cuts. Many were actually nodding their heads while staring at volunteers.

The President's budget represents a 10% reduction in Medicare spending. Ask about reductions in the amount of time seniors will be allowed to rent oxygen and power wheelchairs, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said "With less health care available the administration believes that older Americans will need these devices for a shorter period of time."

President Bush ended his remarks by stating that he lost his grandparents too. But, with the love and support of his family and his church he remembers them fondly.

Religious Fury

Muslims around the world are raging against cartoon characterizations of the Prophet Muhammed.

Using illustrations of Christ, Muhammed, Buddha, or any other religious figure is risky business.

I remember a few years back using the image of Christ in a wheelchair as the cover for handout materials I used doing a presentation for the Anchorage Archdiocese. There were probably about 50 leaders in the Catholic Church present.

Upon first seeing the image of Christ there was a collective gasp in the room. The tension became so thick you could cut it with an knife. Now, I have to admit that the whole purpose of depicting Christ in a wheelchair was to get their attention. Sometimes, the shock factor is all we have working for us.

The presentation turned magical when one of the lay leaders with a disability read from a passage in the Bible. I was able to use the passage to illustrate that Christ was totally accepting of people with disabilities and only cured them to satisfy the scribe's need for sensationalizing.

By the end of the day, the depiction of Christ in a wheelchair was a poignant part of the overall context and the original appalling looks melted into understanding and acceptance.

Decent Man or Mannequin

I’m not a fan of Clarence Thomas. But, when he made the comment below he showed his anger and frustration. He showed America the man, the human being, he is… so they could understand the feelings he would bring to the bench.

“...as far as I'm concerned, it is a high-tech lynching for uppity blacks who in any way deign to think for themselves, to do for themselves, to have different ideas, and it is a message that unless you kowtow to an old order, this is what will happen to you. You will be lynched, destroyed, caricatured by a committee of the US Senate rather than hung from a tree.”

All of the media's talk about Judge Alito being a "decent man” doesn't consider the fact that he denied the American people to see the man, the human being, he is and how it will influence his decisions. Stoicism is not a measure of a decent man. Americans deserve to see what drives people who become judges so we can know how it influences their thinking.

A mannequin could have been sitting at the table instead of Alito and committee members could have played the recordings of the utterances drilled into him by his handlers. Conservatives were promised someone who believes the way they believe, but what they got was Harriet Myers Lite.

Judge Alito proved that he is cunning, manipulative, and dishonest by not letting the American people know where he stands on issues important to us. If the rule of law were black and white as Republican senators want us to believe, computers could decide Supreme Court decisions. History has shown us that it takes people who are compelled by the ideals, not just the exact language, of our founding fathers/mothers who shaped the Constitution to rule on controversial decisions facing our nation.

Justice is never served without an honest expression of what influences a judge’s interpretation of the ideals upon which America is built. True ideals are the product of honest men and women. It takes courage for someone to honestly share his or her ideals. Sam Alito either lacks courage or he’s dishonest about the ideals he holds dear.

Judge Alito

The fact that Samuel Alito was a member of the Concerned Alumni of Princeton, and cited that fact on his 1985 job application, has been in the news recently.

If you want some insights into how Alito might view the rights of Americans with disabilities, check this quote from the Concerned Alumni of Princeton newspaper entitled “Prospect’s:”

"People nowadays just don't seem to know their place," fretted a 1983 Prospect essay titled "In Defense of Elitism." "Everywhere one turns blacks and hispanics are demanding jobs simply because they're black and hispanic, the physically handicapped are trying to gain equal representation in professional sports, and homosexuals are demanding that government vouchsafe them the right to bear children."

While these may not be Alito’s words, the fact that a group he belonged to feared us wanting “equal representation” in professional sports is troubling. It is important to keep in mind that in 1983 there was not a lot of energy being exerted by people with disabilities to gain equal representation in professional sports. If Alito and others in his group were concerned about people with disabilities wanting equal representation then, what would they think now?

Congress must ask difficult questions to get to the heart of where Judge Alito stands on the Americans with Disabilities Act and the rights of people with disabilities in a broader context.

Disability Research

A question pondered why the disparity between paratransit fares across the country. Sadly, disability research rarely intends to support advocacy. So, a quick review of the wonderful World Wide Web finds this study by Gregory M. Kausch published December of 2004:

"Since the early 1990s, much like the operating cost recovery ratio, the average fare collected by demand response transit agencies in 2001 dollars exhibits pronounced upturns and downturns, but is generally increasing – from $.82 during FY 1990 to almost $1.75 during FY 2001 (Figure 16). Over the twelve-year period, this represents an increase of about 111%."

Later in his study Mr. Kausch points out information that could prove useful in advocating for paratransit services.

"Despite the rapid growth rate of demand response operating costs, the mode is unremarkable in terms of raw operating dollars expended on an annual basis. During FY 2001, the level of demand response service on the street only cost about 1/7 as much as the level of conventional fixed route bus service. On an annual basis, heavy rail and commuter rail service also cost more to operate than demand response service."

People with disabilities have to frame the argument effectively to convince public policymakers. In the following example from Durham, North Carolina it points out the importance of challenging statements like "decreased federal funding." Decisions about how federal funding is used to operate transportation are made on a state and local level.

Durham
"In July 1996 Durham Area Transit Authority restructured fares for fixed-route and paratransit services. DATA attributes increases in fares to rising operating costs and decreased federal funding.

"No one wanted to raise the fares, but with federal cutbacks the city had to find a balanced solution," says Mark Ahrendsen, assistant director of transportation for the city of Durham. "Our sensitivity to passengers is paramount, and the subsequent fares represent only a modest increase," adds Ahrendsen.

For one-way travel on DATA buses, general fare increased to 75 cents from 60 cents. Discount fare increased to 35 cents from 30 cents. Transfer fares were not changed. DATALink and D-Tran paratransit fares increased to $1 from 90 cents."

What the research does indicate is that more creative strategies are in order to keep paratransit services as a viable alternative for those who need it.

Interesting study on switching from paratransit to mass transit.

Jeepneys & Jitneys "The few economic studies available have generally found paratransit services to be an economic asset, eliminating the need for government subsidies and relieving public transit systems of their costly peak-period burdens."

I left my heart in San Francisco.