tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post8563338994072138869..comments2024-01-05T06:18:18.086-05:00Comments on CommentaramaPolitics: America Rises... Not DeclinesAndrewPricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-19107414729614254422014-05-21T01:22:08.787-04:002014-05-21T01:22:08.787-04:00Andrew, I would add that Pennsylvania's elderl...Andrew, I would add that Pennsylvania's elderly population play a central role as well. Many of them think they still owe the Democrats for the New Deal. Their immediate Baby Boomer children seem to have inherited that idea, claiming they 'have' to vote for the Dems 'just because.' <br />This older generational influence is a big deal ,since PA is continuously getting older. This owes a lot to the younger crowd (and more conservative types), moving out for greener pastures; leaving PA as a red, iron oxidized (via the redox reaction of iron and oxygen in the presence of water or air moisture) territory, or, on a map, a 'belt,' if you will. <br />Like the city dwellers, the elderly also only tend to vote in Presidential election years, ignoring the off-year cycle. And as the state gets older, this situation will only get stronger.Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-78362861604197205562014-05-21T00:48:47.792-04:002014-05-21T00:48:47.792-04:00There are several states like that -- Washington, ...There are several states like that -- Washington, Oregon, PA, New Jersey... which the GOP thinks they can win, but there's really no chance in hell.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-91906102193694077292014-05-21T00:42:35.850-04:002014-05-21T00:42:35.850-04:00Pennsylvania is basically one giant electoral teas...Pennsylvania is basically one giant electoral tease for the GOP during Presidential elections. Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-3060523893614260702014-05-21T00:08:06.684-04:002014-05-21T00:08:06.684-04:00Rustbelt, That's really all I can think, that ...Rustbelt, That's really all I can think, that the city dwellers don't bother unless it's a presidential election.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-3543357287190027482014-05-20T23:42:29.161-04:002014-05-20T23:42:29.161-04:00A good question, Andrew. Especially since the last...A good question, Andrew. Especially since the last census reported another dropoff in non-Democrats. (Surprise, surprise.) There are two theories:<br /><br />1. The conventional wisdom is that the "Pennsylvania 'T'"- the state with Pgh. and Philly cut out- has just enough voters to out-vote the two major urban centers. <br /><br />2. My theory- people in and around the cities tend to vote mostly just in Presidential election years. (The rises and falls in turnout rates I saw turning my time as a newsman were quite dramatic.) They seem to forget about off-year elections. Actually, I think this goes hand in hand with the first theory. <br /><br />Still, Corbett's dug himself quite a hole. Personally, I think the best strategy would be the one employed last year in South Carolina- tie the election into national implications. With the way this year's going, that might not be a bad idea. Of course, this would've worked better with Schwartz as the nominee. (I fully expect Rothfus to do this.)Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-6678440487770494212014-05-20T23:28:39.951-04:002014-05-20T23:28:39.951-04:00You know, honestly, I don't understand how the...You know, honestly, I don't understand how the GOP wins in PA at all. How do you out vote all the Pittsburgh and Philly types?AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-79861943871784269442014-05-20T23:26:28.363-04:002014-05-20T23:26:28.363-04:00Sigh...well, a 26% lead in the polls IS going to b...Sigh...well, a 26% lead in the polls IS going to be hard to overcome. Still, it would've been nice to see Schwartz and Corbett butt heads over Obamacare in November. Or maybe the overzealous support actually cost her some support. Who knows? <br /><br />After checking a few articles, there are definitely some questions about Wolf's self-finances. Maybe it's the cynic in me, but I just can't accept a gubernatorial campaign being THAT clean. Maybe the GOP will actaully be smart enough to go on the offensive... for once. Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-22889010119339679412014-05-20T21:37:57.315-04:002014-05-20T21:37:57.315-04:00Rustbelt, "Businessman" Wolf won the Dem...Rustbelt, "Businessman" Wolf won the Democratic primary.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-17966105809930002702014-05-20T19:07:26.404-04:002014-05-20T19:07:26.404-04:00Then there's PA's 12th Congressional Distr...Then there's PA's 12th Congressional District. <br /><br />I'm not just mentioning this because it's my home district, but because removing Republican Keith Rothfus has become something of a secular crusade for the Democrats. You see...<br /><br />Two years ago, PA (like everywhere else), was re-districted. Unlike everywhere else, the new 12th District (a combination of two former districts), included Johnstown- former Al-Capone-Era-Cicero-ish stomping ground of the late Representative and King of Pork, John Murtha- today recognized as a saint by the Orthodox Laborists and the Universal Donkey and Mule Church (Unreformed). <br />Back in 2012, this new district pitted Murtha's chosen successor, Rep. Mark Critz, against Rep. Jason Altmire- Democrat vs. Democrat for the new district. Anyway, Critz won. And just as he did in 2010, he thanked those who got him there- Big Labor. No, seriously. At the victory party, he said the unions got him elected and he intended to represent them first and foremost (and only). (Of note, only 9 people in Cambria County- Johnstown territory- dared risk life and limb to vote for longtime Hillary crony Altmire.) However, once the smoke cleared from the general election and Democrats finished singing hymns to Obama, did they realize that Rothfus has actually beaten the Big Labor machine and put Johnstown in a red district.<br /><br />"THIS CANNOT BE!!!" likely screamed James Hoffa, Jr. (Teamsters), Andy Stern (SEIU), and Richard Trumka (AFL-CIO and SW PA native). The usual calls that the Johnstown had been gerrymandered by the GOP State Legislature were made and the signs and pitchforks passed out. 'Revenge!' they swore. 'Revenge!' <br /><br />Now, Big Labor is preparing an all-out, Operation Barbarossa-esque assault on my district, all in the name of re-claiming "Murtha's Throne." What's the rush? Did they ran out of toilet paper? drum roll [Random Commentaraman throws tomato at Rustbelt.] Anyway, trying to unseat Rothfus are...<br /><br />Erin McClelland: Likely nominee. Former addiction clinic worker in Blawnox. (near Pittsburgh) Climate change fanatic. Wants a jobs bill. Bigger EPA. Wants to win for women and identity politics. Absolutely loves Obamacare because it "gave 8 million the security of health insurance." (I thought the White house said 7 million?) Was also accused of wearing an earbud in a debate so that her crew could funnel in the answers.<br /><br />John Hugya: No, not Jerry f****** Sanduksy's online handle. Ex-marine and former aide to King Murtha. Complains of China surpassing US. Wants more earmarks for the district to keep people from leaving. (Can you tell this guy worked for Murtha?) Oh, yeah. On foreign policy, he ignored Obama's failures and went back to bashing while repeating his late majesty's stance on Iraq as correct.<br /><br />I'm gonna hate this November.<br /><br />This has been Rustbelt reporting from somewhere in Pennsylvania. <br />Good fight, good night. Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-32562083719791426412014-05-20T18:38:22.044-04:002014-05-20T18:38:22.044-04:00OT: Like Kentucky, it's also Primary Day here ...OT: Like Kentucky, it's also Primary Day here in Pennsylvania! Huzzuuhhh...which, as you know, means we here in the Keystone State have been subjected to anywhere from six weeks to three more months worth of campaign ads than the rest of you. Thank (the) Al Mighty it's almost over. (And that I have the wisdom not to watch network TV anymore.) Otherwise, I'd probably have to drive out to Three Mile Island and set that baby on Statewide Catastrophic: Ludicrous Speed! Sure, there would be some losses, including Gettysburg Battlefield and Ike's Farm. But, hey, would you really miss Philadelphia? Would you? <br /><br />Anyway, here are two key battles for November:<br /><br />PA Governor<br /><br />This has been ugly. Gov. Tom Corbett (R) is in for a tight race. Consider:<br />-He cut education spending shortly after his swearing-in. I'm pretty sure he meant to dent labor unions (who only strike in PA when affluencey goes up so as to raise taxes and increase their piece of the pie). The unions cried, "Think of the children!" and the people fell for it. (As for the direct approach, well, Gov. Tom Ridge tried that in the 90's. The unions cried, "think of the children!" You know how this ends.)<br />-Not getting the job done. The Repubs have majorities in both houses of the Legislature. Still, they can't pass anything- inlcuding reforming the Commonwealth's ancient State Liquor store laws. <br />-The whole Jerry f****** Sandusky thing. It's going to be three generations before this whole issue finally begins to fade away.<br />-Marcellous Shale: Corbett's been criticized for this. You'd think it was because of the shady outfits that don't follow safety guidelines when drilling. Well, yeah, some. But mostly, he hasn't taxed those dastardly gas companies enough. Profits? How dare they!<br /><br />Democratic Challengers:<br /><br />Tom Wolf: Former Revenue Secretary to super-corrupt fmr. Gov. Ed Rendell, he's the likely nominee. He rose to prominence in the last three months with a commercial that showed him driving a jeep and sounding like a nice guy. (He seems to have avoided mudslinging.) I've seen the ad and all I remember is him promising to increase taxes on gas companies so as to steal from the rich (not including him) and give to freeloaders near the WV border. His campaign says this message alone turned it around. They neglect to mention that Wolf, a millionaire, also outspent the other Dems.<br /><br />Allyson Schwartz: Front runner for more than a year until Wolf's ad trumped her 23 years in Washington and Harrisburg. But what a race it could've been! Schwartz helped draft Obamacare and has ads talking about how great it is and how proud she is of it. Given that Corbett (then as PA Attorney General) filed the original lawsuit against the ACA, this would've been a great war of words. <br /><br />Rob McCord: Current PA State Treasurer. Beloved by teachers' unions and Franco Harris, this as far as he's got. <br /><br /> Katie McGinty: Al Gore, RFK, Jr., and Bill Richardson all love her! How could the former State Environmental Secretary possibly be the bottomfeeder?!<br /><br />(continued...)Rustbelthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12190297078043033514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-24760540253258754172014-05-20T18:38:07.934-04:002014-05-20T18:38:07.934-04:00Scott, Shapiro is a dipstick. But this isn't ...Scott, Shapiro is a dipstick. But this isn't an ideological issue. This is a game that both left, right and moderates play. It is a game that people who aren't into politics play.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-11186331857946192312014-05-20T18:17:05.844-04:002014-05-20T18:17:05.844-04:00But Andrew, of course America is going down the dr...But Andrew, of course America is going down the drain. Ben Shapiro said so! (I'm kidding, but he's my permanent placeholder for pundit douchebaggery.) <br /><br />And every time a God-fearing citizen has to talk to a gay person, freedom dies just a little bit. And thanks to American TV shows, foreigners think we all live in gigantic NYC apartments! The horror!<br /><br />Hyperbole? Yes. But sadly, a ring of truth as well. :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-39724761595155181602014-05-20T17:01:34.589-04:002014-05-20T17:01:34.589-04:00Jed, the Left has been opposed to testing the whol...Jed, the Left has been opposed to testing the whole time. They don't like any sense of objectivity in education because that means some kids and teachers would need to be considered "bad" and the left doesn't like that.<br /><br />Recently, it's the far-right who've turned against testing because they equate that with nationalization.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-12952537276581627222014-05-20T17:00:27.116-04:002014-05-20T17:00:27.116-04:00tryanmax, I think it's a brilliant phrase beca...tryanmax, I think it's a brilliant phrase because (1) it boldly assumes that one argument is right without actually needing to say that, i.e. "when all the stupidity ends, everyone will see this is right", (2) it's got a real herd instinct quality -- beat the herd to where they are headed, and (3) it's impossible to refute because you can't prove what the future will say or not. Moreover, on the last point, it's based on a small observable trend, so you can pick and choose when to make the argument so that your assertion seems more credible.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-31104778912642481182014-05-20T15:34:00.620-04:002014-05-20T15:34:00.620-04:00I kind of recall some teachers complaining that un...I kind of recall some teachers complaining that under Bush's programs, they were being required to teach to a test instead of creating real learning. Up to a point, I can get that. Teachers resist being judged primarily on student results because they feel too many parents don't do their part. Fair enough, but they lose cred with me through unions and seniority. This doesn't speak directly to common core, but it is what I recall about teachers most recently.Tennessee Jedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10604275115906776992noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-9829937550979054972014-05-20T14:08:54.297-04:002014-05-20T14:08:54.297-04:00"The right/wrong side of history" is the..."The right/wrong side of history" is the most ingeniously meaningless phrase ever devised in relation to today's topic. It implies some perfect trajectory that we are/should be on. So wether one believes the past or the future was/is perfect, they will agree with it because it specifies neither. The past-minded hear we are preserving history while the futurists hear we are shaping it. It's also a very clever rhetorical turn that bends the word "history" to effectively refer to the present. tryanmaxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09881154741574720094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-69024420316897979532014-05-20T13:50:43.949-04:002014-05-20T13:50:43.949-04:00Kit, True. Our pundit class is full of fools. An...Kit, True. Our pundit class is full of fools. And even beyond that, they are fame seekers, and you don't get famous telling people "everything is going pretty well."AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-75767625025353674732014-05-20T13:46:59.124-04:002014-05-20T13:46:59.124-04:00"Trust me, anyone predicting America’s declin..."Trust me, anyone predicting America’s decline is a fool."<br /><br />Unfortunately, our pundit class is largely made up of fools.<br /><br />We have 25% of the world's economy and our navy still controls the world's oceans. Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-61229496073942703522014-05-20T13:39:28.610-04:002014-05-20T13:39:28.610-04:00Kit, It is, but it's typical of human nature. ...Kit, It is, but it's typical of human nature. Old people tend to think the past was better, because they only remember the good parts and what they remember is distorted. Young people tend to think the future (or some other land) is better because they see only the hurdles in their way and they assume they don't exist anywhere else.<br /><br />So no matter what it is, it can't beat the past or the future to these people. Then you add in the suggestion that something is objectively bad and goes against "the past" or is "on the wrong side of the future" and it's easy to see how they rail against it, even if they don't have a clue what they are really upset about.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-32132411297787338142014-05-20T13:35:26.499-04:002014-05-20T13:35:26.499-04:00Yep.
But it is interesting how they praise that ...Yep. <br /><br />But it is interesting how they praise that imaginary past yet complain about Common Core.Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-52587615308278922612014-05-20T13:32:16.028-04:002014-05-20T13:32:16.028-04:00Kit, I get those too... and I get those in person....Kit, I get those too... and I get those in person... and I get those comments every single time we talk about education.<br /><br />And do you know what?<br /><br />It's delusional.<br /><br />It's rose-colored glasses combined with an ignorance of the present combined with a failure to understand that what is considered important knowledge has changed as society has changed.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-45758225925410646512014-05-20T13:22:06.233-04:002014-05-20T13:22:06.233-04:00Andrew,
I cannot count how many times I'd got...Andrew,<br /><br />I cannot count how many times I'd gotten emails a few years ago about how much our reel 'Merikan great-grandfathers learned in school compared to we morons.<br /><br />Yet, today, it seems that stuff is "too much" for reel 'Merikan kids.Kithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01453591141757808708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-12785812405144951842014-05-20T13:20:58.183-04:002014-05-20T13:20:58.183-04:00tryanmax, I get that sense from a lot of things. ...tryanmax, I get that sense from a lot of things. I am becoming more and more convinced that the reel 'merikans are mostly leftists or cranks who only recently took up the conservative label. Few of their principles are consistent with anything that conservatives like Reagan or Buckley espoused.<br /><br />I see the anti-common core stuff mainly as a conspiracy theory. It's sold in the exact say ways, using the same false logic and half-truths. It's just as easily debunked too for anyone who dares to look for themselves.<br /><br />I think the reason it's caught on because the fringe right have become uncritical Kool-Aid drinkers of anything talk radio tells them, and their leaders are selling them this conspiracy theory.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-59198856364527003582014-05-20T13:16:13.581-04:002014-05-20T13:16:13.581-04:00Opposition to Common Core convinces me that the ri...Opposition to Common Core convinces me that the right has inherited disaffected leftists. It was as recent as Bush administration that Democrats were howling against tests, standards, amounts of work, and teaching critical thinking, crying that the children can't handle this! Michelle Rhee, former conservative education hero, remains a villain to the left even as she is now also a villain to the right.tryanmaxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09881154741574720094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6251675227852122352.post-31871935869541516052014-05-20T12:22:36.888-04:002014-05-20T12:22:36.888-04:00Kit, Free thinking is only prized when it reaches ...Kit, Free thinking is only prized when it reaches the right conclusion.AndrewPricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11312364467936820986noreply@blogger.com