The In Box

In-depth with Doug Hoffman

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 19:04:00 +0000

Jude Seymour with the Watertown Daily Times gives us a first in-depth glimpse of Doug Hoffman's new campaign. The newspaper has been cool enough to post the videos on Youtube.

It's a two-parter. Check out out.

Pass a budget plan, save a prison?

noreply@blogger.com (Martha Foley) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 18:55:00 +0000

Remember the razor-thin Democratic majority in the New York State Senate?
Well, the Albany Times Union reports today that it might be just the wedge needed to save a North Country prison.

The premise is that as the Senate takes up Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch’s proposal for fixing NY’s deficit-riddled budgets, Democrats in Republican-leaning districts in upstate New York may exact a price for their votes...and that price could be keeping a prison open.

The idea, says the Times’ Rick Karlin, was floated by Sen. Darrel Aubertine yesterday:

While one senator can't shift an entire state policy, Aubertine is one of a handful of Democrats -- most from Republican-leaning regions -- who once again find themselves in a pivotal position due to the Senate Democrats' need to marshal their entire 32-vote majority to pass initiatives that Republicans, with 30 seats, are likely to oppose.

The paper goes on to point out that the Ogdensburg prison – with 287 jobs -- on Gov. Paterson’s closure list is in Aubertine’s district. And quotes Aubertine thusly:

"There is some real skepticism on my part about borrowing more money," Aubertine said of the Ravitch five-year proposal, which would authorize the state to borrow up to $6 billion under certain conditions.

There's a rally to save the prison, today at 4 on the steps of Ogdensburg City Hall.

Even more prison cutbacks in North Country

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:10:00 +0000

New York's Department of Correctional Services says even more cuts are coming for North Country prisons.

This time DOCS isn't shutting whole facilities, according to the Watertown Daily Times.

Instead state officials plan to consolidate dorms within the existing facilities.

Randy Page, the northern region vice president of the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, said the 10 prisons being consolidated north of the state Thruway, including two units in Franklin County, will be "a devastating blow for an officer working downstate right now."

"Those are 65, 68 jobs that are no longer available to those people working downstate that are trying to come up," he said. "That won't mean those dorms won't be filled up eventually. But I don't see it, with the numbers falling the way they are."

Savings to the taxpayer, according to DOCS, will be around $9 million a year.

Ravitch's budget is another warning

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:10:00 +0000

This week Lt. Governor Richard Ravitch unveiled a budget plan designed to navigate New York state through its fiscal crisis.

Here's the takeaway:

Even with some modest tax increases and seriously painful spending cuts, the state will need to borrow about $2 billion a year to pay its bills.

If nothing else, his proposal offers another clear, unambiguous warning.

We've already seen two years of steady trims and snips.

The legislature is again confronting Governor David Paterson's plan for much bigger cuts, including the closure of three North Country prisons, two Adirondack VICs, more than a dozen of our parks and historic sites...

Schools threatened with major cuts to state aid are already preparing to lay off staff, or cut jobs through attrition. (Saranac Lake's district just announced that 15 positions will go...)

Yet even after all that belt-tightening, we're nowhere close to break-even.

The good news is that we're fairly warned.

Local governments, school districts, public sector employees, non-profits that rely on state grants, hospitals, nursing homes...we all have a responsibility to get ourselves ready for a new, leaner status quo.

Here's what worries me.

I still hear regularly from activists, non-profit leaders, local officials, and union members making the usual pilgrimage to Albany demanding that their programs, their grants, and their pay-raises be reinstated (or even expanded).

I'm not sure that those folks have heard the warning, or taken to heart what it means.

So let me say it again very clearly: The current budget deficit predictions for New York state top $9 billion dollars.

Buried within that number is serious pain for all of us.

For the foreseeable future, every responsible decision -- every school budget vote, every public employee contract negotiation, every public works project, every new program -- has to be made in this context.

Dear anonymous...

radio@ncpr.org (Dale Hobson) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:00:00 +0000

Just as webinars are not quite the same as a face-to-face workshop, online conversations are less satisfying than diner chats and backyard fence conversations. Aside from the lag time between comment and reply, and the absence of facial expression and body language, a lot of people neglect to introduce themselves. That would be you, dear Anonymous. On NCPR blogs and at other visitor comment locations, fully 45% of the conversation is posted by you.

While creating a certain air of mystery has its appeal, and some people have legitimate reason to conceal their identity, I can't believe that nearly half the people who comment need to do so anonymously. Or is it one person typing maniacally through the night? Who can tell if Anon 9:14 pm is the same as Anon 3:27 am?

Why does it matter? Folks who follow the conversation need to be able to tell one voice from another--even if they don't know who it actually belongs to--so they can reply specifically and intelligibly. So please, unless you want to be not only unidentifiable, but indistinguishable from all the other unidentified, don't click "Anonymous" on the comment form. Instead select "Name/URL." Name can be anything you like, from "G" to "greatsatan2012," and the URL (web address) can be nothing--it's optional. Just as with "Anonymous," you don't need to register anywhere or log in to use this option. And for those of you comfortable with using your real name, please do so. I always do; it makes things more friendly.

Dale Hobson, NCPR web manager

Mutiny in the making at Ft. Drum?

david@ncpr.org (David Sommerstein) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 16:35:00 +0000

The left-leaning Mother Jones magazine's fascinating cover story this month profiles a growing militia-style group on the right called Oath Keepers. The twist is that Oathkeepers are largely active-duty members of the military who are preparing to disobey their Commander-in-Chief.

The story features Lee Pray (not his real last name), a private based at Fort Drum:

In Pray's estimate, it might not be long (months, perhaps a year) before President Obama finds some pretext—a pandemic, a natural disaster, a terror attack—to impose martial law, ban interstate travel, and begin detaining citizens en masse. One of his fellow Oath Keepers, a former infantryman, advised me to prepare a "bug out" bag with 39 items including gas masks, ammo, and water purification tablets, so that I'd be ready to go "when the shit hits the fan."

When it does, Pray and his buddies plan to go AWOL and make their way to their "fortified bunker"—the home of one comrade's parents in rural Idaho—where they've stocked survival gear, generators, food, and weapons. If it becomes necessary, they say, they will turn those guns against their fellow soldiers.

As the article points out, the Oath Keepers are closely linked to civilian right-wing groups from the Tea Party to Birthers to 912ers.

Aside from the intra-military implications of rank-and-file troops vowing to disobey - and take arms against - their highest commander, here's what really interests me. If you read Oath Keepers' list of orders they will not obey, they're not much different from what a lot of people on the Left most feared during the Bush Administration.

Fort Drum folks out there: do you know any Oathkeepers? What do you think you've sworn an oath to - the Constitution? The Commander-in-Chief? Both? Are they vigilant, patriotic soldiers or a threat to chain of command so integral to a functioning military?

Is Saranac Lake dying?

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:37:00 +0000

First a big red-letter disclosure: This post involves Saranac Lake, my home village, where my wife Susan is a candidate for village office.

But Saranac Lake is also my community, so I waded into the fray this week with a guest commentary for the Adirondack Daily Enterprise.

The question I asked: Is Saranac Lake dying? That's the argument being made by some locals, including Harrietstown supervisor Larry Miller.

When Republicans running for village office in Saranac Lake laid out their campaign platform last month, they argued that our community is "on the verge of failure." In a letter to the editor of the Adirondack Daily Enterprise, Harrietstown Supervisor Larry Miller echoed this claim, writing, "If the village continues down the current path it is destined for failure."

That sounds terrifying. Fortunately, this gloomy portrait of Saranac Lake is factually, provably wrong. As a journalist, I have visited, researched and written about small towns for 25 years. Compared with most of rural America - not just in the Adirondacks or upstate New York - our village is thriving.

The discussion is drawing a lot of attention at the Enteprise's website and I thought readers of the In Box might be interested in checking it out.

You can also get a lot more information about the health of Adirondack communities, here where the Adirondack Association of Towns and Villages has compiled a fascinating report.

Hoffman moving into 23rd district

david@ncpr.org (David Sommerstein) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:54:00 +0000

The Watertown Daily Times has an interview up on their website today of Republican/Conservative Congressional candidate Doug Hoffman.

Among other things, he says he's moving his primary residence from Lake Placid to Saranac Lake, presumably so he can live in the district he wants to represent:

Q: Do have any intention of making a permanent residence inside the 23rd?
A: Yes, I do. I have a purchase contract that I just closed on last week. We're working on the financing and we hope to close on that property next month. It's in Saranac Lake, my hometown where I grew up. And I'll be moving back home.

The changing face of America

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:31:00 +0000

This today from the Associated Press:

Minorities make up nearly half the children born in the U.S., part of a historic trend in which minorities are expected to become the U.S. majority over the next 40 years.

In fact, demographers say this year could be the "tipping point" when the number of babies born to minorities outnumbers that of babies born to whites.

Press-Republican praises Gillibrand's farm focus

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:42:00 +0000

The Plattsburgh Press-Republican is giving a shout-out in a lead editorial today to Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.

The newspaper says she's brought a new level of attention on ag and dairy issues to the Senate.

...few have focused on the plight of North Country dairy farmers with the energy of current Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, herself an upstate native with a perspective on the region's rural economy.

Read the whole editorial here.

America's "beer belly"

david@ncpr.org (David Sommerstein) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:01:00 +0000

Strange Maps, one of my favorite blogs, does it again with a map that uses Google data to compare the ratio of groceries to bars across the country.

As you can see, Wisconsin and the upper Midwest is clearly America's beer belly. But the North Country, especially St. Lawrence county, holds its own.

Do we drink more here? Or do we just have fewer grocery stores (and for a time we'll have even fewer during the P&C --> Price Chopper transition)? Is it a sign of poverty? Or community?

Another cool hunting video, mantis and hummingbird edition

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:10:00 +0000

Who knew that praying mantises hunt hummingbirds?

Turns out there are lots of videos on line, showing these green killers lurking in wait on feeders...

Sheesh -- I'm glad they're so tiny.

Are Democrats fundamentally unserious?

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:56:00 +0000

I just watched New York Rep. Eric Massa's interview with Glenn Beck on Fox News.

It was a dreary, pathetic performance.

Massa, of course, announced his resignation last week following allegations that he had groped male staff-members in his office.

This comes on the heels of Rep. Charlie Rangel's demotion following ethics allegations, and Gov. David Paterson's announcement that he would drop out of this year's campaign.

It follows Jonathan Edwards' personal and political implosion and comes as a new book appears on the shelves describing Eliot Spitzer's disintegration.

Of course the grandfather of all these Democratic scandals is Bill Clinton's dalliance with Monica Lewinsky.

A unifying theme is that all these dalliances hint at a toxic lack of seriousness among Democrats and their leaders.

For better or worse, most don't involve the abuse of power.

Instead, they paint a portrait of a political party that can't focus on its goals or its mandate seriously enough to leave the hookers alone or stop pinching bottoms.

I'm not being snarky here. I'm flat-out disgusted.

The shocking thing about Clinton's behavior wasn't that he committed adultery, or even that he did it in the White House.

No, the shocking thing was that he was so careless with his own agenda and the responsibilities of his office that he would put it all at risk for a quicky.

Surely, similar misgivings passed through Gov. Paterson's mind before he picked up the telephone to intervene in an aide's domestic violence case?

And surely Eliot Spitzer paused outside that hotel room in Washington DC to think about the future of his state, and his oath to bring reform to Albany.

What does it mean that they kept on going, that they betrayed their trust?

When President Barack Obama came to office in 2008, he promised big changes and laid claim to a new gravity of purpose for himself and his party.

But if Dems really care about things like poverty, health care, the budget crisis, and closing Guantanamo Bay -- how come so many of them still have time for all this nonsense?

Obviously, Republicans have had plenty of ethical challenges of their own, some of them involving similar adolescent shenanigans.

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford took creepy and inappropriate behavior to new levels last year.

Former North Country Rep. John Sweeney is currently cooling his heels in jail; and former state Sen. Joe Bruno -- a Queensbury native -- probably isn't far behind.

The difference is that when they were in power the GOP was remarkably effective at advancing its agenda.

There was plenty of sleaze, sure, but they also got the job done.

The North Country's two Democrats -- Plattsburgh Rep. Bill Owens and Glens Falls Rep. Scott Murphy -- have avoided any taint of scandal.

Both appear to be serving honorably and ethically.

But there's a growing risk to them and other Democrats as November 2010 approaches.

Headlines involving Eric Massa's towel snapping and Charlie Rangel's tax entanglements could outweigh any headlines trumpeting their actual accomplishments.

And that's something voters will have to think about.

Did Spitzer take the governorship knowing he would crash?

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:50:00 +0000

Here's a troubling thought:

When Eliot Spitzer ran for governor, and took over as New York's chief executive, he may have known that his political career was already doomed.

That's the theory of one of his top advisers and confidantes, Lloyd Constantine, who has just published a new book, unveiled this week in Politico.

“The secret things Eliot had been doing and [the] certainty that Eliot understood that they inevitably would come to light and bring him down, and all of us with him, had been steadily dripping venom into his mind,” Constantine writes.

This altered personality transformed “the brilliant, dedicated and decisive man I had known and loved for more than a quarter century” into someone he called “the Imposter.”

Constantine describes increasingly bizarre behavior on Spitzer's part, with weird rages interspersed with bouts of what he calls "serenity."

It's a troubling idea, one that nudges Spitzer toward the Jonathan Edwards category of narcissism in my mind.

What if he took the state's job, knowing he was about to take us all on this awful, ugly journey into dysfunction?

In many ways, our state's terrifying gridlock harkens back to his meltdown.

A figure with the clout and personal gifts to change Albany and navigate us through this recession turned out to be symptomatic of its deepest problems.

The full Politico article is worth reading. If nothing else, this book may pose a serious setback to Spitzer's effort to rehabilitate himself...

Wrestling with the intersection (train wreck?) of faith and science

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:13:00 +0000

Krista Tipett, host of public radio's Speaking of Faith, is someone I love to argue with in my car.

She's provocative, smart, open-minded.

I also happen to think that she soft-pedals some of the darker, more troubling aspects of religious belief.

In this conversation, at the New York Public Library, she takes on the intersection of faith and scientific rigor.

Again, I'm unconvinced. There's a little too much 'gee-whiz-wow!' here and not enough skepticism.

Which is maybe one of the ways that science and faith clash.

But it's still interesting and hugely thought-provoking. Check it out and comment below...

Hoffman's back in the 23rd district

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:30:00 +0000

Tea party and Conservative favorite Doug Hoffman is officially back in the running for the House seat currently occupied by Plattsburgh Democrat Bill Owens.

The Lake Placid accountant, who became a conservative media sensation when he bumped Dede Scozzava out of the running, says he's the man to retake the seat. Here's his statement.

"I will champion the fight for less spending, lower taxes and shrinking the deficit. I will speak out about the need to defend our nation and the freedoms of its people. And, I will never back down from taking on the career politicians who conveniently forget that they represent and work for you; average American citizens, not the special interests who fill the back rooms of Washington with lobbyists and fill the campaign coffers of elected officials with money."

At least three other Republicans are considering a run. Should be an interesting primary.

In an article this week, the magazine Politico raised questions about whether tea party insurgents like Hoffman are the strongest GOP candidates.

The early results from tea party candidates, despite their focus on hot-button issues such as opposition to President Barack Obama’s health care reform bill and concern about budget-busting policies of both parties, have not been pretty.

But Hoffman won't be easy to beat in the primary. He'll be well-funded and will likely have plenty of media support on talk radio and the blogs.

Should be another fascinating race.

Right now: wind in Hammond

david@ncpr.org (David Sommerstein) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:43:00 +0000

Tonight Hammond's town council names a committee to study wind power.
They meet in the library; about 40 people are here.

The community's deeply divided; the appointments are politically
charged. Iberdrola wants to erect 72 turbines here, near the St.
Lawrence. Find out more tomorrow on The 8 O'Clock Hour.

Sarah Palin's Canadian healthcare

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:55:00 +0000

Here's a weird snippet. At an appearance in Calgary, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin described growing up using Canada's single-payer socialized healthcare.

This from the Globe and Mail:

The vocal opponent of health-care reform in the U.S. steered largely clear of the topic except to reveal a tidbit about her life growing up not far from Whitehorse.

“We used to hustle over the border for health care we received in Canada,” she said. “And I think now, isn't that ironic?”

Having grown up in Alaska, my guess is that her family crossed the border not because healthcare was more affordable, but because it was closer.

Alaska's a big place.

In those days, the Al-Can border was essentially invisible, and communities often shared services across the line.

Still, it seems that experience should have left Palin with a more sophisticated and nuanced understanding of what "socialized" medicine looks like.

Hearts and minds - and 3 cups of tea - in Afghanistan

david@ncpr.org (David Sommerstein) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:54:00 +0000

I saw Three Cups of Tea author Greg Mortenson speak to hundreds of people at Fort Drum on Saturday. Unfortunately, Mortenson wouldn't let us record any of the speech, nor did he give an interview. But we'll hear some reaction later this week.

I mention this because the core philosophy of Mortenson's Central Asia Institute is being replicated in the U.S. military's revised strategy in Afghanistan.

Mortenson's mission is very simple: educate girls. He repeats again and again what he's heard during more than a decade of building schools in the most remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Women tell him: a) we want our babies to stop dying. b) we want our girls to go to school.

On the same day that Mortenson was at Fort Drum, the New York Times reported on a new effort that will put female soldiers on the front lines specifically to talk with Afghan women:

Next month they will begin work as members of the first full-time “female engagement teams,” the military’s name for four- and five-member units that will accompany men on patrols in Helmand Province to try to win over the rural Afghan women who are culturally off limits to outside men. The teams, which are to meet with the Afghan women in their homes, assess their need for aid and gather intelligence, are part of Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal’s campaign for Afghan hearts and minds. His officers say that you cannot gain the trust of the Afghan population if you only talk to half of it.

In his speech, Mortenson quoted Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen as telling him, "we cannot capture the hearts and minds of Afghanis, we must engage them."

I'm not saying Mortenson is driving military policy, but the Pentagon brass are clearly listening to people like him.

And we can only hope the U.S. military has as much success in Afghanistan as Mortenson and his Central Asia Institute has had.

Safety vs beauty

lucy@voiceworksnorth.com (Lucy Martin) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:03:00 +0000

The Library and Archives of Canada, the Supreme Court, Parliament Hill, the Chateau Laurier, the locks down to the river, the National Gallery...Ottawa's capital core boasts some truly lovely buildings and spaces.

And then there's the U.S Embassy on Sussex Drive:

To be brutally honest, the word I always think of gazing at my own embassy is 'sinister'. The style is very modern and (for my taste) dreadfully sterile. Worst of all, it's hemmed in by a lot of really unsightly concrete barriers.

Having slagged the embassy's appearance, let me add some praise. I've gone there for consular services, entering with dread. (Bureaucracy can be bad enough in relaxed circumstances.) But I came away impressed by the professionalism, courtesy -- and yes, efficiency! -- encountered within the bunker.

These are troubled times, and safety certainly does matter. But folks, where the barriers are concerned, we are talking u-g-l-y. It's a black eye on an otherwise graceful space.

Apparently, US Ambassador David Jacobson has aesthetic reservations too. He describes his first reaction to the site in this Ottawa Citizen article.

"They took me on a tour around the city on my way to my office," he said. "It was quite a day. The leaves were turning. We drove past the Rideau Canal and the Rideau Falls, which were magnificent. The National Gallery was imposing and Parliament Hill was majestic. We rounded the corner as we approached my new office. You can imagine -- my pulse quickened. When I first laid eyes on the Embassy of the United States in Canada the first words out of my mouth were, 'What's the deal with those concrete barriers?' ”

This past Saturday, Jacobson and federal Transport Minister John Baird announced the blocks in question will be replaced by attractive rigid posts.

According to the Ottawa Citizen, the work is projected to cost $3.125 million and may take over a year to complete. The U.S. Government will provide $500,000 toward the project. Canada's federal government will contribute $2.5 million, and the City of Ottawa will add $125,000 to relocate water and sewer mains. A bike lane is also planned.

Lies, damn lies and Liz Cheney

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:47:00 +0000

Ever since last November's election of President Barack Obama, I've used the In Box to advocate for a renewal of the Republican Party.

My argument was and is for a GOP that builds its agenda around ideas and policies that can improve Americans' lives.

We need a vibrant, thoughtful conservative movement. But so far the renaissance hasn't happened.

Instead, Republicans have often embraced a virulent and unthinking animosity toward Mr. Obama's agenda.

Why do I say 'unthinking'?

Because too often the conservative movement has attacked and voted against ideas that Republican leaders once advocated for themselves.

Republicans pioneered the idea of forming a bipartisan deficit-reduction panel.

When Democrats embraced the idea, GOP lawmakers voted against it.

Republicans supported the idea of urging seniors to do end of life planning with their doctors.

They then attacked the policy -- included in early drafts of the health care bill -- as 'death panels.'

Republicans, under the Bush administration, began the national effort to bail out the banks and restore the finance industry.

The Bush White House created "TARP."

Now those efforts, carried forward by the current White House, are derided as 'socialism' and an attack on free market capitalism.

GOP leaders scorned President Obama's stimulus package, but raced to hoover up as many of the dollars for their districts and pet projects as possible.

Perhaps nowhere is this double-think more painfully obvious than on national security.

Dick and Liz Cheney -- the former Vice President and his daughter -- have attacked the Obama Administration's terrorism policies relentlessly.

Dick Cheney condemns the abandonment of so called 'enhanced interrogation' techniques -- torture, in simple parlance -- used against some detainees

He has also sneered at the Obama administration's plan to close Guantanamo Bay, arguing that the move would make America less safe.

What he neglects to point out is that waterboarding and similar techniques were also rejected by Mr. Obama's Republican opponent in 2008, Sen. John McCain.

Another uncomfortable fact is that President Bush himself acknowledged in 2007 that "it should be a goal of the nation to shut down Guantanamo."

Meanwhile, Liz Cheney has attacked plans to use Federal civil courts to try accused terrorists.

In an advertisement last week, her activist group went a step further.

She accused the Justice Department of hiring lawyers who formerly defended Guantanamo detainees, labeling these attorneys 'the Al Quaeda 7.'

The attack is so reprehensible that many conservatives have condemned it.

But it turns out the Bush Administration also hired a number of attorneys who had formerly defended terror suspects.

And it turns out the Bush Administration tried almost all of the detainees in its custody under Federal civil courts, not military tribunals.

As Ms. Cheney well knows, those trials proceeded without complication and without controversy, resulting in guilty verdicts and lengthy sentences.

So why would the GOP spend so much of the last year attacking the Obama administration for embracing policies that its own leaders once supported?

Why not spend the time developing a new, attractive, positive Contract for America, a proven strategy that won a landslide victory in the 1994 congressional elections?

One possible explanation is the document uncovered by Politico last week, revealing the Republican Party's internal strategy.

That official RNC document portrayed Mr. Obama as "the Joker" and argued that "fear" would one of the primary methods for winning elections in November 2010.

"What can you sell when you do not have the White House, the House, or the Senate...?" it asks.

The answer: "Save the country from trending toward Socialism!”

According to Politico, the GOP hopes to leverage "extreme negative feelings toward the existing Administration," triggering "reactionary" and "visceral" responses.

It may or may not be a strategy that will work at the ballot box this year. But how will it help Republicans govern?

What does it tell us about how the GOP would lead our nation through a deep recession, a time of war, and a time of dangerous Federal deficits?

Yes, Americans are uncomfortable with the systemic deficit spending that Mr. Obama is proposing. And we're not satisfied with many of his policy proposals.

Rather than trot out scurrilous (and hypocritical) attacks, Republicans should come up with sound, workable and appealing alternatives.

Your thoughts? Comment below.

Speedy takes on Saturday Night Live

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:17:00 +0000

How's this for courage: In his latest song, Speedy calls Derek Jeter a rock eater.

My favorite moment? He pulls off a pun on the word 'gneiss.' Nice.

Scout's honor

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 12:41:00 +0000

Last night I spoke to a group of Boy Scouts that meets out at Paul Smith's College.

The young men of Troop 12 were holding their awards ceremony, handing out badges, remembering their accomplishments of the last half-year.

It was pretty cool.

Here's a confession: I was a lousy Scout. It just wasn't my cup of tea. My group's scout leader deserved more than a merit badge.

A Nobel peace prize maybe?

More recently, I've been uncomfortable with the Scouts' policy of rejecting leaders and kicking out boys who are gay.

Last night, though, all that baggage fell away as I watched these guys talk about their sense of mission and their responsibilities to their community.

Helping a family that had lost its home in a fire; cleaning up a section of highway; gathering food for local pantries.

And then getting outdoors to ski and snowshoe and winter camp.

It doesn't get much better than that.

In an era when boys and their families are challenged by everything from high divorce rates to videogame drivel, a lot of young guys need all the help they can get.

How long's it been since you've recited the Boy Scout Oath? (I know for me it had been thirty years at least.)

On my honor, I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.

Should Peter Hornbeck serve on the Adirondack Park Agency board?

brian@ncpr.org (Brian Mann) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:38:00 +0000

This morning, we're airing a conversation with Peter Hornbeck, the boat builder and environmental activist who want to serve on the Adirondack Park Agency board.

His supporters, including Minerva town supervisor Sue Montgomery-Corey, say he would be a great addition to the APA.

“We believe that he will represent the needs of Adirondack communities and businesses well,” Corey wrote last week.

Critics of the nomination point out that Hornbeck is a member of the board of Protect the Adirondacks, a group that is suing the APA.

Is it an ethical conflict for him to join an Agency that he voted to sue?

Maybe so. But his supporters point out that local government groups are also currently suing the APA.

Should we prevent local government leaders from serving on the APA board (or other state agencies) if they've been involved in legal clashes with the state?

Hornbeck's nomination is complicated by other factors, most beyond his control.

First is the fact that there are already three former green-group leaders on the APA board.

If Hornbeck is confirmed, half of the appointed members on the APA board would be former environmentalists. Is that too many? It's a fair debate to have.

Second is the reality that Hornbeck was nominated by Governor David Paterson at a time when Paterson's own political future was imploding.

Hornbeck finds himself lost in the swamp that is Albany politics.

Finally, the APA itself is in the midst of political tumult, facing renewed hostility and litigation from property rights activists and other critics.

In a way, Hornbeck's nomination has become part of a larger debate over the APA's identity and future.

In an editorial last week, the Plattsburgh Press-Republican argued that this was the wrong time for Hornbeck to join the Agency:

Hornbeck might be the fairest-minded individual to ever breathe Adirondack air, but his background certainly invites disdain from those at the other end of the ideological spectrum.

Sen. Betty Little, who opposes the nomination (and has squared off with the APA on many issues), points out that Protect Adirondacks has been vocal against the Adirondack Club and Resort proposal in Tupper Lake, one of the important decisions the APA will have to rule on in the next few years. How objective can Hornbeck be on that?

Even if he can be, asking anyone to believe it stretches credulity.

Hornbeck's appointment is not only an affront to the pro-development Adirondackers, it is a disservice to an agency trying hard to earn the public's confidence.

For the first time, you can hear what Hornbeck himself has to say about these issues and the controversies swirling around his appointment.

Before commenting here, please go listen to our conversation, hear Hornbeck's views. Then chime in below.

Greg Mortenson at Ft. Drum

david@ncpr.org (David Sommerstein) — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:28:00 +0000

Three Cups of Tea author is giving a very powerful speech at Fort
Drum. This week on NCPR we'll hear military spouses in the audience -
many with husbands in Afghanistan - reflect on Mortensen.