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May 1, 2008:
Tomorrow I graduate
from the Washington
Agriculture and
Forestry (AgForestry)
Education Foundation
Leadership Program.
It has been a
wonderful
opportunity and an
invigorating
journey. My
classmates and I
have covered over
30,000 miles and
listened to at least
300 speakers on a
wide variety of
policy, leadership
development and
natural resource
industry subjects.
The program is
currently seeking
accreditation at a
Masters level, but
I’d recommend the
experience to anyone
contemplating a
future in public
service, with or
without the extra
credential. The
Foundation works
hard at striking a
balance in each
class between
agricultural
producers, forest
industry workers,
fisheries and
shellfish producers,
and natural resource
agency staff. It’s
not just about the
individual learning,
the network is
becoming so well
connected that
applications are now
coming in from
commodity group
staff and
environmental
groups. It is
always a struggle
for those of us who
are self-employed
producers to
participate, and the
Foundation is
working hard to
attract more
producers into the
program to maintain
the focus and
balance. We spent
time today
brainstorming ways
to get the message
out – the AgForestry
leadership program
is an awesome
opportunity!
April 18, 2008:
Last Tuesday I spent
most of the day
working on my laptop
from a hotel lobby.
It made for a great
office – view of a
lake, comfortable
furniture,
completely connected
with wi-fi and cell
phone as if I were
at home but without
the distractions of
other projects
tumbling across the
desk. I overheard
the desk clerk
quoting room rates
for various groups
of travelers. When
the rate is $118 for
the average business
traveler, why is the
“government rate”
$76? Why does the
government get a
price break that
isn't available to
the average
citizen? It
occurred to me that
the differential
between the
government rate and
the basic rate
represented a hidden
subsidy for the
government. On
paper, the
government looks
like a thriftier
purchaser of hotel
rooms compared to
private enterprise.
There is a
similarity with
Medicaid and
Medicare. Neither
government
healthcare program
pays the full cost
of the care being
provided. The
difference between
the cost of care in
the marketplace and
the amount paid by
the government is a
hidden subsidy of
government health
care, and makes any
comparison of which
system is more
economically
efficient nearly
impossible. The
arguments in favor
of a nationalized
healthcare system
fail to take into
account who is going
to pay when we
abolish the golden
goose who pays the
subsidy.
Every time we accept
subsidies like this,
we hide the true
cost of government.
April 9, 2008:
In honor of the upcoming
7th District
Lincoln Day Marathon
Weekend (four Lincoln
Day dinners in three
days), I’m going to take
this opportunity to
highlight a few of my
favorite quotes from
President Abraham
Lincoln:
On Conservatism: "In
all that the people can
individually do as well
for themselves, the
government ought not to
interfere."
On Ethics: "Some things
that are legally right
are not necessarily
morally right."
On Honesty: "I have
always wanted to deal
with everyone I meet
candidly and honestly.
If I have made any
assertion not warranted
by facts, and it is
pointed out to me, I
will withdraw it
cheerfully."
On Injustice: "The best
way to get a bad law
repealed is to enforce
it strictly."
On the Republican
Party: "Republicans are
for both man and the
dollar but in case of
conflict the man before
the dollar."
That last quote is an
excellent opportunity to
remember that the
Republican Party was
founded as a break away
abolitionist party,
asserting that all men
are created equal in
God’s sight and deserve
an equal opportunity to
succeed or fail on
individual merit and
initiative. Now if we
could just get the
government to stop
interfering in that
which we can and should
do individually for
ourselves . . . .
March 28, 2008:
The rest of the story of
John Doe (see March 26, 2008
blog):
As I expected, the negative
publicity surrounding John
Doe’s plight bought him an
exception from the insurance
company. After denials in
the first two rounds of
appeals, a higher up
functionary looked at the
bad press and said yes.
For anybody who thinks it
would be different under
Canadian style nationalized
coverage, think again. The
Canadian press frequently
has stories about hard luck
cases similar to John Doe,
and the ending is often
similar. A government
bureaucrat is embarrassed or
pressured into changing the
rules that create waiting
lists and a scarcity of the
highest tier treatments.
Sometimes the story ends
differently – our Canadian
John Doe travels to the US
for treatment. If we have
nationalized health care,
where will we travel for our
treatment when the line is
too long? The only way the
healthcare system functions
rationally is when the
people seeking treatment are
empowered to manage their
own access to care.
March 26, 2008:
Today’s Spokesman-Review is a
perfect case study of why
employers should NOT be
responsible for buying health
insurance for employees. The
employee (let’s call him John
Doe) is very ill with hepatitis
and cirrhosis of the liver. He
has a 10 year old son, a loving
wife, and a meaningful career as
a drug and alcohol counselor.
He changes lives every day.
John has just risen to the top
of the list for a lifesaving
liver transplant. John’s
employer just renegotiated the
company health insurance plan.
Since they changed carriers to
get the best plan at the best
price, there is now a 6 month
waiting period for a transplant
to be covered. John can’t wait
6 months. John will die.
If John and his family were in
charge of purchasing their own
insurance, knowing their own
needs, this would not happen.
We need a competitive individual
insurance market. We need to
get people out of the habit of
giving control over their health
insurance coverage to their
employer. Employers can’t ask
employees about their health
care needs. Employers buying
health insurance without knowing
their employees health needs
makes about as much sense as if
the boss bought your car for you
without asking how many kids you
have to carry, does your
driveway require 4WD in the
winter, or can you drive a stick
shift.
Employers purchase health care
for employees because of wage
controls initiated by FDR during
World War II. Employers had to
compete for a limited labor pool
in some way, and started
offering health insurance. It
doesn’t have to be this way, we
can change. The tradition is
barely 65 years old. It’s time
to retire the old tradition and
let us be in charge of our own
health care and health
insurance. First step –
challenge the Insurance
Commissioner to do his job right
and let us have access to a
competitive market!
March 14, 2008:
It has
been a busy campaign week, next week
will be busier, and after that it
will accelerate! All the more
reason to take the afternoon off
today and spend it at 49 Degrees
North. My company (Madsen Mitchell
Evenson Conrad) takes a break once a
quarter to have fun together, and
winter quarter 2008 found the team
on the mountain for a day of
skiing. Craig and I joined them
after he finished morning chores at
the barn and I attended the annual
Spokane County “State of the County”
breakfast in Airway Heights. The
expanded runs off the new Sunrise
Quad Chair #5 were great fun, and we
concluded we need to get on the
slopes one more time before the
season closes. It doesn’t look like
March 14th, more like
January 14th !
We
chose to try rental equipment
because our skis and bindings are
out of date and out of tune, and no
shop will touch them for fear of
liability. The new skis, bindings
and boots were great, and I was sold
on the improved performance of the
new style fat skis in the first 100
yards off the lift. The new poles,
however, just weren’t the same as my
old ones with the mismatched baskets
and the leather straps. They
perform fine, and there is no reason
to replace them. We’ll look for a
good end of season deal on boots and
skis, and keep the old poles - a
simple choice of common sense over
chasing style.
I’ve
tried writing a couple of endings to
pull this blog back to some big,
philosophical conclusion. I’ve
concluded there isn’t one. Even
while taking an afternoon off, I
ended up campaigning on the chair
lift, in the lodge, at the gas
station and at the hardware store.
The campaign trail will be all
consuming for the next eight
months. Game on!
March 7, 2008:
In the 1980’s I belonged to the Reardan
Town Ladies Softball Team, nicknamed the
JG’s (for Jay’s Girls, since Jay Garber
graciously sponsored the team every
year). We were more enthusiastic than
talented, but it was a great opportunity
for a group of young mothers to play
outdoors and cement friendships. I
filled in a variety of positions,
including first base, right field, and
an occasional inning at pitcher when we
were truly desperate. My favorite was
the year I played catcher, because both
of our regular catchers were pregnant.
It was all about teamwork.
Last week I sat in the Gallery at the
House session on Tuesday and watched the
Republican caucus execute a debate on
E2SSB 5278 with great teamwork. The
subject of the bill was removing the
prohibition on using public funds to
finance political campaigns for local
office, as imposed by Initiative I-134
in 1992. The Republican team offered 8
amendments, attempting to make a bad
bill better by providing guidance to
local districts on appropriate rules for
such a use of public funds. Here’s an
example that was voted down – to require
that materials printed with public funds
say “Printed with Taxpayer Funds.”
Republican members rose to speak, each
making a different part of the argument,
to no avail. Most interesting was the
Democratic response to all arguments,
which was that the Legislature shouldn’t
micromanage local affairs, and should
trust local government to use good
judgment. What a great argument for
abolishing Growth Management Hearing
Boards and letting local government use
their own good judgment!
But I digress, today’s subject is team
work. Now that we have a clear winner
and a gracious second place finisher in
the Presidential primary, Republicans
have another great opportunity to show
our teamwork. We need to pull together
for the good of the country as well as
the good of the GOP. Whether you
supported McCain, Romney, Huckabee or
Paul, now is the time for all good
Republicans to come to the aid of their
party. Many of the Paul supporters are
new to the team. We need their idealism
and enthusiasm to help us stay on track
with our principles regarding the proper
role of limited government in American
life. On to Minneapolis and success in
November!
February 29,
2008:
Below is an article from yesterday’s
Olympian. It is the first time since
Gregoire’s first year in office that the
Democrats are talking openly of raising
taxes. The article notes that the state
is looking at a $2.4 billion budget gap for
the 2009-2011 biennial budget, which is
adopted next year. This is similar to the
size of the budget deficit the state faced
in 2003. That year, the budget was balanced
without raising taxes
(thanks to
Dino Rossi).
In 2005,
the legislature and governor increased taxes
by about $500 million. The argument in 2005
was
that increases were necessary to
offset revenue losses from a court decision
voiding the state’s inheritance tax. As it
turned out revenues were spiking and, in
retrospect, the tax increase was not needed
to balance the budget. Since then,
spending has
increased by about 33%. Revenues have
increased by about 16 or 17% during the same
time frame.
A lot will be
riding on the economy and which party is in
control of the majorities and the
Governorship when the budget is written. If
the budget
projections are accurate (and they
usually are) we will have to be on
the watch for bills proposing new or
increased taxes.
We need
to make up ground in the legislature and
regain the Governorship in 2009. All
Republicans need to pull together this
year and support our candidates. We need to
be the party of leadership, willing to face
up to the budget deficit without raising
taxes, willing to ask the tough questions
and focus on the constitutional priorities
of government.
We need solid
business common sense – in the Governor’s
office and in the legislature. It won’t be
easy facing up to a budget deficit and
facing down the Democrats push for new
taxes, but
I’m up for the
challenge!
Published February 28, 2008
WA
House speaker: Taxes possible to shore up
next year's budget
CURT WOODWARD
Washington's powerful House speaker has
acknowledged the possibility of tax
increases to balance next year's state
budget, but adds that Democrats want to
avoid such a step if possible.
Thursday's comments from Speaker Frank Chopp,
D-Seattle, are the strongest signal yet that
Democratic leaders think higher taxes could
be needed to balance the 2009-2011 budget,
which will be written by next year's
Legislature.
Chopp's statements also seemed to confirm
months of Republican warnings about the need
for tax hikes or spending cuts to deal with
a looming state deficit, recently pegged by
nonpartisan Senate staff at nearly $2.4
billion in the next biennium.
Senate Democrats telegraphed the need for
more taxes earlier this week, when they
tucked a nearly $10 million liquor tax
increase into the Senate's proposed state
budget. If approved, the money would be
split between substance abuse treatment and
drunken driving enforcement programs.
That liquor tax increase may soon come up
for a vote in the Senate, but it would need
to get support from two-thirds of the
Legislature to become law because of the
recently passed tax limits in Initiative
960.
Asked Thursday about this year's proposed
liquor tax and the prospect for further
increases, Chopp declined to rule out higher
taxes in 2009, saying he had to withhold
judgment until the next budget cycle's
economic picture becomes clear.
He
then added: "We'd obviously rather not do
that. But we've done that in the past when
we've had good justification for it, and
when we've needed to make investments."
Chopp also said that recent state tax
increases - particularly the gas-tax hikes
dedicated to road and bridge construction -
have been a boon to the overall economy by
firing up the construction industry.
"We have literally invested more than the
vast majority of other states in these
infrastructure projects, on a per capita
basis," Chopp said. "And those investments
have paid off for the economy."
Asked about Chopp's comments, Senate budget
Chairwoman Margarita Prentice, D-Renton,
sounded a similar note: "Obviously, we'll
take a look at anything. But we'll have to
look at the circumstances then."
For Senate GOP budget chief Joseph Zarelli,
R-Ridgefield, the acknowledgment that taxes
are in the mix for 2009's two-year budget
sounded familiar.
Republicans have consistently sent that
warning, saying the past four years' 33
percent increase in state spending can't be
sustained in a slackening economy.
"The bottom line is, there's two ways to get
out of a deficit, and that's to cut spending
or to raise taxes. We all know that,"
Zarelli said. "Our argument has been, let's
not get to that decision."
February 24, 2008:
My last blog was printed as a letter to the
editor in the Wenatchee World and the
Spokesman-Review. The Seattle Times seems
to have ignored it. The most interesting
response was in the Spokesman Review from a
writer in Ferry County, who said (and I
quote):
“Ms. Madsen doesn’t want wildlife to be able
to move in our area.”
Where in heaven’s name did he get that
idea?! I am under no illusion that wildlife
give a fig what I think about where they
move. Considering the many moose sightings
in the metropolitan Spokane River watershed
over the last two weeks, the moose seem to
be moving around just fine. Common sense
tells me the moose, bears, cougars, wolves,
deer and elk don’t need a Y2Y Eco-Region
sign to tell them where to move.
My critic goes on to say that of course the
West Siders are ignoring us because our
legislators vote “no.” Voting no on a bad
idea is good thing. In fact, it is such a
good thing that I am headed to Olympia this
week to testify against SB 5318 in front of
the House Agriculture and Natural Resources
Committee. The trick will be putting the
case into words the West Siders can
understand, since respect for private
property rights and common sense doesn’t
seem to sway them.
February 18, 2008:
Letter to the Editor (Seattle Times):
Tell our state legislators to vote against
Senate Bill 5318. It requires state fish
and wildlife officials to establish
regulations to protect the Y2Y (Yellowstone
to Yukon) Eco-Region. What starts out as
merely voluntary usually accumulates
regulations. Since this bill would make it
mandatory (not voluntary) for fish and
wildlife to “do something,” you can bet they
will.
Nobody asked the opinion of residents of
northeast Washington, yet the proponents
claim to want active local participation.
Speechifying on the Capitol floor is a bad
way to get local input.
When the National Register of Historic
Places was first developed, anybody could
place a property on the list, without
consulting the property owner. The rule was
soon changed under pressure from urban
populations to require the property owner’s
permission to add this special designation
to the property. Sometimes it adds
restrictions, sometimes the designation is
merely honorary or brings with it increased
tourism or tax credits, but it is a
voluntary designation. Don’t force the
Y2Y Eco-Region on our rural areas just
because there are fewer residents to
complain.
February 10, 2008:
It’s been a long break in the blog stream, and
for good reason. I had the honor of traveling
to Latvia, Lithuania and Russia with my
AgForestry Leadership class on a 2 week “citizen
diplomacy” tour at the end of January/early
February. Citizen diplomacy means we had a
tightly packed schedule of tours and home visits
related to agricultural production and
processing, local history and culture. I’ll be
sharing insights from this trip over the next
few weeks.
Freedom is a tangible asset in the Baltic
countries of Latvia and Lithuania, not a vague
concept suitable for a bumper sticker. They
only regained their independence in 1991, after
45 years of Soviet domination. Their sense of
national identity survived deportations,
collectivization, and brutal suppression by the
KGB with the unifying elements of language,
culture and songs.
Check out Wikipedia at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singing_Revolution
for more details. The Baltic countries have
been traded between empires for a thousand
years, yet never lost sight of the value of
freedom. The United States has stood for a
little over 200 years, and we give away pieces
of our freedom every day when we turn over
responsibility that should rest with the
individual to central government. On our last
evening in Russia we reflected on lessons
learned during the trip. It wasn’t beautiful
architecture or good food or productive farms
that came at the top of the list – it was the
realization that our freedom is so fragile, and
we don’t appreciate all that we are blessed with
in the United States.
“It doesn’t matter if you have enough food if
you have freedom,” said our guide in Riga.
Would we trade second helpings of pizza and
hamburgers for freedom?
“2 million people stood in line on August 23,
1989 , holding hands from Estonia through Latvia
to Lithuania, demanding the Russians go home,”
said our guide in Klaipeda. “The line was
supposed to go all around the Baltic Sea, but it
wasn’t as important to the Scandinavian
countries.” How many Americans take the time to
participate in demanding/protecting/appreciating
freedom?
“I stood in the line for the Singing Revolution,
and my son was at the barricades at the TV
station when the Russian tanks rolled in, and
his best friend was killed,” said our guide in
Vilnius. Are we willing to risk our lives or the
lives of our children for freedom?
January 21, 2008:
Last Saturday I
attended the Stevens County Cattlemen’s Wolf
Awareness Meeting in Colville. It drew attendees from all over the 7th
District, including one County Commissioner each from Pend Oreille, Ferry and
Okanogan counties plus two from Stevens. The
fears are real and substantive – loss of livestock
and resulting economic loss, reduction in hunting
related tourism income, loss of pets, danger to
recreationists and those who live in the woods.
Although I signed the petition to oppose wolf
reintroduction, the wolves are introducing
themselves from Canada
and
Idaho without
any human assistance. I rather doubt the wolves
will read the petition.
In an environment with
no humans, the predator and prey species would reach
an equilibrium naturally. We choose to raise
livestock (prey) for our own uses, artificially
boosting the availability of prey. Therefore, we
have a responsibility as good stewards to
artificially limit the quantity of predators to
match the availability of their natural prey and
keep them away from ours.
Wolves have proven
themselves capable of surviving and thriving without
another predator to counterbalance their
population. Without human hunting, they will move
aggressively into areas of human habitation. Wolves
need to be managed the same way as cougars moving
into conflict with humans – by active hunting to
teach them where we stand on the food chain.
The economic loss is
another big question. Paying ranchers for confirmed
wolf kills seems simple, but has flaws. First,
Defenders of Wildlife has set unrealistic
requirements for precautions to prevent conflict
between cattle and wolves. If the requisite lights,
whistles and horns have been provided, finding the
carcass soon enough to preserve the scene and
getting an investigator there as quickly as
necessary to have positive confirmation provide
additional high hoops to jump through. The hassles
and limitations of reimbursement lead directly to
“shoot, shovel and shut up” as the best of a batch
of bad choices. If the Defenders of Wildlife really
want to see wolves active in the wild, they should
be paying for numbers of wolves alive instead of
numbers of cows dead. Give ranchers a financial
incentive to co-exist instead of begrudging them
reimbursement for losses. Pay ranchers to manage
wolves sustainably on their land, including hunting
the ones that develop a taste for beef, horse, lamb,
or goat and lose their fear of humans.
I’ll bet some smart producer would take the money
and start marketing local, sustainable, free-range,
grass fed, wolf friendly beef! If dolphin friendly
tuna can become a marketing gimmick, maybe wolves
have the same potential. Or maybe not, there’s
always that Little Red Riding Hood image and all the
bad publicity from Peter and the Wolf performances
for children’s music programs. Not quite the same
as swimming with dolphins!
January 13, 2008:
We
had dinner with my parents last Friday and spent the
evening with a Scrabble game going for Mom and I
while Craig and Dad sorted a box of maps. There
were carefully saved USGS maps of all the hikes and
backpacking trips we took when I was a kid. Dad had
carefully noted the times and trail conditions, with
an occasional comment about the suitability for
kids. Mom said they were good maps, and we never
got lost. Dad said my sister and I were good hikers
- we always made it to the top, even on the steep
pitches like the Lake Louise glacier hike when I was
10 and my sister was 7. We were tenacious.
I’ve heard that word a lot this past year by people
who have been seeking to define my attitude toward
politics and campaigning. Tenacious. I like that
word. It describes an attitude of confidence,
strength and determination. It also describes
knowing where you are going, having a good map and a
good plan. We saved all the maps from hikes in the
7th District. Mom suggested a plan for
them – frame them and hang them in a future office
in Olympia. Not a bad plan, Mom.
January 6, 2008:
Blogging took a holiday
over Christmas and New Year’s. Many events have
occurred, the most important of course being
celebrating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ,
with family and friends. We were able to travel to
central Idaho to spend time with Craig’s family over
the holidays; our visits there are too few and too
short.
On
this trip, we also met with a trainer of border
collies to interview candidates for the job of
replacement for our experienced herd dog, Mac.
After she sized us up, she must have decided we were
okay folks, and she brought out one of her favorites
who has since become ours – Harvey. He is a 2 year
old and ready to go, yet with a calm disposition
that is well suited to the kind of situations Craig
works in on the west side. When we practice
agriculture in urban settings, we need a dog who can
handle lots of people without getting defensive, who
obeys commands promptly and who looks the part of
rugged sheep (and goat) dog.
We
take our responsibility to care for our animals
seriously whether anyone is watching or not, but
there is extra pressure when untrained eyes are
watching. For urban folks whose primary connection
with animals is as pampered companions, livestock
handling is a mystery. Mac is starting to show a
little “hitch in his git along,” and has earned the
right to retire to the farm. He’ll be handling
lighter duty with my few head of sheep and enjoying
house privileges while Harvey takes over on the road
in King County and points west.
December 16, 2007:
Three very special happenings took place this
weekend (four, if you count my husband’s birthday –
happy birthday, Craig!). The first was on Saturday
afternoon, when Lynden Harris hosted a neighborhood
“Get Acquainted” Open House at the family home in
Deer Park. We had a delightful conversation,
delicious refreshments thanks to Lynden’s sister
Chaulle, and made good memories. Thank you, Lynden
and Chaulle, for your gift of hospitality!
Second was Saturday night at the Christmas party for
Madsen Mitchell Evenson & Conrad staff and their
guests. Like many businesses large and small, my
partners and I throw a company party. We do it
because we truly appreciate our employees, we like
to have fun together and to say thanks for
everyone’s hard work in the past year. My partner
Marian has the gift of Christmas generosity, and
always puts together gift bags for the staff,
usually distributed on the last work day before
Christmas Eve. When I saw presents stacked on the
sofa I assumed she’d done our shopping early. On
second look, I realized the four stacks of
beautifully wrapped presents had the names of us
four partners. Our staff had conspired to thank
us! It was great fun and very humbling – I don’t
remember ever thinking of thanking “management” for
being there. To Jenny, Kay, Walt, Corey, Heidi,
Linnea, Joe, Jeff, Melissa and Sara – thank you for
a wonderful gift!
The
third special happening was the Sunday School
Christmas Play at Reardan Presbyterian this
morning. It was wonderful to see the front of the
church chock full of our kids portraying angels,
shepherds, wise men, Mary, Joseph, King Herod, the
townspeople of Bethlehem and Herod’s court, a
patient donkey and a flock of wiggly sheep. The
sheep provided a chorus of “baaah baaah” as
background to the senior high class’s beautiful
rendition of “Mary Did You Know.” Even though it
wasn’t scripted it was a fitting reminder of another
humble and humbling gift. Praise be to God for the
gift of His son, Jesus Christ! Merry Christmas!
December 7, 2007:
The
first time I saw Pearl Harbor was on a quiet Sunday
morning in 1992. I had never been to Hawaii, and was
traveling with DMAT WA-01, our state’s Disaster Medical
Assistance Team. We were responding to the destruction
wrought by Hurricane Iniki on the island of Kauai. We
had to wait in staging in Honolulu until the County of
Kauai decided they wanted/needed outside assistance
(island people are as stubborn as rural people when it
comes to preferring to be self-sufficient). FEMA
granted us one brief 4 hour “shore leave” to do anything
we wanted while they worked out the logistics. Two of
us boarded a city bus from the airport to Pearl Harbor.
I read a lot of WWII history in high school, had read
Michener’s “Day of Infamy,” seen all the movie footage.
It was awesome to stand on the Arizona Memorial, in the
original sense of inspiring awe and reverence. The men
on the ships didn’t expect anything unusual that
morning, just as no one at the World Trade Center
expected anything more than a normal day at the office
on September 11, 2001. The price of freedom is eternal
vigilance.
November 30, 2007:
Just
got back tonight from an AgForestry seminar in Seattle,
and it took 20 minutes to scrape the snow off the car in
the airport parking lot. It always feels a little odd
to drive after not touching a steering wheel for almost
three days. We had dinner Thursday night in the
International District at a restaurant across the street
from the old headquarters of DMAT WA-01, the disaster
response team I belonged to for 10 years. I saw the
sidewalk where I stood with my team mates just before
boarding a bus for McChord on a hurricane relief mission
and took the oath of office of the US Public Health
Service. I swore to uphold the Constitution of the
United States of America. It may have been 3 am but I
meant it when I raised my hand then and it still
applies. If we do not defend our constitution then we
deserve to lose it.
November 26, 2007:
Social
networking and rural networking (blocking both lanes of
231!)
I was
driving home tonight and pulled over on the side of
Highway 231 to finish a phone call with a political
colleague before I hit a cell tower dead spot. The
subject of the conversation was a social networking site
with a lot of GOP participation (Facebook),
so much so that a newspaper journalist was doing a
report and had interviewed my friend. I glanced in the
rearview mirror and saw a car approaching, and rolled
down the window. It’s not a well traveled road south of
Highway 2, and as expected the driver slowed to check
that all was well with my car. Turned out to be a
friend of mine, and she started to catch me up on the
local news. It was an interesting contrast – high tech
vs. face to face social networking. High tech is okay
(you can check out my
Facebook page), but I’m partial to two cars blocking
a country road to share the news!
November 21, 2007:
On
Wednesday night (Thanksgiving eve), Craig and I attended
the Reardan community worship service at St. Michael’s
Catholic Church. It was a very special time to worship
God with good friends and neighbors from all
denominations. Reardan is blessed with a strong
ecumenical tradition. The Catholic, Presbyterian,
Methodist and Lutheran churches of Reardan work together
to run the Food Bank and Deacon’s Fund, rotate hosting
special community services throughout the year, and
offer a joint Vacation Bible School program using all
four churches to house the program. We expect our
pastors to work together for the good of the whole
community. The four churches in the town limits are
joined for these special services and programs by folks
from other traditions who live in the Reardan area but
may participate on a weekly basis elsewhere. My
daughter and her family are part of a mega-church in
Florida that encourages all members to participate in
smaller “Life Groups” to build community; we have a
community of many “life groups” that join together in a
mega-church for the glory of God. Thanksgiving is the
perfect time to give thanks for our community!
November 18, 2007:
Last
week was focused on the Washington Farm Bureau Annual
Convention in Spokane. As a County Delegate, I accepted
the obligation to be at all general sessions during the
page by page policy review. The review was flowing
along with very little action when one policy regarding
changing the classification of rabbits from poultry to
rabbit (I’ve got to ask someone to explain that one to
me some day) reminded me of a larger policy issue in the
news. I skimmed through the entire policy book and
discovered it did not seem to be addressed.
There
has been a trend towards classifying traditional
livestock animals as companion animals. Sometimes this
may be done without malice towards ranchers and farmers
by folks who simply want to keep an unusual pet within a
city, and reclassifying a pot-bellied pig or pygmy goat
as a companion lets them get around zoning issues. At
other times it has been a tactic used by animal rights
activists who intentionally desire to change the way we
relate to animals, e.g. going so far as to declare it
unconscionable to ride a horse. While the second group
may be an obvious enemy to our rural way of life, the
first group is the greater long term threat.
Last
summer, Craig received an e-mail from a well-meaning
resident near one if our vegetation management projects
in King County. The neighbor was concerned about
whether the goats had enough to eat. The goats were
vocal because they were pretty well done with the
pasture they were in, and Craig was getting ready to
move to another one in the morning after rush hour
traffic subsided. We take good care of our livestock,
but they are not pets. Even our pets aren’t pampered
pets – as much as I appreciate what they contribute to
our life, I’m not going into debt to the vet if the cat
gets sick, nor will I ever give insulin injections to a
dog. We are entrusted by God with the responsibility to
be good stewards of our animals. I hope to work through
the Farm Bureau’s outreach programs to make sure that
common sense prevails in defining what good stewardship
means.
November 6, 2007:
Some political
experts would advise a primary candidate to avoid being
pinned down on ballot issues or which candidates he/she
supports. That’s not fair to voters. My race may be a
year away, but for the record, here’s how I voted:
Initiative
I-960 - Requiring 2/3 legislative approval or voter
approval for tax and fee increases: YES
This one
doesn’t need much explanation; it should be difficult to
raise taxes (first we need to be sure the money already
collected is being spent wisely, and I have my doubts)
and fees are just sneaky taxes.
Referendum
67 - Triple damages for lawsuits against insurance
companies: NO
We already
have the right to sue our insurance companies if they
don’t pay fairly on a claim. A better enforcement tool
would be an Insurance Commissioner with the guts to
enforce existing laws available to hold insurance
companies accountable. This one is just a fee increase
for trial lawyers.
Senate
Joint Resolution 8206 – Budget stabilization
account: APPROVE
Common sense
says we need to have a savings account tucked away in
case of emergency (a real emergency, not the kind of
emergency the legislature keeps tacking onto ordinary
bills to avoid the referendum process).
Senate
Joint Resolution 8212 – Inmate labor authorization:
APPROVE
95% of all
inmates will be released back into society. They should
not be sitting idle. I want them to pay restitution,
pay child support, and come out with an idea of what
good work habits means.
House Joint
Resolution 4204 – Eliminate supermajority on school
levies: REJECT
The paramount
duty of the state is education, and I pledge to support
a strong system of public education. This isn’t the way
to do that. Districts that don’t pass levies usually
have some problem within the district that needs to be
addressed, and the levy passes when they take care of
the problem. For other districts, the economic base
just isn’t there. HJR 4204 lets the legislature pass
the buck.
House Joint
Resolution 4215 – Authorize investment options for
higher education funds: APPROVE
Greater reward
comes with greater risk, and this isn’t a big risk. We
need to be wise stewards of trust funds and get a decent
return on investment.
October
30, 2007:
I’m a
little off schedule for my weekly blog entry, and for
good reason. Craig and I are on vacation visiting
Amanda, Jeremy and Gabe in Florida, and family time and
vacation are my top priority this week. Setting
priorities and boundaries in my personal life are
critical for healthy family relationships, sound
finances and business effectiveness. The whole subject
got me to thinking - it is the lack of appropriate
boundaries that threatens to sink society just as it
could sink an individual. God does not expect me to
single-handedly save the world from all of its problems,
but to do my best with the skills and opportunities He
has entrusted to me to carry out His will for my life.
He is the Creator, I am the creature. I work within His
boundaries, including defined boundaries like the 24
hour day and undefined boundaries like the number of my
days on this earth.
Similarly, we the people, who have sovereign power over
the government we have created, cannot ask our
“creature” to carry out unlimited responsibilities with
unlimited resources. We have given government
boundaries and reserved all other rights and
responsibilities to the people, as expressed by our
state and federal Constitutions. Legislators must work
within those boundaries, no matter how tempting it is to
think we know better than the constituents we serve. To
quote Thomas Jefferson from a letter to the French
revolutionary priest Fr. Henri Gregoire in 1809
(thanking the priest for lending him a book):
“Because
Sir Isaac Newton was superior to others in
understanding, he was not therefore lord of the person
or property of others.”
Fr.
Gregoire would be appalled at the arrogance shown by his
21st century namesake in our Governor’s
Mansion and her loyal followers in the Democrat majority
in the Legislature. The constant over use of the
“emergency clause” to ride rough shod over the
referendum process has got to stop. You know the
government has gone too far when the Seattle Times
endorses an Eyman initiative!
jffffffffffffgggggggggggggggggggggggggggggjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjnmcfm
jduo88uuuuuuu
Oops,
Gabe is helping Grandma finish off her essay. He says
its time to reset my priorities again, get off the
computer and play ball. I’ll leave with one last
thought – it’s time to reset our priorities in
government and elect common sense, conservative business
owners (like me, Kevin Parker, and Dino Rossi!) who know
how to weigh priorities and set boundaries. Time to
play ball!
October
22, 2007:
Tonight I was blessed by my
parents, and I want to brag! As a co-chair of the
recent AIA NW & Pacific Region Conference, I wanted to
host a “wrap party” for the committee. My house is an
hour away from Spokane in the country and would have
been a tough sell to my colleagues, and my mom
graciously agreed to host at her house in the city.
Like most architects who start a practice, one of my
first projects was to help remodel their house and
create the kitchen my mother always wanted. She
thought I wanted to show off the kitchen addition, but I
wanted to show off her. She is talented in so many
ways. I tried to get there early to help, but it was
all planned and prepared by the time I got there. We
were treated to a great 3 course Chinese meal with
beautiful table settings, she has her prize winning
watercolors hanging on display and her garden is a
place of beauty and tranquility. My dad says “whatever
the cook wants” and cleaned the house and front yard
before guests arrived, then took on his usual assignment
of cleaning up afterwards (he’s a man who appreciates
where his good meals come from!). I thanked Dad, and
he said “you know we’d do anything to support you.” I
do know. Tonight I want to thank my parents, Fran and
Con Wicht, for 52 years of high expectations and
unconditional support, for their example of commitment
to each other, for their faith and love, for teaching me
to be responsible for my actions and to use my head, for
being there not just for me but for all of the family.
I love you, Mom and Dad!
October 14, 2007:
Campaign highlight for this week was a beautiful
Saturday morning at the Okanogan Centennial Celebration
and Autumn Leaf Fun Run. It was a good opportunity for
a little exercise as well as a great opportunity to talk
to voters. There were more than a dozen local vendors
at the downtown marketplace exemplifying the best of the
rural American entrepreneurial spirit. Their wares
ranged from fresh produce and baked goods to books and
candles. I talked with farmers about the rules
impacting small farms and the need for a paradigm shift
to value farming and ranching as vital stewardship
activities. I found myself wondering if anyone was
going to turn up and shut down the market for
non-compliance with some obscure regulation. We have
allowed government to become a snare instead of
remembering that government is instituted to only do
jointly that which we cannot do for ourselves
individually (among other limitations). I bought a copy
of a small textbook on the Federalist papers from a
woman representing a local authors publishing co-op, and
applauded her enterprising spirit and common sense
approach to economic development at the grass roots.
The
last event for the campaign week was Saturday night at
the annual Spokane Right to Life banquet and fundraiser,
at the invitation of Rep. John Ahern. I had missed
lunch in Okanogan (got too busy visiting), and really
enjoyed the meal and the company. This group shows it’s
compassion at the grass roots through the Moms in Need
outreach. From the vendors at the market to the
volunteers reaching out in Spokane – no government
programs were required to get the job done.
October 7, 2007:
Attended three events in Colville this week - Stevens
County Republican Women lunch meeting on Monday, Stevens
County Homebuilders Association dinner meeting on
Tuesday, and WSU Extension Harvest Dinner on Saturday.
All three were good opportunities to connect and
network, and to listen to community issues. Wednesday
through Friday were spent at the AgForestry Columbia
River Seminar in Vancouver. It was a great opportunity
to pepper our presenters with questions related to 7th
District issues, especially on PUD public power issues
and salmon recovery policies. When I first started this
campaign last summer, I was concerned that overlapping
with the second year of my AgForestry Leadership
seminars would be a problem. Thankfully, the time
commitment has not been an issue, and the AgForestry
seminars provide great briefings on current state policy
issues. The timing has been serendipitous.
Tonight
Craig and I attended a presentation by a young man from
Reardan who is preparing for ministry in the overseas
mission field. We’ve decided to pledge as part of his
ongoing support team for the next 3 – 5 years. My young
neighbor and I each feel called to service albeit in
different venues, and it is wonderful when God opens
doors.
September 28, 2007:
Lots of meetings this past week:
-
Colville National Forest Budget Planning meeting on
Monday in Colville, representing one of the Pend
Oreille County planning groups
-
Reardan High School CWP (Current World Problems)
class, presentation on importance of civic
engagement
-
AIA
(American Institute of Architects) Northwest &
Pacific Regional Conference in Spokane on Wednesday
night, Thursday, Friday night and Saturday; Co-Chair
of conference.
-
CPoW
(Cattle Producers of Washington) Annual Roundup in
Moses Lake on Friday representing AgForestry
Leadership program with my project partner, Cal
Mercer.
In between I actually got some work done for clients and kept
the 19 sheep and goats left at home fed and watered, met
with a contractor to discuss remodeling at our church,
plus got the car into the body shop in Airway Heights
for repairs after hitting a deer last weekend. I’m not
listing all this activity to brag, anybody who knows me
at all well won’t be surprised that I’m busy and a hard
worker. Here’s the common thread of all of the meetings
– government is cumbersome and confusing. The result is
wasted money, wasted time, frustration and a feeling of
futility from the next generation - but there are
hopeful signs. The Colville Forest meeting was a
promising experiment in using real local input in
national forest planning, and people did come to
participate and listen. At least a few of the high
school seniors asked what they could do to get involved
in their government, and I think they will follow
through. The AIA conference and CPoW round-up were
opportunities to connect with old friends and make new
friends with shared values, and I noticed an interesting
similarity between the disparate professions of
architecture and ranching. Architects and ranchers are
alike in a belief in the inherent importance of our work
and a focus on values, sometimes at the expense of the
bottom line of our businesses. In both professions,
regulatory complexity can get in the way of carrying out
those values. Regulations are a sneaky way of imposing
taxes, when regulatory mandates require private funds to
be expended for public purposes, or for what appears to
be no purpose. Talking to high school classes is a
great way to keep from getting cynical about the
possibility of creating change.
September 21, 2007:
The Washington
State Republican Party sponsored a great campaign
training today in Spokane, and Campaign Co-Chair Johanna
Ellis was able to attend with me. I picked up a great
campaign refresher, new insights into how to best
communicate with the voters and two contributions from
other attendees. I also learned the source of a
(decidedly false) rumor in southern Stevens County that
I am a Democrat in disguise. This has been a
particularly annoying rumor to deal with, as it amounts
to a question that comes out something like “when did
you stop beating your dog.” You’re stuck whether you
decline to dignify such a stupid question with an
answer, or else you get dragged into endless denials
that make you sound guilty of something. For the record
– I don’t beat my dog and I’m not a Democrat. I am
committed to limited government consistent with our
federal and state constitutions, support personal
responsibility as a necessary basis for the
entrepreneurial initiative that makes this a great
country, and fear for our future if we forget our
republic is built on a Christian foundation. Dinesh
D’Souza put it very well at the Washington Policy Center
dinner last Thursday when he said Tom Brokaw’s
“Greatest Generation” should be described as the Last
Generation. It was the last generation to have a
common understanding of external moral principles and
obligations rooted in God. Our culture has turned
inwards to a self-absorbed moral relativism where
anything goes if it feels good to the individual. Mr.
D’Souza said we should not be surprised when Islamic
Radicals use our global export of popular culture to
recruit new followers from among peaceful traditional
Muslims, as many traditional Christians are equally
appalled at our popular culture. I am committed to the
Republican Party to turn our country back to its roots
for the sake of our children and grandchildren.
September 16, 2007:
It was perfect weather for
the Odessa DeutschesFest parade on Saturday, and I got
to march through twice – once with the entry for Cathy
McMorris Rodgers for Congress, and then a second time
with the group from the Odessa Memorial Healthcare
Foundation to hand out water and healthy snacks. The
Fest offered good bratwurst and kuchen and a lot of
opportunities for visiting. The only discordant note to
the day was when the Reardan-Edwall Community float (a
pirate theme) went up in flames at the end of the parade
route, but fortunately everyone was able to abandon ship
safely.
Got home mid-afternoon and
went out to catch up on chores. One doe had her head
stuck in the wire fence; got her freed and checked the
yellow jacket nest from a sensible distance. I had
hoped to see nothing. Unfortunately, the little pests
seem to have survived. I will not underestimate my
opponents, but I will eradicate the yellow jacket nest
in the pasture. Craig called from Federal Way where he
is out on a project with the main herd, and we lost a
doe there today to an attack by hundreds of wasps
covering her head. He got stung once himself when he
approached with the wasp spray to free her. He treated
her with epinephrine without success. The population
of wasps and hornets seems to be especially bad this
year.
Today I met with a group of
farmers and ranchers with small operations, and the
discussion turned to the challenges of farming. When
asked how to best make a profit as a small business, the
first person to answer piped up with “move to Idaho,”
which is exactly what she is doing. She’s sold out her
livestock (we bought her goats) and is moving to St.
Maries. The consensus of the group was that Washington
is not friendly to small business and especially not to
small ag operations. We have to get our state back on
track for small business by eliminating redundant layers
of regulations. We have a system that is so complex it
practically guarantees every small business owner is a
lawbreaker.
September 11, 2007:
There’s
an old saying that describes the start of my week: “Life
is what happens while you’re making other plans.” I had
every day this week planned down to the minute with
campaign related events, starting with the Stevens
County Republican Women’s Club lunch on Monday in
Colville, followed by the Colville National Forest
public meeting in Republic. That would have gotten me
home around midnight, then up early for the Davenport
Chamber of Commerce at 7 am followed by a regular work
day and the Colville National Forest public meeting for
Stevens County in Colville in the evening. Wednesday,
Thursday and Friday have similar schedules. I figured it
was going to be about a 1400 mile week. Executing my
plan started with setting up a new pen for my sheep on
Sunday evening so they’d have fresh pasture while I was
on the campaign trail for the week.
What actually happened was a swarm of yellow jackets
attacked my legs as I put up the third fence post. I ran
back to the house for cover, killed a few that tried to
tag along, and got bit a few times. I decided to
counterattack, sprayed my clothes with the normal
strength flying insect spray and headed out to finish
putting up my fence. I approached the area cautiously,
and discovered the second fence post was about 3 inches
from a volcano of yellow jackets. As I raised my spray
can to fire, they came at me. They laughed at my bug
spray and attacked. I ran. They followed. I spent the
next 24 hours under heavy doses of Benadryl to
counteract a dozen bites, effectively canceling my
Monday plans.
Tuesday morning I purchased two big cans of extra heavy
duty professional wasp and hornet killer. This is war. I
still hoped to get back on my schedule and be in
Colville for the CNI meeting at 6 pm, all I had to do
was get the fencing finished. Then the fire pager goes
off mid-afternoon and three hours later I’m finally back
home, but its clearly too late to make it to Colville
tonight. I’m starting to think God has His own plans,
and apparently I’m not supposed to be at those meetings.
I can’t really blame the yellow jackets for defending
their territory, and likewise I’m going to defend my
home turf from the vicious little predators. Good thing
they aren’t cute and cuddly or they’d probably have a
support group out marching against my plan for
annihilation. They are the terrorists of the pasture and
I want them stopped before they get to the house! I
attack at dawn. I’ll be humming “Die Gotterdammerung”
and thinking of the helicopter attack scene from
“Apocalypse Now.”
I plan to be back on the campaign trail by 8 am – we
shall see. Thousands of people at the World Trade Center
six years ago, on the four flights that were hijacked,
at the Pentagon – all had other plans. Never forget. Use
each day wisely - hug your family, cherish your freedom,
and be ready to defend your homeland.
September 7,
2007:
This has been a busy summer
considering how early it is in the campaign, and I know
that the next twelve months will go by quickly with lots
of pressures on my time. Jennifer Dunn’s sudden passing
makes a person stop and think. Besides being a great
role model of how to be a public servant, she was a
great role model of how to set life priorities. I’ll
keep working on emulating both parts of her legacy. In
that spirit, I’ll be making time tomorrow to join my
extended family in welcoming my cousin, Air Force
Captain Morgan Ellison, on her return home after a
deployment to Afghanistan this past year. Morgan was
awarded a Purple Heart after surviving and driving out
of an ambush, and we are all grateful for her safe
return. We have been truly blessed.
August 31, 2007:
While googling
for background research tonight, I ran across an on-line
voter’s guide from the 2004 election and realized that
the phrase common sense is horribly overused. The
number of candidates statewide citing common sense
covered a broad political spectrum, and I don’t think
all of them were sensible. Some were mutually
exclusive. Here’s my short definition of common sense –
less is more.
Less
regulation is more freedom and individual
responsibility. Less layers of bureaucracy are more
productive and efficient. Less taxes is more profit and
more jobs. Government was never meant to do everything
for us, it is tool for us to do together those things we
cannot do for ourselves. We cannot individually build a
network of roads and bridges. We are more effective
working together (as locally as possible) to organize
basic services like water, sewer, fire and police. We
have a duty through our state constitution to provide
for and support the education of children. Every step
we take beyond the basic priorities of government is
more expensive, more convoluted and more intrusive than
it needs to be. That’s common sense.
August
26, 2007:
This was a big weekend for
county fairs – Northeast Washington Fair in Colville,
Clayton Fair (2nd year and looking good!) and
Lincoln County Fair. One problem faced by all of the
fairs next year will be increasing regulation on animal
movement and recordkeeping. I know those of us with
goats, sheep and cattle are concerned about proposed
animal ID and premises registration, but I was curious
about the impact on the Poultry Barn. I asked the
Poultry Superintendent in Davenport today about special
precautions related to avian flu fears, and got a good
briefing on pullorum and AI testing requirements, some
reasonable and some burdensome. The record keeping
requirements can present a significant barrier for small
scale producers or families with small flocks of
barnyard chickens, whose kids might want to enter a few
birds in the fair. The bottom line from today’s
conversation – this is another area where requirements
have been developed without full consideration of how
implementation works in the real world. What
particularly irritated our superintendent today was that
a group of small poultry producers had traveled to
Olympia to testify when a regulatory bill was up for a
vote. They waited for 2 hours, and when they were
allowed in the room to testify, only 2 committee members
had the courtesy to remain and listen. My point of
view: (1) Developing rules and programs always needs
real world input all along the process, not just
technical expertise; and (2) there is no excuse for
rudeness from public servants towards the public.
August 24, 2007:
Random Thoughts to Wrap up
the Week
Does anybody else see
anything wrong with this quote advertising a new
educational certificate?
“Recognizing the increasing need for regulatory
compliance expertise in the field of health care, the
University of Washington has developed a certificate
program to help provide valuable education in this
area. The program is designed for those already
familiar with the health care field and provides in
depth background on compliance issues across the health
care setting. “
That’s right, now you can
earn a professional certificate in dealing with red
tape. Two things I learned from a Chinese history
class in college : (1) Confucius didn’t invent fortune
cookies, but he did invent and institutionalize
bureaucracy, and (2) Chinese dynasties usually fell
because bureaucracy became pervasive and paralyzing.
When that happened, the peasants and the regional
warlords revolted. I’d rather not wait until we are
ready to revolt, I’m itching to start bringing some
common sense to policy development and cut red tape.
I’m not naïve enough to think I can make change happen
overnight, but if we don’t start, it will never happen
at all.
August 21, 2007:
I had the
opportunity to share my testimony with a group of
pastors from the Assembly of God churches of NE
Washington and North Idaho today. I was blessed and
humbled by the awesome power of their prayer. Sharing
with believers is comfortable; I must look for
opportunities to share my faith on the campaign trail,
and then do it.
August 19, 2007:
Seems to have been lots of
travel for both work and the campaign this past week –
Omak, Chewelah, Colville, Spokane, Cusick, Elk. This
week it will be Loon Lake, Odessa, Republic, Davenport
and Colville. All of that travel, as well as a
suggestion from Pat Weeks at the Pend Oreille County
Fair, was the inspiration for today’s Time for Children
message. I used Romans 10:14-15 as the text (roughly
paraphrasing - how can they believe if they haven’t
heard, how can they hear if no one preaches, how can
they preach if they aren’t sent; beautiful are the feet
of those who preach the good news). My object lesson
was a pair of fuzzy slippers, pointing out that we are
comfortable in church just like we are comfortable at
home, but we can’t expect to preach the good news to
others by standing inside the church in our fuzzy
slippers – we have to put on our shoes and get out in
the world. Political service is similar in that you
have to get out there and listen in order to effectively
represent the values of your constituents. I’d
paraphrase like this – how can I represent if I haven’t
heard, how can I hear if no one speaks up, how can some
one speak up if I am not there; beautiful are the feet
of those who get out in the district! Maybe that’s why
the first question political experts ask is “how many
households have you door belled.” It’s not too early to
get out and listen to how state government is or is not
working for all of us. I’m on the road again!
P.S. Happy Birthday,
Gabe! My grandson turned 2 years old on Friday, sure
would have been nice to be there but we’ll look forward
to seeing the whole family in October.
August
11, 2007:
Very busy weekend trying to
be multiple locations at once, starting with annual
Valley Fair breakfast in Valley at the Holy Ghost
Catholic Church on Saturday morning at 8 am. Then on to
the 7th District Leg Committee meeting over
lunch in Wilbur. Fredi Simpson led a spirited debate on
immigration policy; this will be a tough issue for the
upcoming national elections. We were blessed to recruit
Dennis Fiess of Reardan to take my place as Treasurer,
we need to avoid the appearance of a conflict of
interest with my campaign. Then home again and ready
to depart by 6:30 am with Craig for the Omak Stampede
Parade with campaign signs etc. for Cathy McMorris
Rodgers. Joined Rep. Joel Kretz and others on a tractor
and flatbed provided by Jim Rowland and driven by Joel’s
son, Jed (see photos). Topped off the day with a
delightful lunch with Paul & Nancy Nash and family, and
the opportunity to kick back and enjoy good
conversation. I am truly grateful for the Nashes warm
hospitality, it’s nice to have a home base when I’m
campaigning in Okanogan County!
August 7, 2007:
You know
it’s fire weather when you are awakened before 8 am by the
fire pager for a brush and timber fire. Fortunately, it
was quickly brought under control, but the concern is to
make sure it is dead out before afternoon. The wind is
steady with squirrelly gusts this morning, and I spent an
hour setting out sprinklers and making sure the outside of
the house was ready in case of a field fire. The fields
upwind have not been harvested, and a wind driven fire moves
fast in standing grain. I know our fire crew is ready (my
keys and boots are by the door!), I know our farmers have
their disks ready to plow fire lines if need be, the ag chem
companies have water tanks to lend, and I know the harvest
crews will try to be careful. All this made me think back
to a conversation I had with Duane Vaagen last week. We
were talking about how crews harvesting logs get kicked out
of the woods when the fire danger is high (hoot owl
restrictions). Doesn’t really make sense, the crews have
the equipment and training to suppress a fire if one should
start from any source. They could actually be used as a
valuable asset, already staged and ready to respond while
DNR gets crews on the road.
Nobody would even suggest that
grain harvest or hay baling should stop when it gets hot and
dry, that’s exactly the weather you need to get a good
harvest! We get through harvest every year with wonderful
cooperation from the community to use all of our resources,
public and private, in a logical way. It’s time for DNR to
take another look at how to incorporate private resources
and find ways to allow work to continue in the woods just
like farmers keep working in the fields.
August 2, 2007:
Quote from
engineer James Arnheim in the book “Forensic Engineering,”
edited by one of my professors at WSU, Kenneth Carper:
“Structural
Engineering is the art and science of molding Materials we
do not fully understand; into Shapes we cannot precisely
analyze; to resist Forces we cannot accurately predict; all
in such a way that society at large is given no reason to
suspect the extent of our ignorance.”
There is much
truth in the statement above, which is why engineers use
large safety factors in design to try to account for the
unknowns. It is also why the NTSB investigation into the
tragic collapse of the I-35W bridge yesterday needs time to
figure out what lessons can be learned, and how those
lessons can be applied. The greatest advances in
engineering come from investigating failures. The American
Society of Civil Engineers has been trying to get the public
to pay attention to our aging infrastructure for years –
bridges, water systems, sewer systems, roads. It is so easy
to be distracted by building new programs, new “stuff” and
not pay attention to the long term budget affects of funding
new programs or the physical impact of deferred maintenance
or delayed replacement. New programs are described as
having a “bow wave” effect; I think I’ll start asking if
deferred maintenance will have a “bridge collapse” effect.
The Mayor of
Minneapolis today thanked people for the outpouring of
condolences and support immediately after the tragedy. He
also made a plea for all of us to remember his community
throughout the long recovery and grieving process. We are
an impatient people. I pray we have the perseverance to pay
attention to this tragedy and start thinking for the long
term when we set priorities and plan budgets. I’ll bet CNN
stops airing live press conferences from MinDOT structural
engineers by tomorrow, and coverage will slip back into the
technical press. I might just have to renew my subscription
to Engineering News-Record to get the real story.
July 29, 2007:
Friday’s political
activity included attending the regular Stevens County
Central Committee meeting and potluck.
Good conversation afterwards on the sidewalk in Chewelah
kept me out late, but it was a beautiful almost full moon
drive home. Saturday morning saw me up
early and right on track to leave on time to meet Sam
Nicholas and his grandsons for Ione’s “Down River Days”
parade. Unfortunately, four of my sheep
decided to go walk about, and it took an hour with a
friend’s help to corral them. I called
Sam to warn him I’d be late, drove at the upper edge of the
speed limit, and got into Ione just as the parade was
starting. No chance to decorate my car
(an entry for Cathy McMorris Rodgers) I
grabbed three signs and a bag of sparkly pencils to hand out
and set off to find Sam and the boys. We
jumped into the parade to walk and wave for Cathy without
the car. I think the boys (Johnny and
Bradley) got a kick out of being in charge of pencil
distribution. Grandpa Sam said they had
a choice of watching the parade and collecting candy or
being in the parade, and I was pleased that they picked
marching. We made sure they got some
candy, too!
Had a chance to
meet with Dick Norton from PO Fire District #2 after lunch
at the park. I started helping the Fire
District navigate the USDA maze for their building loan last
year, and a wrinkle came up this year after the loan officer
changed several times. You know that
regulations are strangling our society when the bureaucrats
charged with trying to administer the rules struggle to
figure them out consistently. We have
got to start simplifying before we suffocate in red tape and
drown in red ink.
July 21, 2007:
Campaign update –
Last Tuesday was the Ponderosa Republican Women's Club
Summer Gala with Doug Sutherland (Commissioner of Public
Lands) for an update on DNR and his newly announced
challenger (Peter Goldmark - guess he’s given up on
Congress). Next met with Rep. Cary Condotta in Wenatchee on
Thursday en route to the Washington Farm Bureau Summer, a
good opportunity to talk about the upcoming state races.
The WSFB meeting ran most of Friday at Qwest Field and
featured a variety of interesting speakers with a focus on
biofuels. Then I got to experience the I-5 crawl as I
traveled to Tacoma to visit my husband for dinner before
returning home. It took about 1-1/2 hours to travel 30
miles; he had prepared a nice picnic dinner in the Tacoma
Metro Park where our goat herd is at work reducing the
blackberry population. Arrived home after midnight this
morning and then joined Jack Robertson and Dale Bly in
representing Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers at the Pioneer Days
Parade in Davenport at 10 am. Jack has been doing parades
for so many years we’ve all lost track. This year he is
keeping Cathy’s 4’x8’ signs on the sides of the truck from
the first Lincoln County parade in Creston in May through
the final events in Odessa and Harrington in September.
Dale and I broke one of the first rules of campaign parades
– don’t run out of candy!
There was an
enthusiastic crowd and another great opportunity to talk to
people about their expectations of the state legislature.
One fellow in particular told about how Sen. Bob Morton had
helped him in dealing with Dept. of Labor & Industries. He
was particularly appreciative that Bob took the time to
travel to Wilbur to meet with him and listen to his story.
Bob Morton is an example of the kind of public servant I
aspire to be for the 7th District. You have to
be willing to put the miles on the car to meet with people
face to face.
July 19, 2007:
Letter to the
Editor: Spokesman Review
RE: Senate All-Nighter
Dear Editor:
When I was in
college, I had classmates who boasted of pulling
all-nighters to finish their work. The implication was
their dedication to their work was so strong they just had
to work right up to deadline. Once a semester I would get
caught up in all-nighter fever and stay at the studio
working on a project. It was good for building camaraderie
but not for productive work. It’s hard to have a serious
academic discussion when you are focused on keeping your
head from flopping onto your desk and consuming mass
quantities of caffeine. I find it strange that we require
truck drivers to take mandatory 8 hour rest breaks because
they are steering dangerous loads, yet the Senate thinks
they should decide how to steer the course of the war by not
sleeping. Sen. Harry Reid’s recent stunt was not productive
in debating the war and it sure didn’t build camaraderie.
What a colossal waste of time, money and energy!
July 15, 2007:
Planned a quiet
Sunday afternoon at home after a long Saturday at Chewelah's
Chataqua and the Schwartz Open Pasture Golf Tournament, but
plans changed when the fire pager went off right after
church Sunday morning. I regret leaving an unfinished
plate of potluck lunch, but the good news is that we made a
great save. Our truck crew knocked the fire back just
as it climbed into the first two trees, keeping it away from
the houses that dot the dry forest up the county line, AND
we didn't make the evening news. I know that a
candidate can use any "earned media" they can get, but I'm
happy not to be giving a Breaking News briefing for the fire
department today. We did have a nicely dressed crew,
with our Sunday clothes under the yellow fire coveralls!
July 2, 2007:
No parades in the 7th
District last Saturday, so I took a 4 day weekend to
visit my husband at work with the Healing Hooves herd on
the west side. Not too many people spend a Friday night
camping out at a Seattle City Light substation in the
heart of a city neighborhood. We had a lovely view of
the traffic on I-5, the Space Needle beyond and a
hillside overgrown with blackberries and ivy, which the
goats were busy removing. Removing isn’t quite the
right word, perhaps a better description is recycling
vegetation into organic fertilizer. Then we spent
Saturday and Sunday in Bothell at a landscaping
business, managing the goats as they worked on more
blackberries, this time seasoned with side dishes of
morning glory and thistles (see photos). This was
Healing Hooves second visit to the Seattle neighborhood,
and many residents credited the goats with getting them
out walking and talking to each other. One neighbor
commented that watching the goats is a nice break from
reality. Craig and I glanced at each other – watching
the city is a break from reality from our point of
view. I enjoyed the vacation, but it s |