Masson's Blog
Don’t poop on your probation officer. That’s not just a good idea. It’s the law! Or, it will be if House Bill 1038 continues to progress. That legislation makes batter by body waste a Class D felony if committed on a probation officer, firefighter, or first responder. It’s already the law with respect to other law enforcement officers or corrections officers. Passed the House 93-0.
Technorati Tags: hb1038-2007, law enforcement
(Via Opening Arguments) Comedian to make serious run for U.S. Senate. Al Franken is going to run for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota next year, most likely challenging incumbent Norm Coleman. Apparently Al was only about 20 years off in declaring The Al Franken Decade:
Al Franken: Thank you, Jane. Well, the “me” decade is almost over, and good riddance, and far as I’m concerned. The 70’s were simply 10 years of people thinking of nothing but themselves. No wonder we were unable to get together and solve any of the many serious problems facing our nation. Oh sure, some people did do some positive things in the 70’s – like jogging – but always for the wrong reasons, for their own selfish, personal benefit. Well, I believe the 80’s are gonna have to be different. I think that people are going to stop thinking about themselves, and start thinking about me, Al Franken. That’s right. I believe we’re entering what I like to call the Al Franken Decade. Oh, for me, Al Franken, the 80’s will be pretty much the same as the 70’s. I’ll still be thinking of me, Al Franken. But for you, you’ll be thinking more about how things affect me, Al Franken. When you see a news report, you’ll be thinking, “I wonder what Al Franken thinks about this thing?”, “I wonder how this inflation thing is hurting Al Franken?” And you women will be thinking, “What can I wear that will please Al Franken?”, or “What can I not wear?” You know, I know a lot of you out there are thinking, “Why Al Franken?” Well, because I thought of it, and I’m on TV, so I’ve already gotten the jump on you. So, I say let’s leave behind the fragmented, selfish 70’s, and go into the 80’s with a unity and purpose. That’s what I think. I’m Al Franken. Jane?
(SNL’s Weekend Update noted the end of the Al Franken Decade here.)
Once again, the General Assembly is considering legislating a scientific fact. Back in the 19th century, the General Assembly attempted to legislate the value of pi. Now, they’re giving another shot at trying to define when human life begins and, perhaps worse, compelling a woman’s doctor to endorse the General Assembly’s fiat. (See my prior blog entry on the subject here.) Rich Callahan, writing for the Associated Press, has an article entitled Abortion bill sets when life begins which discusses SB 172. The bill was heard in Senator Miller’s Committee on Health and Provider Services. No votes were taken after the hearing, but it might come up for a vote next week.
The bill requires a physician inform a pregnant woman that a fetus might feel pain, and also give notice to the patient in writing at least 18 hours before an abortion concerning the availability of adoptions, concerning physical risks to the woman in having an abortion, and stating that human physical life begins when a human ovum is fertilized by a human sperm.
At the hearing, the bill drew criticism from at least two religious groups, Rev. Michael D. Mather of Broadway United Methodist Church and David Sklar and Linsdsey Mintz of the Jewish Community Relations Council:
[He] told the committee that not even fellow Methodists agree on when human life begins. As written, Mather said the legislation represents one religious viewpoint — the belief that human physical life commences when a sperm fertilizes an egg.
“I believe that what is matter of faith should not be a matter of law,” he told the panel.
David Sklar, an intern at the Jewish Community Relations Council, read a statement by the Indianapolis group that called the bill’s declaration that life begins at conception “blatantly indifferent” to diverse religious beliefs, including Jewish tradition.
“This bill establishes a particular religious opinion as legal fact, and sets a very dangerous precedent violating the separation of church and state,” said the statement by Lindsey Mintz, the group’s director of government affairs.
Technorati Tags: sb172-2007, abortion
The Evansville Courier-Press has a column by Martin Schram for the Scripps Howard News Service entitled Diminished coverage. It’s 3:40 a.m. and my 18 month old daughter has been crying for the last half hour, so maybe it’s just my muddled, sleep-deprived head, but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around why the press is calling Obama’s statement that “we now have spent $400 billion and have seen over 3,000 lives of the bravest young Americans wasted” was a gaffe. The Schram column just says “Wasted?” He does not try to explain how U.S. foreign policy has used those lives well. If someone would explain how those lives were used to achieve a benefit commensurate with the cost, perhaps I could be persuaded that Obama was somehow incorrect in his statement. Instead, all I get is some sort of semi-articulated (from Schram and elsewhere) notion that Obama has somehow belittled the dead servicemen and women through this statement.
Noting that the Iraq War has been wasteful of American lives does nothing to diminish the sacrifice of those who sacrificed their lives. Seems to me that it makes the sacrifice that much more indicative of their love for their country. In any event, the situation reminds me a bit of The Charge of the Light Brigade:
1.
Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
“Forward, the Light Brigade!
“Charge for the guns!” he said:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.2.
“Forward, the Light Brigade!”
Was there a man dismay’d?
Not tho’ the soldier knew
Someone had blunder’d:
Their’s not to make reply,
Their’s not to reason why,
Their’s but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.3.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
Storm’d at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.4.
Flash’d all their sabres bare,
Flash’d as they turn’d in air,
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonder’d:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro’ the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel’d from the sabre stroke
Shatter’d and sunder’d.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.5.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
Storm’d at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro’ the jaws of Death
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.6.
When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made,
Honor the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred.
DSC_0001.JPG
Originally uploaded by amasson.
The lighting isn’t very good, but this is a picture of my son and I digging out this morning. The snow is probably about 2/3 up the lamp post in the background, and that ivy covered post next to it is our mailbox.
TPMmuckraker is doing a bang-up job covering the corruption indictment of “Dusty” Foggo, formerly the CIA’s executive director until he resigned in May. Foggo was a close friend of defense contractor, Brent Wilkes.
One of the officials said the grand jury heard claims that Foggo joined Wilkes on trips to Hawaii and Scotland, and was introduced to Wilkes’ employees as early as 2003 as a “future executive†of Wilkes’ company, Wilkes Corp., which allegedly received $12 million in illicit contracts from various government agencies.
Wilkes was also charged with conspiring to bribe convicted former Congressman, Duke Cunningham. TPM Muckraker has entries here, here, here, here, and here. You can’t expect folks to just watch the torrent of “defense” money coming out of Washington without trying to get a little taste, can you? People are getting rich from these expenditures, and it’s not the troops in the field.
SB 6 – Disclosure of cell phone location information. Rep. Ford:
Requires a commercial mobile radio service (CMRS) provider to disclose to a law enforcement officer the automatic location identification of a subscriber upon request if an emergency situation exists that involves the immediate danger of death or serious bodily injury to any person, including a situation in which there is a credible report of an unexplained missing person. Requires a law enforcement officer to provide a copy of a valid warrant or subpoena to the CMRS provider within 48 hours of receiving the location information. Provides immunity from civil liability for good faith disclosures of information by CMRS providers.
Looks like the process cleaned this one up a little bit. Back on December 19, 2006, I complained a little bit about the introduced version of the bill because it required disclosure to law enforcement officials in “emergency” situations without defining emergencies. In committee, the bill was amended to specify emergencies that involved an immediate danger of death or serious bodily injury.
Passed 45 to 1 (Rep. Drozda was the one nay vote.)
Technorati Tags: SB6-2007, Big Brother
HB 1426 – Economic incentives accountability. Rep. Austin. Requires the Indiana economic development corporation to report semiannually on certain tax credits, loans, and grants provided by the state and on the level of compliance by recipients with representations made to obtain the benefits.
The report has to include at least the following:
(A) Tax credits applied in the state.
(B) Loans made in the state.
(C) Grants given in the state.
Also, with respect to each recipient of a tax credit, loan, or grant:
(A) The name and address of the recipient.
(B) The amount of the tax credit, loan, or grant.
(C) The purpose of the tax credit, loan, or grant.
(D) Representations of the following made by the recipient at the time of application for the tax credit, loan, or grant:
(i) Numbers of employees to be hired, retained, or trained.
(ii) Average wage or compensation that will be provided to employees to be hired, retained, or trained.
(iii) Other benefits to be provided to employees to be hired, retained, or trained.
And, finally, the extent to which the credit, loan, or grant recipient complied with those representations.
I have mixed feelings about this bill. On the one hand, it’s a good idea to make sure that businesses aren’t coming around with their hands out for economic development packages, promising the moon to get them, and then turning around and renegging on their promises. On the other hand, another layer of bureaucracy is created. Nobody in the House had mixed feelings, apparently – Passed the House 95 to 0.
Technorati Tags: HB1426-2007, taxes
HB 1391 – Certified Surgical Technologists. Rep. Reske. Prohibits an individual from professing to be a certified technical surigical technologist or use the initials “CST” unless the individual holds and maintains the Certified Surgical Technologist Credential administered by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA).
I don’t know how big a problem this was, but I suppose I’d be happy if I owned stock in the NBSTSA.
Passed the House 94 to 0.
Technorati Tags: HB1391-2007, licensure
House Bill 1378 Insurance coverage exclusion for intoxication. Rep. Van Haaften.
With respect to an insurance policy that provides coverage for hospital, medical, or surgical expenses, prohibits an insurance exclusion for losses contracted in consequence of the insured’s being intoxicated or under the influence of a narcotic.
Passed the House 90 to 5. (Voting nay were Reps Bell, Borror, Hinkle, Micon, and Turner.)
Technorati Tags: HB1378-2007, insurance