LA House Members Integrity Goes Up In Smoke

I was reminded of how offensive I find cigarettes today when I read the article in the Shreveport Times, "House doesn't override cigarette tax veto."   http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20110617/NEWS11/106170323/House-refuses-override-cigarette-tax-veto 
My mother smoked when she was a teenager, but when she married my dad, he made her stop.  He did not believe women should smoke.  He smoked a cigar sometimes, those are manly you know, but I don't think it was to the point of an addiction.

His title makes me laugh or cry?

But back to this newspaper article.  It contains two of my most disliked things; cigarettes that make everything stink, and even worse, politicians who prostitute themselves to win political favor and therefore stinking up our government.  Eleven House members switched after voting to renew a 4 cent sales tax on cigarettes in May, to voting against overriding Governor Jindal's veto.  Here are the reasons a couple of the representatives gave for voting against the override. Rep. Jim Fannin, D-Jonesboro said, "It's different in an override than it is in a vote for a bill.  When I committed to work with the governor, this is part of it."   I bet when he was campaigning he promised to work for the people who elected him.  He is in a separate branch of government for a reason.  If not, then we just need a Governor. He said he agreed to support Jindal   "if 4 cents was worth that much for him.  It's not worth that much for me."  Something tells me this is about more that 4 cents.
Then Nancy Landry, R-Lafayette, said, she voted for renewing the tax because unlike Jindal, "I don't think it's a new tax."  Her stepmother died of lung cancer, so she wanted to do something that might prevent people from starting to smoke.  My question is, Why didn't they vote to increase the cigarette tax to 8 cents given our state's budget crisis.  So we are cutting funds to education and many other areas, but helping smokers buy cheaper cigarettes.  And Landry continued, "In the end, I didn't think it was something I wanted to challenge the governor over. It was important to him and I'm going to be working with him, hopefully, another four years.  I didn't think it was worth a challenge to him.  She said,  "there was no fear of retribution from Jindal if she didn't switch her vote."  But will there be a reward?
http://www.fox8live.com/news/local/story/Pundit-Jindals-push-to-nix-cigarette-tax-is-sign/aB7EJmYGgEmgcD7-6aFk4w.cspx

My Representative, Thomas Carmody, R-Shreveport, did not support Jindal on the issue.  "Because it doesn't make common sense.  I cannot support our governor, my governor this morning.  I'm really disheartened that we're put in this position.  If you put me in this position, I'm going to do what's right."  HALLELUJAH!!  I don't agree with Rep. Carmody on most of his education votes, but I have to give him credit when he shows such integrity.

Okay, I'm through quoting the quotes from the paper.


I had a bad experience with "who supports whom" right out of the political shoot.  I went to the local Democratic Committee to ask for financial support.  I was running for School Board against two Republican males.  I left empty handed.  That was okay. I take no well.   But then when the election was over and I was going through all the contributions given to other school board candidates; I noticed that one of the leaders in the Democratic Committee had given a Republican male in a different Caddo Parish School Board race a $1,000 contribution.  I was complaining about this to a rather politically savvy friend and he said to me, "Charlotte, if you want something, are you going to give your money to the Church Lady or the Prostitute?""  Enough said!  But I did say "DAMN!"

I'll write my nasty cigarettes and French kissing story tomorrow.  Enough mixing of vices tonight.

The School Board is a Zoo

I have not written a blog because on Wednesday, March 2nd I drove to Baton Rouge for the 3 day Louisiana State School Board Conference and then last night I had a School Board meeting. All that puts me in such a funk that I can't dare sit and blog. Lord knows what I would write. But I want to get past that so I will just write something. I taught creative writing for 5 years to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders. When they didn't know what to write, I told them to just start writing--one word or thought at a time. You can always throw the paper away or in this case hit the delete button.

Anyone who wants a better understanding of how education works or how success happens should read Malcolm Gladwell's book The Outliers. His more famous book is The Tipping Point, though I don't think it is nearly as good. The Outliers is about how some have achieved outstanding success and what the elements were that contributed to that success. The very last chapter in the book explained our education system exactly. A lady in my neighborhood recommended this book to me and said it could totally change education. So I couldn't wait to read it. It is great. When I talked about it at the Board Meeting and even got a book for the other Board Members so they could read it, not one of the other 11 read the book. They don't read very much and not that type of book.

So many people today are busy trying to "fix" our education system and they are either ignorant or self-serving. Our Governor and State Superintendent's objective is to privatize our public education system by selling it to business cronies.

Oh well enough of this. I don't think blogging this is exorcizing these school board demons from me. I need something fun-- the sooner the better. Tonight is Survivor night on TV and Bridget and her family come over to watch it and we order pizza. Survivor is very much like School Board, but since it is not affecting the lives of children I find it amusing. School Board Survivor is not amusing.
Our vision 2020 board meeting.
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/13184634