My Declaration of Retirement

There is a tradition in retiring from our office of federal employees for the U.S. Department of the Interior (National Parks, Indian Affairs, Fish & Wildlife, Public Land Management, Reclamation (western water dams and management), Geological Survey, etc.) to send of a farewell email to All-Employees. They are usually friendly little good-byes with the occasional long diatribe of political sentiment pent-up in the "non-political" civil service until that day of release.

Mine was this:

That was a last-minute and appropriate replacement for my diatribe. I thought it best to save that for this blog. My post-departure comments are in [ ],  i.e., brackets. Here goes:

Fools' Gold

Yes, the State Legislature is in session. Every winter, the crazies gather in the state capitol building and allow their brains to putrefy on the poisonous air of the inversion or maybe they just came that way.

I really try to stay out of the turmoil of states' rights declarations against the Union, hiding liquor behind the curtain, polygamy vs. orgies, and lobbying/legislating for their own business interests. And then I see Ken Ivory's mug in the news again.

State Rep. Ken Ivory wants the state to invest in gold to prepare for world economic collapse. What in Holy Heck's name does he think the value of gold will be in a complete financial collapse? What exactly will it buy if civilization is over? Something tells me he must have a few bars socked away in the closet that he wants to unload now that his public-lands grab got in trouble in some other western states where they don't take so kindly to filthy lucre/lecturing/lobbying/legislating.

Utah Can Save a Lot of Money Letting the Bundy Trials Test Ownership of Public Lands

Yes! Governor Gary Herbert and especially, legislator/lobbyist Ken Ivory take note! The State of Utah is seriously considering a lawsuit to challenge United States ownership of the federal public lands within the state of Utah based on some tricky readings of the U.S. Constitution, the Utah Enabling Act, and the Utah State Constitution - basically the same theories that the Bundy Bunch have used to claim the feds have no authority in Oregon and Nevada!

But wait! Please! A major part of the charges filed today against accused co-conspirator Cliven Bundy in armed confrontation with federal officials performing federal activities on federal public lands is that those lands were obtained by the United States under the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo with Mexico and never relinquished!

From the Criminal Complaint filed today against Cliven Bundy

Tin Cowboys and Cliven Coming

Pulitzer-winning photo (w/fence post)  by John Filo which
Wikipedia says is likely subject to fair use because of its fame.

I remember the 1960s. Nuclear drills disguised as earthquake drills (earthquakes seeming more credible since we had a 6.5 in my grade-school years); Blank Panthers and cities burning; endless war in Viet Nam; radical leftists blowing up Post Offices; mass marches and demonstrations. Yep, real scary times.

And I was a secret subversive. I put up a good front as a conservative, but I listened to popular music, even Chicago, singing about the coming revolution. I was hoping it would be for the good and the idealism espoused. But I was cautious.

Sick of Crazy Cowboys

No, I don't want them shot! I don't want them to shoot me or my friends either!

The stand-off between the trespassing cowboy and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in southern Nevada makes me sick to my stomach. And I find myself so befuddled by friends who would express support for the cowboys against the enforcement of federal law. I can only imagine it must be the result of those trying to stir this up to serve the god of this world - - money. (If you can't take the hint, I'm referring to FoxNews and other conspiracy theorists. I know many on the left serve the same god too. Oh, and money=property, IMO.)

Sure, my caveats and disclosures still apply. I work for the Department of the Interior which includes the BLM. I know some of the BLM Law Enforcement guys in Nevada. I consider them my friends and men of honor in sustaining and upholding the Constitution of the United States. I don't have that kind of respect for people who rush to a confrontation and aim their guns at federal law enforcement officers who are doing their duty.

Why I'm Not Going to my Rep's Town Hall Meeting

My U.S. Congressman of the whatever gerrymandered District we're in now, is holding a town hall meeting this month that I will not be attending. There are some questions I would like to ask, but I don't think they'll get me very far with my political tea-partier, erstwhile Mormon-pop, apocalyptical-fiction* writer, and Beck-buddy Representative. My questions follow:

"Let Us Have Peace"

Yes, those are the words of U.S. Grant from his first Inaugural Address. General Grant and the Fourteenth Amendment may be vindicated as so far, Utah Governor Herbert has not ordered state troops to fire on Ft. Douglas that overlooks Salt Lake City from the Wasatch foothills to the East. As Grant won a bloody war to secure the United States and establish Constitutional protections of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all the people of the United States, we now face a Constitutional crisis that our nation will endure without resort to civil war.

I'm highly suspicious that Judge Shelby of the U.S. District Court, District of Utah, planned ahead to issue his decision on same-sex marriage for the week before Christmas. He may have hoped that the spirit of the season would temper any adverse reaction to the ruling. It's not over yet as a legal question until the Supreme Court eventually decides the issue as it certainly will. But as even most of the opponents of same-sex marriage believe that it will eventually happen, I wish it would happen sooner rather than later so that we can stop arguing and all calm down to deal with the inevitable and get over it. It is not worth civil war and it is not worth tearing families apart, least of all at this season of the year.

My Multi-Religious Scout Sunday

Sunday, we went to the LDS services at Philmont with the nice, little, roofed chapel. A large trek group from Illinois was there along with the few from the Training Center (PTC) and the usual smattering of staff members who were not otherwise assigned Sunday morning.

The meeting is always interesting with heavy emphasis on the Scouts going out or coming in from the backcountry mountain treks. I did that myself as a 14-year-old and again as an adult leader. The most fascinating is to watch the Aaronic Priesthood boys called up out of the miscellaneous attendees and instinctively know what to do to administer the emblems of the Sacrament to the body of the Lord’s Church. And looking over the Scouts above the stand is the blue-tinged window with the flor-de-lis and rather muscular Savior. He did have His mountain treks after all.

Messing with Texas

My daughter just went to a conference to San Antonio. I suggested to her that she mess with Texas a little if she got a tour at the Alamo. The ideas were to ask about the Slaves and what was the Mexican government's view of Slavery? Or at least to ask where the basement was.

She reported after the trip that she did not do the messing I was attempting to encourage. Instead, she brought me something from the gift shop:

Thomas Jefferson Said . . . . (!?#*)

Credit to my buddy Phil at The Liberty Tree
(And Tom didn't really say that!)

It happened again! This time a comment on one of my blog pieces about guns. (So far, I'm getting a lot of interesting material from gun advocates but not a lot that makes much sense). There was another one of those made up quotes attributed to one of the Founders. This time, Thomas Jefferson:

"The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first."

United Snakes

The tea party crowd adopted a Revolutionary War symbol of the yellow flag with the snake and slogan "Don't tread on me." The new meaning seems to be an individualistic, anti-government sentiment if I understand them correctly. It reminds me of an earlier snake image in American History attributed to Benjamin Franklin. This snake says "Join, or Die" - also a revolutionary sentiment, but tied to the dream of American Union proposed by Franklin as early as the 1750s.

Ken Ivory's Public Lands Luau

The Utah State Legislature is still in session for a few more days. I've been trying to avert my eyes but I slipped today and read an article from a few weeks back about Utah State Representative Ken Ivory's bill for Utah to "take back" the public lands (Hint No. 1: you can't "take back" what you never had).

And I admit I was already aware of another odd Ivory bill from my blogger friend at Utah Political Summary. That blogger is a perfectly rational moderate Republican, a vanishing breed. I don't exactly see Rep. Ivory that way.

But back to the Luau.

Right To Privacy & States Rights' Hypocritical Hypotheticals

The last two Republican debates were just too much for me to try and live-blog. Saturday evening was better spent on some family activities. And this morning, Sunday, I just couldn't spoil the quiet Sabbath with more ugliness. I was working on some family history issues instead.

Speaking of family, I did catch a brief exchange in last night's debate. George Stephanopolous was questioning Romney on a hypothetical on states rights theories as to whether states could prohibit birth control. Romney appeared a little befuddled and parried as best he could deflecting the question somewhat indignantly because he said no state would ever do such.

YTREBIL: That's "Liberty" Backwards

This is the problem I have with the the Libertarian/Conservative viewpoint as evidenced by the newest attention to old revelations about Ron Paul. We apparently see the world differently--frontwards or backwards. And who is to tell what side of Alice's looking glass we are on?

It's a simple difference in perception. Paul and other conservatives, particularly those of a Libertarian bent, or in LDS culture, the followers of Skousen and the ultra-conservatives, are offended by classifications of people by groups that give them "special rights." (Of course, if it is a group under "states rights doctrine," that is somehow OK).

Romney In - Sarah Becomes Huckabee

I wish I could get a message to Mitt. I would tell him that he's a great guy. I really liked him as a moderate governor of a liberal state. It was good to save the 2002 Olympics.  He made a lot of money and maybe could help our economy grow. His dad was a great guy. His family's great. He was probably a great bishop and stake president. He went to my alma mater. But Mitt, please stop embarrassing yourself!

It's official. He's running for President. And this time, instead of trying to out-macho the neo-cons on torture and war, he's trying to recast himself, and even his Massachusetts mandated health insurance in a Tenth Amendment, states' rights way to appeal to the Tea Party. While I admit that is a really good, clever argument in attempt to justify Romneycare (which was a good thing), will anybody really buy it? I think it only appeals to the theoretical states-rightists, maybe the idealistic Libertarian wing. Does anyone think he can out-tea-party the likes of Bachman and Palin?

Republicans Need Better Issues

Sure, the economy and deficit need to be addressed. I'm just not sure how to trust the party of "deficits don't matter.*" But moving on from those challenging and controversial issues which are certainly enough for a healthy political debate in the upcoming campaign - as in "Where are the jobs, Congress?" I would like to propose that the Republicans come up with some better issues, or at least better arguments.

No. 1. End the silliness about Obama being a socialist. He's proved in the past couple of years that he is rather moderate in the main-stream of American politics. The more they make noise with the socialist/fascist/communist/Kenyan/Muslim business - none of which is true, they make others wonder if there's not something else about this historically unique president that troubles them. Or they just may fall into the "stupid" trap like the donald just did.

The State of Utah Rights

I'm going to try to lay it out as simply as I can. I know the philosophy that small, close-to-home government is supposed to be the best government. However, it doesn't always work. This is where Madison's larger and more diverse republic comes in to diffuse and diminish the power of potentially oppressive majorities. (Federalist 9 & 10).

Utah is the case in point. I don't think the state legislators are anything other than well-intentioned. But the Utah Legislature is overwhelmingly dominated by Anglo, middle-class, LDS, male Republicans. USA Today reports that 57% of Utah residents claim to be LDS. That's a pretty solid majority. Now, I can't find a good report on the religious affiliation of the Utah Legislature (if anybody knows of one, please link it in), but the party dynamic is rather astounding. Of 29 Utah State Senators, 22 are Republican. In the House, there are 58 Republicans to 17 Democrats! Until I find that religious breakdown or somebody proves me wrong, I'm going to assume that most if not all the Republicans are LDS. And I think even some of the Democrats are too, shocking as that may be to some Mormons. This Mormon majority in the legislature is significantly greater than the LDS percentage in the population as a whole.

Moderation Conquers Passion

Or maybe I'm just a coward.

Senator Mike "Tea Party" Lee had an open house in his offices two floors below us in the federal building this afternoon. I don't know anyone who went. I wanted to go really bad. Bad being the operative word because every time I started to talk about it with my co-workers, I got a little overly worked up. My colleagues thought they would have to hold me down instead of enjoying senatorial cookies.

John C. Calhoun Rises from the Dead!

Senator Mike "Tea Party" Lee addresses the Utah Legislature and says he represents "the sovereign state of Utah" when I thought he was elected to represent the People who live here and are sovereign in establishing the Constitution by "We the People" not "We the States." He preaches anachronistic theories of states' rights doctrine. He wants to repeal a portion of the Fourteenth Amendment. Lincoln is spinning in his grave while Sen. Calhoun is back and apparently advising Sen. Lee ("Lee" that rings some kind of bell - actually, it comes from John D. Lee, not Marse Robert. But people shouldn't be judged by their ancestors).

Maybe that's where I made my mistake. While I did not vote for him, I was hoping that much of Mike Lee's tea party enthusiasm was a pose and that once in office, he would mellow into a more responsible, rational conservative Republican like his father, Rex Lee. So far, no deal.

States' Rights Stink!

I admit that isn't very moderate, but it is passionate. And it wasn't me who came up with it.  Here's the quote: 

Moved by Joseph Smith, That every man in the meeting who could wield a pen write an address to his mother country. Carried.

Mayor [Smith] read the Memorial to Congress. The State rights doctrines are what feed mobs. They are a dead carcass --a stink, and they shall ascend up as a stink offering in the nose of the Almighty.

HIstory of the Church, Vol. 6 p. 95.

When I wrote my piece on Joseph Smith and States' Rights that was published in the Salt Lake Tribune a few months back, I didn't use the strongest quotes available. Brother Joseph was understandably incensed over the persecutions of the Saints by the State power of Missouri and the failure of the United States to provide any redress. His interpretations of the Constitution were rather strongly worded: