Just Scream

By George Smith

Ever felt like you needed to just open your mouth and scream? Not just a scream, but a primal scream, an ear-splitting, guttural sound emanating from your lower intestine, tearing thought your stomach, resonating off your diaphragm and creating a noise that actually scares the virtual devil out of those around you?

That’s the way I feel today.

After almost three weeks visiting Scotland and Ireland, I came back to the United States ready to renew my affirmation and love of this country. But then the realization that this country – the 2019 version – is not the version of my youth. Nor is it the country I want for my grandchildren.

The innocence, the beauty of its people, the diversity, the respect of other religious the friendliness shown by strangers to strangers, the love of family and the belief that nothing is stronger than blood ties, is elusive, if not downright missing from the moral fiber of the country.

I came back to these headlines and stories about the world’s most important nation:■ Transgender protections rolled back■ Mississippi, Alabama pass laws banning abortions even in cases of incest and rape■ Trump flails at companies hiring foreign workers; Trump hires foreign workers■ Trump puts $20 makeover on hold; slave master Jackson gets nod over Harriet Tubman■ Mike Pence tells West Point grads to “get ready for war. It will happen.”■ Florida lawmaker says “God told me to introduce abortion legislation”■ DOJ on crash course with intelligence agencies■ Trump mocks politicians opposed to tariffs as ‘babies,’ including some Republicans■ U.S. halting visas of same-sex partners of diplomats■ Trump helped his parents evade taxes, ‘including instances of outright fraud’■ ‘Good time’ to be a farmer, Trump says as he announces $16 billion in aid.■ Trump insists Chinese tariffs will cover $16 billion farm trade aid package■ Banker charged after lending millions to Paul Manafort in exchange for Trump job■ Judge suspended over anti-Trump remarks

And the list goes on…..

What has this nation become when millions accept an emperor-in-waiting as the political messiah and millions more see him as the rise of the end of democracy in the nation?

The bottom line? The 45^th president commits horrible acts of rudeness simply because of his title and personality; he is juvenile in his use of the “bully” pulpit and his utter distain for women and anyone who disagrees with him; he is not smart in protocols of diplomacy or understands the basics of the foundations of this country (including separation of powers and the responsibilities of the different branches of government.

This self-labelled “stable genius” does not read, has no realistic sense of history, no compassion for those suppressed simply for being “different,” no comprehensive of today’s global economy and America’s place in it, and does not trust men and women who have spent decades in specialized areas of global intelligence, he has no idea of the correct use of the global economy as a deterrent to aberrant behavior by rogue nations or how the U.S. economy and politics affects the world.

And most of all, thr president does not understand nor care that he is, (almost single-handedly with sufficient help from his so-called party friends like Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn, Jim Jordan and Lindsey Graham) is destroying the Republican Party.

“Republican Party” actually no longer applies to the conservative branch of politics. It is now the Trump Party, lock, stock and elephant.

Past heroes of that party – the Bush groupies, the John McCains supporters, the true followers of Reagan – are all lamenting the position taken in total opposition to compassionate conservatism, balanced budget and the paring down of big government.

As a nation we must rise above partisan politics and personal pettiness. That is not possible with Trump, a pompously pious, personally pedantic, would-be dictator in the White House.

We’ll see what this country is made of in a short 18 months.

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Draining the Swamp: How’s That Working?

By George Smith

Are you ready to look at the condition this country finds itself and make a determination based on facts or are you okay with a litany of “alternative truths”?

This column contains information – facts, facts and more facts – that some readers may not want to hear or even believe. Feel free to check them out; I did and if you find any figures or statements are in error as stated, call me out. Some conditions: You have to state your “facts” and source; you cannot divert the message by mentioning Hillary Clinton, President Obama or Robert Mueller.

First, let’s talk about the president: Donald Trump once stated he owned four companies that declared bankruptcy; Clinton countered that in a debate in 2016 and said the number was six. Clinton was correct. Trump’s companies that have gone bankrupt include: Trump Hotels and Casinos, three Atlantic City, N.J. casinos, New York City’s Plaza Hotel and Trump Entertainment Resorts.

Trump stated he counted the three New Jersey casino bankruptcies one as a single filing, even though they were filed separately. Regardless of the number, those bankruptcies left investors and small businesses sucking wind, with Trump declaring more than once that he was just using the existing laws to his advantage.

Trump has repeatedly stated he only hires the “best people.” Yet, he has a turnover rate of 68 percent of his closest White House advisors in only 27 months. Some key positions (chief of staff, communications director, press secretary, etc.) have turned over multiple times. The 68 percent figure is “by position”; if three or more people have held a single position (chief of staff, communications director, etc.), the multiple turnovers are not included in the 68 percent figure.

Now, about draining that swamp: Andrew Wheeler is Environmental Protection Agency director; he is a former lobbyist for the oil and gas industry; Betsy DeVoss, a former fund raiser and unabashed cheerleader for private religious schools, is Secretary of Education; Wilbur Ross, secretary of commerce, and Steven Mnuchin, treasury secretary, are both billionaires who added to their wealth substantially during the 2008 recession, are in charge of creating national economic policy. Ross kept his investments in firms that the Commerce Department oversees;

It’s hard to forget that early in the Era of Trump, 15 women claimed to have been sexually assaulted by Trump before he was president; the White House staff and website have touted First Daughter Ivanka Trump’s line of jewelry; First Lady

Melania pushed her line of jewelry and “timepieces” on the QVC channel; First Son-in-Law Jared Kushner’s sister worked hard to persuade Chinese businessmen to invest in a family development project, touting the fact that Kushner was hot stuff at the White House; Kushner and his spousal unit also received security passes first denied by the White House security clearing house.

The attorney general, William Barr, was named to the post because he was already on record as being in Trump’s corner on whether or not the president could obstruct justice. He fulfilled Trump’s hopes for him with a decidedly less-than-stellar performance in a senate hearing and then blew off the Democrat-controlled House hearing. Barr lied (not “fudged the truth,” not “misspoke’ and not “erred on the side of confidentiality” … but flat-out lied to Congress) about what Mueller’s report and the procecutor’s sentiments about Barr’s interpretation stated.

Meanwhile, the thriving industry of operating private prisons are in an economic boom with the Trump Administration’s affection for tent cities. Coupled with the nation’s zero-tolerance for illegal immigrants, and Trump’s edict of separating children from their families, the figures published for the daily cost of each detainee varies widely from upwards from $133 to almost $800 per day.

Of course, the private contactors charge what they can get and there has been little pushback from any federal official who can make decisions on the unreasonable costs. The Department of Human Services (DHS) estimates the cost of maintaining families (mother and children) together costs $319 per day; separating children from their parents and housing the children (including babies) in “tent cities,” in fenced-in enclosures costs $775 per person per night.

Okay, what is this costing you, the taxpayer? DHS reported that more than 51,300 immigrants, on average, were held in detention centers each day in fiscal 2018.

You do the math, using a combination of the figures above. I did and threw up in my mouth. Just taking the $319 figure, that would be more than $16,270,000.

Why does it cost so much and why is the government doing to keep costs down? The administration could have children stay at the Trump’s International Hotel in D.C. for a measly $575 a night, have room service and still save money.

Shoot, the Day’s Inn in El Paso is only $64 a night and a double room at Super 8 in Brownsville, Texas is only $54.55.

This administration cut taxes bigly on the wealthiest one-percent and corporations, gave the middle class a pittance and then took away certain deductions so the pittance handed out was an enlarged pittance that was so much of a pittance as to not really count for much at all.

As you have probably already figure out, this administration does not care about costs or the working economically wounded – it is not spending its money, it’s spending your’s. And this administration does not care about costs, unless it’s money coming out of the pockets of the Richie Rich’s of the high-dollar crowd.

Drain the swamp? If I was not crying, I’d be laughing.

“First, let’s take stock of where we are: The EPA is run by a former coal lobbyist. An ex-oil lobbyist heads the Department of Interior. Betsy DeVos, funder and champion of private religious schools, runs education policy. Steven Mnuchin and Wilbur Ross, billionaires who profited handsomely from the 2008 collapse, are in charge of protecting the economy. And at the Department of Justice, a top official who recommended that the federal government put more immigrants in privately-run detention centers hopped over to a job at the GEO Group, which pays immigrants $1 for a day of labor but can’t seem to find a way to prevent detainees from dying. No wonder the United States has plummeted in the corruption ranking maintained by Transparency International.”

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Why is Rep. Gohmert…well, such a presidential toady

By George Smith

Louis Gohmert is an enigma inside a puzzle wrapped in a mystery.

Just kidding. The elected U. S. representative of Texas’ First Congressional District is as easy to read as the kid’s book “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.”

This elected official simply needs to be needed, to be admired, to serve a higher power. He is one of President Trump’s most fervent and energetic public relations soothsayers. Due to his double-jointed ability to religiously bow, scrap and lick boots and posteriors all at the same time, he is a frequent guest on conservative television talk shows, radio and podcasts force-feeding conspiracy theories and right-wing pabulum. Inviting. Rep. Gohmert on a program is like tossing a slow curve to Barry Bonds back in the day…you know what’s going to happen.

In his role as Special Junior Deputy Assistant to the Senior Assistant Deputy Enabler of the President, it’s not surprising Gohmert has myriad opinions; it is no revelation that his opinions just happen to mirror those expressed by the president. He is, in a phrase, Kellyanne Lite.

Louis Buller Gohmert, Jr., of course, tweets. (Doesn’t everybody?) He mainly tweets support for Trump, liking what he likes and hating what he hates which frequently includes anchor babies, terrorist babies, same sex marriage and, well, you know.

It is rumored that he occasionally has an independent thought but had therapy sessions to squelch those errant missives..

Gohmert has long been considered a loose-tongued Republican who is enamored with conspiracy theories and any rumor that is Clinton-related. He has, at various times, been castigated for his mouthings by fellow GOPers like the late John McCain, Marco Rubio, Scott Brown and John Boehner (who beat him like a dirty rug when Gohmert challenged him for Speaker of the House).

Gohment is not, by definition, a laughingstock in political circles, he is an entire season of “Oddball Comics” on the Comedy Channel.

He has at various times let his tongue cover up his eyeteeth so he could not see what he was saying; unfortunately, his words live on in infamy.

Examples:

Gohmert was on Fox News in a panel discussion about the international influence of Google on world affairs when he popped off with an unrelated and derogatory allegation about Holocaust survivor, philanthropist and Democratic candidate supporter George Soros. Of course, the allegation made right-wingers giddy for days. The fact that the allegation was simply not true created a need for a Fox news apology for Gohmert’s “false allegations” against Soros.
Three years ago, according to news reports, he said that the U.S. should not use resources fighting LGBTQ equality measures because “We’d never choose a same-sex couple to help populate the moon.” Ooooooookay.
In a rant about limiting the number of bullets in a magazine, Gohmert said why draw “the line at 10/ What’s wrong with nine? Or eleven? It’s kind of like marriage when you say it’s not a man and woman any more, then why not have three men and one woman or four women and one man or why not somebody have a love for an animal.”

This is the elected official that said we can’t have gays in the military because they’d be like the Greeks and give each other “massages all day ready to go into a big, planned battle, then you’re not going to last very long.”

Rep. Gohment seems to be in a constant state of consternation. He sees liberal bugaboos and terrorists and an undermining of democracy everywhere he looks; followers of his Bizarro World thinking patterns are amazed he doesn’t have whiplash from all the head-snapping.

Gohmert is a lawyer so it is surprising he never considers he needs evidenced to back up his claims of will o’ the wisp actions by dastardly Demos or terrorist cells ready to pounce. Of course, like his Supreme Leader, making outrageous statements without substantiating evidence is part of their normal workday; they both know that certain elements of Fox News and other conservative outlets will give them a pass and forum to push the story.

How out of touch with reality is he? He once nominated Florida Rep. Allen West for Speaker of the House. The only problem was West had been defeated for re-election.

It’s time for a change, East Texas. I grew up in East Texas in his district and now live in Arkansas. The embarrassment for East Texas that I feel is as strong as pure grain alcohol even 45 mile east of the Texas state line.

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Today’s Political Climate is Brutal

By George Smith

Partisan politics, in any year, in any era, is a given: Labor/business, liberal/conservative, pro-choice/pro-life, Libertarian/Tea Party, evangelical Christians/non-evangelical believers/agnostics and atheists, white supremacist/Black Lives Matter … all forces and factions are in play in the 2020 election. Listen! You can already hear the gnashing of teeth and muttered curses in the social media brouhaha.

It is a sorry state of affairs when you stop and realize in today’s political environment, fear, distrust and hate comes into play in everyday political discussions and maneuvers.

Several states (notably Arizona, Tennessee and Texas) are being openly blatant about setting up laws that will suppress voting of certain citizens, as reported by the Public Broadcasting System (PBS):

‘After Democrats Surged In 2018,

Republican-Run States Eye New Curbs On Voting’

The fact the Republican Party in these states (with more to follow) are worked up about making sure potential Democratic voters are either frightened away from the polls intentionally or by innuendo and rumor shows the widening divide between the two parties.

In Texas, PBS stated, “… state lawmakers are considering adding criminal penalties for people who improperly fill out voter registration forms; Arizona Republicans are proposing new voting rules that could make it more complicated to cast an early ballot; in Tennessee, GOP lawmakers are considering a bill that would fine groups involved in voter registration drives that submit incomplete forms.”

The proposed laws, as yet, do not include any provisions for natural human error.

For generations, Democrats have conducted widespread voter registration drives, while Republicans seem to rely on donations to support their candidates of choice. The voter registrati0n drives across the country in 2017 and 2018 pushed a record-breaking number of seat reversals in the House of Representatives, creating a flashpoint for Republicans resulting in the current attempts to curtail future activity that could their party.

The reasons given for the present attention to voter registration, according to GOP lawmakers, is that new legislation needed to maintain the integrity of voter rolls and prevent fraud. Shutthefrontdoor! The rule changes are aimed directly at putting a damper on turnout of the poor, young and nonwhite voters, who normally would vote with the platform of the Democratic Party.

Texas Republicans are shaking in their Naconas and curled-brim Stetson Double-X beavers because demographic and political trends are on the move to change the “Lone Star State” to “Estado de la Estrella Solitaria”. As Beto O’Roarke made clear with his close race with GOP sometimes-darling Sen. Ted Cruz, Texas is now, once again, competitive on the national level for the first time in decades.

The Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 9, which would make it a felony, punishable by jail time, for anyone who provides false information on a voter registration form or casts a ballot when they are ineligible, even if it’s by mistake! For example, if someone writes in a wrong ZIP code or is allowed to vote in a different precinct, that would be grounds for jail time.

It is apparent the Republicans who consider themselves deal-makers throughout the United States are scared shiftless, not knowing which way to shift their traditional battle plan, but knowing their leader is dividing the country and dividing the party. Throwing up roadblocks to curtail voting of any citizen, regardless of perception of allegiance, is just wrongheaded, and, legal experts have opined, is unconstitutional.

We are Americans all and should rejoice in unity in the freedoms we possess through the vision, intelligence and, yes, blood, that built this country. To deny any eligible person the right to vote on a technicality is as un-American as calling soccer “football.”

Instead of working on keeping people from voting we should be expanding access for people to vote. Adopting or expanding early and absentee voting, adopting automatic voter registration and campaigning for younger voters to get involved is the sign of a true democracy, not a nation run by whim, spite or gutless naysayers and exclusionists.

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You can tell the quality of a leader by turnover

By George Smith

I hate opening a cabinet and seeing that it’s empty and almost empty. That means I didn’t do my job correctly.

Wonder what Donald Trump thinks when he looks at his cabinet.

Chaos. Turnover. Turmoil. All are objective terms defining the Trump Administration’s record of the comings and goings of administration officials in its first 27 months. The president first filled his cabinet and top White House slots with mostly wealthy people, those he liked, those that supported him, those that fawned over him, family members.

Unlike Abraham Lincoln, who famously filled his cabinets with rivals – some detested him and his homespun ways, those that wanted to be president and thought they should be rather than the country storyteller, those that truly wanted to serve the country in a time of division – Trump kept those who honor him close. He bragged before and after his election that he would pick only the best people; if he did, the majority turned rotten to the core quickly.

Trump has set a presidential record for the turnover of key personnel in the first half of his first term; no other president is even close.

The Brookings Institute catalogued all of the personnel who were fired, quit, demoted or went AWOL for Trump’s first 24 months, comparing those figures with President Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Turnover in WH staff

In the area of executive office personnel, Trump’s turnover rate approached 36 percent in his first year, 2017; his closest rival in this category was Reagan, who approached 18 percent turnover; all others were between five and 10 percent.

In Year 2, Reagan’s turnover was 40 percent, Trump’s was about 33 percent. The total turnover for any administration’s first two years was; Trump, about 70 percent; Reagan, 58 percent; Clinton and George W. Bush, about 30 percent; H. W. Bush, 25 percent; and, Obama, about 22 percent.

For example, under Trump, there have been four directors of communications, three chiefs of staffs, deputy chiefs of staff, three VP chiefs of staff, three…you get the picture, right? More than 30 percent of key White House appointments have turned over at least twice, with 12 of 13 turning over three or more times.

Turnover in Cabinet

Turnover in the Clinton, George W. Bush and Obama administration in cabinet positions in Year 1 of their administration was zero; three Trump cabinet members left the first year. In Year 2, 10 of Trump’s cabinet members left (two left this year); Clinton had seven leave in Year 2, Obama had four, and G.W. Bush had one depart. All total, 15 Trump’s cabinet members left office in 27 months; in eight years, Clinton had 12 leave his cabinet, Bush had four, and Obama had nine.

Fact of business life: With high turnover, there can be no continuity of focus or policies or programs.

As a former corporate manager, someone who teaches business classes at the college level and who used to serve as a business consultant for Business Incubator startup companies, I am adamant in the belief that high turnover in any business is an indication of one of three things or a combination of all three: Poor or erratic leadership, unfair or unequal treatment of employees, and stress.

The current White House management system, from insider reports, published articles in a variety of books, electronic media. and slick publications, is a combination of all three.

In the best of jobs, two of the three systemic negatives of any workplace is enough to create reasons to seek other employment. Couple that with President Trump’s hot/cold temperament, his penchant for making spur-of-the-moment decisions based on “gut” feelings, making major decisions via tweets (bypassing advice from key cabinet members and support staff ) creates a no-win situation for professionals at any level.

No employee, regardless of position and company, should ever be publicly ridiculed or called names or mocked by the leader of any institution, business or governmental agency. Yet this is Trump’s style of management: Please me, bend to my will, protect me, do it my way, or hit the road!

There are few people in this nation, even those among his supporters, who would withstand the verbal carnage he has heaped on those who displease him, don’t lie for him, and be inclined to be ridiculed in asinine tweets.

You treat others as you want to be treated. I learned that from the knees of my mother and grandmother; the lesson was repeated in church and at school.

Somewhere that incredibly positive and eternal lesson was lost on Donald J. Trump. And this nation and its people are paying a hefty price for that lost lesson Fact of business life: With high turnover, there can be no continuity of focus of programs.

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WE NEED MORE AOC’s!

By George Smith

In the wild, some dominant males kill or eat the younger members of the group – gorillas, lions and polar bears come to mind.

In the wild world of politics, the same thing can happen; just observe, it’s happening now.

Alexandria Casio-Cortez, at 29 the youngest woman ever to be elected to the House of Representatives. Without a lot of trouble or pushy personal spotlighting, she has become a lightning rod attracting stiff strikes from the Republicans and members of her own party. She has personality-plus, is charismatic in the strictest sense of the word, is intelligent in many subjects, including having social media savvy unparalleled in politics.

Known in her first three months by supporters, detractors, social media posts. headlines and TV news station screen scrawls – AOC – she has already attained the celebrity political status of JFK, LBJ, RFK and MLK. That is not necessarily a good thing; Alexandria Casio-Cortez is a mouthful, AOC can be spat put in an instant.

This New York City resident has already been on the cover of Time for her take-no-prisoners style of pushing forth her agenda, and that fact alone infuriated every Republican with a heart (which should be assumed to be most of them), not to mention her party cohorts who believe she and her “cockamamie” New Green Deal platform is sucking all the air of the party’s standard platform of jobs, health care, Social Security and accepting of immigrants.

In the basic assessment of “too much-too soon,” the AOC aginners in both parties are right.

Youth has its advantages; patience is usually not one of them. AOC has the patience of a horse fly on LSD and the temperament of a honey badger in heat.

On the International Patience-O-Meter, she falls between “None at All” and “You’ve Got to be Freakin’ Kidding Me!”

It certainly does not hurt her overall efforts to note the fact she is a striking young woman, who is as photogenic as one of the younger Kardashian/Jenners (without the snotty attitude); cameras capture her vivaciousness and spirit without much effort. She is, in the shortest time in Congressional history, a true phenomenon…a shooting political star who does not worry about process and protocol, only about setting the national and global stage for results.

Everyone knew the GOP was going to come after her with claws extended; President Trump tweet-storms about her regularly and Fox News anchors castigate her on any slow news day.

The Old Hats of her own party took immediate offense at the lack of experience and depth of her agenda and her overall push for what they thought was only personal spotlight space.

Every one of her detractors are badly misjudging AOC, what she wants and what she expects from her term in office. Of course, she is new and in learning mode. Personally, I could have preferred she learned a little bit more about the inner workings of government before starting to cut the heads off sacred cows and stomping in the blood. But that’s not her style

She is using her instant-celebrity status to try and evoke real change in various segments of society, starting with climate change. She knows her time on this political stage may be relatively short (her goal is not to die in office after 25 terms) and she is not going to just sit there quietly and wait around for leaders to take orders from the monied interests that control 90 percent of elected officials.

She is AOC:

ACTION. OPINIONATED. CLEVER
AMBITIOUS. OPTIMISTIC. COURAGE
AMAZING. ORATOR. COMMUNICATOR
ALIVE. ONWARD. CONVINCING.

Make fun of AOC at your own risk. To be honest, she doesn’t care what anyone thinks of her or her methods; she only wants positive results for the nation, the world, the future.

Of course, isn’t that what we all would like to be the focus of all of our federal officials. We can argue her method from can to can’t, but it’s hard to argue with her motives … unless you just like to argue for the sake of arguing

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Gut Decisions and Trial Balloons

By George Smith

To get inside the mind of Donald J. Trump, the 45^th president of the United States of America and make sense of the decisions he makes would take a world-class team of psychiatrists armed with a bone saw and a commercial grade MRI machine.

The president has said he goes with his “gut” in making important decisions and it’s easy to see how that is the case: He has made decisions that have made cabinet members, leaders and staff of the intelligence agencies, aides and even some followers shaking their heads in amazement.

His penchant for making a decision based the theory of the “trial balloon”, giving aides and cabinet members direct instructions on how to proceed and then reversing it after getting feedback, is the fodder of dysfunctional families and distressed companies.

Trump, for a reason known only to himself, has decided our main allies, the countries whose soldiers have fought and died in mixed regiments made up from the best soldiers from various nations, are not worth having as friendly neighbors in his view of this greerdy, take-no-prisoners world.

Alliances formed when the world was in flames and democratic and freedom-loving nations fought for the right of every nation to be free, were, by the vote of our Electoral College, were battered by the hysterical political newcomer who proclaimed himself a “stable genius”. Trump literally insulted Great Britain, France, Germany and other members of North Atlantic Treaty Organization by berating them with tales of all the United States had done for them since the mid-1940s.

Why, he surmised, are we spending all this money on maintaining military presence in Europe when the affected nations should be spending more money to protect their own turf? This nation has been “Daddy Warbucks” long enough, seemed to be the overall global message.

Each nation is required to spend two percent of its Gross National Product figure on NATO-related expenses; Trump contended, rightly or wrongly, that was not happening and the U.S. was paying far more than its share.

The point is: Having a strong U.S. military presence in Eastern and Western Europe greatly benefits this nation; it’s not simply a matter of money, but the international deterrent and security that is important. Retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges recently addressed this issue, by saying he never imagined a president would kick ‘allies in the a**. When the president refers to the European Union as an enemy of the United States, that’s a gift” to Russia and China.

Trump, by his words, actions and reactions is the Demeanor in Chief. In his rally speeches, tweets and in pubic forums and interviews, he has demeaned women, people of color, countries he does not like (“s**thole countries”), U.S. territories – he said he had talked to the “president of the Virgin Islands” and accused Puerto Rico officials of unfounded charges of corruption as that island territory is still trying to recover from Hurricane Maria, which hit the island in September, 2017.

On April 1, the GOP-controlled Senate (egged on by Trump’s tweets) refused to pass additional aid for Puerto Rico without including relief for flooding and tornado damage for the Midwest. Democrats voted against a second bill providing relief for the Midwest, saying the amount of money for food relief for Puerto Rico was not sufficient.

This is government in the Age of Trump…compromises are for weaklings, each side of an issue takes no prisoners, gives no quarter and the victors get what they want and leave the spoils to the losers.

Where is the nation’s integrity, its generous heart, its moral and ethical soul, its indomitable courage when faced with adversity? We know it existed just a few short years ago; we have witnessed its power to bring nations and people together and spread the gospel of peace and prosperity around the globe; we watched as nations sought to emulate the U.S. and become a sister-beacon of light in a world of darkness.

All we need is a leader who sees the beauty that exists everywhere in this melting-pot nation and understand what made it great was inclusion, not rancor and constant bad-mouthing, bullying and constant expressions of disillusionment.

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The Million Dollar Dog House

By Amanda Smith

“We don’t need to build a million dollar dog house.”

This statement gets thrown around a lot in connection with the proposed animal shelter; the implication being that we are building something to benefit pets and not people. However, a municipal animal shelter doesn’t serve animals. It serves humans. In addition to reuniting people with lost pets and getting dangerous dogs off the streets, there are many things animal control officers do that some of us may never see. They capture snakes and other wildlife in people’s homes, remove dead animals from the roads, rescue animals trapped under houses or in wells, send decapitated heads to the state lab for rabies testing, and much more. Their job is dirty, dangerous, and thankless.

Over thirty years ago, through a combination of research and trial and error, it had already been learned that by building and operating animal shelters differently, better results were achieved. The results included better working conditions for employees, better outcomes for the animals, and better services for the public. This led to a revolution in the design and operation of new shelters and the demolition of the old-style “dog pounds” that were the norm when the Marshall Shelter was built 50 years ago.

Experience showed that it was not only more humane to save animal lives than to end them, it was actually less expensive. This is part of the reason that the average U. S. shelter is now about 15 years old. Some states are still behind the curve on this, with Texas being one of the worst in terms of euthanasia rates. Think of that for a moment. Texas is one of the states with the highest kill rates to begin with, and we have the oldest and one of the highest kill rate shelters in this state. It doesn’t speak well of Marshall.

Another of the drivers of change came from recognition of the toll that shelter work was taking on employees, including depression and PTSD, and this issue is even more urgent than the stain on our city’s image. We have animal control officers – police department employees – whose job it is to protect and to serve us, and we are not giving them the work environment they deserve.

Ironically, one part of the job is responsible for both the greatest emotional rewards and the deepest despair for shelter workers – dealing with homeless pets, including the constant requirement to kill healthy companion animals. We should, at the very least, try to lessen the burden they must bear for slaughtering healthy animals.

Some argue that the cost of a low-kill shelter is too high. By comparison, the police department and fire station facilities cost $2.5 million each, over 10 years ago. Like them, the animal shelter is a municipal facility that is responsible for a core function of city government. A low-kill shelter can be built today for half the cost of just one of those. It isn’t a fancy dog house. It is a special-purpose government building that is intended to serve our community for decades to come.

We need to build with the future in mind, and to place the welfare of the people who will be working there at the forefront of our thoughts. Could you do their job? Most of us couldn’t. Why would we expect them to live with the cheapest and least effective thing that can be built? Why not follow the example of other cities and do it right? To do it right, we must build what is needed.

Most cities the size of Marshall are spending $2 to $3 million (or more) to build low-kill animal shelters. They have tight budgets too, but they realize that it’s important build what experts know they need to succeed. If Marshall builds a low-kill shelter for $1.2 million dollars it will be the least expensive facility of its kind built in a decade in this state.

So, when people say we don’t need to build a million dollar dog house, the answer is that we are not. We are building an effective and modern animal control facility. Our animal control officers would much rather be saving animals than killing them, and with the right facility that can be the normal outcome.

Another outcome of building the right facility lies in the ability to attract volunteers and donors, and to qualify for grants. A high-kill shelter won’t offer those benefits. It’s cheaper to build a slaughterhouse than a place of salvation but which one will make Marshall proud? And in the end which makes the most economic sense – save some money in building costs up front, but lose millions in grant and donor revenue over the life of the building?

The answer is obvious, and that’s why for most of the last three decades cities across the country have embraced the low-kill paradigm and built shelters where lives are saved more than they are taken. It’s the ethically and economically sensible thing to do.

Sometimes making the responsible choice requires looking ahead. It’s time to look ahead, Marshall. We are not building a shelter for today. We are building an animal control facility that will serve our community for decades to come. Let’s get it right.

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Importance of a Community Animal Shelter

This is the full text of the Guest Column published on Wednesday in the Marshall News Messenger

By Katie Jarl (Dec 26, 2018)

For more than six years, Marshall has been trying to determine what to do about its antiquated, 50-year-old animal shelter. Several years ago, I visited the shelter in Marshall myself. In my position as the Texas Senior State Director for the Humane Society of the United States, I have visited many shelters, and Marshall’s is one of the saddest and most outdated facilities I’ve encountered. It really is a relic from the past that is incapable of functioning to today’s standards. It should have been replaced decades ago. Unfortunately, it’s still in use because of arguments over money. Specifically, how much to invest.

I would like to make a point that many may not have considered but relates to the financial welfare of your community for years to come.
If you build the cheapest facility you can, you may end up losing huge amounts of money over the lifetime of the new shelter.

Why is that?

Most shelters rely heavily on grant funding.
National and local organizations are on the lookout for innovative programs and offer grants to shelters that are succeeding on various metrics or are capable of meeting the needs of the communities that they serve.

A while back, I saw two of the plans being considered; Scheme P and Scheme U.

The smaller plan (P) would struggle to meet these standards because it would be inadequate from the day it opened its doors.

It was only 1,000 square feet larger than your current 1,475 square foot shelter.

The other plan (U) had the capacity to serve your region and potentially achieve low-kill status.

At just over a million dollars, it was still quite inexpensive but would likely attract grant funding and would be seen by those on the outside as a sign of serious commitment by the local community.

If Marshall had built an adequate new shelter years ago, the town could have had several years of grant funding already in the shelter’s coffers.

This amount is lost forever now due to the delays, but if you spend enough to build the right kind of shelter, Marshall’s people and animals will benefit from this.

If you do not build a facility that meets your needs and is up to today’s standards, that money, and more importantly the lives of so many animals, will be lost to you forever.

Attempting to save money by under-building will cost you untold sums in the future.

I’ve seen communities make this mistake before and regret it.
Don’t be one of them. Build your shelter with the future in mind.
You aren’t building something for the next five years.

If history is any gauge you may be building it for the next fifty. Choose wisely.

————

Katie Jarl is the Texas Senior State Director for the Humane Society of the United States.

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80 Dogs Face Crisis Weekend; Humane Society Calls For Emergency Assistance From Community

By BOB PALMER
Jimplecute Editor

Newly minted vice president of the local humane society, Missy DeLong, issued a plea late Friday for help to rescue the 80 dogs at the organization’s shelter from the wet winter weather conditions expected this weekend.

Former President Caroline Wedding is no longer associated with what is known as the Dixie Humane Society, both Wedding and members of the Society’s board say.

“This is an emergency situation,” DeLong said in a telephone interview.

Dogs at the Humane Society’s shelter east of Jefferson were seen Friday with up to an inch of rain water in pens with excrement and wet blankets on the floors. In several cases tarps over the tops of pens were filled with water and appeared about ready to collapse on dogs underneath.

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