2007
Week 21
May 26, 2007

Hi

The battles are over. Whee. Three days of mopping up blood left. Therapy.

Following up on teen drinking, the legislature blinked when it came to saying whether teens can drink at home. They said yes, with not a vote to spare. My main opponent said a change would prevent a teen from moving a six pack around in the frig. THAT is possessing? So how about whether a teen may get drunk at home? We give our blessing.

However, three and a half bills rolled into one passed, big time. Wow. First time in years that we have even been able to talk on the floor about teen drinking. We added a lot of pain for any adult foolish enough to provide drinks to minors. Before, they could be fined, get a few other charges if the prosecutor is creative. Now, that quality home in west Omaha that had 45 heavy drinking teens in earlier this week -- is at risk. Along with all assets of the three adults. Nebraska is #1 in the nation in teen drinking, but we will soon lose that distinction. We are celebrating.

The governor vetoed several small items. We failed to override any. Shameful. The legislature rolled over and played dead when it was our own budget that we had carefully honed and balanced. A really good budget. Plain copout.

As one senator said, the governor cut out the persons Jesus hung out with -- prostitutes, the poor, the seriously ill, deprived children, developmentally disabled. They all got increases, but less than inflation, which is a decrease. The best example of ignoring the weak and hurting ourselves: we cut funds to the office on aging, which arranges volunteers to help the elderly stay in their own homes. Some of them will now have to go to rest homes, which will cost us $3,500 a month (and more!) for the rest of their lives. We could have prevented that at a cost of about $200 per person per year. Talk about ‘dum’ when you cannot even spell it. All to keep from embarrassing the governor. Hello? It is our budget, not his, and it saved the state money.

It gets worse. We gave 150 wealthy people $15 million in an estate tax cut. Nothing left over to increase elderly services, teens in crisis, handicapped children, prostitutes short of drug treatment -- all of those tens of thousands of folks in programs which we had carefully reviewed and found helpful to our state. All for less than $15 million total -- $15 per taxpayer. Plus, the wealthy said their cut ($100,000 each) was not a priority for them.

Humor break. In the midst of debate, one senator was asked why he voted against the budget. “Because I did not like one part of it.” “Is that a good enough reason?” “It's all one.” “No, we can and do amend.” “Yes, it is one, like my wife. Some part of her may not be the best, but I take all of her. I cannot amend her.” “I'm dumb, but not stupid. We are talking about the budget, which we can amend.” But we did not. Guess we are in love with the gov as well as our spouses. Hmmm. That may be sinful.

I promised reaction to the Metro Omaha schools “final” settlement. It is fair, and moves us ahead. I felt we did not need a supervising council to have some authority over school districts. It is actually not another layer of government, but it feels like that. Then I was reminded that in the last five years the superintendents and districts have at least four years experience of fighting each other. O.K., someone has to be able to make sense across 11 districts if they are to act like one unit. The council cannot tell a district how to run its schools, hire, do budget, etc. The council has veto power only. There is a rich list of new programs to be directed toward low income students. If a district plan is in tune with that, approval. If out of step with the others, veto. Submit another one until you get it somewhere near helpful.

There is shared budget, the possibility of building new focus/resource centers and transporting the kids who need that. The best features are small and not noticed. For example, now we lose track of kids whose parents move every two or three months. They drop out of a school, do not answer the phone, so are in limbo. They are the major deficit in our testing scores. Solution? A computer system. Imagine using computers to keep track of every kid in 11 districts, having on every school's screen the student's record, aptitude, problems, gifts.

Senator Chambers, the one fighting the schools furiously and forever, made a remarkable statement: This is the most significant and promising effort to help deprived children that we have ever seen in Omaha. It could become a model for the nation.

Sarpy County, the healthiest part of Metro Omaha, wanted out. “We do not have any problems so let us do what we already do best.” I understand, because I have helped set up many a larger parish of churches, where otherwise a few of the churches cannot survive. The largest church will always say, “We do not have any problems so let us do what we already do best.” Thankfully, in the Methodist system we have a bishop who will say, “I love every one of my churches and this is the only way they can all survive. You will have to share pastors and resources.” The legislature is a bishop. We are the body accountable by the constitution for a good education for every child. We direct the districts in doing that, with our Dept. of Education providing muscle and expertise.

Interesting final piece in debate: senators of rural areas asked if their schools could become a learning community and share resources. Yes.

Not in the capitol, but from the outside world that relates to all of us: some woman with the last name of Hilton -- I would not recognize her, but she must be rich -- is being sent to jail, evidently for drunk driving. She asked her gov for a pardon because this would be so unfair to her. Her outrageous request is an extension of how our society thinks about killing and maiming people while impaired. May she, and we, wake up to the real world.

Wide awake,

Lowen