Hey…where’ve you been?? What happened to the blog?
Well, shortly after my last post, I went to a job interview where it was more than strongly suggested that I abandon the blog as part of my job search. “It’s just a bad idea,” the interviewer said.
So I stopped. I left this poor infant blog floating in some sort of cyber-purgatory, neither living nor dead. I stopped putting my thoughts out to the world, not because I thought nobody cared, but because I was worried that they would.
Well, screw that. I’m back.
As far as the job hunt goes, it certainly continues. The focus may have changed, but in the end, I want people to hire me not just for my skills, but for my advice and opinions, for my ability to convey an argument, and for my ability to express a position–whether mine or not–cogently.
This blog is an outlet for exactly that kind of expression. You may read something here with which you disagree. I think that’s great. Tell me you disagree. I’ll argue my side, you argue yours, and we’ll see what happens. I may address controversial topics. I may say something that costs me a potential job or client–but frankly, if somebody is so offended by something I say here that they don’t want me to be part of their team, I’m probably not a good fit for that team, anyway.
So I’m back. In the coming days, I will probably give the blog a new name and a new look. I’m going to have to commit myself to re-engaging here, and I hope you’ll stop by to see what’s on my mind.
Rep. Jack Murtha (1932-209)
A quick note about Jack Murtha, who passed away today in a Virginia hospital at the age of 77.
He was the first Vietnam Veteran elected to Congress–he had left the Marines in 1955 but returned to active duty, received a bronze star and two purple hearts in Vietnam. After being elected to Congress, he remained part of a Marine Reserve Unit until 1990.
Because of his service, Mr. Murtha was a fierce advocate for veterans and active duty service members while in Congress. He rose through the ranks to chair the Defense Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee–overseeing our military spending and budget.
But this is what everybody knows about Jack Murtha.
Working in Pennsylvania politics for several years, I had the opportunity to meet Rep. Murtha on several occasions. Much will be written about him in the coming hours and days, but there are things I will remember from those times away from the bright lights.
Murtha was intimidating–a hulking figure who loomed as large in person as he did by reputation. He was a commanding presence in any room, which served him well in Congress. As the Dean of Pennsylvania’s Congressional delegation, Murtha would hold court in the “Pennsylvania Corner” on the house floor. All of the state’s Congressional members would check in with him before going to vote. Still, it always seemed to me that he preferred the behind-the-scenes work. While other Members grandstand, Mr. Murtha worked quietly behind the scenes, building alliances and getting things done.
Of course, that all changed in 2006, when Jack Murtha took the spotlight to become a vocal critic of the Iraq war. To me, it was his reluctance to take the spotlight that made his words more impactful. At the time, I was working with now-Representative Patrick Murphy. Murphy was running to become the first Iraq War Veteran elected to Congress, and I think Mr. Murtha took a shine to Patrick because of their shared experiences.
I will never forget the morning that Patrick and I spent in Mr. Murtha’s office, along with another Marine-turned-Pennsylvania-Congressman, Bob Brady.
The four of us sat around a table in Mr. Murtha’s office, and at first, nobody spoke. Mr. Murtha was reading his morning clips, which that morning included a map showing the current number of Iraq war fatalities in every state. Pennsylvania led the way.
What struck me that morning was how soft-spoken this enormous man was–this marine, this appropriations cardinal, this power broker–and also how much pain was in his voice when he spoke about the war and its toll. This was when first saw Mr. Murtha’s passion, and it was an incredibly humanizing moment.
For the next hour, I don’t remember anybody speaking other than Mr. Murtha, except when he specifically addressed one of us with a question. He had brought us in so that he could give his advice. He wanted to share his experiences.
As the only non-veteran in the room, and the only one there who had never run for office, it was an amazing thing to watch.
As the senior officer, as well as the senior Member of Congress in the room, the respect and attention that he commanded were palpable, and I’ve not seen anything like it since.
At the end of the discussion, after we’d spoken about Iraq, about Pennsylvania, and about Congress, Mr. Murtha offered his last piece of advice:
“You have to have an issue–a cause,” he said. “For example, mine has been diabetes.”
I did a double take because, right there, Jack Murtha had at the same time thrown me for a loop and said something completely obvious without saying it at all.
I knew Mr. Murtha as a military advocate and a powerbroker. I had never thought of him as a Representative looking out for the people of his district. Of course, this is why he was there in the first place…but it had never crossed my mind.
Mr. Murtha explained that became involved with diabetes because of high rates among his constituents. He was able to use his position as an appropriations subcommittee chair to ensure that research dollars went to addressing the problem. And despite his national importance, his chairmanship, his newfound celebrity status in the progressive community because of his opposition to the war, Jack Murtha was telling us about the importance of being responsible to the people who send you to Congress every time there’s an election.
So, when you see the obituaries and remembrances in the next few days, when you read the histories, remember this: Jack Murtha was genuine. He was passionate, cerebral, and fierce. And he never forgot why he was there.
Rest in Peace, Jack.
Last night, on The Daily Show, noted presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, noted presidential historian endorsed my position on the filibuster. At around 3:30 of this clip she announces:
“Let them filibuster. Do you know how great they’re going to look, these Republicans, trying not to go to the bathroom?”
Of course, I think I used a wittier phrase, but she’s got a lot more gravitas!
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Doris Kearns Goodwin | ||||
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Having just watched the State of the Union, I want to get something off my chest. There are some Senators who think the best thing to do right now to unclog the Senate’s arteries is to end the filibuster.
I disagree.
The best way to shake things loose is to actually enforce the filibuster.
Democrats may have lost their alleged “filibuster-proof majority,” (though, functionally, I don’t think they ever really had one), but we still have an 18-seat majority in the Senate, and it’s time to use it.
All that’s standing between this country and a lot of good policy is the threat of a filibuster. Not an actual filibuster, the threat of a filibuster.
I just got back from Massachusetts, where Scott Brown won a Senate seat on a promise to be the “41st Vote” to block the President’s agenda–and it was easy for him to to make that promise, because he doesn’t think he’ll ever asked to actually cast that vote!
Procedural filibusters have become the norm, and as a result, it now takes 60 votes in the Senate to do anything more controversial than renaming a Post Office. Frankly, sometimes it takes 60 to even to do that. It’s not the way things are supposed to be.
The Senate Majority Leader can require an actual filibuster. For the sake of accountability, he needs to do it.
Let’s see what the Republicans’ resolve really is.
Let’s see what happens when they’re forced to hold the floor, Jimmy Stewart-style, in opposition to bill after bill after bill.
Let’s see how Scott Brown’s constituents react when he’s standing in the well of the Senate, on their dime, reading the Worcester yellow pages (do they still print yellow pages?) instead of doing what they sent him to Washington to do–vote on legislation.
Let’s see if Republican leaders have the stomach to read the bible cover to cover while their constituents sit at home, waiting for the job market to pick up.
Let’s see how the American public reacts when they turn on their teevees and see who is really to blame for the gridlock that’s keeping America from moving forward.
And let’s see how long they continue to obstruct after constituents get tired of seeing their elected representatives take vote after vote after vote in favor of more readings from the book of Verizon.
Right now, Republicans are getting off easy. They threaten to block progress, then blame the Democrats for not progressing.
It’s time to call their bluff.
It’s time to make them read the phone book.
So, I had an interesting opportunity this morning.
In one of those only-in-Washington salon-type meetings, I was at a breakfast with a senior official who works on the Obama administration’s education policy. Unlike me, most of the attendees work in the education community. There were folks with advocacy groups, teacher groups, non-profits and a couple of universities. And then there was me.
Maybe a lot of what was discussed was standard fare for those folks, but as somebody who’s never really been exposed to education policy before, it was a real eye-opener. And while Health Care Reform has obviously consumed a lot of the oxygen in our very own District of Columbia, it was really encouraging to hear that this Administration still has their eye on the ball on education and a whole range of other topics.
One constant theme that was addressed was the achievement gap—the difference in educational achievement that exists between poor/underserved school districts and middle class or affluent districts. Despite No Child Left Behind, despite all that’s been done to address this gap, the gap is not narrowing. In fact, it’s widening, and more and more children are being left behind.
Continue reading »
Over at TuesdayNight, where I first blogged before it was blogging, Ian has put up a plug for this here little experiment.
This means I have to put up more content, which is a good thing.
That said, it’s late and I was out watching figure skating, complete with American Idols, Olivia Newton John, and Scott Hamilton and Dorothy Hamill. The event was called Kaleidoscope, and will air on Fox on Thanksgiving at 4:00. The goal of the program will be to raise awareness, and by association money, for cancer research. So watch.
And I’ll get back to writing soon.
[UPDATE] Fixed the link to Ian’s blog!
Hi there!
Well, for a long time, I’ve talked about putting up a blog, and now I’ve finally done it.
So, what is this, exactly?
It’s going to be a lot of things, I hope. First off, an outlet for me to write about what’s on my mind. It’s been too long since I was writing regularly, and while it might take me a few posts to get rolling, this is goal number one.
Will it be a political blog? Sometimes. Anybody who knows me know about my passion for politics. And there will never be a shortage of material–this much we know.
Will it be a food blog? Again, sometimes. I know this muddies the waters. You don’t see recipes on DailyKos and you don’t see Michael Ruhlman talking politics. At least not usually.
Will it be a blog about whatever’s in my head? Have I already said “sometimes?” As much as I love food and politics, I’ll probably rant about my Red Sox, talk about my job hunt, or anything else that catches my fancy.
Oh, and sometimes, it will be a photoblog. All my life, I’ve loved taking pictures, but somewhere along the way, I mothballed my old 35mm SLR. About a year ago, I got a dSLR, and the passion is back. So now I’m taking pictures again, and I’ll hopefully be sharing some of those, too.
So, here we go. I’m guessing this will start off a little rocky. Stick with me, and we’ll hopefully make this into something worth reading.
The first decision I had to make when setting this up was what to call it. I toyed with all kinds of politically clever names, many including double food entendres. None of them seemed particularly fitting, so, for now, it’s Raconteurs and Roustabouts.
The name comes from a Tom Waits song, “Small Change (Got Rained On With His Own .38)”. Tom Waits, like Bob Dylan, doesn’t have the prettiest voice but, also like Bob Dylan, is an amazing storyteller–or Raconteur. And why put up a blog if you don’t want to be a storyteller?
