January 15, 2017

Phil Beaver works to establish opinion only when the-indisputable-facts-of-reality have not been discovered. He seeks to refine his opinion by learning other people’s experiences and observations. The comment box below invites sharing facts, opinion, or concern. (I read, write, and listen to establish my opinion as I pursue the-objective-truth.)

Our Views:  This editorial recalls Robert Frost: A liberal is a man too broadminded to take his own side in a quarrel.

If you think TOPS should nudge students to responsibility rather than encourage squandering taxpayer’s financial well-being, call your representatives and encourage them to defeat Gov. John Bel Edwards’ political use of TOPS to persuade citizens to tax themselves. 

If your representative is a Democrat, tell him or her they were not elected to further the Democratic agenda of tax and spend, but to make the Great State of Louisiana number one for Louisiana citizens.

If your representative responds that educators need more money, consider that educators need to stop teaching social democracy, contemporary liberalism, progressivism, socialism, and Marxism so as to concentrate on the-indisputable-facts-of-reality. Responsibility to taxpayers predates both TOPS and progressivism . . . and the Democratic Party (1828).

My views aside, of course speak for your family finances rather than mimic The Advocate to take the wrong side in your logical construct.

Vatican-Edwards partnership (continuing question). BRFMV: Your question would seem off-the-wall were it not the appearance that the religion-government-partnership, aided by the media, empowered Rogers to take advantage of people. I recall this article from the past: theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/article_12855a6b-32f5-57c3-a8cb-519deb71711a.html but don't know of any follow-up.

The religion-government-formula starts with 1) teach fear about the afterdeath or other heartfelt possibility; 2) offer hypothetical relief from the fear; 3) suggest life-taxation, in other words financial-sacrifice, to support the hypothetical-relief-provider; and 4) spend and hoard the proceeds. Government observes how lucrative, long-standing, and unassailable a religion-business is, so many politicians partner with a popular religion. The partnership thrives and the people look at each other and wonder how the loss and ruin can continue. Yet only a dreamer can imagine ending the religion-government-partnership. That summarizes the irony in Chapter XI Machiavellianism.

I tried to communicate to John Bel Edwards a wonderful, one-time opportunity past governors left to him. “When I learned inauguration day would start with mass at St. Joseph’s cathedral, I thought that was a perfect beginning for separation of Edwards’ private hopes--I guess, for an afterdeath in heaven--from civic hopes for each Louisianans' personal integrity.” Today, I nudge “public-integrity” rather than private integrity, which can be egocentric. Please read “Imaginary inauguration of a Louisiana governor,” January 10, 2016, promotethepreamble.blogspot.com. It is typical but none the less unfortunate when an elected official’s personal hopes seem to come before the people he or she was elected to serve.

 James Gill column.  Town council members may be cautious about overcalling career officials who cover the people’s needs according to the-indisputable-facts-of-reality. For example, in every neighborhood and community, there may be local culture, but behavior matters. Fidelity matters. Civic morality matters more important than social morality. Life is for living while salvation is for death.

George Will column.  This reminds me of the George Will that did not confuse me. Anyone who objects to my strong objections to LSU’s F. King Alexander symposium “Moment or Movement?” (see the 10/24/16 post at cipbr.blogspot.com) may invite understanding by reading about Sokal’s parody of contemporary liberalism in academia. Social democracy shockingly rebukes the-indisputable-facts-of-reality. In progressivism, a person can think themselves into any reality they imagine.

Mark Ballard column. I truly do not understand Jay Dardenne. Why doesn’t the state budget like a homeowner?

The homeowner expects both routine maintenance and common disaster for the area. For example, when we built our home, I put extra dollars into reinforced concrete beams supporting the slab. My other option was to build the house on some twenty friction-columns at budget-breaking capital cost. Alas, after a quarter century, the slab cracked and we installed WCK resistance-columns and jacks. I had to draw from accumulated predictable-disaster funds. I carry complete insurance against even worse surprises. What’s Louisiana’s model for responsible budgeting?

Richard Cohen column.   So many time opinion against a person’s person rather than opinion is reversed in the expressions: “Here was the liar in full contempt for [the-objective-truth].”

Jeff Sadow column. “This year, Louisianans will pay more than $200 million in extra insurance premium taxes and hospital taxes passed along to them in order to pay for expansion. It will get worse.”

While you did not express anything, you stated the obvious. However, Cassidy happens to be one of two US Senators from the Great State of Louisiana.

To Matthew White: When I gave money to the Edwards campaign and whispered in his ear to work with Cassidy on Medicaid Expansion, it was with the full expectation that Edwards would become governor. I was naive enough to believe a governor would work with his US Senator. Wrong again, Phil Beaver! (My first referenced wrong was thinking Jay Dardenne was worthy of my work and contribution. I would not go back to before if I could.)

You are brief, but what's your point? 

Rich Lowry column.  Lowry is correct to assess the facts about Obama’s folly respecting Russia. However, he joins the folly of so many writers trying to advise Donald Trump. How many times has Trump said, so cheerfully, “I’m not going to reveal my strategy!” How in the world do lame writers qualify for syndication? I guess they are approved by writers---thoughtless word arrangers.

Danny Heitman column.  Thank you for sharing your reading. I got my first experience with high propriety psychological cruelty as a 20 year old cooperative-engineering-scholarship-student. Two PhD’s would dominate every DuPont-Chattanooga party I attended. The two intellectually tore each other apart and sometimes hit innocent by-standers. I saw people crush each other while the audience cheered.

The eyewitness to Vidal destroying Buckley may be viewed in the documentary “Best of Enemies,” see magpictures.com/bestofenemies/ . I agree fully that the documentary makes Buckley look mean more than strong and therefore vulnerable to Vidal: see nationalreview.com/article/423135/buckley-vidal-and-long-hot-summer-68-james-rosen . The permanence of Buckley’s self-destruction over Vidal informs all of us not to let hatred enter our private-person. I do not have a clue as to how Buckley affected any hatred Vidal may have held. If Buckley had let go of the incident, perhaps Vidal would have, too. Vidal won because he was prepared to discuss the-indisputable-facts rather than display psychological prowess.

I’ll let you discover Buckley not letting go if you are interested.

By all measures, IMO, Donald Trump is both humorous and likeable in his psychological banter with liars, whereas both Buckley and Vidal were deadly vicious in their own ways. See for example, youtube.com/watch?v=NnRVAzFa6Og .

Phil Beaver does not “know”. Phil trusts and is committed to the-objective-truth of which most is undiscovered and some is understood. Phil Beaver is agent for A Civic People of the United States, a Louisiana, education non-profit. See online at promotethepreamble.blogspot.com.