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This apology was needed, Mr. President

afghan hosp

War can be a tragically imprecise endeavor.

Mistakes happen and when they do the consequences can be dire in the extreme. Such was the case when an AC-130 gunship strafed and bombed a building that turned out to be a hospital in Afghanistan run by the medical organization Doctors Without Borders.

Several patients and staff members died.

What was President Obama’s reaction? After some hesitation initially, he has apologized to Doctors Without Borders. Of course, as the New York Times reported, the president’s apology possibly could draw some of the criticism from those who have ridiculed him during his entire time in office for being an “apologist in chief.”

This time, though, there should be none of that sniping.

Hospital bombed

It’s not the first time that a commander in chief has issued an apology for actions that occur on the field of battle. The Times points out that President Bush did so in 2004 in response to treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, Iraq.

There once was a time, before the era of precision ordnance, that military powers didn’t feel the need to apologize for killing innocent civilians. The Allies deployed air power without such regard in Europe and over Japan during World War II. In the years since, though, we’ve come to expect much greater accuracy and an insistence that our forces take aim only at military targets.

Doctors Without Borders insists on an independent investigation into what happened in this instance. I’m OK with that, too. In its grief over the loss of life, DWB called the attack a “war crime.”

President Obama said the attack was a mistake. He has apologized on behalf of the huge military apparatus he commands.

Let’s get to the truth before leveling accusations.

 

local news, Uncategorized

Downtown hotel gets green light

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amarillo hotel

They’re busting up some pavement in downtown Amarillo.

Construction has begun on Xcel Energy’s new office complex. They’ve vacated the Coca-Cola distribution center across the street from City Hall.

And tonight, the Amarillo City Council gave its approval — with a little tinkering with some of the terms — to the construction of a downtown convention hotel.

Is it possible that downtown’s redevelopment inertia is too strong to resist?

I do hope so.

Embassy Suites hopes to open for business in 2017. Building planners are going to break ground in a couple of weeks downtown on a $45 million hotel complex. A local bank is providing financing for about $28 million of it. Hotel developer Chuck Patel has discussed getting other investors to cover the rest of it.

Oh, and that parking garage is going to be built as well.

Are the flowers blooming all over the downtown revival project? Not just yet. We still have this election coming up Nov. 3 that will decide the fate of the multipurpose event venue.

Some folks dislike the idea of a ballpark being included in this package. Others have argued that the ballpark will be more than just a place where a team will play baseball. Opponents say there isn’t enough of a market to make suitable use of a $32 million outdoor venue. Proponents argue that creative marketing and promotion can attract more than enough activity to the site.

I happen to be on board with what has been proposed. I plan to vote for the MPEV on Election Day.

However, I am heartened to see the progress that is continuing to push this downtown effort forward.

The Amarillo City Council tonight made the correct decision.

local news, Uncategorized

Matney sets a principled example

downtown Ama Inc

Paul Matney’s resignation the other day from the Downtown Amarillo Inc. board demonstrated a high ethical standard that the former Amarillo College president has set for himself throughout his lengthy public life.

He joined a group formed to fight for approval of a Nov. 3 ballot measure that will decide the fate of a multipurpose event center being planned for downtown Amarillo. Then he quit the DAI board because, in his mind, the two roles presented a potential conflict of interest.

His keen attention to ethical detail should not be lost on others who find themselves facing a similar potential for conflict.

There appears to be another DAI board member who ought to look inward. He is Lester Simpson, who wears another important hat: publisher of the Amarillo Globe-News.

First, I must disclose that I left the Globe-News in August 2012 under unhappy circumstances created by an organizational restructuring that resulted in my resignation from a post I’d held at the newspaper for more than 17 years.

Where is the conflict?

Simpson gets paid to run a newspaper whose franchise is to report — and comment on — community affairs. The reporting must include a thorough examination of all the issues relating to those affairs — warts and all. The commentary ought to be critical when the need arises.

Simpson’s role on the DAI board gives him access to proprietary information that may be relevant to the public’s interest. Is he going to withhold that information from the newspaper he has run since 2002? Or is he going to be loyal first and foremost to the organization that pays his salary?

And what about the commentary, the newspaper’s other obligation? How does the newspaper look critically at decisions delivered by DAI if its chief executive officer — the publisher — is part of the process that produces a decision that the newspaper otherwise might feel compelled to criticize?

DAI’s mission statement says this: “Downtown Amarillo, Inc. is committed to making Downtown Amarillo a vibrant and attractive place for people to live, work, play and worship, while preserving Amarillo’s rich history and culture.”

That is a noble and worthy goal.

But the process that drives DAI to achieve that goal can produce criticism. Does DAI do everything perfectly? No. But the newspaper has had its hands tied because its publisher wears two hats.

With all the changes occurring in journalism these days — with the Internet robbing newspapers of paid subscribers and changing the very way that papers deliver the news — it is my fervent hope that the noble craft isn’t forsaking its time-honored principle of protecting the public interest.

An important line of demarcation between media watchdog and newsmaker is being blurred in Amarillo.

Paul Matney recognizes the potential for conflict when he sees it — and he reacted appropriately when he faced that potential head-on. Is the message being lost on one of his former DAI colleagues?

 

national news, political news, Uncategorized

Boehner may become lobbyist … who knew?

lobbying1

Twenty-five years on Capitol Hill bought John Boehner a lot of friendships.

OK, perhaps “bought” isn’t entirely appropriate, but he did acquire a lot of contacts.

So, the question of the day is this: Will the soon-to-be former House speaker join the corps of high-dollar lobbyists?

Gee. Do you think?

Boehner may move to K Street

Boehner announced this week he’s resigning from Congress. He’s giving up his power House speakership because, word has it, he was tired of fighting with the TEA Party wing of his Republican Party.

The House of Representatives requires a one-year cooling off period before former members can actually lobby. But let’s face it: Boehner’s connections will enable him to line up any opportunity he chooses to pursue once the year is up.

Observers note that Boehner is a savvy politician who has made many friends in and out of government.

USA Today reports: “He’ll get seven figures on the street,” said Tom Davis, a fellow Republican and former Virginia congressman who now lobbies for the financial-consulting giant Deloitte. “He’s got a lot of friends and allies in Congress. But it’s not necessarily his Rolodex that’s valuable. It’s just that he knows Congress inside and out.”

I guess it’s safe to say that Boehner will console his loss of political power with an abundance of cash he’ll earn once he signs on to represent well-heeled interests looking for any advantage they can get on Capitol Hill.

John Boehner is a cinch to find it for them.

 

local news, Uncategorized

Motorists get phone-ban message on highway

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cellphone ban

SAN ANTONIO — What a capital idea!

Texas’s second-largest city has a ban on handheld cell phones and texting while driving.

How do I know that? I read repeated messages on electronic highway signs as my wife and I tooled through San Antonio en route from Rockport to Johnson City.

Holy mackerel! I lost count of the signs I saw that warned motorists that texting and using handheld phones was in violation of a city ordinance.

What a concept! Letting motorists know while they’re driving through the city that they’d better behave themselves while weaving in and out of traffic.

Gosh, do you think other cities should adopt such a proactive approach to notifying motorists — particularly those who don’t live in that city — of such municipal restrictions?

Amarillo has a similar ban. It also has a couple of interstate highways running through it.

I’ve seen general messages on occasion flashed on electronic signs about the hazards of texting or using handheld phones while driving. I do not recall reading anything about a municipal ordinance that bans such activity.

I’m thinking it’s a pretty tool to let motorists know they’d better obey the law while they’re traveling through the city.

Footnote: I would have taken a picture of a sign across the freeway, except … well, you know.

 

 

Uncategorized

So far so good … with Kitty on board

puppy

SAN FELIPE, Texas — I’ve enjoyed regaling you with tales of our puppy, Toby.

I recently wrote about a big test that awaited us as we prepared to hit the road with Toby and, yep, his big “sister,” Mittens, our 13-year-old kitty.

A week in on that journey and I’m happy to report that all is well. With me. My wife, Our dog. And finally, our kitty.

We’ve hauled her halfway across Texas. She’s proven herself to be a champion traveler. We were cautiously optimistic about how she’d react. But really … who knew?

Here’s how it goes.

We hook up the fifth wheel and we take off. Toby has the run of the cab of our pickup. Mittens in the back seat of the truck in a kennel. Does she make a lot of noise? Nope. Does she settle in once we get moving? Yes.

Whoever is not driving the truck often has to look back into the kennel to make sure Mittens is all right. Sure enough, she’s just napping, which is what cats do about 90 percent of the time.

When we get to our camp site, we unhook the fifth wheel. We bring the kennel inside, open it up and Mittens finds her way to one of two favorite “hiding places.” One is behind one of our couches; the other is near the head of our bed.

I’m thrilled to report that our great traveling experiment is working out just fine.

Mittens is comfortable walking around the fifth wheel once we have it parked. She cuddles and nuzzles us — just as she does at home.

As for Toby? Well, he’s still as cool as they come.

He’s having the time of his life.

Mittens? I think she’ll let us know … in due course.

 

Uncategorized

Tilting left, most of the time

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conservative-liberal-road-sign

Readers of this blog, specifically those with a conservative political outlook, have at times accused me of being a flamer, a lefty progressive.

One reader keeps referring to “liberal logic” when trying to counter whatever argument I seek to make.

It’s time, therefore, to set the record straight on a few issues.

On abortion, I believe in a woman’s right to control her own body. Do I condone abortion? No. Neither do I believe government should set laws that criminalize someone from making an intensely personal and heart-wrenching decision. I could not counsel any woman to terminate a pregnancy, but I will never condemn her for making that decision.

Wealth redistribution runs counter to my capitalist instincts. Bernie Sanders, a Democratic presidential candidate, makes no bone about it. He’s a socialist and he’s damn proud of it. Good for him. He wants to share the wealth. I don’t have much wealth, but my wife and I do have a nest egg that’s building and we intend to keep our hands on it.

War or diplomacy? I’ll take diplomacy every time whenever possible. I am weary of Republican critics of Barack Obama who contend he is too timid about the use of force against our adversaries/enemies. I have had a tiny exposure to war — back in the late 1960s. Some of you might remember that time. What angers me more than anything in this regard is hearing the get-tough talk from chicken hawks in Congress who fought like hell during the old days to avoid going to war while many of the rest of us were answering the call to duty.

I struggle with the term “gay marriage.” I happen to be a traditionalist on this matter. But I do know what the U.S. Constitution says about “equal protection.” It guarantees that anyone is entitled to marry whomever they wish, without regard to their sexuality. If that’s what the Constitution states — and if the Supreme Court affirms it, which it has done — then I accept the document’s intent.

I am not a partisan Democrat. Texas voting law gives people the opportunity to choose which primary in which they can cast votes. In the two-plus decades I’ve lived in the heavily Republican Texas Panhandle, I’ve cast many votes in the Republican primary. Why? Because here, the Republican primary is where the action is. Democrats often don’t field candidates for local offices. I want my voice heard on races involving county government and the Legislature. I’ll acknowledge here, as I’ve done before, that I haven’t yet voted for a Republican for president since I cast my first vote in 1972. I do, though, split my ticket liberally.

Rich people should pay more in taxes than middle-income folks. I have no difficulty insisting that wealthy Americans should pay more per capita than those of us who haven’t acquired as much wealth. I don’t want them to pay all of their wealth, just enough to help fund government. Hey, they can still be rich!

Finally, I believe in good government. I don’t believe necessarily in big government. I believe government can be a force to help people. I don’t believe, as Ronald Reagan said upon taking the presidential oath in 1981, that government “is the problem.” I want our elected leaders in Congress to stop using their anger at certain agencies to threaten to shut down the entire government. That is demagoguery at — or near — its worst.

There could be more examples. I’m sure some of you will challenge these few items. I just felt the need to lay it out there.

Do I lean left? Sure. There you have it.

State news, Uncategorized

Be careful when naming structures

carrol thomas

BEAUMONT, Texas —  For many years I have held the belief that it is risky to put the names of living people on the side of buildings or other structures.

Why? Their legacies aren’t complete. Something might happen to tarnish their good names.

Today I laid eyes on just such an example. It only reinforces my belief in this principle: Make sure the person you are honoring has passed from the scene before you put his or her name on a structure.

Thomas leaves his mark

We drove by the Carrol “Butch” Thomas athletic field this morning. It’s a shiny new field where Beaumont’s public high schools’ athletic teams participate.

Why the concern over Thomas’s name being on it? He retired in 2012 as Beaumont’s school superintendent. Two years later, he crap  hit the fan at BISD. The Texas Education Agency fired Thomas’s successor, dismissed the school board and took over day-to-day operation of a school system injured grievously by malfeasance and outright corruption.

Two points: I once observed this school district from my post at the newspaper in Beaumont; but  never met Thomas, who became BISD superintendent after we left Beaumont for Amarillo.

I followed this story from afar, though.

It’s impossible for me to believe that much of what exploded after Thomas retired wasn’t already building while he was on the job.

He was a polarizing figure in Beaumont, according to all that I had heard about him. What’s more, the very idea that a sitting superintendent would allow his name to be inscribed on a structure seems off-putting in the extreme.

Thomas said at the time of his retirement that he was leaving while conditions were good. However, the storm clouds were beginning to form.

They broke not long after he left town.

Zooming past that gleaming athletic structure — with his name towering high above everything else nearby — just makes me recall the hazard associated with honoring a living individual

Knowing what I know what has happened to the school district he left behind leaves me with a bitter taste.

national news, Uncategorized

A compromise in Rowan County?

Kim-Davis-450x253

Kim Davis went back to work Monday in Rowan County, Ky.

The question loomed: Would she do her taxpayer-funded job, which includes issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples?

Well, no, but actually yes.

Davis, the rogue county clerk who spent a few days in the slammer when a federal judge found her in contempt of court for railing to issue the licenses, said she wouldn’t do issue the licenses herself, but wouldn’t stand in the way of her deputy clerks who chose to do their jobs on her behalf.

You know, that sounds like a reasonable compromise to me.

If only, though, Davis would understand a couple of key points in this ridiculous sideshow.

One is that her religious faith isn’t being challenged. Two is that she took an oath to serve the entire public, and that includes gay citizens who, according to the nation’s highest court, are entitled to the same rights as all U.S. citizens.

If she can’t perform all the duties she took an oath to perform, she ought to quit.

 

 

political news, Uncategorized

Speak ‘American,’ Sarah? Really?

do-you-speak-english

I do enjoy listening on occasion to Sarah “Half-Term Governor” Palin as she tries to make sense of what’s being said along the campaign trail.

She recently stood behind Donald Trump’s criticism of Jeb Bush for speaking Spanish to a crowd of supporters. Bush’s wife is Mexican and the Republican presidential candidate is fluent in the language.

Trump said Bush should emphasize that English is the preferred language in this country.

Then came Palin, who wanted to weigh in.

“It’s a benefit of Bush to be able to be so fluent, because we have a large and wonderful Hispanic population building America, and that’s a great connection he has with them,” Palin said. “On the other hand, I think we can send a message and say, ‘You want to be in America, A, you’d better be here legally or you’re out of here. B, when you’re here, let’s speak American.”

She seemed to catch herself, saying a moment later that Americans need to speak English.

Still, does she take strenuous issue with those who prefer to speak, umm, Mexican?

Let’s all speak American