Political Mailing

Contrary to appearances, I don't publish every damn thing that comes into my head in this blog. Sometimes there are passing fancies that never get written down, and then there are the subjects that are started, and for some reason or another, abandoned.

There are already a double-handful of half-written and unposted comments littering my computer's desk top. Here's the one where I view the Democratic Presidential Candidates a week before Iowa and declare that the wheels have come off the Kerry campaign. Here's the one where I marvel at why people fear Hillary (She's an Evil Genius!). Here's a bit on zombies that I started when I had that heckuva head cold that seemed inspired at the time, but now seems sort of limp. And, in a touch of irony, here's a list of books I've abandoned and the reasons why.

And then there's this, a mailing I got about a month ago now from State Representitive Jack Cairnes of the fighting 47th Legislative Disctrict. I had mentioned the red-meat Democrat mailing from Geoff Simpson a few weeks before, and thought I should analyze this one as well. Well, I didn't, and in doing so kept myself from commenting on other local issues, such as the current boondoggle on the Primaries (more on that later, maybe). So anyway, the weirdness that is Jack Cairnes. You can follow this along with the rant here. It's a PDF file, so you'll need Adobe Acrobat to read it.

So the mailing in question has three columns. In the first column leads with a declaration of victory in getting the Boeing 7E7 into Washington State. This is an odd victory to be declaring, since the general opinion is that Boeing basically held the state upside down and shook it until its fillings dropped out on the floor. Weirder still is the fact that the Rep. from southern King County is so pleased with the plane being built up in Everett, north of the city. But still, there's going to be Boeing in Washington State, so that's good. Except that Boeing is consolidating of late, spinning off pieces and moving everything into Renton in a "Move to the Lake" which, last time I checked, wasn't in the 47th district either. And from what I can gather, Boeing has been pulling out its southern operations to do so. So its an odd victory to be claiming credit for.

So, the next entry is on the importance is saving our health care system. That's good. The way to do this, of course, is to throw the clamps on malpractice insurance. Because its important to keep employers happy. I kid you not, that's the spin he's giving it. This tone goes on through the middle column as well with long passages on Increasing Competitiveness, Tort Reform, and Reducing Nasty Laws against our corporate masters. No, I'm serious about this. The answer to the question "What are you doing for me?" seems to be "Well, I'm making your boss's life easier". How . . . nice.

Then in the last column, lower right, there's a bit on the Ravensdale Market. This is a great local issue - the short form is, through current regulation, a small local market that's been serving the community for almost a hundred years is in violation because an existing well wasn't grandfathered in with the new law at the time. There are a couple ways of dealing with this. The column notes that owners are seeking a Federal Grant to help, and thanks to local residents for their support. Sounds like great local interest, except there's no mention of what Cairnes' office is doing in the matter? Helping to get the grant? (He's state-level, though), Working to appeal the ruling? Its an odd entry, because while it points out a local issue, it doesn't say what he's is doing to help. It is particularly weird given the . . . supine . . . approach to Boeing at the top of the newsletter.

All in all, its a strange little document. Most people would toss it without reading, but to be honest, the picture of the plane (the holy 7E7) caught my eye and dragged me into this particular rabbit hole. I put off commenting on it, wanting to do a little more research into the matter (particularly if Ravensdale situation). Then I realized - the major networks don't fact check, why should I? This is commentary! (Well, actually, I did find a lot on Boeing pulling out of the Kent area, but nothing new on Ravensdale).

The mailing does have some good news. Because its an election year, Rep. Cairnes can only send out two legislative mailings a year (any others would be on his dime). In Cairnes case, this is a good thing, because I think he'd really be in trouble if people started actually READING what he's up to.

(Well, its good to get THAT out of my system).

More later,