Totally Clueless to Deal with Abortion Legislation

I found Louisiana Republican State Representative Julie Emerson’s  recent newspaper Guest Opinion in which she appears to be bragging about how well written the abortion ban, which she co-authored, is "to protect the unborn,” absurd.  If one carefully reads her letter you can detect the fatal flaw of this legislation, namely, “We wrote Act 545 after thoughtful deliberation to protect the unborn life, mothers and good-faith physicians.” 

In reality, this act was not well written because it was penned by a group having no medical training or understanding of the procedures involved in this health care issue. Their focus was myopically focused on one single issue, the outcome of an abortion.  It is obvious from the text of Act 545, that the complexities of the health issues that might lead to the termination of birth, completely eluded them.

Doctors, not politicians should have written the legislative act, with only cursory guidance from our esteemed politicians.  They could have found many physicians with similar views on abortion to formulate this legislation. However, with all the ambiguity in Act 545, which Rep. Emerson, and our astute A.G., Jeff Landry, claim doesn’t exist, but which the majority in the Louisiana medical  profession claim does exist, it is obvious that they didn’t know what they were doing, and have nothing to brag about. 

Sadly, Louisiana is not alone in this fatal flaw approach as more and more politicians attempt to deal with the abortion issue, which is a health care issue as opposed to a political one.

The Supreme Court returned the issue of abortion rights to the states, but unfortunately what we have now is a bunch of clueless politicians writing and passing legislation about a complex medical scenario which impacts the health of women.

Trump Shows His True Colors

Without wading into a discussion regarding the pros and cons of the policies that President Trump instituted during his presidency, one characteristic that I always attributed to Trump, and which Trump supporters  never accepted, was that when it came to a decision which could benefit the U.S. or his enterprises, it was always about the latter.  The proof of this behavior is now never more clearly evident than his recent hosting and support of the Saudi Arabia golf tournament held at his Bedminster Golf Course, just 50 miles from the 9/11 catastrophe.  He will make a bundle from this event and another such Saudi golf event later this year.

When Trump was confronted about this blatant disrespect for those who died and survived 9/11, he stated, “Well, nobody’s gotten to the bottom of 9/11, unfortunately, and they should have,”

The fact is fifteen of the 19 hijackers on Sept. 11, 2001, were Saudi nationals. And documents declassified by the FBI last year detailed contacts the hijackers had with Saudi associates in the U.S.

Obviously, Trump also thought Saudi Arabia was responsible, because on February 17, 2016, on national TV, Trump asked his pals at Fox and Friends “Who blew up the World Trade Center?”  “It wasn’t the Iraqis; it was Saudi — take a look at Saudi Arabia, open the documents.” Later that same day while campaigning in South Carolina he claimed there were “secret papers” that could prove it was “the Saudis” who were in fact responsible for the attacks on 9/11. “It wasn’t the Iraqis that knocked down the World Trade Center … because they have papers in there that are very secret, you may find it’s the Saudis, OK?”

Additionally, in his third presidential debate with Hilary Clinton he lambasted the Saudi government for executing homosexuals and treating women “horribly,” and verbally attacked Hillary Clinton for taking $25 million from the Saudis; from “people that push gays off … buildings."  "These are people that kill women and treat women horribly, and yet you take their money.”

Why now the change of heart by Trump?  Simple, as I stated, Trump was, and still is, always concerned about what’s best for Trump, above all else.  Even regarding the respect for others; and that will never change. It’s called ‘hypocrisy greed,’ something that the 9/11 folks are tragically now the object of.

Mayor Cantell Loves Her Trips on the Public's Dime

I must admit I found the statement by Gregory Joseph, Mayor Cantrell's spokesperson, justifying the mayor's planned trip to Singapore next week humorous beyond belief.  He stated, "This is an opportunity for us not just to lift up what we are doing in New Orleans, but also to hear what other successful cities across the globe are doing."  Maybe the mayor can highlight the city's unreliable garbage pick up services,  the 2 1/2 hour average wait for 911 police responses, if you're lucky enough to get a response at all, the lack of a plan to deal with the spiraling homeless population, the broken sanitation/sewerage system, and the out of control shootings and carjackings that plague its residents daily. 

Personally, I'd be embarrassed to attend, but then again Cantrell wants to travel as much as she can world-wide on the taxpayers' dime before she can no longer afford such luxuries.

Louisiana Residents Duped Once Again!

Don’t know if you missed it, but our local news outlets just covered a story about the increase in automobile insurance rates.  Our illustrious State Insurance Commissioner, Jim Donelon, was on the news giving all kind of excuses as to why this occurred.  An increase also occurred last year. However, when I wrote a commentary in the local newspaper several months ago questioning why this had occurred given the fact that our legislators had passed a bill they claimed would lower rates, I was castigated in several Letters to the Editor, insisting I was too impatient and that lower rates would occur.

In my initial commentary about this issue I wrote:  “In 2020, Louisiana politicians passed a bill which they touted as a major win for automobile drivers in our state, a promise of lower insurance rates.  Our Republican legislators duped the public into believing that our high auto insurance rates were due to the ridiculously high number of lawsuits filed against insurance companies by the overabundance of accident attorneys in our state.  In response, our esteemed legislators passed a bill that would limit damage suits by people injured in car wrecks. They claimed the bill would make the state’s auto insurance market more competitive and induce auto insurers to pass their cost savings from the bill to consumers.”

One of our more astute legislators wanted a ‘hold accountable’ clause included in the bill stipulating that the insurance companies would decrease rates 20%.  The majority of our reps refused to include that clause.  Maybe they were just more concerned about their campaign contributions from these insurance companies, rather than actually benefiting their constituents.

The reality of this entire situation is, we are still waiting for rates to drop and are apparently relying on the benevolence of the “Like a Good Neighbor” and “You’re in Good Hands” companies.  If their handling of home owners’ claims for Ida is any indication of their desire to provide relief to their paying customers, I doubt if we will ever see automobile insurance rates decrease, or stop increasing.

I'll repeat it once again, we have been duped by State Insurance Commissioner, Jim Donelon, the State Insurance Commissioners, and our representatives.  Let’s remember this at the next election.

Check the Pump

Finally, my prayers have been answered because the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality is going to get off its duff and address the contamination of Louisiana rivers and soil by fecal matter.  And yes, you heard it correctly, ‘poop’ as kids refer to it.  However, it’s really the Environmental Protection Agency that’s forcing Louisiana to do it, it’s not of Louisiana’s own volition.

Louisiana is going to get over $490,000 to investigate why the Natalbany River and Yellow River are choking with this contamination.  Both are no longer safe to swim in or fish.  Sadly, the expected culprit is humans and their use of aerated sewerage waste systems outside city limits.  These systems drain into ditches in front of homes, and eventually find their way into river ways and soil throughout our state.

I am told that LSU came up with this design as a cheaper and more readily adaptable way to handle rural homeowners’ sewerage as opposed to a septic tank with a leaching field.   The system usually consists of two debris settling tanks buried underground and an air pump connected to a pipe which runs to the bottom of one of the tanks and passes air into it.  Maybe it was a good idea, but its realistic implementation was horrible, because it requires a crucial maintenance element which if ignored makes the system worthless, and most ignore the maintenance part.

The aerator pump is the key element in the system because it stimulates bacteria growth essential in decomposing the fecal matter and purifying the water before it drains into the open ditches in front of one’s home.

I usually take a three mile walk once or twice a week and I can tell you that I would guess about 99.9% of the systems installed in the homes I pass are non-functioning.   I either see disconnected pumps, black water pouring out of the drainage pipe, notice a pungent smell, or sewerage debris in the ditches.

I once had a conversation with a neighbor about how I had to rebuild my aerator pump every two to three years, to which he replied, “Really, I’ve had mine for ten years and never had to anything, it just keeps humming along.”  Sadly, his pump was indeed running, but the rubber diaphragms inside the pump responsible for moving the air were broken.  The pump was doing nothing but “humming.”

In the climate we live in if you can go more than three years without replacing the pump’s rubber diaphragms, you’re lucky.  Rebuild kits are available on line, and it’s an easy job.   If you’re not mechanically adept to rebuild the pump, buy a new one.   They are not cheap, but just remember you are not paying a monthly sewerage processing charge like you do in the city.  So even with that possible three year expense, you’re saving money.  If a part failed on your car and made it inoperable, you would find the money to fix it, but when it comes to preventing pollution of our lakes and streams, most choose to ignore it.

Hopefully, you do not pass all this discussion off as just some ‘bleeding heart environmentalist’ trying to save the planet.  Our inaction regarding this is the poisoning of the soil and waterways which we depend upon for food.  By the way, you can be fined for a malfunctioning system if caught, or turned in by a concerned neighbor.  Here is what the Louisiana statue states, "A person shall not directly or indirectly discharge, or allow to be discharged, the contents or effluent from any plumbing fixtures, vault, privy, portable toilet, or septic tank, into any road, street, gutter, ditch, water course, body of water, or onto the surface of the ground." 

If we continue to ignore this problem very soon we will have to change our state’s slogan from ‘A Sportsman’s Paradise’ to ‘A Sportsman’s Pollution Hell;’ so please, check the pump and your overall system.

Pro-Life? Practice what you preach!

Well the Pro-Lifers were finally successful in their 49 year campaign to overturn a woman’s right to abortion in the U.S.   And in the United States, thirteen states, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming, enacted trigger laws that will immediately automatically ban abortion.  However, it’s interesting to note that while these states were interested in protecting the life of the unborn, they apparently have no problem with failure to provide sufficient care during pre-birth and after the birth of the child, for all these states rank the lowest in prenatal care, and child rearing assistance for the unwed.

Notable, with little surprise, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama are in the top three with the highest percentage of babies born with low birth weights rates due to inadequate prenatal care, which can lead to death. This is clearly supported in 2020 data which indicated that Mississippi was first and Louisiana was second in infant mortality rates.  Also noteworthy is that Texas, and Mississippi have the highest percentage of women receiving no prenatal care during their first trimester.

In addition, all these states, including Louisiana, have some of the highest rates of childhood poverty, premature birth rates, and limited access to health insurance for child bearing age low income mothers.

However, the trigger laws for Louisiana are even more devastating since no exceptions are made for rape or incest. Can you imagine the mental impact that will have on a woman forced to raise a child conceived in that manner?  Maybe our esteemed Republican legislators just assume the philosophy of the Republican candidate running for Virginia's Seventh Congressional District who recently stated that “you can’t get pregnant from rape.”

It is truly sad that the Pro-Life movement legislators’ agenda didn’t actually energetically address during its 49 year quest what its name implied.  They continually resisted attempts to pass legislative funding to provide a support system for better quality care for mothers during pre-birth and for the child after its birth.  This is particularly evident in the states with the most stringent abortion restriction laws.

Hopefully, the Pro-Life movement won’t just fold up shop and ride off into the sunset now that’s its myopic focus has been accomplished.

But I seriously doubt much will change in the Republican controlled abortion restriction states regarding the quality of prenatal care and child rearing assistance as a result of this historic Supreme Court decision.  I suspect it will just worsen.

Let's Start Docking the Pay of Our Legislators

In today’s world, if you don’t show up for your job, for reasons other than illness or a personal emergency, your pay is docked.  And, if you fail to do your job, you’re fired. However, apparently that reality scenario seems non-existent for our esteemed state legislators.

Last week, a bill that could have had a major impact on finally moving Louisiana out of the bottom two positions on most national educational performance polls, ground to a halt in the Louisiana Senate.  The bill, which already had received the stamp of approval from House representatives, would have held back third graders who could not pass a reading assessment after three tries.  Such students would undergo extensive remedial work during the school day, including at least 90 minutes per day instruction emphasizing phonics, fluency, comprehension and other reading strategies.

This was obviously an extremely important bill for the Louisiana senate to consider, but it failed by just 2 votes to advance further.  However, what was even more upsetting than its failure to pass was the fact that 6 senators didn’t even vote on the bill. These included senators, Cathey, Cloud, Fields, Foil, Harris and Tarver. 

I don’t know who was actually physically present or absent in the senate building when the voting occurred, but the bottom line was they all failed to do their job.  They were not doing what Louisiana voters hired them to do; vote.

This behavior happens all too frequently in both legislative branches in the hallowed halls of Baton Rouge, and it needs to stop.  

Obviously, we can’t fire them for this delinquent behavioral, but I suggest we do implement a procedure that might alter their behavior.  Therefore, I challenge our legislators to implement the same procedure that applies to the everyday working residents in our state, docking their pay.  I think a good starting figure should be $100.00 per each non-voting incident.  If you’re physically absent from the legislative building due to illness and produce a doctor’s excuse, or absent due to a documented emergency, I’ll let you slide.

Our legislators are paid to basically do two things, propose legislation, and vote on it.  And yes, it takes a spine to go on record for all to see regarding one’s stance on proposed legislation. Obviously some seem to be missing this vital part of their body, and choose instead to ‘not show up for work.’ 

We need to stop treating our legislators as prima-donnas, and hold them accountable to the same standards that exist in the real world for not doing one’s job, dock their pay.