Turning Pot Against Itself

I'm hoping the Oshkosh Common Council keeps its marijuana possession fine debate going for another two months--as the people who come before them in support of the drug are far more entertaining than those that come to complain about special assessments on their property.  Last night, Mayor Steve Cummings warned those signed up to speak to the Council that discussion could only focus on amending the fine for possession--not for full-on legalization of marijuana in Oshkosh.  So how does the very first person to step up the podium start their comments? "I'm here to encourage the city to legalize the possession of marijuana".

Anyway, I think I have a way to flip the demand for legalized marijuana 180-degrees and get its most-ardent supporters to turn against it: put the power of Corporate America to work.  If you want to nip legalized pot in the bud (pun intended) allow big businesses to get involved and start making huge profits.  Let Archer-Daniels-Midland plant millions of acres of weed.  Grant Monsanto patents on dozens of strains of the plants that are drought and pest-resistant.  Have Bristol-Meyers-Squibb corner the market on medicinal marijuana products.  Approve herbicides developed by Dow Chemical to treat pot fields.  Sell low-cost marijuana products produced by RJ Reynolds over the counter at places like WalMart and Walgreens.  We could even allow the giant marketing firms to create cute advertising campaigns that make you think smoking dope is the coolest thing that any human can do.  And then make sure to publicize the BILLIONS of dollars of profit those corporations are making from the newly-legalized "industry".

I can guarantee that as soon as marijuana becomes "big business" the people who circulate the petitions and attend the council meetings and organize the rallies on college campuses will immediately become the most vocal opponents of pot.  Suddenly, all of the "medical studies" will show that medicinal marijuana really doesn't do anything for you--and that the drug companies are lying about its effectiveness just to get people to buy it.  The effects of using commercial pot products will be questioned as "corporate greed" will take priority over "public safety".  Eventually, states will be encouraged to sue marijuana producers for "marketing a product they knew was addictive to an unsuspecting public".

So long as marijuana is grown on boutique, organic farms and sold in cool little dispensaries by "independent distributors" it can be supported by liberals.  But as soon as it becomes a cash crop and the "wrong people" are profiting off of it--pot will become a "danger to society" and should be highly-regulated by the Government again.  In the meantime, those of us not blowing our budget on buds can reap the profits by investing in "Big Pot" companies.

Enough With "The Process"

I know its early in the year, but I'd like Lake State University to already select its word to be banished from the English language for 2018.  My nomination is "the process".

If you listened to all of the news conference announcing Brian Gutekunst as the new General Manager of the Green Bay Packers yesterday, you would have heard team President Mark Murphy use the term "the process" nine times in about a six minute speech--and Gutekunst use it 23 times-and that was before he started taking questions from the media.

"The process" became a hot buzzword a couple of years ago (especially in sports) thanks to the Philadelphia 76ers "rebuilding effort".  The team was intentionally losing games to better its odds of winning the NBA Draft Lottery.  But you can't just tell fans paying big bucks to attend games that you are not going to even try to win them.  So their braintrust came up with the strategy of "Trust the Process"--as if there was a grand scheme in place that would guarantee championships if you are willing to sit through absolute dreck for the next couple of seasons.

Instead of becoming a national joke, Philly fans actually jumped onto the "Trust the Process" bandwagon--even buying t-shirts with the stupid saying on it, like their gullibility was somehow going to make the team better.  Yet here they are--several years into "the process"--and the Sixers are still terrible--even with all of their high draft picks.

Obsiously, other sports executives have decided to mimic Philadelphia--so now everything involved in sports strategy is "the process".  Mike McCarthy used it often to explain Brett Hundley's clueless performances while filling in for Aaron Rodgers this past season.  And now it is creeping into the world of business and politics--with leaders in both making "Well, we are going through the process of determining....." a common phrase.

Maybe it does make you sound like you have a master plan for everything you do--when you usually don't.  Maybe it makes you sound like you are putting in a lot of work on something--when you likely aren't.  But let's start the process of determining the process to get "the process" out of the lexicon.

Oprah Ain't Running

Based on my social media feeds this morning, the field of Democratic candidates for President has been cleared--Oprah Winfrey is clearly the people's choice for 2020.  I have to admit, I have not seen Oprah's "stirring" speech at the Golden Globes last night.  One of the issues with coming to work at 3:00 am every day is that you don't watch a lot of TV at night.  And what's more, I could not care less about Hollywood awards shows or celebrity gossip.

But without even seeing or hearing what Oprah had to say I'm 100-percent sure it was about oppressed people rising up, fighting for the truth to be heard, and believe in yourself.  I know that because that is what every Oprah public speech is about.  And in these "dark times", many liberals want that to be the message of their candidate in three years.  So that is why #Oprah2020 was trending on Twitter last night.

Well, I can flat out guarantee that Oprah Winfrey is NOT going to run for President--no matter how much the coastal elites and her celebrity pals tweet about it.  For starters, Oprah likes making money.  This is a woman that has created a multi-media empire--with her own TV network, magazine, movie and TV production companies.  She owns Weight Watchers now and has her own line of "healthy meals"--starring in the commercials for them.  (Her claims that mashed cauliflower is "just as delicious" as real mashed potatoes shows that she could certainly lie like a real politician).  So why would she want to divest herself of all that?  One need only look at the difficulty the current Celebrity President is having in separating his businesses from what is now the country's business.

Plus, Oprah has total control and power over everything in her life.  Here is my favorite Oprah story.  On the island of Maui, residents for decades have wanted a road connecting the Piilani Highway (known at the "Back Road to Hana") with the resort area of Kihei on the southwest part of the island.  The current drive takes over an hour because the highway heads into the center of Maui before doubling back to the coast.  As you can imagine, that wastes a lot of time and gas for the locals.  Oprah owns a ranch and a very swanky bed and breakfast in Upcountry Maui and likely enjoys shopping at Kihei or spending some time on the beach down there--but she doesn't have time to do all of that driving (or being driven more likely) so Oprah paid to build the highway that the locals have wanted for so long--cutting the driving time down to just a couple of minutes.

The only thing is, the highway is open only to Oprah.  There are signs at both ends of the road (which I have seen in person) stating that anyone caught using Oprah's road will be prosecuted.  From what I have read, some locals (and brave tourists) have snuck onto Oprah's private highway--and I'm not sure if they have been caught or fined.  But I'm guessing that someone that can build her own highway wherever she wants it--and then can limit public access to it--would not take too kindly to a Republican Congress blocking any of her initiatives in the White House.

Besides, we don't want future political scientists and historians to include in their textbooks "Appalled by the Republican's electing an unqualified, celebrity President, Democrats countered in the next election cycle with their own unqualified, celebrity for President.
 

The Self-Identification Champions

Let's take a minute this morning to congratulate the University of Central Florida Golden Knights on their National Championship in College Football.

Now, if you are thinking "Aren't Georgia and Alabama playing in the 'College Football Playoff Championship Game' on Monday night?" don't worry--you aren't losing your mind.  UCF is actually becoming the first team to "self-identify" as a national champion. 

The Golden Knights argue that because they are the only undefeated team left in college football--and because they beat Auburn in the Peach Bowl and Auburn is the only team to defeat both Alabama and Georgia this year--they deserve to call themselves "champions"--even if no one else in the world is going to recognize that.  UCF is even going so far as to hold a parade at Disney World on Sunday and a banner-raising ceremony at their stadium Monday night during the "illegitimate" National Championship Game in Atlanta.

When you think about it, the Central Florida "title" is the perfect confluence of two cultural fads: self-identification and everyone needs to be made to feel special.  If gender, race and heritage are no longer based upon DNA and anatomy, why should championship status be based on playoff results, strength of schedule and power rankings?  If UCF "feels like" they should be national champions based upon their own standards, then who are we to criticize or even question them?

And speaking of feelings, we wouldn't want the Golden Knights to feel like their effort wasn't the best that anyone has ever seen.  They tried hard.  They were told from day one that they are very good players.  And to see someone else given the ultimate credit and glory is inherently "unfair".  It shouldn't matter that Alabama or Georgia beat much better teams throughout the season, or that they would pound Central Florida into the turf if the two met in a game with more on the line than the Peach Bowl trophy.  "We played so we deserve a championship too!"

Now in UCF's defense, the winner of the Georgia-Alabama game won't be NCAA Champions either.  That is because the NCAA does not recognize a national champion in "College Bowl Subdivision Football".  In fact, it is the only sport in which the NCAA does not have its own championship playoffs.  The College Football Playoff that is currently employed is a creation of ESPN, its corporate sponsors and the five main conferences that share in the huge advertising revenues created by the three games.  Unfortunately for Central Florida, they are not a member of one of those five conferences--so they can (and were) shut out of the "playoff".

So I guess if we are giving a "mythical" national championship to one school on Monday night, it should be okay for another school give itself a fake title too.  I wonder if Rachel Dolezal and Senator Elizabeth Warren are available as Grand Marshalls for that parade?

When Godwin's Law Actually Applies

I don't usually engage in comparing modern politics to those of Nazi Germany.  There is a principal called "Godwin's Law" that hold that any on-line discussion about politics--if allowed to go on long enough--will lead to a reference or comparison to Naziism.  One need only refer to the comment section below any article about the Trump Presidency on news sites or the Twitter responses to any post by Donald Trump to see "Godwin's Law" in full effect.

But sometimes something happens that actually does deserve comparison to what happened in Nazi Germany--and one of those took place yesterday as the President called his former Chief Advisor Steve Bannon "insane" for comments he made about Trump in a book about to be published.  My mind immediately flashed to the infamous Rudolph Hess incident during World War II.

For those unfamiliar, Hess was one of Hitler's earliest supporters--helping him to write Mein Kampf while both were imprisoned for attempting to overthrow the government in the 1920's.  Hess was key in the formation of the Nazi Party, helped Hitler to manipulate the German political process to gain a foothold in Government, to increase Nazi influence and eventually to seize complete control over the country.  For his loyalty, Hess was eventually named Deputy Fuhrer--making him the second-most-powerful man in the party.

But early in World War II, Hess had a falling out with Hitler and was left out of battle planning.  Believing that Germany was on the path to defeat and destruction--especially if it invaded the Soviet Union--Hess flew his own Luftwaffe plane to Scotland hoping to meet with an obscure member of the Royal Family to negotiate peace with Britain.  He was captured and held as a prisoner of war for several years--much to embarrassment of Hitler.

In fact, the Fuhrer wanted to discredit Hess by releasing a statement that the man was insane and should have been committed to a mental institution.  However, Hitler was talked out of that by his propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels--who pointed out that the German people would wonder why a crazy man would have been allowed to hold the second-most-powerful position in the Nazi party in the first place.

Obviously, Steve Bannon telling tales out of school about his former political puppet isn't as bizarre as the second in command crash landing in a foreign country while on a clandestine, unauthorized peace mission--but sometimes history does repeat itself in slightly different ways.  Oh, and in both cases--the guys were likely insane.

So Where is All of the Outrage Today?

I think I'm going to start referring to January 3rd as "Disappointment Day".  Here in Wisconsin, January 2nd--unless it falls upon a weekend day--is the date by which candidates in the non-partisan spring elections must file their nomination petitions to get on the ballot.  And barring a few instances in the 17-years that I've been doing news here in Oshkosh, there are few truly contested races.

Last year, fed by the opposition to the rental inspection program, the Oshkosh Common Council saw enough candidates file papers to warrant a rare February primary to whittle down the field.  But other than that, the number of people seeking local office continues to fall.  In both the Council and School Board races there is just one challenger to the three incumbents.  The apathy is even worse when it comes to the Winnebago County Board--where this year there are just TWO contested races out of 36 seats.  And three districts won't have a single candidate on the ballot in April--meaning the Board itself will appoint a Supervisor (if they can find anyone to apply for the position).

Whenever I see a protester in the street saying "This is what democracy looks like!"--I think of election time--which is what democracy actually is (not protest).  And January 3rd is where we inevitably find out those people aren't interested in "real democracy".  Where are the four-thousand people that signed the petition to reduce the fine for marijuana possession to just 25-bucks in Oshkosh?  You don't need a petition and a referendum to make that happen.  You just need four seats on the Common Council--and this year you could have picked up two more of those (along with pot afcianado Caroline Panske who is seeking re-election despite her arrest and conviction last year).  You win another seat or two in 2019--and maybe even the Mayor's position--and you've got yourself the majority needed to completely decriminalize possession and not have any fine at all.

And where are all of the "thousands of stock car fans" that were supposed to be outraged by the decision to shut down the Speedzone Racetrack so Lifest could have a permanent stage?  There were three seats on the Board that you could have had just by simply collecting enough nomination signatures to be the only person on the ballot.  Meanwhile 31 other seats--some with incumbents that voted in favor of shutting down the track--won't even be contested this spring. 

Those incumbents that face little or no opposition will tell you that their constituents are "very happy with them".  But the sad truth of the matter is that they may literally be the one person in their entire district that is willing to put in the small amount of effort that it takes to be a part of our democracy.

Predictions....Sure to Go Wrong

Last week I told you I would look into the crystal ball to form some predictions for 2018.  Instead, I spent most of the weekend sick and having to run back and forth from home to the Radio Ranch to let people into the building because the locks on the main door have frozen and don't work when it is super cold--which is quite the hassle because it appears that "super cold" is pretty much the long-range forecast for this entire winter.  But here are four predictions--that are sure to go wrong.

1--The remnants of Lakeshore Golf Course here in Oshkosh will not become a nine-hole course.  I've got some friends trying to push this idea, saying creative designs can preserve some of the holes and add a couple of others to keep golf going at the site.  But the simple truth of the matter is that the City does not want to be in the golf course business.  It's a break-even proposition at best in terms of operating revenue--and you are looking at additional expense to create new holes, a new clubhouse and perhaps new practice facilities--since the Oshkosh Corp building and parking lots are going where those current features are located.  Plus, if the remainder of the Lakeshore site is kept as "green space" as the City is pushing for, it's much easier to justify selling that off if another corporation comes along with a desire for a lakefront property to call home.

2--FoxConn will be the biggest drama queens in the history of the state.  Whether it's a lawsuit that threatens the legality of the straight cash payments that the Village of Fox Crossing is providing to the project, delays in upgrading the roads leading to the proposed plant site, struggles to hire enough contractors and sub-contractors to handle the construction, or bad-mouthing of the deal by Democratic candidates for all state and legislative offices, FoxConn will spend all of 2018 being "on the verge of pulling out of their deal".  I think the company knows they have the state over a barrel now and may try to squeeze every last incentive and concession out of us in a desperate attempt to "save the deal".

3--Governor Scott Walker will win re-election with around 52% of the vote.  Let's face it, the Governor is employing the strategy made famous by former George W Bush advisor Carl Rove--find the minimum number of voters necessary to win every time and continually play to that base to keep them in the fold.  And what has he done to alienate any of the people that have voted for him the previous three times?  Add to that a Democratic field of challengers that will only provide "at least I'm not Scott Walker" as their main campaign theme--and it's a recipe for a close--but still comfortable--win in November.

4--The Green Bay Packers aren't going to get much better.  It might seem like new hope is about to be born at Lambeau Field this week with the firing of Dom Capers and Ted Thompson stepping aside as General Manager.  But as the Aaron Rodgers injury proved this season, there are far too many deficiencies to address in just one off-season in terms of talent and depth.  A 9-7 wild card playoff entry may seem like an "improvement" over this year--but it will be just another year closer to the closing of the window of opportunity in Rodgers' career.  And then, the talk-show call-in "experts" will be calling for Mike McCarthy's head.

So that is what we have to look forward to in 2018.  Not really that much more exciting that what we lived through two days ago.