Republican Dana Seum Stephenson won the 37th District Senate race, but a Franklin County Circuit Judge ordered the Kentucky Board of Elections to certify her opponent, Democrat Virginia Woodward, the winner. The judge went too far with his order.
Apparently there is nothing that forbids a person who may not serve in an office to run for it in either the Constitution or the Kentucky Revised Statutes . Nor is there any provision in either to allow the runner-up to take the office by default. Ms. Woodward did not win the election. She lost by about 1000 votes. The judge should have stayed out of it.
If Ms. Stephenson were otherwise eligible to serve in office, but died before being sworn in, Ms. Woodward would not normally be considered to take her place. In this instance, would it be reasonable for a Franklin Circuit Judge to order Ms. Woodward be sworn into office? No, it would not. The responsibility for that decision rests with the Senate.
The Constitutional authority of the Senate to choose who it will seat is clear. Subject only to the Constitution and itself, the Senate must be the ultimate arbiter in this race. Though many may say Ms. Stephenson is not eligible to serve, residency in Kentucky is a fluid concept, defined differently in several statutes. We shall see which definition the Senate prefers.
The Senate is unlikely to seat Ms. Woodward. To do so would ignore the expressed will of the voters of the 37th District. We shall see.
GBW
December 29, 2004
December 22, 2004
Oh my aching back!
My lower back has been a bit grumbly lately. No big deal, just letting me know it's there. So I go home last night, lay back on the bed to study a bit for my test (see below), put my legs up on the big wedge pillow to take some strain off my lower back. I was in tall cotton. And then I sneezed.
I'm not sure exactly what happened, all I know is my lower back exploded. I immediately supspected a terrorist bomb triggered by sound waves. When the initial shockwave subsided, I knew I was in trouble. I tried to get up and couldn't. Had to call my Wonderful Wife to assist me out of bed. It was not pleasant. I spent the rest of evening flat of my back by necessity rather than choice, and planned a trip to see my chiropractor first thing in the morning.
This morning, I thought I would be ok since I could get out of bed without help. I was wrong. By the time I finished my shower, I could barely walk. I had to get my WW out of bed (it was 7 a.m. and she was up until 2 a.m. wrapping Christmas presents) to help me. Did the trip to the chiropractor, shot the X-rays, L4 was definitely the problem, had my adjustments, did some interferential E-stim, got hooked up to a portable stim unit, and left to take my test. Did you notice all the review time I got in this morning? Neither did I.
I passed the test. However, the best news of the day is that I haven't sneezed again. And for that, I am very thankful.
GBW
I'm not sure exactly what happened, all I know is my lower back exploded. I immediately supspected a terrorist bomb triggered by sound waves. When the initial shockwave subsided, I knew I was in trouble. I tried to get up and couldn't. Had to call my Wonderful Wife to assist me out of bed. It was not pleasant. I spent the rest of evening flat of my back by necessity rather than choice, and planned a trip to see my chiropractor first thing in the morning.
This morning, I thought I would be ok since I could get out of bed without help. I was wrong. By the time I finished my shower, I could barely walk. I had to get my WW out of bed (it was 7 a.m. and she was up until 2 a.m. wrapping Christmas presents) to help me. Did the trip to the chiropractor, shot the X-rays, L4 was definitely the problem, had my adjustments, did some interferential E-stim, got hooked up to a portable stim unit, and left to take my test. Did you notice all the review time I got in this morning? Neither did I.
I passed the test. However, the best news of the day is that I haven't sneezed again. And for that, I am very thankful.
GBW
December 21, 2004
The Great Society at work.
OK, SWFw/Attitude, here's one of mine. This story was told as true to a friend of mine in Southeastern Ky.
A woman went to the Health Department in a mountain county to talk with a social worker. She asked the social worker if he could help her get a bed. She had eight children and they couldn’t all fit in the beds she had on hand.
After determining she had enough room for another bed, the social worker agreed to help the woman out of her predicament, and told her to come back at the same time the next week.The social worker called around and found a headboard, footboard, side rails, slats, and full-size box springs and mattress. When the woman returned the next week with her dilapidated pickup truck, the social worker helped her load up the bed and tied it down.
The woman turned around and told the social worker, “I sure appreciate you helping me out. I didn’t know what I was going to do. Why, my two youngest have been sleeping in the box the color television came in!”
GBW
A woman went to the Health Department in a mountain county to talk with a social worker. She asked the social worker if he could help her get a bed. She had eight children and they couldn’t all fit in the beds she had on hand.
After determining she had enough room for another bed, the social worker agreed to help the woman out of her predicament, and told her to come back at the same time the next week.The social worker called around and found a headboard, footboard, side rails, slats, and full-size box springs and mattress. When the woman returned the next week with her dilapidated pickup truck, the social worker helped her load up the bed and tied it down.
The woman turned around and told the social worker, “I sure appreciate you helping me out. I didn’t know what I was going to do. Why, my two youngest have been sleeping in the box the color television came in!”
GBW
I know, I know, it's off to test I go...
If you are a praying person, it wouldn't hurt my feelings if you said one for me. Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. I will be taking a computer certification test called Server+. Fun, fun, fun.
The Bible mentions people who are "ever learning, but never coming to an understanding of the Truth." If you are considering a career in Information Technology, that is a pretty apt description of the certification tracks. It. Never. Ends.
I'm sure you can tell how excited I am about this. But, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do, and then do it again at least twice next month for Network+ and a Microsoft course.
(sigh)
GBW
ps: Stop laughing, John!
The Bible mentions people who are "ever learning, but never coming to an understanding of the Truth." If you are considering a career in Information Technology, that is a pretty apt description of the certification tracks. It. Never. Ends.
I'm sure you can tell how excited I am about this. But, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do, and then do it again at least twice next month for Network+ and a Microsoft course.
(sigh)
GBW
ps: Stop laughing, John!
December 20, 2004
Senator McConnell in Newsweek
In an MSNBC/Newsweek article, Howard Fineman gives us an interesting look at Senator Mitch McConnell's views on building a consensus in the new Congress. Looking forward, Senator McConnell says, "The key now will be whether there are a group of Democrats willing to join with most Republicans in a coalition of the center-right."
Many of the strategies used to turn Kentucky from Blue to Red are attributed to Senator McConnell, who also played a major role in establishing the Republican majority in the Senate. If, as many suspect, Bill Frist runs for President in 2008, Senator McConnell is generally considered next in line for Senate Majority Leader, a position the Senator from Kentucky would fill ably, admirably and honorably.
Following the 2002 elections, the Kentucky Post called Senator McConnell "the master strategist of the state GOP..." Here's hoping his efforts as Senate Majority Whip are as effective in Washington as he works to move the Republican legislative agenda forward.
GBW
Many of the strategies used to turn Kentucky from Blue to Red are attributed to Senator McConnell, who also played a major role in establishing the Republican majority in the Senate. If, as many suspect, Bill Frist runs for President in 2008, Senator McConnell is generally considered next in line for Senate Majority Leader, a position the Senator from Kentucky would fill ably, admirably and honorably.
Following the 2002 elections, the Kentucky Post called Senator McConnell "the master strategist of the state GOP..." Here's hoping his efforts as Senate Majority Whip are as effective in Washington as he works to move the Republican legislative agenda forward.
GBW
December 3, 2004
Thanks for the memories...
My wonderful wife and I went to see "Christmas with the Kranks" this evening. A good time was had by all. I heartily recommend the film. Lots of laughter throughout and applause at the end.
As we were walking out to our car, B said, "If it weren't for women, there wouldn't be any memories." You'll see what prompted her to say this when you watch the movie.
It took a few seconds for that to sink in. You know, I had to agree with her. Most of the things I remember about Christmas are things that directly involved the women in my life. There's the smell of woodsmoke when we got to my Grandparent's home for breakfast Christmas morning. My Grandmother liked to cook on the old woodstove in the room across the dog-run (read "Old Yeller" and think screened windows). The wonderful aromas of food, no, make that Food! So much food you couldn't eat even a little bit of everything if you tried, not that we didn't try. Lots of country ham, sugar-cured and salt-cured, bacon, sausage, fried chicken, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, pickled eggs, fried apples (the real thing, not the sad stuff they to pass off as fried apples at Cracker Barrel and other restaurants), biscuits that my Grandmother squeezed off in her huge flour bowl, toast, fried potatoes, ham gravy, sausage gravy, corn fritters, hashbrown, sweet potato and several other breakfast casseroles, fresh churned butter, homemade applebutter, jellies and preserves, pancakes, and waffles. Coffee, OJ, milk, hot chocolate, and Oh, my Aunt Barbara's spiced apple cider! Can I get a testimony? Amen! The women in our extended family can flat-out cook!
We call it breakfast, but it's really a brunch, and that means there are desserts on the sideboards. Don't even get me started on them. Imagine what they do for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners when it's piled on like that for breakfast! (I think I gained 4 pounds writing this!)
And you know the men had but little hand in the preparation, though through the years we have been getting more involved. The women still call the men and children in to eat first while the womenfolk go in another room (get over it, it's a Southern thing) to rest a while and listen to the flatware clattering on the plates, the pass this and pass that, and the groans as everyone fills up. Make no mistake, we all lavish them with praise for the fine job they've done, and they bask in it.
Decorations for holidays are almost all done by women. Excepting the outdoor variety, under the fairer sex's supervision of course, the men usually aren't very interested in all that stuff. Frankly, if it were left up to the average man, at Christmas there wouldn't be any darling red bows on the lampshades, no candles surrounded by cranberries on a crystal plate, no greenery swags, no holiday centerpieces, no ribbons around the columns like candy canes, no candles in the windows, no wreaths on the doors, nor stockings hung. No snowmen, reindeer, or other Christmas knick-knacks around the house, no cards hanging around the doors, no Dickens villages, no sleigh bells on the door, probably not even a Nativity tableau on the mantle, nor carols playing in the background. The Christmas tree would most likely be a life-sized poster hanging on a wall. Not that we don't enjoy it. We just don't want to do it, just don't feel the need for it, and if we feel that way about Christmas, imagine what we wouldn't do for the other holidays.
Have you thanked the women who have laid the foundations of memory year after year in your life? I know I'll be making some phone calls tomorrow.
GBW
As we were walking out to our car, B said, "If it weren't for women, there wouldn't be any memories." You'll see what prompted her to say this when you watch the movie.
It took a few seconds for that to sink in. You know, I had to agree with her. Most of the things I remember about Christmas are things that directly involved the women in my life. There's the smell of woodsmoke when we got to my Grandparent's home for breakfast Christmas morning. My Grandmother liked to cook on the old woodstove in the room across the dog-run (read "Old Yeller" and think screened windows). The wonderful aromas of food, no, make that Food! So much food you couldn't eat even a little bit of everything if you tried, not that we didn't try. Lots of country ham, sugar-cured and salt-cured, bacon, sausage, fried chicken, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, pickled eggs, fried apples (the real thing, not the sad stuff they to pass off as fried apples at Cracker Barrel and other restaurants), biscuits that my Grandmother squeezed off in her huge flour bowl, toast, fried potatoes, ham gravy, sausage gravy, corn fritters, hashbrown, sweet potato and several other breakfast casseroles, fresh churned butter, homemade applebutter, jellies and preserves, pancakes, and waffles. Coffee, OJ, milk, hot chocolate, and Oh, my Aunt Barbara's spiced apple cider! Can I get a testimony? Amen! The women in our extended family can flat-out cook!
We call it breakfast, but it's really a brunch, and that means there are desserts on the sideboards. Don't even get me started on them. Imagine what they do for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners when it's piled on like that for breakfast! (I think I gained 4 pounds writing this!)
And you know the men had but little hand in the preparation, though through the years we have been getting more involved. The women still call the men and children in to eat first while the womenfolk go in another room (get over it, it's a Southern thing) to rest a while and listen to the flatware clattering on the plates, the pass this and pass that, and the groans as everyone fills up. Make no mistake, we all lavish them with praise for the fine job they've done, and they bask in it.
Decorations for holidays are almost all done by women. Excepting the outdoor variety, under the fairer sex's supervision of course, the men usually aren't very interested in all that stuff. Frankly, if it were left up to the average man, at Christmas there wouldn't be any darling red bows on the lampshades, no candles surrounded by cranberries on a crystal plate, no greenery swags, no holiday centerpieces, no ribbons around the columns like candy canes, no candles in the windows, no wreaths on the doors, nor stockings hung. No snowmen, reindeer, or other Christmas knick-knacks around the house, no cards hanging around the doors, no Dickens villages, no sleigh bells on the door, probably not even a Nativity tableau on the mantle, nor carols playing in the background. The Christmas tree would most likely be a life-sized poster hanging on a wall. Not that we don't enjoy it. We just don't want to do it, just don't feel the need for it, and if we feel that way about Christmas, imagine what we wouldn't do for the other holidays.
Have you thanked the women who have laid the foundations of memory year after year in your life? I know I'll be making some phone calls tomorrow.
GBW
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