Posts from — May 2009

Patrick Coolican writes in the Las Vegas Sun. He asks the question “Why then has the Republican brand taken such a beating?”

Because to most Americans—and polling bears this out—the war in Iraq, unfettered Wall Street capitalism and cultural fights over gays and abortion seem neither prudent nor reasonable. They seem extreme and foolhardy.

I can buy that. The effort of the Bush-Cheney administration to manipulate the facts to justify the invasion of Iraq was known to bloggers, at least, some year or two, before it began to be discussed on main stream media. The blog that covered that was called the Downing Street Memos. We have now all seen that no regulation of Wall Street capitalism has led to corruption galore. All this haggling over gays and abortion are really silly. I doubt the founding fathers envisioned government’s role as telling people how to live their lives. Those kinds of issues belong in churches not legislative halls. The Republican Party allowed itself to “seem extreme and foolhardy” by getting involved with the conservative religious right wing of the party. Church and state should remain separate entities, as the Constitution states.

Coolican then turns to Nevada. [Read more →]

There is light on the horizon that Nevada may emerge as a tolerant state. The Nevada state Senators voted 14-7 yesterday to override Governor Jim Gibbons’ veto of the domestic partnership bill, Senate Bill 283.

The state Assembly gets their chance to do the same today. If the Assembly overrides the Gibbons veto it

would allow same- and opposite sex couples to secure domestic partner contracts that essentially given them the same rights and responsibilities s heterosexual married couples. [Las Vegas Review Journal]

Republican state Senator Dennis Nolan, Las Vegas, said “he had received many vulgar and even threatening calls from people who demanded he…” uphold the Governor’s veto. [Read more →]

Nevada Senators Harry Reid and John Ensign are heavy weights. Reid is Senate Majority Leader. Ensign is fourth in the GOP leadership because he is chairman of the Republican Policy Committee.

In 2007 Ensign opposed the comprehensive illegal immigration bill. Reid supported the bill. The major “sticking point” according to the Las Vegas Sun is what to do about the 12 million undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S.

One of those problems is the fact that the 12 million is comprised of families. A husband, wife and children. Whatever the undocumented status of the parents, children of undocumented persons born in the United States are American citizens and are protected by the United States Constitution. [Read more →]

CARSON CITY – Although it is a fee increase, Gov. Jim Gibbons will apparently approve a bill to raise the cost of filing a suit to pay for an increase of nine district judges in Clark County.

Josh Hicks, the chief of staff for Gibbons, said the governor would “probably” sign Assembly Bill 65 to raise the fees for bringing legal actions. “We will have to look it over,” he said.

The Senate voted 21-0 Friday to boost the number of district judges in Clark County from 43 to 52. And two of the nine new judges would be family court judges. Assembly Bill 64 also adds one new judge to Washoe County. [Las Vegas Sun]

“AB65 calls for adding $99 to the cost of filing a civil suit, and the defendants would have to pay $99. The cost for filing a construction defect lawsuit would cost an additional $349.”

And $1,359 would be added to the cost of filing any civil action “defined as a business matter pursuant to the local rules of practice and on the answer or appearance of any party in any such action…”

In rural Nevada, the money would be used to for special advocate programs for children.

The bill allows a county commission to approve an additional $20 to each civil action for court security.

The increased cost of filing a suit would start July 1.

Gibbons, who has pledged no new taxes or fees, has already signed a bill to boost the cost of a marriage license by $5 with the money going to programs to help victims of domestic violence.

Geez, I can’t call him Jim “now new taxes” Gibbons anymore!

Two Metro Police officers and a 55-year-old woman were taken to a hospital today after a collision near the 215 Beltway and Flamingo Road.

The officers, ages 40 and 24, were eastbound in a black and white police cruiser at about 11:30 a.m. answering a robbery call on Flamingo Road when the cruiser collided with the woman’s vehicle, a black Lexus, which was exiting the highway at an off-ramp, McGrath said.

Authorities haven’t determined if the police cruiser’s flashing lights and siren were on at the time of the crash and traffic investigators were at the scene Saturday afternoon, McGrath said.

This is the fourth officer-involved collision this month in the Las Vegas Valley. [Las Vegas Sun]

Good for AG Catherine Cortez-Masto. District Judge Elissa Cadish disqualified the AG from prosecuting Republican Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki for misappropriating state funds.

Cortez-Masto has appealed Cadish’s ruling saying the judge “manifestly abused” her discretion in holding the AG could not prosecute Krolick. [Las Vegas Review Journal]

Governor Jim “no new taxes” Gibbons hammered legislative bill after legislative bill (41 of them) with his red VETO stamp, setting a new record for Nevada. And the Nevada legislature keeps overriding his vetoes, or most of them anyway. [Las Vegas Review Journal]

The legislature is set to wrap it up Monday and return home. But it has been a classic example of the separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches.

All 28 Democrats voted to override the tax veto. One Republican, John Carpenter of Elko, joined them.

But Republicans Chad Christensen, Ty Cobb (no not THE Ty Cobb), Nye County’s Assemblyman Ed Goedhart, Don Gustavson and John Hambrick stuck with the Governor and wouldn’t vote to override his veto. Goedhart must have taken some time away from his personal computer and research for his trip to Brazil to vote on behalf of Governor Gibbons.

Goedhart also voted against the state employee salary and furlough bill. There is sure to be elation in the Nye County Republican ranks about how their representatives stood tall in the saddle and upheld Gibbons to the bitter end.

Chester Stiles. From Las Vegas Review Journal

You may remember Chester Stiles. The guy who video taped himself sexually molesting a 2 year old girl. The video tape was found near Pahrump.

District Judge Jennifer Togliatti sentenced Stiles to 21 life sentences which means the 28 year old Stiles won’t become eligible for parole for 140 years–essentially he’ll die in prison.

Stiles argued with the Judge that the sentence was too much. That he didn’t physically harm the little girl and “The child didn’t remember a thing. Yet I’m to die in prison.” [Las Vegas Review Journal]

Having been an adult Parole Agent in California and a Correctional Counselor at Folsom Prison, I can see what is ahead for Stiles. Prison inmates don’t like child molesters either and have a way of making a child molester’s time very difficult. And Stiles is looking forward to 140 of those years.

But Chester, actions have consequences. Best I can suggest is to get yourself into a single cell and shower alone–don’t drop the soap!

Another sign that perhaps the Town of Pahrump is beginning to join the 21st century after decades of being stuck in an 1800’s mentality.

The town is about to publish a newsletter! The idea is to keep residents informed of local government plans and actions and answer questions of residents.

Town Manager Bill Kohbarger said:

Communications between people and their government is essential. Open communication lines assures better service for our residence (sic) and representatives alike.

You can receive your Pahrump Newsletter through e-mail. Just send your e-mail address to ekohbarger@pahrumpnv.org. [Pahrump Mirror, Thursday, May 28, 2009 issue, page 5]

Maybe the Nye County Democratic Central Committee will take note of this communication technique and use it. Reckon?

Last Thursday’s (May 28, 2009, page 10) Pahrump Mirror relates a story about Dr. Ming-Wei Wu at Desert View Regional Medical Center Hospital in Pahrump. It was written by Paul Jones of the Mirror Staff.

Pahrump resident Karen Owens, age 65, noticed she was bleeding after using the bathroom. Her husband, Warner, called Desert View Hospital and was told he should bring Karen to the hospital. He did.

Warner was told by the attending physician it would be best if she stayed in the hospital overnight to be examined the next morning by a pathologist. She did.

She was awakened at 2:00 a.m. by Dr. Wu who asked if he could perform the colonoscopy to determine why she was bleeding.

Early that morning Warner got a phone call from Desert View “asking whether he had been contacted about the condition of his wife. The caller informed Warner his wife was ‘in serious condition.’” [Read more →]