The Great Land

We just got back from a two-week family vacation to Alaska. Alaska is unique among these United States for many reasons. Alaska is a huge state: it has over twice the area of Texas and has more land than all but 18 of the Earth's sovereign nations. Alaska remained a territory for over 90 years (it celebrates its 50th anniversary of statehood next year), during which time Congress used Alaska's lack of representation in that body to its extreme advantage (to put it politely).

(For more on Alaska's fight for statehood, I highly recommend reading "Let us end American colonialism," former Alaskan territorial governor Ernest Gruening's cogent 1955 speech to the Alaska Constitutional Convention, which was recently published by the Anchorage Press, an alternative newspaper similar to City Pages but not as caustically liberal.)

Thanks to a lack of federal funding while the continental U.S. was being criss-crossed with railroads, Interstate Highways, seaports, and airports, most of the highways that exist in Alaska today are two-lane highways, and many areas (including the state capital at Juneau) are accessible only by air or water. Some roads are closed entirely during the winter.

A fortunate unintended consequence of constricting settlement and commerce in Alaska before statehood in 1959 is that to this day, Alaska remains largely undeveloped and untamed, a rustic and often spectacular living postcard at every turn for residents and tourists to enjoy. The state population is only 670,053 (2006), and only a handful of towns have over 10,000 population. Only 1% of the land in Alaska is privately owned (an area that is a little larger than the state of Connecticut). The rest is managed by the Federal and state governments, and Native groups.

Outside of Anchorage or Fairbanks, you won't find many big box retailers or franchises, light rail or stadiums, or even too many gas stations — just small towns, small businesses, campgrounds, fishing charters and guide services, glaciers, tiny espresso drive-thrus, a few volcanoes, and friendly people.

Most Alaskans like it that way. On a flightseeing trip over Mount McKinley (see photo), we saw many lake homes that are accessible only by seaplane, and perhaps by snowmobile or dog sled in the winter. Before statehood, white settlers and adventurers learned the art of dog sledding and pioneered bush aviation into remote areas. Native Alaskans (please don't call them "eskimos") still practice subsistence hunting and traditional ways of thriving in the land in which they feel chosen to live, while selectively adopting Western ways to preserve their way of life.

Alaska is derived from a native Aleut word, Alyeska, meaning "The Great Land." It's a remarkable and uniquely American place with a politics all its own, which I will discuss in my next post.

All of the above

Oil, natural gas, and wind energy baron T. Boone Pickens testified today to the U.S. Senate on moving from foreign sources of oil to, well, natural gas and wind energy. We are certainly too dependent on oil from unfriendly nations, and renewable energy should be pursued and used where it makes sense, but some of Pickens' testimony caused me to pause.

"I have to think in 10 years, the demand for oil — because the price now is going up — in 10 years, you're going to have $300 oil. Maybe higher, I don't know," said Pickens, as quoted by Fox News.

Unless the law of supply and demand is repealed (which the government regularly attempts to do with taxes and subsidies), isn't there a point at which the demand for oil will eventually hit a peak and decline, stabilizing the price of oil? Of course, with the government and environmental groups restricting the oil supply with a moratorium on both oil exploration and construction of refineries and pipelines, I suppose that the market price for oil could settle at $300 a barrel, even with reduced demand. And with mandates for seasonal, "boutique" blends of gasoline, corn ethanol subsidies, and ever-higher gas taxes, government is exacerbating the rising prices at the retail level.

Either way, at this point government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem. As Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (MN-6) suggested on her recent trip to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado and the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge, America needs an "all of the above" approach to solving its energy challenges: environmentally-responsible domestic exploration and production of fossil fuels, nuclear power, conservation, and research into renewable energy. The quickest way toward energy independence is for government to get out of the way and let private industry and free markets work.

Credentialed

I have been granted "special press" credentials to cover the 2008 Republican National Convention on North Star Liberty. This will get me into the Xcel Energy Center, just not on the delegate floor. How many days I will actually be in on scene in Saint Paul will depend on my schedule at work. I would love to interview you if you are Minnesota delegate, and I would love to hear your story ideas.

The nanny party in Denver

If you really want to know the difference between how Democrats and Republicans govern, all you need to do is take a look at some of the machinations underway for the Democratic National Convention. They can't even trust their own delegates to make politically-correct choices about what to eat during the convention. As reported in the June 25 Wall Street Journal:

But Matt Burns, a spokesman for the Republican convention, looks on with undisguised glee at some of the Democrats' efforts -- such as the "lean 'n' green" catering guidelines.

Among them: No fried food. And, on the theory that nutritious food is more vibrant, each meal should include "at least three of the following colors: red, green, yellow, blue/purple, and white." (Garnishes don't count.) At least 70% of ingredients should be organic or grown locally, to minimize emissions from fuel burned during transportation. "One would think," says Mr. Burns, "that the Democrats in Denver have bigger fish to bake -- they have ruled out frying already -- than mandating color-coordinated pretzel platters."

Laura Hylton, general manager of Biscuits & Berries catering, agrees in principle. But she has been testing her recipes using local ingredients for weeks and still can't get the green peppercorn sauce right when she uses white Colorado wine. The state's high-altitude wine industry took off in the early 1990s and produces some award-winning labels, but Ms. Hylton says diplomatically, "It's a little...lacking. Our wineries out here aren't what you'd see in California or France."

Joanne Katz, who runs the Denver caterer Three Tomatoes, will take one for the green team by removing her fried goat-cheese won tons with chipotle pepper caramel sauce from the menu. But she questions whether some of the guidelines will have the desired earth-saving effects.

According to at least one Democrat blogger, this sort of kooky puritanism is leaving centrist Dems squirming under nanny-state correctness:

…this is EXACTLY why my beloved Democratic Party loses elections. The various factions that make up our party spend so much time trying to ensure that each one of their core principles is thrust upon Americans with little or no choice. After all ‘we’ know ‘better.’ … this information only adds to the perception that Democrats care more about engineering society in a politically correct fashion, than we do about helping working families put food on the table.

Strib: drill here, drill now, pay less

Well, they wouldn't quite go all the way to ANWR, but it was still refreshing for the Star Tribune, like Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), to take one step toward the center on the question of increasing domestic exploration for and production of fossil fuels. Excerpts from the Sunday editorial:

While there are good reasons ANWR should remain off limits, there are also good reasons to reconsider the nation's offshore oil deposits, where drilling and exploration have long been banned thanks to a 1982 congressional moratorium and a 1990 executive order by President George H.W. Bush. Off-limits coastal areas are estimated by the U.S. Department of the Interior to hold close to 19 billion barrels of recoverable oil, as well as substantial supplies of natural gas. By some estimates, the oil available is the equivalent of about a decade's worth of U.S. oil production -- not enough to end import dependence but enough to smooth the nation's transition to renewable fuels.

Much has changed since the 1982 moratorium. Though some environmental advocates dispute this, drilling technology has advanced over the past quarter-century. Oil companies can drill more efficiently in deeper water with significantly less risk to the environment...exploring these coastal areas could have an immediate impact at the pump. Just the possibility that domestic oil supplies are expanding likely would deter speculators, sending prices down.

As a nation, we must push forward to a future in which clean, renewable energy fuels cars and heats homes. But there's a long way to go. In the meantime, breaking the backs of consumers and industry still dependent on fossil fuels is unacceptable. Relief is needed.

I enjoy biking, camping, hiking, and canoeing, and I believe that we are called to be good stewards of the earth. The marketplace will greatly reward the entrepreneurs who bring alternative energy products to market. It will happen, but in the meantime, our economy will be crippled if we fail to make use of the rich resources that lie right now beneath our feet. And that would be a bad thing for the whole earth.

Frank Weir (1935-2008)

From the 3rd Congressional District Republicans:

We sadly report that our dear friend, Frank Weir, Former Chair of SD 43, passed away on June 21st. He is survived by his wonderful wife Anne, and their two daughters, grandchildren, siblings, nieces, and nephews. Frank was not only a Republican community leader but lived and believed in community service. During his lifetime Frank served on school boards, Rotary, Plymouth Planning Commission, Peace Lutheran Church committees, and was a volunteer fireman and policeman. Frank will be sadly missed by all of us. Our sorrow is strengthened knowing that Frank is now at peace.

Service is Wednesday, 11 AM at the Peace Lutheran Church, 3695 Country Road 101, Plymouth, MN 55446. Visitation Tuesday 5-8 pm and 1 hour prior to service on Wednesday at the church.

Frank Weir was there when I attended my first SD 43 precinct caucus, through good years and bad, always with an easy smile. Although he missed this year's precinct caucus while in the hospital after his "farewell" trip back east where he was from, he was there at Erik Paulsen's kick-off rally, with his usual smile like nothing happened. At this year's Hennepin County endorsing convention, Frank was honored by the Third Congressional District Executive Committee for his years of party service.

It's difficult to imagine this year's election cycle without Frank, but I'm sure he would have an equally difficult time understanding why: he would just want us to get on with winning elections.

Behind closed doors

After the pundits at the TwinWest Chamber of Commerce's June 6 panel discussion (at the Doubletree Park Place hotel in St. Louis Park) generally agreed that "a lot got done" at this year's legislative session, they also agreed on a less sanguine development:

"The lack of transparency in the process I think is very, very unfortunate," [Taxpayers League of Minnesota president Phil] Krinkie said.

Added moderator Mary Lahammer of Twin Cities Public Television, "I have never been a part of a more angry and frustrated press corps. There was extreme anger and frustration about how much happened behind closed doors."

Lahammer said the governor's press secretary accused her of stalking Pawlenty after she took a picture of him through a window as negotiations progressed.

"No governor gives a rip" if the press corps is upset, [Politics In Minnesota publisher Sarah] Janecek responded, although she agreed, "It really is amazing because everything really did get decided behind closed doors."

Media-driven, backroom politics has come to Minnesota, said panelist Blois Olson, executive vice president of public relations firm Tunheim Partners and a DFL commentator.

("TwinWest panelists consider politics in Minnesota," Sun Newspapers, June 13, 2008)

Laws and sausages are made behind closed doors for a reason. Some persons become vegetarians after touring a meat packing plant. I'm guessing that the rest of the story about this year's session won't be revealed until after November, if at all.

Sex and The City: a fairy tale

At one point in the Sex and the City movie, Carrie reads a Cinderella story book to Lily, the young daughter of Harry and Charlotte. At the end, Carrie points out that Cinderella is not real life, it's just a fairy tale.

Likewise, I hope that parents are pointing out to their daughters that Sex and The City is not real life, it's just a fairy tale. The movie, like the rest of our increasingly porno-fied culture, portrays a female fantasy of glamour, beauty, wealth, big city, bright lights, and fabulous, carefree sex without even a hint of birth control or sexually-transmitted consequences.

The reality of free-for-all sex, reported by the Centers for Disease Control in March, is that twenty-six percent of females between the ages of 13 and 19 in the United States has at least one of the most common sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Some of the more disheartening findings of the study prove that these ain't your mother's STDs:

• The most common STI was cancer- and genital wart-associated HPV (18.3%), followed by chlamydia (3.9%), trichomoniasis (2.5%), and HSV-2 (1.9%). Among the teenage girls who had an STI, 15 percent had more than one.
• By race, African American teenage girls had the highest prevalence, with an overall STI prevalence of 48 percent compared to 20 percent among both whites and Mexican Americans. (Other Hispanics and race/ethnic populations were captured in the survey, but there were insufficient numbers in any one group to permit valid prevalence estimates for any group except Mexican Americans.)
• Overall, approximately half of all the teens in the study reported ever having had sex. Among these girls, the STI prevalence was 40 percent.
• Even among girls reporting only one lifetime partner, one in five (20.4%) had at least one STI. Girls with three or more partners had a prevalence of over 50 percent. The predominant STI was HPV.

This isn't just a "women's health" issue, is a societal emergency. And that's no fairy tale.

Fly the flag

Tomorrow, June 14, is Flag Day. If you don't fly your flag every day, be sure to display it tomorrow. Tomorrow would also be a great time to look over your flag and replace it if it is getting faded or worn out (flags can be recycled at your local VFW or American Legion post, and some Boy Scout troops or council offices). Go to USFlag.org for tips on proper handling and showing respect for our nation's colors — and by extension, our nation.

My dad told me that he always got choked up whenever he saw the flag of the United States. Growing up as the son of immigrants and serving in the Army under this flag during World War II taught him to love our country, even while the rest of his family and 110,000 other persons of Japanese ancestry were interned by the federal government by executive order. After the war, he didn't ask much from the government, he just finished college, went to work, raised a family, and flew the flag.

This story from USFlag.org pretty well sums up how the World War II generation feels about the flag:

My Grandfather was a glider infantryman in WWII, an advisor in Korea, and lost one of his sons, my uncle Gary Edwards, in Vietnam. I worked in his auto repair station during high school and he flew his flag in front daily. One day while I was sweeping the oil dry out of the bays it began to sprinkle rain. He told me to go get the flag and I said "gimme a second." He said, "It is raining, go get the flag NOW." Well I popped off my mouth about how he should cool it, it isn't going to melt or some such typical teenage comment.

My grandfather is the toughest man I've ever met. He explained once that he thought basic training was some sort of country club during WWII, because he was used to hard work anyway, and at home he didn't have indoor toilets or hot running water! And when I said whatever it was that I said to him, he turned deep crimson and I thought, "God save me, he's going to kill me for talking back." Instead tears welled up in his eyes and he squeaked out "You don't understand what this family has paid for the right to fly that flag." Then he turned his back on me and went out and got the flag. I just stood there feeling like the smallest person to ever live. Those words cut me so deep. I wish the entire country could have heard them.

Calling all party animals

The Republican National Convention, September 1-4 at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, needs a megawatt of volunteer power (about 10,000 persons) to provide what I would call visitor services: welcoming delegates at airports and hotels, assisting with transportation, supporting convention operations at the "X," providing guest services and other hosting activities at CivicFest at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

Volunteers will receive required training and get an insider's view of the convention. Shifts are four to six hours long.

What will the ideal volunteers look like? Based on my past experience, they:

• Are political junkies, anyone who has done campaign grunt work like walking parades, planting lawn signs, dropping campaign literature, smilin' and dailin' at a get-out-the-vote phone bank, door knocking


• Enjoy volunteering at large events like festivals or hospitality connected to major sporting events (Super Bowl, Final Four, World Series, PGA Championship), Taste of Minnesota, large concerts like the Basilica Block Party, or any sort of national convention


• Enjoy meeting new people from all over the country and sharing their hometown enthusiasm


• Enjoy working hard, and are flexible enough to deal with the chaos and last-minute changes that are almost inevitable at events like this, even when they miss lunch, the cookies and bottled water run out at the volunteer center, and they've been standing all day


• Enjoy wearing lanyards with ID badges, and bright colored t-shirts that say STAFF or VOLUNTEER, and saying "roger" or "ten-four" into walkie talkies

To join the party, go to http://www.msp2008.com/volunteer.