PERSPECTIVES (10/8)

Bush's court pick and the killer virus on the horizon

by Jody L. Slaughter
editor and publisher

Put yourself in this scenario: You're the President of the United States. You're approval ratings have never been lower and you've just conceded responsibility for the inaction of the federal government during a major natural disaster that probably cost more American lives. Although you're not doing well in the polls, you still enjoy a large base of loyal supporters. Now the time has come to nominate a new judge to the Supreme Court. Do you nominate an acclaimed conservative to please your base, and hope to use your Republican majority in the Senate to push the confirmation through? Or do you nominate a moderate, someone whom both Republicans and Democrats can rally around, and try to stabilize your dwindling support base?

For Bush, the answer was simple: None of the above.

With the nomination of Harriet Miers, Bush has managed to anger both the left and the right simultaneously. That's not an easy task, especially from a president that has enjoyed near "rubber stamp" support from right wing religious groups, talk show hosts, pundits and elected officials for his entire term in office. When Rush Limbaugh and Al Franken are both bashing you over the same nomination, that might be an indication of trouble looming.

I personally am looking forward to the spin that is surely going to come out of the White House in the weeks ahead. In order for Miers to be confirmed, Bush is somehow going to have to convince conservatives that she's really a conservative while simultaneously convincing liberals that she's not really all that conservative. Should be a good show.

Outbreak

Now imagine this scenario: In April, an outbreak of severe respiratory illness is identified in a small Asian village. Twenty patients have required hospitalization at the local provincial hospital, five of whom die from pneumonia and respiratory failure.

The flu spreads and begins to make headlines around the world. Top health officials swing into action and isolate the new viral strain in laboratories. The scientists discover that the vaccine developed previously for the avian strain will only provide partial protection.

In June, federal health officials find airline passengers infected with the virus arriving in four major U.S. cities. By July, small outbreaks are being reported around the nation. It spreads.

As the outbreak peaks, about a quarter of workers stay home because they are sick or afraid of becoming sick. Hospitals are overwhelmed.

Social unrest occurs. Public anxiety heightens mistrust of government, resulting in diminishing compliance with public health advisories. Mortuaries and funeral homes are overwhelmed...

The next big Hollywood blockbuster? Nope. That's part of the Pandemic Influenza Strategic Plan from the department of Health and Human Services which was leaked to the New York Times this weekend.

So in addition to the dirty bombs and the freedom-hating terrorists, we now have the freedom-hating flu to look forward to. Be sure and stay scared folks.

PERSPECTIVES (9/12)

Lets not play the race card in New Orleans

by Jody L. Slaughter
editor and publisher

With the disaster in the Gulf Coast, it's a time for Americans to pull together like never before. It's happening in many places with donations to groups like the Red Cross and United Way at unprecedented levels. Thousands of Americans are opening their homes to refugees, knowing that it will likely be months before their houseguests can leave.

Unfortunately, it's also times like these when some choose to exploit those affected by the tragedy. Looting and other violence continue in and around metro New Orleans but with the National Guard given orders to shoot, that problem should be quelled quickly.

Then there are those like black civil rights leader Randall Robinson, author of such books as "The Debt--What America Owes to Blacks," who chooses to further exacerbate the situation with allegations of racism. In a blog post on The Huffington Post he writes:

"It is reported that black hurricane victims in New Orleans have begun eating corpses to survive. Four days after the storm, thousands of blacks in New Orleans are dying like dogs. No-one has come to help them.

I am a sixty-four year old African-American.

New Orleans marks the end of the America I strove for.

I am hopeless. I am sad. I am angry against my country for doing nothing when it mattered.

This is what we have come to. This defining watershed moment in America's racial history. For all the world to witness. For those who've been caused to listen for a lifetime to America's ceaseless hollow bleats about democracy. For Christians, Jews and Muslims at home and abroad. For rich and poor. For African-American soldiers fighting in Iraq. For African-Americans inside the halls of officialdom and out.

My hand shakes with anger as I write. I, the formerly un-jaundiced human rights advocate, have finally come to see my country for what it really is. A monstrous fraud.

But what can I do but write about how I feel. How millions, black like me, must feel at this, the lowest moment in my country's story."

Why, at this "lowest moment in our county's story" does Robinson choose to further racial hatred with his inflammatory rhetoric? Is he hoping his comments will incite race riots in our other major cities? That would solve many problems.

According to the U.S. Census, New Orleans is nearly 70 percent African American--of course blacks are going to be more affected by the devastation.

Perhaps Katrina is the racist one, for choosing to target a predominantly African American city. Maybe it's the New Orleans city planners who are racist, for building a city below sea level that is only protected by a precarious levee system.

In our arrogance as Americans, we forget that we live in a dangerous world. We expect our government to protect us from everything, but no one can stop mother nature.

History tells us that natural disasters like this occur about once per century. The Galveston Hurricane of 1900 killed between 6,000 and 12,000 people and decimated the city. Let's stop accusing our leaders, police and military of racism and let them do their jobs. Many lives are at stake.

PERSPECTIVES (8/29)

What they didn't tell you in orientation

by Jody L. Slaughter
editor and publisher

As I walked the University of North Texas campus on Monday, I couldn't get Paul McCartney's "Band on the Run" out of my head. I'm now pushing 25, with the credit hours of a 19 year old, and sometimes I think that I truly never will get out of here.

Many of my high school classmates have already graduated and gone on to careers in animal husbandry, real estate or building death-rays for the United States government. Others are married, impregnated or incarcerated. Some dropped out to start music careers, sell drugs or simply get a real job.

So why am I still in college? It would be easy to blame myself for being lazy, not going to class or refusing to do homework; but I think there's got to be something the school is doing to impede my credit-hour-achieval. If they would simply move the campus closer to my apartment and ban homework, I would pass every class with ease. Now that I think about it, I seem to remember getting a notification in the mail that I have to make something like 12 A's this semester to keep my GPA high enough to even be allowed to stay in school. So that should be easy enough...

I always make a point to get to campus a little early on the first day of the fall semester so I can stroll around and inspect the new crop of incoming freshmen. This group was no different than all the rest--a bunch of excited and terribly frightened-looking 18 year olds running from building to building with schedule in hand, desperately trying to look like "mature college students" but generally failing to do so. I can spot them a mile away. Experienced academics know that college students are inherently immature so trying to look mature only makes you look like a youngling. That's a free tip, kiddos.

Then there's the girls. At this point, the freshman still have most of their dignity. This is a unique time in their lives, out from under their parents' protective umbrella but without the basic skills needed to survive alone in the real world. Folks back home are always amazed by the transformation that many young ladies undergo upon entering college--the good Christian girl from San Angelo becomes a pill-crazed dope fiend, the homecoming queen from Victoria becomes "Run-through Ruth."

I'm sure there are a few parents out there reading this and wondering "Jody, what can I do to save my sweet [fill in the blank] from this?" The answer: Nothing.

Almost instinctively, innocent young girls come to college, "fall in love" with some guy and become whatever he is. If he's a speed dealer your princess is now a junky, if he's a frat boy your princess is now a whore, etc. Though the two may eventually break-up and go their separate ways, she will remain a pitiful shell of her former self. She came to college hoping to climb that ivory tower of academia, but instead finds herself being kicked out of some fraternity bunk bed at 4 a.m. But don't worry yet dad, you still have two or three weeks to get her back home before this sets in permanently.

And while the frosh are running around in their Abercrombie shirts and shorts, the upperclasswomen participate in what should be formally named "UNT's annual Slut Off" where each tries to set a new low at how skanky one can dress for class. During my stroll around the campus, I encountered every combination imaginable of fishnet, clear heels, cleavage, visible thongs, short-shorts, shorter-shorts, shorts-that-shouldn't-even-be-considered-shorts, mid-drifts, sports bras, see-throughs and faux-leather in every variety imaginable. I even met a group of intrepid young men camped out at the bottom of the stairwell in the Foreign Language building hoping for a glimpse of the much sought-after short skirt/thong combination going up the stairs. They weren't disappointed.

As I continued my journey around campus looking for something else to criticize, I began to get the feeling that I was supposed to be somewhere, doing something important. Oh yeah, I'm missing my first class. Oh well.

PERSPECTIVES (8/22)

Why Mike Jones is everything that's wrong with music today

by Jody L. Slaughter
editor and publisher

I've noticed for the past several years that rock music is on the decline. With very few exceptions, mainstream rock music (bands carried by major labels who receive radio airplay) sucks. Plain and simple. There's really no one to blame but Clearchannel and the record companies who have choked every ounce of creativity and talent out of the genre, leaving only good-looking hacks who don't mind peddling the soft drink/potato chip of the moment as long as it means the record companies and radio stations will make sure they stay famous.

Now there's nothing wrong with a musician wanting fame-- I guess there's not really anything wrong with making a little extra money endorsing a product either--but what happened to actually having talent to back it up?

The only "groundbreaking" and "original" rock music out there today comes from bands like Jet and the Killers who happen to sound strikingly similar to bands from the 1970's and 1980s, respectively. This is the original music of our day? I guess Pete Townshend (and Spiro Agnew) were right. Rock is dead

I began to hear the death rattles several years ago and started shifting my music-listening time to more hip-hop. This, I thought, was the wave of the future--the music style that will define the 21st century. But sadly, rap music may have peaked as well.

Last week, I was able to attend a Mike Jones concert in Lubbock. Mike Jones--the dirtiest of the Dirty South. Diamonds in his teeth (teef), gold chains and wood grain; and fresh out on his first tour following his major label debut. Where better to find an example of rap's staying power? I couldn't have been more wrong.

The $25 admission charge was a little steep for my taste, but I paid it. This is after all Mike Jones. After enduring what seemed like three hours of horrible opening groups hoping for their big break, the time finally came for The Man himself to appear.

A couple of emcees came out to prep the crowd by performing covers of other rap songs They also led the crowd in a rousing chant of, "Who? Mike Jones!" By the time they started throwing chains and other bling into the crowd, the place
was going insane. Enter Mike Jones.

Mike and his crew all entered the stage wearing red Texas Tech hoodies, much to the delight of the college crowd. He played a number of songs off of his newest CD "Who is Mike Jones?" Crowd favorites were such songs as "Switchin' Lanes (Holdin' Wood Grains)" which details the fine points of manuevering through traffic while using a faux-wood steering wheel. Jones also performed numerous melodies lauding the wonders of "purple drink" which, according to my sources in the Fifth Ward, is a popular cocktail featuring Sprite mixed with promithyzene, a powerful narcotic.

Jones, who obviously had been no stranger to the purple drink and the reefer before the show. Rapidly went through his catalogue, performing one verse from each of his songs before moving onto the next. He left the stage less than 30 minutes after he began performing. That was it. It took us longer to get out of the parking lot than it took to watch Jones' entire performance.

It's things like this that will eventually kill rap music as well. A musician who does not respect his fans will not have fans for very long. And it's not just Mike Jones.

Arrogance is a plague that has so manifested itself in the hip-hop genre that now the two are almost indistinguishable. Once a rapper gets his "major deal" it's no longer about the music. It's now about partying, girls and purple drink and bling. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but you still have to respect your fans.

So where do you go to find decent music? Well it's not easy. There are phenomenal bands out there from both the rock and hip-hop genres--It's just nobody you've ever heard of. There's always the Internet and satellite radio. I personally have found myself venturing towards the AM dial and its endless stream of bloviating conservative charlatans. Or--and I hesitate to even say it in print--NPR, where my coolness is violently ripped away minute-by-minute by monotone radio personalities interviewing people that I never wanted to meet, and teaching me things I never wanted to learn. But don't despair, the music revolution is coming and it won't be televised--at least not on MTV.

PERSPECTIVES (7/25)

The final solution to the astronaut problem

by Jody L. Slaughter
editor and publisher

Last Tuesday, NASAsent the Discovery space shuttle into orbit--the first U.S. launch since the Columbia disaster. The launch is only the first step in President Bush's ambitious plan to return to the moon and put a man on Mars in the coming years.

Billions of dollars are expected to be spent developing the next generation of space vehicles to accomplish these goals. At this critical junction in the U.S. space program, I believe the time is right to begin discussing the merits and means of its continuation.

I realize that the space program has helped to develop hundreds of new technological innovations. From Velcro and the Tempur-Pedic Swedish Sleep Mattress, to ways of safely drinking one's own urine--the space program has greatly enriched our everyday lives. But at what cost to society?

The space program has also forced a new class of people into our national culture. No, it's not another "huddled mass" hailing from some far-off third world dictatorship, looking to start a new life for their families. These are elitists. They care nothing about you or your family, all they care about is getting back into space where they can float around weightless and conduct their secret "experiments." That's right, I'm talking about astronauts.

It would be easy for me to use this space to bash astronauts and bring up the old rumors that we've all heard over and over again (Astronauts are addicted to Tang, they eat their breakfast upside-down, they have to eat their food out of a blender, they drink their own urine even while on Earth, and any number of 'astro-nazi' and 'moon-cheese baby' references), but I'm not going to take that path today.

Instead, I'll present an example of a family and a town ruined by astronauts. A colleague of mine, Nato Johnson, made his living speculating on real estate in the suburbs of Houston. He purchased a number of homes in the city of Katy and hoped to make a handsome profit by waiting for the right moment to sell them.

Then the astronauts moved in.

Property values in the formerly upper-class township plummeted. It seemed that no one wanted to move their families into a neighborhood inhabited by astronauts.

"From the first weekend they moved in, the astronauts started having these crazed all-night parties," Glenda Fischer, a former Katy resident, said. "I watched them bring in case after case of Tang and vodka. And my god--that horrible techno remix of the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey--they would play it over and over and over again. It was very traumatizing."

Fischer now resides in the Badlands of Montana. An area which, to her knowledge, no astronaut has ever visited.

My colleague and his business were ruined. I haven't spoken to him in several years, but the last I heard he had sold his wife and both of his children to a wealthy Hong Kong businessman and used the money he made to finance his film, "Birth of a Station." The highly controversial film is considered to be the cornerstone of the "Astro-hate" movement. Using the International Space Station as a backdrop, he outlined the worst transgressions committed by astronauts in the past 50 years.

The mass exodus of "regular" people from astronaut-ridden neighborhoods has even inspired an enterprising land developer to build "astronaut-free" housing developments outside of Houston, Orlando and Huntsville, Ala. Before allowing a person to move into the development, a thorough background check is conducted to determine if he or she is, has ever been, or has family members who are astronauts.

Now I wouldn't say that I "hate" astronauts. Hate is a word that invokes a certain passion that doesn't accurately explain my feelings. I would say that I feel the same way about astronauts as I do about cats. They're both subhuman, worthless, despicable creatures who contribute nothing of value to society and therefore don't deserve the energy of my "hate." Hey astronauts, if you hate the Earth so much and have to leave---why don't you just stay gone?

My solution is simple: Instead of trusting billions of dollars in technology to these radical and emotionally-unstable astronauts, why not set up some kind of a "jury pool" where regular citizens are selected at random, trained and sent into space for a single mission. That way, the U.S. could protect the integrity of its space program without the corruption stemming from "career astronauts."

It won't be easy to convince the public to venture into space at the government's behest, however. The threat of a human becoming impregnated with an alien fetus while in space is very real. But with the money that we'll save by ending these astronauts' six-figure salaries, we should be able to generously compensate those citizens selected to travel into space.

My critics will surely ask, what of the astronauts? What happens to them after we've eliminated their jobs. My answer: What do I care? Deport them or something. Just keep them out of my neighborhood.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower, considered by many to be the father of the U.S. space program said it best:

"They started out sending monkeys into space, that was too cruel to the monkeys so now they send astronauts."

Are the McDougals leaving Lubbock politics?

by Jody L. Slaughter
editor and publisher

First, Lubbock mayor Marc McDougal announced that he would not seek Delwin Jones' seat in the Texas House. Then a day later, McDougal's father, Delbert McDougal, announced his retirement from the Lubbock Reese Redevelopment Authority, citing frustration with criticism that he was using his position to line the pockets of his family's real estate business.

The criticisms were not completely unfounded as McDougal Realtors, McDougal Properties and McDougal Construction--the Holy Trinity of Lubbock real estate--have made handsome profits from a number of vast and often controversial development initiatives across the city.

An example is the North Overton Development Initiative which forced dozens of low income families out of their homes to make room for high-priced luxury apartments and ritzy shopping centers. Every aspect of the project from demolition and construction of the new buildings, to leasing and ongoing maintenance was carried out by McDougal companies and their contractors. Delbert, the patriarch of the McDougals' vast real estate empire--and Marc to a lesser extent--have sometimes been criticized for this conflict of interest.

In a statement following his resignation, Delbert stated that he wants to run his business without being 'targeted' by critics. He also expects the rest of his affluent family to follow suit.

"Basically, we're just going to pull back from all those committees and run our own business," he told the Lubbock A-J.

But will the rest of the McDougal clan take his advice?

Earlier this year, when Marc McDougal announced that he would not seek a third term as Lubbock's mayor, many assumed that he would challenge octogenarian Delwin Jones for his seat in the Texas House. On July 11, Marc appointed his brother, Mike McDougal, as campaign treasurer but he now says that he will not seek the House seat. But, as the saying goes, nothing in Texas politics is final until the filing deadline.

It seems as though the McDougal family is at a crossroads. Do they follow the wisdom of their patriarch and focus on doing what they do best--making tons of money in real estate? Or do they seek higher ground in state politics, as the younger generation seems to envision? It's a classic battle of old school versus new school, money versus power. Marc McDougal may just end up being the wild card in the deck of Texas politics this election season.

John Roberts Profile

John G. Roberts, Jr. was nominated July 19, 2005 by President George W. Bush to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Judge Roberts currently serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Previously, he was a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Hogan & Hartson LLP, where he headed the firm’s appellate practice. Roberts has argued more nearly 40 cases before the Supreme Court on behalf of both Hogan & Hartson’s clients and as Principal Deputy Solicitor General on behalf of the United States.

Mr. Roberts has received the Edmond J. Randolph award for outstanding service to the Department of Justice, and is currently a member of the American Law Institute and the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. When he was nominated to his current position on the D.C. Circuit, American Bar Association rated him "well-qualified," its highest rating.


EXPERIENCE

Present:
Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit

1989-1993
Principle Deputy Solicitor General of the United States
Appointed by President George H.W. Bush

1993-2003
1986-1989
Hogan & Hartson LLP
Specializes in Supreme Court and Appellate Litigation

1982-1986
Associate Counsel to the President
U.S. President Ronald Reagan

1981-1982
Special Assistant,
U.S. Attorney General William French Smith

1980-1981
Law Clerk, Justice William H. Rehnquist
United States Supreme Court

1979-1980
Law Clerk, The Honorable Henry J. Friendly
U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit


EDUCATION

1979
Juris Doctorate, Harvard Law School
Graduated magna cum laude
Managing Editor, Harvard Law Review

1976
Bachelor of Arts Degree, Harvard College
Graduated summa cum laude

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Information gathered from various news articles and John G. Roberts’ bio at Hogan & Hartson LLP