Fixing Potholes On The Road and At The Top

A transportation package that would benefit roads, bridges and mass transit is a reality because, for the first time since Republican Tim Pawlenty became Minnesota's governor in 2003, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor-dominated Legislature overrode one of his vetoes. And, for good measure, his lieutenant governor Carol Molnau no longer moonlights as the head of the transportation department.

The new law, which goes into effect later this year, would raise $6.6 billion dollars by levying the first Minnesota gas tax in 20 years. It would go up by at least five cents the first year, then a little more thereafter.

Six Republican House members joined 85 DFLers in voting to override the veto 91-41. (The Senate voted 47-20) For their trouble, the six were called on the carpet by the GOP leadership for the sin of (A) commiserating with the enemy, and (B) breaking from the conservative mantra that any tax is a bad tax, no matter how much it might benefit your constituents.

Governor Pawlenty has used his Magic Veto Pen 37 times since taking office, in the name of cutting the budget. Which is all well and good, unless the end result is a state that's so screwed up, no amount of money can undo the damage.

Granted, this is not the best time to launch an ambitious transportation program. As it happens, the economy's in the tank. Foreclosures are rampant. Unemployment is up. Four-dollar-a-gallon gasoline is a real possibility. But in the wake of the 35W bridge collapse, and with so many roads and bridges falling apart, it needed to be done.

Which leads us to Molnau, for whom the Senate decided to take away her role as head of Minnesota's Department of Transportation. From all reports, she made a mess of things when she mistook political considerations for leadership, possibly endangering thousands of lives in the process.

Governor Pawlenty has been campaigning for John McCain's presidential run, allegedly on his own time and spending his own money, and has been rumored to be in line to be the Arizona senator's running mate. One wonders whether the ouster of Molnau was a wise thing to do, given the possibility that she could become governor should McCain be elected President of the United States and Pawlenty becomes his Vice President. In that case, what was the DFL leadership thinking?

Desperate Candidates

The Texas and Ohio Democratic primaries are upon us in a week, with Hillary Clinton needing big victories against Barack Obama to stay in the race, so let's use this lull in the proceedings to catch up on the political scene:

• Losing 11 consecutive primaries/caucuses to Obama has turned Clinton into a desperate woman. With her lead in Texas and Ohio melting like butter on a hot skillet--even the superdelegates are abandoning her--Clinton has resorted to accusing Obama of plagiarizing his speeches (what candidate hasn't done that?), twisting her words on health care reform, and allegedly publishing pictures of the Illinois senator in traditional Kenyan garb (read: Muslim) taken in 2006. But Clinton can't break through. Obama is this year's Teflon candidate, with nothing significant sticking to him. And anyone who does try to criticize him risks getting branded as a racist, since the senator happens to be biracial. That's why he was so calm and collected in comparison to Clinton during Tuesday's debate in Cleveland on MSNBC.
• Obama's wife Michelle made her bid to become the Next Hillary with this statement at a rally in Milwaukee: "For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country--and not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change". Can anyone tell us what's wrong with that sentence? And why we should care?
• The New York Times reports that John McCain, the apparent Republican presidential nominee, had an affair during the 2000 campaign with Vicki Iseman, at that time a lobbyist for Paxson Communications (now called Ion Media Networks). McCain and Iseman have denied that there ever was that kind of relationship. The article itself dealt at length with McCain's dealings with special interests such as Paxson, even though he claimed not to. But the Times felt the need to sex up the story at a time when the public has moved past such scandals. The upshot is that all the right-wing loudmouths who have been whining that McCain isn't as conservative as they wanted him to be have rallied to his side, at least in this case. Let's see how loyal they really are come November.
• Mike Huckabee is still hanging around, even though he has little chance of overtaking McCain in the delegate count.
• Consumer advocate Ralph Nader is back as a presidential candidate, whether anybody likes it or not. Some people still blame him for giving George W. Bush the White House instead of Al Gore in the 2000 election. This time, Nader's running on the premise that the real issues aren't being discussed because of corporate control of the political parties. As in the previous elections, Nader is not given any chance to win. Still, if you don't want to see a third Clinton term, a continuation of the Iraq war under McCain, or think Obama's too inexperienced to be President, then Nader might be your man.

"No Country", Few Surprises At Oscars

,At the 80th Academy Awards Sunday night, the Motion Picture Academy's fascination with violent, depressing movies continued with No Country For Old Men winning four Oscars, including Best Picture. Joel and Ethan Coen took home two awards for Best Adapted Screenplay and for Best Directing, then showed us why they'd rather let their films do the talking with their acceptance speeches, in which they didn't say much. Javier Badem won for Best Supporting Actor, then proceeded to thank his mother in Spanish.

Daniel Day-Lewis, who was expected by most pundits to win Best Actor for There Will Be Blood, did so.

Marion Cotillard, in one of the few surprises of the evening, won as Best Actress for her role as singer Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose. A Frenchwoman playing another Frenchwoman. What a concept.

Tilda Swinton took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress with her role in Michael Clayton. In her acceptance speech, Swinton said she'd give the Oscar to her agent, because it looks just like him. Was he in the audience, by any chance?

Congratulations are in order for Betty Rubble--excuse me, Diablo Cody--for her Best Original Screenplay Oscar for Juno. Only Cody could have pulled off the feat of being better known for writing a film than any of the actors who were in it.

Other Oscar observations:

• Jon Stewart did a better job hosting the ABC telecast than the last time he did this. His opening monologue was excellent, and kept things moving in spite of the lack of bad montages. Now, aren't you glad the writers' strike is over?
• A song from Once won for Best Original Song. And, unlike Disney's Enchanted, it only had to be nominated once.
• The Best Foreign Language Film went to The Counterfeiters from Austria. We know the Holocaust is an important topic, but has there ever been a film in that genre that didn't win an award of some kind?
• In the category of Interesting Presenters: Owen Wilson, a few months removed from an alleged suicide attempt, presented an award for Live Action Short Film. Jerry Seinfeld as an animated bee. Two guys who were introduced as Halle Berry and Dame Judith Evans who don't look anything like them. Hilary Swank introducing this year's Obit Reel. Spokesman for the American Soldier Tom Hanks, with help from some of George W. Bush's troops in Iraq via satellite, presented the Documentary Short Subject award. And Jack Nicholson, His Shaded Eminence, introduced 79 Best Picture Oscar winners.

Now let's see how many of these fine films do when they're released on DVD, so cheapskates like me can actually see what all the fuss was about.

Twilight For The Dictator Next Door

Fidel Castro, one of the world's longest-serving leaders, is retiring as president of Cuba after nearly a half-century of ruling with an iron fist. At 81 and suffering from an undisclosed illness, he's expected to cede power to his brother Raul (who is 76), but remain with the government in some capacity.

Castro has outlasted nine U.S. presidents since taking power in 1959, from Dwight Eisenhower to Bill Clinton. The Soviet Union, Cuba's chief benefactor during the Cold War years, no longer exists.

Believe it or not, there was once a time when Castro was considered a hero for ousting the hated dictator Fulgencio Batista. That was before he declared himself a Comminust and turned Cuba into a socialist state. Since then, the United States has tried to get rid of Castro who knows how many times, mostly ending in disaster (see: Bay of Pigs invasion).

When the Soviets put nuclear missiles in Cuba in 1962, President Kennedy orders a blockade to force them out. War almost broke out before the Soviets agreed to dismantle the missiles and JFK agreed not to invade Cuba.

In the half-century since Castro took control, Cuba changed from a vibrant country to a ramshackle existence, dotted by dilapidated buildings and 1950s-era transportation. Government-mandated repression and alleged human rights abuses abounded. Thousands of Cuban exiles have fled to the United States in rickety old boats, risking death and the possibility of getting turned back by the Coast Guard.

The U.S. embargo on trade and tourism has been in place since the early 1960s, and it looks as if the Bush administration and whoever succeeds them intend to continue the policy, even though there seems to be no good reason for it. What's the excuse this time? Has Castro been harboring terrorists?

The news of Castro's retirement has not set off any parades in the Cuban-American section of Miami, where thousands of exiles now live, because no one really expects their onetime homeland to suddenly drop Communism until both Castros are out of the picture for good. Besides, after having spent so much time in America partaking of all it has to offer (not to mention wielding extraordinary political clout), why would they want to go back?

The twilight of a bearded, cigar-smoking man who symbolized a revolution wearing army fatigues and making long speeches while ruling his country with an iron fist is upon us. What remains to be seen is what will happen to Cuba after Fidel Castro is gone.

Digital TV: In Search of a Clearer Picture

In a year from now. all broadcast TV stations will be going digital, and only recently has there been a push to make people aware of the situation. There are approximately 117 million analog TVs, equipped only with rabbit ears, and the potential of people raising hell because they woke up one morning to find nothing but a snowy picture on their screens is enormous.

Before we plunk down a ton of money for an high-definition set, or use those government-issued $40 coupons for analog converter boxes, we have a few concerns about digital TV that haven't been (but should be) addressed.

• What will a digital picture look like on your analog TV, whether or not you have cable or satellite? Will it be oversized? Will it be in the widescreen format, shrinking the picture? Or will it look the same as it always has?
• You may have heard that the format war for DVD on HD is all but over. Most of the major movie studios and retailers have aligned themselves with Blu Ray over HD/DVD, which is supposed to be technologically superior. Toshiba has announced that it will no longer make any HD/DVD players. Two things: 1. Unless you actually have an HD set, this bit of news doesn't mean squat to you, and 2. It'll be a moot point once people start legally downloading movies off the Internet.
• Can you record TV programs from digital using the VCR? Believe it or not, there are people out there who still use them and don't want to spend money on TiVo's monthly subscription fee.
• Will cable providers such as Comcast use the switchover to phase out its basic package, forcing those customers to pay for the more expensive digital tier?
• After the changeover, how will TV stations brand themselves? In most cities, network affiliates bill themselves as CBS 2, NBC 4, FOX 5, ABC 7, or whatever, instead of their call letters. The Twin Cities stations, for some reason, doesn't do that. Here its WCCO, 5 Eyewitness News (for KSTP), FOX9 (for KMSP) and KARE 11. Since the digital signals will be on different channels, people may have to get reacquainted with call letters.
• Then there's the matter of local newscasts on HD, in which KARE is the only station in the Twin Cities broadcasting in it. Others won't do it beacuse (A) it's too expensive (You would think that CBS and News Corp., the owners of WCCO and KMSP respectively, would spend the money) and (B) nobody's clamoring for it (If the networks would put more of its programming in HD, there'd be more of a demand, wouldn't there?).

There's one other possibility surrounding the digital changeover that nobody talks about: Some people might use this as an opportunity to pull the plug on their TV for good.

The Clemens Hearings: Who Do You Trust?

Many have wondered how Roger Clemens, one of the winningest pitchers in Major League Baseball history with 351 victories, was able to pitch at a high level into his mid-40s. After testifying in front of a congressional panel Wednesday, we're still wondering.

Clemens, who was cited in the Mitchell Report on steroid use in baseball, told the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform under oath that he had never used performance-enhancing drugs.

His former personal trainer Brian McNamee (who was sitting a few feet from Clemens) and former New York Yankees teammate Andy Pettite (who wasn't involved in the hearing, but did issue a statement) begged to differ. Both said that Clemens was injected with human growth hormone (HGH) and other performance-enhancers.

This spectacle was televised live on several cable networks and led the network evening news, something you wouldn't get for a hearing on, let's say, bean futures. Considering the contradictory nature of the testimony, wouldn't an appearance on Dr. Phil or The Oprah Winfrey Show have been more appropriate?

The testimony also included descriptions by McNamee of how he injected HGH into Clemens' buttocks, as well as his wife Debbie (which Clemens claimed he knew nothing about), in preparation for a feature in Sports Illustrated's 2003 swimsuit issue. Then there was also talk about what Clemens' nanny heard. At least we were spared details about the Clemens' sex life.

In the end, for all the partisan questioning (Democrats on the committee railing against President Bush's buddy Clemens, Republicans berating McNamee) and finger-pointing, the matter of who's telling the truth remains unresolved. It is now up to the Justice Department to decide who, if anybody, is facing major prison time for lying under oath.

But was this hearing really necessary? Congressman Henry Waxman, the Democrat from California who chaired the committee, told the New York Times that it never should have happened, and that Clemens and his attorney were the ones pushing for it.

Why is Congress (if you'll pardon the expression) injecting itself into an issue that Major League Baseball should have addressed years ago? It's not as if they don't have more important things to do, such as protecting the American people from President Bush's security excesses, or hold more hearings on the latest school shooting, this one at Northern Illinois University which left five dead including the shooter.

In the next few years, Clemens, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds will all be eligible for induction into baseball's Hall of Fame. Since those names and others have been accused of using performance-enhancing drugs, voters will be extremely reluctant to give them the keys to immortailty. Which means only one thing: Bert Blyleven finally has a shot at the Hall.

Even In Death, Cuteness Rules

In the first Minneapolis homicide of 2008, a four-year old was allegedly beaten to death by a relative who was taking care of him.

Some of the basics of the crime, according to police accounts and the St. Paul Pioneer Press, are these: Carla Poole of north Minneapolis is charged with second degree murder in the death of her cousin's son Demond Keith Reed. Police believe Reed was fatally beaten and stuffed in the closet for days after he soiled his pants, an act allegedly witnessed by Poole's children. She was taking care of Reed while his father was serving time in Chicago for a probation violation.

This could have been written off by the local media as just another tale of the mean streets of north Minneapolis. Had this taken place in, say, Burnsville, politicians would be expressing outrage and pass anti-crime bills named "Demond's Law", just like they did for Dru Sjodin. But since Reed was African-American, that's not likely to happen.

Since this happens to be sweeps month, when local TV stations trot out their best programming to get more viewers and charge more for advertising, the news departments fell all over themselves to cover this story. Because Demond Keith Reed wasn't just any four-year old crime victim. He was a cute and cuddly four-year old crime victim.

There are, unfortunately, cases of child abuse and neglect that sometimes leads to death every year. Ask any social worker. Not all of the victims are as photogenic as Reed, but if you watch local TV news long enough, you'd be forgiven if you thought they're the only kind that exist.

The media's obsession with pretty people in peril isn't limited to children, of course. Cable news, unless there is a disaster or a presidential campaign to cover, fills its time keeping viewers up to date on the disappearance of Natalee Holloway or the travails of Britney Spears. Neither of them would be considered plain Janes.

Crime victims come in all shapes, sizes and colors. But unless you're young, attractive and (more often than not) white, you're just another statistic. It's all for ratings, don't you know. Gotta lock in that 18-49 female demographic, and the hell with everyone else.

A funeral service will be held on Monday for Demond Keith Reed. He'll never know if his death had made a difference, or if he was just used for ratings fodder.