Sorry there was no page yesterday. I had a reception to attend in the afternoon, and had to run home to pick up the wife so we could go out for our anniversary. I took her to a Jim Beam tasting at the Capital City Club. Am I a romantic guy, or what? (Hey, we had a nice dinner afterwards…) Here’s today’s page:
- GM Files for Long-Awaited IPO (WSJ) — Looks like you and I might be getting out of the car bidness.
- S.C. may lose $143 million for education (thestate.com) — Why? Because we do less to fund higher ed than any other state in this region. Something our governor and majority in the Legislature continue not to understand.
- After disaster, BP dusts itself off (WashPost) — “…but rebuilding the company’s badly tarnished brand will prove a much harder task…”
- More aid pledged for flood-hit Pakistan (BBC) — Folks over there just continue to have it way worse than we do.
- Midlands political legend Rod Shealy dies (various) — He had a big impact on politics in this area, and statewide.
- Accused mother appears in court (thestate.com) — Not usually the kind of story I play up, but given the competing news today, it makes the front.
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Happy Anniversary to you and Mrs. Warthen! (Why is Mrs. Warthen “the wife”? “…run home to pick up the wife…” just askin’
Number 2 brings to mind the horrible mess the legislature puts us in with Medicaid. Medicaid is a 3-1 to 5-1 match…it’s the “cheapest” money the legislature can possibly spend. So what did the legislature do? Cut DHHS’ budget so low that they can’t function….hurting the patients, and hampering the medical provider’s ability to serve them. All this by leaving millions of dollars in federal match on the table.
Greg, How can they do otherwise. Sanford has starved our state gov. to the point where it cannot function as it needs to. We are laying off teachers left and right, and cutting jobs that are necessary to our most vulnerable. This is just another symptom of this ‘cut taxes’ mania.
I’m not sure why Brad downplays the mother-killing-her-kids story. Sure it’s only one incident involving 2 deaths. Yet I would maintain this story illustrates a far more widespread range of problems that are becoming more prevalent in South Carolina. It’s a story about poverty, dispair and ultimately lost hope. This woman’s story is an extreme example of what many folks face in thier very difficult lives.
There’s no excuse for her actions and she should be punished to the full extent of the law. Yet it is important to recognize that these types of events will happen more frequently in a state full of poorly educated, unemployed people that have nowhere to turn. Until we can properly address the needs of the people in these state we will have tragedies manifest themselves in different ways. Drinking and drugs are likely to become a way out for many. It’s a shame when our politicians cannot grasp the extent of their intransigence on important issues like eduacation, jobs and even the bus system that will improve the lot of many desparate folks. In the end all of us, even the super wealthy who may have to pay a bit more in taxes for their lake house, will be better off.
@Karen
“Sanford has starved our state gov. to the point where it cannot function as it needs to. ”
100% false.
Aside from not being responsible for what revenues the state brings in or how it spends it (except for trivial vetoes that get overridden), the state government continues to grow each and every year.
So a) it’s not his fault and b) the money is there but the legislature chooses to spend it on other stuff.
@bud
We’ve tried spending more. It doesn’t work.
Was the mother on food stamps? Did she drop out of school? Was she on welfare? Why did she continue to have children she couldn’t support?
No amount of government involvement will fix the cultural/societal issues that led to the tragedy. This can only be fixed from the bottom up by communities and churches.
I knew this was going to happen. I want to be 100% clear on this. The woman in question is responsible for her actions, period. Whether she was or was not on food stamps. Whether she had a boyfriend who beat her or a mom that didn’t care about her as a baby she is completely responsible for her actions.
What is important is not any individual case but rather the raw statistical count of horrible events that occur in our state. We rank high in so many terrible things it’s worth using this as an example of what happens when we have a dysfunctional state.
Perhaps a better example would be a tragic traffic accident. We rank high every year on that as well. If we could reduce the carnage by 50 or 100 wouldn’t that be a good thing? To suggest the government and it’s backward policies isn’t at least partly responsible for the large number of horrors we endure gives them a pass that they don’t deserve. Our elected officials and the laws they pass reflect on the quality of life in this state. Sadly, our elected officials, including our governor, are a despicable bunch that deserve all the shame and ridicule they get from the national press and late night comics.
I don’t know how much communities and churches can do to treat things like true clinical post-partum depression or other severe mental illness if the professional services just aren’t there anymore.
@ bud– I agree with you, except that if she was mentally ill, she may not be responsible for her actions–and I don’t mean just in a legal sense–you have to be pretty out of it to escape culpability in our system, unfortunately. She may not have been able to stop herself—a lot of these mothers are in the grip of serious delusions.
Did anyone bother to read the full account of what the young woman had to say? I doubt it.
She told investigators how her mother constantly belittled and verbally abused her about not being worth anything, not being able to hold onto a man, not working or being able to hold a job, and that is only what she reported.
When one is constantly berated, as this young woman claims, is obviously severely overweight and apparently already has a serious personal image problem, a constant barrage of negativity with no hope of escape can and will create a state of despair and deparate actions will soon follow. The person who applies the negative pressure will most likely never agree to or be willing to seek help for their victim. Who, in turn, turns on someone weaker. In this instance, her two babies.
So, I seriously doubt the attempted claims that it is the state’s fault can hold water or even deserve consideration in this instance. If anything, if what she has said is true, then the mother should be held to some accountability as well.
It is getting harder to clean up BP’s tarnished image. I’m reading reports they are at least being partially blamed for the early release of the Lockerbie bomber. Per NPR, U.S. lawmakers are investigating whether oil giant BP pushed for his release from prison to get Libya’s oil and are assailing Scotland for freeing him.
Doug, plenty of tax cuts went through under Mr. Sanford. Indeed, he championed them. And taxes have shifted to put more burden on those who can least afford them. Of course the economy has “grown.” The state has grown. In addition, as we make it harder and harder for people to afford life, we end up with more of them on the welfare rolls.
@Bart–I agree. I don’t see this one as the State’s fault. She apparently never got into anyone’s sights.
On the other hand, if we had more social workers out there, who knows what they might be able to forestall?
As Reagan said, “kill the poor!”
not really, but you get the drift.