Debate Number 3

The third and final debate is now over and Senator Obama did a fabulous job! He was cool, calm, and collected. He didn't stutter. He didn't waver.

McCain, on the other hand, was as slippery as ever. I had a few comments about his statements.

One, he and his running mate keep referring to her experience with special needs children. He said she was very aware of the difficulties experienced by parents with autistic children. Her child is not autistic. He has Downs Syndrome. Over the years there have been huge improvement in the treatment of Downs Syndrome children and their quality of life is very good. Autism is a very big problem but it is not within Sarah Palin's area of experience.

Two, I was offended that he could not remember Michelle Obama's name. He referred over and over to his wife Cindy. However, when he tried to recall Michelle's name, he could not and reverted to Mrs. Obama. My impression was that she, as a woman, was not sufficiently important to remember.

Third, I thought Senator McCain stuttered, stammered, and frequently searched for words. When stumped, he reverted to the old tactic of saying the same thing over and over. The Republican state of mind seems to be that "if you say a lie over and over enough times, it becomes the truth."

Fourth, the interview with the undecided voters after the debate was very informative. I was surprised to see that all the six members stated that they doubted Senator McCain's judgment since he choose Sarah Palin as his Vice-Presidential running mate. That said volumes to me.

Linda Laughinghouse

Vice-Presidential Debate

Hope everyone will tune in to the debate tonight. I hope everyone really gets to know the caliber of people the two candidates are. If they are true to themselves, then the country will know exactly who to vote for.

Linda L.

Letters to the Editor

I want to thank the Bastrop Advertiser for publishing my letter to the editor regarding my support for John Klaus for Precinct 3 Commissioner. I am fascinated by the way the Republican Chair responded. He did not refute what I said, he attacked ME. I guess when you don't have any facts to support your position, attacking the writer is a logical tactic. It certainly detracts attention from the real issues.

BTW have you ever noticed that NONE of the campaign signs for Republican candidates have the word REPUBLICAN on them. I guess if I belonged to that party, I would not broadcast it either.

Linda L.

On feminism

Dear Fellow Democrats:

A friend sent me this. Thought you might like it.

Linda


Kathleen Reardon-Huffington Post
Posted September 12, 2008 03:04 PM (EST)

Is It Sexist To Want The Person Flying The Plane To Be A Pilot?

With all this talk about Sarah Palin redefining feminism and people who don't support her candidacy being sexist, I think we could use a little clarification.

Women's progress at work and in government is critically important. We are not, after all, living in the Dark Ages. But, and this is a VERY IMPORTANT BUT, consider the following scenario.

You're about to board a plane and a flight attendant says, "Today as part of our responsiveness to customers program you may choose Mr. Jones here as co-pilot. He will fly the airplane should something go wrong with the pilot, who isn't at his best today. Mr. Jones has been a pilot for twenty years and has an impeccable record. He is, however, a man. Because you support the advancement of women in the workplace, we also have a woman here who is willing to fly your plane. She is not a pilot but she didn't blink when asked to do this and for the past week a team of experts has been talking to her a lot about how to fly."

Who would you choose? If you chose Pilot Jones, would that be sexist? Or would you simply not be a complete idiot?

Apply this to Sarah Palin. She has not spent time in Washington as a senator or a congresswoman. She has spent most of her life in Alaska. From her interview with Charlie Gibson, it is clear that she is proud of not blinking about making decisions that affect millions of lives. And she is uninformed about the workings of the U.S. government.

Personally I'd have nothing against Sarah running for a seat in the House or Senate. It's a reasonable next step. And were she blocked from this path because of her gender, disparaged and demeaned in the press, I'd be miffed for sure. That would be sexist.

But just because I'd like to go to NASA and tell them that by November I want to be an astronaut, doesn't mean they should hand over the space shuttle.

There is far too much at stake to put someone completely inexperienced in the ways of Washington and the world so close to the presidency. There's no excuse for it, really. John McCain should know that. That's not sexist; it's simply common sense.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kathleen-reardon/is-it-sexist-to-want-the_b_126021.html

Precinct 3 Bastrop Commissioner Race

The Democratic Candidate, incumbent John Klaus, has a proven record of service to his voters. I have lived in Precinct 3 for four years and John has been accessible and fair. His opponent, Don Loucks was commissioner in the past and his legacy is still with us, not in a good way. I live out in the Sand Hills and when I moved here, Sand Hills Road was a mess. There were patches on the patches for two sections and then one section was smooth. I asked around and was told that the smooth section was in front of a prominent political backer of Mr. Loucks. There was also discussion about the arbitrary change in name of Red Rock Ranch Road. Apparently, the road had been an extension of Sand Hills Road and was changed by the county with no consultation with the residents.

I for one do not want Mr. Loucks to regain control of my roads. I urge you to join me and vote for John Klaus for Bastrop County Commissioner of Precinct 3.

Linda Laughinghouse

Around Bastrop County

Bastrop County's quest for a clean sweep for the Democratic ticket in the November 2008 election is in full swing. The first two of five rallies have been held with great success in Smithville and Bastrop. The next rally will be in Cedar Creek on September 13th from 11 to 2 at the Volunteer Fire Department. We will be serving sausage wraps, sodas, speeches, and activities for the kids. On September 27th the Elgin group will have a rally at Veteran's Park with food, silent auction, speeches and food.

Most of the candidates will attend these rallies and meet voters. We also have comprehensive programs of voter registration going on throughout the county. Special efforts are being directed at over 65 voters and chronic non-voters.

The crowning glory will be the SUPER RALLY. This will be held on Saturday, October 18th at Fisherman's Park in Bastrop. The event will begin at 5:30. The Party is cooking and selling brisket plates as a fund raiser. The Club in holding a silent auction to raise money. We will have a live band that comes to us with rave reviews and the candidates will be encouraged to visit with voters. We expect 1000 people to attend, so don't miss it!

Our three national delegates, Clara Maynard, Michael Flowers, and Dock Jackson are working hard to get ready for the Democratic National Convention in Denver later this month.

Finally, we are all waiting breathlessly for an announcement of the Vice Presidential candidate and for delivery of signs and bumper stickers, so we can get those distributed.

I appreciate all comments to my blog. The more comments, the more exposure for our candidates on-line.

Uniting the Voters

Well, the dust has settled from the Texas Democratic Convention in Austin earlier this month. I am delighted to report that three of the 65 National Delegates are from Bastrop County. We have really worked hard over the last three years and it has paid off.

As early as 2006, I have been a Clinton supporter. Actually, I have supported Bill Clinton for much longer but in 2006 I voiced the hope that Hillary Clinton could become our next President. Sadly, that was not to be. She fought the good fight but in the end, she conceded to Barach Obama. I have heard some say that they will either not vote or vote for John McCain because they wanted Hillary to be the Nominee.

HOW COULD ANY DEMOCRAT SAY THEY WOULD VOTE FOR MCCAIN OR NOT VOTE???

This concept is beyond my comprehension. Our county Party has a slogan. "Remember Peace and Prosperity?" This slogan says it all to me.

I am also disappointed that Hilliary did not prevail. But, I am more sick of the rising cost of living, loss of retirement fund value, cost of war, and loss of National esteem abroad. I support getting the Republicans out of town and beginning the healing. We can't do that if we don't stand together.

The Republicans are masters of coaxing us to shoot ourselves in the feet. We need to get together and help our candidates. We need to help Obama, Noriega, Doggett, Doherty, Dipple, Jones, Duggan, Smith, Jackson, Henderson, and Klaus. I never voted a straight ticket before 2006. Even then, I didn't particularly like one of the candidates. However, I did it and I am glad.

Let's all make a commitment to bring at least five new voters to the polls with us.

Linda Laughinghouse

Response to Bastrop Builder

Welcome to the Blog! I checked out your site and it is great. Good to know there is a place to find good contractors in the area.

BTW, in your listing of candidates you have Wayne Smith under JP1. He is actually the third Sheriff candidate. JP1 is not up for election this year.

Keep up the good work.

Linda

Candidate Forum in Bastrop

January 9th at the Aqua Water Community Room. Speakers were:
U.S. Senate – Rick Noriega; U.S. House 10th Congressional District - Larry Joe Doherty and Dan Grant; Texas Rail Road Commissioner – Dale Henry; Texas Supreme Court, Place 8 – Judge Susan Criss; Chief Justice, 3rd Court of Appeals – Woodie Jones; 423rd District Judge – Ernie Bogart and Chris Duggan; State Representative District 17 – Latreese Cooke and Donnie Dippel;
Tax Assessor / Collector - Lynda Gayle Harmon; Bastrop County Sheriff – Tommy Oates, Wayne Smith and Glen Wobus; County Commissioner, Precinct 1 - Bill Peterson and Dock Jackson; County Commissioner, Precinct 3 – Martin Brown and John Klaus; County Constable, Precinct 2 - Gus Meduna; County Constables, Precinct 3 – Matt Henderson and John McRee.
Democratic County Chair, Mitzi VanSant predicts a record turnout in the March 4th Primary and ultimate victory for all Democratic candidates in November.

New Website Unveiled

The Bastrop County Democratic Party is pleased to announce their new website and invite you to visit. Lana Tangum has been working hard to design and publish the site. Please visit www.BastropCountyDemocraticParty.com

The Club and Party are hosting a booth at the Elgin Hogeye Festival on Saturday, October 27th from 10AM to 6PM. We will be in the children's game section. We will be encouraging the kids to vote for their favorite beanie baby pig. The children will drop a sea shell in the "ballot box" of their favorite pig. They will receive an "I voted" sticker and told to check the local newspaper for the results of the election. We are going to be teaching the kids how to vote. We will also have on-site voter registration and hand out a list of the proposed constitutional amendments to be voted on in November. We are not allowed to hand out any political information or candidate literature. We are allowed to put up our Democratic County Club sign so we feel it will be good publicity.

The November 1st club meeting will be in Smithville at the First National Bank building. Brian Pendleton, our representative with the State Democratic Party, will be talking about the Constitutional Amendments. Please join us at 7PM.