Schools must reopen like normal

As a leftist, I know we're supposed to be the ones who support education. When I first voted when I was 18, one of the reasons I supported more liberal candidates was that I wanted to be able to attend a good college.

Back in March, closing schools would have been one of my first moves to fight the pandemic. But this is not March, and remote learning is not a robust long-term solution. America's young people need to be back in school - and our schools need to look almost like they did before. From kindergarten all the way through college, the nation's students deserve the best.

Sure, there should be a few things that are different. Kids need better access to cleaning equipment like sinks, and schools might want to consider more outdoor classes - which would have benefits even in normal times. Most everything else though should be the same. Schools should be friendly and inviting.

Remote education should be offered - because many still fear this virus - but by no means should it be mandatory. The risk from this virus in our schools is statistically very, very small - much smaller than for other diseases, accidents, and crimes. The flu kills many children during every season. But the odds of children not recovering from the novel coronavirus are slim indeed. Studies from around the world prove it's relatively safe to return to school.

At the same time, keeping kids out of school for too long takes a toll on educational achievement and social development. It also places additional burdens on their families. It puts disproportionate harm on low-income households and students with disabilities.

Many pediatricians have endorsed a normal return to school, as schools help support the whole child - not just their academic endeavors. Schools help build social and interpersonal skills. Social development is lifelong, and is important in every level of schooling. School activities can help promote good physical and mental health.

Nobody here - least of all me - is demanding that kids must be corralled in filthy buildings and subject to abuse. Quite the contrary. Extreme social distancing for months on end is itself a form of abuse. Our young people need inviting, well-run, modern schools.

America's families should be demanding nothing less.

Can lieutenant governors be a quartermaster to power-hungry governors?

Events of the past 4 months have proven America's current government structure is a failure.

Most if not all states have a lieutenant governor - who serves much the same role as the Vice-President does at the federal level. This position should be remade as a check on gubernatorial abuses.

Too often lately, we've seen executive decisions made by unelected state or municipal health officials, when the decision should be made by governors or similar elected leaders who consider the input of other appointees. But even governors should have limits, as some have clearly abused their power. The broad powers they receive under a state of emergency should have a time limit. If the emergency goes on long enough, lawmakers should be able to convene to override their orders. The governor shouldn't be required to call them into session.

But there should also be a check on governors' powers even when the state of emergency is new. The great pirates did not give their captains limitless powers. Rather, they chose a quartermaster who could veto captains' orders. Government should work the same way. The lieutenant governor should be elected separately from the governor - not as their running mate. This means the governor and lieutenant governor could be of different parties, but even if they're of the same party, the point stands. The lieutenant governor should have the power to veto governors' executive orders.

The office of the Vice-President should work like this too.

Personally, I wouldn't veto every recent gubernatorial order. But in many states, some orders are crying out for it, and there's no limit. It's as if each state is a dictatorship.

Will America's overlords release the people from this dictatorship? We have to fight for it. But you can start in your own community and discover your own frontier!

Post-pandemic plans?

Hey! Who's making post-pandemic plans?!

I've long been skeptical of the media's irresponsible sensationalism, so I know better than to believe everything they say about the pandemic. I studied mass media in college, and I know the difference between journalism and whiny clickbait. I have no fear of coronavirus per se. As always, I have much more fear of the government's authoritarian response to it. So I was delighted to see footage from this week of people sunbathing on the beaches of Miami, Los Angeles, and New York!

The elitist media is truly enjoying this pandemic, so it's only fair that the beleaguered public gets to take part in things they enjoy too. (Here's how much the media enjoys people dying of coronavirus: Some nobody from Bloomberg News actually wrote a piece titled "A Lower Covid-19 Death Rate Is Nothing To Celebrate.")

My stance isn't just a liberal stance or a conservative stance. It's a human stance. I am saddened by the virus's death toll, but the tyrannical response to the pandemic was ineffective at reducing it.

There's still no exit strategy to end extreme social distancing (or the widely ignored mask orders), but it'll die off once we get a vaccine or - probably even sooner - a widely available drug. It's not too early to make plans for what you'll do when the pandemic ends. I'm making plans, and they're beautiful!

I've been thinking of an out-of-town trip, but that costs money, and the American economy isn't exactly the dynamo it was in my childhood. My business partner recommended a different plan, but the plan she suggested would really just be symbolic. I'm not saying what it is, but it's not like I haven't done anything along those lines before. I might also celebrate by making some crazy YouTube videos - even crazier than before! I'm even thinking of purchasing some little amenities that I wouldn't otherwise buy. There might even be a big party!

Right now, I'm not in the mood to do anything except sleep off this crisis. I've hardly used a square of toilet paper since March, because I've hardly eaten anything. Every morning when I wake up, my heart sinks when I realize the kind of world we live in now. Maybe I'll feel better when the crisis ends.

Have no fear, the July ish is here!

Get out your Skedoodle and your Bee Gees records! The July issue of The Last Word is now pub!

This ish talks about bureaucratic incompetence in reopening America, people who think pi is 4, bubble gum getting wasted at Surf Cincinnati, people blowing bubbles while wearing a mask, and more!

So bip your beeper here...

https://www.scribd.com/document/467894608/The-Last-Word-7-2020

If that doesn't work, bop on over here...

http://bunkerblast.info/lastword/lw2007.pdf

Casey's Law challenged as unconstitutional

Civil liberties count. I don't care what the media lately thinks.

Kentucky is one of very few places that has Casey's Law - a law that allows you to have someone involuntarily locked up in the name of drug treatment. The law is of course unconstitutional - as it shreds due process protections.

Now the law - which has been on the books since 2004 - is finally being challenged in state court. The challenge has 3 grounds: due process, equal protection, and First Amendment rights. But the law's defenders say the law offers due process by requiring - among other things - reviews by 2 doctors. Um, no, that's not how it's supposed to work.

Civil liberties. What a concept!