Blogging Legislators, Flying Pigs, and Conservative Bloggers

Well I guess pigs really can fly. Here I am agreeing with conservative bloggers, and on more than one point. (not to fear, my disagreements are far more serious.)

Apparently, House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh (D-LOL) is punishing Rep. Stacey Campfield (R-Knoxville) for the crime of blogging. Naifeh seems to be afraid that Campfield will speak his mind. Speaking one's mind is not a trait that TN Democrats are fond of (there are a few exceptions, very few.)

Everything I know about Naifeh tells me this is true. They don't call him "the dictator" for nothing. Like a lot of old white men, he's an authoritarian who likes to crack the whip. After his effort to pass tax reform failed, he punished dissenting Democrats by moving their offices into the Republican wing. Now that's punishment. It's also childish.

I read Campfield's blog. He should keep on blogging. Although Campfield is a Republican from conservative east Tennessee, I was rather astonished to find that he doesn't talk like Cotton Mather. It's refreshing to come across a legislator from east Tennessee whose every other phrase is not a thunderous "Abomination under God!"

Who talks like this? Lots of Tennessee legislators. I'm convinced that many of them have quantum-leaped straight from the 17th century, which would explain their intolerance for people who do not share their views. We're just lucky they let women and blacks vote in this state.

Example: "Civil Unions are an Abomination under God." --Rep. Nathan Vaughn (D-LOL).

Never mind the absurdity of singling out civil unions with such extreme language, it's exceedingly difficult to take anyone who speaks like Cotton Mather seriously.

Imagine if all of them had blogs. Gee, you might even know what they were up to. You might know which of them are literate enough to actually read up on the issues or laws they force upon us. I have more than one email on file that are proof positive of Illiteracy on the Hill.

Blogging legislators is a good idea. Legislators in sneakers is another good idea; it might help some of them shake off their stuffy arrogance. If a certain legislator can wear mini skirts (talk about credibility issues!), what the heck is wrong with legislators in sneakers?

Bill Hobbs says he'd be happy to set up blogs for Republican lawmakers and maybe a few conservative Democrats. So he only wants to hear what his "own kind" have to say? I think it would be much more interesting if they all had to blog. Maybe some of them would actually express their honest-to-god opinions. Or maybe not.

While I'm on the subject of conservative bloggers, I've noticed that they are obsessed with Howard Dean. There are far more conservatives blogging about Dr. Dean than progressives. They all seem to agree that Dean will ensure that Democrats lose future elections. I doubt they would talk quite so endless of him if they really believed that.

Finally, Blogging for Bryant responds to our criticism of Governor Bredesen (D-LOL) by suggesting that we somehow persuade the man to support civil rights for everyone, even people who are different from the Governor, the General Assembly and the Blogger. The idea being that this would bring the Governor down.

In other words, intolerance and disrespect for people who are different from you are requirements if you want to get elected in Tennessee. Well, the blogger has a point. This is exactly the reality in this conservative climate. We are long overdue for the inevitable shift in political winds, and democrats who are indistinguishable from republicans need to go down.