Category: Uncategorized

 
It had been up until very recently, but Paula Hawks’ state legislative campaign website has now come down and been placed in a ‘parked’ status as we approach July, a time when it was rumored that she would be announcing for Congress.

Interesting. Especially given that she would be a prohibitively out gunned and outclassed candidate going up against Congresswoman Kristi Noem; a candidate with a million dollars in the bank, and the first South Dakotan serving on the ways and means committee.

Hawks, who won by 7 votes in her own district has never run on the state level, and her only claim to fame has been a public embracing of a state income tax – a favorite proposal of Democrats, but a concept loathed by the states Republican majority voters.

Hang on. It could be a bumpy campaign launch. 

The invasion of the Black Hills by dirty hippies continues to move forward, and continues to generate news stories over the clashes between the hippie “tribe” and area Native Americans. From the Daily Beast, a story titled “Lakota Warriors Vow to Crush Dirty Rainbow Hippies”:

“We don’t want you here. You have no f—king respect for Lakota people!” the 54-year-old Native American yelled into a mic attached to his truck. His T-shirt bore another message: portraits of warriors who had shellacked the U.S. Army in the Battle of Little Bighorn, alongside the words “Original Homeland Security.”

and…

Swan is not a tribal council representative and does not speak for the Sioux. That isn’t stopping him from fighting the Rainbow Family of Living Light, a counterculture group that’s held annual gatherings in national forests every July since 1972 to pray for world peace—and deliver drugs, nudity and sometimes murder and other crimes in their wake.

and..

Swan said Rainbow Family adherents tried to soften him up by saying, “We’re just like you, [but] the government doesn’t recognize us as a tribe.”

“You’re not a tribe,” Swan added. “You’re fricking fruitcake people.”

Read that all here.

Yes. I’m sure calling themselves a tribe helped to smooth over matters.

The hippies are also in the Rapid City Journal again today, as their war of words with James Swan continues on, and the Hippies claim that they don’t condone the use of drugs…… but some of their members apparently didn’t get the memo.

And Bonus! They discussed their hygiene habits!:

Members of the Rainbow Family held a question and answer meeting with area residents in Hill City on Tuesday evening to address the concerns that some might have. There was a sense of unease from some residents, who voiced concerns on a variety of topics, including the extent of drug usage at the gathering, how laws would be enforced at the gathering, their general hygiene habits, if they would destroy the forest and whether it would have an impact on the tourism industry that Hill City relies on.

“This is the 44th year we’ve been doing this, if we trashed the forest, we’d have been shut down years ago by the National Service,” Winslow said. “As with any gathering of people, there will be a few dissidents, but call other towns that have hosted us, they’ll all tell you that it was a positive experience.”

He also said the Rainbow Family does not condone the sale or usage of drugs.

and..

James Swan, also a member of the Strong Heart Warrior Society, appeared at the meeting and was visibly angry with the members of the Rainbow Family. He loudly said they were violating tribal land and he threatened to “serve them an eviction notice” and “kick their asses out” if they weren’t gone in 48 hours. He left the meeting without waiting for a response.

and…

In Rapid City and Pennington County, officials have taken a firm hand with Rainbow gatherers so far, instituting a “no tolerance” policy on aggressive panhandling, and urging businesses owners to call police if trouble arises. Several arrests of people who said they came to the area for the Rainbow gathering were made in Rapid City last week on panhandling and drug charges.

Read it all here.

Why do I think this isn’t the last story we’re going to see on this?

from Today’s KCCR:

The “Ask The Senator” program will be an opportunity for Pierre area residents to ask questions to South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds.

If you have any question for Rounds, please send them to [email protected]. The half-hour program starts at 2:00 P.M. today.

Read it all here.

Implied consent – the long standing doctorine in South Dakota of automatic permission for a blood draw in DUI cases – has all but been voided by recent court cases:

Twice in the past year, the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled unanimously for defendants where blood was drawn without the person’s consent and without law enforcement officers getting a warrant first.

The court’s latest decision came two weeks ago, regarding the arrest of Eric Medicine by a Rapid City police officer on May 3, 2014.

The officer read from a DUI advisement card telling Medicine that any driver in South Dakota “has consented” to a blood draw and next asked that the driver “submit” to the draw.

and…

Jackley said his office has advised prosecutors and law enforcement officers since Fierro that DUI advisement cards aren’t a requirement any longer.

He said that the cards “while used with good intentions may give rise to unintended legal complications.” The preferred action now is to simply request consent.

Law enforcement officers can request warrants electronically from circuit judges and magistrate judges while at the scene of the pending arrest.

Read it all here.

Watch for revisions to the law from the next legislative session.

Keystone XL Pipeline certification public input session scheduled for July 6 

PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission will hold a public input session on Monday, July 6, 2015, to hear comments about the construction permit certification for the South Dakota portion of the Keystone XL Pipeline proposed by TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, LP. The session begins at 5:30 p.m. CDT in Room 414 of the State Capitol in Pierre and will adjourn no later than 8:30 p.m.

Individuals offering oral comments to PUC Commissioners Chris Nelson, Kristie Fiegen and Gary Hanson should be prepared to follow these guidelines:

• · A commenter must state his/her name, address and organization, if any.
• · In order to provide equal speaking opportunity, a five-minute time limit will be allowed for each commenter. A commenter may not yield remaining time he/she may have to another speaker.
• · Commenters should not read published documents, such as reports or newsletter articles, as part of their verbal comments but rather submit those items to the commission to become part of the public record for this docket.

The PUC will accept written comments at any time, including at the public input session. Public comments must include the commenter’s full name and address and should include the docket number (HP14-001) or the project name, as well as the commenter’s email address and phone number, if available. These comments can be sent to [email protected]; PUC, 500 E. Capitol Ave., Pierre, SD 57501 or delivered to the PUC at the public input session. The comments will be filed in the docket.

An evidentiary hearing for the Keystone XL Pipeline construction permit certification is scheduled for July 27 – Aug. 4, 2015, in the State Capitol in Pierre.

The complete docket is available on the PUC website at www.PUC.SD.gov, Commission Actions, Commission Dockets, Hydrocarbon Pipeline Dockets, 2014 Hydrocarbon Pipeline Dockets. The docket is HP14-001 – In the Matter of the Petition of TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, LP for Order Accepting Certification of Permit Issued in Docket HP09-001 to Construct the Keystone XL Pipeline.

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From today’s Argus:

Thompson and other anti-Common Core advocates tried to make their voice heard at a public forum hosted by the state’s Blue Ribbon Task Force on Teachers and Students.

Common Core might be contentious, but task force organizers, including some of the state’s top lawmakers, say it has no place in the ongoing school funding talks with teachers, business leaders and community members.

and…

Thompson and others tried to bridge their complaints, but were stymied by the format, she said. They eventually refused to participate in the discussions, which required attendees to meet in small-groups, answer specific questions asked by the moderator and write responses on sticky notes.

But the Common Core protesters should be heard, Thompson said. The standards create extra costs for local districts, for curriculum materials and technology, she said.

Read it here.

So, here we are again. A bunch of people say its all about common core. Because school funding issues magically came about since the implementation of the school standards developed by states?

Ugh. They sound like a broken record. Protesters say common core part of funding problem? Not really. But they don’t have to look that far to get to the root of it.

The argument over school funding has been around since long before Common Core, NCLB, and every other education initiative or education acronym you can recall. Just a few years ago, schools unsuccessfully sued the state to try to determine what an appropriate level of education funding should be. Not to mention previous studies on school funding which pre-date CC.

Even that lawsuit was an attempt to circumvent some of the attitudes which have kept education funding as a contentious issue over the years. And some of those attitudes are almost schizophrenic.

In many communities, people don’t want to pay taxes adequate to support school needs. “Those darn teachers make too much for working 9 months,” and cries of “There are too many school administrators! They can manage 600 employees instead of 200 if we consolidate.”

Yet they’re the first ones to bleat when their local school is in threat of closure, because school closure is a sure-fire town killer, which dries up the chances of anyone wanting to move to that community.

Contributing to the funding inertia is the state teachers union, SDEA, which can’t decide if it wants to merely bite the hand of the legislature that feeds it, or to declare a fatwa against the Republican majority. Neither one has ever worked so well for them, except to harden hearts to anything coming out of their mouths.

And the legislature isn’t so pure in the debate as well. Has anyone ever calculated the cost of the curriculum mandates thrust upon schools over the years? While simultaneously some of the same legislators place their hand over their heart and declare to the masses (who aren’t paying attention) “I am for local control!”

And we have the ‘long suffering’ school boards who have a tendency in this environment to hoard any additional funds in reserve for the next time a school building explodes, burns down, or is declared a asbestos ridden health hazard unfit for inmates, much less children. More funds for teacher pay? Sorry, that’s going into the sock in the coffee can buried in the yard.

The point of all of this is that when it comes to education funding, its not Common Core. We’re all part of the problem. And we all need to be part of the solution.

Its whether or not everyone can accept giving up part of their kingdom for at least a momentary respite in an age old debate.

Do we want to improve funding for education in this state, or do we want to rearrange the chairs on the deck of the Titanic (again), while schools fall apart, teaching positions go unfilled, and we allow the debate to rage for yet another decade?

The Blue Ribbon Study Group has more meetings to come. We shall see.

I don’t know about you, but so far, so good this father’s day.

I got to sleep in a little, and the kids graciously threw some father’s day gifts at me, including a Lowe’s gift card which I used towards a purchase of a DeWalt Planer. (Thanks Kids… and Mrs PP).

Or as my #3 daughter put it, “So, mom got you a present so you can work on more projects for her?”  Something like that.

I’ve been up-cycling old pallets lately, turning them into various things, and this helps me up the quality significantly. That, and trying to belt sand them to a smooth grain is a bit of a pain.

After seeing my recent project, my oldest put in a request for a coffee table, so it could not have come at a better time. I’ve got the top gluing at the moment, and I’ll see how it turns out.

As my #3 alluded to, after the gifting, I’ve spent much of the afternoon in the garage covered in sawdust as I reclaim strips of oak and various woods from their former life to create things that my kids or wife might find useful. And, isn’t that what dad’s do?

In between all of this, I have a pork shoulder that’s been on the smoker since this morning, a pile of sweet corn that I’m going to roast on the grill, and my own dad to pick up from his apartment.

So, I’d better get back to it.  I wish all you dads out there as enjoyable a father’s day as I’m having today, and may you enjoy the company of the families you serve so well.

The Argus Leader has a story out there today where, once again, we have Republican legislators who have their priorities backwards. 

Because they’re out there advocating to make life easier for criminals, as opposed to victims:

State Sen. Craig Tieszen, R-Rapid City, is among those who thinks the next criminal justice reform should include a discussion of how to help people leaving prison as a way to prevent them from returning.

“These people should have an opportunity to re-enter the workforce,” Tieszen said. “Obviously, they won’t be automatically hired, but they deserve equal opportunity to re-enter the workforce.”

Tieszen, who recently advocated for legislation to restore ex-convicts’ voting rights, said the state could use a “ban the box” law.

And…

We’re just locking people up and shaming them. … It’s a broken system, and South Dakota I think is a good place to experiment with change,” Hickey said. “I believe the best way to help them is to treat them as human beings.”

Read it all here.

If some of these guys spent as much time working to ensure crime victims were made whole, and criminals were held to full account for the damage they do to people’s lives, I might be more sympathetic.

But they don’t. They spend an inordinate amount of time trying to make the criminal whole, as opposed to the people whom they might have damaged along the way.

Until victims are restored, criminals should not expect to participate fully in society.

It is a privilege that should be earned. Not handed back.

S.D. Attorney General Explanation for Initiative Measure Relating to Maximum Finance Charges Upheld

PIERRE, S.D.- Attorney General Marty Jackley announced today Circuit Judge Kathleen Trandahl has denied the request to have the Attorney General’s Office rewrite the explanation for the initiated measure relating to maximum finance charges for certain lenders. Opponents of the measure recently challenged the explanation in court. Judge Trandahl rejected their arguments and held that Jackley’s explanation was proper.

“Pursuant to South Dakota law, I have worked to provide a fair, clear, and simple summary of the proposed measure in order to assist our voters. The Court has reaffirmed the fairness of this process,” said Jackley.

Under South Dakota law, the Attorney General is responsible for preparing explanations for proposed initiated measures, referred laws, and South Dakota Constitutional Amendments. Specifically, the explanation includes a title, an objective, clear and simple summary of the purpose and effect of the proposed measure and a description of the legal consequences.

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Democratic Mayor Mike Huether may just have blown a major Sioux Falls development deal because he just can’t help trying to draw attention to himself. As noted in today’s Argus:

Last week’s unveiling of a downtown development plan left many with the impression that iconic establishment Skelly’s Pub and Grill has been sold and will be demolished as part of the $40 million project.

That’s news to Houston Haugo, the 73-year-old owner of the Phillips Avenue property, who criticized Mayor Mike Huether and other city officials for announcing details of a public-private partnership that is still under negotiation.

“There’s no deal,” Haugo said Wednesday from his home in Arizona. “No money has been exchanged and there’s no signed agreement. This was a case of the mayor and (development director) Darrin Smith overdriving their mouths.”

And..

One potential hurdle, however, is the higher price that property owners might seek if they see their buildings as crucial to the city’s development plan. That is why some are scratching their heads about what they perceive to be a premature and ill-advised announcement.

“When you’re dealing with business negotiations, you just don’t do stuff like that,” said Haugo, a former Valley Bank chairman and Lincoln County commissioner who has owned Skelly’s since 2003. “With this stupid move, I could ask for more money. But I’ve known (Sweet) a long time and we came up with a price.”

Read it all here.

One thing my mother taught me about business was that “once the deal is made, don’t talk the other guy out of it.”. In other words, if you have a agreement in principle, don’t say something stupid and blow the deal before it’s set in stone.

Advice that Huether would be wise to heed.