| Letters
to the editor from this week's Chronicle:
Should Idaho support
a Constitutional Convention
By Representative Priscilla Giddings
Idaho’s 64th legislative session is just weeks away from convening, and
on the eve of a highly contested 2018 election, there are several polarizing
issues waiting in the wings of the capitol. One of those issues is whether
Idahoans support a Constitutional Convention for the purpose of amending
our U.S. Constitution. As an elected official representing District 7,
it is my goal to support issues that the people of District 7 favor.
Article V of the U.S. Constitution gives states the ability to propose
and ratify amendments to the Constitution. The legislatures of 34 states
would have to formally agree to convene a convention of delegates from
states; those in attendance would propose amendments. It would then
take 38 state legislatures to ratify the proposed amendments.
Convening a convention for the states to submit amendments that call
for a balanced budget and term limits appears to be one of the only ways
for the grass roots movement at the state level to force the federal government
to stop overspending and reduce the number of career politicians.
So why haven’t the states formed a constitutional convention yet?
The process of convening a convention is bipartisan, but there are
strong conservatives and liberals on both sides of the argument. Thus an
actual convention hasn’t been called in more than 228 years. Yet
the idea to convene one has been lingering throughout the states for decades
– Arkansas requested one in 1963. In 1983, 32 states signed up to support
a Balanced Budget Amendment, but they failed to get the last 2 states.
Some people fear that the process for a convention is so vague that heavily
funded special interest groups could find a way to hijack a convention
and force a change in its agenda, which could place the entire constitution
in jeopardy.
In Idaho, a republican central committee submitted a proposal last
year for Idaho to join the 28 other states in support of a convention.
At the state level, the Republican Party defeated the resolution unanimously.
Then a state senator submitted a piece of legislation to support a convention
without the support of the Republican Party – it failed 24 to 11 in the
senate. That prompted a representative to propose a similar resolution
in the house, where it failed in the State Affairs Committee that I’m a
member of by a narrow margin. I saw the legislative process work;
I thought Idaho voices had been clearly heard.
Then in September, after repeated failures of getting the proposal
through the House or Senate, the Idaho Speaker of the House and the President
Pro Temp of the Senate unilaterally decided to spend tens of thousands
of dollars of Idaho taxpayer money to send ten handpicked Idaho legislators
to a practice constitutional convention in Arizona. Does that suggest
that the Idaho elite want Idahoans to support the convention at any cost?
I have received many pre-formatted emails from citizens of District
7 saying they support the convention. Yet, when I have called some
of those whose names were written on the emails, I found that they actually
did not send the email; the emails were a high-tech fraud.
Based on the number of phone calls and emails that I have received
on this issue, I am certain that there is another resolution waiting in
the wings in January when the legislature convenes. My question is,
do the voters of District 7 truly want me to vote for or against a constitutional
convention? Please email me at pgiddings@house.idaho.gov
– I really do want to know if this is the will of the people, or another
attempt of the elite to force an idea on uninterested Idahoans.
Redneck Review!
No. 140 - 12/25/2017
Well, it is here! A most significant date, long accepted as the
day for celebrating the birth of Jesus, son of God and the Virgin Mary!
And Dec.25 falls on a Monday this year! Here a reminder that historians
have accepted His birth as the midpoint of all history, with events coming
before it assigned BC, "before Christ", and AD, "Anno Domini - In the year
of the
Lord" after it. Scoffers do exist who want to ignore history
and use BCE and CE - "Before the Common Era," and "Common Era" in the place
of the historical method. But note that it is still the birth of
Jesus that separates the two!
The date reminds me of a visit made recently to an elderly gentleman
living in Meadow Lark #2, an assisted living facility in Grangeville. Permission
has been given me to use his name, so let me introduce Maurice Vincent
to you readers this week! Call him "Vince" for short!
Readers of the Idaho Country Free Press have already read part of his story
a couple of weeks ago entitled "99-year-old veteran receives Quilt of Valor."
The article tells how Vince escaped death when the Arizona was sunk during
the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Vince has become a close friend since I met him while visiting another
old friend in that facility. And an amazing gentleman he is.
For one thing, he will be celebrating 100 years of age next February 12!
This old gentleman is in good shape, a bit slow walking it is true, but
he exercises every day, without exception, what I have decided to do myself,
calling them "Vince
exercises!" He has written three books including his last one entitled
"Women are a Blessing to HIS World." In it he praises Mary, the mother
who gave us Christ our savior! In that book he has included a song
that he wrote, called "Put Christ back in Christmas!" So following
are a few pertinent facts about this old gentleman!
Born one of six children, Vince was raised solely by his mother whose
husband deserted the family at his age three. Needed to help feed
and care for the family, Vince was unable to finish grade school, but praises
his mother for demonstrating and teaching them the virtues of hard work,
total dependability, and absolute honesty. And Vince repeats often,
reliance on the God above, which he stresses with his hand and finger pointing
upward!
Consequently, Vince is very outspoken, and has no respect for any man
who abandons his wife and children, or who refuses to work hard to support
them. He constantly stresses the need for "wisdom" which he says
does not depend upon formal education, and is often very lacking in the
most educated today! His "wisdom" is similar to what many call "common
sense," which comes to those who get their priorities straight, appreciate
their God above, and the love and respect which is deserving of all people,
and should be given them.
Vince's life is a testimony to his philosophy! In every job he
took, he rose from the lowest spot toa successful supervisor. Always
he said, he went to work early, and never missed work. He survived the
Arizona's sinking at Pearl Harbor because as a novice musician, his character
and work ethic made him a favorite of the ship's admiral,. As a result,
he was made the ship bugler,
and was scheduled to transfer to San Diego to go to master bugler school.
But the assignment was delayed over five months, and finally he was shipped
on an oil tanker only a few days before the attack came and the ship was
sunk. He only found out later that nearly 2000 of his ship mates had gone
down with their ship! Vince claims this was the third time that the
Lord saved his life!
Vince's story and a manuscript copy of his last book is being prepared
at this time, and will be available for interested people after Christmas.
A truly amazing story of an amazing man!
Jake Wren |
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