Research Papers on Term Limits

Term limit papers by two members of the MoCo Charter Review Commission, Larry Lauer and me (and my wife) are available for reading at http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/crc/
You can click on "Term limit paper 1" and "Term limit paper 2"
 

Donald Trump Asked for African American Votes --- To an Audience that was Almost Completely White

Donald Trump gave a speech yesterday asking African Americans to vote for him because, according to him, Democrats haven't done enough for African Americans.

He gave this speech to an audience that was almost completely white. And he did this after refusing to speak to the NAACP and other African American audiences.

That should be enough said.

Our Brand of Democracy is Hard --- President Barack Obama

President Obama is right. Democracy is hard and unfortunately it's becoming less popular. 

Amazingly, Americans and especially young Americans in larger numbers believe democracy is a bad way to run a country and perhaps the military should be in charge. (See today's Washington Post, op-ed page, citing a study in Journal of Democracy.)

That sounds crazy but it fits the facts. Americans, especially young ones, have low opinions of almost all parts of society and show it by having a dismal voting turnout and by supporting a candidate who spouts authoritarian views. ("Only I can fix it," etc.)

This is horrible to contemplate. What happens to a country that loses faith in democracy and supports giving power to a man who is viewed as strong and "tells it like it is" and is willing to ignore key parts of our Constitution? Answer: See Germany in the 1930s.

"I know no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves, And if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education. This is the true corrective of abuses of constitutional power. --- Thomas Jefferson

 

But look at the faces of young people at Trump rallies and listen to the Trump supporters such as those in the video at https://youtu.be/6MubunsD-7g 

 

We live in difficult times, but our country has survived worse --- revolution against the greatest military power, Civil War that resulted in the deaths of 2% of our population and that reverberates more than 150 years later, Depression and World War 2. Still, we need to do more now. 

 

Apparently we are not educating children to understand what America is all about, what democracy means, and anything about our history. That's probably the only answer for the future.

 

Rudy Giuliani Seems to Have a Poor Memory

Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani used to include "9/11" in every speech. Now he apparently thinks it never happened.

Here's his quote from a speech today: "Under those eight years, before Obama came along, we didn't have any successful radical Islamic terrorist attack in the United States. They all started when Clinton and Obama got into office."

He must have just forgotten what happened in NYC on September 11, 2001, that resulted in the deaths of almost 3,000 innocent people.

What is Freedom of the Press?

According to Donald Trump, ""It is not 'freedom of the press' when newspapers and others are allowed to say and write whatever they want even if it is completely false!"

That is precisely what freedom of the press says. The Founding Fathers knew what they were doing and saying when they included this in the First Amendment. 

“If men are to be precluded from offering their sentiments on a matter, which may involve the most serious and alarming consequences that can invite the consideration of mankind, reason is of no use to us; the freedom of speech may be taken away, and dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep, to the slaughter.”
— George Washington

“If there is any principle of the Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment than any other it is the principle of free thought — not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate.”
— Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

From the First Amendment Center: "Unless restricted by a valid prior restraint (which is rare), the news media are free to publish any information or opinion they desire. This freedom, however, does not immunize them from liability for what they publish. A newspaper that publishes false information about a person, for example, can be sued for libel. A television station similarly can be sued if it broadcasts a story that unlawfully invades a person’s privacy. Because such liability can be staggering, most journalists strive to exercise their freedom to publish in a responsible and ethical manner."
and

"The reporters and editors at my local newspaper are highly biased. Is there a federal regulator who should know about this?

No. Under the First Amendment, newspapers and magazines can publish information as they see fit, biased or not. If published information is libelous, the publication can be sued by the person claiming to be libeled. But the federal government does not and cannot regulate newspaper content."

 

Is it "ISIS" or "ISIL" or Some Other Term?

Donald Trump says "everyone" calls the terrorist group in the Middle East "ISIS" and President Obama calls it "ISIL" only to "annoy people." Is there any truth to this? No.

ISIS stands for Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. ISIL stands for Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. Levant derives from the Italian for "rising" implying the rising sun in the east, east of Italy meaning the middle east. 

The Levant refers to the whole area where this terrorist organization wants to restore an Islamic State. That includes southern Turkey through Syria to Egypt, also including Lebanon, Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan. So, it seems to me that ISIL is more correct in identifying what ISIS/ISIL wants to accomplish.

The Associated Press describes the ISIS vs. ISIL language difference as follows:

In Arabic, the group is known as Al-Dawla Al-Islamiya fi al-Iraq wa al-Sham, or the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. The term “al-Sham” refers to a region stretching from southern Turkey through Syria to Egypt (also including Lebanon, Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan). The group’s stated goal is to restore an Islamic state, or caliphate, in this entire area.
The standard English term for this broad territory is “the Levant.” Therefore, AP’s translation of the group’s name is the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL.

ISIS or ISIL is also sometimes referred to as DAIISH, which may be more accurate because it is closer to the Arabic name for this organization, but few in the English-speaking world use DAIISH.

So, is Trump correct that President Obama only uses ISIL to annoy people. No. ISIL is more accurate than ISIS, but does Donald Trump know any of this information?

We Should Keep Discussion of Term Limits Civil

I have noticed that some people seen unable to discuss whether or not MoCo should adopt term limits without sinking to nastiness. That is unnecessary and unhelpful.

Those who wish to say term limits are good can make their arguments calmly, such as saying it will bring new blood into politics. Those who wish to say term limits will not do any good and might do harm can also make their arguments calmly.

There is no need for anger, and those who act that way show the weakness of their case. On this topic, as on almost all topics, there should be calm discussion based on evidence, so the public can obtain all the facts with which to make informed decisions.