A4 Thursday, August 25, 2011
OPINION
Here we go again; redistricting likely to be contentious
Count me among those journalist who, having witnessed too many legislative redistricting sessions, experience a brand of déjà vu that boils down to “Oh no! Not again.” Every 10 years state legislatures must redraw the boundaries of congressional, legislative and other such districts in their states to make them reflect the latest census and conform to the hoary democratic principle of “one person, one vote.” There are no failsafe ways to pull redistricting off. In North Carolina the Republican-controlled Senate recently drew up a redistricting plan that took a big chunk of Democratic voters in traditionally Democratic Ashville and assigned them to a heavily Republican district to the south and east. Thus, where once there were two districts, one Democratic, one Republican, under the GOP scheme there would still be two districts, but both are likely to go
EDITORIAL
HAL RHODES
UPON REFLECTION
Republican. Were Democrats in control of N.C.’s Senate, the reverse might well have been the outcome. New Mexicans can expect variations on that theme at the special redistricting session of their own Legislature which convenes on Sept. 6. Special sessions in New Mexico are constitutionally limited to 30 days, although a governor may call an additional session if necessary. Some Roundhouse onlookers think such could be the case this time around. As noted in an earlier column, a number of lawmakers in advance of this session were concerned
Roswell Daily Record
that Gov. Susana Martinez would compound the political tensions of redistricting congressional districts, the Public Regulation Commission and the Legislature itself by adding her own pet projects to the agenda. She has done just that by including a number of items in her call for the special session, including repeal of the state’s 2003 law permitting undocumented immigrants to apply for drivers’ licenses. Nonetheless, redistricting remains the rationale for the upcoming 30 days at the Roundhouse where, at some point, partisan political pressures and individual political survival will compete for lawmakers’ loyalties. Here and elsewhere, partisan machinations easily consume reapportionment sessions, with the two major parties determined to create a map of districts most beneficial to their interests. Throughout the post-World War II era, population shifts from rural
to urban thence suburban areas have often required the consolidation of legislative districts, leaving incumbents in one or another of those districts to battle for their own political life during the redistricting process. Still, it is partisan passions, not incumbent survival, that roil legislative tempers when redistricting rolls around. With the office of governor in Republican hands and the Legislature controlled by Democrats perhaps the most obvious partisan tensions during New Mexico’s redistricting next month will be between the executive and legislative branches. But with the potential of a gubernatorial veto hanging over any new district maps, Republican legislators may have a little more clout than if the governor’s office were occupied by a Democrat. Ultimately anything the Legislature and governor might agree upon by way of redistricting must pass a series of complex tests
written into law or risk those court challenges that seem routinely to surface after legislators have gone home. Those challenges often make strange bedfellows. Right now in Illinois the League of Women Voters and top Republicans are suing to have remapping legislation struck down that was recently signed by Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn. Court challenges to new redistricting plans are also under way or soon will be in other states, including North Carolina. And in Delaware the Democratic state House speaker is being sued by the predominantly Democratic Black Caucus, which is unhappy with the Dems’ redistricting handiwork. One-person, one-vote sounds simple. But making sure that principle is reflected in the representative bodies of our state and national governments is anything but. © New Mexico News Services 2011
Where does Libya go now?
Good riddance to Col. Moammar Gadhafi, the Libyan dictator who oppressed his people for 42 years while fostering terrorism abroad. As President Barack Obama said Monday from Martha’s Vineyard, the situation in the Libyan capital of Tripoli remained “fluid,” but that “the Gadhafi regime is coming to an end, and the future of Libya is in the hands of its people.” He said directly to the people of Libya, “Your revolution is your own, and your sacrifices have been extraordinary. Now, the Libya you deserve is within your reach.” And that’s the problem. We have no idea yet whether the future in Libya more resembles the relatively bright prospects in Egypt and Tunisia after the “Arab Spring” uprisings toppled longtime dictators — or whether it will be a years-long disaster with tribal fighting, killings and bombings, as was the case in Iraq, even after dictator Saddam Hussein’s statue was pulled down and he was captured, tried and hanged. “The war doesn’t end when they pull down the statue or string up the bad guy,” Christopher Preble told us; he’s vice president for defense and foreign policy studies at the libertarian Cato Institute. “I’ve never been satisfied with the Obama administration’s post-war planning. I still think they don’t know what will happen. I hope it works out well, that things end up better than in Iraq. There are a lot of questions about what happens next.” It’s worth remembering that Mr. Obama started the air war against Gadhafi without even a nod of approval from Congress. America’s most recent declared war was World War II, which ended 66 years ago. But even the wars since — such as those in Korea and Vietnam, the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War and the ongoing Iraq war — at least were started after Congress approved the use of force. Mr. Obama’s excuse was that the Libyan war was really a “kinetic military action,” in the words of his deputy national security adviser, Ben Rhodes. Moreover, when the attack on Libya began in March, Mr. Obama promised it would only be to prevent Gadhafi from committing massacres on rebels in the country’s Benghazi area, and that the attacks would last “days, not weeks.” Yet the “mission creep” now has lasted five months. The war reportedly cost America taxpayers about $100 million a day, or $15 billion. Mr. Preble said we still don’t know if Gadhafi had planned massacres in Benghazi or whether that was U.S. propaganda. And we don’t know how many civilians have been killed in the rebels’ march to power. It’s also troubling that just last month, the rebels killed their own top general, Abdul Fattah Younis, reportedly because he wasn’t radical enough. “The deaths spurred questions about Western plans to turn over vast sums of money to the rebels,” reported the Washington Post. That’s our tax money. We hope the best for the Libyan people, who certainly deserve it. We hold out hope for enlightened leadership and liberty for Libyans. But it would have been better for them — and us — if we had allowed the Libyans to foment their own Arab Spring, however long it took, and firmly set their own course. Guest Editorial The Orange County Register DEAR DR. GOTT: How can we know the source (country and producing company) of drugs? Ordering drugs through an online company outside the United States, I’ve noted they have come from Germany but are of Indian origin. Are they equivalent to U.S. manufactured drugs and specifications? I’ve heard U.S.-made drugs may have components produced overseas, so how do we know if drugs like this are safe? Does the FDA have any jurisdiction over ingredients made elsewhere for inclusion in U.S. pharmaceuticals? DEAR READER: According to a Consumer Reports article from two years ago, the FDA
A married couple is what’s best for kids The kids are not doing just fine. The Institute for American Values’ new updated report, “Why Marriage Matters: 30 Conclusions From the Social Sciences,” is signed by an impressive list of family scholars ranging from professor John Gottman to professor Brad Wilcox. It concludes: “The intact, biological, married family remains the gold standard for family life in the United States, insofar as children are most likely to thrive — economically, socially and psychologically — in this family form.” The good news is that
Doonesbury
ASK DR. GOTT UNITED MEDIA SYNDICATE
requires a drug’s original packaging to list the name and address of the company that manufactures, packs or distributes a product. Unfortunately, this information often refers to over -the-counter (OTC) drugs, because most prescription drugs are rebottled and relabeled at your local pharmacy. Many people obtain a one-
MAGGIE
GALLAGHER COLUMNIST
divorce involving children is down. The bad news is that children today are less likely to live with both parents. Thirty years ago, 66 percent of 16years-olds lived with their mom and dad. By 2004, only 55 percent did so. Divorce is down; family instability is up. How can that
month supply at a time. Those prescriptions that call for, let’s say, 100 tablets may get a factory-sealed original package of 100 pills with the pharmacy labeling affixed. Even in the instance of an OTC in lesser amounts, the information may reveal only where the drug is processed and packaged, not where the ingredients come from. I understand that a person can contact the manufacturer of most drugs to determine where it is manufactured and will receive a satisfactory answer; however, this may take several days, and a patient may choose to begin a medication faster than that. Manufacturing costs, ingredients and labor may be sub-
be? More and more young men and women are choosing to have children in cohabiting rather than marital unions. And cohabitation turns out to be a poor substitute for marriage. Sixty-five percent of children born to a cohabiting mother will experience a family breakup, compared to 24 percent of children born to a married mother. Consider the data on child abuse and family structure. Two things leap out: First, children living with married biological parents are less likely to experience physical, sexual or emotional abuse —
stantially cheaper in other countries. Beyond that, the FDA appears to inspect domestic facilities more frequently than foreign facilities — another reason why drugs manufactured and packaged here are higher in cost. One New York Times article covered by Consumer Reports indicated the critical ingredients for most antibiotics, prednisone, metformin, hypertensive drugs and others are now manufactured almost exclusively in China and India. The article went on to note that the Chinese government has been investing huge sums in penicillin fermenters, “disrupting prices around the globe and See GOTT, Page A5
and the gap is quite large. For example, a child is 10 times more likely to experience physical abuse if he lives with a mother and her cohabiting lover than if he lives with his married mom and dad. Living with a man you’re not married to is dangerous for your child’s health. Even, it turns out, if that man is the father of your child. Children living with cohabiting biological parents are still four times more likely to experience physical abuse than children living with married biological parents, for example.
See GALLAGHER, Page A5
25 YEARS AGO
Aug. 25, 1986 • William W. Harty of Dexter recently received the Outstanding Student Award from the General Society of the War of 1812. Harty, 20, son of Mr. and Mrs. W.G. Harty of Dexter, received the award from retired Maj. Gen. Dudley Faver, executive director of the Texas Tech Dad’s Association, at the spring 1986 Army and Air Force ROTC National Awards ceremony at Texas Tech University. A 1984 graduate of Dexter High School, Harty will be a junior civil engineering major at Texas Tech this fall. • Airman Kimberly D. Brown graduated recently from the Air Force personnel specialist course at Keesler Air Force Base. Brown is the granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Brown of Roswell. The course included a study of how to prepare personnel reports and records.