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| Governor Noem of SD |
Politically it appears we in western Minnesota have become an extension of South Dakota or the Dakotas in general. The top Republicans get carried away with national politics. CW suggests this should hurt them. "All politics is local," right?
And when it comes to natural disasters like flooding, wouldn't you think a laser focus is called for? Doesn't U.S. history have a number of political heavy-hitters who got taken down because they failed the basic test of political leadership? It's not about your political party's "talking points" at any time.
A natural disaster is the real test, away from tax cuts and abortion etc. And certainly away from presidential politics which might be your ticket for appearing on "Face the Nation."
Doug Burgum of North Dakota prioritizes his crusade for Donald Trump. If North Dakota voters wish to keep supporting this sense of priorities on Burgum's part, they are welcome to it. But I'm suggesting that real catastrophic natural disasters spring up. They wash away, so to speak, what seems to be the routine of political conversation.
It's tough to cancel an appearance on a nationally known TV discussion program. Especially those on Sunday morning. You learn to spell the last name of George Stephanopoulos. It's the lure of power and attention. It must be intoxicating because a big name can be taken down at the polls by surprise. That's when the pols face their most fundamental test.
At the city level this happens with big snowstorms and traffic problems.
A poser
Is it fair to speak of South Dakota Governor Noem as "attractive?" People seem to observe this without a second thought. Seems that Noem gets up in the morning with full understanding of how she is seen. But isn't this kind of a throwback in our culture?
"Good-looking women," well based on what? And, as opposed to what? "Plain-looking women?" Or, "homely women?" Egad.
Being thin was once such a high priority. Certainly was when I was growing up. A "fat" person would cause those nearby to sort of poke each other and whisper "look at that person." Like an oddity. Today we think nothing of seeing extremely heavy people everywhere. No comment.
And of course we should not judge in a mean way. But this phenemenon actually does not bode well for public health. We want a drug for the problem. Bring on Ozempic. I wouldn't touch the stuff. Heard of "Ozempic face?" You see, people don't necessarily look "better."
Noem is very thin and this conforms to the old values for how we judged attractiveness. She maybe looks a little anemic? I have observed as much. Does she think that maybe her long flowing hair makes her look sexy? And is it misogynistic to even be hashing over such thoughts?
Let's consider that "misogyny" is a relatively new word for most of us. Just in the last few years has it circulated in a common way. As a kid or young adult I never would have heard it. And back then, Bob Hope would parade Raquel Welch out on stage for "entertaining the troops" in Vietnam. The actress Welch knew full well why her services were sought.
I remember a sociology prof from my college days who talked about "secondary sexual characteristics." Welch fit the profile for having all of these. The nation tuned in to those annual Christmas specials on the tube. I doubt there were many family discussions about the offensiveness of putting forward Welch as a symbol of the "bombshell babe." Our culture then just understood it. With a shrug you might say. And how were all the supposed "plain-looking women" supposed to feel in reaction? They knew who they were, just like the likes of Welch knew how her appearance "turned on" men.
Naturally, the biggest offense about the Bob Hope Christmases from Vietnam was the Vietnam war itself. If you are shocked at the absurdity of what MAGA represents today, be assured it's on par with similar odd and illogical phenomena of our nation's past. You would have to identify the Vietnam war as "exhibit A." Hey, I grew up with it.
Don't look back, Kristi
Kristi Noem has this image of being so popular in South Dakota. The bigger they come, the harder they fall. For the time being she can feel affinity with the likes of George Stephanopoulos. And be taken seriously as VP candidate, this in spite of the damaging episode with her deceased dog. Deceased because of her.
Cruel and unacceptable? Those might be strong suits in connection with the leader of MAGA who has been found responsible in official court proceedings for sexual assault. That bad enough for you? We have learned that nothing is bad enough to discourage fervor in MAGA ranks, pilgrims. So why not Noem the dog-killer for vice president? Fits right in.
Pay no attention to what Trump might have said publicly about this. His word typically means nothing. Being offensive and disgusting scores points. But here's my question: what about at the hyper-local level? I mean in the context of "all politics is local." Severe weather has brought a deluge to southeast South Dakota. With the rain pouring down, the "attractive governor" who really is in her 50s abdicated, in effect, as she chose to attend a political conference and do a TV interview.
Catastrophic floodwaters closing in? Toward McCook Lake? She had a higher priority to attend to: a political fundraiser. Ahem, an out-of-state political fundraiser.
The locals failed to get adequate warning about the dangers at hand. Well it's just government, right? And Republicans are known for not really liking to govern. They don't like passing legislation to solve problems. They act irritated by it as they continually talk about cutting taxes which in their mind is equated with income taxes.
Local property taxes? One of our state representatives from here in western Minnesota, Jeff Backer, said to Marshall Hoffman "that would be the county." Yeah, bother them with your complaints, not me. Yeah, like our local county commissioners are super liberal big careless spenders. Well they are not, they are quite the opposite.
If the county spends "X" amount it is because they have to. Backer wants to wash his hands of it. "Don't bother me," in effect.
But real people at the local level are left with our difficulties. Natural disasters come along. It can happen anywhere. And that is the real test of political leadership. Not being an "attractive women" who seeks appearances on the "Sunday morning shows."
Addendum: I could probably use a stiff drink, just after publishing something where I had to spell "Stephanopoulos" and "misogynistic."
Perpich vs. Janklow
Here's a comment I posted to a Yahoo! News article on Noem and South Dakota:
Rudy Perpich when he was governor of Minnesota got a splash of attention when he said South Dakota was "50th in everything." The official rejoinder was given by Bill Janklow. Remember him? For some reason I'm thinking of Jason Ravnsborg too. Where did he end up? You can only use your military creds as cover for so long.
"Edward" responded:
I know people from Flandreau and I met Janklow a few times when he was governor. He asked for me to speak at a business conference he organized in Sioux Falls in 1997 or so. He was smart as a whip, arrogant, and sometimes cruel. Very complex person. In high school he was part of a group of guys who gang-assaulted a girl from the Flandreau Indian School. Everyone knew but his adoptive parents were bigwigs in a little town and in that era Flandreau was near apartheid. He always drove recklessly and should have been charged with criminal vehicular homicide when he blew through that stop sign. The guy he hit was a Scott from Hardwick MN, just east. We did business with his grandfather.
The image below from the "Babylon Bee" has been passed around quite a bit, shows SD Governor Noem with the assignment of taking Joe Biden "behind the shed." Dispatched like a Noem canine. In Biden's case, based on advanced age and cognitive challenges. Biden struggled in first debate, everyone says.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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