Times Argus says

FairPoint Communications Inc., the embattled company that runs the state's landline telephone system, has hired former top Douglas administration staffer Mike Smith to be its point man in Vermont.

Not too long back, I heard Mr. Smith on VPR talking about his young geezer sports and outdoor activities website group. He sounded quite fond of being part of the younger retired demographic. Now it appears FairPoint has created a new job position for Governor Douglas’s former Secretary for Administration. FairPoint is in the midst of filing for bankruptcy and is wrangling with regulatory boards and legislators in three states. It appears he has been hired to polish FairPoint’s sometimes rocky relationship with legislators and regulatory boards in Vermont. At least they saved him from his brief encounter with early retirement.

Although retired from the Douglas administration in 2008 he must still have some skills FairPoint wishes to exploit and maybe a few connections that FairPoint needs.  

Smith, who served as Secretary of Administration for Douglas, will assume the newly created position of Vermont State President and will represent the company before regulators and lawmakers and with business and community groups, FairPoint President Peter Nixon said Monday.

“Coincidence is the word we use when we can't see the levers and pulleys,” says sci-fi author Emma Bull. About a week ago, Gov. Douglas began chanting the benefits of VY as an employer. Due to the lack of a long-term power price agreement, Douglas (I assumed) looked around for another boiler plate argument for keeping Yankee grinding away until 2032. So he started hitting on the employment aspect of the plant, prior to the announced statewide media blitz by Entergy’s Vermont Yankee.

Those opposed to keeping VY running past the 2012 date would be wise to start publicly considering the fate of the 650 employees as they are really the ones on the front line. Retraining, pension guarantees or extended benefits should be explored for after 2012 shutdown.    

But consider the coincidence that several days before the blitz; Douglas intuits almost a mirror image of the tone of the ad campaign. A suspicious person might almost think he was pandering to Entergy Corp.

Without citing any evidence for it,

Douglas said a week ago, his concerns about the plant are resolved. "I think it's an asset to our state," he said. Noting the plant employs 640 workers, he said, if the state knew of an employer of that size looking to move in, "We'd be tripping over ourselves to find and recruit that employer."

Yesterday Vermont Yankee announced …A series of print and television ads featuring Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant employees will begin running in state-wide media outlets this week. In the ads, VY employees discuss the safety of the nuclear plant, and the need in Vermont for the jobs and the economic benefits that the electricity generated at VY provides the state of Vermont. Our employees are our greatest asset for continued safe, reliable generation in the state and they admirably serve their communities.

Vermont’s Chief Technology Officer and Tiger blogger declares we can gain both efficiency and effectiveness in Vermont. The change comes with what appears, on its face to be a re-launching  of Jim Douglas’s January 2007 E-State Initiative. You may recall the original E-State plan was going to totally “E” Vermont by 2010 (sixteen days left). This time around, the initiative is freshened and fluffed-up by federal stimulus funding and uses the continuing economic crisis as motivation.   It’s may be a complicated plan though because the details are being kept secret.

We administration officials didn’t give the reporters the specifics they’d like to have – and I’m not going to do that here. Plans are not done; legislators not briefed; specific legislative proposals not written;……….

Ever the modern technology salesmen, he does helpfully remind us of the wonders we may see. He points out wondrous changes this past decade the airline industry made using the technology of the World Wide Web for ticket bookings.  

We now have examples of how industries like airlines have used the web to dramatically change customer service both to reduce service costs AND to empower customers. Some readers may remember when you went to a travel agency to get paper tickets which were written by hand before you could fly anywhere

His pep talk is finished off with several obligatory warnings that raising taxes is not an option, as doing so “…. will quickly get us less income as taxpayer flight accelerates.”  And only a state employee pay cut will make state employees be part of the solution.  

Senators John Kerry, Joe Lieberman and Lindsay Graham held a news conference last week and announced their bare bones Framework for Climate Action and Energy Independence.

Obviously the event was timed to have an impact in Copenhagen. Both Kerry and Lieberman said explicitly that their intent was to send a message to countries hashing out a climate treaty: the U.S. Senate is on the job.

The document, is referred to as “a starting point, inviting our colleagues’ constructive input”. They do state a near term pollution reduction target in the range of 17 percent below 2005 emissions levels by 2020. On Friday, in Copenhagen, a draft text released by conference chairman asked wealthy countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions 25 to 45 percent below 1999 levels by 2020. The Senate framework cuts amount to about a 4 percent cut below 1990 levels.

However, the framework proposal does call for nuclear power as an “essential component” of the climate strategy along with federal incentives to boost US production of land, offshore oil and natural gas drilling. Drill baby drill?

Independent Senator Lieberman (who more recently is busy torpedoing Senate health care legislation) said “there are well over 60 votes in play in the Senate, not that we have 60 votes yet.” by way of noting the changeable nature of this framework. Perhaps last week’s Senate announcement only had an effect on a domestic audience because about half way into the Copenhagen talks much of the World, is apparently unmoved by news that US Senators Kerry, Lieberman and Graham are on the job.

Marcelo Furtado, Executive Director, Greenpeace Brazil, said on Monday morning that negotiators had done so poorly last week that they left a “crime scene” for the arriving heads of states, and that developed countries had clearly “failed to do their homework.” Alden Meyer, director of strategy and policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the current drafts from the developed world on the table would deliver an increase in emissions.

 With President Obama scheduled to arrive later this week and after a brief protest walk out by “underdeveloped nations” the prospects are described by Earth2tech blog in stark terms

………It remains to be seen what the heads of state can actually do upon their arrival this week. But to reach any kind of agreement there will have to be significant shifts in their statements and emissions reductions targets. A few are starting to inch forward —India has offered to adopt the guidelines under the UNFCCC, and report to Parliament on its domestic goals. But China and the U.S., as expected, will be the ones that will need to move closer.

Tracking Vermont ARRA stimulus funding isn’t easy. The Vermont Recovery Czar refused to put up ARRA road signs and the Vermont State and National Recovery websites are not easy to navigate. The Vermont State webpage, far from transparent, is a jumble of PDFs and old and new press releases. Judge for yourself here: Recovery Vermont.

The National Recovery webpage is a little better, but anyone wondering how their county or the entire state has faired can find it at ProPublica website. The website has an easy to use by state Stimulus Tracker chart, which has been recently updated.   The Vermont per capita winner was Washington County home of the state capital, Montpelier. This is slightly deceiving as it is noted that

“There still may be overrepresentation of money going to counties where state capitals are because of funding going to state agencies but where the data did not designate that it was to be used statewide.”

So given that, Washington County weighs in at a heavy $5,143 per capita with total county funding at $302,543,048.  

Caledonia County home of the conservative up–by-your- bootstraps Caledonian Record newspaper received the second  largest per capita share of Federal gov’mint tax money.Caledonia took home a substantial $1,236.00 per capita, with a total county funding amount of $37,675,844. Taking into account possible overrepresentation in Washington County’s numbers Caledonia might well be first. Grand Isle, Vermont’s smallest county, comes in last with just $97.00 per capita for their 7,729 residents. Vermont’s overall statewide funding per capita was $270.00 above the nationwide average of $237.00 per capita.    

Also listed are Statewide and non-County specific project grants; state budget hole pluggers.  Most of these amounts are all in or above the six figure range save for a noticeably small grant (or typo) to the Agency of Human Services listed for $2.00. [!]  

VT State  Agency of Human Services  $2.00 Grant Medical Assistance Program (Medicaid) Medicicaid Entitlement  for Vermont – FY 2009 Quarter Department of   Health and Human Services 6/26/2009

Yesterday it was announced far and wide that Attorney General Eric Holder settled a 13 year old lawsuit brought by Native Americans against the US that dated back to the 1800’s.The case involved allegations that the Department of the Interior had swindled tribes out of leasing royalties for mining, timber, oil and gas.

Under the terms of the agreement, more than $1.4 billion will be distributed to more than 300,000 Native Americans to compensate them for royalty claims.  Another $2 billion will be used to buy back and consolidate tribal lands lost by previous generations

The buy back funds may prove useful as elsewhere in the news and with much less fanfare, a yin to this yang story is occurring.  Many people might think taking Native American’s lands is frowned upon and even discouraged, apparently not. One hand gives back as another takes.  

The IRS just auctioned off 7,100 acres of land (twenty percent of the tribes land) owned by the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe in South Dakota. The Tribal land includes an area under negotiation for wind farm development. Although valued at $4.6 million, the 7,100 acres was sold for less than $2.6 million to an undisclosed buyer. The tribal council has filed suit and it should come to trial in March.  

The lawsuit says BIA gave the tribe “erroneous tax advice” around 2003 when it said the tribe didn’t have to pay federal employment taxes because it’s a federally recognized sovereign nation.

“The tribe has attempted since then to pay the arrearages and subsequent amounts as they come due, but has been unable to bring the employment taxes current because over this same amount of time the Internal Revenue Services have levied and garnished various accounts of the tribe making it impossible for the tribe to bring the taxes current,” according to the lawsuit. BIA spokeswoman Nedra Darling said the bureau is not involved in the case.

The author of Guns, Germs and Steel, geography professor Jared Diamond has a New York Times op-ed stating his recent softening of attitude toward big business and their role in environmental salvation. He confesses to a former dislike of big business’ environmental destruction and greed but describes his change toward a more “nuanced feeling”. This feeling came about from serving alongside many business executives on the board of the World Wildlife Fund and Conservation International. Diamond’s top three corporate picks that have seen the light are Wal-Mart, Chevron and Coca-Cola. These businesses are, he says among the world’s strongest positive forces for environmental sustainability. He must see them as a sort of positive Guns, Germs and Steel of the enlightened corporate crowd.

I’ve discovered that while some businesses are indeed as destructive as many suspect, others are among the world’s strongest positive forces for environmental sustainability. The embrace of environmental concerns by chief executives has accelerated recently for several reasons. Lower consumption of environmental resources saves money in the short run. Maintaining sustainable resource levels and not polluting saves money in the long run. And a clean image — one attained by, say, avoiding oil spills and other environmental disasters — reduces criticism from employees, consumers and government.

Few would argue that avoiding oil spills isn’t good and lower consumption doesn’t save money but that has long been the case. No nuance here at all, it has gotten so bad that even Wal-Mart, Chevron and Coca-Cola see the writing on the wall.

Look at what Coca-Cola is doing as one of  Diamond’s strongest positive forces for environmental sustainability.  

First off Coca-Cola gave $20 million to the World Wildlife Fund in 2007 and entered into a long-term funding partnership with them in 2008. Diamond notes correctly that Coke’s main ingredient is water.

Global climate change is making water scarcer, especially in the densely populated temperate-zone countries, like the United States, that are Coca-Cola’s main customers. Most competing water use around the world is for agriculture, which presents sustainability problems of its own. Hence Coca-Cola’s survival compels it to be deeply concerned with problems of water scarcity, energy, climate change and agriculture.

Making its plants water use “neutral” by replenishing to the environment water in quantities equal to the amount used to make soda.

About water offsets from Guardian UK. Coke is not promising to be water neutral wherever it operates – which is bad news for the Indian villages that have been complaining that Coca Cola bottling plants are emptying their wells. Instead, it will "replenish" that water somewhere else.

How is not so clear. One route will be by funding WWF to protect watersheds round the globe.

All so they can continue to make and sell sugar water worldwide. Is the continued existence of Coca Cola Corporation so vital to the earth that we need to laud them for stage managing their own survival?  

It may not only be the 35 year old mistakes of Viet Nam which the US should take a lesson from but the more recent ones made in Iraq that are being repeated in Afghanistan, with only slight variation. Unbelievably the US is relying even more heavily on private security contractors now in Afghanistan. Practically on the same day Obama announced the troop level increase by 30,000 (which will still leave troops outnumbered by private contractors) the Army Times reported on the growing problem. 

Although the convoys sometimes carry U.S. military vehicles and represent a vital lifeline for the coalition effort, no Afghan, U.S. or other coalition military forces accompany them. Instead, each convoy is protected by Afghan security guards armed with AK-series assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades in sport utility vehicles — “black 4Runners, full of guys in these tan uniforms, with lots of guns sticking out of them,” said Capt. Casey Thoreen, commander of 2-1 Infantry’s B Company, which operates from Combat Outpost Rath, located less than 100 meters from Highway 1 in the town of Hutal. “These guys are like gun-toting mercenaries with probably not a whole lot of training. … They’re just light on the trigger finger.” Haji Obidullah Bawari, the Afghan government’s district chief for Maywand, rendered an even harsher judgment. “Most of them are addicted to heroin,” he said.

  At the congressional hearing the day after Obama’s speech, Secretary of State Clinton answered a question from Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) chairman of the subcommittee on contracting oversight. Clinton noted that the policy should strike a balance between regulation and “agility in doing business”.

To make matters worse, the Pentagon has not yet filled 600 oversight officer positions to monitor contracts in Afghanistan. Gates said he was not aware of the large number of vacancies but would look into it. “We have to be able to manage risk without being risk averse,” Clinton said. If oversight is taken to the extreme, government officials are not able to make “smart decisions,” she said. “We want to account for every penny,” but the government has to be able to balance the inherent tension between oversight and agility in doing business. McCaskill agreed that there is “real tension,”

Will the Republican candidates here in Vermont get caught up in the purity of thought movement taking hold in the Republican right wing?

Nationally Republican leaders have been circulating a resolution listing 10 positions Republican candidates must support if they want RNC backing. To gain the seal of approval candidates have to show faithful adherence to conservative principles and public policies, demonstrate opposition to Obama’s socialist agenda of government-run health care and cap-and-trade along with opposition to easing union secret ballot rules, and finally support of military-recommended troop surges and the Defense of Marriage Act. It’s all Dick Armey approved. Armey, head of FreedomWorks and a lead TeaParty enthusiast, supports these loyalty tests.

Last week on Vermont Edition, Middlebury’s Eric Davis predicted that in the coming gubernatorial campaign Republican Brian Dubie would not have to deal with conservative Tea Party issues. Almost as if it couldn’t happen here because our Republicans are too nice, Davis said he had a sense that the Tea Party was much smaller here in Vermont than in other parts of the country. It may or may not be smaller than in other parts of the country but it is making itself heard. Newly declared Republican candidate for US Senate Len Britton decided to make one of his first stops hunting for support at an early northern Vermont screening of Tea Party: The Movie.

Britton, along with most of a Republican County Committee, were treated to a sneak preview of that inspirational film.  

Vermont View reporter’s blog notes that nationally the Vermont Tea Partiers are mentioned by Talking Points Memo as among those active enough to go to Washington with their counterparts to lobby Washington lawmakers.

Dubie’s campaign style (tactics?) of avoiding debates and relying almost exclusively on friendly audiences may require coming to terms with the Tea Party. Len Britton, with his feet on the ground, apparently knows this already. As for Davis’ prediction that Dubie won’t have to deal with the Tea Party elements of the Republican right in Vermont because they are smaller than elsewhere, one only has to think back to the nasty campaigns lead by Ruth Dwyer years ago. Looking at an old Inside Track column from 2005, I was reminded that one of Dwyer’s strong financial supporters was none other than Skip Vallee, Dubie’s potential rival for the Republican nod to run for governor.