Wide White: The 10 senators I like right now

Friday, June 02, 2006

The 10 senators I like right now

As I said yesterday, I'm not going to be mad about this new car seat bill. Government has been getting bigger for years, so there's no reason to flip out too much now.

So, instead of ripping into the Republicans in the Senate who voted the wrong way, I'm going to thank the 10 senators with whom I'm pretty happy right now.

Glenn Grothman
Sheila Harsdorf
Ted Kanavas
Neal Kedzie
Alan Lasee (interestingly, he was originally a cosponsor)
Mary Lazich
Joe Leibham
Tom Reynolds
Dale Schultz
Cathy Stepp

Some of these are folks with whom I disagree on issues like ethanol, but it's only fair to give them just as much credit when I agree with them as grief when I disagree.

According to The Badger Herald - a publication I'd never endorse, with reporters, including the author of this story, who are hardly neutral - there were ulterior motives in voting for this.

“By signing AB 618, the governor made Wisconsin eligible for $625,000 in new federal funds this year alone, and up to $2.5 million in the next six years,” she said, adding the funding will be used for safety-seat education and training programs, as well as for programs that purchase and distribute safety seats to low-income families. [Um, do you really think that's where that money is going to go? Ha!]

Federal funds are offered as an incentive to states with laws requiring booster or safety seats, Lupardus added.

I should have guessed there was a monetary incentive somewhere from the federal government.

Whatever.

3 Comments:

Keithslady declared,: Just wait, Joey, with enough incentives we'll be in NASCAR safety harnesses yet.; 6/03/2006 10:42 PM
Mark declared,: Well, actually, they do give out car seats. Well, they used to, at least. A while back, when we knew something was up but before Willy got his diagnosis of Autism, I was driving home with both the kids in the car. Man, it had to be near five years now, because I wasn't even pregnant yet...well, again.

Anyway, we were driving home, and about a block from the house Willy decided to play Houdini and escaped from his car seat and was bouncing around in the back seat. I was a block from home, so it seemed more dangerous to pull over (on a main drag) to buckle him back in than just very carefully get us home. Unfortunately, I was too busy watching my son, the road and the other cars around me to notice the police car right behind me.
He followed me up my driveway, lectured me, and then tried to lecture my son. After Willy's rather stilted response (his language choice, while not usually profane and it wasn't then, just doesn't sound "normal." Not even little-kiddie-normal.) the police officer blinked, stepped back, and gave me information about the car seat give-away program. We got two nifty five-point-harness car seats and I was taught how to use them (AND I avoided a ticket I couldn't afford). It took Willy three whole months to figure out how to wiggle himself completely loose. And, yes, he was strapped in correctly...like I said, Houdini.

Oh, and I had a point in there...somewhere.; 6/06/2006 9:55 AM
Joey declared,: I just want to know how much of our tax dollars go to those car seats. I guess it sort of makes sense that if the state is going to pass a law that is costly to follow, the state should pay for the means to obey that law. It still kind of irks me. But then, pretty much anything that involves a government handout irks me, and I've certainly been guilty of being the recipient of some form of a handout. That's just how it works with government....; 6/07/2006 11:25 PM