The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 92, No. 171, Ed. 1 Tuesday, August 28, 2012 Page: 4 of 22
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Tuesday
August 28, 2012
8®
couniry
one-liners
I had expected to see more of
the usual mud slinging in the
presidential campaign, arid not
to my surprise, neither candi-
date has been caught with clean
hands.
But what has surprised me is
the level of comedic relief I’ve
found in the race so far.
Let’s face it; the Obama cam-
paign has better writers than the
Romney campaign.
Seriously, whoever is coming
up with Obama’s one-liners has
a job waiting for him on
Saturday Night Live if his/her
political career falls short of
expectations.
Romney’s best line,
MIKE
GUNNING
“Obamaloney,” fell way short
of “Romney Hood,” and
Obama’s line, “I know he’s had
other things on his car,” refer-
ring to Romney's infamous
dog-on-car trip, got more than a
few laughs around the water
cooler.
We’ve gone from the ridicu-
lous:
• “I'm not familiar precisely
with what I said, but I’ll stand
by what I said, whatever it
was,” Romney
to Sean
H a n n i t y
regarding com-
ments in which
he said Obama
was trying to
make America
a less Christian
nation.
• “I’ve now
been in 57 states - I think one
left to go.” - Obama at a cam-
paign event in Beaverton,
Oregon.
To the laughable:
• “The reforms we seek
would bring greater competi-
tion, choice, savings and ineffi-
ciencies to our health care sys-
tem.” Obama
• “I should tell my story. I’m
also unemployed.” Romney,
speaking to unemployed people
in Florida. Romney’s net worth
is more than $200 million.
As a reporter, I use several
sources to track trends in the
market, the political environ-
ment and in general subject
matter.
Despite what many might
us reporters
not rely on Wikipedia as the
final source of vetting out
information.
One of my favorite sources is
LexusNexus, and when I
checked with the data collec-
tion firm to retrieve informa-
tion for this column, what I
found was nothing short of
amazing. Jokes aside, I wanted
to see the top topics the candi-
dates are discussing on the
campaign trail.
Jobs, the economy, education
and energy are all issues
Romney and Obama have
lobbed back and forth, often
spending more time criticizing
each others policy while failing
to articulate a clear understand-
ing of their own.
The topic that is glaringly
missing from conversation
from either side is the war.
Neither candidate is talking
about our soldiers, or their
plans to bring them home.
Its time for them to start the
conversation.
We’re losing our soldiers at a
rate of more than one a day, and
its not always coming at the
hands of the enemy.
The month of July set a
record high for the number of
suicides in the U.S. military. An
Army report reveals a total of
38 troops committed suicide
last month, including 26 active-
duty soldiers and 12 Army
National Guard or reserve
members - more soldiers than
were killed on the battlefield.
This is not a new trend, nor
one Washington isn’t aware of.
According to a Pentagon
report released last week, more
U.S. soldiers have died this
year by taking their own lives
than on the battlefield. The
Pentagon says there have been
at least 154 suicides among
active-duty troops in 2012, a
rate of nearly one each day.
The reasons for the increase
in suicides are not fully under-
stood.
Among explanations, studies
point to combat exposure, post-
traumatic stress, misuse of pre-
scription medications and per-
sonal financial problems. Army
data suggest soldiers with mul-
tiple combat tours are at greater
risk of committing suicide.
Defense Secretary Leon
Panetta addressed the issue in
June at the annual conference
on suicide prevention in the
military, saying, “Despite the
increased efforts, the increased
attention, the trends continue to
move in a troubling and tragic
direction.”
The real tragedy is that we
are still in this war to begin
with, and from the sidelines, it
appears to have become a for-
gotten war by the candidates.
Not once has, either candidate
engaged voters in the conversa-
tion, and neither has made ref-
erence to our troops.
Humor has a place in the
campaign to be sure, but the
time has passed for one-liners.
We need to hear talk about
getting our men and women
serving overseas home.
Leave the one-liners to the
comics. Or me.
Mike Gunning is a staff
reporter with The Sun. He can be
reached at mike.gunning@bay-
townsun.com.
OUR VIEW
T
Better safe than sorry
The Lee College Board of Regents
opted Thursday not to purchase a
$250,000 windstorm insurance policy
that would cover named storms, wind
and hale damage.
We think the prudent choice would
be to purchase the insurance.
Buying insurance isn’t for what’s
happened in the past, but what could
happen. Regents must protect the
investment of taxpayers.
The damage from Hurricane Ike in
2008 amounted to less than $100,000
and FEMA contributed $75,000 to
assist with damages.
However, that doesn’t negate the
fact that a bigger storm is possible.
The $100,000 deductible per build-
ing sets the bar pretty high.
Granted, it would take a massively
destructive storm to be even be able to
take advantage of the insurance policy.
But if a storm of that magnitude
comes through and does massive
destruction, $5 million dollars in cov-
erage could mean the difference
between being able to rebuild and end-
ing the Lee College legacy.
Steve Evans, vice president of
finance and administration, said
FEMA looks favorably on schools
with windstorm insurance.
So far, the college has made it five
years without windstorm insurance.
In those five years, less wind-relat-
ed damage has happened to the school
than it would have cost the college to
pay for insurance for one year.
We realize that the decision to not
spend the $250,000 must be seen from
the perspective of those who prepare
the budget. Budget officials were
informed the college would lose about
$350,000 more in funding from the
state than was hoped.
FEMA looks favorably on schools
with wind insurance because it
rewards institutions that move to pro-
tect themselves.
In a budget with almost a $1 million
surplus, we think approving wind-
storm insurance would have been the
cautious choice in protecting the
investment of the taxpayers and ensur-
ing the future of the college.
Regent Don Coffey said when Ike
hit, the college went “naked.” Let’s
not expose the college to the risk and
chose to insure.
-Sun Editorial Board
«.
—
Baytown’s first impressions, lasting impressions
First impressions are some-
times finicky. At times, what
you first experience is the tell-
. tale sign of what will follow.
Then again, those first encoun-
ters can be misleading. Well,
when it came to Lee College and
the City of Baytown, my first
impressions were right on tar-
get.
I must admit, prior to applying
for the position of president of
Lee College, I had little knowl-
edge of either the college or the
community. That all changed
when 1 saw the announcement
that Lee College was seeking a
new president. My interest was
immediately peeked, and as any
good job seeker, I searched the
internet to learn about the col-
lege and the community. What I
learned was just the precursor to
what I eventually would come to
live, experience and love.
After submitting my applica-
tion to Lee College, I received a
DR. DENNIS
BROWN
phone call from
the search con-
sultant telling
me the search
committee had
recommended
me for an inter-
view. Many of
us know what it
feels like when
you get that
call: excited,
yet a sense of uncertainty and
anticipation.
Upon arriving for the inter-
view, and seeing the campus for
the first time, I was immediately
taken back to when I was a stu-
dent at Arizona Western College
(AWC) in Yuma, Arizona. The
similarities between the two col-
leges were uncanny. First
impressions: I began to relax
and remember the many won-
derful experiences associated
with AWC.
The interview experience at
Lee, from the Board of Regents,
faculty, staff and students, to the
community representatives on
the selection committee, was
professional and exceptionally
hospitable. And wouldn’t you
know it, the first person I met in
Baytown, upon arriving for the
interview, was a Lee College
graduate behind the hotel count-
er, who had also served as a Lee
College Ambassador.
The connection between the
college and the community first
became apparent from none
other than the water towers,
which proudly and boldly pro-
claimed Baytown “Home of Lee
College.” First impressions: I
knew there was something spe-
cial about this city.
From the time I arrived at Lee
College as the new president, to
the day I sat down to write this
article, not a day has gone by
that I have not come into contact
with someone who has a con-
nection to Lee College.
Whether it is a former student,
the parent of a student, or a cur-
rent or former employee, the
connections are widespread and
deep.
The love for Lee College by
this community is special. It
translates into overwhelming
support in so many different
ways. That connection is not
just people; it also is business,
industry and a wide spectrum of
organizations. The college is
blessed to have such support.
One way the community has
stepped up to show its apprecia-
tion for Lee College is through
participation in our annual gala
fundraiser, which will be held at
Goose Creek Country Club on
Sept. 21. I invite you to come
celebrate with us. Lee College
is your college, and your finan-
cial support makes a difference
in the lives of many of our stu-
dents.
First impressions - this time
they were right on: An outstand-
ing college with a talented and
dedicated faculty and staff, and
a tremendously supportive com-
munity with great affection fora
long-time educational fixture in
their midst.
First impressions are often
lasting impressions.
For me, Lee College and
Baytown have made a lasting
impression. I am glad to be
here. And now that my wife
Darlene will be joining me in
Baytown, as she retires from the
University of Texas at El Paso,
along with our granddaughter
Mercedes, you can imagine the
smile on my face. Hopefully it
will not take too long before we
can also call ourselves
Baytonians.
Dr. Dennis Brown is the pres-
ident of Lee College. He can be
reached at sunnews@baytown-
sun.com, attention: Dr. Brown.
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Publisher Emeritus
1950-1974
EDITORIAL
BOARD
JANIE GRAY
Editor/Publisher
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—.._
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Gray, Janie. The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 92, No. 171, Ed. 1 Tuesday, August 28, 2012, newspaper, August 28, 2012; Baytown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1052561/m1/4/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sterling Municipal Library.