This Just In

Pete McCommunist (see below) has sent word that he is dropping out of the 10th Congressional District race against Paul Broun. McCommunist urges his supporters to write-in their votes for Charles Darwin. “I know a lot of people have already voted for me,” McCommunist says, “and I am flattered and honored by their support. I got into this race because of Broun’s general right-wing nuttiness. This science stuff happened later, and I have become convinced that Charles Darwin’s stature and name recognition throughout the district outweigh the fact that he is dead. Better dead than red, perhaps, and certainly better either than Broun.”

Charter Schools Takeover

Charter schools = good, when local and public.

Charter schools by out-of-town corporations using public money = bad.

Amendment #1 would allow out-of-town corporations to run charter schools for their own profit, subsidized by public funds siphoned away from our public schools.

Amendment #1: Vote NO!

Signs of the Times

Somebody is pulling up Obama signs in Five Points. Recently, Sue Wilde has been walking around the neighborhood, and she remarked to husband Ed Wilde that she thought it strange there were so few Obama signs. After talking with neighbors, the Wildes found out that it’s hard to keep an Obama sign in your yard. Janice Flory, on Catawba, has lost two, as have her neighbors on Highland Terrace. Valerie Aldridge, on Milledge Circle, stopped putting hers out because thieves were trampling her flowers when they stole her signs. Dennis Waters, also on Milledge Circle has lost two. A man who doesn’t like to be trifled with, Waters is considering video surveillance.

Flory says she doesn’t think the sign thefts deserve much attention; she attributes them to kids playing pranks. She says she just got replacements and distributed them to the neighbors, and at the end of last week they were still up.

Darwin vs. McCommunist

Congressman Paul Broun’s latest outburst trashing scientific thought focused national attention again on Georgia, since it made rich fodder for television and YouTube (where you can see it). Broun’s latest antics spawned a petition asking the Speaker to remove him from the House science committee, but more disturbingly, it brought forth a new protest write-in candidacy with the potential to dilute the growing strength of the anti-Broun write-in campaign for Pete McCommunist.

You’ll recall that the idea is to get as many votes as possible for a symbolic protest vote against Broun. That’s all we can do, because the Democrats declined to run a candidate against him, so Broun’s name is the only one on the ballot for the 10th congressional district. Some, like my friend Dennis Waters, who believe a protest vote is warranted, have started a campaign to write in Pete McCommunist. Now comes the counter campaign for Charles Darwin.

I personally would hate to see the protest vote split among two or more candidates, and it is too late to hold a protest primary to decide who will go up against Broun. Now, I know Pete McCommunist, even though he does not actually exist, and I know he has only the best interests of Athens and the 10th District at heart. I have to acknowledge, though, that Charles Darwin might make a stronger candidate, especially where science is concerned. And, although McCommunist is probably better known in Athens, Darwin’s name no doubt more strongly resonates with voters throughout the district.

So, please don’t think me biased when I bring up the fact that Charles Darwin is dead. While it is true that this was not an impediment to voting in Georgia prior to the requirement of a photo ID, it has rarely been an advantage for a candidacy. I would argue that in the scientific universe which Broun inhabits, an imaginary candidate beats a dead one. As a medical doctor, even one with Broun’s bizarre beliefs, he probably accepts the reality of death. But Broun lives by his imagination, and his fantasies have turned him into a powerful vote-getter. That’s why I believe an imaginary candidate pulls more weight against him than one who is legendary but deceased.

I defer to the will of the voters. Guide me with your wisdom. If you think Darwin makes the stronger candidate, let me know, and I’ll switch faster than you can say Mitt Romney. Meanwhile, here in Athens, the seat of the University of Georgia, alma mater of Congressman Paul Broun, Jr., we must protest. He does not represent those of us who believe that science is the very essence embodied in the motto that has guided the university for over 200 years: “Et docere et rerum exquirere causas—Both to teach and to inquire into the causes of things.” (Yeah, I know; the university has corrupted its own motto, which is written in clear and straightforward Latin. The university pretends that it says something about “service.” Perhaps they consulted Congressman Broun for advice on how to ignore reality.)