Author Archives: David

About David

David is the father of 8 children. When he's not busy with that full time occupation he works as a technology professional. He enjoys discussing big issues with informed people, cooking, gardening, vexillology (flag design), and tinkering.

Self-Policing Lobbyists

Posted on 2008-07-18 by David

Often lost in discussions about ethics legislation and lobbyist influence is the fact that there is a legitimate value that lobbyists can bring to the legislative process. I’m in favor of making solid rules of ethics for legislators and lobbyists … Continue reading →

Posted in State | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Ambitious Pronouncement

Posted on 2008-07-17 by David

I’ve already stated that I believe the goal of using only energy from clean, renewable sources is attainable but I think the Green Prophet might be getting ahead of himself. {Al Gore} said the goal of producing all of the … Continue reading →

Posted in National, technology | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

American Citizenship

Posted on 2008-07-16 by David

I really liked this Deseret News profile of a naturalized citizen. Airman 1st Class Elena Dulger’s face lights up the room when she talks about her first chance to participate in a democratic election. Dulger, 21, is taking her oath … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Raising Fiscal Awareness

Posted on 2008-07-15 by David

Considering the importance of importance of fiscal policy it seems to evade any serious media coverage in favor of more exciting topics. Ross Perot has launched perotcharts.com to make the information accessible to people. Former Comptroller General, David Walker, has … Continue reading →

Posted in National | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The Best Day to Vote

Posted on 2008-07-14 by David

As a perpetual proponent of incresing voter turnout, I enjoyed considering the story on NPR about Rethinking The Tuesday Vote. I’m not sure when voters would be noticable less busy than Tuesday – especially considering that we would not want … Continue reading →

Posted in National | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Government and Religion

Posted on 2008-07-13 by David

I was reading Doctrine and Covenants section 134 today. I have read it before on various occasions, but my perspective on government has sharpened considerably since the last time I read it and it struck a chord with me as … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Energy Optimist

Posted on 2008-07-11 by David

Considering that our homes use much more energy than our cars – it’s always nice to see improvements in how we can generate or use energy. I was reminded of that when I saw two articles on better/cheaper ways to … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, technology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Performance Pay – Round 1

Posted on 2008-07-11 by David

The Legislature approved funds and loose guidelines for merit pay for teachers earlier this year. I really like the first news I have heard about the issue since then: Each district and charter school that wanted money had to come … Continue reading →

Posted in State | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Congestion Tolls

Posted on 2008-07-10 by David

The Deseret News is recommending congestion tolls to help pay for our transportation needs. I have previously stated my generic approval of tolling while recognizing that there are issues of fairness to be addressed. (Toll roads on the west side, … Continue reading →

Posted in State | Tagged , , , , , | 16 Comments

Weak Representation

Posted on 2008-07-09 by David

In a move that was anything but surprising, the Senate voted to gut the constitution rather than stand up against the politics of fear. Democrats control both houses of Congress and yet this bill passed by large margins in both … Continue reading →

Posted in National | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments