MooPig Ho-Hum Politics Department :: "Tea, Tobacco, and Grass Roots..."

Why them, Why Not Me?
Mashed articles smoked by Pat Darnell  |  May 10, 2014  |  Bryan TX

[Picture LINK]

Do you get emails from FreedomWorks? I do. Dozens of them. They think by using the same methods that the Democratic and Republican Party use they will persuade me to join their "Grass Roots" movement. What is their movement? I don't know. But grass root it ain't.

I think FreedomWorks backed TEA PARTY wants me to vote to unplug the Federal Government, and rely on local and state governments to run things. I am not sure that is possible, but surely they have a big funding base behind them because they grew from nowhere when we "elected" our most recent Manchurian candidate, Barry Obama. Like cockroaches no longer afraid of the light, Tea Party-ers crawled into our streets and gutters and plodded along with misspelled slogans.

The referenced article claims the Grass Root rampage began in the 1980's by tobacco cartels who were attempting to stop all the governmental vice-taxes foisted upon their products, by creating a good old grassroots group of grass widows against taxation.

‘To quarterback behind the scenes, third-party efforts’: the tobacco industry and the Tea Party -- Fallin et al. -- Tobacco Control: "...Abstract Background The Tea Party, which gained prominence in the USA in 2009, advocates limited government and low taxes. Tea Party organisations, particularly Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks, oppose smoke-free laws and tobacco taxes...

"...Methods We used the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library, the Wayback Machine, Google, LexisNexis, the Center for Media and Democracy and the Center for Responsive Politics (opensecrets.org) to examine the tobacco companies’ connections to the Tea Party. Results Starting in the 1980s, tobacco companies worked to create the appearance of broad opposition to tobacco control policies by attempting to create a grassroots smokers’ rights movement. Simultaneously, they funded and worked through third-party groups, such as Citizens for a Sound Economy, the predecessor of AFP and FreedomWorks, to accomplish their economic and political agenda. There has been continuity of some key players, strategies and messages from these groups to Tea Party organisations. As of 2012, the Tea Party was beginning to spread internationally."
'via Blog this'

CONCLUSION
It's ho-hum politics as usual. We are sorry we descended into this quagmire once again, but when grown people act the way they do in a circus like Federal government, we get antsy. Watching Rand Paul and other anti-establishment types jet around and hold rallies for Tea Party-like wannabe's, it makes our eyes twitch.

Developing an eye twitch can be worrisome in the blogging business. If the stuff Rand Paul and his followers are doing is "Grass Root" I think a new definition is needed. Just what is a Grass Root movement in 2014? Well, some of the discussion is about 'restoring liberty,' using designed, clearly articulated, effective strategies, tactics, and ideas which liberty activists can use on campus or in campaign work to win with their 'principled message.'

So we worry. But like our mentor, we should follow his lead: "What, Me Worry?"

____________________Reference
http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/early/2013/02/20/tobaccocontrol-2012-050815.full
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QCzww6EG7E
http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2014/04/rand-paul-raises-big-dollars-from-small-donors.html
http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/lookup2.php?strID=C00493924&cycle=2014
http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2014/05/rand-pauls-ties-with-losing-nc-primary-candidate-run-deep.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brendan-demelle/study-confirms-tea-party-_b_2663125.html

Passport Schmassport... IT is not just gov.Debacles

Hurry up and Wait! And what do Passports have in common with iPhones?

June 25, 2007
U.S. Passport System Comes Up Short
By Larry Barrett
The State Department's backlog in handling passport applications provides CIOs with a chilling reminder on what could go wrong if they fail to ramp up both systems and staff ahead of record-breaking demand.

http://www.cioinsight.com/article2/0,1540,2150728,00.asp

Despite having almost two years to prepare for a predictable onslaught of new passport applications this summer, the U.S. State Department and its information processing systems are now so backlogged that Congress is cracking the whip on the behalf of irate travelers who are waiting and waiting and waiting for their passports.

Tell us what you think: mailto:editors@cioinsight-ziffdavis.com


The debacle, which began in April 2005 when the Homeland Security and State departments instituted new travel regulations requiring Americans flying to nearby countries such as Canada, Mexico and those in the Caribbean to carry a passport, provides CIOs with a chilling reminder of just how wrong things can go if your organization isn't able to ramp up both its systems and its staff ahead of anticipated, record—breaking demand.


What used to take between four and six weeks is now taking three or four or sometimes even five months, leaving travelers angry, stressed out and uncertain if they'll receive their passports in time for their vacations.

In a letter last week, no less than 56 senators lambasted the State Department's woeful performance and called on Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice to intercede now before any more travelers are inconvenienced.

"People are angry and frustrated," says Rick Webster, a lobbyist for the Travel
Industry Association of America. "Companies have to respond to shareholders. The
government has to respond to constituents. [The State Department] anticipated
the demand but they guessed far too low. It shouldn't have come to this."

State Department analysts say the agency originally predicted about 15 million passport applications this year, up from 12 million in 2005. Then the figure was revised to 16 million. Now, they're expecting upwards of 17.5 million or more.
Despite hiring an additional 130 passport workers and expanding the number of locations that accept applications from 7,500 to 9,500 this year, the frustrating delays continue and will likely continue though the fall.

Chief Information Officer, CIO
Could something like this happen in the private sector ahead of a new product release or perhaps a new compliance or regulation deadline?

"A good CIO would have the lead members of his or her team interview key internal clients or constituents so the IT department has the clearest possible understanding of the business situation," says Henry Harteveldt, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. "Technology is the enabler, and can do almost anything, provided the people who are responsible for the managing that technology have the clear insight from those who run the business side of the enterprise."

For the State Department and the passport processing sites, the situation was further complicated when it turned to the private sector for help. Citicorp, which processes the passport fees for the agency, hired an additional 400 workers to an existing staff of 800 to help clear the backlog.

However, a State Department spokeswoman told the Los Angeles Times that once the new hires were trained and began processing the fees, all that paperwork was sent over in enormous batches, further swamping the overwhelmed passport processors.
Citicorp officials were not available for comment.

"On the corporate side, there are efficiencies and incentives built into the process to avoid something like this from happening," Webster says. "In government there's only accountability to the citizens."

Also, unlike a Sarbanes—Oxley deadline or a new product release, the government had the luxury of relaxing the new travel requirements it had created for itself. That's not how it works in the private sector.

One company that's about to experience a similar deluge in demand, AT&T, announced Thursday that it had hired an additional 2,000 temporary workers to meet what's expected to be frenzied demand for Apple Inc.'s iPhone on June 29.

A FAQ on what the iPhone has and what it lacks By David Pogue
Published: June 27, 2007 ...With its new iPhone, Apple pulled off two masterful feats: creating the machine and creating the buzz around it. But just how much of a phone, iPod and Internet machine is this thing?... http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/27/technology/ptiphone28.php

As the only carrier to provide service for the iPhone when it debuts, AT&T's sales staff received a total of 100,000 hours of training to sell and support the device, according to spokesman Mark Siegel.

However, Siegel told Baseline the company would not discuss how much of the training and additional resources were allocated for updating or improving order processing and customers service systems.

And while the State Department desperately struggles to catch up with the millions of applications it's processing this year, travel analysts say the worst may be yet to come. In 2009, Americans traveling by land and sea—in addition to air travel—to nearby countries will also have to carry a valid passport, adding another 26 million applications to the pile.

"The State Department got caught because the normal turnaround time is six weeks," Harteveldt says. "They should have known that human nature being what it is; people generally wait until the last minute to do things."

Dear Readers:
My friends at Ziff-Davis are some of the most helpful business partners a small to medium Mom2Pop like ours could have!!! Don't hesitate to look at what they offer the IT world, er, that would be Everyone! PD

Tell us what you think: mailto:editors@cioinsight-ziffdavis.com