State Representative David Bly, MN District 25B

Coming Dark Age?

David Bly — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:51:49 +0000

In her 2004 book “Dark Age Ahead” urban economist Jane Jacobs, describes the decay of five key “pillars” in the U.S. and Canada. She argues that this decay threatens to create a dark age unless the trends are reversed. Jacobs characterizes a dark age as a “mass amnesia” where even the memory of what was lost is lost. The way Thorstein Veblen talks about the loss of industrial knowledge disappearing when a society loses its manufacturing base. He thought one could lose the tools but if you lose the knowledge of how to use the tools you have lost the ability to produce. This is what has happened when Walmart and the wealthy elite of our country shipped manufacturing overseas.

The pillars Jacobs lists as threatened are: 1) community and family, 2) higher education, 3) science and technology, 4) taxes and government responsive to citizen’s needs, 5) self-policing by the learned professions. Although, these pillars do not match up directly with what I have described as the five building blocks of a middle class society, she describes in convincing detail what a society is like that can’t deliver what it needs to survive. She quotes Jared Diamond’s work on cultural survival and makes the case that without proper investment in the very things that cultures need they will decline and fall into decay. She describes the loneliness and desperation of families that are over worked and unsupported by the loss of community and neighborhoods that have a cohesiveness and care. Schools, cities and communities are stretched too thin and don’t have the resources to provide for parents and their children.

A reviewer summarizes her thoughts:

Community and Family
People are increasingly choosing consumerism over family welfare, that is: consumption over fertility; debt over family budget discipline; fiscal advantage to oneself at the expense of community welfare.
Higher Education
Universities are more interested in credentials than providing high quality education.
Bad Science
Elevation of economics as the main “science” to consider in making major political decisions.
Bad Government
Governments are more interested in deep-pocket interest groups than the welfare of the population.
Bad Culture
A culture that prevents people from understanding/realising the deterioration of fundamental physical resources which the entire community depends on.

This I fear is where we are headed unless we can figure out how to bring about a recovery that will benefit all of us and not just those at the top of the income scale. We have been on a twenty year path of divesting ourselves from the things that truly support our survival as a democracy. I believe if we achieve a recovery that does not address the concerns that Jane Jacobs mentions we will have no recovery. How can we call it a recovery if Wall Street is swimming in the black again and yet wages are low and the economy stagnant? How can we call it a recovery if we get things moving and do so at the expense of our environment or health because we have taken a short cut and further polluted our earth? We may need some way of assuring that the recovery will be shared by all.

Perhaps we need an amendment to our constitution to assure that we all have a part in the recovery

HISTORY PROGRAMS UNDER LEGACY ACT

David Bly — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 19:24:04 +0000

Here’s something from the MN Historical Society: “As we begin the implementation of history programs contained in this year’s Legacy Act appropriations, we wanted to provide you with an update on these programs, including a series of informational/input meetings, and a solicitation for Historic Resources Advisory Committee applications as called for in the legislation.

The 2009 Legislature appropriated significant funding for a variety of history programs. These important programs will continue and extend the educational benefits of learning about our past to a variety of state and local history organizations.

In order to update history organizations and citizens, as well as to gather input on implementation of Legacy programs, the MN Historical Society is organizing a series of public meetings across the state.

The history section of the Legacy Act appropriations also calls for the creation of the Historic Resources Advisory Committee to assist in setting policy for grants programs, as well as to make recommendations for grant expenditures to the Society’s Executive Council. An announcement for membership applications, which was recently published in the State Register, is attached. This announcement has been circulated to history organizations across the state, but please help us to spread the word about this important committee. The deadline for applications is July 31, 2009.”

For more information, contact: Matt Hill, Educational Outreach & Governmental Relations, Minnesota Historical Society at 651-259-3428 or by e-mail: matthew.hill@mnhs.org

EMERALD ASH BORER BULLETIN

David Bly — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 19:15:44 +0000

From the Minnesota Department of Agriculture:

The link to this week’s Emerald Ash Borer Bulletin is found here. City and county officials, or, if you are in charge of an organization that would benefit from the information contained in this bulletin, please forward this email along to your staff and members.

Last week’s can be found here (pdf)

On Rebuilding Equalizing Institutions

David Bly — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:38:24 +0000

I’ve been reading Robert Kuttner’s “The Squandering of America” he makes a great case for why we need to transform our country to restore the middle class and our democracy. He makes it clear how the misguided policies of the last decade have cost us dearly as a nation and a people. He offers hope though, “A rebuilding of equalizing institutions could broaden American prosperity. A very different set of regulatory policies could once again harness capitalism for the broad public good. A new approach to trade, industry, and technology could bring America’s foreign accounts back into balance and reduce the threat to the dollar and to our living standards. A restoration of progressive taxation could restore fiscal order and substantially increase investment in people.”

He concludes the book with, “It was Bismark who said that divine providence protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America. The republic has faced worse challenges, and one must be optimistic that it will survive this one. But if our society is to reclaim broadly shared prosperity, we had better revive our democracy.”

This is exactly the point of my effort to promote a Middleclass Amendment to save our middle class society, the core of our democracy. After the last thirty years of a steady retreat from the efforts of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s to bring an economic bill of rights to the American People with his New Deal we need to restore that sense of what Sen. Wellstone used refrain, “we all do better when we all do better.”

If you haven’t read my little book on the Middleclass Amendment you can read it online here

After session duties

David Bly — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:23:10 +0000

In the past weeks since the end of session, I’ve been enjoying meetings with Township Boards in my district. So far I’ve met with Webster, Forest, Belle Plaine and Shieldsville Town Boards. It is helpful for me to hear the various issues that local folks are dealing with across the district. Over the next month I will be stopping to visit with the other Boards city governments and school boards that I represent at the legislature. I think it’s important to continue to stay connected and hear from them.

I also try to get community events but it is tough to get to all of them. In June, I attended the opening of new Scott County park in my district seen in the picture to the right here.

Another event I made it to was the Belle Plaine Historical Society Founders Day. I have been a member for a number of years and enjoy the spirit of the group and the pride they have in their community. It was a day of recognition and thanks to those who had helped start the society and look back at all they have accomplished. Long-time resident and volunteer, Henrietta Styles will be recognized for her many years of service and care for the Historical House.

In addition, society founder, Ed Townsend, was presented with a special award for his contributions in starting up the society and acquiring the Hooper-Bowler-Hilstrom Historical House in Court Square Park. Council member Cary Coop described their next project to restore the Episcopal Church. Mayor Tim Lies presided over the presentation of the awards and the cutting of the cake. Former Mayor Gerry Meyer acted as the emcee.
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Also on display were a wide variety of Native American artifacts and “flintknapping” demonstrations as well as the Albrecht family circus exhibit will be on display in the Carriage Museum.

Bly Campaign event 6/23

David Bly — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:23:49 +0000

On Tuesday, June 23, Suzannah and Bob Ciernia are hosting a fundraiser/campaign event on my behalf at their home from 6:30 to 8:00 PM for my campaign supporters. Ciernia’s live at 41 Fareway Drive in Northfield, just off 7th Street. Hope you can make it.