By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Apr 8, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET
Thanks to all of our readers for making our first full week such a big success.
Next week, the site gets even bigger and better.
Of course, we will be debuting three new recovering politicians as regular contributors to the site.
Late in the week, two Congressmen who shot for higher office and lost will share their plans for the future exclusively with RP readers.
And starting off first thing on Monday morning, you will be able to enjoy the satiric stylings of one of the funniest people ever to hold statewide office: The third generation of a state political dynasty will share with you — tongue firmly planted in cheek — his method of recovery, and offer you an 18-question test to see if you too might be genetically predisposed to become someday a recovering politician. A must read.
Finally, an A-list movie star will be gracing RPTV to discuss her new book on Tuesday. You can’t miss that.
So enjoy your weekend, and rest up for a busy week ahead at The Recovering Politician.
By Robert Kahne, RP Staff, on Fri Apr 8, 2011 at 1:30 PM ET
The Politics of the Planet
People have been searching for a technical fix for global climate change for a long time. One of the leading plans has been “cloud whitening” which would decrease the amount of solar energy reaching the Earth, thereby decreasing the greenhouse effect. However, new evidence from Europe shows that this technique might actually warm the planet even more. [BBC]
Are you more optimistic about the use of technology to solve the planet’s climate ills? Scientists at the University of Minnesota have unlocked a way to use carbon dioxide as a fuel for vehicles. That could be useful. [Futurity]
Building are often the leading culprit in municipal government’s carbon footprint. This is certainly the case for New York City. Mayor Bloomberg has decided to implement a new kind of leasing arrangement which would incentivize energy efficiency. [NYC.gov][Explanation from Tapped]
One of the reasons I volunteered for the RP before he was recovering was because of his stance on mountaintop removal coal mining. If you don’t much about the issue of MTR, I would encourage you to educate yourself about it. The Rainforest Action Network releases yearly report cards to banks about their exposure to this form of mining. Their most recent report just came out. See how your bank scored. [RAN]
One of the other WWGs which I do is The Politics of Hoops. I love basketball. I also love it when my WWGs overlap. Here is a picture from the 70s of Phil Jackson with his bicycle. This makes me want to cheer for the Lakers. [tumblr]
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Apr 8, 2011 at 12:30 PM ET
Four days before the 1988 presidential general election, featuring a matchup between then-Vice President George H.W. Bush and Massachusetts Governor Mike Dukakis, I was asked to appear on the cable television program that helped usher in the age of political broadcast incivility: CNN’s Crossfire. At the ripe age of 21, I was serving as Executive Director of College Democrats of America, and I was poised to debate my counterpart at College Republicans, as well as the ultra-formidable Pat Buchanan.
I really didn’t know the Duke’s policy positions that intimately — I had worked for Al Gore in the primaries — so I pulled an all-nighter reading white papers. In addition to being exhausted, I was sick to my stomach: extremely nervous because I WAS GOING ON FRICKIN’ NATIONAL TV TO DEBATE PAT BUCHANAN!!!
So, green in more ways that one, equipped with an all-purpose Watergate one-liner to parry Pat, and sporting my regrettable 80’s era hairdo (Does Justin Bieber owe me a commission?), I had my 10 minutes in the bright lights. Enjoy:
By Stephanie Doctrow, RP Staff, on Fri Apr 8, 2011 at 12:00 PM ET
The Politics of Wellness
Sometimes laughter really can be the best medicine. Zach Anner, a 26-year-old filmmaker from Austin, Tex. who has cerebral palsy, won his own comedy show on Oprah’s new OWN network: [New York Times]
Take a deep breath. A new study reveals that people with anxiety might actually be causing some of those nervous feelings themselves. [Newsweek]
Look for a new doc, sneak in a quick workout, and keep first-aid tips on hand, all from your iPhone. Self Magazine lists the top health-related apps to keep you informed wherever you are. [Self]
A new website allows you to look at the each county’s health ranking based on stats like mortality, obesity and availability of healthy foods. How does your county stack up? [Time Magazine]
Humans aren’t the only creatures with inter-species buddies. Get ready to say “Aww!” [National Geographic]
Ever thought about how love actually works? And, yes, if politics is the “art of compromise,” then it’s definitely involved. Or is that marriage. Take a look at the basic, underlying foundations for human love. Interesting, huh? [HowStuffWorks]
Did you know? For the first time in American history, rural Americans are just as likely to be divorced as city dwellers. What’s next, broadband? [New York Times]
And speaking of marriage and divorce, in case you were planning on attending, here’s the schedule for this month’s Royal British Wedding. And in case you bemoan the miserable state of the American media and the “news stories” they spend time on, here’s one more example for you to use in your arguments: [Royal Wedding Schedule Explained]
The greatest political love story ever produced on film? Nothing comes close, hands down. Disagree? Prove it to the RP and our loyal readers! [Love, Politics and War]
My name is Lisa Borders, and I’m a Recovering Politician. I prefer the term public servant, because for me, it’s really all about serving the public, not politics, but I’ll leave that discussion to another post.
I’ve been out of office (clean?) since January, 2010, and as of this April 8, 2011, post that’s 15 months, 3 days and 10 hours and 15 minutes of sobriety. While serving as City Council President, or vice mayor, I lost a 2009 bid for Atlanta Mayor. The loss was painful, but by the time my opponent and successor was sworn in, I had journeyed through anguish, astonishment, anger and acceptance at such a pace, I’d left Atlanta’s politicos in their own state of shock. I’d endorsed one of my competitors, made high profile appearances on his behalf and even agreed to co-chair his transition team. I attribute this rapid recovery to my commitment to community vs. clinging to campaign catastrophe. I trust this commitment will sustain my recovery into a long future of incontrovertible impact.
By way of explanation, I would tell you that my addiction to public service, or politics, runs in my family. Although my mother and grandfather both made unsuccessful political bids, both (as extraordinary community activist citizens) made major contributions to desegregation in the City of Atlanta. Their service results included open housing as well as integration of buses, lunch counters and public safety forces. My father was a physician and, although he never sought public office, he made a difference by empowering people to take charge of their health through political activism.
This collective familial body of work focused on creating opportunity and developing capability among the city’s disadvantaged. I can proudly say my fore-parents opened many doors and left wide paths decorated with astounding, against-all-odds, or dare I say it, almost INTOXICATING accomplishments. With such powerful examples, how could I not “be seduced by the siren of public service”?
As a teenager, I made my own mark by integrating one of Atlanta’s most preeminent and pristine independent schools, convincing my European classmates that I wasn’t so different from them after all. As a Duke undergrad, I surprised my genetics professor by dispelling his “research-based” belief that blacks and women were GENETICALLY inferior by earning unprecedented A-grade-level work. These experiences demonstrate my preferred revolutionary role as one of inside team player vs. outside agitator.
So you could say by birth, breeding and branding, I defined myself very early as an imbedded change agent, not so much by talk, but by action. I sought office, in part, to satisfy an unfulfilled multi-generational pursuit, but also to take on yet another level of “Inside Woman’s Work.”
Mahatma Ghandi
I stand before you now as an ex-politician, who sees more clearly the battles to be waged and won. I’ve been to the dark side and returned with a greater appreciation for submerging ego, even a very public, high-profile one, to get thejob done. I know now that this work is more about the mission in my soul than a title behind my name or a label on my forehead. I realize now that I don’t necessarily have to be a player on the field to impact the outcome in the arena. I can’t promise I won’t ever run for public office again, but I can say that, as Gandhi advises, I’m fully committed to being the change I want to see in my world, whether politically titled/labeled or not. How about you?
By Jonathan Miller, on Thu Apr 7, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET
Tomorrow at 8:30 AM, we debut our third recovering politician. Since you are probably tired of guys by now, we will introduce our first woman: a vibrant, dynamic former leader of one of the country’s largest and fastest growing urban centers.
And since we’ve given you a Democrat and Republican already, our newest RP is a Founding Leader of No Labels — a new movement that is dedicated to the proposition that we all must put aside our labels on occasion to work for the common good. Check out the No Labels web site today, and sign up if you support the group’s mission.
And yes, we’ll be launching another new feature: RPTV Friday Flashbacks — videos of our recovering politicians when they were young, naive, and very green. Tomorrow’s victim of embarrassment? Why yours truly, of course.
By Zack Adams, RP Staff, on Thu Apr 7, 2011 at 3:00 PM ET
The Politics of Speed
If you are the 5-time defending Sprint Cup Champion in NASCAR do you get to openly criticize your bosses? Apparently not. Jimmie Johnson had to apologize today for a few choice words he had for NASCAR. [ESPN]
More from ESPN as Ryan McGee gave us the NASCAR power rankings for Week 7. This week has Kevin Harvick in the top spot. [ESPN]
Dustin Long writes about Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s quest to win his first race since 2008 and his frustration with continually falling short. Plus more from the NASCAR world. [Sports Illustrated]
Due to the recent natural disasters that hit Japan, new car sales from the country have hit the lowest point since 1968. [AutoBlog]
The big wigs over at Tesla have recently filed a lawsuit against one of my personal favorite T.V. shows, Top Gear, regarding a three-year-old review of their Roadster. [CNET]
By Jonathan Miller, on Thu Apr 7, 2011 at 1:30 PM ET
One of the paradoxes of modern life is that although we are trained to link success to our ability to reach people directly and personally, often success actually depends on the reactions of strangers whom we will never meet. Politicians live this paradox daily, as they combine the rituals of pressing the flesh with the realization of its limits. There are simply too many voters and, in our fragmented media landscape, too many potential bloggers and commentators to make a personal connection with all of them. More than one young political aspirant has begun a career with the promise that he or she will knock on every door in the district, or shake every possible hand. In the end, it is necessary, for the sake of both sanity and bodily health, to accept that universal personal contact is unattainable, and depend on the kindness of strangers, or at least the limitations of their unkindness.
Academics and politicians share this paradoxical dependence on both personal contact and anonymity. In my career I have done my share of personal networking with colleagues and superiors, as well as spending hours with students—in the classroom, in office hours, and in the spaces in between—developing contacts and a personal reputation to help carve out a place in the academic world. Letters of recommendation and student evaluations, the product of such personal contact, play a significant role on the road to success. But a great deal of decisive power still lies in the hands of strangers—be they anonymous peer reviewers at journals and publishing houses, selection committees from fellowship granting foundations, or university tenure and promotion committees. Indeed, in academic life, the anonymity of those bodies is one of the few things still considered sacred. Certainly, one may be able to guess which expert in one’s field is most likely to be asked to evaluate a manuscript, or to write the external letters universities request in their tenure processes, and one may hear unofficially which senior members of the faculty happen to sit on the crucial committees. Nevertheless, it is forbidden (by custom and in some cases by rule) either to ask specifically who is making the decisions or even to see the full record of their deliberations.
Thoughtful readers can think of many reasons why this makes sense. Anonymity encourages frankness, objectivity, and the critical distance necessary to make intellectual evaluations. Indeed, anonymity is in many ways preferable to the opposite, which would have decisions made by friends and connections, which would freeze out those who are not already members of the club.
But anonymity has its decidedly chilly side as well. Strangers can be objective, but they can also view the cases before them not just on their merits but based on pre-existing assumptions, pigeonholing candidates or their works in ways that make decisions easier, but which may also miss the nuances of individual personality.
I am not a completely neutral analyst on this point. My experience with academic life, and especially the tenure process, has shown me the good and bad sides of the system. I freely admit that what success I have enjoyed thus far in my career owes a significant debt to the kindness of strangers on both sides of the Atlantic. I have also experienced the cold sting of anonymous rejection, sometimes simultaneously. It is therefore possible, for example, that one group of highly educated individuals can look at a file and vote unanimously in favor of a candidate while another group of highly educated individuals at the same institution can read the same file and reach precisely the opposite conclusion. In my case, between 2009 and 2010 my department twice voted overwhelmingly in favor of my tenure case, the university personnel committee voted no both times, and the Provost rejected my application.
Read the rest of… Ronald J. Granieri: The (Un)kindness of Strangers
