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Show Viewpoints The A-21 Park Record. Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, February 2-5, 2019 editorial March to changing Proposition 3 is unacceptable but unsurprising R perspectiVe Musings and observations CHRISTOPHER SMART Salt Lake City We love them people No sex changes — at least not on your birth certificate. Grantsville Republican Merrill Nelson knows a pressing issue when he sees it. Some state legislators worry their heads about things like housing, education and taxes, but fortunately someone is more concerned with the importance of accurate genealogy. Nothing against transgender people, Brother Nelson explained. The legislation is only aimed at preserving the sanctity of birth certificates — so no itchy switchy. This, most likely, has nothing to do with the Mormon Church. After all, the church’s lobbyist and former speaker of the Utah House, Marty Stephens, says the white guys on the hill can go ahead and pass a hate crimes bill — and the brethren in the Tower of Power won’t mind if LGBT is among the protected groups. See, Stephens is sick and tired of Mormons being blamed for the lack of a hate crimes law just because they disdain the unholiness of them people. So, the higher-ups don’t want to be seen discriminating — even though those lost souls won’t get into the Celestial Kingdom. And, of course, discrimination has nothing whatsoever to do with Brother Nelson’s proposal that ensures future generations will have access to accurate birth certificates. Because, as he explained, sex is not gender — no matter what them people say. Don’t look now We’re Toast. For reals. The dudes in charge of the Doomsday Clock — scientists and scholars, including 15 Nobel laureates — say the world is two minutes from doom. No, it’s not an actual 120 seconds. The Doomsday Clock is 12 hours representing the entire history of Earth. Somebody without enough hobbies came up with the symbolic gadget in the 1940s. By 1991, the clock had moved within 17 minutes of midnight, the end of the world. Since Noah’s Ark, Homo sapiens have not had to live in fear of global annihilation. That changed, according to the Doomsday Clock timekeepers, in 1953 when the clock hands were moved up to reflect the nuclear arms race. A quarter of a century on, we’re facing global warming, oceans filled with plastics, Happy Meals and Twitter. Two minutes to doom and counting. What to do? No, you shouldn’t quit your job and move to Morocco. On the other hand, it might be a better place to live out the remainder of your days than say, Orem. Art of the deal Mitt Romney: “Trump called Pelosi’s bluff.” Brilliant. Our president, the master of the deal, said the government could reopen for three weeks so that budget negotiations could move forward. It was that nasty Nancy Pelosi who would not negotiate on border security until Trump agreed to end the shutdown that he so astutely instigated. And so after 35 days of chaos, the wily president faced with self-inflicted calamity on all fronts, said 800,000 federal employees could get paid again. Now Trump has Pelosi right where he wants her. Sure the pundits say Nancy kicked The Donald’s butt by telling the self-described stable genius the one word he cannot abide: No. But here’s the beauty of the president’s strategy: Now Nancy will have to give him a Border Wall or he’ll shut down the government again. OK, OK, maybe that’s a dim-witted idea whose time has come and gone. But he could still call a national emergency and order the Army to build The Wall. That would show old Nancy. Or maybe he could just change the subject. Have you heard, NATO is about to invade Rhode Island. It’s the absolute truth — a real crisis. Instant karma Who needs newspapers when you can revel in the self-assured confusion of social media. Let’s face it, newspapers are incredibly slow and boringly thoughtful compared to our instant information formats that can deliver a pressing crisis in no time. Look at the face-off at the Lincoln Memorial between a Native American elder and a kid from a Catholic high school wearing a red Make America Great Again cap. Having seen just seconds of a viral smart-phone video, it was obvious the kid in the MAGA hat and his classmates were the villains and the old man was a hero. Never mind the nearby foursome of Hebrew Israelites, a black hate group, who were participating in the country’s new past time — hurling ugly epithets. They turned up in subsequent videos targeting passersby, including the white high school kids, who, in something of a panic, began chanting school cheers. Enter the braided elder with the drum, just in time to save those nice Hebrew Israelites from the nasty, privileged white boys looking nervously around for mommy. The next day, newspapers delivered a ponderous factual account of the viral dustup that seemed to vindicate, to some degree, the white kids in red hate hats. How boring is that. No wonder nobody reads newspapers anymore. Post script A docudrama centered around Dick Cheney and the run-up to the invasion of Iraq called “Vice” has garnered eight Academy Award nominations. And rightfully so. Cheney was simply incredible. He and his chicken-hawk pals persuaded W. to invade Iraq and save the Middle East from an uneasy peace. We can hardly wait for the movie about Trump after he evacuates the White House. Imagine “The House of Cards” on meth — it would be better than an E ticket to Disneyland. They could call it “Clockwork Orange.” For the record epublicans in the state Legislature are wasting little time moving forward with their attempt to significantly alter the Medicaid expansion plan Utah voters approved in November. The Senate on Wednesday gave S.B. 96 initial approval and appears primed to send it to the House. Reportedly, House lawmakers were aiming to get the legislation on the governor’s desk by as early as the end of next week, though an unexpected delay in the Senate Friday may push back that timeline. Utahns have seen enough shenanigans in the Statehouse over the years to not be surprised at lawmakers’ eagerness to replace Proposition 3 with their own Medicaid expansion plan. But that doesn’t make it any more acceptable to shove through legislation that runs counter to the will of the people, particularly on something this important. GOP lawmakers have said the urgency is necessary so Utah can begin seeking a federal waiver needed to implement S.B. 96 by April 1, the day expanded coverage under Prop 3 is currently set to take effect. That excuse rings hollow. If lawmakers were concerned about ensuring folks who need health care get it in a timely manner, they wouldn’t be meddling with Prop 3 in the first place. The hasty timeline seems, instead, like a tactic to get an unpopular bill passed before the people have a chance to raise too much of a stink. Given the importance of the bill, lawmakers would be prudent to move it at a more deliberate pace. That would, at the least, allow for a thorough public debate in the coming weeks. Of course, it’s frustrating that there is even need for the public to weigh in again on Medicaid expansion because Utah voters thought they’d settled the matter at the polls. Beyond the timeline, the legislation itself is also unsavory. The version of the bill senators supported Wednesday — tweaks were reportedly being made to the legislation Friday, prompting a delay on final Senate approval — would reinstitute a work requirement for recipients and proposes a reduction in the number of people covered under Medicaid. Under Prop 3, people living on up to 138 percent of the federal poverty line — $33,948 for a family of four — would be eligible. S.B. 96, however, proposes limiting Medicaid coverage to those living at 100 percent of the federal poverty line and below. The tens of thousands of people affected by the resulting coverage gap would receive subsidies for insurance in the Affordable Care Act marketplace — but would be required to pay monthly premiums. Unfortunately, both of Summit County’s senators have played a leading role in the push to change Prop 3. Republican Sen. Allen Christensen, who represents much of northern Summit County, sponsored S.B. 96. And freshman Sen. Ron Winterton, a Republican whose district covers the rest of the county, chairs the Senate Health and Human Services committee, which sent the bill to a floor vote in the Senate. Due to the apparent appetite at the Capitol for reworking Medicaid expansion, it appears any effort to halt the Legislature’s march to approving S.B. 96 faces long odds. But Summit County residents should contact Christensen and Winterton, along with Republicans Tim Quinn and Logan Wilde in the House, to express their displeasure. After all, Prop 3 passed in each of their districts. It may not ultimately alter the fate of health care in Utah. But if the Legislature is intent on subverting the will of the people, the people, in turn, should refuse to take it sitting down. Summit County’s GOP representatives can be contacted at these phone numbers: Rep. Tim Quinn, 435-709-2854; Rep. Logan Wilde, 385-290-7769; Sen. Allen Christensen, 801-782-5600; Sen. Ronald Winterton, 435-299-8531. letters to the editor Truth and lies Editor: Do you care more if the United States president lies or if a Chinese corporation lies? Who would you expect more truth from? Who would you want more truth from? Nick Wright Park City Protect, not diminish Editor: Over the past two years, I have watched the protections of our air, water, lands and health care diminish. I have since increased my civic engagement and have attended Stewardship for Public Lands Committee meetings, at the State Capitol, to voice concern regarding the downsizing of our National Monuments. I questioned the committee about reports of uranium exploration. There was denial until Rep. Briscoe pointed out an article reporting uranium exploration by a Canadian firm near our monuments. Uranium mining would contaminate the waters and be devastating to those who live nearby. I was particularly disappointed by the “good ‘ol boy” attitude I felt amongst many of the legislators and commissioners. This was especially disturbing because there was not talk of “land stewardship,” but land ownership. The talk focused on downsizing our monuments and the opportunity the Trump administration provided. I am a stay-at-home mom, registered nurse, conservationist and a steward of our lands. I have chil- dren. I have an obligation, too. That obligation is through the protection of our air, water and land. It is up to ALL of our legislators to vote towards policies and laws that protect our environment, not diminish or destroy it. Maurena Grossman Salt Lake City Adjustments to Prop 3 needed Editor: It’s heart-wrenching that some deserving Utahns face a health insurance coverage gap when they do not qualify for a federal subsidy or cost-sharing reductions via the federal marketplace and then Utah’s Medicaid program also rejects them. However, expanding Utah’s Medicaid program through Proposition 3 is not the answer. This will cost Utah more money and 41,000 Utahns will inherit inferior healthcare coverage. Currently 41,000 Utahns whose income falls between 100 percent to 138 percent of the poverty level have enrolled in very affordable health insurance in the commercial market via healthcare.gov. These plans offer very rich benefits at a low cost, about $25 per person per month. If Medicaid is expanded to the 138 percent federal poverty level through Prop 3, Utahns currently earning between 100 percent and 138 percent of the poverty level will lose tax credits and subsidies which are fully funded by the federal government and move to Medicaid which offers mediocre coverage. Consequently, the state will pick up new costs that are currently paid for with federal tax dollars. Utahns need to support lawmakers’ present efforts to make sensible adjustments to Medicaid’s expansion to protect 41,000 people from losing extensive healthcare coverage at an increased cost to state tax-payers. Craig Paulson Utah Association of Health Underwriters past president The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER ....................... Andy Bernhard Editor ................................... Bubba Brown Staff Writers ......................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Angelique McNaughton Ben Ramsey Carolyn Webber Alder Contributing ............................. Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ............................ James Hoyt Engagement Editor..Christopher Samuels Photographer .........................Tanzi Propst Circulation Manager ............. Lacy Brundy Accounting Manager ......... Jennifer Snow ADVERTISING Advertising Director ........... Valerie Spung Administrative Assistant . Jessica Burlacu Advertising Sales ................... Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lindsay Lane Sharon Bush Production Director ..................Ben Olson Production ........................Chelsea Babbitt Photos by Christopher Samuels Asked in Kimball Junction What do you want the Legislature to accomplish this year? Amy Semrau Pinebrook “I’d like them to stop ignoring voters and changing the rules to make the (voter propositions) prettier for themselves. If we vote on something and say we want this, there’s no need to have private sessions and change all the rules and have a legislature that actually listened.” Bob Gurley Draper “Air quality would be an (issue) I would like to see where it improves. I don’t know if you’ll ever clean it up but at least improved. And education, my wife is a school teacher and we see the frustration there. Smaller class sizes and better pay would be great.” Casey Sowul Park City “Acknowledge the inversion in Salt Lake. (I’d like the Legislature) to help with traffic control, use more buses and more public transportation and incentivize people to use it.”. Deacon Haymond Park City “Air improvements would be great. Giving smart guidance to UCAIR and all the committees on what to do and actually come up with concrete things, maybe related to population growth and control, anything with better guidance or incentives to help people with better air.” See these photos and more by following The Park Record on Facebook.com/parkrecord and Instagram.com/parkrecord |