Page 28 - Flathead Beacon // 1.27.16

LIKE I WAS SAYIN’
TWO FOR THOUGHT SAME TOPIC, DIFFERENT VIEWS BLOOMBERG AND INDEPENDENT CANDIDATES
KELLYN BROWN
POLITICAL LANGUAGE
JANUARY 16 MARKED THE BEGINNING OF THE election season. Or, as Montana Secretary of State Linda McCulloch called the rst day to formally le for o ce, the uno cial holiday for state politics.
Over the next few months, men and women will travel our vast state and glad-hand me, you and everyone else. We may even get a visit from a presidential candidate, or two. They will all have a lot to say and much of it will be meaningless.
It’s easier to make broad proclamations than explain speci c policy. Telling a crowd that you’re going to make everything better res them up. Detailing trade policies that may, actually, impact the businesses you own puts people to sleep.
So here we are, with promises of hope and change and to make America great again. Announcing his candidacy for Montana governor, Republican Bozeman business- man Greg Gianforte alleged Democratic sitting Gov. Steve Bullock “takes (his) cue from Washington” and “is too chicken to stand up to them.” That same day, Bullock’s campaign said “New Jersey millionaire” Greg Gianforte “wants to impose an out-of-touch agenda to bene t people like him while ignoring Montana values.”
Early in the campaign season, candidates can be for- given for espousing bland talking points. What happens, and what is more unfortunate, is that political language infects everything else. In his often-cited essay, “Poli- tics and the English Language,” George Orwell wrote: “Political language ... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appear- ance of solidity to pure wind.”
It’s true. And, anymore, it’s on purpose. There are political consultants who make a living testing lan- guage for its impact instead of accuracy. That messag- ing is given to political candidates, and those candidates repeat it verbatim for the rest of us, and those words re us up.
To me, the “values” line is abused most of all, as if pitting “Wall Street values” versus “Main Street val- ues” explains anything. Republican presidential can- didate Ted Cruz recently accused frontrunner Donald Trump of having “New York values.” A few days later, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin endorsed Trump and those New York values in Iowa. And during her speech, Palin, like everyone else, talked about “values” she and Trump shared.
There’s nothing wrong with talking about values if you tell us what you mean by them, how those will a ect my pocketbook and the laws that govern the country. That rarely happens.
Political jargon has become so perverse that often it must be translated. Bloomberg News actually provides this service. On its website you can nd the de nition of words like “astroturf” and “grass roots” in politi- cal terms. Hint: they have nothing to with the ground. Grass roots is a “political movement that starts with local activists,” whereas astroturf is “supported by big-money interests.” If you hear either of these words during the campaign, you should probably ignore them. They don’t really mean anything.
The less speci c a candidate is about his or her inten- tions, the more likely he or she is to use political lan- guage. Or, as Orwell wrote: “As soon as certain topics are raised, the concrete melts into the abstract.”
With the U.S. economy still on fragile footing, a reel- ing energy sector and turmoil in the Middle East, the electorate is largely divided on which direction to point the country. Candidates should explain where they’re going to take us and how. It may be dull, but there’s a lot of value in that.
BY TIM BALDWIN
Michael Bloomberg is considering running for Presi- dent in 2016 as an independent candidate. Studies show that his race will take away votes from the Democratic and Republican candidates, which would make his campaign unique to recent political history in America.
If Ted Cruz or Donald Trump are the Republican candidates and Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders are the Democratic candidates, a large percentage of Americans may prefer to vote for Bloomberg because the current candidates do not represent the core values of most Americans. As Bloomberg said, the candidates are either too far right or left. Looking at Americans who either love or hate Trump, or love or hate Clinton or Sanders, Bloomberg could have a chance – especially since he has $1 billion to spend on the campaign.
Bloomberg favors Democratic stances on social issues like gay marriage, abortion and immigration. He favors Republican stances on issues like international free trade, “War on Drugs” and intervening in the Mid- dle East. He ran as both a Democrat and Republican in his political career.
Speci c issues aside, many people vote for Repub- licans because of the simple belief that they repre- sent a more capitalistic model of government, or the Democrat candidates because they represent a more socialist model of government. Using that approach, if Bloomberg runs as an independent, a majority of Amer- icans could potentially vote for him because he is not Trump-“crazy,” socialist-Sanders and corrupt-Clinton.
BY JOE CARBONARI
Michael Bloomberg is considering joining the 2016
presidential race as a third-party candidate, making it a three-way race. Thought provoking, but it could be a mess.
Bloomberg, a self-made billionaire, and ex-mayor of New York, will position himself as the centrist, biparti- san savior between the “unacceptables” of the left and of the right ... read Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump.
If Hillary Clinton is nominated, Bloomberg’s ratio- nale for entering is weakened, unless Hillary has been further weakened because of legal/security issues sur- rounding her emails.
To win, Bloomberg needs to pull most of the Repub- lican votes and at least some of the Democrats’. If Ted Cruz is nominated, Bloomberg’s share should rise. Cruz has been widely characterized as “nasty” by those who know his work. Cruz could be abandoned.
Hillary might well hold the Democrats together enough to win. Bernie Sanders would have a tougher go. Bloomberg would look the safer choice to many.
With a Bernie-Bloomberg-Trump mix anything could happen. Anyone of them could win. We need a national conversation. We voters have a responsibil- ity to try to get this one right. Trump is a dilettante in the political world. We are living in dangerous times. When Trump says “huuuge,” think nuclear.
Michael Bloomberg beats Bernie Sanders by stoking the fears of socialism and international fecklessness. Bernie will be portrayed as impractical economically and worse on security and defense. Whose supporters will organize and vote? It matters.
AMERICAN RURAL DIANE SMITH SUPPORT A LOCAL START-UP
I
It’s not surprising then, that I’m often asked, “How can smaller communities best exploit their entrepre- neurial opportunities?” It’s a smart question. The Kau man Foundation is one of America’s great assets. Founded 50 years ago, Kau man’s mission is to “To help individuals attain economic independence by advancing educational achievement and entrepreneur- ial success ...” Consistent with its mission, it does great work in researching and supporting entrepreneurship.
Kau man recently published a paper titled “The Importance of Young Firms for Economic Growth,” written by Jason Wiens and Chris Jackson. They found that “new and young companies are the primary source of job creation in the American economy ... these rms also contribute to economic dynamism by injecting competition into markets and spurring innovation.” Notably, companies less than one year old have cre- ated an average of 1.5 million jobs per year over the past three decades!
Sadly, Wiens and Jackson also found that the rate at which new businesses are opening has been steadily declining. Since young companies are our primary jobs creators, declining start-up numbers could have pretty bad implications for our nation’s economy.
So, what’s a small community to do?
First, promote a culture of entrepreneurship. It’s probably already going on your backyard. Those farm- ers, insurance agents, beauty salon and diner owners? All entrepreneurs. Applaud them and while you’re at it, ask what they needed when they were starting out.
Second, recognize that technology creates a global marketplace for goods and services. Those of us living o the beaten path are no longer limited to our back- yards for customers. Today potential customers are everywhere. Encourage your businesses to look beyond their storefronts for growth.
Lastly, use your social capital. Those of us living in small places are usually more accessible and willing to help than in big cities. So you can’t invest? Advise. You don’t know any venture capitalists? Make an introduction to a potential customer. Don’t use social media? Invite an entrepreneur to Rotary or a local civic organization.
Entrepreneurship isn’t just happening in Silicon Valley, Boston, and other big cities. It’s happening in rural and small communities too. Fortunately. Because all of America needs more start-ups. Speaking from personal experience, trust me; entrepreneurs need all the support they can get. And when they succeed, we all bene t.
’VE HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF AN INTERESTING career. My early work years were spent climbing
the corporate ladder and breaking a glass ceiling or two to become a high-ranking telecom executive. After moving to the Flathead, I became an entrepreneur. Here I became CEO and co-founder of a rapidly grow- ing technology company where, alongside an outstand- ing team, we grew from idea phase to a well-recognized tech company with big backers. Today I’m still privi- leged to work in fascinating and challenging elds like technology, entrepreneurship, business, and policy – all from the perspective of rural and small town America.
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JANUARY 27, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM