Sometimes one can find common ground with a "conservative."

Dismissing Tom Emmer and Vin Weber as limited and compromised lightweights, inconsequential and banal, each full of himself and unwilling to see why dissatisfaction exists in the populace - anyone expanding on that somewhat obvious theme cannot be all bad. Adding Larry Jacobs into that pair making a troika seems appropriate too.

However, the problem is that none of the three is inconsequential. Each has consequences, and consequences can be good or bad - that's a matter of perspective.

Gilmore, here and here.

With regard to Jacobs, the term "Political Science" is an insult to science. It is akin to saying "Social Science," when the term used in my high school curriculum was more appropriate, "social studies."

Abigale Whelan has her political science degree. The proof is in the pudding.

_____________UPDATE____________
One part of one of the cited Gilmore posts begs expansion:

Michele Bachmann is said to be actively trying to find someone to run against Emmer in the primary. Like so much of her career, this strikes me as a fool's errand. Tom is going to continue to suck up to the liberal establishment and get stroked in public for it. He practically purrs out loud. He'll turn to his voters in the district and bully them into another term. And another and another.

When he appeared at the MinnPost Roast earlier this year he disparaged his Tea Party critics to the hoots and hollers of the assembled brain dead liberals. I attempted to procure the video of that portion of his appearance but it was wisely not released by that so called media outlet.

Yet respect is key, he told his Humphrey School audience.

The man's head size has gotten even bigger since going to DC, respect being something having to be earned, but what's that part about Michele Bachmann being afoot? Does she miss the attention of press and public, or worry Emmer will be raptured before her? Upset Pawlenty got the banker roundtable cash flow and she left office and got zilch? Dusting off the old bullhorn for mischief of one kind or another?

In short, Republican friends, what's up with Ms. Yesterday's News?

Is it simply times and tastes changing in the big elephant tent, and an "attention deficit" disorder of a different kind than the term normally covers?

_________FURTHER UPDATE_________
I think Peggy Scott would be a perfect candidate for Bachmann to convince to run against Emmer.

Rhonda, she's had her one strike, and the GOP locally operates on one-strike-and-out.

Warts and all, Rhonda was a better option than big-head Emmer, but the voters felt otherwise, and they hold sway. Mr. Emmer went to Washington, and languished comfortably in his role.

Extremism and brinkmanship? Is it there, and if so might it be problematic?

Residual Forces, here and here.

It takes a special perspective to say the aims criticized within the first item are evil, or countercultural to American values of what most of us would like for their state and nation, for themselves, and for their children and grandchildren.

Andy has posted more, and while he has streamlined a lot of questionable sidebar items into history in reformatting his blog and left only a reminder of his candidacy on the homepage, he has retained his archive link, and because voters might wish to know what is there two posts are presented in the opening paragraph as examples. They were not randomly selected. They were chosen because progressives surely, and perhaps a majority of moderates might take heed.

The name calling offends, but is not the main point. Andy can categorize a post under "Asshats" in the one instance, or "Know Thy Enemy," (meant in a figurative and not absolute sense), in the other instance. and it is not any coarseness of language that really should be at issue. Terminology and stylistic choice are within a blog author's constant prerogatives and privilege.

Hence, judging label and name usage, if important to any readers at all, should be secondary as an indicator of a possible temperament difficulty, i.e., not expressing a consensus building orientation many think necessary in legislative deliberation. Yet it is the substance of the full body of Andy's posting that matters.

Brodkorb wrote:

The committee which interviewed and screened the Republican candidates for the endorsement noted Aplikowski was being nominated with "reservations" because of "inflamtory [sic] blog statements" written by Aplikowski.

Alex Huffman, who had filed a campaign committee to run as a Republican in Senate District 35, but later withdrew, said this morning he is backing Abeler.

"I feel Andy is vulnerable to losing a general election and I don't think Jim is," said Huffman.

Abeler, a licensed chiropractor, said last evening he is "more comfortable" running in the primary and has been organizing for a primary challenge since he announced his campaign in September.

Aplikowski said this morning he is "running a positive campaign" and Abeler will face an "uphill battle" in the upcoming primary election.

[...] Aplikowski acknowledged Republicans have expressed concerns about his past blog postings, which he described as "some bad language I used online."

He said an undiagnosed sleep apnea condition contributed to his harsh online commentary and his health has improved since being diagnosed.

"When you wake up tired and crappy every single day, it clouds your judgment and filter on things you should say and do," said Aplikowski.

The Huffman quote Brodkorb published brings to mind the Leo Deroucher adage, "Winning is not the most important thing, it is the only thing," which also is arguably a sentiment relevant to government brinkmanship/shutdown considerations.

Deroucher also said, "Nice guys finish last," and while such sentiments apply to baseball, are they helpful to political balancing?

Final point - over the years that Crabgrass has been online some things were posted earlier that are mooted by a change of mind or a better and fuller perspective - and the same applies to Residual Forces postings. There is the truth that if one is entirely consistent over time inflexibility may be an acute personality problem. Andy's evolving viewpoints is hence not unduly troubling to me but others form their own opinions. In that regard, one Dylan song noted, "He that is not busy being born is busy dying."

Sleep apnea aside, Andy has the right to evolve his perspective, and an old saying is, "Consistency is the hob-goblin of petty minds." Bottom line, it is the body of thought that matters, that may suggest success or failure in dealing with others in the law-making process. The forest, not any individual tree.

It has always seemed so to me, and now a formal study examines, "The Negative Association between Religiousness and Children’s Altruism across the World."

Tight compartmented persons being who they are, in linking to the study, Science Direct notes:

Many families believe religion plays an essential role in childhood moral development. But children of religious parents may not be as altruistic as those parents think, according to a new international study from the University of Chicago published Nov. 5 in Current Biology.

A team of developmental psychologists led by Prof. Jean Decety examined the perceptions and behavior of children in six countries. The study assessed the children's tendency to share -- a measure of their altruism -- and their inclination to judge and punish others for bad behavior.

Children from religious families were less likely to share with others than were children from non-religious families. A religious upbringing also was associated with more punitive tendencies in response to anti-social behavior.

The results were at odds with the perceptions of religious parents, who were more likely than non-religious parents to report that their children had a high degree of empathy and sensitivity to the plight of others.

"Our findings contradict the common-sense and popular assumption that children from religious households are more altruistic and kind toward others. In our study, kids from atheist and non-religious families were, in fact, more generous," said Decety, the Irving B. Harris Distinguished Service Professor in Psychology and Psychiatry and the College and director of the University of Chicago Child NeuroSuite.

The study included 1,170 children between ages 5 and 12, from six countries -- Canada, China, Jordan, South Africa, Turkey and the United States.

For the altruism task, children participated in a version of the "Dictator Game," in which they were given 10 stickers and provided an opportunity to share them with another unseen child. Altruism was measured by the average number of stickers shared.

For the moral sensitivity task, children watched short animations in which one character pushes or bumps another, either accidentally or purposefully. After seeing each situation, children were asked about how mean the behavior was and the amount of punishment the character deserved.

Parents completed questionnaires about their religious beliefs and practices and perceptions of their children's empathy and sensitivity to justice. From the questionnaires, three large groupings were established: Christian, Muslim and not religious. (Children from other religious households did not reach a large enough sample size to be included in additional analyses.)

[italics and ending parenthetical in original]

Regimented minds are as they are. A pdf of the journal publication can be downloaded here.

I think you see this in politics. Compare Bernie and Ted Cruz.

A while back a fairly rigid minded local politician circulated an email contending Muslims do not make good citizens (presumably from the viewpoint that Christians do). That was mere offensive and opinionated speculation-mongering and not a formal study.

Likely some may feel that altruism is for suckers, and not akin to good citizenship. Grover Norquist comes to mind.

____________UPDATE_____________
With altruism as a consideration, does any reader find anything wrong in this series of academic arrangements? (For those not certain, the University of Chicago is a private university, so arguments about public money better spent are largely off point, and arguably indicative in part of a mood that private sector money should not be spent in whatever way the spender deems best. That caveat is given, noting reporting is unclear whether the described university efforts may be funded in whole or in part by public sector grant money under specific granting authority rules or requirements.)

Our Republican friends. Have they a new Gestalt?

"the-monster-in-the-graveyard.jpg" Online, here

WWTS? What would Taft say?

MN35 GOP convention, hearsay is it went four ballots between Aplikowski and Abeler. [UPDATED] ...

Talk things over with people you trust, Jim.
There are options where your skill set might fit best.
Perhaps in a smaller law-making body.
(photo credit: Strib)

... and, again hearsay, Aplikowski got endorsed for the SD35 special election.

Reader help on confirming this would be greatly appreciated.

If so, Abeler is free to weigh options, including a more local seat in a non-partisan way that could be a refreshing thing for him, if a majority of his GOP conveners went that way, in a rancorous undisciplined fashion. Not being there, but outside that tent looking in, I can only guess at rancor levels and such.

As soon as any reader learns whether Abeler will mount an SD35 GOP primary challenge or not, the courtesy of a notice to Crabgrass readers would be helpful.


_____________UPDATE_____________
One thing I have appreciated about Jim Abeler, over time; he is attentive to email inquiry regardless of the politics of the sender.

In response to an email, (and possibly in light of the above concluding paragraph) he noted this morning:

I'm all in. [...] please remind people to vote for me on Tuesday, Jan 12.

if you have any good sign locations, I'm in the market.

[emphasis added] While liking Abeler's approach rather than any slash-and-burn alternative there may be on the GOP side, his Jan. 12 message is for all, DFL crossover voters included.

The Governor's Writ of Election sets Jan 12, 2016, for any necessary party primary contests, (with Tuesday, Feb 9, 2016, being the determinate election date for the SD35 special election). In the dead of winter, both dates, so let us all hope for a good weather turnout.

IN THE LAND OF THE BLIND THE ONE-EYED MAN IS KING.

Hopefully, neither Abeler nor his supporters will take great offense at that terminology. As one closer to Wellstone in sentiment but feeling Paul was a bit too moderate, that is how I feel, and it is fair to all that I say so.

The Crabgrass position, implicitly clear already but worth explicit stating: Should there be a DFL primary contest, (with none apparent at present with Roger Johnson presently the only DFL candidate, and a good one, as a moderate), I would vote that ballot.

However, if Johnson remains unopposed within the DFL when Jan 12 arrives; I would walk or crawl on hands and knees through eight feet of snow and howling winds if needed, to reach a polling place to crossover vote the GOP ballot, favoring Jim Abeler.

Any progressive in my position can view Jim Abeler as a sensible, well-grounded but clearly right-of-center moderate, who, while far from my own politics that way, is head-and-shoulders more appealing than an inexperienced and overly abrupt and opinionated trailer camp landlord who stands as a zealot of the new GOP local leadership putsch.

To me at least that is a crystal clear viewpoint. And this is said with an understanding that Abeler would stand the better chance of defeating Johnson in the February 2016 special election, so that some DFL insiders obviously might wish for an Abeler primary defeat as more favorable to Johnson's ultimate prospects and opportunity.

The only question relevant to me after that clarification: Should Abeler not win in February, could he still then offer a candidacy for some other office or would he be time-barred? Any reader on top of deadlines for filings who could answer that question is invited to comment. There is the county board, where my understanding is that Abeler resides in a board district that will be contested on the November 2016 general election ballot.

___________FURTHER UPDATE____________
Of interest, in September a Ramsey blogger picked Aplikowski, bio here.

Judging fairly, the online blogging is premised on belief set, not on any easily suggested limitation.

Others however, ...

___________FURTHER UPDATE__________
Brodkorb reports for Strib, this link for detail.

A question for our Republican friends: Presuming Abeler wins his primary (likely dependent on turnout which for special elections in the cold of winter is an uncertain factor), then will Aplikowski resume hos blogging, and if so, would he be supportive of Abler, or go back to whining over the Pawlenty veto override, etc.? Andy's habit was to scrupulously observe Reagan's Eleventh Commandment, except when he did not want to in which case he'd sometimes express scorn, and whether or not that factors into his primary prospects, the question is where will his head and heart be if he loses the primary?

Harold Hamilton already has shown an anti-Abeler predilection, so Jim might find out who his friends are should he win the GOP primary.

___________FURTHER UPDATE__________

Representative, or anomalous GOP district voters?

And how will possible bloc voting in that district population sector play out when primary time arrives?

TOMORROW MAY BE A NEWSWORTHY DAY FOR OUR REPUBLICAN FRIENDS. IF READING THEIR WEBSITE CORRECTLY, TOMORROW THE GOP INNER PARTY CONVENES TO BYPASS AN OPEN CAUCUS AND TO TELL REPUBLICAN VOTERS WHO IS WHO, IN THE INNER PARTY VIEW ...

While reporting of DFL'er Roger Johnson's SD35 candidacy, websearching found interesting news, even as a non-participant on the Republican side. Others who value notice and sunshine and transparency might agree:

click the image to enlarge and read

That's right, folks. GOP Outer Party rank and file regular-caucusing folks need not apply. This is strict Inner Party. Perhaps rank and file Outer Party may not even be allowed into the Inner Party session, to observe, even if not to have any voting or speaking voice. Be suitably credentialed, or be outside, not looking in, seems to be the rule. Perhaps the confab may not be so exclusionary, but a bet is press is like Outer Party - not invited either.

Closed doors.

Iron Curtain.

Father Knows Best.

Hence the headline editing in the immediately following post. And Crabgrass gives you Outer Party Republicans notice on Friday, the thirteenth, had you not heard or seen the news earlier. Enjoy.

_____________UPDATE______________
This is not an "abide by caucus endorsement" situation. It would be an "abide by Inner Party closed door decision making" situation, where the question of abiding or going to a primary would be at a different level of openness and inclusion.

If the Inner Party rejects endorsing Jim Abeler in preference to endorsing some flake of a different persuasion, some in the district shall hope he does not mount a primary challenge but instead changes races, and seeks the Anoka County District 1 Board seat.

We wait, we see. By Sunday we shall know more.

Anoka County's SD35 - Roger Johnson, so far, is the presently unopposed DFL candidate for the Senate District seat Branden Petersen is vacating. The Republicans (as in the Pesidential contest) presently have multiple candidates wanting-and-hoping, and that party will CAUCUS, convene an Inner Party decision making confab, date certain.

Roger Johnson - DFL

May the force be with Roger Johnson. In a November 12 posting, the DFL's Facebook page - this link - and source of the Johnson photo - describes the Johnson candidacy. Whether there will be other DFL party contestants remains unclear.

As one not a Facebook fan, and expecting others might feel the same about Facebook, Crabgrass quotes the full DFL page's release with readers invited to either read it here, or there:

Senate District 35 DFL - October 12 - As promised, we have news tonight of a candidate for the upcoming Senate District 35 special election...

JOHNSON TO SEEK DFL ENDORSEMENT FOR SENATE DISTRICT 35 SPECIAL ELECTION

The expected resignation of Sen. Branden Petersen (R-Andover), effective October 31, 2015, will necessitate a special election within 45 days thereafter, to be called by Governor Mark Dayton.

Long-time community resident and activist, Roger Johnson, in response to a “Draft Johnson” effort, has agreed to seek the endorsement of the Senate District 35 DFL party to fill this impending vacancy. His wife, Vicki, soon to be President of the Anoka Philolectian Society, is eager to support him in this new leadership role.

According to Wes Volkenant, SD 35 DFL Chair, Johnson is the perfect candidate for this Senate seat. “Roger Johnson has lived in this Senate District for 41 years, sent his children to Anoka-Hennepin schools, MnSCU Colleges, and has a granddaughter enrolled at Anoka Ramsey Community College. Johnson has never slighted his attention to and participation in boards, committees and events that are an important part of the civic life of Anoka County and this Senate District,” according to Volkenant.
“Johnson spent 10 years working on the Parent Legislative Team of the Anoka Hennepin School District, and 4 years as a Commissioner on the City of Coon Rapids Board of Adjustment and Appeals. When Anoka County was promoting its land for a new Vikings Stadium, Johnson was an eager participant in the County Ambassador group. He worked to promote passage of every levy referendum of our local public schools in the last 20 years, and served on 3 special task forces of the school board to downsize schools and adjust the school day. He is the past president of the Coon Rapids Lions Foundation that gave over $100,000 in scholarship monies to Anoka Ramsey Community College, Coon Rapids Community Scholarship Association and Crossroads Alternative High School.” said Volkenant.

Today Johnson continues to be actively involved in our community. He serves as a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee of the Coon Creek Watershed District, a Board Member of the Emma B. Howe YMCA, and is on track to become the president of his Lions Club in July of 2016. Roger Johnson serves on the college president’s advisory committees at both ARCC and NHCC (where he spent 35 years as a professor of physics and engineering). Of special interest to Johnson is his promotion of the MetroNorth Chamber of Commerce’s Workforce Development Committee, which he chaired and continues to attend, as well as being a founding member of the Chamber’s Workforce Development Foundation, acting as its Education Officer. “Some of my current volunteering efforts will likely have to be curtailed,” Johnson admits, “when I am elected to serve my district in the Minnesota State Senate.”

“I am aware,” Johnson added, “of the interest that a half dozen or more conservatives have in maintaining their hold on this Petersen seat. Of particular note is the interest of former House member Jim Abeler. I consider Jim to be a friend. In fact I encouraged Jim to move to the Anoka County Board where he is sorrowfully needed to bring a modicum of reasoned compromise to the budgeting process there. That would provide him with quicker access to his personal health-client base, his considerable real estate investments, and his large and growing family, all of which deserve his focused leadership,["] Johnson advised. “It’s time for someone else to handle advancing our progressive local citizens’ issues through appropriate state legislation. And I will work tirelessly to earn the trust of every voter, regardless of party affiliation,” Johnson concluded.

A few things to note (tracking the release in sequence). First, "philolectian" is a new word to me, and perhaps to readers, meaning "love of learning;" with ABC Newspapers having reported of the Philolectian Society's scholarship program. Lovers of history may be interested in a webpost about the Society's founder and a bit of its exemplary early activity:

In 1890, [... Anoka pioneer physician Dr. Flora Aldrich] was elected the first president of the Philolectian Society – “Lovers of Learning.” The group was a social club exclusively comprising married women, originally limited to 15 members. In 1892 the Philolectians rallied to assist in the establishment of the first public library in Anoka. They increased the group’s membership to 50, circulated a petition and scoured the area for books, periodicals and furniture. By 1894 the library was formally opened to the public, but the work of the Philolectians was not over. For years the woman held a variety of social events to provide promised financial support for the library.

So, our present excellent county library system had a private sector origin, something followers of the other party might find of interest. "Bibliophile" was a known word, "philolectian," a new one - so let that be the "bonus factoid" of this post.

Moving on, Johnson's Chamber involvement and being a Lion of the kind that need not fear dentist Parker, are noteworthy. Crabgrass readers may well notice that Johnson expresses the same dismay noted here that Jim Abeler did NOT decide to seek the County Board District 1 seat, a far, far, better seat for Abeler to seek given incumbency, and the current spirit among the majority of that Board.

Jim, why, why, why, WHY did you not focus upon being a likely upgrade to the County Board; that being a question which brings us to the Republicans, Abeler and the dwarfs.

On the dark side of the force. Abeler stands head and shoulders above others seeking the GOP candidacy for the 2016 general election - call him the twilight side of the force; others being a pure moonless midnight shade of darkness.

As to GOP caucus matters, those having access beyond the Politics in Minnesota paywall may look online here and here, or check the SD35 Republicans website "News" in hopes of gaining caucus and candidate information. Readers finding information there about the candidate names and caucus scheduling are urged to post a more detailed link via comments.

Last, regarding Johnson, ABC Newspapers reports on the Johnson DFL candidacy, here. (Further info on candidate Johnson can be found from 2012 ABC Newspapers reporting during his earlier candidacy for a Coon Rapids Council at-large seat.)

While LinkedIn has several "Roger Johnson" entries, this entry is likely candidate Johnson's.

The CFB candidate registration page for Johnson is online here, and the MetroNorth Chamber's sparse online reporting of its Workforce Development Committe, here. The CFB page is important for its providing contact information for those wanting to make a direct snail-mail campaign contribution, as it appears candidate Johnson has not yet opened a candidate website with PayPal capability.

Johnson appears to have a broader grounding than several of the GOP candidates as well as a more progressive spirit. Executive work on behalf of the Chamber suggests Johnson is more a moderate than a dedicated card-carrying liberal; with progressiveness of attitude a relative thing. (For instance, given the GOP batch, Abeler among them clearly is far and away the more "progressive" candidate they offer. Faint praise, certainly for a conservative such as Abeler, but Jim is well known and we can only feel great regret he did not select the County Board as his next hoped-for venue.)

___________UPDATE___________
While not hunting down online CFB registration information for the several SD35 Republican hopefuls, if any reader has that information and would send it via the sidebar email address or otherwise, or provide it via a comment, such help would be appreciated.

_________FURTHER UPDATE_________
The Johnson CFB registration notes a "web address" that presently exists but has no active campaign related content, nor other detail, yet.

http://www.rogerjohnson.org/

It appears Johnson's site is still in preparation so that readers might want to bookmark that page and check it later.

_________FURTHER UPDATE_________
Johnson's firm per the NorthMetro Chamber's website is noted here, with Roger's spouse Vicki Johnson listed as contact person; see, also, LinkedIn noting Johnson family ownership of the business since 1977, i.e., for thirty-eight years, doing, "Negotiation and Mediation in the private and public sectors. We work to negotiate employment contracts for individuals and groups of employees."