Victorian Vestiges Presist in Dane County

Madison.com reports that a 29 year-old (at time of arrest) coach, Jason Hairston, at East High was sentenced to seven years in prison for having a sexual relationship with a student. It goes without saying that it's unacceptable to have a sexual relationship with a student or subordinate at work. Our response to this unacceptable behavior is ill-conceived and extremely expensive. It's expensive in terms the cost of locking someone up for seven years but also in the lost productivity and the lost respect for the law. If the young woman had been two years older, this would have been a civil and employment issue. Making this case a criminal issue on par with armed robbery undermines respect for the law.

I condemn the way Dane County and District Attorney Shelly Rusch's handled this. In 100 years historians going over our records will struggle to understand what we were thinking.

I can't imagine how hard it must be for Mr. Hairston's family to have his worst mistakes made public and to have him jailed for something that's easy for people to be sanctimonious about. To those people I say let the one who's never in his life made a mistake that really hurt someone cast the first stone at Jason.

"Encouraging News"

My Representative in Congress, Tammy Baldwin, is running for Senate. She is doing a great job, and I support her for Senate.

She sent out an e-mail today that listed some problems for the middle class and some approaches Congress has taken, which she calls "encouraging news".

Stated Problems:

• People's jobs have been "shipped overseas".
  
• Financial companies' abuses have caused middle-class people to lose money.
• Powerful interests manipulate "the system" to their benefit.
  

Stated Solutions:

• Gov't worked out a settlement with banks regarding a technicality that will result in about 1% of their customers receiving about $20,000 in loan forgiveness of some sort.
  
• Make sure the rich are playing as much in taxes as the middle class.
• Make Congressmen disclose if they're going to trade stocks they have inside info on.
• Help people winterize people's homes.

I cannot understand this approach. Suppose you're someone who believes in the stated problems. Your job is being "shipped overseas", and financial institutions are hitting you while you're down. Congress will winterize your home.

My point is not whether I agree with the problems and solutions. I agree with some and not others. I don't get this marketing approach though. If you start out with these large problems, it seems lame to say the actions Congress has taken are things like loan forgiveness (perhaps for people who couldn't pay anyway) and winterizing homes.

It seems to me that Republicans have a clearer marketing strategy: Evildoers are threatening you. We'll lock them up or kill them (without regard for the cost). That makes logical sense. I don't get this Democratic argument: Structural problems in the economy prevent you from succeeding. We'll winterize your home.

If you must pick a simple threat and solution to be elected, it seems like Democrats should work out a better narrative.