Fleeing Milton but I never did get to the end of "Paradise Lost"

We decided to evacuate to a friend's house further from the water. Tides on the beach are running high due to some troublesome hurricanes in the Atlantic and high tide may be really high. Watching hurricane news all day. Many press conferences by the governor and his minions. I almost hate to say this but I now find the voice of Gov. DeSantis quite soothing. It's quite a departure from the scolding uncle voice we usually hear when he's blasting "Woke" folks and supporting Moms for Liberty book bans. And cutting Florida arts funding due to a semi-nude character in a stage play. Big cuts, $160 million I think. No excuse for that but he found one. Maybe it was an R-rated "Paradise Lost." Milton -- get it?

It's time again for the Wyoming Governor's Arts Awards

This time every year the Wyoming Arts Council hires me to write the story on the annual Governor's Arts Awards recipients. Some of them I know from my 25 years working at the Wyoming Arts Council. Others are new to me.

I have worked or met all the 2023 awardees:

Mary Jane Edwards, recently retired director of the Jentel Foundation

The Munsick Boys, a father and his three sons from Sheridan County finding inventive ways to thrive in the music world

Geoffrey O'Gara, filmmaker and author from Lander

Milward Simpson, a live theatre guy in Cheyenne who was my former boss at State Parks and Cultural Resources

Mike and Jane Sullivan, Mike as Wyoming governor 1987-1993, and Jane as First Lady 

A great list. I learned a lot interviewing them by phone. We didn't do the Zoom thing as I am much more phone-friendly than Zoom-friendly. My background is in journalism and feature writing. I have interviewed hundreds of people remotely and in person. I prefer face-to-face but it's not always possible. For this assignment, I needed a firm desk to take notes as my right hand is still not behaving properly due to ulnar nerve surgery. Thus, my handwriting is worse than it ever was -- and that's saying a lot. People have looked at my notebook and asked: "Is this your kind of shorthand?" I usually answer in the affirmative, labeling my method Shay Script which sounds better that terrible penmanship. 

There's another aspect to the story. The nuns taught me cursive. When I began roaming around to find stories, I recorded interviews in cursive. I couldn't read it when I got back to my desk. I switched to printing when I began reporting for my college newspaper. Instead of long swoops and swirls, I now could just abbreviate words with a few letters and be able to translate it at the other end.  I sometimes get confused but that is what phone and e-mail and Internet are for.

I learned a few things. Mike Sullivan is a James Joyce fan and tickled Bloomsday fans in Dublin reciting snippets from "Ulysses" while wearing cowboy duds. There is a thing called cowboy rap which I discovered interviewing musician Tris Munsick. He sent me to YouTube to see his brother Ian's performance at Cheyenne Frontier Days. Ian brought his buddy Ryan Charles on stage and he rapped cowboy and the fans down in the pit loved it. Mary Jane Edwards has retired twice, once as a UW faculty member, and once as executive director of the Jentel Foundation and its artist residency program. She now is officially retired, or so she says.

Those are just a few tidbits from the features you can read in the February edition of Artscapes Magazine. I am busily translating and transcribing my notes. Wish me luck.

You will hear from the recipients at the annual awards gala on Feb. 23 at Little America in Cheyenne. Order your tickets here.

Miami Herald drops a word bomb on Florida governor

From today's article in the Business Insider piece about a Miami Herald op-ed about Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and his "Christian Nationalist shtick:”

"The governor's Christian nationalist shtick only separates us," the paper says, adding that Democrats should "counter it more boldly and bring back into their tent voters who feel that, on the issues of religion and faith, the party has nothing to say to them." Read entire article at Business Insider.

I would send you to the full Miami Herald but it has a very sturdy paywall. I already subscribe to several notable newspapers and the Herald is one but not now. Also, it sometimes drops the paywall in emergencies such as killer hurricanes. So stay tuned...

So shtick is the word of the day. You've probably heard it thousands of times. It’s from the Yiddish: Shtik, schtick, shtick, schtick. It means a “bit” or “bits of business” and usually pertains to a performance such as the one delivered to his Trumpian base every day by DeSantis.

Here are precise definitions:

Cambridge Dictionary: a particular ability or behaviour that someone has and that they are well known for (note the U.K. spelling)

Free Dictionary: An entertainment routine or gimmick.

Definitions.net: A contrived and often used bit of business that a performer uses to steal attention

All apply. I suppose you can catch the Governor’s shtick on his official web site. I just couldn’t bear to look.

The week in pandemic news

I wish I could report to you that the pandemic is over. Alas--

Wyoming Dept. of Health, Nov. 14: Seventeen more Coronavirus-related deaths reported.

WyoFile weekly report:

Wyoming reached a critical point in its battle with COVID-19 this week as patient loads overwhelmed hospitals, healthcare workers and contact tracers, prompting the governor to announce plans to tighten health orders for the first time since spring.

Casper Star-Tribune, Nov. 15: Daily Wyoming coronavirus update: 613 new cases, 206 new recoveries (firewall)

Gillette News-Record, Nov. 13: County health officials ask Gordon for mask mandate

AP News, Nov. 13: Wyoming Governor: 'Knuckleheads' behind Covid-19 resurgence

Wyoming Daily News, Nov. 13: Wyoming Governor won't implement mask mandate

When faced with knuckleheads spreading a lethal virus: "We don't need no stinkin' masks."

Go to the Covid-10 Information page to find the Wyoming Testing Location Finder. Chris tested last week after she and some other staffers were sent home after a possible workplace exposure. She was negative. Took less than 72 hours to get results. She is now in quarantine for 14 days. We hope to see her again for Thanksgiving. 

I could protest the protests but I'd be a hypocrite for it

The Wyoming governor updates us regularly on the coronavirus pandemic. A good thing, since he's come under fire for both not issuing a mandatory stay-at-home order and for issuing a suggested stay-at-home order. He issued several orders that closed businesses and schools.

On Monday, Gov. Mead walked put of the capitol building to speak to a crowd of people protesting the Gov's stay-at-home suggestions and mandatory closures. Following cues from right-wing social media sites, protesters have gathered at state capitols to vent their spleens. Their constitutional rights are being trod on because the Gov won't let them die in their own stupid way. They've held rallies in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Colorado, to name a few. More to come...

The president eggs them on as do GOP activists. We high-risk Boomers stay at home and wonder how many of these protesters will get COVID-19 and infect others. Chris and I have attended some memorable protests in our day, including Cheyenne's first Women's March in 2017 and a big Occupy rally in Denver. I'me marched against several wars although now the conflicts just blend in together. I protested the Vietnam War in 1970 and 1971 and the Nicaraguan Contra War in the 1980s. I joined a friend's family at the Honor America Day Rally on the National Mall in the summer of 1970. We ran for cover when tear gas clouds drifted over the picnicking Silent Majoritarians as the cops misjudged wind direction when gassing the Yippies smoking pot below the Washington Monument.

I believe that everyone deserves a right to protest, no matter the cause. I attended some of the Tea Party rallies in 2010-2011 on the state capitol grounds. The crowd mostly made up of white people my age -- over 60. Many looked just like me. Gray-haired (or bald), wearing glasses, probably lugging around a per-existing condition or two. I listened to the speeches and wondered how my sensibilities were so different from theirs. Some are white supremacists without knowing it. Others know it and show it with their signs and stars-n-bars flags. I didn't know it at the time but these were the same people who went to the 2016 polls in droves to elect Trump. And now they're back out yelling about the COVID-19 hoax and governors stomping on their constitutional right to die at work.

So, protest away, all you White Lives Matter people. I can be understanding to a certain point. Not as understanding as Gov. Gordon, who spoke over shouts from the angry crowd Monday. The best revenge is to get to the polls and elect Democrats. Wyoming now is a one-party state kind of like North Korea and the countries of the old Soviet bloc. Trump and his GOP minions like it that way.

They must go.

Is Wyoming in the midst of a "death spiral?"

I get depressed thinking about the new state budget cuts. It's not clinical depression. More like a short-term funk brought on by knucklehead legislators.

The Gov announced a new round of cuts Tuesday at the Joint Appropriations Committee meeting in Cheyenne. Appropriate for the hottest day in four years, one swaddled in smoke from a wildland fire burning on the Colorado/Wyoming border. All the tall grass and timber nurtured during a wet spring is drying out and set afire by careless humans. Might be a fitting analogy here. State Government budgets nurtured by rising mineral royalties during the past 10 years are now undergoing slash-and-burn tactics by the careless Republican-centric legislature. I think I will run with that, even though the comparison is a bit of a stretch. Maybe a hidden meaning lurks within, as in something embedded in a Flannery O'Connor short story.

First, a few words from Gov. Mead. He's the guy in charge. He's the guy who has been saying for the past year (go here) that across-the-board budget cuts are dangerous for Wyoming and cause the state to "lose talent and skill." They will lead us into a "death spiral." Fewer state services and fewer state employees cause losses in the private sector and will send us into a spin we may not recover from. You want state parks with campgrounds and boat docks and bathrooms that work and helpful staff? You want loans and grants to help attract tourists to a revived downtown? You want roads that aren't pock-marked with potholes/ You want a professional highway patrol that comes to your aid when your truck skids off an icy road in January? You want to care for our veterans and elderly and disabled? You want someone to come in and put out that wildland fire that threatens your little house in the forest?

It takes money. "Doh!" says Homer Simpson, surprised that he didn't think of that. Homer's not much of a money manager. When he has to have an RV to keep up with the Flanderses, his request for a loan sets off sirens and red blinking lights at the dealership. Thing is, the state has a rainy day fund of a couple billion dollars. If we dip into that, no sirens go off. We do get wailing and gnashing of teeth from the same legislators who hate Obama enough to scuttle Medicaid expansion that would prevent some of the layoffs in the health care industry that we now are experiencing in Casper and elsewhere. Those same legislators despise gubment and the same gubment workers who plow their roads and clean the toilets at Guernsey and Glendo. "DOH!"

The legislature has dipped into the rainy day fund. It is raining -- hard. Legislators are being conservative (surprise!) and are taking only $180 million from the fund, believing that the energy downturn will last 10-15 years instead of the 3-5 projected by most experts. Coal will never come back, due to global warming. But who knows? A good war may erupt, causing Dick Cheney to replace his usual scowl with something akin to a shit-eating grin. His daughter Liz will be elected to Congress and immediately make coal a mandatory snack at schools and senior centers from coast-to-coast.  Laid-off coal workers can go back to work and legislators can do what they do best, socking away mineral royalties for a rainy day that they pray never will come.

In the interest of full disclosure: I was a Wyoming state employee, an arts worker, for 25 years. I now am a Wyoming state retiree. 

I know what kind of state I want to live in

One of the highlights of Gov. Matt Mead’s State of the State speech on Jan. 13 was his proposed initiative called Wyoming Grown. It was prompted by the fact that Wyoming is “losing 60 percent of our greatest talent” when young people educated in Wyoming move elsewhere after graduation. Gov. Mead wants to “keep kids in Wyoming after graduation.” So, Wyoming Grown will recruit those “who have left the state and bring them back."

He was skimpy on the details, which I’m sure he supplied those in his budget request for this program. But it will include a new web page by the Tourism Office. It will strengthen businesses that will be able to hire these young people in Cheyenne and Casper, Lusk and Meeteetse.

Concluded the Governor: “Let’s open the door to get our young people home.”

Kudos to Gov. Mead. This goes along with his description of Wyomingites as builders, not hoarders. We all want to build the state, not see it wither away. The state is aging rapidly and we need new blood desperately. This Republican Governor is big on technology and infrastructure and new jobs. He promotes local economic development, which has led to a downtown resurgence in Rawlins, Casper, Rock Springs, Lander and many other communities. He’s also a supporter of the arts and creativity. 

I cannot speak for young people as I’m not young myself. I am a parent of two Millennials, one of whom – my son Kevin -- lives and works elsewhere, namely Tucson, Arizona. What would lure him back to Wyoming? Well, he likes the outdoors. He was a Boy Scout and is a dedicated camper and rock climber. His parents and sister live in Wyoming and we would like to see him more often.
 

But Tucson is a city with a lively arts and cultural scene. Kevin is involved in theatre and music and also is a dedicated gamer. He’s a big fan of public transportation due to the fact that he’s never had a very reliable car and, well, insurance and car payments really add up. Tucson has light rail and a marvelous bus system. A university with lots of cultural offerings. It’s warm, too. His first summer there he described as “hotter than the surface of the sun.” But he’s acclimated and, like most Tucsonans, ventures out in July only under cover of darkness. But January, well, that’s when his Wyoming family visits.

Wyoming really can’t compete with the lights of the big city. How you gonna keep ‘em down on the ranch after they’ve seen Portland and Austin and Nashville?  See, we’re not even talking about huge metropolises such as New York and L.A. It’s the urban mix that draws young people. If they aren’t progressive when they arrive, they tend to get that way by mixing with folks that aren’t like them. Different genders. Sometimes people who are bending the genders and shattering the status quo. Different ethnicities. People from different parts of the country – different parts of the world. To be a part of the urban mix, you need tolerance and flexibility. Curiosity, too, a sense that you’d like to know what makes your neighbors tick. Sure, you can say the same thing about city folks coming to Wyoming. They have to be flexible and respectful when living and working in a more conservative climate. Some are better with that than others.

Wyoming has one big problem that won’t go away anytime soon. Some of its residents think that they exist in a “Wyoming is what America was” bubble. Right-wing loonies air their prejudices and grievances as if it were 1915 rather than 2015. We live in a world when the dumbest ideas hit the airwaves with lightning speed. Witness how much fun the talk show hosts had with all of the many nonsensical Republican responses to Pres. Obama’s recent SOTU speech.

So, when a conservative legislator proposes an anti-gay piece of legislation, the news travels far and wide. Young people, the heaviest users of smart phones and social media, are privy to the news immediately and spread the word about those dumbbells in Wyoming. I don’t like it when the legislators in my adopted state get painted as wackos.

But if the shoe (or boot) fits….

So, our Republican legislators promote a “right to discriminate against people we don’t like” (HB83) bill and an “Agenda 21 is a U.N. commie plot” (HB133) bill. Rep. Jaggi from Uinta County speaks like a bit player in an old Hollywood western when he refers to Native Americans as “Injuns” in a public meeting. This makes me wonder if Republicans really care about bringing our young people back to the state. Maybe they are angling for a certain type of young person, one who is already a diehard Republican, watches only Fox News and already believes that it is OK to discriminate against those who don’t think/act/look like you do.

I don’t think that’s what Governor Mead has in mind. He is a college graduate, earning everything up to his J.D. His wife, our First Lady, is a college graduate and a strong supporter of education. They have two children who will go to college and may be the future leaders of the state just as Gov. Mead’s mother and grandfather were leaders. I think that Gov. Mead is thinking ahead to the kind of Wyoming he wants to leave to his children. That’s not the regressive version of the state that the extremist members of his own party envision, if it’s appropriate to use that term. To envision, you need a vision, not just a tendency to dig in your heels and say no to all change and all progress.   

I don’t know if my children or grandchildren will live and work in Wyoming.

I do know what kind of state I want to live in.   

Meet and greet Democratic Party candidates for Gov and Dept. of Ed. at Oct. 12 fund-raiser

On Sunday, October 12, at 2 p.m., local Democrats are hosting a Meet and Greet/Fund-raiser for Pete Gosar and Mike Ceballos. In case you haven't been paying attention, Laramie Democrat Pete Gosar is running against incumbent Republican Matt Mead for governor. Cheyenne Democrat Mike Ceballos is running against Republican Jillian Balow for Superintendent of Public Instruction. The get-together is at Joe's House, 3626 Dover Rd. in Cheyenne. Enjoy a dessert reception, refreshments and hear their ideas and show them your support! Suggested Donation levels of $30/$60/$90.

Yes, this is a fund-raiser. Even in Wyoming, all politicians need money to wage their campaigns. This is especially true in Wyoming, where registered Dems are outnumbered two-to-one.

Democrats do several things well. We know how to put on fund-raisers. We know how to wisely spend money. We like to have a good time. 

So come on out. If you're curious about what makes Wyoming Democrats run, this would be a good time to find out. My wife Chris and I signed up to invite 10 Dems or Indies who have been too shy to get involved or who have just moved here from a blue state and wondered if they are actually any liberals in this whole dang state. There are! Drop us a line in the comment section if you are interested. Or just show up with your checkbook. Any donations are eagerly accepted. And you will be fed sweets and welcomed by an engaging group of engaged citizens.

Questions: E-mail robin@wyodems.org or go to Laramie County Democrats on Facebook.

Maybe Gov's new science panel may negate some of the damage done by the legislature

Democratic Party Gubernatorial candidate Pete Gosar was bemused by Gov. Mead's announcement of the selection of a panel to improve science education at our only four-year public university. This from Gosar's Facebook post:

The current administration appoints a panel to upgrade science at the University of Wyoming, but just a few months ago censored science for Wyoming students in K-12. Let's hope this panel puts in a full complement of remedial science courses at UW to ensure that our students can learn after graduation what they were denied before graduation.

It's difficult to live down the embarrassment of the legislation from last legislative session that banned schools from adopting national science standards. Gov. Mead signed off on the legislation offered by Rep. Matt Teeters (R-Lingle) who, thankfully, lost his primary challenge and will no longer darken the halls of the legislature with his Dark Ages approach to book larnin'. 

How many science panels and commissions does it take to negate one piece of boneheaded legislation?

Difficult to know. Word travels fast in this cyber-age. I read the bios of those appointed to the panel and was impressed. They are supposed to make some recommendations to the Gov by Nov. 1, just four days before the election. One of those recommendations should be: "Repeal the legislature's anti-science footnote and keep Republican legislators as far away from education legislation as humanly possible."

Then maybe we can get back to the business of being a player in the 21st century instead of a bystander.

WYOPEP: Wyoming slips from first to forty-first in the nation in care of its disabled

The Forgotten People of Wyoming - From 1st to 41st in the Nation in Care of Its Disabled from WYOPEP on Vimeo.

Watch this video and wonder why Wyoming, with funding galore, can't take care of its disabled citizens.

Pete Gosar asks: Got science?

Refreshing to have a Wyoming gubernatorial candidate who actually believes in science and modern science education. In case you haven't been keeping up, the latest mantra of the Wyoming Know Nothings is that there is no such thing as human-caused global warming and that creationism should be taught alongside evolution. Next step, I'm sure, is to replace our children's school lunches with entrees of yummy coal. We have to get rid of it somehow! Read some of my earlier posts on the subject here and here. You can also read the Democratic Party platform here. It ain't rocket science, but it is science.

Cindy Hill has a manifesto and a little red book

Cindy Hill may be a commie.

She has a “little red book” just like Chairman Mao. She has written a “manifesto” just like Karl Marx.

So wazzup with Cindy?

She’s running for governor against the Republican incumbent, Matt Mead, and another Repub challenger, Taylor Haynes, a physician, rancher and Tea Party fave.

At least they’re not commies.

My kids and my nieces and nephews and all of their fellow travelers may not know what a commie is. They probably don’t even know what a “fellow traveler” is. No, it has nothing to with travel. It has everything to do with hanging out with commies, traveling in the same circles. If it quacks like a duck…

And so on.

Monday's CasperStar-Tribune explored Ms. Hill’s little red book and manifesto. The newspaper found some inaccuracies in Hill's online manifesto, which is hardly surprising when it comes to our Superintendent of Public Instruction. Remember that when she ran in 2010 she argued for the teaching of creationism side-by-side with evolution. She must believe that the dinos, such as our very own Allosaurus, accompanied our human ancestors as they searched the high prairie for edible plants and small game.

Prehistoric Man: What do you think, Al. Should I eat this pretty plant?

Al O. Saurus (rolling his eyes): Sure, man, it’s not poisonous.

Prehistoric Man eats plant, keels over and dies.

Al: Silly man. This race of cretins is never going to make it. The dinosaurs shall inherit the earth.

That’s the thing about dinos – they had brains the size of walnuts. We had much bigger brains and survived, leading to today’s Republicans who don’t believe in global warming because… well, just because.

Democrat Pete Gosar announces campaign for Wyoming governor

Pete Gosar of Laramie just announced that he's running for governor. This is welcome news. In his very short speech, he said that as the seventh of ten kids in a Catholic family. His mom gave him some good advice, that if he should ever get the microphone, say your thank yous first. Pete thanked all of those people who supported him during his year-long stint at Dem Party chair. Then he said he was looking forward to being our next governor. I'm the oldest of nine in a Catholic family. This is my microphone. So thank you, Pete. And I'm looking forward to Gov Pete. Let's get to work!

Why are all of the dad-blamed Gov candidates from Cheyenne?

Article in yesterday's Casper Star-Trib lamented the fact that all three of the announced  Republican candidates for governor are from Laramie County: Incumbent Matt Mead, ticked-off sort-of Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill, and Tea Party fave Taylor Haynes.

I don't speak for my fellow Democrats when I say "We will keep Mead if you promise to take Hill and Haynes off of our hands." Most of them aren't too crazy about our current governor. He scuttled Medicaid Expansion and joined in on the failed multi-state lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act. But he is arts- and tech- and business-friendly, and seems to have a little more realistic view of the modern world than his fellow Repubs, especially those from the rural areas of the Cowboy State. At least two county Republican conventions (Platte and Hot Springs) recently censured the Gov over the Hill mess (SF 104) and the suspicion that he might be a RINO -- Republican in Name Only. Two other county Republican gatherings resorted to Tea Party mumbo-jumbo (Freedom! Constitution! Something!) but came up short of an outright censure. Interesting to note that our Dem county convention in March fielded a platform plank that would have called out Gov. Mead on the Hill fiasco. It was roundly defeated after a lively discussion. Most commenters thought that it was unwise to wade into this big Republican mess. Even though I seconded the motion, I ended up voting against it.

In today's CST article, Mead's office pointed out the Gov's rural roots in both Teton (richy-rich hangout) and Albany (liberal UW profs and enviros) counties. Haynes admitted that he was busy getting ready to a new ranch in Albany County. Hill couldn't be reached for comment, no doubt framing another spiteful missive to the Gov and his legal eagles who won't let her move back into her Superintendent offices in the Hathaway Building (the Constitution, ya'll!).

But interviewees in the article wondered why we can't have any gubernatorial candidates from some of our more rural counties. It's a good question. There's 98,000 square miles wherein candidates could dwell. Subtract Laramie County and you have left about 97,000. You could beat the sagebrush and find a few likely governors there. Or not. Still they wonder why their leaders come from The Big City and not from The Heartland.

I guess being a rural Wyoming Republican is a bit like being a Wyoming Democrat anywhere. Dems wonder why nobody ever listens to our progressive views. Here we are, sitting in our urban conclave, sipping lattes and plotting the downfall of Christendom, when a bunch of white guys stream into the Capitol Building from Meeteetse and Frannie and Ten Sleep and start ranting about herding gays into concentration camps and banning birth control and stopping the spread of Commie-inspired urban planning and banning the teaching of certain annoying scientific facts (global warming, evolution, earth orbiting the sun) and so on.

Why don't these people go back to their heavenly rural Nirvanas and leave us city people alone.

The return of ALEC to Wyoming

Wyofile's Kerry Drake wrote another excellent column Dec. 10 about the American Legislative Exchange Council or ALEC, This time, he wonders why Wyoming Gov. Mead traveled to a recent ALEC gathering to deliver a speech.

Good question.

ALEC is the well-funded arm of conservative corporate donors such as the Koch Brothers. It drafts model retro legislation, pours it into the empty heads of conservative legislators, and sends them home to craft anti-democratic legislation that abridges workers' rights, make it harder to vote for minorities and the elderly and curtails environmental protections. ALEC was behind Florida's "make my day" gun legislation made infamous in the Trayvon Martin killing. ALEC's latest crusade is to make it illegal for homeowners to install their own solar panels, calling them "free-riders" on the U.S. energy grid. Interesting that a conservative group would use a term commonly used by union memberss to describe their non-union co-workers. Arizona has already passed such a bill. See the Dec. 4 article in the Guardian.

ALEC has found some willing dupes among Wyoming Republican legislators (see list at http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Wyoming_ALEC_Politicians). Only one Democrat was a member but did not renew his membership in 2012. All of this means we can look forward to more wacko bills when the 2014 session convenes. Expect more attempts to weaken the state employee retirement system and new and interesting ways to steal all employees' hard-earned sick and vacation days. I am a state employee and pay close attention to these types of bills. Trustees of the state retirement system have consistently asserted that the retirement system is strong and well-funded, unlike those in other states and cities. Legislation has mandated an increase in employee contributions to the fund. Other modest increases are expected and that is only fair. That hasn't stopped regressive legislators from devising ways to sabotage the entire system.

As noted western conservative Barry Goldwater once said: "Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom." Especially important for us outnumbered progressives living in a conservative state.

Read Kerry Drake's column at http://wyofile.com/kerrydrake/alec-wyoming/

Read a Dec. 12 wyofile article about Gov. Mead's ALEC speech at http://wyofile.com/dustin/matt-mead-alec/

Democratic response to Gov. Mead's decision on Medicaid expansion

From the Wyoming Democratic Party web site (Dec. 2):

Today, Pete Gosar, Chairman of the Wyoming Democratic Party made the following statement regarding Governor Mead’s decision to not recommend Medicaid expansion in Wyoming.

 “Governor Mead made sure that the day after Thanksgiving was the blackest of all Fridays for Wyoming's entire health care system.  His refusal to support Medicaid expansion all but ensures that Wyoming's less fortunate and working poor will continue to be without access to Wyoming's healthcare system.”

Rest the rest here.

Kerry Drake on Wyofile: Governor and Republican legislators blew it when they killed Medicaid expansion

On Wyofile, veteran Wyoming journalist Kerry Drake takes a long, hard look at the Medicaid expansion question in Wyoming:

Facts, common sense, what’s good for the people — they all fly out the window when some conservative Wyoming politicians are determined to show how much they distrust the federal government. 

It’s happened many times before, but never to the absurd level it did when Gov. Matt Mead and 22 state senators killed Medicaid expansion in Wyoming this session. 

No matter how one looks at the issue, they blew it — far worse than most people realize.

Read the entire sordid tale here. Progressive blogger Rodger McDaniel at Blowing in the Wyoming Wind has been writing about this issue for months. Check out his columns here. 

So where is Wyoming's Health Exchange?

Ever since the SCOTUS ruling on the Affordable Care Act, healthcare topics have been back in the headlines -- with a vengeance. Rodger McDaniel writes today about the Wyoming Health Exchange, and why it's important that the state's lawmakers get busy on this issue. They've already wasted a lot of time in the hopes that the Supreme Court would make the ACA magically disappear. That didn't happen!

Governor Mead earned his spurs opposing the Affordable Care Act. So when he says it's now time to roll up our sleeves and get to work, the Legislature should listen.

Are you listening, Republican-dominated Legislature? I have my doubts...


And Barb Rea of Casper reminds us on Facebook that there will be a public forum about healthcare and Medicaid expansion on Tuesday, July 10, 5-7 p.m., at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne. The stakes are high.

If Wyoming decides to opt out of the Medicaid expansion 30,000 low income adults will be left again, with no where to go for insurance contributing to the same cost drviers that are plaguing the entire system. The state is conducting surveys about "the cost drivers of Medicaid and evaluate design options for Medicaid programs mandated by the ACA" (whatever that means).

Whatever that means. That's the problem, isn't it? These are complicated yet crucial issues. Get out to the forum and make your voice heard.

Big turnout at Governor's Offfice for signing of Children's Mental Health Awareness Week proclamation

Top photo: Big turnout Wednesday morning for Governor Matt Mead's signing of the proclamation for Children's Mental Health Awareness Week. A large group of concerned parents and children joined with UPLIFT staffers and board members, representatives from the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Division, and Sen. Floyd Esquibel. Everyone received a "Children's Mental Health Matters" ribbon and balloon, even the Governor. Bottom photo: UPLIFT’s Kim Conner asked me, as an UPLIFT board member, to share some national stats on children's mental health with Gov. Matt Mead at Wednesday’s proclamation signing.

Early intervention and prevention crucial for children's mental health

Here are some points to ponder about children’s mental health. As a parent of children with mental health challenges, and as an adult who's dealt with recurring bouts of depression, I ponder these things often and not only during the upcoming week devoted to education and awareness. Governor Matt Mead will sign a proclamation on Wednesday, May 9, 10 a.m., designating May 6-12 as Mental Health Awareness Week. The following stats come from the Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health. 

• One in five young people have one or more mental, emotional, or behavioral challenges.  One in ten youth have challenges that are severe enough to impair how they function at home, school, or in the community.
• One-half of all lifetime cases of psychological challenges begin by age 14, and three-quarters begin by age 24.  In addition, 80% of people who experience multiple issues with mental health and substance abuse report onset before the age of 20.
• Suicide is the third leading cause of death in adolescents and young adults. Children experiencing symptoms of psychological challenges, particularly depression, are at a higher risk for suicide.  An estimated 90% of children who commit suicide have a diagnosable mental illness.
• Despite high rates of mental illness in children, 4 out of 5 children ages 6 to 17 who have experience symptoms do not receive any help.  The majority of those who do not receive needed mental health services are minority children.  For example, 88% of Latino children have unmet mental health needs.  In addition, Latino children are less likely than others to be identified by a primary care physician as having a mental disorder.
• Unmet mental health needs may complicate daily activities and education for youth.  Almost 25% of adolescents who required mental health assistance reported having problems at school.  Over 50% of students who experience psychological challenges, ages 14 and older, drop out of high school—the highest dropout rate of any disability group.
• Early detection and intervention strategies for mental health issues improve children’s resilience and ability to succeed in life.  According to a study by the National Institute of Mental Health, preschoolers at high risk for mental health problems showed less oppositional behavior, less aggressive behavior, and were less likely to require special education services 3 years after enrolling in a comprehensive, school-based mental health program.

What can you do?

Create awareness surrounding positive mental health practices and supports.  Work to reduce stigma!

Contact your local, state and federal legislators to request funding for early intervention and prevention programs. 

Encourage culturally and linguistically competent supports and services.

UPLIFT has a terrific list of resources for Wyoming families at http://www.upliftwy.org/resources.html. I am on the UPLIFT board and admit to a certain bias. But it is a terrific list.