Kennedy ponders lawsuit

I can’t figure out why state law allows the loser of a close election to directly sue the winner. Then, has any losing candidate ever followed the steps taken by Jim Brannon after his five-vote loss to incumbent Mike Kennedy, sidestepping a recount in favor of a lawsuit to overturn the entire election? That fact hasn’t been lost on Kennedy. Who posted this comment at HucksOnline last week: “Writing as a private citizen being sued, here, regardless of whether he loses or wins this court case, because of this willful and admitted plan of suing me individually first without pursuing all legal steps in the process, I would assume that Mr. Brannon has been preparing himself personally for the time when I as a private citizen seek to recover every penny of all applicable legal costs, personal costs, and damages in this lawsuit through full discovery in the courts. And I would certainly assume that preparation doesn’t include (hypothetically speaking, of course) diverting or shielding personal assets, inheritances, or family trusts in the names of any other individuals or family members.” Someone’s going to laugh last here.

Mob mentality

Councilwoman Deanna Goodlander wasn’t impressed with the actions and comments of Brannon fans in the courtroom when Judge Charles Hosack handed down a series of rulings May 14. Deanna commented at HucksOnline: “I am a Republican and have attended many Republican functions. I recognized many of the Brannon supporters that were in the courtroom from some of those events. I was appalled at the disrespect shown and the comments made by some of those people. They all profess to have respect for the principles of the founders of this great country of ours and trumpet how they are defenders of freedom and yet, whenever the attorneys for the city and Mike Kennedy spoke, they were rude and disrepectful, making snide comments.” Yeah, these are the same people who complain, without much evidence, that Coeur d’Alene council members are rude and arrogant.

Huckleberries

So how did Kootenai Environmental Alliance exec Terry Harris, formerly of Baltimore, celebrate the second anniversary of his arrival in the Inland Northwest last Monday? Terry was cornered for the day at a confab re: forests and wildfire protection – in, ahem, beautiful downtown Smelterville … Monday was also a special day for Christa Hazel, who celebrated the 36th anniversary of her adoption by Ma & Pa Wayne Manis. Sez Christa: “If it weren’t for them … life as I know it today wouldn’t exist” … David Townsend, of the CdA library, was surprised during a visit to his native Bozeman: “From where I am sitting at the Bozeman library I can see the ‘huge’ hill that I used to sled on. Only now it looks about a third the size it used to. Matter of fact, the whole park looks smaller. My gawd, my hometown is shrinking.” Mebbe Thomas Wolfe was right. You can’t go home again. Or at least you shouldn’t.

Parting shot

That ongoing community dust-up involving the school district’s International Baccalaureate program (with Hayden Meadows Elementary at Ground Zero) caught the attention of the Washington Post. Quoting from a Coeur d’Alene Press story, Answer Sheet blogger Valerie Strauss of the Post writes: “allegations that the international education program is not only anti-American but also Marxist and anti-Christian have led to controversies in recent years in several states, including Utah, Michigan and Pennsylvania. The program isn’t any of the things the protesters say it is. IB is a rigorous program for students ages 3 to 19, now in about 3,000 schools, in 139 countries, that teaches students to understand issues from an international perspective.” Hey, at least we’re not getting beat up by a national rag for neo-Nazis in the ’hood.