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Candidates' Blogs
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Aggregated blogs of Democratic candidates running in Utah County
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: And the Winner is?.. (http://www.radene.com/blog/?p=65)
Dear Friends, We did it. We ran a good campaign. We provided a choice to the voters of Provo. We worked together to raise awareness of the issues and conditions in Utah government and reminded people of their responsibilities as citizens in this great country. And in the end ? we have nothing to be ashamed of. [...]
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Deon Turley: The morning after (http://deonturley.blogspot.com/2008/11/morning-after.html)
My father had a favorite poem that he wanted to commit to memory. He enlisted the help of us children to help him learn it and, as one might expect, the kids learned it faster than my dad. The poem was Kipling?s ?If?, and a small part of the poem that I have remembered, after some forty years, goes like this:
If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
This being good advice has made waking up on this day a little easier. Meeting triumph and disaster, I have decided to treat those two imposters the same.
On the wall of my campaign headquarters (aka the guest bedroom) there is a poster that my son gave to my daughter for Christmas. It is an inspirational poster and has a quote and a lovely photo of a ski jumper. The large title is "Ineptitude". The quote says: "If you can?t learn to do something well, you should at least learn to enjoy doing it poorly."...
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Debbie Swenson: When there is an income tax, the just man will pay more and the unjust less on the same amount of income. -- Plato, The Republic (http://debforlegislature.blogspot.com/2008/10/when-there-is-income-tax-just-man-will.html)
Taxes are a funny thing. Everyone hates them. Everyone thinks they are too high. And everyone wants them lowered or gone. Many view them as a form of socialism or slavery. At the same time, everyone drives on roads, uses parks, and visits libraries. We?re all glad for police protection and glad when the firemen and ambulance show up in times of emergency. We recognize the need for a military and the obligation to care for those who have served. We love clean running water and flushing toilets. And we value schools and education for our children. Most thinking adults realize that some taxation is necessary to maintain communities that are pleasant, enjoyable and mutually beneficial. It?s a pooling of our resources, if you will, for the mutual benefit of all. Is this socialism? I have heard some say that public education is socialism and should be abolished. Is it socialism to use taxation to create a safety net for those in our society who have experienced misfortune in their lives, or those who, because of circumstances beyond their control, are unable to compete in the...
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Debbie Swenson: Letters of Support (http://debforlegislature.blogspot.com/2008/10/letters-of-support.html)
I've lived in Payson for 30 some odd years and have always considered myself a Republican but I'm so disgusted with our Republican legislature that I'm prepared to give you an opportunity this time to see if you and other Democrats can make some of the changes that I think the people of Utah want to see. I've known and admired members of the Morley family for a number of years but I'm disgusted with what Mike Morley and other Republicans have been doing, or not doing, in the legislature. I specifically mean in relation to the failure of the legislature to pass meaningful ethics reform and campaign finance disclosure bills. I want to see a legislature in Utah that is interested in doing what's best for the people and not for themselves.
Feel free to use this letter if you see it will help you with your campaign.
Sincerely,
Skip Standifird
Payson, UT
I have been a lifelong Republican, often serving as a county and state delegate and precinct officer. Unfortunately, more and more Utah Republicans, especially in Utah County, have taken a turn toward mean-spirited policies in education and...
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Debbie Swenson: Why I am opposed to vouchers. (http://debforlegislature.blogspot.com/2008/10/why-i-am-opposed-to-vouchers.html)
I have had several queries asking about my position on vouchers or asking why I oppose them. Here is my response.
1. The main reason I oppose universal vouchers in Utah is financial. It will cost Utah money and we don't have any to spare.
- Before I ran for school board, I was in support of vouchers because I believed that they would save Utah taxpayers money and that they would put more dollars into public ed. That argument is basically the "Oreo cookie" analogy that was given during the voucher debates. I have learned that education funding isn't quite as simple as Oreo cookies and that the truth about vouchers is that they will cost Utah a great deal of money.
- Utah currently has 19,000 private school students that Utah is paying NOTHING for. In order for vouchers to save us any money, we would need to have OVER 19,000 additional students leave public schools.
- The Oreo cookie analogy used an average per pupil cost. But the truth is, that some students cost much more to educate and some cost less. That's what "average" is. As a general rule, the students who leave to attend private...
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: It?s possible to run a clean Political Campaign (http://www.radene.com/blog/?p=62)
I know, you probably don’t believe that it is possible to run a clean political campaign, but I do. And if it can be done anywhere - it ought to be in Provo! It’s simple. All you have to do is follow some very basic ‘Sunday School Rules’:
1) Be kind and respectful to those you are running against (be [...]
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: Do what is right. (http://www.radene.com/blog/?p=60)
The following is the text of an email I sent out early on Friday Oct. 17th:
Dear Friends, I have just returned home from my local gym. On the way I saw that many of my opponent?s signs in our neighborhood had been vandalized. An expensive banner hanging on his fence was slashed and removed. Signs were [...]
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Boyd Petersen: Leaders and Managers (http://voteforboyd.blogspot.com/2008/10/leaders-and-managers.html)
We had a candidate debate last Wednesday evening at the Provo city center, hosted by the Provo-Orem Chamber of Commerce. Gathered at the event were all the legislative candidates in Provo who fielded questions from a moderator and the audience.
During the introductions, Senator Curt Bramble raised the oft-repeated refrain that Utah government is the most efficient government in the nation. The claim is based on a Pew study that ranked government efficiency, and the incumbents are currently touting the ranking as a sign that they are doing a great job and should be reelected.
In responding to Bramble's comment, I couldn't resist referring to talk given by my father-in-law, Hugh Nibley, entitled Leadership and Management. Nibley noted that managers prize efficiency above all else, but it is leaders who break the mold and escape mediocrity. Managers are constantly aware of "promotion, perks, privilege, and power"--"awe and reverence for rank is everything." Leaders, on the other hand, "have a passion for equality . . . set the highest example; and break the mold." Nibley continued, "Leaders are movers and shakers, original, inventive, unpredictable, imaginative, full of surprises that discomfit the enemy in...
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Deon Turley: Comparing Apples to Apples (http://deonturley.blogspot.com/2008/10/comparing-apples-to-apples.html)
I was encouraged early on in the campaign to make a clear distinction between my political opponent and myself. Now, this wouldn't be so hard if I could say that my opponent was a dirty, rotten scoundrel -- but he isn't. He is a friendly family man with good relationships with his friends and family, as far as I know. I assume that he wants to give public service and that is why he got involved in politics. My reason for running for office wasn't because I had personal animosity for him; I just think I have different priorities than he does.
When difficult choices are put before public officials, they need to remember that more is not always better. More laws, more micromanaging, more intervention. Sometimes the best public policy is less legislation. In other areas, intervention is necessary. For example, we need health care reform, so that health insurance is more accessible. That is why these priorities are so important.
Since my decision to run for office, I have had the opportunity to meet and visit with many people of the district by going door to door to introduce myself. It has given me added...
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Deon Turley: Gotta be the Economy (http://deonturley.blogspot.com/2008/09/gotta-be-economy.html)
When the Utah Foundation surveyed Utahns for a list of prioritized issues last spring, there were a lot of items to choose from--transportation, the environment, education. I'm sure there were some who had financial worries but the worries didn't seem to be wide-spread.
There had been talk of a housing bubble. There were a lot of "no down payment" loans being pushed. There was even news of unprecedented consumer debt. Still there was definitely a feeling of being blind-sided when the financial melt down began a month or two ago.
Now, there are predictions of doomsday and comparisons being made to the stock market crash of 1929. While the Congress and the feds fuss and fume about what is to be done to mitigate the trouble, it is clear that there is no way to avoid it altogether. Both presidential candidates are blaming deregulation, so it seems that "trickle down" economics has turned into a deluge of debt that we will all be swimming in, whether we were wise in our own money management or not.
The State of Utah has a great challenge ahead of it. We will be in better shape than many...
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: Let me introduce (http://hillforhouse.wordpress.com/2008/09/22/let-me-introduce-2/)
Let me introduce you to my friend, Birgitta, who just got citizenship. By Claralyn Hill
When I announced my candidacy for office in February, my friend, Birgitta, kindly offered to help with refreshments. Birgitta is the perfect person for such a job. An immigrant from Sweden, she knows all the recipes for the most delicious Scandinavian [...]
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: Practicing the ?Golden Rule? in Politics (http://www.radene.com/blog/?p=54)
It was a good day in church today. Talks on Faith and Hope. A lesson on service and how service can and ought to be a reflection of our ability to express charity, the pure love of Christ. Time to ponder one of my favorite scriptural passages about a time in the history of man when there [...]
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: ?By George? - He was Right! (http://www.radene.com/blog/?p=52)
A couple of months ago following a family discussion about the increasing power of political parties and the danger that it presents to our constitutional government, my 15 year old son got on the internet and found a quote from George Washington’s Farewell Address in 1796. The paper he printed it off on is still [...]
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Boyd Petersen: Beyond Politics (http://voteforboyd.blogspot.com/2008/09/when-i-announced-my-candidacy-deseret.html)
When I announced my candidacy, the Deseret News reported that "the son-in-law of Hugh Nibley announced his bid to run for public office." I was a bit frustrated with the story. Not that I mind being associated with Hugh Nibley--he was more than my father-in-law; I consider him the father of my spiritual self. And as Hugh Nibley's biographer, I got to know him better than most people ever did. I have never been ashamed to be introduced as Hugh Nibley's son-in-law. He was, for me, a true hero.
But when the Deseret News reported that it was Hugh Nibley's son-in-law who was entering this race, I felt they had overlooked my own qualifications for running: that I had worked for almost a decade in Washington, DC for the U.S. Congress and that for most of that time I worked for both sides as non-designated staff. I not only gained experience learning how government works and about the issues of importance to citizens, but I gained experience working with both parties and with very diverse personalities. I felt my own qualifications were being somehow diminished by the focus on my relationship with my famous father-in-law.
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: Why I am a Democrat (http://www.radene.com/blog/?p=42)
It?s been fascinating to watch your reactions when you find out that I am a Democrat. You struggle to reconcile your beliefs about Democrats with what you see and know about me. It is very much like what I experienced when I lived outside of Utah, in that moment that people learned I am a Mormon. [...]
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Candidates 
