Wyoming Constitution: Article 1, Section 12...Each house shall have power to determine the rules of its proceedings, and to punish its members or other persons for contempt or disorderly behavior in its presence; to protect its members against violence or offers of bribes or private solicitation, and with the concurrence of two-thirds, to expel a member, and shall have all other powers necessary to the legislature of a free state. A member expelled for corruption shall not thereafter be eligible to either house of the legislature, and punishment for contempt or disorderly behavior shall not bar a criminal prosecution for the same offense.

 

 

January 26, 2005

 

            As part of my efforts to keep you informed of the legislative happenings, I have added a new function to my website. It is designed to be a page where I keep track of the bills I mention in these mailings, and SHOULD give you the ability to keep up to date as the different bills proceed through the legislative sausage maker.

 

            Go to… http://www.citizengoodenough.com/bills_of_interest.htm

 

            The bills listed there are linked to the legislative website, and as the information is updated there, you will be able to follow the progress…we hope anyways!!

 

            And now for some good news, Senate File #66;Safety Belts-Primary Offenses, sponsored by my least favorite Senator, John Barrasso, seems to have crashed and burned on the floor of the Senate. According to the legisweb, it failed on its first reading in the Senate. So for now, John Law will not be able to legally use their opinion as to whether or not you have a seat belt on as a reason to pull you over and check you out.

 

    One small victory for the citizens!

 

            And now a question for you…do you believe that the youth of Wyoming are going to change their lifestyle habits related to sex, alcohol and tobacco due to the actions of the Wyoming Legislature?

 

            Do you believe the youth of Wyoming is going to refrain from these activities due to the passage of a number of proposed bills that will increase the penalties for a variety of non-violent offenses?

 

            I do not believe the youth of Wyoming is going to pay any attention to the passage of new laws. As far as I know, there is absolutely no evidence that increasing penalties causes teenagers to alter their behavior. The penalties are more severe, which means they are sucked deeper into the criminal justice system, but do they change their evil ways? I don’t think so.

 

            Up in committee today in the House is HB # 248; Minors Possessing Alcohol or Controlled Substances. The bill has a variety of punishment increases, but the worst part of it is that there is an attack on the Judicial Branch contained within it that must have been crafted by a group of flaming liberals. Real conservatives respect the Constitution and believe in judicial independence. This bill has language that mandates the Judges to impose certain penalties, resulting in the Judges not being able to make their best decisions based on the individual facts of the case.

 

 Senator Barrasso and Representative Harshman sponsored the bill.

 

            To see the text, go to…  http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2005/Introduced/HB0248.pdf

 

            While we are on the subject of youthful punishments, can we chat about hypocrisy?  Are you for it or against it?

 

A large number of the legislators who will vote on this bill, and many will vote yes, were themselves youthful law breakers…weren’t they? They will vote to increase punishments for the very same things they did as young adults.

 

            Actually, if the penalties of the past were as strict as they are now, it is very possible that some of our current political representatives would not have climbed the ladder as they have. Since they drank, smoked and engaged in sex while underage, and they turned out so wonderful, why are they so willing to increase punishments for the youth of today who do exactly the same things?

 

            If you have a rational explanation, please send it along!

 

Keith ‘puzzled’ Goodenough