I am a transplant to Kentucky, having just moved here in June. One of the things I have found myself doing often is comparing how each state differs in its traditions, customs and certainly in their government. I want to offer you the same opportunity.
As you may have seen in a previous post, I wrote a letter advocating for the General Assembly of Kentucky to pass a bill allowing EMS providers to receive the same benefits as police officers and firefights should they die in the line of duty. I had received some bad information that the bill was in danger of failing to pass and I urged my state senator and representative to support this measure. The next morning I received a call from Representative David Hale who took time out of his busy schedule to call me personally and tell me that the bill was indeed expected to do well and that he was not sure how information had gotten out that the bill was in danger. He let me know that he fully supported the bill and many of his counterparts in the senate did well. He then took a few moments to get to know me, thanked me for making the choice to move to the Commonwealth and also asked if I had any other concerns related to EMS workers. He also commended me for taking up pastoral ministry as he is also a pastor and knew how difficult it can be to balance the duties of the church with everything else life throws at you. He was very pleasant and I thanked him for giving me a call when he certainly did not have to. He said, “I work for you. It’s my pleasure.”
Contrast that to how I have been treated by a Mississippi official.
A couple of years ago, I wrote Representative William Shirley and expressed my concerns about cuts to education and the fact that teachers in Mississippi had not, at that time, received a raise in quite some time. He did not even bother to return the email. I get it, I know he has bills to vote on, committees to sit on, campaign fund money to give to himself (see page 11) and to spend at the fish camp he owns (page 10).
But I digress.
I emailed him again and this time he responded. Essentially the exchange was not very polite on his end. He essentially let me know that he would vote for and against bills that were in his best interest of staying elected and to heck with everything else.
He also made it clear that my opinion was not valued.
And then there’s this guy who told a constituent that he “could care less” about her views, that her views were not Mississippi views, and that she should consider moving back to Illinois. Her crime was the same as mine: She dared to advocate for education and questioned the wisdom of tax cuts when revenue was already projected to be lower than expected to a member of a legislative regime who is determined to cut as much spending as possible from education for the benefit of their donors who happen to be “non-profit” private education companies.
Legislators in my home state of Mississippi could learn a lot from their Kentucky counterparts.
Jonathan
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