Bennet's strategy

Being a challenger to Senator Bennett has some daunting aspects.Bennett will claim he will single handedly preserve the Shuttle replacement program, ARES/Constellation, which President Obama is trying to discontinue! He will claim we lose this important space program Utah loses 2000 jobs and the $129,000,000 ATK spends in Utah annually will be significantly reduced; economic disaster! There will be claims; only Bennett has the gas to save this program because ultimately the Congress sets the Nation's budget inspite of the President. Bennett is on Appropriations which is how he saved the D5 Life Extension funding for Bacchus over five years ago. Without that funding Bacchus would have shut down. His opponents can pontificate all they want about earmarks, the fact is w/o Bennett this State is in big trouble. A freshman Senator would hardly be noticed let alone given any "plum" assignments. Bennett can work both sides of the aisle, so it doesn't matter who is in power.

So we need to help our challengers and be sensitive to the daunting task they have ahead of them.

What Would Hugh Glass Think of Universal Health Care

The story of Hugh Glass ranks as one of the most remarkable stories of survival in American history. So much so, that Hugh Glass became a legend in his own time. Little is actually known about Glass. It was said that he was a former pirate who gave up his life at sea to travel to the West as a scout and fur trapper. Exactly when is unknown. He is believed to have been born in Philadelphia around 1783. He had already been in the Western wilderness for several years when he signed on for an expedition up the Missouri River in 1823 with the company of William Ashley and Andrew Henry. The expedition used long-boats similar to those used by Lewis and Clark 19 years earlier to ascend the Missouri as far as the Grand River near present-day Mobridge, SD. There Glass along with a small group of men led by Henry started overland toward Yellowstone. At a point about 12 miles south of Lemmon, SD, now marked by a small monument, Glass surprised a grizzly bear and her two cubs while scouting for the party. He was away from the rest of the group at the time and the grizzly attacked him before he could fire his rifle. Using only his knife and bare hands, Glass wrestled the full-grown bear to the ground and killed it, but in the process he was badly mauled and bitten. His companions, hearing his screams, arrived on the scene to see a bloody and badly maimed Glass barely alive and the bear lying on top of him. They shot the bear head and uncovered Glass's mangled body. They bandaged his wounds the best they could and waited for him to die. The party was in a hurry to get to Yellowstone, so Henry asked for volunteers to stay until Glass was dead and then bury him. John Fitzgerald and Jim Bridger agreed and immediately began digging the grave. But after three days Glass was still alive when Fitzgerald and Bridger began to panic as a band of hostile Indians was seen approaching. The two men picked up Glass's rifle, knife and other equipment and dumped him into the open grave. They threw a bearskin over him and shoveled in a thin layer of dirt and leaves, leaving Glass for dead. But Glass did not die. After an unknown time, he regained consciousness to a very grim situation. He was alone and unarmed in hostile Indian territory. He had a broken leg and his wounds were festering. His scalp was almost torn away and the flesh on his back had been ripped away so that his rib bones were exposed. The nearest help was 200 miles away at Ft. Kiowa. His only protection was the bearskin hide. Glass set his own broken leg and on September 9, 1823, began crawling south overland toward the Cheyenne River about 100 miles away. Fever and infection took their toll and frequently rendered him unconscious. Once he passed out and awoke to discover a huge grizzly standing over him. According to the legend, the animal licked his maggot-infested wounds. This may have saved Glass from further infection and death. Glass survived mostly on wild berries and roots. On one occasion he was able to drive two wolves from a downed bison calf and eat the raw meat. According to Glass's own account he was driven by revenge. He told others that the only thing that kept him going was the thought of killing the men who had left him for dead. It took Glass two months to crawl to the Cheyenne River. There he built a raft from a fallen tree and allowed the current to carry him downstream to the Missouri and on to Ft. Kiowa, a point about four miles north of the present-day Chamberlain. After he regained his health, which took many months, Glass did indeed set out to kill the two men who had left him for dead. He found Bridger at a fur trading post on the Yellowstone River but didn't kill him because Bridger was only 19 years old. Glass later found Fitzgerald but didn't kill him either because Fitzgerald had joined the Army.

First Time Delegate!!!!!!

Attending the Washington City 66th Precinct Meeting was quite an experience for me. First of all, I was surprised at how many people showed up! People who have been much more involved than I have been said this was the greatest turnout they have seen. In fact, when all the slots were voted on there were enough candidates to fill all the slots without duplication. Down with Empathy!



The biggest surprise, however, was being voted in as a State Delegate. I certainly feel honored and humbled to be elected. In thinking about this I saw several issues being raised. Reaching back to my day job, which as a consultant I help clients win; either new programs, market share or ongoing projects, I realized it is important we "Define the win." This is what I do... spend a lot of time with clients on this definition. From a quick snapshot from the meeting I saw several "Win" possibilities:



1. Defeating Bob Bennett and sending him home to his grandchildren and great grandchildren.



2. Electing a candidate that has no ties to big business, and is a grass roots candidate.



3. Looking toward a more "Constitutional" sound candidate to help limit Federal involvement in State's business.



Interestingly enough if we define the "Win" as number 1 then we might have to comprimise on 2 or 3.



I can remember when My new bride (at that time...now married 23 years), Beverly, and I attended what was her first black tie event in Washington, DC. The keynote speaker was "Cap" Weinberger, then Secretary of Defense. He was speaking about the USS Stark that had just, that day, been attacked by an Exorcet missile. Beverly was sitting there in, her black crushed ice dress, taking in all the pomp and circumstance of the event. A then under secretary of the Army leaned over and asked her if this was her first event. She said it was and had she done something wrong. He smiled and said "No", you are the only one paying attention!



Although the Precinct meeting was my first meeting I know how to "Pay attention!



So help us "Define the Win". We are in a sprint to May 8th when the State convention will be held.



Please send this Blog out to your friends and neighbors so they to can respond. I want to know their concerns so that I can ask the right questions to help get the answers as to the person we feel has the best qualifications to represent the voters in our pricinct! Is our main concern jobs? Is it energy? Is it education? What are your concerns so that I can take the questions to the candidates? My first meetings with them begin Monday, March 29th...and my purpose is to represent you! Help me out, if you please.

Regards,

Bob Sands