I just stumbled across blog post by Linda Stephans that casts a more critical eye on Jon Powers than we usually get around here.
Compared to Kryzan and Davis, Jon Powers has an exceedingly thin resume. He joined the army to get the education benefits and was sent to Iraq. After he returned to civilian life, he became a part-time substitute teacher.
The one thing that he could really boast of in his campaign was a nonprofit organization he started called War Kids Relief, meant to help Iraqi youth. Now, the Buffalo News reports that the War Kids Relief isn't all it's cracked up to be. Read their story HERE. Seems Powers puffed up things to grab the interest of the media and may have profited from the project more than he should have.
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Oh, one more thing about Powers. He's a flipflopper par excellence. Example: At the start of his campaign, he told Democrats for Life he was on their side about abortion. Didn't believe in it, couldn't support it. Then, when he talked with Planned Parenthood, he told them he was pro-choice all the way.
That ploy came back to bite him. The head of Dems for Life in New York had contributed money to his campaign. When she found out Powers was telling folks he was pro-choice she asked for her money back.
There's no link or other evidence to back up the allegation.
It should be noted, as to the charge that Powes resume is thin: He was a captain in the armed forces during a time of combat. That is a heck of a line or anybody's CV.
This is the same Linda
This is the same Linda Stephens, I would presume, that according to <a href="http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/dcdev/forms/C00438374/332910/sa/ALL">A… Kryzan's April filing</a>, gave Kryzan $500. So while she tries to paint herself as fair by including Davis in the fold, it's hard to argue fairness when you have cut a check for $500 to Kryzan.
When I write, everyone knows who I support. I have told people as much for the last 13 months. I don't think shilling for a candidate is necessary, especially when your name can be searched on the FEC (or NYS BOE) website and we can follow the money trail.
As to the Kryzan
As to the Kryzan supporter's reference to War Kids, here's a perspective from somebody who was much closer to the issue than the Davis-inspired article she references:
http://www.buffalonews.com/149/story/412561.html
And as to the pro-life/pro-choice issue, its been repeatedly addressed, and Ms. Stephans is rehashing old talking points she harvested from the Davis campaign.
As to the candidate she supports, Alice Kryzan was one of the attorneys who defended the chemical companies in the Love Canal lawsuits.
I read Ms. Stephens blog. It began in December of 2007 in coordination with Senator Clinton's announcement. She takes people to task for supporting Obama instead of Clinton. She takes people to task for supporting Powers instead of Kryzan. Ms. Stephens seems to invoke a running theme regarding age being an important qualification for holding office. http://womenwopinions.typepad.com/women_with_opinions/2008/01/age-and-o… And this from the post Howard referred to: "...Imagine, if you will, a young woman Powers' age (He is not yet 30.) asking for serious consideration to represent us in the US House of Representatives, and her main work experience was being a substitute teacher, part-time at that. She would be laughed at, mocked. It's more of that double standard business, I guess." She frames it both as an example of misogyny and ageism.
My opinion, obviously biased, is that Ms. Stephens has issues with young people. And especially with young men.
Well, as to the bias issue --
Well, as to the bias issue -- that's why I pointed out Mr.Powers military record. From a leadership perspective, serving honorably in the military as an officer is hard to match and doesn't hold up to scrutiny in her "woman candidate" hypothetical, since she doesn't mention military service in that example.
Everyone knows who I support
Everyone knows who I support too, Jon Powers. There is no more demanding and honorable job than being a Captain in the Army in a war zone. Powers served honorably and then went back into the war zone. His admirable efforts to start WKR are more than Jack Davis or Alice Kryzan or even Chris Lee attempted. His other work was on behalf of veterans, as adeptly conveyed by Michael Tucker's essay in The Buffalo News (Tucker was there on the ground in Iraq with Powers and he knows the tough job Powers handled admirably in the war zone).
I'm so sick of people saying Powers' resume is "thin" when he served 15 months in Iraq during a war, he returned to Iraq as a private citizen, and he toured the country on behalf of our veterans, working to make their lives better. THAT is a stellar resume by any standards.
This is tearing down an American soldier and patriot and I'm not letting anyone off the hook by their feeble attempts to innoculate themselves by prefacing their thinly veiled comments with "We're not criticizing Powers' service..." Yes, they are, that is precisely what they're doing by questioning Powers' benevolent and sincere attempts to do something positive in the face of war and its atrocities and then when he came home to work on behalf of our veterans.
I'm not sure the people who
I'm not sure the people who say his resume is too thin are trying to demean the man or his service -- I just think they don't really appreciate the value and accomplishment of commissioned military experience.
I agree, but that ignorance
I agree, but that ignorance bothers me. I have immense respect and admiration for our soldiers at any level and I get sickened by those who purport to be patriots and yet they fail to appreciate the horror of war, the sacrifice of life and limb, the excruciating toll the war takes on our men and women, the training, the skills, etc. Being a patriot is more than saying it, it's demonstrating it. Step one is respecting and honoring our soldiers and recognizing that it is the toughest job.
Why are people dogging Jon
Why are people dogging Jon Powers? Well, thats probably because Jon Powers is winning this race.
Jack Davis' calling for immigration restrictions on H1B visas in farm country shows a serious disconnect from the concerns of ordinary Americans. His outright bribing of the independence party shows a committment to ethics that can be described as lip-service at best, regardless of the 'apology' that he made which only came after a hailstorm of criticism.
He also claims that people are somehow 'apathetic' and that 'apathy' is the reason why his speeches are so poorly attended (http://www.lockportjournal.com/local/local_story_213000836.html) while Jon Powers is getting 70 people to come see him at a local union hall, or well over a hundred at a local event in Livingston county over the weekend. His message is playing well.
People aren't apathetic, they are passionate about changing this country, they just don't like Mr. Davis, I've made over 500 voter contacts since I started volunteering for Jon Powers in January, I've only talked to 6 or 7 people who claim outright support for Mr. Davis.
From my contacts, its clear to me why most people aren't supporting Jack Davis and subsequently don't attend his events. He has a silver foot in his mouth.
As for Mrs. Kryzan, she hasn't ever been a real factor, she can't seem to run an effective enough fundraising and grassroots organization to make a profound impact. She's also been forced to loan her campaign a substantial amount to make up for those inefficiancies. (fec.gov)
Mr. Davis and Mrs. Kryzan are attacking Jon Powers because they know that he's beating them both.
Voters want their next Congressman to remind them of the person that they work with, not the person who laid them off.
Bring on Chris Lee, we're ready for him!
Howard, the more I think
Howard, the more I think about it, the more I think those who say Powers' resume is too "thin" are trying to demean him. They're essentially saying he's not experienced enough and in the same breath they dismiss his very real and demanding job as a Captain in the Army, as if that somehow is not a "real" job. They further demean him by unfairly misrepresenting his work as a private citizen.
Again, they don't get a pass with that prefaced comment "We respect his service, but..." No, there is no pass. If you respect someone's service, then take the time to at least learn what that service entailed. After that, then tell me his resume is "thin." Watch "Gunner Palace" to see a glimpse of a really tough job.
How many of us go to work every day where one of our main priorities is not to get shot and killed by insurgents or to prevent our employees from being killed? Every second of every day??? How many of us go to work every day where our orders come down from the White House and the Pentagon? How many of us go to work every day on 2 or 3 hours of sleep in a sweltering desert with sandstorms? On a Humvee?
It's frustrating to see American flags flying on porches, emblazoned on car magnets, embroidered on t-shirts across the country, wearing our patriotism literally on our sleeves, and yet we have people who say that Powers' resume is "thin." Some patriotism. Real patriotism is in the heart, in our actions. Understand what a soldier does, then try thinking of his resume as "thin."
Ms. Stephens misses the
Ms. Stephens misses the mark with her claim about Jon's 'profit' from War Kids. It must be reassuring to her to know that every noble endeavor she's ever undertaken met only with unparalleled success. It would almost have to be the case or her blog postings would sound bitter.
http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/419607.html