Missing The Bigger Picture

It started when Owen Robinson posted his column regarding the limits of government, which includes this:

Time after time we are seeing the inherent limitations of our federal government. It is not capable of acting to correct our nation’s and world’s ills. It can’t plug the gushing oil well in the gulf. It can’t make companies hire people. It can’t thwart illegal aliens. It can’t create Mideast peace. It’s not a matter of desire; it’s a matter of capability. Our federal government is not God and has a limited capacity to effect change.

These are but a few recent examples of government’s inability to properly manage certain things. It’s not government’s fault. It would never be able to manage such complex events. It is our fault in supposing that our government should manage such events. In fact, wiser people would recognize that such events are properly resolved with creativity, assertiveness, and intelligence which government is naturally incapable of achieving.

This simple inadequacy of government to manage complex events is what makes me fear the coming onslaught of government-run health care. It’s one thing for President Obama to claim responsibility and authority of the BP oil spill as it continues to spew oil into the gulf. It’s quite another thing for President Obama to claim responsibility and authority for grandma’s next chemotherapy treatment.

Government has a role and a purpose, but it is necessarily limited because government can never be as flexible or creative as the private sector in finding solutions. Let us recognize the limits of government and turn to ourselves when adversity presents itself.

PaddyMac is besides himself with glee regarding Owen's post.

The Brawler points out that the government has been responsible for many great things, like reducing poverty among the elderly.

But what all three of these gentlemen miss is the obvious, bigger picture.

Where Owen said that the government will never be as "flexible or creative as the private sector" in fixing things, what they fail to realize or admit is that most often, as with the BP oil spill, it is the private sector that screwed it up so royally that the no one can fix it. It is also the private sector that then turns to the government to clean up their mess.

Friday Night Fischer Fry, Reheated

Cindy Kilkenny wraps up the ongoing saga of Fischer and his curious use of vacation time (emphasis mine):

I was right. Kevin Fischer used more vacation time in 2007 than he was allotted. Today I learned the state took a deduction from his January 2008 paycheck to true up the balance overused on 2007. Fischer had gone negative on vacation hours in 2006, too. That was 46 hours that had to be returned in 2007.

Kevin Fischer likes his vacation time. Let’s hope 2008 is a little more true to what he earns. The Senate administrator that just gave me a call indicates they are doing their best to tighten up these policies. He also indicates that there are very few employees that have this much trouble keeping their vacation resources in check.

You can read her entire post here.

No wonder the state budget is always in trouble if people like Fischer are involved. If he can't handle first grade math, how would he be able to handle big numbers. He just doesn't have that many fingers and toes.

I don't know what state policy is regarding this sort of behavior, or if it is different for someone in Fischer's position. Most jobs I have had would have considered this a cause for disciplinary action, including termination.

But in Fischer's defense, it is my understanding that he would, on the days he came in late to work, would make up for it by leaving early.

Friday Night Fischer Fry On Thursday

As I mentioned yesterday, Cindy Kilkenny was not with her investigation into Fischer. Today, she shares with us some of her findings.

She writes (emphasis hers):

When trying to determine vacation benefits, the senate human resource department sent me to this state benefit site. According to this, as an exempt employee with less than five years employment, Fischer should be using 120 hours per year of vacation. I don’t know if he has prior state employment that would increase the benefit. I do know he was let go from a TV station in October of 1996. Even if he had more, 5 to 10 years is 160 hours, and if he’s worked for the state since 1996 that would be 176 hours.

I’m getting somewhere with this, I promise.

Fischer consistently defends his time spent on WISN as his own. He takes vacation for it. When he filled in every day the week of 12/3 to 12/7, it’s on the time sheet for 2 hours each day. Lots of other WISN/vacation days line up, too. (He’s got most of the dates on his blog.) The wild thing is, in 2007 - even with September’s number unk(n)own - Fischer claimed (and Lazich signed off on) 209 hours of vacation. Ok, I thought, there’s something I’m missing.

I checked to see if compensatory or “comp” time is used. No, the time sheets all call these hours vacation, even though there is a box for “comp” time. An e-mail to Senator Lazich confirmed that she doesn’t keep overtime hours, so there’s nothing to draw against. Maybe it’s personal time - the site says employees gets an extra 4 1/2 days. Yes, there are actually 5 1/2 days or 44 hours called personal. The state gives 36, so I’ll back 36 hours off. That’s 173 hours of vacation sans September.

Her investigation is not complete yet, but it is looking like Fischer is practicing some of that Republican math to balance the time sheets. If her numbers keeping coming out the way they are looking, he's not looking too good.