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Transcript

Back From Vacation · Commentary - TJ Meadows

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Some thoughts post vacation. Let's begin with the state track
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: meet BPJ one an event. Many people are unhappy about it.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: I understand that, I understand why I've made my own
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: position on the broader issue abundantly clear. But some have
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: chosen to make this personal about the child. Don't do that.
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: Life is difficult enough for children without adults directing anger, ridicule,
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: or hostility toward them. Whatever one thinks about the policy
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: questions involved, those questions should be directed toward institutions, courts, lawmakers,
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: and governing bodies, not a child navigating incredibly difficult circumstances. Likewise,
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: some have chosen to direct their frustration toward the SSAC.
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: That is misplaced. The SSAC did not create this situation.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: The Fourth Circuit did. The association is operating under a
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: legal framework imposed upon it. Blaming the organization for complying
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: with a federal court ruling is akin to blaming the
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: mail carrier for the contents of the life pointless. Whether
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: one agrees with the Fourth Circuit or not, that is
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: where this disagreement belongs, and it remains highly likely that
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: the Supreme Court will ultimately reverse the Fourth Circuit's decision.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: To countermand West Virginia Law on the issue. Patience is difficult.
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: Personal experience has taught me that repeatedly. But difficult as
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: it may be, faith in the system remains warranted. Our
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: system is imperfect, but it works, sometimes slowly, sometimes frustratingly,
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: but over time it works, and I believe it will
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: work here as well. And finally, while I was away,
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: the governor's press office took another public shot at West
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: Virginia Watch reporter Amelia Nicely frankly, it seemed pointless. Nicely
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: reported that the governor is considering providing sixteen million dollars
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: to start Academy, a for profit organization. She also reported
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: the Star Academy CEO, John Alvenita donated nearly forty two
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: thousand dollars to Governor Morrissey's campaign and affiliated political action committees,
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: a fact first reported by The Wall Street Journal. In response,
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: the governor's communications director called the story completely manufactured. What
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: exactly was manufactured? What fact is being disputed? Nicely drew
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: no conclusion, She offered no accusation. She simply presented information
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: that many citizens would reasonably find relevant. Perhaps some in
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: the administration would prefer that information receive less attention. That's understandable,
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: but what is reported or not is outside their purview.
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: There's a good reason for that, just as there's a
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: good reason for the First Amendment. If the optics surrounding
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: donor relationships are problematic, there are straightforward solutions. Don't take
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: the money or publicly distance yourself. For organizations that do,
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: responding with outrage rather than a measured counter argument. When
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: a reporter does her job, often creates more questions than answers.
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: As Hamlet famously observed, the lady doth protest too much, methinks.
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: For those who are not spere enthusiasts, the meaning is simple.
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: When someone denies something with extraordinary vigor, observers sometimes begin
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: to wonder why no conclusions here either. The people of
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: West Virginia are perfectly capable of drawing their own and
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: that is exactly what they will and should do. It's
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: good to be back with you.