Category: Commentaries

Walt Rubel Commentary: Is income support program sustainable?

9/28/2023

I think we can cut to the chase regarding the city’s survey of those participating in its guaranteed basic income pilot program.

In 18 months, the responses will show that families who were given $500 a month by the government benefited in all kinds of positive ways, and nearby businesses also got a boost. Results are already in from similar surveys in different communities, and show pretty conclusively that people like free money.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Texas Senate chooses to look away

9/21/2023

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was indicted by a grand jury in 2015 on two counts of securities fraud and one count of failing to register with the state.

He allegedly defrauded investors in a tech startup company called Server Inc. He has thus far been able to delay the start of his trial. But, those criminal charges were not the reason Paxton had 16 articles of impeachment filed against him by the Texas House of Representatives, which is controlled by Republicans.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Wrong way to do the right thing

9/14/2023

Three years of absolute power under an emergency order issued during the COVID-19 pandemic have apparently convinced Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham that democracy is overrated.

Last week the governor bypassed the state Legislature and acted unilaterally to pass a 30-day gun ban in Bernalillo County. The ban will outlaw both open and concealed carry in all public places, even by those with a state-issued concealed carry license.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Richardson always wanted something bigger

9/7/2023

Bill Richardson was the most ambitious person I’ve ever met.

Our first meeting was when I was a moderator for a 2002 gubernatorial debate against Republican John Sanchez and David Bacon of the Green Party. Richardson was so unconcerned with his opposition that he instead focused on Democrats in the state Legislature, warning them not to get in the way of his big tax cut.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Shrinking labor unions flex their muscles

8/24/2023

Most of our national holidays are a celebration of people and events that seem far removed. Labor Day is for us; the American worker. Our summers are bookended by three-day weekends. Memorial Day demands that we somberly remember those who died in war. Labor Day makes no demands.

But we should be aware of its history. Along with celebrating workers, the holiday also recognizes the contributions made by labor unions in response to the robber barons of the 19th century who amassed obscene levels of wealth at the expense of workers.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Even Zoom recognizes its limitations

8/17/2023

My last paying gig was covering the state Legislature for its 2021 session, which was conducted entirely over Zoom to protect lawmakers and staff from the COVID 19 virus. It didn’t go well.

The Roundhouse was closed to the public, and lawmakers were allowed to stay home and phone it in, via Zoom. My favorite moment was when an older legislator from a rural part of the state attempted to participate in a committee meeting from his car in the McDonalds parking lot because it was the only place he could find an Internet connection. He couldn’t figure out how to turn the camera around, so we all got to look at his dashboard as he attempted to make his points.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Nation’s broadband effort lacks coordination

8/10/2023

The Communications Act of 1934 states that everyone in the United States should have access to rapid, efficient nationwide communications services, no matter where they live.

A decades-long national effort was launched to bring telephone service to the most rural parts of the country. A Universal Services Fund was created, adding a new fee to our monthly bills to finance projects that wouldn’t otherwise have enough customers to be profitable.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Compensate those harmed by atomic blast

8/3/2023

The movie Oppenheimer draws attention to the events at Trinity Site on July 16, 1945, and in the days leading up to the detonation of the world’s first atomic bomb. And then the scene shifts.

But for those living downwind from the blast, the damage and devastation to their lives and health caused by exposure to radioactive fallout was just beginning, and would play out in the decades to come.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Sixth Amendment can’t be ignored

7/27/2023

The Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to a “speedy and public trial.” The Speedy Trial Act of 1974 passed by Congress interprets that to mean an indictment within 30 days of arrest and a trial within 70 days of the indictment.

But that only applies to federal courts. In New Mexico, a backlog in the district courts has meant far too many defendants have been denied their Sixth Amendment right. The problem has been greatest in Albuquerque, leading the Legislature to pass the Bernalillo Criminal Justice and Review Act in 2013.

Walt Rubel Commentary: Too hot to focus on anything else

7/20/2023

Boy, it sure is hot today.

How hot is it?

It’s so hot I bought a loaf of bread and by the time I got home it was toast. It’s so hot my grandfather’s chicken laid an omelet. It’s so hot his cows are producing evaporated milk. It’s so hot the catfish are fried by the time you reel them in.

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