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Tom Holland

Analyze this: Opinion masquerading as news

Aug 23rd, 2010
by admin.
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John Milburn of the Associated Press published a piece today on the various education proposals of Republican Sam Brownback and Democrat Tom Holland. Entitled “Analysis: School funding crucial,” the piece highlights a tactic used all too often by the press to publish editorial pieces as hard news.

One must look no further for evidence of this than KAKE Channel 10′s website where a condensed version was published under the byline of the Associated Press with no mention of “Analysis,” “Opinion” or otherwise with it.

The fact is in the past decade, “Analysis” has become in vogue with the press to justify using opinion pieces as news. Some claim it to be the brainchild of the mainstream media attempting to further influence the electorate. More likely it is simply the symptom of a press corps seriously strapped for cash partly due to them being completely out of touch on how to report real news relevant to the public.

Whatever the reason, it’s clear they are written in an attempt to publish select facts and influence the public. In this instance, it appears Milburn is attempting to explain away Brownback’s superior proposals on education in Kansas. It’s interesting that in attempting to place blame on the courts rather than the politicians for out of control education spending, Milburn actually validates past arguments by conservatives that unelected judges in Kansas virtually control over half the state’s budget.

While in the actual piece this isn’t necessarily the explicit message, it’s interesting to note this piece from the KAKE Channel 10 revision.

Both Republican Sam Brownback and Democrat Tom Holland say they will focus on preserving what they see as an excellent system of K-12 schools. Where they differ is how they would steer the behemoth system that consumes more than 50 percent of the state budget.

History would suggest that it’s more likely that litigation, not pontification, will decide the course.

In the past two decades, action or the threat of from the Kansas Supreme Court has played a bigger role than activity in the Statehouse.

If these last two sentences are true, then that means that unelected and unaccountable judges control our tax dollars and how they are spent, not elected officials who represent the people. This stronger language by KAKE 10 shows the power of “Analysis” pieces by the press and how they can morph into a story of their own. It just so happens that KAKE happened to take the piece in a direction that highlighted past arguments made by conservatives.

The piece also once again highlights Holland’s curious stance against revising the state’s finance formula due to increased property taxes while simultaneously advocating for increasing a district’s local option budget.

In any case, the public can analyze this, “Analysis” is just another word for “Editorial.”

Holland was against property tax increases before he was for them

Aug 19th, 2010
by admin.
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Democrat Tom Holland, candidate for governor, has staked out an interesting campaign trail around the Kansas capital rather than in Kansas communities across the state.

It’s an interesting strategy that so far seems to be reaping what it is sewing. While Holland has consistently and loudly attacked Republican Sam Brownback from the halls of the state capital, he swung and missed when it came time for his innovative ideas on how to move Kansas forward.

The Topeka Capital Journal highlighted Holland’s non-sense best when it quoted Holland as saying Brownback’s education plan would result in, “significantly higher property taxes and guaranteed litigation.”

Too bad for Tom that Kansas schools have been suing the state for more than a decade and in fact won a verdict for more than $1 billion in additional funding, all under the direction of a Democratic administration. The state is faced with even more litigation this year, again under a Democratic administration. So far it seems to me and many Kansans that if a Democrat like Holland had a better idea, he’s had more than enough time to propose and pass it. Holland must be pretty dense to make such a statement in light of current and previous litigation.

But Holland just couldn’t stop himself and topped off his statement by expressing his support for… you guessed it… higher property taxes.

Holland said if elected governor he would maintain the state’s constitutional obligation to equalize opportunities for children while supporting a move to grant local school boards authority to raise additional property tax for schools through the local option budget process.

Tom, what do you think “local option budget process” means? Uhh, property taxes Tom, it means property taxes. And you just said you’d support raising them.

Tuesday we found out that Holland is just more of the same when it comes to what Kansas Democrats want to happen to our state. More money for the education bureaucracy, at a time when our state can least afford it, higher taxes and more government. That isn’t a detailed plan, it’s a hastily laid sketch for disaster.

While Holland has been screaming at the top of his lung, hoping to stick anything he can to his opponent, Sam Brownback has been touring the state, actually meeting with voters and fulfilling his promise to visit every one of Kansas’ 105 counties. So far Holland has become familiar with Shawnee County, especially the capital grounds, but so far has failed to meet many folks outside of that area.

A new KWCH/Survey USA poll shows that Holland is way behind Republican Sam Brownback. Brownback leads Holland 67% to 25% with a margin of error of only 3.9%.

It’s unfortunate that Holland has decided that campaigning means calling press conference after press conference at the capital and then saying one thing when he supports another. But perhaps Holland knows he doesn’t stand a chance against the Republican wave that’s coming to Kansas this November and this is just his last desperate attempt to spend as much time as he can in the capital.