Thumbs up
Pee Dee. It can only be good for business and the state’s economy if the S.C. State Ports Authority builds a new inland terminal in the Dillon area. Bring it on.
Juvenile crime. Front-end diversion programs are being credited with part of the reason for the state’s consistently declining juvenile crime rate over the last 13 years. And you thought investments didn’t pay off! More.
HPV bill. Hats off to the legislature for finally passing a measure to provide HPV vaccines to students entering the seventh grade. It should dramatically cut risks for deadly cervical cancer. More.
Clemson students. Pats on the back to Clemson students who participated in an 8-day sit-in to protest racial division on the university campus.
In the middle
Haley. Thumbs up to the governor for being named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people. More. But thumbs down on the whole “opaque money” thing of raising hundreds of thousands from a few rich donors to impact the state legislative process. That makes no kind of great day for most people. More.
Roads. A new bill that provides more than $4 billion for roads over the next 10 years moved to the Senate floor this week. The problem: It’s about $10 billion short for the time period it impacts. Lawmakers need to grow up and stop borrowing by voting in a higher gas tax that a vast majority of voters agree on. More.
Thumbs down
Viagra bill. Yes, it’s amusing that a female House member wants to restrict men’s access to medications that treat erectile dysfunction to make a point about how men shouldn’t make decisions impacting women’s bodies. Yes, it’s good to expose the hypocrisy. But it cheapens the legislative process, is a time-waster and clogs up the calendar.
Pension system. Don’t be surprised if underperformance at the state’s pension system continues for a few years, according to a warning senators got this week. It’s not surprising, in one sense, because lawmakers upped the expected levels of return a few years back to what many thought were unrealistic levels. More.
Citadel. Cadets don’t need guns in cars. Period. More.
Quotes: Voices for the voiceless
“President Obama and my husband were two God-fearing, charismatic black men dedicated to public service and to their wives and two daughters. They were both voices for the voiceless who got up with smiles when they got knocked down.”
— Jennifer Pinckney, wife of the late Sen. Clementa Pinckney, in a description of President Barack Obama, cited as one of Time’s 100 most influential people. More.
Living and learning
“They tore the wrong bridge down,” Hill said on the floor. “They tore down a perfectly good bridge.”
— S.C. Rep. Jonathon Hill, R-Anderson, on April 16 on the House floor in complaining about the Department of Transportation’s work on a load-restricted bridge in Oconee County.
“You live and learn.”
— Hill after learning that the DOT didn’t make mistake, he wasn’t right and didn’t check what he was told thoroughly enough. More.
We Can Do Better, South Carolina!