Midwives and NASCAR ... and some thoughts from Isaiah

Allow me to begin today with a brief visit to the Bible:

"The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
And the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them."
Isaiah 11:6

Okay, folks ... this is not quite the approach of the Biblical "end of days" (at least we hope not) ... but we are approaching the "end of days" of the session. And, in a sense, the wolf is dwelling with the lamb ... or perhaps the leopard does lie down with the kid (goat).

Political polar opposites Senators John Loudon (R-Chesterfield) and Senator Chuck Graham (D-Columbia) have come to an agreement ... causing more than a few Missouri political observers to scratch their heads. (I leave it to you to decide which of the two is the wolf and which one is the lamb.) The agreement comes on Loudon's legislation to legalize midwifery in Missouri. Graham has blocked the effort in the past through use of the filibuster. But this year Graham has opted to allow a vote to move forward.

Of course, there is a reason for this. Graham sponsors a bill which would have a portion of a Boone County highway dedicated in honor of Columbia's own NASCAR superstar Carl Edwards. It wouldn't appear as though there would be too much opposition to this ... and, truth be told, there really isn't. But Loudon has seen an opportunity ... and has seized that opportunity. It has been made clear that if Graham filibusters the midwifery bill ... Loudon will filibuster the Carl Edwards bill. This goes to prove the quote attributed to gangster Al Capone: "You can get much farther with a kind word and a gun than you can with a kind word alone."

You know ... it's not often that the Bible and Al Capone are quoted in the same essay ... with the mention of Carl Edwards thrown in for good measure. But remember, folks ... we are approaching the "end of days" - of the legislative session, that is ... (at least we hope!)

Oh ... one more thing about this political "detente" in the Senate. Might it be permanent? Let's answer that by tossing Woody Allen into the mix of the Bible, Al Capone, and Carl Edwards. Said Allen: ''The lion and the lamb may lie down together, but the lamb won't get much sleep.''

- Steve Walsh

Comments

[Riggs]

Look into the real story: Graham sits on midwifery; Dr. Allemann withdraws from Graham's primary after session ends.

[Lea]

We're devoted NASCAR fans, Columbia natives and all our kids were born at home! This is a WIN-WIN situation for us. I'm so happy the senators got these bills passed!