Citizen Staff Writer
CARLOCK COLUMN
Editor’s note: Judy Carlock reviews the week with a healthy dose of attitude.
Get it right. Get it fast. Sometimes the two conflict.
And sometimes people change their minds.
Relying on FoxSports and good sources, the Citizen reported online Sunday that Sean Miller had rejected the University of Arizona’s offer to become its next head basketball coach. Sports staffers updated the story throughout the day as new bits of information emerged.
The copy desk prudently added a question mark to the print headline. Question marks are wonderful, but easy to overuse.
Tuesday, we reported that UA had struck gold in its quest to find a permanent successor to Hall of Famer Lute Olson.
Miller said he didn’t know if he ever said yes or no. It was suggested a $1 million signing bonus may have tipped a decision in a full-court press for the Xavier coach.
Well, either way, I hope UA landed a winner.
And if the Citizen erred – well, even with the paper publishing day-to-day, there’s always tomorrow.
So far.
FIRING HEIN: The City Council’s 4-3 vote to ax City Manager Mike Hein says more about the council than it does about Hein. Such deep divisions can make it hard to get anything done – for better or worse.
Somehow over the years, city officials, using varying vocabularies, have managed to mix things up so much the council can’t tell if it’s broke.
Shortfall, deficit, gap, negative growth, anticipated revenue, actual disbursements. I see how it could happen. And Hein’s the guy who should have seen past the snow jobs, even the ones dating back years.
That doesn’t mean he would never get it sorted out. Now he won’t have the chance.
A 3-4 vote would have saved his job. And could have made his life a whole lot worse.
LEGALIZE IT? If Mexican cartels traffic chiefly in marijuana, any Libertarian could offer a foolproof formula to prevent thousands of deaths: Legalize it.
Somehow I doubt that idea will gain traction with the federal government.
Arizona voters twice voted to allow its medical use and later changed their mind. California suppliers of medicinal weed operate relatively free of interference. But under the U.S. Controlled Substance Act, marijuana ranks as a medically useless drug that can’t be prescribed under any circumstance.
I don’t advocate legalizing heroin and crack. But pot? As drugs go, it’s one of the safest around.
You probably won’t see it taxed and branded. This bud’s not for you.
TELL ME ANOTHER: If President Obama really thinks he’s Superman, he’s headed into a kryptonite minefield.
Obama plans to begin addressing immigration reform this year, “including looking for a path for illegal immigrants to become legal,” according to The New York Times.
People who stand up and cheer when illegal immigrants die crossing the desert are a minority, but a very vocal one. Many others are more moderately opposed. A recession seems like a horrible time to press the issue.
Especially if Obama wants a bipartisan bill.
He could win some Republicans, those who see an accurate inventory of who is in the country as a step toward securing the border.
The risks, though, are staggering. For the 2010 midterms and the second term he will surely seek.
Contact Judy Carlock at 573-4608 or at jcarlock@tucsoncitizen.com. For more on these stories, see her column at www.tucsoncitizen.com.
Like hoops, reporting news can be fast-moving game