Part-Time Pundit

Press Release - I’ve Filed a Lawsuit Against Illinois Over Ethics Tests

For background, see this.

The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois. The case number is 07-2012. Documents relating to the case can be seen at https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/bambenek/www/ig online.

Know Your Rights

Before you file a lawsuit make sure to find local attorneys who will do the job right. Whether you are looking for a workers compensation lawyer or are dealing with civil rights violations it’s important to have legal aid on your side. Don’t get stuck in the confusion of employment law, find the right attorney today!

January 27th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | Illinois, Law / Legal Issues, University of Illinois | 4 comments

Invasion of Privacy: State has no Business Mandating HPV Vaccine to School Kids

This appeared in the Jan. 21, 2007 News-Gazette under the title “State should stay out of patient-physician relationship”, as well as other Illinois papers

No one wants the government rifling through his or her bank accounts. The FBI has no business perusing your grocery lists. The right of privacy is clear in this country. With very few exceptions, the government has no reason to mandate that you tell them about your finances, your relationships, or your personal health.

That is why Representative Naomi Jakobsson’s bill, HB115, is unconstitutional. The bill requires that sixth grade girls receive the vaccination for HPV before going to public or private school. Many similar laws and proposals have cropped up in other states as well.

The decision to get the HPV vaccine should be between a woman, her parents if applicable, and her doctor. HB115 does not specifically require that girls entering the sixth grade get the vaccine, but it does require the disclosure of whether that vaccine has been administered or not. The school has no need of that information. The right of privacy dictates that the government cannot demand private sexual health information.

Schools have a compelling interest to know which students are vaccinated or not for diseases such as polio, mumps and the like. These diseases can be transmitted in the classroom where students are required to congregate. Even if parents choose not to vaccinate, the schools could use the information to contain an outbreak should one occur.

With HPV, no plausible or allowable situation would allow for the transmission of a sexually transmitted disease in school. Quite simply students aren’t allowed to have sex at school for obvious reasons.

Further, there is nothing keeping the government from making the HPV vaccine a recommended one for girls. Doctors can discuss the issue with parents and the girls and they can decide what is best for them. They don’t need Naomi Jakobsson, Rod Blagojevich, or anyone else deciding the matter for them. Neither do they need to have school officials looking over their shoulder.

Additionally, there are some serious concerns about the trials of the HPV vaccine that could pose risks for young girls. 17 people died during the trials and sixty percent of participants had side effects ranging from headaches to asthma to gastroenteritis. The vaccine contains aluminum which has been considered to cause problem in people. In clinical trials, the rate of problems between the placebo and the vaccine were similar. The placebo also contained aluminum.

In short there are significant concerns that the testing was flawed. In the recent past, drugs such as Vioxx proved to have problems after passing FDA testing. Rushing the drug to market and then sticking our daughters with it before all the facts are in and adequate testing is done is a dangerous gamble. The company that made Vioxx was shown to have used less-than-sound testing practices in getting the drug to market. Both Vioxx and the HPV vaccine are made by Merck.

Adopting new technologies, whether a vaccine, new medical treatment, or the latest version of Microsoft Windows, is best done in a cautious manner. The vaccine has only been approved since June, 2006. Rushing to make the drug mandatory smacks more of a government handout to Merck than a public health concern.

At $360 for the entire series, many poor women and girls will not be able to afford the vaccine on their own. If the state makes disclosure mandatory, that amount will likely be foisted on the tax payer. All in all, for the state of Illinois alone, Merck will profit $32.4 million per year out of such legislation.

If the drug is such a winner, doctors will have no problem selling it to patients. They don’t need politicians smashing through the wall of doctor-patient privilege to try to force the drug down the American public. Not just the right of privacy is at stake, but the legally protected doctor-patient privilege. Either Jakobsson doesn’t trust doctors to give the information or she doesn’t trust parents to make the right choices. Either way, it isn’t her business, or the business of the state of Illinois.

Assuming the drug is safe, vaccination should be the parents’ option to choose for their daughters or for women to choose for themselves. However, like all other health decisions, the right of privacy requires that the state butt out. Medical decisions should be between patient and provider and any intrusion without a significant government interest is unconstitutional. Schools exist to provide sound education for students, not to be a platform to force medical decisions down parents’ throats.

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Look into one of many online unversities today and further your eduction. It’s easier than ever to learn online and get a bacherlors degree in something you love, like politics! So look into a great online university today and discover the benefits of learning online!

January 25th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | Columns, Illinois, Politics | no comments

More on Baby

We’re all home now and got here on Thursday. Mom and Baby are both doing great. The baby’s name is Michael Joachim Bambenek. For more pictures, go here.

January 13th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | Misc | one comment

Baby pundit has arrived

On 1/8/07 at noon my wife gave birth to our 10 lb 8 oz son. All are well and are recovering…

January 10th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | Misc | 6 comments

Leak of Israel’s Plans to Nuke Iran Smells like BS

Drudge Report is splashing the news that the Sunday Times of London plans on reporting that Israel is planning a nuclear strike against Iran to head off Iran’s nuclear ambitions. According to Drudge:

Israel has drawn up secret plans to destroy Iran’s uranium enrichment facilities with tactical nuclear weapons, the SUNDAY TIMES of London is planning to report, British media sources tell DRUDGE…

At first glance, the entire story smells of a fabrication. The obvious reason being that if Israel had secret plans to nuke Iran, they likely wouldn’t have been leaked. If they did get leaked, the police better start dredging the Sea of Galilee for the bodies of those involved. More importantly this leak gives huge benefits to Iran.

Israel is not stupid. A tactical nuclear weapon would likely do very little for a protected underground bunker. It is possible that either Drudge or the London Times doesn’t know precisely what a tactical nuclear weapon is. However, the fact remains in order to really do damage to the facility an ICBM (a strategic nuclear weapons) would need to be used. The momentum of a missile coming down from low earth orbit would be necessary to burrow deep enough to do the damage desired. There is indication that even then, the strike might not be successful.

One simulation indicated it would require 400 or so missiles to do the job. At best, entrances and exits from the underground facility could be collapses and that would certainly delay the program. The radiation from the strikes would need to dissipate and the tunnels would have to be rebuilt. It is possible such a strike could be times when Iran’s nuclear weapons were being brought above ground, but that would be extremely difficult to pull off.

Iran’s move to build its nuclear program underground was brilliant. They learned the lessons of Iraq in 1981. However, the key defense of the move is also its biggest weakness. Namely, any nuclear weapon developed underground could not be used until it is brought above ground at already known locations. A nuclear strike at those locations would keep the weapons out of Iranian hands underneath irradiated soil. That move, however, is only a temporary solution.

It is likely that both Israel and the US have drawn up simulations and plans but every indication is that they are a last resort. The other fact is that these plans aren’t precisely secret, at least in general. Leaking the plans now, just shortly after sanctions have been levied against Iran indicate that the plans were likely not coming from Israel.

Iran’s general tactic has been to run the clock and delay as much as possible. This indicates that they are likely very close to being finished making nuclear weapons which would change the dynamics of diplomacy greatly. They have every incentive to keep stalling until they’ve met that landmark.

This plan, being leaked now in the way it was only gives more cover to Iran. The international community and human rights groups will likely jump all over Israel and demand investigations and action. Despite basically looking the other way of actual genocide going on in Darfur, they’ll jump to action on the rumor of a hypothetical “genocide.” We’ll skip past the international community’s non-response over Iran’s very public desire to commit genocide against Israel.

This leaking has every indication that it was done by Iran, or a supporter or Iran, to give more cover and time. While international eyes are peering at Israel, Iran’s program will continue undeterred.

See others: Blogs of war, LGF, Wizbang, Ed Driscoll,

January 6th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | International, Iran, Military / War, Politics, Sudan, United Nations | 8 comments

When Knowing Ethics Too Well is an Ethics Violation

The governor’s office is facing a lawsuit over disclosure of the many subpoenas received by our illustrious government. Pay-to-play scams, hired truck, and hiring scams are rampant in the government of Illinois. So what does the Executive Investigator General target for investigation? People who take the annual ethics test too fast because they know the material already (or have an IQ above 70).

The news has made the rounds in Illinois that people who took the ethics test too fast were declared to be non-compliant. It appears that I am one of the people who knows the ethics law too well and has a sound moral compass.

My response was less than kind. The reason for this is as follows:

1) I don’t take kindly to being accused of an apparent crime.
2) I really don’t take kindly to being declared guilty of an apparent crime.
3) It’s especially obnoxious that I’ve been declared guilty of an apparent crime without any investigation, hearing, trial, consultation, or any of those other things that general constitute a just government.
4) My wife is a week and a half overdue. While this is obviously more an issue for her than it is for me, we’re both frayed and this letter turned my mood from sour to downright shitty.

I was in a hurry to get it written before I left the office so there are some typos at the end. The other interesting thing I noticed is that although I said such a violation is apparently a misdemeanor, I’m not so sure that’s its the case after a closer look at the statute. Article 50 stipulates the penalties. The training is required in Section 5-10. The penalty section doesn’t actually assign a penalty for section 5-10 so it is entirely possible (this is the point where a lawyer can come in and clarify) that not complying with the Ethics training requirement cannot be punished at all.

I’ve decided to make this public because it’s a public record anyway. That and I’m sure some enterprising C-list blogger will think he’s terribly clever for filing a FOIA and then declaring me to be unethical to interject that into my campaign for the Unit 4 school board.

At first, I thought I was believed I was fine because I seem to remember going to the bathroom in the middle of the training. Apparently it was before or after I did the web-based training. The training was relatively simple and everyone I know could have taken the test without looking at the accompanying material and aced it. Do we really need web-based classes to say “Thou Shalt Not Steal”? I realize some enterprising lawyer probably got some political connected corrupt crony off because no one ever told him stealing was bad, but that’s not the world I live in.

The training was virtually the same as last year and the material is intentionally written to be easy to understand. Besides being familiar with the material because I took the same training before, I’ve been through the ethics process twice (on the filing end, not the receiving end) so I’m familiar with reporting, the duty to report and whistleblower protections. I also come from a family of lawyers which makes me somewhat of a rule monger. We won’t get into the fact that I read very fast.

My response is harsh, yes. However, I don’t take kindly to being declared a criminal without so much as a hearing. I called the University Ethics Office and was told the decision was unappealable. On top of that, I don’t appreciate Jimenez suggesting that we committed additional crimes by developing a cheat sheet. I’m not sure what kind of people Jimenez hangs out with, but the people I associate with don’t need a cheat sheet for a test that didn’t even require looking at the material to pass. For the record, I read the material online and the packet they sent with the letter because I am required to.

I revised the form they sent for me to sign so that it didn’t admit guilt or even recognize a crime or offense has occurred and sent it back in. I would imagine that I will see no further problems. I still do hope the OEIG might find something better to do with their time.

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One does not need a bathroom guide to tell if the bathroom design is ok or not. Similarly to buy bathroom vanities and other supplies, one does not need to have the experience of buying. However a bathroom guide can come in handy when you are about to get bathroom furniture and will help you in choosing the material. Not only that, but it also has some really useful tips on window washer and making the most out of shower curtains.
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January 6th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | Chambana, Politics, Unit 4 Race, University of Illinois | 2 comments

Press Release: John Bambenek Declares Intention to Run for Champaign Unit 4 School Board

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 5, 2007

Contact: John Bambenek
217-493-0760 / jcb.unit4@gmail.com
http://www.parttimepundit.com

Champaign, IL - - On January 5th, 2007, Champaign resident John Bambenek declared his intention to run for the Champaign Community Unit School District #4 school board. The election is being held on April 17th to fill the four seats and one special election that is currently up for election. He is running for one of the four open seats for a full four year term.

Mr. Bambenek currently works as a research programmer for the University of Illinois at the Coordinated Science Lab. His duties include system and network administration as well as a small amount of information security research. He recently gave a presentation in Washington DC on information security and identity theft.

Before joining the University, he worked for Ernst & Young and Capgemini Ernst & Young as a project manager and senior consultant. He worked with many of the top Fortune 500 companies. He is also a freelance columnist and blogger writing on political and cultural issues.

In explaining why he is running for the school board, Bambenek said, “Unit 4 has been a frequent target of my criticism both in my columns and on my blog. I could either continue to complain or roll up my sleeves and try to fix it. I choose the later.” Mr. Bambenek is currently scheduling meetings with various community groups and individuals to gather input on the school system. He hopes to restore trust in the school system that was lost in recent years due to actions surrounding the consent decree and other problems.

Mr. Bambenek currently serves as the executive director of the Tumaini Foundation, a Champaign-based not-for-profit. The Tumaini Foundation is a charity that supports rural Tanzania schools by sending them much needed school supplies, medical supplies and computers.

For more information please contact John Bambenek at 217-493-0760 or via email at jcb.unit4@gmail.com.

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January 5th, 2007 Posted by John Bambenek | Chambana, Elections, Politics, Unit 4 Race | no comments