Thursday, July 18, 2013

No Discernable Qualifications

Our good friend, Instapundit, linked to an article by Peter Wood about Janet Napolitano being hired as the new head honcho of the University of California system, which means she's the boss at not 1, not 2, but upwards of 10 University of California campuses. Now, I suspect this is a bit like being hired as the President of the Federation of Planets: He or she is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the government, setting and coordinating foreign policy, and dealing with resource distribution issues.
The Federation President is also the commander-in-chief of all Starfleet University forces.

 That makes it sound like the role is a big deal, but in my memory of the show and movies, the President mostly spends a lot of time fretting while an intrepid, variously-rogue, group of Starfleet officers takes care of the actual problems. Which has no direct correlation but does make me wonder why the Presidents of each particular UC are paid so much.

Is this a President/Governor sort of situation? The President has a lot to do, or at least a lot he should be doing even if he spends much of his time looking annoyed and not doing things. The title of the article itself is "A Disastrous Choice." Which I don't have any quibbles with, except for the obvious hyperbole.

Napolitano is not going to cause California to break free from the continent, nor likely be the root cause for a plague of locust descending on the Central Valley. But, there's an argument for being a bad choice, probably lots of arguments.

 When Wood notes that she has "no discernible qualifications," however, I get to thinking the hyperbole is continuing.

 Now are they the best qualifications? Are they the most suitable for the present crises? Maybe not. But qualifications can in fact be discerned. She was governor of Arizona. She was in charge of Homeland Security. Two pretty big bureaucracies. Governor and Director are pretty important qualifications for managing a lot of different departments and a big budget and, possibly, the University forces. That's not why she was hired, though.

Why was she hired? What is she bringing to the table and why does it matter so much that they'd risk the clearly controversial choice (being that she has no background in Academia, and academics get feisty when someone moves in on their territory because there's a lot of jobs outside academia and only like five per year open up in academia).

I suspect there's a Federal funding interest here, but maybe the UC system is in fact planning to militarize and needed someone with civilian experience to lead the UC Junta. That may or may not be more disastrous than our present state government.

37 comments:

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

The higher up you go, the thinner the brief case.

Trooper York said...

Terry Tingloff: All right, one thing ya gotta understand: I could've been a man's coach. Backfield coach, Oregon State: I had the job, I had the job, I actually had the job. You understand? I had the job. Ah, well. Coach of the year. I was coach of the year last year. You know what that means when you're a womens' coach? Jack shit. I mean I could have coached football. Do you actually think that Chuck Knoll has to worry that Franco Harris is gonna cry 'cause Terry Bradshaw won't talk to him? - Hmm? - Jack Lambert can't play because Mel Blount hurt his feelings, that Lynn Swann is pregnant, that Rocky Bleier forgot his Tampax.
(Personal Best, 1982)

rhhardin said...

She's going to bring the roller derby to college sports.

Sydney said...

Maybe they want to get in on all that data collecting action.

Shouting Thomas said...

This girl can really lick....

All the problems facing UC.

OK, so that's two comments.

That's it!

KCFleming said...

Softball tournaments and Indigo Girls concerts will be very popular on UC campuses.

What possible difference could it make if someone had educrat experience?

It's a bullshit world they live in, selling overpriced classes to undercapitalized and gullible young people who cannot turn that sow's ear into a silk purse.

All they'll get is permanent debt and a low level service job.

Plus activism. That they'll be good at.

Trooper York said...

Corky: When you get tired of Cagney and Lacey, find me
Big Sis: I'm ready.
(Bound, 1996)

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Nice touch Paddy.

Joe Schmoe said...

Well, on the bright side, she doesn't have any private sector experience. You know, the place Obama referred to as enemy lines. And she's got enough chits to qualify as a lefty folk hero (Anita Hill's lawyer, calling out the Tea Party as more dangerous than Islamic terrorists, etc.)

KCFleming said...

I'm looking forward to the always-on dorm-room monitors.

edutcher said...

She's a name.

Be interesting the first time she goes nose to nose with Moonbeam.

Hagar said...

In defense of Napolitano's stint as Secretary of Homeland Security it might be noted that no one on this earth could "manage" that monstrosity. Her job was to sit there and take the flak, which she patiently did.

And being president of the California university system might be a very similar position.

Otherwise, she is not a "native of Albuquerque." She was born in New York, and her father served a stint as itinerant university presdent at UNM and then moved on. That is it.

test said...

Pogo said...

All they'll get is permanent debt and a low level service job.

Plus activism. That they'll be good at.


Moire likely they'll get a government or NGO job. At that point they'll lobby government to increase their pay to equal that of productive people claiming that they have the same shiny piece of paper and therfoe it is only discrimination preventing it. And the government will give it to them (incrementally) because they can.

They'll also lobby for the government to repay or forgive student loan debt, so the pressure for people to increase production will be further eroded.

KCFleming said...

Ha. Much more likely, Marshal.

test said...

"Moire"

This is the French spelling by the way. I routinely intersperse foreign spellings in my English. Please presume all such odd visuals are correct spellings of foreign languages with which you are not familiar.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

If the UC system is planning to militarize, they are going to have big problem with UC Santa Cruz (mascot the banana slug) and with a student body that is mostly stoned, left over hippie wannabes, surfer dudes and dudettes. Trying militarize that crew would be like trying to herd cats.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

I would like the following comments to be taken in the spirit of collective blogging ecumenicalism that has taken over this particular commentariat.

President of the UC system is the easiest gig this woman has had in at least a decade. Why not tackle something a bit more substantive?

For instance, why would any one want the neocons to return to power in the form of Liz Cheney. Having largely freed themselves from the jackboot of the Bill Kristol faction of the party, why seek re-enslavement? Rand Paul offers an alternative vision, that after the debacle of the Bush/Cheney years should now look very attractive. Does anyone seriously believe that Liz Cheney is acting in the best interests of the party or the country, as opposed to the very narrow interests of her backers.

Joe Schmoe said...

DBQ, don't underestimate the awesome power of the 'drum circle' pincer movement.

Methadras said...

I wonder how many rounds of ammo the UC system campus police will start ordering soon? You know, it's for their target practice and stuff.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

DBQ, don't underestimate the awesome power of the 'drum circle' pincer movement.

LOL. They will have to get rid of those jingle bells first since they are a dead giveaway in a guerrilla style movement. "I can HEAR you"

Now she might also have some problems with UC Davis as well, but for different reasons. Those aggie rednecks are not really very interested in supporting a governmental militarized coup. They have their own resources and a really good support group from their redneck homies.

They could organize the cows and pigs as a counter attack support group. Have you SEEN the results of a pig stampede! Plus they would not run out of food.

Methadras said...

AReasonableMan said...

President of the UC system is the easiest gig this woman has had in at least a decade. Why not tackle something a bit more substantive?


She brings her prestige but with 3 times the payrate and a millionth of the bullshit and she can fade back into obscurity. Simple equation.

For instance, why would any one want the neocons to return to power in the form of Liz Cheney. Having largely freed themselves from the jackboot of the Bill Kristol faction of the party, why seek re-enslavement? Rand Paul offers an alternative vision, that after the debacle of the Bush/Cheney years should now look very attractive. Does anyone seriously believe that Liz Cheney is acting in the best interests of the party or the country, as opposed to the very narrow interests of her backers.

You do understand that this 'example' is thinly veiled attack in the form of 'It's Bush's fault'. Your screeds are transparent. Try harder.

Joe Schmoe said...

ARM, I'm having a hard time following your thought. So you think Napolean Napolitano should resign from Homeland Security, set up residence in Wyoming, switch parties to being a Republican, run against Liz Cheney as a third primary contender, hopefully win in 2014, then challenge Rand Paul for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016?

A bit more substantive indeed.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

Methadras said...
You do understand that this 'example' is thinly veiled attack in the form of 'It's Bush's fault'.


Not at all. Given that a retreat from a neo-conservative foreign policy and a return to realism is in the best interests of both the Republican party and the country why would anyone support Ms Cheney's bid to unseat another Republican? Bush doesn't enter into the discussion and I am surprised you feel the need to bring him up.

Icepick said...

Napolitano is not going to cause California to break free from the continent, nor likely be the root cause for a plague of locust descending on the Central Valley.

Yeah, sez you. But who know what kind of weapons she managed to steal from DHS, especially the weapons invented by various evil super-geniuses. For all you know she has a machine that can cause sharknados at the touch of a button. Or cause more Sharknado movies to be made!

Methadras said...

AReasonableMan said...

Methadras said...
You do understand that this 'example' is thinly veiled attack in the form of 'It's Bush's fault'.

Not at all. Given that a retreat from a neo-conservative foreign policy and a return to realism is in the best interests of both the Republican party and the country why would anyone support Ms Cheney's bid to unseat another Republican? Bush doesn't enter into the discussion and I am surprised you feel the need to bring him up.


Your assessment, wrongly, assumes that Liz Cheney is a Neo-Con. I don't suspect she is. In fact, I've always maintained that the label of Neo-Con was a false moniker set about by the left and it stuck like all things that the left is good at in manipulation of language. You brought up the Bush/Cheney administration as a debacle. I don't believe that it largely was. History will prove this out. Now, I can concede some policy issues weren't in favor with what I expected them to be and the fact that I never liked nor wished to hear the term compassionate conservativism because it simply meant "give us your money by force."

Amartel said...

Musical chairs in the government crony complex. The rubes want qualifications? We don't need no steenkeeng qualifications?

Amartel said...

A plague of locusts would just die in the Central Valley. Not enough sustenance. Smaller dispersed working groups (SDWG) of locusts would be better suited, provided they filed the appropriate paperwork and permits, including EIRs, and, of course, advanced funds to sources in Sacramento.

Aaron said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Birches said...

I didn't mind Napolitano as governor. We had some pretty crappy governors and for the most part, she was pretty moderate and acceptable. But she left for Homeland Security just as the crap hit the fan, which showed me she didn't really have it in her to govern.

Oh crap, I just realized, she's a woman Obama

test said...

AReasonableMan said...
Does anyone seriously believe that Liz Cheney is acting in the best interests of the party or the country, as opposed to the very narrow interests of her backers.


How reasonable is it to conclude this before they candidate has even laid out their program? It says more about bias than anything else.

Mitch H. said...

Hell with all that political crap - frankly, I think the UC system deserves someone like Napolitano - let's talk about something important:

Why's she dressed like T'pau? Or maybe General Ursus?

Roger J. said...

I read the comments on glen's foot. The gentlemen making them is an old fashioned academic who still believes academe is a place where people can come together and talk about ideas--its a great thought, but alas academe is all about money-mostly overbloated administrative staff and football contracts. The shining city on the hill that was academe vanished many years ago--buried in the detritus of 100 vice presidents.

Don't know if big sis is up for the job, but academe need administrators who can crack heads and get read of the dead wood. Please recall that Dwight Eisenhower took the job of president of Columbia after his successful WWII gig.

Roger J. said...

oops--somehow glen's post became glen's foot--apologies

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

Methadras said...

Your assessment, wrongly, assumes that Liz Cheney is a Neo-Con.


There has never been much debate about this since she hews pretty closely to her father's policies. But, don't take my word for it, read what Rand Paul has to say. This is, to my mind, the most important question regarding the countries future. Are we going to continue with the relatively conservative foreign policy of Obama or are we going to swing back to the belligerent, expensive and unproductive policies of the neo-cons.

Mitch H. said...

There has never been much debate about this since she hews pretty closely to her father's policies.

If you still, after all this time, don't comprehend that Dick fucking Cheney is NOT A GODDAMN NEOCON, then there isn't much humanly possible that could actually bring your mind back onto a reality vector.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

Mitch H. said...
If you still, after all this time, don't comprehend that Dick fucking Cheney is NOT A GODDAMN NEOCON,


I think you are out of step with the mainstream on this one.

Certainly Kristol and the like view Liz Cheney as a fellow traveller.

Mitch H. said...

Certainly Kristol and the like view Liz Cheney as a fellow traveller.

That as may be, but you explicitly stated that she inherited neoconservatism from her father as if it were a mutant gene. Even that wiki article - and only lunatic morons use Wikipedia for contemporary politics, the wiki model is a hopeless sewer when it comes to partisan issues, left or right - notes that there's a "Criticism of terminology" when it comes to labeling plain-old-conservative Republicans like Dick Cheney adn Don Rumsfeld, and Condi Rice as "neocons". A classic "neocon" ought to have originally been a liberal, leftist, Trotskyite, or Democrat - people like the Kristols, the Podhoretzes, Wolfowitz, Jean Kilpatrick, Moynihan, and so forth.

Or, if you're a conspiracy-monger, at least somebody who studied under Strauss or Allan Bloom - still not Dick Cheney.