Krusin' the Capitol
By Nebraska State Senator Lowen Kruse
Vol. 2 #9
2002
Hi
Hey, Kruisin the Kapitol in grand style this week. Someone brought in the
newest gadget for "personal transportation." (The first was our feet.)
Variously called "Segway" or its derivatives, it is the stand-up two wheel
gyroscope-balanced electric scooter. So I took a ride, to get the feel of it.
Was pleased to do this for personal reasons. Our son Doug did secret testing
of the wheel-chair model for a couple of years and commented on its smooth
and stable operation. The wheel chair, yet to be produced for sale, climbs
stairs, stands up so the person can talk eye-to-eye with someone standing,
etc. Goes most anywhere. Has mind-bending possibilities for handicapped
accessibility which is such a challenge with older structures. It wipes out
most barriers. Could be a major consideration for public policy.
Did you know you lean ahead when you start to walk? I did not. The
instructor told me to lean as though I was going to walk. I did and started
to move at a walking pace. You steer by twisting the left handlebar, back up
by leaning backward. If you run into something it immediately backs off.
You can put your fingers where the wheel runs over them and feel no
discomfort.
The promoters want us to consider replacing bicycles in traffic lanes or
create new lanes for this "segway" vehicle. That I doubt. Or a new
licensing system? Since its speed and space are so similar to a bicycle that
is a stretch. But for mail carriers and persons with bad knees it would make
a huge change.
The wheel chair backs up to stairs, and, finding a block, when the person
leans back it simply (!) picks up the front wheels, going over the back
wheels to rest on the first step and so on up the stairs. Doug, who is
naturally more inwardly-attentive to balance since his injury, says there is
no wobbling or sense of insecurity in the process.
In other krusin, we are looking for less wobble and more security in the
budget. The papers correctly report our committee's biggest concern is the
"out years" -- the budget in the next biennium. (Senators tend to focus on
the present.) Shifting funds now does not help then. We must make real cuts
and real adjustments in revenue. A few of the base cuts will not hold into
the future because if we do not [later] cover the loss a few offices would
not be able to fulfill their constitutional duties. However, the real future
threat is medicaid payments, which we can not control, and tax shifts to help
property taxes, which we can control but do not want to reduce.
The federal cut to our revenue from businesses [$35 million next year] will
be cared for, but I worry about the fairness. Some businesses are not going
to benefit from the cut but will have to pay extra to cover the revenue loss
from those who do benefit. Argh. I am grateful the governor has been bold
to help out. It is a lot more fun to run on a "reduce" platform, even though
all such platforms have been bogus for the last decade. Some one else has to
pay the bills as we continue to shift to basic support for families in
crisis, which the public now expects.
Nurses' pay in Vets Homes and rates for non-profit providers have been
heating up in the background and take a great deal of my time. Hopefully we
will be able to negotiate something that is fair and not have to shut down
services to some disabled folks who could be caught in the bind.
By the way, a few love to refer to this as a part-time job. I put in over
2,000 hours last year and will have over 700 hours in the first quarter of
this year. It is $6 an hour. Impressive to a fellow who was unemployed.
I am willing to take off some time to mow my lawn. When?
Lowen
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