WSJ: Dog, Pony and Veterinarian Show

[question everything]

On edit - added URL, below

Dog, Pony and Veterinarian Show

His grandfather founded General Mills, his father founded the Red Owl grocery chain. Imagine the disappointment, then, of Minnesota's Democratic/Farm-Labor Party when political novice Ford Bell, who announced for the U.S. Senate on Friday, nonetheless said he won't be financing his own campaign. Democrats who find something particularly appealing about his clotted portfolio of liberal talking points -- in favor of abortion rights and national health care, opposed to the Iraq war -- would have to reach into their own pockets, already stretched by an army of unfunded unknowns seeking the seat of retiring DFL Senator and department store heir Mark Dayton.

Mr. Bell, who sits on the boards of several charitable foundations, is a veterinarian by training, which might be helpful given the zoo he will encounter in his chase for the nomination. Of the numerous candidates who've entered the race or are contemplating doing so, only Amy Klobuchar, a Hennepin County attorney, holds public office. Patty Wetterling claims political experience based on her failed House race last year and her lobbying for child-protection laws after her son was kidnapped 16 years ago. Real estate developer Kelly Dornan, worth a reported $50 million, is a complete neophyte. Waiting in the wings is the undecided Mike Ciresi, a millionaire trial lawyer and tobacco beneficiary, who failed to win the DFL nomination in a previous run in 2000. He's said to be still reviewing his options and interviewing political consultants.

Minnesota is a swing state, all the more significant because of the purpling of its neighboring region, including Wisconsin and Iowa. Last year, John Kerry squeaked past President Bush by fewer than 100,000 votes. Democrats claim their hotly contested nomination will be a sign of strength and "diversity" compared to the GOP's regimented unity behind Rep. Mark Kennedy. A wildcard is the partial government shutdown in the continuing budget battle between GOP Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Democrats in the state Senate. If the controversy drags on, voters may have had their fill with shouting and chaos by next year, in which case Mr. Kennedy may continue his smooth sailing right into the Senate.

-- Holman W. Jenkins Jr.

http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=110007013

[kestrel91316]

1. That's "Doctor" Bell, folks ........................

he is a veterinarian and is entitled to respect for his chosen profession. You show that by using the degree title to which he is, ahem, entitled.

I am not yelling at anybody here, BTW, just making a point. We veterinarians can't seem to get ANY respect since we're not seen as "real" doctors.

[dflprincess]

2. And I seem to recall reading that

it's harder to get into a Veternary College that it is medical school and that a human is more apt to have a MD who really wanted to be a vet than your dog is apt to have a vet who wanted to be an MD.

[kestrel91316]

3. Absolutely correct on both counts!

Veterinary school is EXTREMELY competitive..........many people with nearly 4.0 averages can't even get in, and many people apply several years in a row before they get in. There are only about 25 vet schools in the US. There are LOTS of medical schools, and IMHO any fool can get into some of them if they halfway try.

As for MDs who wanted to be vets........I have on a few occasions in the privacy of the exam room been told by (older, male) MDs that they really wanted to be a vet but could NOT get into vet school, so they settled on human medicine. I do not know of a single vet who actually wanted to become a physician and couldn't get into medical school. I do know of one vet who went on to become a MD but he was never going to go into clinical practice; after vet school I think he got a MS in comparative anatomy, then went to medical school, then did a surgical residency and heaven knows what else and is now a pediatric neurosurgeon. We vets are the cream of the crop, you see!!!

[loveable liberal]

4. who's this clown judging our candidates? wtf does he know?

To be qualified to represent this country you have to have citizenship, ideas and the willingness to go through the process. This a/hole advocates qualifications that apparently only politicians have. WTF does he think is wrong with the process in the first place! We need new blood. Politics isnt rocket science for sh*& sakes. Look at the Effen presidunce, what has that guy ever done besides drive businesses into the ground and trade Sammy Sosa? (and snort coke, and drink like a fish and run over Scotsmen with his bike).

These people who talk about qualifications for being a politician dont know their ass from a hole in the ground.