When you get stuck along Beach Road, better take the Middle Road. This is a website for those who choose to tread Saipan's off the beaten path. * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * +

Mar 2, 2008

Tina Sablan, Too Young?

Is Rep. Tina Sablan too young to be taken seriously up there in the Legislature? This is the buzz that we heard from some people, that the newspapers shouldn't be writing about her press releases or her stories at all.

Why not? "Because she's young and very idealistic," that's what they'd say to us.

But what do you think?

Cast your votes now ------->

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

Isn't ralph torres young? I guess it is better to be old and corrupt.

Middle road, your blog is getting lame. I'm going to saipan blogger's and turbitt's blogs. Their topics are better!

glend558 said...

What does age have to do with it.
She just hasn't been taught the lyin' cheatin' stealin' selfish good ole boys ways, hasn't yet, never will.
Honesty with transparency and age are not in parallel.
Did Stanley say this?

On Saipan said...

;-)

bigsoxfan said...

Sour Grapes, indeed. The older members of both houses should be challenged to rise to her level.

Anonymous said...

Tina is idealistic and she is young. How sad she can't be bought out and corrupted like the rest of the 16th. Tina is hot. I would support her any day.

Tamara said...

Tina is awesome!

Thanks for making my blog the pick of the week. What a nice surprise!

Lil' Hammerhead said...

This is just an excuse for them to continue business as usual. We need some idealism, instead of the same old cronyism and malaise.

Hey, thanks for the link by the way!

Anonymous said...

our legislature needs 12 more tinas......
we could also use a tina for gov and lt gov

Anonymous said...

I think Tina Sablan is a straight talker and her ideals make many of the other members wish they were like her.

Anonymous said...

The better question might be: Are a number of the legislators too old and entrenched in unprogressive, and self-serving positions and practices, that serve no long-term benefit to the Commonwealth.

Anonymous said...

Any legislators who have forgotten that they were once young and idealistic themselves have been in office too long and should step down.

Tina's problem is not that she is too young, it is that she is too enamored and trusting of the feds.
If she could just shake that off, she could really accomplish great things.

Brad Ruszala said...

my guess is that the taotao tano post wasn't from them since they labeled her as a betrayer...

tina should keep doing what she's doing. she may be young, but she's schooling them old dogs on the hill.

and yes, she is hot too...

Anonymous said...

age has absolutely nothing to do with performance.

there are old dumb folks
there are old smart folks
there are young smart folks
there are young dumb folks
there are old ones with no wisdom
there are old ones with wisdom
there are young ones with no wisdom
there are young ones with wisdom
there are old ones who show no respect
there are old ones who show respect
there are young ones who show no respect
there are young ones who show respect

the list goes on and on..

leaders are defined by their actions not by their age.

Anonymous said...

Albert Einstein and many others acheived at young ages. Young people have better eyesight, hearing, memory, and have keen senses compared to older folks. Younf people adapt to change easier and are not set in their ways compared with us elders.

In the end, the integrity, imaganation, and skill of a person does not wither with age either, so we expect Tina to take command here for a long time.

Dr. PNG political consultingonomics

BIBA OBAMA BOTA TINA

Anonymous said...

Her age is not the question. The fact that she has been a government paid bureaucrat all her working life makes her judgement suspect. She has not held a job where performance counts, only those where continuation of the agency and it budget counts. Time will tell whhether she is legislative material or not.

Lil' Hammerhead said...

It's pretty obvious her "judgement" is quite lucid and incorruptible. Why would her work in the environmental sector, whether for the government or on a volunteer basis make that judgement "suspect".

You are "suspect".

It's not time that will tell whether she is legislative material.. it is the willingness of many in the public to forego the typical enfamilia style of politics, the give-me politics, and the you scratch my back politics that have been the order of the day here. Tina is what "legislative material" should be. Let us hope she does not conform to meet what has become the less-than-honorable standard.

Anonymous said...

Tina is a disgrace to cnmi politics. How dare her be honest and push for transparency! Don't you know the cnmi government thrives off of corruption, hence uncle ben tan? I hope tina is the last of her kind because honesty will certainly tear down the ol' boys network, and that might mean real solutions to our problems. I will push for better corruption and hidden agendas and we can't have this with tina in office. Let us start a petition to get rid of that do gooder who still has not leased a new car or hired a secretary. She acts like her budget belongs to the tax payers! How crazy is that???

Anonymous said...

Tina must join the dark side of politics. She must get her hands dirty to be effective. Biba senator crisostomo!

Anonymous said...

Tina must join the dark side of politics. She must get her hands dirty to be effective. Biba senator crisostomo!

Brad Ruszala said...

ai adai...

Anonymous said...

Maybe she needs better 'handling'. During her vigil and march for those wonderful, honest, hard working non-residents with the heart wrenching stories I saw her with a filipino guy I caught urinating on my three year old daughter's tricycle in 2006 (it was gratifying to see that he still walks with a pronounced limp). Later I saw a photo of her in the company of a filipina known to have embezzled a bunch of money from a friend who runs a video rental shop.

But the whole 'Save the Non-Residents' crusade was naive. Who actually believed they were going to get free entry to the States? Surely her advisors must understand that the non-res' problems are rooted in their home countries. I have to wonder if it was the media exposure she was after.

Anonymous said...

i'm pretty sure that tina is not "handled". i'd also bet that tina doesn't regret doing what's right for the purpose of gaining political points.

Brad Ruszala said...

...and i think she doesn't regret breaking the congressional mold by being hot.

Anonymous said...

... certainly you refer to her intellectual and spiritual warmth.

Another 12 - 15 pounds on her frame and she'd be 'HOT'.

Anonymous said...

... and if she was just 'doing what's right for the purpose of gaining political points' she's already part of the system isn't she?

The other name for the 'enfamilia, scratch my back' political system is Democracy. Tough to see Tina making any significant changes there any time soon.

'Her budget belongs to the taxpayers'? That point has been made a thousand times. I didn't read the whole letter to the papers she wrote, but I don't recall hearing much about how she intends to spend her budget either.

She's an excellent oral and written communicator, which may well intimidate some of the folks around her.

I hope she does well. She could be the exception to the norm as represented by Warfield and Fernandez.

Anonymous said...

Joe "overturn article XII" Camacho is one of her handlers

Lil' Hammerhead said...

You don't "hope she does well" duckbanger. You are a supporter of the screwed up status quo. Considering she's driving her own car, hasn't hired any staff, hasn't had any picnic tables constructed, hasn't purchased any tents with her name printed on them and hasn't gone on a "fact-finding" mission to Manila.. I'd say your concern about how she's spending her budget, or rather, not spending her budget.. points to her uprightness and character.

On the other hand.. it sheds a questionable light on yours.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, well... there isn't enough room on the Internet to even begin to identify my character deficiencies, but no, I don't support the status quo locally or federally. Tina's a breath of fresh air, and so far hasn't displayed any chinks in her squeaky clean image, but is she really ready for prime time? Was her crusade for the non-rezzies well advised? Were some who initially supported her alienated by her support for them? Pure, unadulterated personal character aside, was this good politics? She can't do ANY good if she gets tossed after a single term.

Zaldy touched on this a bit in a recent editorial (sorry, is he from the OTHER paper?).

Middle Road should revisit this topic in a year or so.

Somebody from Rota told me that Doromal used be hot.

But back to my character, Lil- any pictures of you in a thong?

Unshaven?

Anonymous said...

... and size 38 Pradas?

Brad Ruszala said...

funny...but tina would lose hot points for gaining 12-15 pounds. not that she wouldn't still be fine, though.

she'd still be attractive and somewhat hot, but i wouldn't be able to honestly address her as "your royal hotness."

perhaps her title would be "she with most exceeding beauty."

Anonymous said...

To change the Status Quo :
1. Write letters to the Legislature demanding a redefinition of "public purpose" and "culture and tradition" when expending public funds -- it's such a broad, blanket definition in the law right now, and allows politicians to "donate" picnic tables, tents, water, cash, etc. to fiestas, rosaries, school fundraisers, and so forth.

In the past there have been attempts to better define those terms, but they have been watered down every time.

2. Get more people to run who think this practice needs to change.

Translate: saipanmiddleroad.blogspot.com

 

About this site

This site is the Saipan Middle Roaders' blog--the wannabes, the frustrated ones, and the repressed ones...

There are several thoughts that have been written on paper, online or on the walls of every NMI building's bathrooms.

This site is for the geeks, for the shameless bitches, and for the restless drunks.

This site is for everyone.

Disclaimer:

Posts on this weblog are entirely the authors' opinions and views only.