Andy Biggs' evaluation of the CPS records scandal: Child abuse isn't a problem, opportunities to report it are.

Apparently, when State Sen. Andy Biggs (R-Gilbert), the president of the Arizona State Senate, hears about "uninvestigated reports of child abuse", he thinks that there's a problem.


Not with "child abuse".

Not with "uninvestigated".

Nope, he has a problem with "reports".


From the Arizona Daily Star, written by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services -

Biggs did not dispute that caseloads have increased in the last four years. But he said that’s the result of a “false positive” due to additional funding.

“Instead of taking the money and using it to solve cases, they went out and advertised for more,” he said. While that may have turned up more legitimate cases of abuse, Biggs said it also resulted in more false reports.

Wow.  What brilliant insight.

If we apply that insight to other areas, think of the quality-of-life improvements that could be made in our society -

- Remove phone lines from police stations; fewer reports of crimes means fewer crimes, right?

- Eliminate anti-corruption "whistleblower" hotlines; fewer reports of corruption means less corruption, right? (Actually, it seems that in AZ, we are already on top of this.  In other words, couldn't find one to link to.  May help explain why there is so much corruption in AZ politics
- Eliminate domestic violence hotlines; fewer reports of domestic abuse means that there's less of it, right?

- Could keep this going all night, but the point is made - not talking about bad behavior doesn't mean that the bad behavior stops.

Not hardly.


I've been told by people who know Biggs and disagree his politics as much as I do that he is, in fact, a very intelligent man.  In this situation however, that works against him.

He's not Sylvia Allen or Jack Harper (lege types from years past who were more known for speaking without thinking than for insightful discourse) or Brenda Barton or Bob Thorpe (current lege types, but otherwise ditto).

He knew exactly what he was saying, and in many ways, he's worse than the people who were directly responsible for burying the CPS cases.

He's protecting and enabling them.

His attitude of contempt toward human life permeates the upper levels of the political class at the Capitol and will continue to do so until we make some changes at the Capitol.  The recall of Russell Pearce wasn't enough of a wake-up call for them - the ones that remain still don't believe that it can happen to them.

And they won't until we start voting them out of office.