Ted Kennedy and Succession

Senator Ted Kennedy has died. His death is a huge loss to American governance and public welfare. He will be sorely missed.

Shortly before his death, Senator Kennedy wrote a letter to the principals in Massachusetts state government, including the governor, urging them to pass a law permitting the governor to appoint a temporary successor who would serve until a special election. Kennedy proposed that the temporary senator could not stand in the special election.

The great senator's last wish is still a great idea. The Massachusetts legislature should act on it. However, I would propose one very slight modification which would apply to future untimely deaths: elected senators (and for that matter representatives) should have the power to name a temporary successor themselves. Only if they fail to name a temporary successor, or if the temporary successor cannot (or will not) serve, should the state's governor appoint the successor. After all, we voters elect our representatives, investing in them the responsibility for making important decisions on all types of legislation. So it makes sense that the senator or representative himself/herself should have the first opportunity to name a temporary successor. He/she is in the best position to select an individual who would carry on the same legacy, consistent with the wishes of the voters in the most recent election, until voters get another opportunity to express their views. The governor is a different office, and perhaps a member of a different party, with more distant democratic authority to fill such a vacancy.

So, both to honor Senator Kennedy's legacy and as a matter of good public policy, let's start with Massachusetts and get a temporary successor law passed right away. The law should permit each senator or representative to name their own temporary successor. If for some reason this particular temporary successor is not named or cannot serve, then the state's governor names the temporary successor. In either case the temporary successor cannot stand for election, and a special election is held within a reasonable period of time. (Within five months is a reasonable period of time.)

Touchscreen Automatic Sushi

Recently I enjoyed dining at a sushi restaurant (すしや) in or near Funabashi (Tokyo area). It is an amazing place. Each table has a touchscreen showing the current menu items. If something is out of stock, then it automatically disappears from the screen. The screen keeps a running yen total, so you can spend exactly what your budget allows. You can also see which orders have already been filled and which the kitchen is still preparing.

The kitchen receives all the orders electronically, and then the staff prepare your sushi. When ready, they put your sushi on a special tray which carries an electronic tag matching your table number. (There's a supply of numbered tags near the kitchen's dispatching station.) The dispatcher places the tray on the conveyor belt, and the computerized conveyor belt automatically carries your sushi order to your table. There are well-timed paddles that push your orders onto your table. The only items that require waitress delivery, perhaps for legal or safety reasons, are the liquids, especially the alcoholic ones. (Non-sushi side dishes, desserts, and fruit enjoy conveyor delivery.) As with other sushi restaurants, self-service water and tea are available at your table. But unlike other kaiten (conveyor) sushi places, where the sushi ages on the line, this advanced conveyor sushi restaurant prepares everything to order. The quality is much better as a result.

Here are a couple links with more information on this uniquely Japanese sushi palace:

http://juventus.livedoor.biz/archives/51135407.html
http://www.yamato-f.com/yamadenmaru.html

It's the Card, Stupid

Ezra Klein cites a Boston Globe editorial about health insurance coverage in Massachusetts, and he makes an interesting point that if coverage comes first, cost control will naturally follow.

To extend that thought, I sure hope Team Obama is ready to mail every American a new, standardized, universal health insurance card quickly, very soon after they can get health care legislation in place. It's an important way to demonstrate that every American is getting a tangible benefit. Yes, there will be a few nutjobs who publicly destroy their cards, but they'd only reinforce the point, finally, that all Americans should receive reasonable health coverage.

I fear the White House and reformers in Congress haven't started getting the cards ready.