Interview with Dan for the Times Guardian

This is a copy of an interview with Dan back in February before we had the blog up. We though it would be of interest for those that want to get to know him better.


JS: Let’s start by getting the name thing straight. What about Daniel Boone? Are you related?
DB: Yes, I am a descendent of ole Daniel a fifth, great grandson, I have been told. My family is out of Tennessee and had a farm in Kentucky – though I have loved Texas since I was a small child.
JS: I see you are a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the Air Force and that you have a PhD in Experimental Psychology and Clinical Psychology. Tell me about that

DB: I am proud to have served in the United States Military for more than 26 years. First I started out as a young enlisted troop in the Navy. After a shore battery accident in which I was injured and honorably discharged, I recovered and enlisted in the Army. After obtaining enough G.I. Bill credits, I began to work on my college degree. I finished with a Doctorate in Experimental Psychology and then, went into the US Air Force when they offered me additional training in clinical psychology. My Internship was served at Waco’s Veteran VA Hospital in Waco.
Coming from poverty, it was the military that enabled me to successfully complete my education. The military has been a large part of the American dream for many of us and I feel strongly about backing our troops, providing care for our wounded - wounds that can be seen and those that are more difficult to diagnose. Vietnam Vets living under bridges is a national scandal. We must take care of our veterans.

JS: May I call you “Dan”?
DB: I really prefer to be called “Dan”. I have had that title the longest. Doctor is a little ostentatious outside the clinical setting.

JS: How did your military career prepare you for public service? As Robbi, my wife and terrific partner and I say, “nothing we do in life is every wasted”. I understand the needs of us ordinary folk and am fortunate enough to have years of training and the skills to listen to folks, mediate differences and reach agreement on tough issues. That’s what this election is about – dealing with our hill country issues.

JS: Tell me more about why are you running for the District 73 legislative seat?
DB: This campaign is about Hill Country Issues – and about getting things done in Austin. It’s about protecting our children’s education, providing adequate water for our great grandchildren and preserving our public roads.
This election is not a question of Republican versus Democrat. It is about independent thinkers taking back our government for the people it serves. You know, I ran as a write in candidate in 2006 after the upset of Carter Casteel in the primary. Someone had to step forward to oppose the huge amount of money brought into Comal County to buy this seat. This time, the Democrats asked me to run on their ticket.

JS: What do you see as the overriding thrust of your service if you win the election?
DB: There are good people on both sides of the isle and our goal is not winning at any price but working together to solve problems and get things done. We must say what we mean and mean what we say. People deserve a responsive legislator – one who listens to them and reflects their views in the legislature. This business as usual and “go along to get along” must end.

JS: Do you think that is possible given the political atmosphere at present?
DB: Yes I do. We may be Republican, Democrat, Libertarian or Independent but our common goal is the same - to do what is best for the people, not the political organization. Of course we have diverse views of how to go about solving problems, but it is only when we come together to share those views and talk together, in good faith, that we can come to solutions I truly believe this is true for our state and our country. We must work together to regain our honor and the respect of all the people. Maybe that sounds like a politician talking but that is what I truly believe.

JS: You refer to specific problems that need to be solved. What are the issues that you feel must be addressed in the next legislative session?

DB: Well, remember I am running to represent my Hill Country District. I am very concerned about how we handle the huge explosion of growth in our district. The population of Texas is forecast to double during the same time our hill country population will quadruple.
While we are glad folks are recognizing that this is the best place to live, we must be sure that this growth contributes to our way of life here in the Hill Country, not destroy it. That demands we have the local means to make sure that we do not get houses are crammed so close together that they become blight. To maintain our personal property rights we must act now.

JS: You have said that Education is a high priority for you. Please explain your position on education.
DB: Yes, it is one of the top four major issues I consider of highest priority. It is important that our public education system be one of excellence. We must evaluate what we are currently doing and using the best models available, provide for our children to learn and grow into productive adults. Our children must have the opportunity to realize their full potential.
It is also important here, to realize that we taxpayers are carrying the major burden in our education system whereas the state is only 44th in support of our schools. One way in which we can lessen the tax burden on citizens, is to require the state to put the money promised to education into funding for education. This would allow a tax reduction for citizens and still improve the funding for schools.

JS: You said you had four major issues. What other issues do you consider priorities?
DB: Yes. The most pressing issues all follow from the issue of growth in the Hill Country. They are protecting our water resources for the present and into the future for our children, grandchildren and beyond. Remember, if you turn on the faucet and nothing comes out, it makes no difference if you are Republican or Democrat- you are out of water. There are solutions to insuring our water supply. It just means that our legislature has to be proactive rather than wait for the next drought. We can’t sit around meeting, conferring, jawboning and doing nothing to eternity. We must implement solutions that are easily available now and be innovative too, to insure our water supply.

JS: That’s two issues. What else do you consider important?
DB: Well, of course there are many issues that are important and must be addressed in the next session. However, I will combine the third and forth issues because they relate to our system of transportation. Of prime interest to me and to many of us here is the hill country is that we must not let our public roads be converted to toll roads. It even seems that it may unconstitutional because we have already paid for these roads. To convert them to toll roads is simply double taxation.

Actually there is money for our road system, and TxDOT appears to have been playing a shell game about running out of money. We as citizens should not allow this to happen and we should have a full and clear understanding of just where and how our tax money is being spent on our roads and we must end secret sweetheart deals for foreigners. How about this money going to Texans, we know how to build roads?

The second part of this issue is the Trans Texas Corridor. I see this as one of the worst ideas pushed on the citizens of Texas in living memory. In meetings I have attended in Austin, the Governor has heard from folks all over the state that the people of Texas do not want the Trans Texas Corridor.

Austin’s response has been that the Governor wants to spend nine million of our tax dollars for advertising - to try to sell the people of Texas on the idea that this is a good thing. It isn’t and the people of Texas know it and have told him so.

JS: Well, you seem quite intense about that. Is there anything else that you would to add?

DB: I would like for your readers to know that during the last years of my military career, I had the opportunity to work in contract solicitation, evaluation and management of contracts ranging from two million to twenty million dollars. I believe these experiences and my last 14 years of experience as a small businessman here in Texas give me perspective on how we should be overseeing how our tax dollars are spent. My training as a professional psychologist gives me a perspective on how the differences in approaches to problem solving can result in the coming together of differing positions into a successful and meaningful solution to issues.

One last thing- I do strongly hold the idea that the government belongs to the people, not that the people are simply a resource for government spending. If the people insist on that truth and the Legislature recognizes that fact; with us all working together, Texas has a very bright future.

JS: Thank you Dan. This has been very informative.
Daniel Boone can be reached through his website at www.BooneforTexas.com and at his ranch 210-240-6565.

http://www.boonefortexas.com