CHANCELLOR ROGERS: Gibbons shows little understanding of his ideology's devastating impact

How many slogans can greed hide behind? How many disguises can greed use to cover its motives and actions?

I grew up with grandparents and parents whose core values all related to helping other people. My relatives never tried to get an advantage. They never overcharged so that the other guy got shorted.

They were astute business people who were successful because they were talented in producing goods that benefitted everyone, rather than being people who became successful by taking unfair advantage of those with whom they dealt.

For 40 years, I was a registered Republican. Which party was my party really was of little importance because I viewed my country, then my state, then my local governments as the institutions of importance. The party was simply an organized mechanism for supporting government.

I also never thought of my own success being more important than the success of various governments I supported. Was I naïve, really ignorant or was it that I had no real understanding of how society functioned? Was the "help thy neighbor" concept merely camouflage for life's real purpose " cheat, lie and steal all you can for he who dies with the most money wins life's race?

I am constantly confused by Jim Gibbons having become the governor of Nevada. What strange set of facts could possibly have come together to elect this man whose every characteristic supports one cause " Jim Gibbons. The man has absolutely no regard for the welfare of any other human being.

Rather than a governor, Nevadans elected an executioner. Did he snooker us all? Was he able to camouflage himself to such an extent and hide behind so many empty slogans that a majority of Nevada would vote for this man in the empty suit, for an ideology that has three simple words, "no new taxes"?

These words from Gibbons' mouth represent a total lack of understanding of the purpose of government. His words also evidence no understanding of the devastation these three little words can cause.

If implemented, the political and economic policy of this man in the empty suit will shut down Nevada's programs to provide health care for children and care for the elderly who have no way to care for themselves.

His policies will permanently injure students who hope to grab a part of what used to be the American dream " to get a college education. Without support from the state, that dream will be denied.

Gibbons calls himself a conservative Republican. I am told his political and economic policies may be more closely aligned to the Libertarians. My own feeling is that Gibbons is neither a conservative Republican nor a Libertarian. He is simply a greedy, uninterested, unengaged human being whose only, and I mean only, goal is to see what Gibbons can do for himself and his greedy friends.

Fortunately for all Nevadans, he has revealed himself to be what he is, and the public, sometimes a little slow to catch on, has caught on. Several people have suggested a recall of Gibbons is in order. I disagree. It is not worth the time, effort and money because Gibbons has already held his own recall. The public is done with Gibbons. He is no longer a governor " even a former governor.

Fortunately Nevada has a legislature that has the power, the ability and the apparent willingness to prevent Gibbons' bent for destruction. I have faith that Bill Raggio, Warren Hardy, Steve Horsford and Barbara Buckley, along with the other 59 legislators, will put Nevada back on the right track.

- Jim Rogers is chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education.