Academy of Local Politics

Big day today! Fantasy Baseball Draft Day.
Actually it is an auction of players, not a draft.

Tom Booker (Our Librarian) and myself have been partners for many years in Fantasy Baseball.
Our teams normally suck. In over 20 years, we have won the whole league, just once.
We were given the nickname of "Clippers" in comparison with another sports team,
whose futility is well documented.

The snow has melted. The Golf Course opened yesterday, and today is Baseball Draft.
Spring in Common Senseville has arrived!
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Just read an interesting article from Times Tribune in Scranton, PA about Public Access TV.
They are going to stop the showing of Council Meetings on Public Access TV.
That brought out the crowd! More than Standing Room Only.
Maybe Angell Gore should go cover that demonstration?
Sounds like it was a more interesting demonstration than the ones she wants to cover.
I know our Council would never dream of pulling the plug on our telecasts of Council Meetings.
Dorothy Malzone would have a fit.
Sometimes I say and do things just to see her fume, but that action would not be a laughing matter.

From the Bangkok Post I learned that a lack of women in politics is a problem.

"Tuenjai Buraparat, chairperson of the Association of Women Leaders for Thai Community Development, said most women lack the confidence to run against men and are afraid of losing in elections."

You know, it isn't just women who are afraid of losing in elections. I hear that all the time from guys.
"I don't want to run, because what if I lose? How could I show my face around town if I lost?"

Ahhh, the "Thrill of Victory and Agony of Defeat."
Luckily I've never lost an election. I don't know how that "agony" would feel.
The "thrill" is indeed sweet, and worth the effort.
I encourage everyone to take the chance.

Go for it gals, in Bangkok and everywhere else.
Then leave the TV cameras on, if you know what is good for you.

Mayor Al

Department Heads never forget if you say you will do something for  them.
Just like any work situation.

Angell Gore stopped in the office yesterday wondering how I was coming for new ideas for Public Access TV.
"No further than I was a month ago."

Angell has ideas. Big ideas.
Inspired by the demonstrations against the war the past couple of weeks,
in cities much larger than ours,
far, far away,
Angell wants to take the camera to an upcoming demonstration.

"Where", I ask.
"Not sure" was the response.
She quickly added that this would be done on her dime. No expenses to the City.

"Well", I said, "that is between you and the Cable Commission".

Could be interesting. Could turn into nothing.
Just the latest "rumor" out of my office for you.
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I  got a new toy.
An early Birthday present from my wife.
A Motorola Motorazr V3i.

A new phone/camera/video recorder/MP3/web access.
This is BIG for me. I'm not a real techno guy.
The camera could be interesting?
Very interesting?

Once I learn how, I'll be able to take my own pictures to put on the blog.
Just like real bloggers do!
I can already take the pictures. It's the downloading that is proving to be very difficult.
I'll learn, I'll learn.

Mayor Al

I  attended a Public Hearing yesterday on the proposed state budget.
It was held in Chippewa Falls by the Joint Finance Committee.

I did not speak, but did want to hand in my written comments.

This was in some regards a typical State Government Public Hearing.

1) Most everyone wanted more money, the rest wanted lower taxes.

2) The meeting room was too small for the crowd.
    State Committees do not want all "the public" to be able to sit.

3) The chairs were hard metal folding chairs. You were better off standing.        
   
4)  State Committees do not want "the public" to be comfortable.  It encourages participation.                             

5) The speaker system sucked, of course.

In the audience, was a group dressed in Green T shirts that read, Child Care Providers Together - AFSCME
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
Along with these Child Care Providers, who wanted more money, they had 10-12 of their "product".
Here, sitting right in front of me was Pre School kids. Ages 2-5. About a dozen of them.

No shit. I'm not kidding.

There is absolutely no way this could be construed as a "learning experience" for these children.
They were 2-5 years old! While they brought a pull along cooler, with sandwiches, and milk, and "tippy cups", this was not a picnic. The only purpose of them being forced to attend this five hour meeting in a crowded room on folding chairs, was for exploitation. Exploitation of the very ones they were suppose to be "caring" for.

After one hour I left. My back wouldn't allow me to continue to sit on the hard folding chair and the room was so full, there really wasn't even someplace left to stand.

As I left, I thought of those mistreated and exploited children, being forced to spend an afternoon in that meeting. I could leave, they couldn't.

Shame on you AFSCME. Shame on you.

Mayor Al

One of the biggest headaches Common Senseville has is land planning.
Specifically, land planning that is not within our jurisdiction.

I had a long conversation yesterday with Harold Nation, our City Planner.
Like most cities, Common Senseville exercises Extra Territorial Subdivision jurisdiction,
over property neighboring the City, but not located within the City.
In our instance, the area covers all land with 1 1/2 miles of our borders.
The purpose is to insure that this property, has been subdivided in a way,
that would make installation and servicing of utilities in the future, as orderly as possible.

The Towns hate it. They just think the City is meddling in their affairs.
They don't realize it could be their utilities that serve the area.

Harold informed me yesterday of a new situation.
Property located within our Subdivision area, is now "condos". This is a "land only condo".
There are no dwellings on the property, yet.
As far as we can tell, the only purpose of a "land only condo" is to circumvent the Subdivision approval process.

That doesn't sit too well with Harold. He doesn't like to be circumvented. Our ordinances do not allow for approval of condos in our Subdivision approval area. It looks like a "loophole". A loophole that may or may not be able to be closed.

Whenever something like this happens the evil "developers" are blamed. They are not really to blame. Developers only give options to "the public".
If "the public" don't want what the developers are offering, they won't buy.

And, you gotta give the developers credit for coming up with new ideas for "the public" to choose from.

Even if it doesn't make Harold happy.
It does give him job security.

Mayor Al

This entry was posted on 3/26/2007 11:57 AM and is filed under History of Common Senseville.

Kin  (Family)

A family consists of a domestic group of people (or a number of domestic groups), typically affiliated by birth or marriage, or by analogous or comparable relationships.


Over the weekend I read an article about  Kathryn Remlinger, an English Professor who was going to be doing a study about Yooperisms. The way that residents of the northern peninsula of Michigan talk. They supposedly talk different?  They don't talk different. They're kin.

Other kin of ours are:

Boone, Iowa.

Two Rivers, Wisconsin

Garage Logic, Minnesota   (If Mud Ducks can really be kin?)

We're all side by each neighbors.

Mayor Al