That being said, I could really go for a hundred mimosas. Happy Tuesday!
News, photos and opinions from the Pacific Northwest
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Quickie: Nasty Jams
Cardboard robots are really making the rounds in the music world, but this video is exceptionally nasty. What are the kids listening to these days, anyway?
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Battle of the Buses: KC Exec on fee for transit
King County Executive Dow Constantine got on the KUOW this morning to defend his proposal for a $20, two-year car tab to help fund King County Metro.
Unsurprisingly, Constantine's argument centered around reducing congestion, but what caught my attention was that (according to him) 95 percent of commuters in King County own cars. That doesn't mean that 95 percent of people use their cars to get to work, though (a recent study found that half of commuters use transit of some kind to get to and from downtown Seattle). However, it does mean that thousands of car owners who take the bus to work (like me) will likely hop back in the cars if bus service gets cut, making the roads even more clogged. Another point, which didn't come up in the interview, that seems to rebut the argument drivers make when they pout and scream and say bus riders don't pay their way: If a good portion of bus riders also own cars, it means they will also be paying the car-tab fee (in addition to bus fare).
Constantine isn't known for sugar-coating his opinions, and his answers to questions about transit and taxes from callers and ever-smug Steve Scher were firm, dismissing claims that maybe "efficiency measures" could close budget shortfalls (Metro has already cut thousands of hours through "efficiency measures," resulting in a more unreliable bus schedule) and complaints about being taxed too much (ugh, I don't even want to touch this one).
He also said that to make up the needed revenue without the car tabs fee, Metro would have to raise bus fares by about $1.50 per trip–meaning a one-way trip during non-peak hours would cost $3.75. (For comparison, San Francisco is increasing standard bus fare to $2 in July, and it costs $2.25 in Chicago, the same as Metro's current rate.)
My favorite point of the interview came when Scher asked Constantine about Mckenna's plan to bolster education through efficiency measures in the state. Constantine called it a plan of "attrition" in state workers.
"That is an absolute fantasy that you could make up the enormous gap in education by laying off state employees."
Love him or hate him, the guy's got a way with words.
Unsurprisingly, Constantine's argument centered around reducing congestion, but what caught my attention was that (according to him) 95 percent of commuters in King County own cars. That doesn't mean that 95 percent of people use their cars to get to work, though (a recent study found that half of commuters use transit of some kind to get to and from downtown Seattle). However, it does mean that thousands of car owners who take the bus to work (like me) will likely hop back in the cars if bus service gets cut, making the roads even more clogged. Another point, which didn't come up in the interview, that seems to rebut the argument drivers make when they pout and scream and say bus riders don't pay their way: If a good portion of bus riders also own cars, it means they will also be paying the car-tab fee (in addition to bus fare).
Constantine isn't known for sugar-coating his opinions, and his answers to questions about transit and taxes from callers and ever-smug Steve Scher were firm, dismissing claims that maybe "efficiency measures" could close budget shortfalls (Metro has already cut thousands of hours through "efficiency measures," resulting in a more unreliable bus schedule) and complaints about being taxed too much (ugh, I don't even want to touch this one).
He also said that to make up the needed revenue without the car tabs fee, Metro would have to raise bus fares by about $1.50 per trip–meaning a one-way trip during non-peak hours would cost $3.75. (For comparison, San Francisco is increasing standard bus fare to $2 in July, and it costs $2.25 in Chicago, the same as Metro's current rate.)
My favorite point of the interview came when Scher asked Constantine about Mckenna's plan to bolster education through efficiency measures in the state. Constantine called it a plan of "attrition" in state workers.
"That is an absolute fantasy that you could make up the enormous gap in education by laying off state employees."
Love him or hate him, the guy's got a way with words.
The Pot Spot: Seattle Times endorses legalizing marijuana
In somewhat unlikely news, the Seattle Times editorial board (the same one that endorsed vapid attention-mongering Republican Dino Rossi in 2008) came out in support of an initiative that would allow the state to legalize, tax, and distribute marijuana. The initiative, perhaps the first of its kind with a shot at actually making the ballot, is sponsored by the likes of former U.S. attorney John McKay and the travel guy.
Last year, a poll found that 56 percent of Washington residents support legalizing marijuana possession (54 percent support selling it in liquor stores), which means, given the muscle and the money behind it, this might actually pass. It would no doubt get struck down in federal court (the Obama administration has been hands-off with medical marijuana enforcement, but it's unlikely they would ignore such a blatant challenge to federal law).
Should be quite a show!
Full text of the initiative here.
Last year, a poll found that 56 percent of Washington residents support legalizing marijuana possession (54 percent support selling it in liquor stores), which means, given the muscle and the money behind it, this might actually pass. It would no doubt get struck down in federal court (the Obama administration has been hands-off with medical marijuana enforcement, but it's unlikely they would ignore such a blatant challenge to federal law).
Should be quite a show!
Full text of the initiative here.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Toward a Heightened State of Narcissism
A swarm of anti-tax, anti-government loudmouths descended on the comment section of a recent Seattle Times article about King County's proposal for a $20 car-tab fee to raise a little cash to help maintain the current inadequate level of bus service from already-debilitated King County Metro. The sentiment was nearly universal: I don't ride the bus, so why should I have to pay for it?
From brave American Hero/anonymous commenter rock90mc!:
These are the same people who call up the county in the middle of January and bitch about that goddamned pothole where the Escalade is supposed to park. Then a truck full of low-wage "union thugs" shows up to fix the boo-boo using money from our "socialist" tax coffers. And then it's, they should have come faster. And why don't they just repave the whole goddamned thing? WHY WILL NO ONE HEED MY NARROW SELF-INTEREST?
Nobody is asking it the obvious question, so I will: Why should I have to pay for your pothole? I don't use your road. I don't drive down the streets of your low-density urban sprawl. Why should my money go toward your problem? Because roads are a public good that a lot of people depend on for getting places–just like public transportation, which costs money but helps a whole lot of people (who still have to pay a fee) get places.
I know it's not healthy to read online comments in local news stories, but after last year's election I'm beginning to believe this isolationist, self-centered mindset is gaining a following not just nationally but here in "progressive" Washington.
These Heroes of Humanity and Keepers of the New Millennium usher in a new era of progress and Responsibility by bitching about potentially having to vote on a two-year, $20 fee on cars to help an ailing public transportation system–just like they bitch about how oppressed they are when they want to allow our school system to continue crumbling into a mess of squalid dropout factories by opting out of funding public education taxes, because some Important People are rich enough to afford to send their kids to private schools. These are the real battles of our times! And these are our heroes!
Meanwhile, we continue to spend$6.7 $10 billion a month chasing after a couple hundred amateur bomb makers and "rebuilding" a faraway nation that never really existed in the first place, as the Vice President gets on the email to complain about the government spending $125 for a website to help save a species of tortoise that may soon vanish from the planet because a bunch of greedy investors, aided in part by incentives from the government, decided to build suburban McMansions in the middle of the desert during the height housing bubble.
From brave American Hero/anonymous commenter rock90mc!:
Let the people who ride the damm bus pay for it- isn't that the logic behind the tolls...Yes! The tolls–all those tolls we pay on the thousands of miles of state highways and roads throughout Washington! Great argument!
These are the same people who call up the county in the middle of January and bitch about that goddamned pothole where the Escalade is supposed to park. Then a truck full of low-wage "union thugs" shows up to fix the boo-boo using money from our "socialist" tax coffers. And then it's, they should have come faster. And why don't they just repave the whole goddamned thing? WHY WILL NO ONE HEED MY NARROW SELF-INTEREST?
Nobody is asking it the obvious question, so I will: Why should I have to pay for your pothole? I don't use your road. I don't drive down the streets of your low-density urban sprawl. Why should my money go toward your problem? Because roads are a public good that a lot of people depend on for getting places–just like public transportation, which costs money but helps a whole lot of people (who still have to pay a fee) get places.
I know it's not healthy to read online comments in local news stories, but after last year's election I'm beginning to believe this isolationist, self-centered mindset is gaining a following not just nationally but here in "progressive" Washington.
These Heroes of Humanity and Keepers of the New Millennium usher in a new era of progress and Responsibility by bitching about potentially having to vote on a two-year, $20 fee on cars to help an ailing public transportation system–just like they bitch about how oppressed they are when they want to allow our school system to continue crumbling into a mess of squalid dropout factories by opting out of funding public education taxes, because some Important People are rich enough to afford to send their kids to private schools. These are the real battles of our times! And these are our heroes!
Meanwhile, we continue to spend
In Bob Herbert's final column for the New York Times, he writes:
The U.S. has not just misplaced its priorities. When the most powerful country ever to inhabit the earth finds it so easy to plunge into the horror of warfare but almost impossible to find adequate work for its people or to properly educate its young, it has lost its way entirely.Burn the turtle website!
Friday, June 17, 2011
Booze News: Olympia spits at Costco
Hot dog, we got ourselves a liquor war!
In a blatant attempt to throw a wrench in Costco's continuing jihad against the state's monopoly over liquor sales, Gov. Gregoire signed a hastily sewn-together bill Wednesday that allows the state to solicit bids for control of liquor distribution, hoping tip voters toward defeating Initiative 1183 in the fall.
The bill included an emergency provision that lets the state to start seeking bids immediately, citing reasons of "public peace, health or safety" and impacts on state revenue. The funny thing about this bill is timing. If the legislature really thought that privatizing the distribution system (right now!) was a viable way to raise some cash, why did they wait until the very end of the session to ram it through? Why didn't this come up in December after voters repealed the candy tax? Oh that's right—Costco's Initiative 1183, which would totally dismantle the state-controlled liquor system, is headed to the November ballot—and it might just pass.
The legislature sees 1183 as a real threat to its liquor monopoly (which it is). The Costco-backed initiative (which would allow only large retailers to sell liquor, capitulating to grievances from law-enforcement groups about ease of access, among other compromises, probably stands a much better chance of passing than the two murky initiatives on last year's ballot.
By passing this "emergency" bill, Gregoire and the gang hope to convince voters that the state is in fact getting out of the liquor business. They are betting that they can get voters who are on the fence about this issue—who are uneasy about liquor in grocery stores and mini marts but also dislike the state monopoly—to be sufficiently satisfied by the distribution deal to vote against 1183 in the fall.
So in a sense, this is an emergency—for the state, at least, because it stands a real chance of losing the liquor monopoly this time around.
However, the troubling thing about this bill is that if the state does decide to lease the distribution mechanism (it doesn't have to, according to the legislation), it would simply turn a public monopoly into a private monopoly. Potentially, one distributor could control liquor distribution in Washington for 10 years, or however long the state decides a "long-term" contract is. This was what many voters—rightfully!—had beef with in last year's 1105. Oh yeah, and guess who sponsored the initial legislation? Sen. Mike Hewitt (R-Walla Walla), a former beer distributor! Granted, the state will still have control over product selection, but I find it hard to believe that this is what privatization promotes are pushing for.
The saga continues.
In a blatant attempt to throw a wrench in Costco's continuing jihad against the state's monopoly over liquor sales, Gov. Gregoire signed a hastily sewn-together bill Wednesday that allows the state to solicit bids for control of liquor distribution, hoping tip voters toward defeating Initiative 1183 in the fall.
The bill included an emergency provision that lets the state to start seeking bids immediately, citing reasons of "public peace, health or safety" and impacts on state revenue. The funny thing about this bill is timing. If the legislature really thought that privatizing the distribution system (right now!) was a viable way to raise some cash, why did they wait until the very end of the session to ram it through? Why didn't this come up in December after voters repealed the candy tax? Oh that's right—Costco's Initiative 1183, which would totally dismantle the state-controlled liquor system, is headed to the November ballot—and it might just pass.
The legislature sees 1183 as a real threat to its liquor monopoly (which it is). The Costco-backed initiative (which would allow only large retailers to sell liquor, capitulating to grievances from law-enforcement groups about ease of access, among other compromises, probably stands a much better chance of passing than the two murky initiatives on last year's ballot.
By passing this "emergency" bill, Gregoire and the gang hope to convince voters that the state is in fact getting out of the liquor business. They are betting that they can get voters who are on the fence about this issue—who are uneasy about liquor in grocery stores and mini marts but also dislike the state monopoly—to be sufficiently satisfied by the distribution deal to vote against 1183 in the fall.
So in a sense, this is an emergency—for the state, at least, because it stands a real chance of losing the liquor monopoly this time around.
However, the troubling thing about this bill is that if the state does decide to lease the distribution mechanism (it doesn't have to, according to the legislation), it would simply turn a public monopoly into a private monopoly. Potentially, one distributor could control liquor distribution in Washington for 10 years, or however long the state decides a "long-term" contract is. This was what many voters—rightfully!—had beef with in last year's 1105. Oh yeah, and guess who sponsored the initial legislation? Sen. Mike Hewitt (R-Walla Walla), a former beer distributor! Granted, the state will still have control over product selection, but I find it hard to believe that this is what privatization promotes are pushing for.
The saga continues.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Obama will fulfill promise to try KSM in civilian court (PYSCH!)
Remember three years ago when we were all, "Gitmo SUXXX" and "NO MORE WAR TRIBUNALS! Bush is a no-good, war-mongering jerk!"? And then we elected that one guy to make it all go away and he was like, "I'm gonna close Gitmo in one year!" and "we're gonna try everybody in civilian courts (because our justice system is fine, thank you very much)." Well, Mission Accomplished, folks! APRIL FOOLS LOL!
From NYT:
From NYT:
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. is set to announce on Monday afternoon that he has cleared military prosecutors at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, to file war-crime charges against Mr. Mohammed and four others accused in the Sept. 11 case. Mr. Holder had decided in November 2009 to move the case to a federal civilian courtroom in New York City, but a political backlash shut down that plan.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Michael Ennis thinks cars rule, will laugh at you at parties
Will no one defend the poor, voiceless drivers of this state?!
Conservative research person Michael Ennis wrote an editorial for Publicola saying that Seattle sucks and is prejudiced against car owners because the state and city are broke and won't build a 40-lane bridge between Bellevue and Seattle's business district and H-bomb those anti-capitalist parking meters.
The rest of us have generally accepted Seattle’s anti-driver policies as the cost of doing business in a big city, and used them as punch lines at parties or whenever relatives from out-of-town would visit.
Har har har! Those stupid bus-riding hippies!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)