November 2010

Why is the Pavilion’s Visual Arts Center charging for an exhibit of Rockwell prints?

I have often said that the Pavilion’s greatest asset is its Visual Arts Center, because it is free. And while I have disagreed with the Pavilion’s management and board of directors for several years, I still felt it was important to give to the VAC through Arts Night because the center was free to the public, that is why it baffles me that the Pavilion is charging for this exhibit;

In Search of Norman Rockwell’s America*

In Search of Norman Rockwell’s America is a groundbreaking exhibition that pairs the work of American icon Norman Rockwell with images by award-winning photojournalist Kevin Rivoli.

* This will be a paid admission exhibit

What the little excerpt doesn’t tell you is that there is very few Norman Rockwell originals. I hope this isn’t a trend at the VAC. I find it quite ridiculous that they would charge admission to see ‘prints’ of a well known cartoonist when I can go to my doctor’s office and see them for free (the prints, not the doctor 🙂

Let’s cut citizen services so we can blow another million on another Events Center plan

While I’m all for saving the city money with snow removal, I think by not plowing secondary routes, it will end up biting the city and it’s citizens in the ass;

The city of Sioux Falls has quit pre-treating streets with chemicals before winter weather hits, and will clear secondary streets only when warranted as part of an effort to save money.

I noticed driving home from work last night that it seemed there was more snow on the roads then usual (for only having a couple of inches on the ground). While driving conditions were ‘OK’ they should have been much better considering how little snow we did get.

Super Homan up to more secrecy and closed government. When are we gonna fire her? Seriously?

Imagine that, Dr. Homan found a loophole in the new open records law to keep committee decisions secret;

A change to the state open records law in March aimed to make government committees more open to the public. In the Sioux Falls School District, it’s had the opposite effect.

Since the school board changed its policy in response to the new law, the names of committee members and the documents they receive and create have been kept secret.

Remember when she shredded naming suggestions to the new elementary school? Or when she shielded her communications director from taking responsibility for not proof reading a school directory which resulted in organizations like the Boy Scouts of America and the SF Soccer Association to not be allowed to advertise in our schools, costing them thousands of dollars. Homan ain’t budging on it – big freaking surprise!

Homan said the law does not apply to any of the school district’s dozens of committees because they all are created by the superintendent, not by the school board.

We pay Homan’s wages thru our taxes. So she is above us all of sudden? Not so fast.

“That is the kind of thing that irritates legislators,” said Knudson, who suggested additional revisions to the law are in order. “I think it’s going to take a decade to keep pushing on this issue.”

A decade? Huh? Hey Dave, we are not moving the RR tracks or developing Phillips to the Falls, we are conducting openness in government. People have told me that you are a very smart guy, but I’m starting to wonder. It takes only a few minutes to fire Homan. Then we can ask the school board to re-appoint the committees and require them to take minutes and have open meetings. That might take 30 days, tops.

South Dakota Newspaper Association General Manager Dave Bordewyk, who lobbied for the bill, said the original intent was to make all committees subject to open-meetings rules.

If lawmakers understood how school districts would interpret the law, he said, the bill would have contained different language.

“It seems like, obviously, the integrity of the law is not being followed,” Bordewyk said.

“It’s always amazing to me when you think you’ve made a step forward, but you find government officials getting around it,” he added. “I guess I shouldn’t be amazed.”

No, Dave, you should not be amazed. Power lies in controlling the message. Pam is controlling the message by stomping it out. The Argus Endorser‘s ED Board says it best;

Parents and taxpayers should have access to all final reports of all committees that work on the district’s behalf. That’s their right as well as common sense. And the school board itself limits its ability to respond effectively to committees’ work if it doesn’t even see those final reports. That’s common sense, too.

Doogard. Rounds Part II (H/T Helga)

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, whose the biggest crony of them all?”

I’m still wondering when South Dakotans are going to wake up and realize that if you keep electing Republicants to Pierre, you will continue to get more of the same results. Cronyism, nepotism, low wages, limited worker rights, unfair taxes, etc, etc. As Jack Billion said in our last podcast (paraphrasing) “We gotta compete with Mississippi for last place.” While there should be outrage over Doogard’s latest hiring, right out of the Marion Rounds playbook, I wonder how many people will care or even notice. And that’s what Republicants depend on, “Nothing to see here, move along.”

Daugaard’s son, Chris, landed a job with the PUC as an initiative and utility analyst at a starting salary of $55,000.

What a Kwinky-Dink? Huh?