More Bull outside of Wagner
l3wis 
l3wis
When are we going to wake up and can the Pavilion Management Co.?
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http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080422/NEWS/804220325
I’m so disgusted, I can’t even think of a cartoon. One or all of these three things should happen:
1) Take it out of the operating costs of the Pavilion next year, plus interest.
2) Fire the director of operations
3) Fire the management company
There should be accountability. I have been preaching this for years about the Pavilion, there is none, and that is why they continue to have cost overuns and screwups because there is no punishment for what happens in that building. It’s like who cares, it’s not my money.
VOTER SUPRESSION?
I’m recommending the city council reverses their decision on using super precincts like they have in the past two elections. They do not work or for that matter encourage voting.
 The cornerstone of a democracy and representational government is elections and voting. Though we have little say in who runs for office, or whether they are even qualified, we still have a say if we want to elect them.
 The city needs to do more to get people to vote. Just do the math, in the last election Vernon Brown, the at large city councilor was chosen by only 8% of registered voters in Sioux Falls. If you crunch the numbers further it comes to about .04% of the total population of Sioux Falls residents. I’m not blaming Mr. Brown for those stats, but you will have to admit, it is a pretty pathetic example of a democratic process. What is even more disheartening is that none of the councilors have said anything publicly about changing the system. Sure they have said things like ‘I’m disappointed’ But words do not change anything and they have the power to change it, ironically by voting. It reads likes a chapter on voter suppression straight out of Karl Rove’s playbook. Voter suppression has been used throughout history to slowly crumble democracies. Do we really want to go down that slippery slope in Sioux Falls?
How can we fix something that wasn’t broken to begin with?
• First we need to ditch the super precincts and return to the regular precincts, well in advance of the June election.
• We need to educate voters on voter registration and precinct location, not only in our water bills but through a city wide/multi-media marketing campaign.
• We also need to encourage absentee voting (something I took advantage of this last time, because the super precinct maps were confusing).
I know this will cost us more then just the $12,000 we saved by using the super precincts. But can we really pinch pennies and put a price tag on the democratic process especially when this same council voted for $500,000 windows on building that didn’t need them, $250,000 amentities to the new library, and the construction of a $3 million dollar street to Falls Park that went $1.5 million over budget? How about cutting some of that fat to help support the democratic process?
I would be embarrassed to tell an Iraqi who has to dodge bombs and bullets to vote, what our voter turnout was. Sure, some people are apathetic and would prefer to watch reality TV then vote (trust me, I wouldn’t want them voting anyway) but apathy in no way explains a 14% voter turnout.
I suggest changes be made ASAP.
Hey Mike, take note; Green Energy good for the economy and jobs
Props to the Governator for just coming right out and saying that the real reason Republicans deny Global Climate Change so hotly is that they’re beholden to big business.
Kilmeade: But here’s the thing, Governor: A lot of people, a lot of Republicans in particular don’t believe there is Global Warming, there is Climate Change. They don’t believe the green technology and we talk to a lot of them on an every day basis. You’re a Republican, what do you know that they don’t?
Schwarzenegger: Well, I think they know the reality. I think they’re just trying to protect business. And in the end, they’re hurting business. Because we’ve proven in California that you can do both, that you can protect the environment and protect business. Even though in 2003, when I ran and I said that, people didn’t believe it but then we started building the ‘Hydrogen Highway‘ and passed the Green Building Initiative and the Million Solar Roof Initiative and the Ocean Action Plan and AB32 to make a commitment to roll back our greenhouse gas emissions and the low carbon fuel standards, all of those things that got world recognition, I think people realize now, ‘wait, this does not hurt our economy, this is actually a big plus’ because we’re creating jobs through green, clean technology.
This being Fox though, they had to end a rather lengthy interview on a more cheerful note, with Fox & Friends‘ Brian Kilmeade looking for some body-building tips. Arnold called him “without a doubt the most muscular television host,†whereupon Kilmeade positively swooned.
