REAMS POOL -- no water yet. Letter to open came from the Mayor's office.

People went to REAMS swim pool on Monday, June 20, trying to take a swim. Some had purchased a seasonal swim pass for $60 (for a family of 4). The pool was closed and bone dry.

I heard that Mayor Murphy has issued a letter saying that the pool, REAMS, in Mt. Washington, would be able to open with private money.

Last year the pool opened with private money as well. However, it didn't open until August.

If I'm mayor, Salvation Army and Kroc Center is on the edge of the river and not in Brighton Heights

This pending, proposed, long-term development is something that we've been pondering for some time. I hope that they get it right. It sounds like they won't.

The McDonald's fast food giant was started by Ray Kroc. His wife began a massive foundation and has teamed up with some serious money to build modern, large community centers that are with sports, drama, and fitness. The model is already in operation in the San Diego area.

The closest we have around here that matches the concept is the Jewish Community Center. One is in the city in Sq. Hill and the other in the South Hills.

The Salvation Army has a number of facilities around the region as well. They have a dinky community center with a swim pool even downtown. Plus, a center is in the North Side, and it had a computer lab at one time. And farther away, they have a camp that takes kids for a week at a time in the summer months.

Today KQV did a radio interview with on at Salvation Army.

The local S.A. is going to put in for a grant to try to get one of the centers. I think a dozor or so are going to be built around the nation. These are $40-million grants, so I hear. There is little to report upon at this time, other than the locals are going to go after a Kroc grant proposal, as expected.

Some in the Salvation Army administration are changing. I began to work on a relationship a couple of eyars ago, but that individual is no longer in the same role. They, like others in clergy or missionary work, seem to move around a good deal with their devotion and call to service.

The news reports say a 30 acre site for the proposal is in Brighton Heights, a section in the north and west part of the city. This land is now owned by the URA.

A more inspiring site on the river's edge might give a better chance at winning the grant.

Furthermore, a more inspiring site on the river's edge might be pivitol to getting more people to live and reside in the golden triangle vicinity.

Volume 1, Issue 1 of Nana's Newsletter arrived in today's mail

My mom, called Nana by our boys and their cousins, is publishing a weekly newsletter for the clan with lots of cousin correspondence. The motivation came from reading an article that writting skills are often neglicted in the summer. Plus those communication skills are vital in academic success. So, we have a weekly writting assignment. It is really the duty of the kids to deliver something to her each weekend.

The first edition was eight pages and had some drawings, email updates from our trip, a maze and a bit of poetry.

I doubt it will be ever put "on-line."

Job: D.U. AD

Who would you hire for this job?

Director of Athletics. Duquesne University invites nominations and applications for the position of Director of Athletics. Reporting to directly to the President, the Director of Athletics is responsible for all aspects of the University’s intercollegiate athletics, intramural, and related fitness & recreation programs. Duquesne is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), sponsors 20 Division I varsity programs, and competes in the prestigious Atlantic 10 Conference in all sports with the exception of football, which competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and wrestling, which is independent. Today, Duquesne University serves nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, offering more than 150 programs on the Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral levels in its ten schools. Duquesne seeks an experienced and dynamic leader with the ability to support student athletes, while maintaining the highest level of excellence and enriching the student experience at the University. Major areas of responsibility include: oversight of all intercollegiate athletic and intramural programs; management of fiscal resources; athletics alumni and community relations; and supervision of coaching and office staff. Athletics media relations and fundraising are coordinated with the Office of Public Affairs and University Advancement. A commitment to the strategic vision and Mission of the University is expected. The individual we seek will have earned a minimum of a Master’s degree and have significant experience in leading and achieving success with an intercollegiate Division I athletic program. Solid knowledge of NCAA rules and regulations and a commitment to ensuring compliance is expected. Experience and understanding of basketball is particularly important. The ability to work with people of diverse backgrounds and solid record of fundraising experience is preferred. For confidential consideration, please forward: a letter of interest, curriculum vitae or resume; and the names, addresses, and phone numbers of three professional references. Screening of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. Application materials may be sent to: Duquesne University, Office of Human Resource Management, Attention: AD Search, 600 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15282. To learn more about Duquesne University, visit us Online @ www.duq.edu. Founded and sponsored by the Holy Spirit Fathers in 1878, Duquesne University is Catholic in mission and ecumenical in spirit. Motivated by its Catholic identity, Duquesne values equality of opportunity both as an educational institution and as an employer.

What about Tom Murphy?
What about Myron Cope?

Cope with that -- motorcycle pushed off the nearest bridge and other cycle tidbits.

Myron had some good advice for Tommy M and Ben R -- Steeler quarterbacks. He suggested that the two, if they still have a brain in their heads that God gave them, that these motorcycle riders should take their bikes to a bidge and push them off.

If nothing else, get rid of the cycles for the sake of the 50 other teammates.

I'm not keen about sending wheeled lumps of trash into the rivers -- or off of bridges due to "green concerns" -- but I agree with Myron Cope's advice.

Today we were driving to swim practice and Rt. 51 between the Liberty and Ft. Pitt tunnels and traffic went to one lane. In the other lane, police already on the scene, was a car with a bent fender and a motorcycle on its side in a couple bits. A guy was flat on his back on the pavement.

We offered a prayer in our car driving past. Sadly, somewhere, calls went out to some family to meet at the hospital.

Creepy as Myron Cope offered the advice on the 11 pm news. Fedko also reported that it is 40 days until the start of the Steelers season.

In other bike news -- today I took the training wheels off of my youngest son's bike. He's 7 and not good -- yet -- on his bike. In the city, our opportunities to bike ride are self-made.

Tomorrow I'll try to get to the bike shop for new tires and a tune-up of my Trek 520, 1982 model, $420 retail. It is a budget racer. With my triathlon ambitions, I had better put some time on the road and trails.

Seasons change

The official beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere occurred in the morning of June 21, 2005, at 2:46 a.m. Eastern Daylight Saving Time [EDST].

Happy Summer Solstice Day!

EFF's guide to help bloggers understand the law

The Electionic Frontier Foundation created an guide to help bloggers understand the law and their rights.

This roadmap to the legal issues bloggers confront. Know rights, and blog freely with the knowledge of legitimate, protected speech.

Legal issues affect publishers, especially with legal claims or threats based on the information published on blogs. Issues could arise when you publish material created by others on a blog.

Defamation (libel) law discussions of the constitutional and statutory privileges may protect too. Federal law gives some protections against legal claims arising from hosting information written by third parties.

Privacy rights of people you blog about are part of a FAQ.

Reporter's Privilege is useful to bloggers who report news gathered from confidential sources.

Get tips for bloggers for getting access to public records and government meetings, as well as press passes to help with newsgathering. Legal issues swirl when blogging about political campaigns.

Standing before City Council. Kicking off Open Government Amendment

I spoke today at the public comment period at the start of the Pittsburgh City Council meeting. Here are my words:

My name is Mark Rauterkus. My family and I reside at 108 South 12th Street on teh South Side. I have a home on the internet at Rauterkus.com. Presently I'm a board member with the Allegheny County Libertarian Party. Recently I was a candidate for PA Senate in the special election. Since election day our family had the opportunity to travel abroad for work and education. In time I'll share plenty of insights on the election and our trip. Today, it is my pleasure to stand with fellow citizens to promote the Open Government Amendment.

Before I get into my remarks, I'd like to make one other sidebar mention. I'd like to welcome Dan Deasy to City Council. I hope you have a successful career and are fully appreciated by the people of the city for all your hard work in the years to come. Best of luck in your tenure.

I'll work to get the signatures and put the Open Government Amendemtn on the ballot. I also pledge to work to establish and sustain the discussions about these various issues within this effort.

Let's look at the internet access elements. If we streamed the meeting content and made them available to others, say at the workplace or at home with children, we'd be much further along. Others could tune in. Not only people from within the city would be more aware, but people from other cities and even other countries would have access and offer solutions, ideas and pointers to other best practices.

I've often talked about how all the king's horses and all the king's men won't be able to put Pittsburgh together again. This Humpty Dumpty lesson can have a different outcome as soon as all the people get into the action. We need everyone's help.

The depth and scope of the internet's impact is only outmatched by its economy. It will not cost a lot to get the content on the net in effective ways.

I think this measure will do a lot to crack the "done deal mentality" around here.

Now, let's do the hard work of getting this question put onto the ballot and before the voters in November, 2005.

KDKA: Hundreds Claim Wrongfully Ticketed in Pittsburgh

We just paid $80 for two tickets -- with late fees. Yesterday. And for the life of me I can't remember getting those tickets. Humm. I'm not perfect -- but -- I am generally aware. Oh well. Perhaps my wife will give up some sympathy for me after reading this news story.

KDKA: Hundreds Claim Wrongfully Ticketed in Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh (AP) Since the Pittsburgh Parking Authority turned over a list of more than 50,000 unpaid parking tickets to a collection agency last month, hundreds of people have complained they never got a ticket.

Take Walker Lundy. The retired Philadelphia Inquirer executive editor says he has never even been in Pittsburgh and can't understand why he got a collection letter for a ticket from November.

The ticket was written for a car he says he sold five years ago. Lundy says the parking authority told him options are to fight the ticket or pay the $18 fine.

Walker, who lives in North Carolina, says he won't do either, and can cost the authority more than $18 in bureaucratic time.

A spokesman for Mayor Tom Murphy says that shouldn't be necessary. He says a staffer will look into the case and if Lundy can show he drives a different car or had a different registration, the ticket will be dismissed.

The city turned the unpaid ticket cases over to a collection agency in hopes of collecting an estimated $1 million.

Yoy and Double Yoy!

Have a great retirement Myron.

Perhaps Myron will choose to gear up and do fantasy cruises or even the Olympics some day.

Personal update from Running Mate, Mike Sally

Fellow dad, and South Side neighbor, Mike, turned a corner, saved a life, changed his career and opened a web site. He also has encouraged me to put out a call to form a team and/or relays for the Pittsburgh Triathlon, July 17. Here is his update.

In April, I commenced a new career and decided to become a mortgage loan officer. It has been exciting. I started a new web site at www.loansforpahomes.com. Both things that I would not even imagined doing while a paralegal! I am proud to now be in the position to directly help people! Perhaps is was just foreshadowing for some similar events.

For whatever reason, the first weekend after the decision was made to change, I was in the fortunate place (with others who were also caring enough to stop) to assist an older woman who was in a burning car in Western Maryland. To make a long story short, I ended up in the Western Maryland by a higher spiritual power. Thankfully the woman in the car survived her ordeal (although the car burnt to the ground!).

Since then, I have spoken to a lot of wonderful people, and, even better yet, saved another person.....from foreclosure!

I am now asking for your assistance.

I would greatly appreciate any referral so that I can provide a service to those who need a mortgage. No, I'm not looking to save anyone else (although, if the situation presents itself, I will!!!) but I am simply asking if you could refer to me people who are considering a home purchase, or need advice in refinancing their current mortgage.

I will offer any referral the best rate and I will back it up with unparallelled service. The company that I work for is licensed to do business in both Pennsylvania and Florida.

I appreciate your continued support and hope this year continues to be gracious to all!

T. Jefferson Think Tank tackles stem cell as topic on July 6

Various stem cell research topics will be discussed at the July meeting of the Thomas Jefferson Think Tank at 7:15 pm on Wednesday, July 6, 2005. Arrive early to enjoy the food, drink. Bring a friend. Gathering hosted at Silvioni’s, 2125 Babcock Boulevard. Dinner will be served until 7:00 pm. The meeting will start at approximately 7:15 pm.

The talk on “Stem Cell Research: The Science, The Ethics, and the Politics” will begin with an explanation of what exactly “stem cell research” entails, and how it is currently being used in medicine and what other medical treatments might arise from it in the future. Next, discuss the ethics of the issue. Finally, the politics.

More in the comments.

Planning ahead for future races, i.e., 2006

Tim C, the Allegheny County Libertarian Chair wrote in part:

Casey and Santorum are both Pro-Life. So the LPPa (Libertarian Party of PA) could field a Pro-Choice candidate and get enough votes to hang onto minor party status. The big hurdle, however, is that in 2006 the LPPa will need to gather at least 66,000 valid signatures. This means that we will need about 100,000 raw signatures.

In 2004, we only needed 42,000 signatures. In 2006 we will need 100,000. This is because Casey ran away with the Treasurer's race in 2004 and we now need 2% of Casey's 3.6 million vote total.

We should begin to have a group conversation about how we intend to handle the 2006 ballot access drive. In 2004, LPPa volunteers gathered 21,000 signatures. That would leave us about 79,000 signatures short.

Since 2004 was a Presidential election year, The Badnarik campaign and the National Party each kicked in for enough signarures for the LPPa to get 42,000 total, enough for ballot access in 2004....

KQV Newsradio Pittsburgh - Opinion Poll on the Light Rail to the Stadiums - Click to vote now

KQV Newsradio Pittsburgh Daily Opinion Poll

The federal government is contributing 290-million-dollars toward the 365-million-dollar cost of the Port Authority's North Shore Connector. The massive project includes twin tunnels under the Allegheny River, extending the 'T' light rail line from Downtown to the North Shore stadiums.

I hate the idea of the light-rail to the stadiums for a number of reasons.

The federal money is our money too. The money can come from our back pocket or our purse, but it is still from the people.

Pittsburgh will never get its fiscal health back when we squander good money on bad projects.

The local match is needed for this project and there isn't any. The county's chief executive has said there is no money to do the project from county sources. The city is broke.

We need to extend the light-rail in meaningful ways. If the light-rail went to CCAC on the North Side -- I'd have a different opinion. But this is to service PNC Park and Heinz Field.

Boston's "big dig" is leaking. That extended a road under Boston Harbor. It went over budget. It is now built and with serious problems. I fear that this project is going to net the same results.

We want game-day pedestrian traffic in the greater area. Let's keep the festive crowds on the closed Clemente Bridge. Let's allow for vendors, and others throughout town and the North Side to capitalize on the fans. If the light-rail stops are put at the stadium doors, the rest of the neighborhoods see no upside. Walking from town is NOT a big deal. Taking a cab is easy.

The PAT plan calls for the re-do of working, existing stops. Gateway Center stop works now. But with the new plan it is totally rebuilt. Same too with the stop near the Pennsylvanian close to the Convention Center. All in all we get four new stops, but two of them are re-done construction projects. The net gain is half. Rather, let's extend the light-rail to Oakland, Lawrenceville, (new Children's Hospital), and even out to Highland Park.

We should be pushing mass transit to places where people live.

Better Hearing given some ink and friends and peers visit Pitt -- a leader in audiology

See the feature article that mentions wellness and audiologist.

New Pittsburgh Courier Her hearing loss was said to be a combination of age, noise and genetics. McCray slipped into depression.

For the past three days, 50 educators of audiologist from around the nation came to Pittsburgh for a workshop organized, in part, by my wife, Catherine V. Palmer. The event was called a "landmark event."

Way to go Pitt!

The "NO" vote was as high as 90-percent in some neighborhoods

This is interesting if true.

New Pittsburgh Courier: In May, I had written a column urging the electorate, particularly the African-American community, to vote No on the referendum question in the primary regarding row office consolidation. I have reviewed the voting tallies. What is bold and interesting is that though the question passed by over 70 percent due to many factors, it failed consistently within the African-American communities, in some cases by over 90 percent. And the no vote was higher in working class communities than in higher income communities.

I've not done my homework, yet, in the vote specifics from May, 2005. If anyone has any insights and charts on the data, I'd be happy to get a copy via email.

Courier reports FAMILY Dollar might open near the Hill House

New Pittsburgh Courier Family Dollar ushers in new Hill House CDC.

No ordinary classroom

No ordinary classroom - PittsburghLIVE.com The gardens will become a key component of the planned community greenhouse and pavilion where students and neighborhood children will learn agriculture and environmental science hands-on, Wilcox said. The greenhouse will be 75 percent solar-powered.

While the greenhouse is 75-percent solar powered, the percentage for the produce grow in the ground will be much higher.
I'd love to see a charter school, or a public school, tied to the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium. A concentration about animals would be rewarding and beyond the ordinary as well.
Tip: Hope we see a Highland Park 4H club bloom soon.

Updating dart boards has become much easier with these cards.

If this was really about growing 'sprouts' -- I'd be happy. However, as I see it, this is more about preservation of the status quo. Same old same old gets institutional support from those who claim to be change-agents.

Want political savvy? It's in the cards - PittsburghLIVE.com The inaugural 60-card set was unveiled Saturday night at Hothouse '05 -- the annual money-raiser for the Sprout Fund, which provided the seed money of $9,400 for the venture.

I'd rather provide a set a trading cards for a thousand Chinees gods than give my kids cards with little known facts of those who are taking apart our city, folly by folly.

Rather than reveal little know facts, the card creators should have stuck to straight politics.

The less the people know, the better those in power like it. Rather than give straight up info on who stands for what -- and who was at the helm as various bogus budgets came into being to cripple our region -- do fluff.

I feel certain that I'd be happy if half of the 60 who are featured on those trading cards were put into the private sector at the next election.

I'd be thrilled, plus we'd see a rebound of the region's public health if every one of those featured today on the trading cards were removed from office and put into the private sector.

Those trading cards should serve as resume cards. Every elected cronie needs a new job. If you like a person -- offer him or her a job in your business. Your business might take a hit, but, the region will have hope.

By the way, does Joe Weinroth have a trading card? What about Alan Perry and Tonya Payne?

Blue City Conservatives by Matt Rosenberg

Seattle Weekly: News: Blue City Conservatives by Matt Rosenberg Here are some admittedly gloomy snapshots of life in the city under the vestiges of one-party rule.

This article isn't about Pittsburgh, thankfully. But, it is something that needs to be understood. In the real world, it isn't always smooth sailing.