WHEN: Wednesday, Sept. 14, 6 p.m., Eastern Time
WHERE: http://www.edweek-chat.org
Rail Road Flat Elementary, an impoverished, 100-student public school in rural northern California, has become one of the highest-achieving schools in the state and last year was a state nominee for "national model of excellence" status. The school's success has been attributed to strong student discipline and a heavy emphasis on the kind of teach-to-the-test learning that is often frowned upon in more affluent areas. "There's a need for structure," says Rail Road Flat teacher Randall Youngblood. "If I was teaching in another socioeconomic group, it might be different." But what are the drawbacks?
In this chat, Youngblood will discuss his school's approach to academics and classroom management and its attitude toward state and national policy.
Submit advance questions here.
For more information on Rail Road Flat Elementary, read the article "One-Track Minds" in the Aug./Sept. Issue of TEACHER MAGAZINE.
No equipment other than Internet access is needed to participate in this text-based chat. A complete transcript will be posted shortly after the chat's completion.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
LIVE CHAT: Embracing NCLB: One School's Experience
Gregg Behr efforts at Forbes Funds
Nonprofits need clout in Pittsburgh -- yeah, right.
Forbes Funds, Copeland Fund, Tropman Fund, Wishart Fund, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Any charitable organization, incorporated as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) corporation and serving Greater Pittsburgh, can become a member of the Greater Pittsburgh Nonprofit Partnership (GPNP) by contributing a minimum of $100.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Petition calling for indie commission of feds after Katrnia
Signatures are gathering at on online petition to send an unmistakable message that Americans want answers in the wake of Katrinia. They want 50,000 people to support an Independent Commission -- by Wednesday.
Sign the petition.katrina
Sign the petition.katrina
Duquesne Light -- here we go again?
Are we going to be treated to some new, decrative lighting treatments?
Duquesne Light Making Significant Investment in Region, Creating New Jobs State, County and City Officials to Join Company at Groundbreaking
Morgan K. O'Brien, Duquesne Light president and chief executive officer, will make a major announcement and provide details tomorrow regarding the company's commitment to its customers and the Pittsburgh region.
Scheduled speakers include Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Dennis Yablonsky, Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato and Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy.
WHEN: Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m.
WHERE: 2835 New Beaver Avenue, Pittsburgh 15233
In the past, the big civic improvement from Duquesne Light was the lighting of a bridge over the river. More was spent on the lights for the bridge than it would have cost to hire eight new teachers to focus on 9th grade math in the city schools. Most of the city school kids in 9th grade fail algebra one. Most get "F"s (or did when the bridge lighting need long jam was cleared).
I'm not sure of the city students' math scores now -- but -- I have a bet that I could find 101 better uses for the bridge lighting project without much thinking.
Mike Brown resigns as director of FEMA.
Hit the road Jack. FEMA director resigns.
Photo is from a sidewalk in "Peoples' Park." The people were not fooled. Good to see some accountability.
More news of 2006. But what about 2005?
It used to be, and still is, IMHO, bad form to put a lot of noise into the coverage of elections that are two or three away. It is better to devote most of the talk to the next elections. Why fuss and fast-forward to 2006 fall when 2005 needs to be made clear. If this coverage was in addition to 2005 mentions, I'd not gripe.
U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart of Bradford Woods (www.peoplewithhart.com) is thought to be potentially vulnerable, although the Dems seem to think Murphy is the more vulnerable of the two. Still, two Dems have lined up to challenge Hart already -- Georgia Berner of Butler County (www.georgiaberner.com) and Jason Altmire of McCandless (www.jasonaltmire.com).
Peters Township Democrat Tom Kovach
The seat in the congress is held by Tim Murphy, R. Every two years there is an election for these seats. Next up, 2006.
Thanks for the pointer to Jon Delano, and his PSF email.
Kovach, a loss control engineer for an insurance company, a Navy veteran with a Masters degree from Pitt's GSPIA School, once ran for state House against Republican state Rep. John Maher, and he is mounting a grassroots, issues campaign (www.kovachforcongress.com). Taking a page out of Santorum's book, Kovach is already door-knocking in this three-county district.
Thanks for the pointer to Jon Delano, and his PSF email.
Next crisis: FEMA will issue decoder rings.
I can see the future, and it looks interesting for FEMA and decoder ring makers with big political PAC accounts.
We used to worry about electronic voting machines and paperless ballots. Next it will be decoder rings.
In the hours after the storm, the helicopters will drop decoder rings on the areas impacted by the storm. Other FEMA officials will station themselves at highway rest points and truck stops to hand out rings to those who supply DNA samples.
The rings will help with database management and authenticity.
We used to worry about electronic voting machines and paperless ballots. Next it will be decoder rings.
In the hours after the storm, the helicopters will drop decoder rings on the areas impacted by the storm. Other FEMA officials will station themselves at highway rest points and truck stops to hand out rings to those who supply DNA samples.
The rings will help with database management and authenticity.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
That Dam Ride -- concluded. I'm going to rest now.
My son, Erik, 10, and I spent the weekend bonding -- while covering 140 miles on a two day bike trip, That Dam Ride.
Great weather. Great trail. Super everything. My boy was great too.
Note to world: I saw three bits of litter on the trail, all today. That's it.
We spent the night in the tent. Sadly, the tent did not make it home with us. Thank goodness there was a lost and found and friendly, responsible locals who helped me get the tent back on Monday. YES! Thanks! The tent is home again.
On the second day, Erik caught onto the skill of "drafting."
Day one we rolled out at 8:03 am under a big cover of fog. Got to the campsite, mile marker 59, at 4:30 pm. The last 20 miles were hard. The ice cream stop with 11-miles to go was NECESSARY.
On the second day we rolled out at 7:47 am -- as in 747 time to fly. And we did. The first 40 miles we must have averaged 12 mph, going 14 or 15 mph in stretches in a few packs. We got to the final spot, mile marker 128, at 3:05 pm. Plus, we had a 45-minute stop.
All in all -- great time.
Nice tunes last night by Wado Young.
I didn't take the digital camera. Got a few film photos from a throw-away camera to post later.
What's next? Perhaps the Junior The Great Race (on Sunday afternoon) and then the Great Race. What else are we missing?
Great weather. Great trail. Super everything. My boy was great too.
Note to world: I saw three bits of litter on the trail, all today. That's it.
We spent the night in the tent. Sadly, the tent did not make it home with us. Thank goodness there was a lost and found and friendly, responsible locals who helped me get the tent back on Monday. YES! Thanks! The tent is home again.
On the second day, Erik caught onto the skill of "drafting."
Day one we rolled out at 8:03 am under a big cover of fog. Got to the campsite, mile marker 59, at 4:30 pm. The last 20 miles were hard. The ice cream stop with 11-miles to go was NECESSARY.
On the second day we rolled out at 7:47 am -- as in 747 time to fly. And we did. The first 40 miles we must have averaged 12 mph, going 14 or 15 mph in stretches in a few packs. We got to the final spot, mile marker 128, at 3:05 pm. Plus, we had a 45-minute stop.
All in all -- great time.
Nice tunes last night by Wado Young.
I didn't take the digital camera. Got a few film photos from a throw-away camera to post later.
What's next? Perhaps the Junior The Great Race (on Sunday afternoon) and then the Great Race. What else are we missing?
Letter to the editor about Katrinia and its lesson
Worthy of a reprint here:
Lessons from Katrina
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Not surprisingly, the "blame game" is in full swing, an aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Individuals are busy pointing fingers and agreeing when the blame is placed on everyone in sight -- everyone, that is, except you and me (and they are not too sure about you).
They are expecting perfection from a government that cannot perform even its legitimate basic functions well.
The excess reliance on government, relieving the individual of responsibility, was initiated in the 1930s and has proliferated since.
This misguided thinking is not what grew this country and made it prosperous; this misguided thinking is bound to make this country poor.
This philosophy says it is the government's fault if people are poor, and that all are entitled to an affluent old age. This is embodied in our failing Social Security system.
When are people going to stop relying on the government to do everything? Perhaps Hurricane Katrina will help us to become sane?
George J. Heideman, Ligonier
Friday, September 09, 2005
16 to 10 -- Ohio U wins. I'll send a POST CARD of thanks to Steve Pederson!
Game goes into overtime and not a single offense score in the entire game.
Relentless works for me.
Fans rush the field after the game -- to hear the band's post game show!
Thanks Steve Pederson!
Relentless works for me.
Fans rush the field after the game -- to hear the band's post game show!
Thanks Steve Pederson!
Athens -- Party -- Excitement
Tied, 10 to 10, with a field goal by Pitt with 7 seconds on the clock.
OU and Pitt are playing a splendid TV game.
OU and Pitt are playing a splendid TV game.
Bobcats are beating Panthers headed into halftime
The OU Band takes the field -- and the scoreboard might change from 10-7 to 17-7 -- as the OU Marching 110 rock and roll.
Go Bobcats!
Sorry Wanny.
Let's see what the second half brings. Sorry the ESPN 2 coverage didn't show a few measures of the band's performance. :(
By the way -- I'm an 1982 Ohio University graduate. I'm pulling for MY University -- a place that was very good to me and good for me.
Our tent and sleeping bags, as well as new bike rack (thanks Nancy) and gear is packed for the weekend road trip. Erik, my oldest, and I are doing a 69-mile trek on Saturday and a return 69-miles on Saturday.
So, I'm no mail until Sunday night. I might wake up around Tuesday!
Go Bobcats!
Sorry Wanny.
Let's see what the second half brings. Sorry the ESPN 2 coverage didn't show a few measures of the band's performance. :(
By the way -- I'm an 1982 Ohio University graduate. I'm pulling for MY University -- a place that was very good to me and good for me.
Our tent and sleeping bags, as well as new bike rack (thanks Nancy) and gear is packed for the weekend road trip. Erik, my oldest, and I are doing a 69-mile trek on Saturday and a return 69-miles on Saturday.
So, I'm no mail until Sunday night. I might wake up around Tuesday!
Keep the pork out of Katrinia Relief Aid
Following last week's devastating hurricane and flooding in the Gulf region, Congress acted quickly to pass an initial $10.5 billion relief package. On Tuesday, President Bush asked for an additional $40 billion, bringing the total to more than $50 billion. This amount could double to $100 billion.
History has shown Congress' propensity to take advantage of emergency supplemental spending bills by inserting funds for their member's own pet projects. Even though funds are desperately needed by Hurricane Katrina's victims, members of Congress will undoubtedly still attempt to insert some self-serving pork. Already, there are calls for aid for drought relief in the mid-West, even though such funding could be provided through the regular appropriations bills for fiscal year 2006, which Congress has yet to approve.
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) has challenged members of Congress to block funding for unrelated pork projects in its aid for hurricane recovery and to help offset the costs by returning the $24 billion for the 6,400 earmarks in the recently enacted highway bill. Please write to your legislators today (http://www.cagw.org/site/R?i=cAy3qmMdFsDC3dBGW4FSgg.. ). Urge them to sign CCAGW's "Hurricane Katrina No Pork Pledge," through which they can vow to oppose any project or provision that is not directly related to the impact of Hurricane Katrina in any supplemental appropriations bill that provides funds for hurricane relief.
Emergency supplemental bills have become a magnet for pork because they do not count against House and Senate budget caps and such bills are always signed by the President. Past examples include:
· In April 2005, the $80 billion Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Tsunami Relief (H.R. 1268) included $25 million for the Fort Peck Fish Hatchery in Montana.
· In October 2003, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) grabbed $1.4 million for three projects in Pennsylvania, including $1 million to establish centers of excellence for the treatment of autism, in the fiscal 2003 Emergency Supplemental portion of the fiscal 2004 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act.
· In April 2003, the $78.5 billion War Supplemental Appropriations bill included 29 unrelated projects, which cost more than $348 million, including: $110 million for the National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa; $22.7 million for a Capitol power plant; and $200,000 for Light of Life Ministries in Allegheny County, Pa.
Congress' propensity for pork has already impacted the government's ability to protect New Orleans residents by wasting funds on parochial pork-barrel projects that could have gone toward improvements on the city's breeched levees. This is just one example of taxpayer dollars serving member's home state interests and not solving infrastructure problems of national significance. This week, Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) released its annual Prime Cuts report, listing the worst $2
trillion in government spending and detailing a plan to stop Congress's skyrocketing spending and redirecting funds to important national priorities. The savings from Prime Cuts could be used to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
If there has ever been a time for Congress to reject pork and cut the waste, that time is now. The widespread devastation and loss of life resulting from this disaster should shame members of Congress into forgoing egregious spending that will hinder recovery efforts and add to the deficit. Please write to your Representative and Senators today and urge them to sign CCAGW's "Hurricane Katrina No Pork Pledge" and not waste precious tax dollars needed by struggling disaster victims: http://www.cagw.org/site/R?i=XC3rVrNbSql6yylhZaJxMQ..
Sincerely, Thomas A. Schatz, President, CCAGW
VOLUNTEERS SURF and SCRUB THE WEB TO HELP RECONNECT FAMILY AND FRIENDS
FOR MEDIA:
WASHINGTON, Friday, September 09, 2005 — The largest collection of data on the web about evacuees and survivors has been pulled together by volunteers and programmers working long hours for the last week. The http://www.katrinalist.net is a collection of survivor information from across dozens of sites. The project was launched to provide information on survivors to family and friends across the web. The http://www.katrinalist.net site forms a needed complement to a pending launch of newer efforts to organize data by the Red Cross, FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security.
The "official sites" will be focusing on new more structured data collected from people in shelters and from those interacting with government programs and relief organizations. http://www.Katrinalist.net is the complement to whatever official collection all the informal data from bulletin boards, discussion forms and sites across the web. Katrinalist.net will provide data to Katrinasafe.com (also know at this blog as the jagoffs.)
Those seeking information on family should first search www.katrinasafe.com and then www.katrinalist.net. These sites represent the best collection of data and the best hope for helping family and friends locate each other.
Evacuees wishing to inform loved ones of their location can register or post information about survivors at http://www.katrinasafe.com/WebEntryApplication/entryform.aspx
Report a Missing Person at http://www.katrinasafe.com/WebEntryApplication/InquiryEntryForm.aspx
These are all voluntary and self-reporting tools. All media outlets and those hosting discussion boards, search tools and other information on survivors or offering connections to families are asked to redirect search traffic and data input to these sites.
Additional Background:
The project was launched as the core team started to realize that too many sites were collecting data and stories on families looking for or posting the status of their friends and neighbors. In the moments leading up to the storm dozens of sites launched services to help their members, including: New Orleans Newspapers (NOLA.com), TV and radio sites, Craigslist, CNN, MSNBC, Yahoo, Blogs and the Red Cross. In the hours following the storm companies, college students and volunteers began to set up databases for people to add and search information.
On Friday the 9th, The American Red Cross, with support of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement launched a web site and hotline to help assist family members who are seeking news about loved ones living in the path of Hurricane Katrina.
Dozens of message boards have sprung up around the country since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, promising to throw a technological lifeline to families that have been ripped apart. At the same time, the proliferation of registries has also made it increasingly difficult to figure out where to find information on missing loved ones.
"If I'm a refugee trying to find my brother, I would have to search 20 databases and 25 online forums," said David Geilhufe, chief executive of the Social Source Foundation, a charity set up to create software for other non-profits. "It's a huge problem."
Enter Katrinalist.net. The all volunteer team created a searchable directory of persons displaced or affected by Hurricane Katrina, consolidating over 25 different online resources into one central, searchable repository. PeopleFinder Interchange Format, (called 'PFIF') is a new, standardized data format implemented in XML.
Katrina People Finder (www.katrinalist.net) helps in the organization of data about people affected by major storms such as Hurricane Katrina and speeds searches by allowing many organizations to contribute to a central repository. The interchange format of Katrina People Finder makes automated search and retrieval of data about people quick and easy. Common data will help automated systems to connect displaced individuals via automatic categorization and matching.
The Kartinalist.net PeopleFinder database now contains just barebones information -- such as name, phone number, last known address and status. But Dean Robison of Salesforce.com, a San Francisco software firm that is providing the technology to run the consolidated database, said it could easily be expanded in the future to speed rescue and relief operations in further disasters.
The Power of Community
The Katrina PeopleFinder Project mobilized hundreds of volunteers over the Labor Day weekend to make an immediate difference. That immediate difference is at http://www.katrinalist.net/, a searchable database of almost 400,000 PeopleFinder Interchange Format-compliant, volunteer-entered, missing and found persons reports from across the web. Having a single, searchable resource is critical due to limited internet access for evacuees and their families. The team plans to turn its attention to housing and job solutions next, creating a centralized technology solution that aggregates a comprehensive resource set from sites all across the web, standardizes them, and makes them searchable from anywhere.
Project Contributors
CivicSpace Labs (http://www.CivicSpaceLabs.org) is a funded non-profit organization and community collaborating with the Drupal (http://www.Drupal.org) project to develop a free/open-source software platform for online community organizing. CivicSpace enables bottom-up people-powered campaigns to operate on a more level playing field with more traditional top-down organizations, and, similarly, allows top-down organizations to leverage the power of grassroots organizing.
Salesforce.com Foundation (http://www.salesforcefoundation.org/index.html) was officially launched in July 2000 by Secretary of State, Colin L. Powell. The launch of the Foundation came less than a year after the launch of the company with the goal of building philanthropic programs at the very beginning of the company's existence rather than waiting until the company had reached a certain level of 'comfortable success'. Our belief is if emphasis is placed on social programs from a company's inception, the value of service will be a core cultural value that is built into the fabric of the company.
Social Source Software (http://www.social-source.com/) creates world-class software specifically for nonprofit and non-governmental organizations, usually under an open source license. Social Source Software works with organizations seeking to create enterprise grade websites, web applications, and other types of software.
Craigslist (http://www.Craigslist.org) From its humble beginnings as an e-mail newsletter sent to friends in San Francisco, Craigslist has grown to be one of the largest online community bulletin boards, with 175 Craigslist sites in all 50 US states, and 34 countries. Craigslist was one of the earliest community sites to coordinate hurricane relief, rescue and reunion for Katrina survivors.
Contact: Sue Cline: Volunteer : Katrinalist.net : Communications & Media Phone: (804) 230-3456
Contact: Marty Kearns: Volunteer : Katrinalist.net : Communications & Media (C ) 202-487-1887
Contact: Zack Rosen: Volunteer : Katrinalist.net : Technical and Engineering Lead (C) (724)612-7641
WASHINGTON, Friday, September 09, 2005 — The largest collection of data on the web about evacuees and survivors has been pulled together by volunteers and programmers working long hours for the last week. The http://www.katrinalist.net is a collection of survivor information from across dozens of sites. The project was launched to provide information on survivors to family and friends across the web. The http://www.katrinalist.net site forms a needed complement to a pending launch of newer efforts to organize data by the Red Cross, FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security.
The "official sites" will be focusing on new more structured data collected from people in shelters and from those interacting with government programs and relief organizations. http://www.Katrinalist.net is the complement to whatever official collection all the informal data from bulletin boards, discussion forms and sites across the web. Katrinalist.net will provide data to Katrinasafe.com (also know at this blog as the jagoffs.)
Those seeking information on family should first search www.katrinasafe.com and then www.katrinalist.net. These sites represent the best collection of data and the best hope for helping family and friends locate each other.
Evacuees wishing to inform loved ones of their location can register or post information about survivors at http://www.katrinasafe.com/WebEntryApplication/entryform.aspx
Report a Missing Person at http://www.katrinasafe.com/WebEntryApplication/InquiryEntryForm.aspx
These are all voluntary and self-reporting tools. All media outlets and those hosting discussion boards, search tools and other information on survivors or offering connections to families are asked to redirect search traffic and data input to these sites.
Additional Background:
The project was launched as the core team started to realize that too many sites were collecting data and stories on families looking for or posting the status of their friends and neighbors. In the moments leading up to the storm dozens of sites launched services to help their members, including: New Orleans Newspapers (NOLA.com), TV and radio sites, Craigslist, CNN, MSNBC, Yahoo, Blogs and the Red Cross. In the hours following the storm companies, college students and volunteers began to set up databases for people to add and search information.
On Friday the 9th, The American Red Cross, with support of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement launched a web site and hotline to help assist family members who are seeking news about loved ones living in the path of Hurricane Katrina.
Dozens of message boards have sprung up around the country since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, promising to throw a technological lifeline to families that have been ripped apart. At the same time, the proliferation of registries has also made it increasingly difficult to figure out where to find information on missing loved ones.
"If I'm a refugee trying to find my brother, I would have to search 20 databases and 25 online forums," said David Geilhufe, chief executive of the Social Source Foundation, a charity set up to create software for other non-profits. "It's a huge problem."
Enter Katrinalist.net. The all volunteer team created a searchable directory of persons displaced or affected by Hurricane Katrina, consolidating over 25 different online resources into one central, searchable repository. PeopleFinder Interchange Format, (called 'PFIF') is a new, standardized data format implemented in XML.
Katrina People Finder (www.katrinalist.net) helps in the organization of data about people affected by major storms such as Hurricane Katrina and speeds searches by allowing many organizations to contribute to a central repository. The interchange format of Katrina People Finder makes automated search and retrieval of data about people quick and easy. Common data will help automated systems to connect displaced individuals via automatic categorization and matching.
The Kartinalist.net PeopleFinder database now contains just barebones information -- such as name, phone number, last known address and status. But Dean Robison of Salesforce.com, a San Francisco software firm that is providing the technology to run the consolidated database, said it could easily be expanded in the future to speed rescue and relief operations in further disasters.
The Power of Community
The Katrina PeopleFinder Project mobilized hundreds of volunteers over the Labor Day weekend to make an immediate difference. That immediate difference is at http://www.katrinalist.net/, a searchable database of almost 400,000 PeopleFinder Interchange Format-compliant, volunteer-entered, missing and found persons reports from across the web. Having a single, searchable resource is critical due to limited internet access for evacuees and their families. The team plans to turn its attention to housing and job solutions next, creating a centralized technology solution that aggregates a comprehensive resource set from sites all across the web, standardizes them, and makes them searchable from anywhere.
Project Contributors
CivicSpace Labs (http://www.CivicSpaceLabs.org) is a funded non-profit organization and community collaborating with the Drupal (http://www.Drupal.org) project to develop a free/open-source software platform for online community organizing. CivicSpace enables bottom-up people-powered campaigns to operate on a more level playing field with more traditional top-down organizations, and, similarly, allows top-down organizations to leverage the power of grassroots organizing.
Salesforce.com Foundation (http://www.salesforcefoundation.org/index.html) was officially launched in July 2000 by Secretary of State, Colin L. Powell. The launch of the Foundation came less than a year after the launch of the company with the goal of building philanthropic programs at the very beginning of the company's existence rather than waiting until the company had reached a certain level of 'comfortable success'. Our belief is if emphasis is placed on social programs from a company's inception, the value of service will be a core cultural value that is built into the fabric of the company.
Social Source Software (http://www.social-source.com/) creates world-class software specifically for nonprofit and non-governmental organizations, usually under an open source license. Social Source Software works with organizations seeking to create enterprise grade websites, web applications, and other types of software.
Craigslist (http://www.Craigslist.org) From its humble beginnings as an e-mail newsletter sent to friends in San Francisco, Craigslist has grown to be one of the largest online community bulletin boards, with 175 Craigslist sites in all 50 US states, and 34 countries. Craigslist was one of the earliest community sites to coordinate hurricane relief, rescue and reunion for Katrina survivors.
It is a sidewalk. Not roller blade way nor speed way. No bike riding here.
Don't ride your bike on the sidewalks of the South Side! Get off and walk. A few customers of stores have gotten run down by fast moving bike riders in recent days. Get onto the street and go fast or walk on the sidewalk.
Pittsburgh Laurels & Lances: RIP to the ICA
We need oversight. The ICA isn't dead yet. It has acted like it is worthless. But that is another problem.
I've suggested that Joe Weinroth be nominated to fill the open position on the ICA board.
The need for the board is there because the Act 47 folks can't be trusted, nor can the city's leaders. We do have a need for oversight. The reasons are there as sure as the debt is huge.
Pittsburgh Laurels & Lances - PittsburghLIVE.com R.I.P.: The Pittsburgh oversight board. With the departure of Bill Lieberman from the board, there's really no need for the board to exist. Gutted of any members who don't have marionette rods attached to their mouths, the board has been reduced to a rubber stamp of the companion Act 47 board. It's a great victory for gubernatorial thuggery; it's a very sad loss for the concept of independent oversight.
I've suggested that Joe Weinroth be nominated to fill the open position on the ICA board.
The need for the board is there because the Act 47 folks can't be trusted, nor can the city's leaders. We do have a need for oversight. The reasons are there as sure as the debt is huge.
Pittsburgh Laurels & Lances - Parking
City council does have some skin in the strike by the union that operates many parking lots.
The city owns the PARKING AUTHORITY. The Parking Authority should be taken apart.
I spoke to the union leader and he agrees with me. The Parking Authority is part of the problem. The Parking Authority should be NUKED.
Furthermore, the URA is building parking garages. That's an important connection that can't be ignored. The city council has a seat on the URA board. That is another connection.
That said -- I don't think that the resolution was worth hill of beans. But, there are ways to get involved and do better work than what we've seen.
Pittsburgh Laurels & Lances - PittsburghLIVE.com To Pittsburgh City Council. It passes a resolution in support of the striking parking lot attendants and accuses the lot operators of 'union-busting.' First, the council has no business entering this fray. Second, its resolution only affirms that it doesn't have a clue about finances in general. It's this kind of mind-boggling lapdogging that played a major role in Pittsburgh's fiscal downfall.
The city owns the PARKING AUTHORITY. The Parking Authority should be taken apart.
I spoke to the union leader and he agrees with me. The Parking Authority is part of the problem. The Parking Authority should be NUKED.
Furthermore, the URA is building parking garages. That's an important connection that can't be ignored. The city council has a seat on the URA board. That is another connection.
That said -- I don't think that the resolution was worth hill of beans. But, there are ways to get involved and do better work than what we've seen.
Statement in the Aftermath of Katrina via OMB. My reactions within (long)
The essence of needing and expecting action is fine. But, how actions are accomplished and what is asked for (in hindsight) is strange in this OMB statement.
I think Katrinia reminds us why it is necessary to have a diversified and effective response. The unified part was the problem, not the solution.
Leadership is earned -- like respect. It isn't something to EXERT. When the Federal Government MUST EXERT LEADERSHIP then we've got serious problems brewing, much worse than even Katrina.
True, many of our elected leaders who we expected to act didn't. They were ill prepared to lead, to act, to work, to fix and to help. They were frozen in time. The outcomes were glaring and caught on television news.
I am one who generally clamors for "smaller government." I don't ever say smaller is ALWAYS better. Always and never are avoided, as are "first" and "only."
We agree:
No doubt, the Fed need to shoulder responsibility.
No doubt, lives should not be put at risk.
No doubt, chaos ensues after a disaster. But, more chaos would occur if a unified effort shifted more responsibilities to itself, at the expense of other efforts, and then broke down.
It is like data. Back-ups are always a good idea.
We need good backups. We need redundant systems.
Just think of the World Wide Web. It thrives because all the data and efforts are not in one place with one god-like place of responsibility.
Just think of nature. The diversity is what makes splendid results. The king of the jungle is but a name. Ants, birds and reptiles all function without needing to get permission from the lions -- yet alone wait for the lion to live life for them.
Do doubt we need coordinated and effective. Unified, however, not so much.
We'll be stronger when there is diversity.
We'll be more accountable when there are other systems out there doing the job too.
The Feds are being held accountable today (or in the weeks to come) because the news crews (CNN, Fox, etc.) were at the New Orleans Convention Center and the reporters didn't find clean water, organization, doctors, nor food. Other voices and other avenues need to be free flowing -- not controlled from one central command.
I want accountability, but a great deal of that happens with marketplace forces that are proven in moment to moment efforts.
The one size fits all approach takes a lot of time at the tailor's shop before it can be applied. Meanwhile, deaths mount higher. We have to think it through and plan in advance. But there are times to act. A smart network has smart nodes. I want strong independence throughout.
Because they had the votes, that's why.
You want tax breaks, you line up some good reasoning, some good arm twisting, and you deliver the votes. Often the votes can be purchased. We have too many in the political realm who are able to be bought. That's special interest and money at its worst.
By the way, I hate corporate welfare. That is one of the worst types of tax cut.
I agree again that we need to have our government tackle the jobs of what government should be doing. Dams, locks on the rivers, road re-paving, bridge repair, rodent control, etc. They need to stick to the knitting. They need to watch the public treasury too. Large scale projects that make sense for the collective good need to be done. But, too many large scale projects are PORK and sexy. Those efforts take away from the non-sexy, routine, boring projects.
If you take care of the basics and repair what you have as top priorities -- you won't get ahead in politics and government. There have been millions poured into our state (Pennsylvania) for GAMBLING interests. We don't have gambling, but that is where the money is. The money is for the new, not the rehabs. The money is for the change, the churn, the speculators -- not the inner city.
It is easy to focus on one developer and a greenfield vs. a diverse neighborhood and many owners with many stakeholders. Easy does not deliver the best solutions however.
In our city, it is easy for the mayor or the county executive to call to the north side and have a meeting with four people all in the office: Rooney (Owner of the Steelers), McK (owner of the Pirates), S. (owner of leases to parking), URA (urban redevelopment authority). Easy. No home owners are there to deal with. Perhaps if the meeting get a bit wider in scope, they'd call HEINZ (woops, Del Monte) and talk about the catchup factory (woops, loft apartments). No need to call Pgh Wool -- eminent domain took them out of the picture years ago.
Meanwhile, if the mayor wants to call to the south side and have a meeting -- that meeting is going to erupt into a thorny brew-ha-ha with special interest groups, block watches, small business, non-profits, kids groups, out the wazoo. Once parking is raised, then nothing gets done for another week of venting. Its a mess.
Democracy is messy. Government is messy.
The South Side is thriving.
The top-down plans of the north side suck. The latest move is to spend $400-million on a subway line extension that goes under the river to get more people to the ball games. Nuts. Nobody wants that -- except for the four people who meet at regular intervals in the mayor's office.
I agree, we have too many misplace priorities.
By the way, our Democratic Governor who might one day run for President, Rendell, wanted to cut the gas taxes right away. That was his quick solution. And now that stance is being put onto the back burner with him.
BTW, this rub with the estate tax to help nonprofits (good for Red Cross and others) does not square with the idea that the government needs to shoulder the responsibility. The thinking became unclear to me with that example.
The cuts to food stamps, Medicaid and student loans are made so bigger bailouts can be made the next cycle. The university community of LA was just before Congress yesterday to ask for $500-million. So, a cut in student loans last season turned into free tuition and retention pay for professors next season. My point, is that there is a lot of smoke here. The knee jerk reactions are going to rule the day. The powerful gain power by controlling it and giving it out as they desire -- while noise and FUD (fear uncertainty and doubt) justifies the take-it-while you can mentality.
Agree.
The best way to get the info out to the people is to avoid a unified approach. Peer review, multiple sites, multiple flows of information are needed.
Meanwhile FEMA and Microsoft are teaming up to put a unified database of survivors together -- locking out others.
Agree: The governments fight on the war on poverty was a loss. Poverty won. So, why then do you want to increase food stamps, increase governmental handouts, increase student aid -- via governmental sources. You're conflict within your statement are hard to understand.
Poverty beat the feds -- so some advanced the fix to come via the faith based programs.
It isn't hard to understand, but it can be made into a complex problem.
A huge storm hit. Before the punch of the storm was delivered, people were not nimble enough to flee. Too many were not free and capable of moving quickly and on short notice.
Before the punch of the storm was delivered, too many people were in unprotected spaces. Buildings and security were not strong enough to weather the storm.
One system break-down leads to other systems breaking. Electricity, phone, power in hospitals, etc., etc. Not enough freedom, choice, back-ups, flexibility, individual decision making throughout.
After the storm hit, the wave of relief needed to be matched with a counter punch. The leveraged power of the counter punch was hindered on many instances. It was slow and weak at first.
The rush of relief faced many red-tape hurdles. For example, doctors were sitting for days with mini hospitals -- but could not treat the needy because of a state license issue. The hurdles were killers.
To run and be coordinated, our body has one group of muscles that flex and contract while other muscles lengthen, loosen and relax. Step after step this happens. Move - Relax - Move - Relax. Its the coordination thing! There seemed to be a lot of counter moves that stopped actions of willing helpers. We needed to be able to RELAX rules (and laws) to permit doctors to come in and treat our sick without the fear and uncertainty of loosing one's license a month later.
So, there isn't much flexibility built into our system. We are not good at relaxing as a society because we have too many hyper rule makers who don't think it through and see the bigger picture.
Individuals can make good decisions. All the decision making can't be uploaded to one mega brain.
Better decision can be made if things are out in the open for all to see.
Agree with open and agree with accountable -- but we don't agree about the politics part. Dream on. This is Congress. Plus, politics is a part of life.
Push for open ways -- and don't push for the avoidance of politics. Expect it. Deal with it.
If we had Libertarians and Greens run the INDEPENDENT Investigation -- then we might have something to talk about. But Ds and Rs are going to be themselves, as they were before the storm. I'd like to see more parties with people in Congress. That would help to defuse the red-state vs blue-state games they both play.
Politics is part of the fabric of America and it needs to be dealt with -- not ignored or wished away. To ignore politics or wish it away is childish.
We need to make sure all those people can vote. Plus, we need to make sure that all voters, everywhere, are casting smart votes.
Getting good people into office for the right reasons is going to fix a lot of the problems that plague our country. Kicking other people out of office for the right reasons is going to work wonders too. One is positive, the other is negative. We need to be strong on offense and not give away any gains on defense. Put the right ones in -- and toss the bums out.
The right ones (i.e.,creditable individuals who are candidates) are not going to be thrilled to build gambling casinos on the coast lines. The right ones are not going to be thrilled to make a Super Dome for $500-million and let neighborhoods be endangered due to cracked and crumbled infrastructure -- ripe for flooding.
I think this is going to boil down to the power of the voters and voter education. We must make smarter use of our votes in every office from local to national.
OMB Watch - An OMB Watch Statement in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina reminds us why it is necessary to have a strong, accountable federal government. In a time of crisis we need a unified, coordinated and effective response. To accomplish this, the federal government must exert leadership and be prepared to act. Hurricane Katrina has demonstrated -- as no sloganeering about the role of government could -- the dangers of assuming that smaller government is always better, or that federal responsibilities should be shifted to others. As Katrina has shown, when the federal government refuses to shoulder its responsibilities and chooses instead to pass the buck, lives are put at risk and chaos ensues....
I think Katrinia reminds us why it is necessary to have a diversified and effective response. The unified part was the problem, not the solution.
Leadership is earned -- like respect. It isn't something to EXERT. When the Federal Government MUST EXERT LEADERSHIP then we've got serious problems brewing, much worse than even Katrina.
True, many of our elected leaders who we expected to act didn't. They were ill prepared to lead, to act, to work, to fix and to help. They were frozen in time. The outcomes were glaring and caught on television news.
I am one who generally clamors for "smaller government." I don't ever say smaller is ALWAYS better. Always and never are avoided, as are "first" and "only."
We agree:
No doubt, the Fed need to shoulder responsibility.
No doubt, lives should not be put at risk.
No doubt, chaos ensues after a disaster. But, more chaos would occur if a unified effort shifted more responsibilities to itself, at the expense of other efforts, and then broke down.
It is like data. Back-ups are always a good idea.
We need good backups. We need redundant systems.
Just think of the World Wide Web. It thrives because all the data and efforts are not in one place with one god-like place of responsibility.
Just think of nature. The diversity is what makes splendid results. The king of the jungle is but a name. Ants, birds and reptiles all function without needing to get permission from the lions -- yet alone wait for the lion to live life for them.
Do doubt we need coordinated and effective. Unified, however, not so much.
We'll be stronger when there is diversity.
We'll be more accountable when there are other systems out there doing the job too.
The Feds are being held accountable today (or in the weeks to come) because the news crews (CNN, Fox, etc.) were at the New Orleans Convention Center and the reporters didn't find clean water, organization, doctors, nor food. Other voices and other avenues need to be free flowing -- not controlled from one central command.
I want accountability, but a great deal of that happens with marketplace forces that are proven in moment to moment efforts.
The one size fits all approach takes a lot of time at the tailor's shop before it can be applied. Meanwhile, deaths mount higher. We have to think it through and plan in advance. But there are times to act. A smart network has smart nodes. I want strong independence throughout.
Why has it been acceptable to provide tax breaks primarily for the richest in our society when basic human needs have gone unmet for so many?
Because they had the votes, that's why.
You want tax breaks, you line up some good reasoning, some good arm twisting, and you deliver the votes. Often the votes can be purchased. We have too many in the political realm who are able to be bought. That's special interest and money at its worst.
By the way, I hate corporate welfare. That is one of the worst types of tax cut.
I agree again that we need to have our government tackle the jobs of what government should be doing. Dams, locks on the rivers, road re-paving, bridge repair, rodent control, etc. They need to stick to the knitting. They need to watch the public treasury too. Large scale projects that make sense for the collective good need to be done. But, too many large scale projects are PORK and sexy. Those efforts take away from the non-sexy, routine, boring projects.
If you take care of the basics and repair what you have as top priorities -- you won't get ahead in politics and government. There have been millions poured into our state (Pennsylvania) for GAMBLING interests. We don't have gambling, but that is where the money is. The money is for the new, not the rehabs. The money is for the change, the churn, the speculators -- not the inner city.
It is easy to focus on one developer and a greenfield vs. a diverse neighborhood and many owners with many stakeholders. Easy does not deliver the best solutions however.
In our city, it is easy for the mayor or the county executive to call to the north side and have a meeting with four people all in the office: Rooney (Owner of the Steelers), McK (owner of the Pirates), S. (owner of leases to parking), URA (urban redevelopment authority). Easy. No home owners are there to deal with. Perhaps if the meeting get a bit wider in scope, they'd call HEINZ (woops, Del Monte) and talk about the catchup factory (woops, loft apartments). No need to call Pgh Wool -- eminent domain took them out of the picture years ago.
Meanwhile, if the mayor wants to call to the south side and have a meeting -- that meeting is going to erupt into a thorny brew-ha-ha with special interest groups, block watches, small business, non-profits, kids groups, out the wazoo. Once parking is raised, then nothing gets done for another week of venting. Its a mess.
Democracy is messy. Government is messy.
The South Side is thriving.
The top-down plans of the north side suck. The latest move is to spend $400-million on a subway line extension that goes under the river to get more people to the ball games. Nuts. Nobody wants that -- except for the four people who meet at regular intervals in the mayor's office.
I agree, we have too many misplace priorities.
By the way, our Democratic Governor who might one day run for President, Rendell, wanted to cut the gas taxes right away. That was his quick solution. And now that stance is being put onto the back burner with him.
BTW, this rub with the estate tax to help nonprofits (good for Red Cross and others) does not square with the idea that the government needs to shoulder the responsibility. The thinking became unclear to me with that example.
The cuts to food stamps, Medicaid and student loans are made so bigger bailouts can be made the next cycle. The university community of LA was just before Congress yesterday to ask for $500-million. So, a cut in student loans last season turned into free tuition and retention pay for professors next season. My point, is that there is a lot of smoke here. The knee jerk reactions are going to rule the day. The powerful gain power by controlling it and giving it out as they desire -- while noise and FUD (fear uncertainty and doubt) justifies the take-it-while you can mentality.
One shocking element about the events unfolding as a result of Hurricane Katrina is that few people, if any, have accurate, up-to-date, life-saving information. With a toxic stew roiling through the streets of New Orleans, the public's right to know about dangerous chemicals in their communities and the present dangers of large scale commercial coastal development becomes ever more important. Thousands of facilities in the Gulf Coast area -- ranging from gas stations to oil refiners to large petrochemical plants -- were buffeted by Hurricane Katrina and many may be leaking into the flood waters, but there is little information available about these facilities. Every community has dangers and knowledge about them can help us prevent disasters and react more quickly and properly when disasters strike. The federal government should take affirmative steps to insure that emergency responders and the public know about dangers in New Orleans and in all of our communities and require that companies make responsible efforts to minimize these dangers.
Agree.
The best way to get the info out to the people is to avoid a unified approach. Peer review, multiple sites, multiple flows of information are needed.
Meanwhile FEMA and Microsoft are teaming up to put a unified database of survivors together -- locking out others.
Underlying all the Gulf Coast devastation is a shocking injustice that must be addressed: a disproportionate number of poor and people of color were affected, reflecting broader and persistent societal inequities. The issue is not new, it has just been ignored. Some would argue we have been losing ground on this front for years. Here, too, there is a positive role the federal government can play, yet little leadership or political will is in place for that to occur. Ronald Reagan once quipped, "My friends, some years ago the federal government declared war on poverty -- and poverty won." As Hurricane Katrina has made so clear, this is no laughing matter; it is time the fight be taken up once again.
Agree: The governments fight on the war on poverty was a loss. Poverty won. So, why then do you want to increase food stamps, increase governmental handouts, increase student aid -- via governmental sources. You're conflict within your statement are hard to understand.
Poverty beat the feds -- so some advanced the fix to come via the faith based programs.
Determining what went wrong in New Orleans and other areas of the Gulf surely will be complex; a veritable labyrinth of local, state and federal actions -- or inaction -- is in play.
It isn't hard to understand, but it can be made into a complex problem.
A huge storm hit. Before the punch of the storm was delivered, people were not nimble enough to flee. Too many were not free and capable of moving quickly and on short notice.
Before the punch of the storm was delivered, too many people were in unprotected spaces. Buildings and security were not strong enough to weather the storm.
One system break-down leads to other systems breaking. Electricity, phone, power in hospitals, etc., etc. Not enough freedom, choice, back-ups, flexibility, individual decision making throughout.
After the storm hit, the wave of relief needed to be matched with a counter punch. The leveraged power of the counter punch was hindered on many instances. It was slow and weak at first.
The rush of relief faced many red-tape hurdles. For example, doctors were sitting for days with mini hospitals -- but could not treat the needy because of a state license issue. The hurdles were killers.
To run and be coordinated, our body has one group of muscles that flex and contract while other muscles lengthen, loosen and relax. Step after step this happens. Move - Relax - Move - Relax. Its the coordination thing! There seemed to be a lot of counter moves that stopped actions of willing helpers. We needed to be able to RELAX rules (and laws) to permit doctors to come in and treat our sick without the fear and uncertainty of loosing one's license a month later.
So, there isn't much flexibility built into our system. We are not good at relaxing as a society because we have too many hyper rule makers who don't think it through and see the bigger picture.
Individuals can make good decisions. All the decision making can't be uploaded to one mega brain.
Better decision can be made if things are out in the open for all to see.
As the toxic stew of flood waters recedes and assistance accelerates in aiding the people affected by Hurricane Katrina, Congress is beginning to look at what went so terribly wrong in responding to the crisis. That process must be independent of politics, as was the 9/11 Commission, and it must be open and accountable.
Agree with open and agree with accountable -- but we don't agree about the politics part. Dream on. This is Congress. Plus, politics is a part of life.
Push for open ways -- and don't push for the avoidance of politics. Expect it. Deal with it.
If we had Libertarians and Greens run the INDEPENDENT Investigation -- then we might have something to talk about. But Ds and Rs are going to be themselves, as they were before the storm. I'd like to see more parties with people in Congress. That would help to defuse the red-state vs blue-state games they both play.
Politics is part of the fabric of America and it needs to be dealt with -- not ignored or wished away. To ignore politics or wish it away is childish.
But we call on Congress to go beyond investigation and recommendations for fixes to the Gulf Coast disaster. Now is the time to move beyond ideology and realign our national priorities. True leadership requires action: enact responsible policies and budgets to support the safety and productivity of all Americans, not just in the aftermath of this storm, but over the long haul, no matter their race or status.I'd counter with this closing statement. True leadership requires votes -- plain and simple. If you want to realign our national priorities, something that I agree we need to do, we need to realign our votes. Then its done. There is nothing so powerful.
We need to make sure all those people can vote. Plus, we need to make sure that all voters, everywhere, are casting smart votes.
Getting good people into office for the right reasons is going to fix a lot of the problems that plague our country. Kicking other people out of office for the right reasons is going to work wonders too. One is positive, the other is negative. We need to be strong on offense and not give away any gains on defense. Put the right ones in -- and toss the bums out.
The right ones (i.e.,creditable individuals who are candidates) are not going to be thrilled to build gambling casinos on the coast lines. The right ones are not going to be thrilled to make a Super Dome for $500-million and let neighborhoods be endangered due to cracked and crumbled infrastructure -- ripe for flooding.
I think this is going to boil down to the power of the voters and voter education. We must make smarter use of our votes in every office from local to national.
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