Star-Telegram.com | 08/19/2007 | Are words dangerous?

Star-Telegram.com | 08/19/2007 | Are words dangerous? Are words dangerous? Texas prison officials wouldn't let a man on Death Row read Jackie Robinson's words, saying that to do so might lead to 'strikes or riots.' By DAVE ZIRIN

I hate the death row. I hate capital punishment.

The state makes so many mistakes in so many parts of its operations, that I'm sure that it has made some 'fatal mistakes' in the past. The best way to make those mistakes non fatal is to not kill anyone in prison.

That's my observation. Go read David's article if you care about life, sports, literacy and the final ticks on the clock.

Concerns Raised on Wider Spying Under New Law - New York Times

Here is another reason why America needs more Libertarians in elected office.

Concerns Raised on Wider Spying Under New Law - New York Times Broad new surveillance powers approved by Congress this month could allow the Bush administration to conduct spy operations that go well beyond wiretapping to include — without court approval — certain types of physical searches on American soil and the collection of Americans’ business records, Democratic Congressional officials and other experts said.

Plus, support for Libertarians in campaigns, by votes and by buzz, are welcomed too.

Hopes dim for Chinese miners

Hopes dim for Chinese miners - CNN.com More than 180 Chinese coal miners trapped in flooded shafts have slim hopes of survival, but officials said they would press on with frantic rescue efforts after one of the nation's worst mine disasters.

In the eastern province Shandong, 172 miners were pinned down after the rain-swollen Wen River overcame flood defenses and surged down the shaft on Friday. Nine others were trapped in a shaft nearby.

This is one reason why Westinghouse has to go to China to build them the Nukes. They need the electricity. They need to curb the deaths from the coal mines.

China relies on coal for most of its energy needs, pushing coal prices to record levels in the mainland, the world's top producer and consumer of the fuel.

That demand for coal to feed rapid economic growth in the world's fourth-largest economy has led some mine operators to push production beyond safe limits, despite Beijing's efforts to crack down on corruption and lax enforcement of standards.

The miners make about 1,500 yuan ($198) a month and many were farmers working the fields around Tai'an attracted by the relatively higher wages offered by the mines. It is not unusual for fathers and sons to work together in the coal mines.

The scene of weary emergency workers and anxious relatives echoed a mine accident in the United States, which has a much cleaner safety record but where three people have died trying to save six miners trapped in a Utah coal mine.

Mining is risky worldwide, but China's coal industry is deadlier than any other country's, with about 2,163 coal miners killed in 1,320 accidents in the first seven months of the year.

However, what happens when the flood waters come and sweep into the Nukes? What about a work site problem, but with radiation?

Shooting disrupts youth football game in Homewood

Shooting disrupts youth football game in Homewood

Crap.

More dirt.

Youth Football equipment stolen, WPXI story.

YOU be the judge.

Jerks like this have no business staying in important jobs in our public sector. None. But what is worse, the Republican Party, again, has given him its endorsement. Now is the time to think again, if thinking at all was part of the process.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Local News - Early Returns State Superior Court Judge Michael Joyce, who is facing criminal charges for allegedly bilking two insurance companies out of $440,000, plans to continue his bid for retention for another 10-year term in November.

But he won't have an easy time of it.

His bosses, the justices of the state Supreme Court, suspended him with pay yesterday. In a written statement, the court said the suspension was necessary to 'protect and preserve the integrity of the Unified Judicial System and the administration of justice for the citizens of this Commonwealth.'

And the state Bar Association and his own Republican Party say they are reviewing their endorsements of his retention.

This is why people are angry.

This is why people are going to renew the efforts to toss out all the judges.

This is why the old parties (both the Ds and the Rs) have failed the citizens and voters.

Here is a tip: Don't vote for any judge retention.

Specter finds voters just plain angry

Hello. Senator, we're mad. Did you just realize this, or is it something you've come to understand for a while now.

Specter finds voters just plain angry The issues have changed from year to year, but this town hall tour through the state's 67 counties has been the same through the decades. This year, however, the Republican has seen a marked change in the tone and intensity of his questioners.

'The meetings are a lot bigger ... and there's a lot more passion and a lot more anger,' he said as he headed from one meeting to another across the rolling, green hills of Washington County. 'And they're angry at everything. ... They're boiling mad about Iraq. They're almost that mad about immigration.

'They're as mad about Gonzales as they are about immigration. They're mad at the president for taking all the power he has. There are a lot of people talking about habeus corpus. Where in the hell would you expect to have all these people talking about habeus corpus?'

Yes, we are upset about and understand habeus corpus. So now we must turn to Libertarians to reclaim our liberty and freedom.

Seeking integrity in government & how Tim Potts is a PA Hero

Tim Potts outlines his quest to make Pennsylvania best in nation

By Heather Stauffer Carlisle Sentinel, August 3, 2007

On Thursday, Tim Potts led members of Carlisle Rotary on a flight of imagination.

Imagine, he said, a law that represents the worst thing the state government could do to your family, your business.

Then, with barely a pause, Potts moved from the realm of imagination to the realm of reality. That law, he said, could pass overnight.

"Many people think we began as a result of the legislative pay raise in 2005," said Potts, who was addressing the club in his role as a cofounder of Democracy Rising PA. But the truth, he said, is that the organization started a year earlier, in reaction to the July 4th passage of the state's slots gambling bill.

Before continuing with the story, Potts, a Carlisle resident who occupied high positions in the state Department of Education before he moved on to the Pennsylvania School Reform Network and then Democracy Rising PA, reminded the audience of a relevant portion of the Pennsylvania Constitution.

To protect citizens, he said, the constitution requires three things; That legislation be considered for at least three days in each chamber (PA House & PA Senate), that the legislation's original intent not be altered and that the legislation not be about more than one subject.

The slots gambling legislation started simply enough, Potts said, holding up the one-and-a-half page bill that spent more than the requisite time in both the house and the senate. But then, just before it was voted on July 4, those original pages were amended to 146.

"Not one single word of the original bill survived," Potts said, brandishing a bulky copy of the revised bill. Furthermore, he said, unlike the original, the new wording encompassed a medley of themes.

"It was a process that plainly violated the rights of residents of Pennsylvania," Potts said. But, he said, when the bill was challenged, Pennsylvania courts upheld the procedure by which it was enacted - so in 2005, the legislature used the same procedure to pass its now-infamous pay raise.

And it could do it again, on any subject, whenever it likes, he said.

"That's why we call it the dismantling of democracy," Potts said. "The constitution is supposed to prohibit this."

And that's why, he told the intent audience, Pennsylvania needs an organization like Democracy Rising PA. The nonprofit, nonpartisan organization has one goal, Potts said: To help restore the principles of democracy to Pennsylvania.

Voters can force change

After a quick litany of further bad news - that Pennsylvania's sunshine and lobbying control laws have been ranked among the worst in the nation - Potts turned optimistic again.

"It doesn't have to be this way," he said. All that is necessary, he said, is for citizens to start getting involved and getting democracy-friendly legislators into Harrisburg. Some good things have already happened, he said, pointing to 2005, when Russell Nigro became the first Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice ever to lose a retention vote.

As one of the leaders of the campaign against Nigro, Potts told the audience it doesn't necessarily take a lot of money to make a difference. When he tallied up what that campaign cost him, Potts said, it came to $32.16 - an amount that he said turned into 736,000 "no" votes.

"Incredible," he said.

Then he dished out more numbers. The only thing that stands between 12 and a half million people and the best state government in America is 129 people - the governor and a controlling majority in each chamber, he said.

"We have the forces of evil vastly outnumbered," Potts quipped, to laughter. But, he said, the current crop of public officials will not change their behavior until the citizens change theirs.

That said, Potts urged the audience to let it be known the principles of democracy matter to them and to throw their political support to people who have proved they feel the same way.

"It's up to us," he said in conclusion. "We can do it."

Depending on judgment

Afterward, Rotarian Tom Williams had a comment.

"As long as we voters elect people on what they can do for us, what reason do they have to pay attention to procedural things?" Williams asked. Potts agreed that he had a point, and then Williams raised an objection to the idea that democracy is no longer functioning in the Pennsylvania legislature.

"My representative lives here. He takes what we tell him and takes it to Harrisburg," Williams said. "We depend on these guys to use their independent judgment."

Yes, said Potts, but in cases like the slots bill, when the amendment was made at the last minute, representatives wouldn't even have had time to read the revisions. While he acknowledged Williams' point in theory, Potts said, in practice it often turns out very differently.

"Half of the time they're not voting for you," said Potts. "Half of the time they're voting for their leaders."

Libertarian Party - forum and thread on the MeetUp Board

Libertarian Party? - The Libertarian Party of Pittsburgh Meetup Group (Pittsburgh, PA) - Meetup.com

Nice thread.

Reform Pittsburgh Now has a copyright notice on the bottom of its home page

I asked a question about the license for Bill Peduto's new site. He and the others didn't know. I invited him to the 4 pm talk I delivered on open source tools, data, and content. I think Bill had an appointment for a haircut. Does he really use the same barber as John Edwards?

Reform Pittsburgh Now Paid for by Reform Pittsburgh Now. Copyright (c) 2007 Reform Pittsburgh Now. All rights reserved.

Here is a blurb from the talk I gave at 4 pm.

Woody Guthrie including the following note in a 1930s songbook distributed to listeners who wanted the words to his recordings had the following message: "This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright #154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin' it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ours, cause we don't give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that's all we wanted to do."

It would be great if the new efforts of REFORM would be FREE.

Here is another example, also presented at the 4 pm talk to Pittsburgh PodCamp:

A journal was published with the following copyright statement: "All texts published in (this journal) may be freely reproduced, translated and edited, even without crediting the original source."

Bill, Justine, Justin, Matt and others. I'd love to have a "Podcast" via TalkShoe.com to talk with you all about the new site's license, copyrights and such. It would be best, in my not so humble opinion, to put the contents into the public domain.

I am not a lawyer (IANAL) and this is not legal advice. Furthermore, the contents of this blog posts are not intended to be legal advice nor should they be relied upon as or represented to be legal advice. CreativeCommons.org cannot and does not give legal advice. You need to assess the suitability of Creative Commons' tools for your particular situation, which may include obtaining appropriate legal advice from a licensed attorney. Yada, yada, yada.

Update:

The Pittsburgh Women's Blogging Society: Bill Peduto's Online PAC: "Today I attended the launch of Bill Peduto's online Political Action Committee at Podcamp. I think there were some mixed signals coming from the audience and the speakers (i.e. Bill & iJustine)."

I would never question anyone's experience. Getting new candidates and new helpers is very important. And, the new voices can be much better than the old. Rookie players are fine with me. My knocks go to other sources, such as Bill's statements.

Plus, the word was all about a lot of 'new faces' involved -- except for the campaign manager, Matt, and of course, Bill. So, the guys in charge are not new. They are veterans.

The saga has the same feel, for some strange reason, as the day Mayor Luke Ravenstahl announced the formation of the Pittsburgh Promise. Many in the room that day seemed to be impressed with the hype. The mainstream media was impressed with Luke's talking skills. My jaw was still on the floor.

Of course I want to be proven wrong. I want all the kids who graduate from Pgh Public Schools to have college tuition paid for -- starting with the seniors in high school today. Of course I want Santa to climb down from our roof and leave us presents on the night of Dec 24th too. But let's be real. The Pittsburgh Promise is nothing but a broken promise. We must stop the lies we deliver to our kids. They know better and they see it. And, when they can -- they leave. They don't want to live with false hopes. We need honesty.

If we need a fix on local issues without personality -- we can always turn to the Allegheny Institute -- and Jake, who should not be confused with Justine.

Live blogging Peduto's site launch

I'm here at Pittsburgh's Podcamp having a fun time. Friends are calling my cell. Justine is live blogging in a seat in front of me. David T is passing out campiagn materials. He is running for the Allegheny County at-large seat. Travis is next to me. We talked about New Zealand and the Ron Morris show this morning.

Bill is late.

Matt and I heart burgh are here among other Peduto heads.

Steve from Duquesne is here too. He was the caller just ahead of me on yesterday's Lynn Cullen show talking about impeachment, constitutional lines of the president and war. Steve attended my last podcamp presentation some months ago. He'll be a blogger soon.

Guru.com's live wire, Jia, was talking with Justine and then figured out he was streaming. He went on to kick himself. Funny. You gotta know what you say could be out on the web, realtime. Eeeks. Here is a note to self -- always be nice.

WDUQ microphone ison the table. Bill sits. A big screen is in the background. The room is full, about 60 people.

Monthly podcast. V-Cast. Bill's Blog. Online libary.

By the end of October. Every minute of a weekend you'd not have enough time.

Raise the bar and based on issues.

Take out the personality issues. But, the talk was about how the people who are going ON TO council RAN (past tense) on reform.

There are a lot of things that Bill didn't do.

Directing the operation is my former campaign manager, Matt Preston. This is a very different team. Fresh approach.

It is not about personality, but Justine sits down and rides the bus with Steve Bland. You'll be able to click on one button and contact all you state legislatures. You'll be able to send email to all the members on city council.

The Gathering Hurd -- Marshall. ??

To talk to politians.

Pokey, the bobble head doll can tell if your street needs to be re-paved.

Events. What about a Gmail calendar for Grant Street.

Camping, trivia, mini-golf, white water rafting. Bottom line, we want to make it fun, so says Bill.

Bottom line isn't reforming Pittsburgh.

Excited to see the comments. First episode is the public transit. The next episode is emerging economy, the New Mon Valley. The 3rd, culture/arts/history to revitalize the city. Going to be all over the city.

Later, community benefits agreements.

Asked Bill about use of the Google Calendar I started some months (or a year) ago.

It's the spending

It's the spending - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review The underlying problem isn't taxation -- it's spending. Unless big government and its programs of welfare, warfare, regulation and intrusion are drastically limited to constitutionally authorized functions, then we'll become a little country with a debt problem plaguing generations to come.

New Web site urges reform in Pittsburgh politics

New Web site urges reform in Pittsburgh politics Mr. Kownacki, who has been producing Web video for four years, said 'a lot of folks just do it for their own personal gain, or to have their own voices heard by the masses. What you don't see a lot of is actual pro-active video, or social media in general that tries to rally people to a cause, get them to actually effect change.'

Perhaps Justin does not see a lot of pro-active video nor social media that aims to get people to effect changes for causes. But, it is out there. And, it has been for some time.

Remember Ground Zero and Ground Zero's Art of News?

There have been plenty of social calendar sites in Pittsburgh.

People that have nothing to do with politics as reformers should be interesting. I won't be watching. No, I'll be an uninvited participant.

My first question: Will you need a username and password to view the blog, like the last time Peduto ran a blog?

My next question: Will spoofing be possible. If so, it will be a problem.

My last question now: Can I call for a vote?

The blog is on -- and so is my seminar on Saturday at Podcamp

The blog is on - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review'Pittsburgh was kind of at the forefront of blogging, before it became mainstream,' said Mike Woycheck, administrator of the Web site Pittsburgh Bloggers. The site started in 2004, and now has a directory of 600 blogs in greater Pittsburgh. 'We've been very open and embracing of this new medium.' The city's changing political climate fuels a lot of its blogs, said Woycheck, 32, of Ignomar. 'Pittsburghers use blogging to vent ideas and complaints. It's a way to make creative responses to all the issues we're facing. This medium is really on the pulse of people's concerns.' The demographic of bloggers in Pittsburgh runs the gamut, Woycheck said. 'We have 20-somethings to 50-somethings; blogs about every day life and issues. Sometimes it's bitter, sometimes it's humorous, sometimes it's snarky, but it's always lively discussion.'

ESPN Page 2 - Jackson: Looking for heroes

ESPN Page 2 - Jackson: Looking for heroes It's called 'Books 'N Hoops.' Emphasis on books. A camp where both girls and guys play ball in T-shirts with 'The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall' on their backs. Mandela has their backs.

Splendid.

City Council's Shields lived a double life as Stevie Steeler - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

City Council's Shields lived a double life as Stevie Steeler - Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewIt was the hardest day of work in my life.'

No kidding.

Festival highlights region’s diversity

Nice insights from the Pgh Courier on the events downtown -- now in session.

Festival highlights region’s diversity The four-day DiverseCITY Pittsburgh Festival seeks to encourage diversity in every aspect of life—in the workplace and in the community.

Parents are voting with their feet. Pittsburgh's brightest depart. Schools and Recreation issues matter greatly.

Allegheny Institute, a local think tank, has issued a position paper on the population decline. The links between the city's population drop and the school district's population sink are clear.

This is a topic area that I've been pressing for years. People vote with their feet. Plus, the biggest motivator isn't yourself. It isn't even your job. Rather, people of Pittsburgh are driven by their children. Their kids are the top priority. If people were told that they're kids would get an advantage if a parent lost an arm -- we'd see a lot of one-arm parents in Pittsburgh. People in our city would cut off their arm and give it to their child if they knew it would help the kid.

How we treat our kids, our recreational opportunities, our schools, our teachers, our young people and our engagement with them is huge. Few on Grant Street know this, value it, nor seem to get it.

When the consultants arrive on the South Side to ponder what is going on in the business district, they gave a report that didn't mention any of the following words: "babies, children, kids, families." Empty. I asked. Then they had something to say.

The Ongoing Abandonment of Pittsburgh Public Schools

Like Pittsburgh’s population, the enrollment in City schools continues to slide dramatically. Census figures show the City losing 3,480 people from July 2005 to July 2006 to stand at 312,819. That represents a total drop of 21,700 (6.5 percent) since the 2000 census. Among comparably sized or larger cities only four had bigger percentage declines since 2005 and one of those is New Orleans whose loss was propelled by Katrina.

Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh school district (which includes Mt. Oliver) has seen enrollment fall from 38,560 in 2000 to 29,445 last year and is projected by the district to slide another 1,521 to 27,924 for the school year about to get underway. Thus, the total enrollment falloff has reached 10,636, marking a 27.6 percent plunge since the decade began. Some of the enrollment decrease can be attributed to the shifting of students to non-public schools. However, much of it reflects the departure from the City by families with school age children.

The future of our city depends upon how we deal with our kids.

The future of our city also depends upon how we handle liberty and freedom.

The combination of those two important concepts, with a touch of technology, diversity, open ways, smart policies and democracy can lead to Pittsburgh's revival.

From ormsby-serpents

Ron Paul wins Iowa exit poll � disinter

Ron Paul wins Iowa exit poll � disinter: Ron Paul wins Iowa exit poll August 14th, 2007 Vote In Sunshine conducted an exit poll at the Iowa straw poll, here is what they found: Ron Paul 332

Libertarian runs for mayor in Pittsburgh, a political novice to the ballot

by Harold Kyriazi with slight edits by the webmaster

On July 23rd, eight days before the ballot access petitioning deadline, Allegheny County LP officials were contacted by an unknown fellow wishing to run for mayor as a Libertarian, named Tony Oliva. (Older baseball fans may recognize that name as an all-star player from the 1960s and 1970s, but alas, there’s no connection.) His introductory letter to us indicated that he was naïve (27 years old, a political unknown, and imagining an upset victory), but someone with potential. He wrote that he was a military veteran, a University of Pittsburgh graduate with a degree in Political Science, a Pittsburgh resident with extensive community ties, currently employed in the city’s Office of Public Safety, and a member of the Libertarian Party.

After thus reassuring ourselves that he wasn’t crazy or mentally incompetent (for years I’ve felt badly that none of us activists here wished to embark upon that particular quixotic quest), we tried to find out more about him. Coincidentally, at the same time a co-worker of mine (who of course knows I’m a libertarian) mentioned to me that one of his former rock climbing students was running for mayor and had hit him up for a petition signature. They both happened to be paratroopers in the Army, and my coworker said he was a good guy and intelligent. It was thus nice to get some independent verification, and also to know that he was already out collecting signatures.

Within two hours of Tony emailing his letter expressing an intention to run for mayor, Tony was handed several clipboards and forms (third party nomination papers) from Allegheny County's highly energetic vice-chair, Mark Rauterkus. For months similar papers had been circulating with political body, Libertarian, and with Rauterkus occupying spots, including that of mayor, as a place-holder candidate.

That’s one of the new and exciting trends about libertarianism these days: we don’t have to go out and find people, and educate them about libertarianism – now young people find us via the internet. We don’t have to teach them much of the philosophy – they’re usually already thoroughly grounded by their readings on the web. A new day is dawning and there is hope. (Go Ron Paul!)

I corresponded by e-mail with Mr. Oliva during that final week, and despite my vow a few years ago to limit my libertarian activities, I spent a few hours collecting signatures, solicited another few from my brother. Tony and I badgered neighbors, and put some energy into the last days. “It’s harder than I thought it’d be!” expressed a few friends who turned up empty.

Mr. Oliva worked hard for sis days, collecting about 115 signatures each day and getting 700. More than 805 were needed. With his total and what everyone else collected, the Libertarians turned in plenty of signatures to clear the hurdle for the election department and challenges.

After the horrendous experience of minor parties statewide last year, I was very worried that the Republican would challenge. But for whatever reason, he didn’t. Subsequently Mark and Tony filed the necessary papers to conduct the switch of their names.

I’m happy to report that we now have three spots on the city ballot: Tony Oliva for mayor, and Mark Rauterkus for both city council and city controller.

My impression of Mr. Oliva, starting from e-mail exchanges, is clear. I can confidently state that he is a competent writer. We also spoke by phone, and then face-to-face. Based on those encounters and positive reports after a WDUQ radio interview, I can also state that he’s a competent speaker.

From people & vips

Some did question why the Libertarians should run someone for mayor. It is entirely possible that the Republican was already fairly libertarian and he could have a better chance of winning than we did. We could thus be hurting ourselves by splitting our vote.

Mark Rauterkus informed me on the Republican candidate, Mark DeSantis. We checked out his website. Nick spoke with someone in his office. It turns out that DeSantis is a serious candidate with typical Republican economic concerns, such as lowering taxes and increasing government efficiency, but one whose position on social issues is difficult to gauge.

We discussed the obvious -- how a libertarian mayor could instruct the city police to make consensual crimes their lowest priority, but we didn’t know Mr. Oliva’s thoughts on that score. Assuming the best, Mark Rauterkus suggested that if vote-splitting turned out to be a legitimate concern, we could always make a splash by withdrawing a few weeks before the election and asking our supporters to vote for DeSantis. That was enough to drive to do the last-minute petitioning for signatures.

Tony and I sat down to lunch last in order for me to get to know him better for this article, to discuss some of these issues, and also to give him any benefit of my political experience.

Mr. Oliva is a handsome, athletic-looking young man, with the attentive and easy, straight-forward manner that seems appropriate for someone with military experience. He still serves with the Pennsylvania National Guard.

Interesting to me as a former diehard Pitt football fan, Tony came to Pittsburgh from New York City (the Bronx) on a football scholarship from Pitt’s legendary coach Johnny Majors. Fortunately, he left any New York accent behind. In fact, Tony was Majors’ last recruit at Pitt, being recruited in 1996, shortly before Majors was fired. Oliva started at Pitt in 1997 under new head coach Walt Harris, as a 175-pound defensive back with 4.4 speed in the 40-yard dash. That’s considered a fast time. He was red-shirted his freshman year, and expected to bulk up.

In the off-season, unfortunately, while crossing the street he got hit by a car, and received career-ending damage to a knee. Being the thoughtful, independent-minded young man that he is, he refused surgery that he felt might predispose him to premature arthritis, and opted instead for rehab and more natural, alternative medical approaches.

He stayed on at Pitt, getting a degree in Political Science, and rehabilitated his knee enough to play Ultimate Frisbee for the Pitt men’s team, making nationals for three years.

After graduating, he joined the military. As a paratrooper, he suffered another severe injury, being accidentally “sharked” by a fellow jumper. That’s where another jumper cuts under you as you’re approaching the ground, taking away your air and collapsing your chute, whereupon you fall rapidly, as though a shark has just attacked and pulled you under the water. That fall resulted in a severe shoulder dislocation and accompanying nerve trauma, and left him unable to raise his left arm above shoulder level.

He’s still able to enjoy tennis and other sports, though, and comes from a very athletic family. His brother played football and baseball in college, and his sister was a standout basketball and softball player in high school. His brother is also into NY politics, having been a speech writer for George Pataki, district chief of staff for a U.S. congressmen, and director of communications for a state minority leader.

Mr. Oliva is personable and has many friends here who have offered to help him in various ways with his campaign. Unfortunately perhaps, he is naïve enough to think he has a chance to defeat Luke Ravenstahl, the incumbent democrat and another 27-year-old. Ravenstahl won an election to city council before taking over as mayor when the recently elected then-mayor Bob O’Connor died last year.

Mr. Oliva may be correct in thinking he has the advantage of his libertarian philosophy and exceptional interpersonal skills, but being a political unknown, all the money in the world can’t buy him the trust of Pittsburgh voters, 80% of whom are registered Democrat.

The best he can hope for, in my view, is to run a positive, issue-oriented campaign, impress the people he interacts with, inject some libertarian solutions into the debate (and into the minds of Ravenstahl and his aides and advisors), and pave the way for a run for another race down the road.

Some will suggest that he switch parties to Democrat and starting off as a ward committeeman, rather than thinking he can leapfrog all the way into the Mayor’s office.

Libertarians can certainly win office when they live in small communities where they can personally meet all the voters, effectively negating the negative connotations of a minor party label. But people with a strong desire to actually serve in office in a large district, where they simply cannot personally contact a significant fraction of voters, need to be real, and follow the example of people like Ron Paul. The rest of us can work within the Libertarian Party to educate the electorate, and possibly level the playing field a bit by getting more people to register as Libertarians, so that eventually we’ll have a reasonable chance at winning a major city election.

The baseball Tony Oliva was the 1964 rookie of the year in the American League. Let’s try to see to it that our Tony Oliva develops into a Libertarian Party All-Star.

Grass isn't greener for Bloomfield football team - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

This isn't right.

Grass isn't greener for Bloomfield football team - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review The city has committed $300,000 to $350,000 to tear out the turf, plant grass, install dugouts and irrigate the land. That's most of the $450,000 available in the yearly public works budget earmarked for 'park reconstruction.' The work could begin by September -- once a contractor is chosen -- and could take six to eight months to complete. Gable said Mayor Luke Ravenstahl approved the project. As for the one-sport restriction. Gable said the decision conforms to a 2002 study of the city's fields by North Side-based Pashek Associates that recommended limiting each field to baseball, softball, soccer or football to give the grass time to grow between seasons.

First of all, the 2002 field study is a joke. It is nothing to pin any hopes and policy upon. It is crap. I have and have had big problems with the field study. I followed the work of the field study. I care about kids and recreation. The field study is not worth the paper it is printed on. And, it is printed on paper so large that it can't be put on a simple photo copy machine. And, the field study wasn't even made into a PDF nor put online.

City Planning played around with the residents with plenty of half-baked plans and studies over the years. Often the studies are ways to get consultants cash -- much like kick-backs. These come from hand-picked groups, generally. Or better, when there is a bid process -- all the groups know that they have to 'pay to play.' They all are on the line and hook for political donations.

Just last night I was at another city-wide meeting and there was talk about the 'pedestrian plan' of the city. My only question was, 'When is the next meeting?' The answer, after some delay, was "DECEMBER, we think."

City planning has a meeting about a city-wide plan process in August 2007 and the next meeting four months into the future. Glaciers move faster.

I dare anyone to go to the City's Planning Department to get a copy of the city's field study of 2002. I doubt that they will give it to you. I doubt you'll be able to find it online. I doubt you'll be able to read it and have it make sense. I know that the people who put it together did NOT consider the kids and traditions of the sports organizations in the city.

A few years ago the city told the South Side Sabers that they would NOT be able to use that team's field for a year. The city wanted to plant grass. So the city thought it would be okay to tell the team to go away. Growing grass is a higher priority than coaching kids.

The team, rightfully so, said no way. They had the season.

The Park's Master Plan presents another major study effort that is nothing but bunk. I went to the meeting where that was revealed and offered one suggestion. I told them that they had a document with the wrong title. They could have satisfied my objections by calling it the "Parks' LESSER Plan" as it wasn't 'comprehensive.' That document talked about the vegitation and plant life in the parks. The word "coach" was not in the docuement at all. Zippo.

Thousands of hours were invested. Perhaps $200,000 in city taxpayer money was spent. Teams of consultants were engaged too.

The big bang outcome for the city was to be, get this, a park pavilion upgrade to include running water. That's right, indoor plumbing. Another park was going to get a new garden that was similar to the one they used to have in the 1920s.

Any moron knows that there is a major shortage of ballfields in the city. So the city's angle of attack is to take the fields and devote / convert them to single sport venues. That is the wrong way.

We need more play on the fields, not less.

We need to use the parks and the fields so we can teach our kids how to play nice with one another.

We need to put the management and organization of our parks, public parks, into the hands of those who are working with the kids on a day to day basis.

Screw the consultants.

Screw the Grant Street Politicians who are clueless on how to care for our kids. They don't even want to try.

Here is what we need to do, as a city.

First, we need to get all parks programming off the hands of the City of Pittsburgh. Citiparks should be spun off of Grant Street. Furthermore, the Allegheny County Parks and Rec Department has its issues too. They don't care either. So, the County Parks need to be cut out from the County.

Think of the last time County Parks were a topic of discussion. It was about the killing of the Canadian Geese. Before that, perhaps the drivers on roads in the parks when Jim Roddey was ACE. Or, perhaps the shallow water in North Park's lake. We can do better, much better.

Merge Citiparks and County Parks & Rec into a new entity -- the Pittsburgh Park District.

This new entity is NOT an authority. It is NOT like the Pgh Parks Conservancy. It is NOT run by consultants. It is NOT run by women with big hats. It is NOT run by Elsie Hillman nor Bill Trueheart nor other foundation weenies.

The new Pgh Park District needs to be run in an open, democratic way. People who run the programs need to control the parks. Meetings need to be open, on tv, with lots of voting among lots of citizens, parents, coaches, park players, swimmers, footballers, and even Ultimate Frisbee yuppies.

Footnote: Bram of the Pgh Comment blog fell (hook, line and sinker) into a past ploy of Mayor Murphy to get support for a broken promise.

Fields and permits and sports teams should not come under crony considerations. Fields should not be treated like the system used for repaving roads. It is all crooked. Corruption rules.

Every once in a while this comes into focus with a story in the newspaper. But it is a daily event on Grant Street. It needs to be fixed. The way to fix it is to elect people who are NOT Democrats. We need to break the back of one-party rule. Then we can get new people who are loyal to principles of good behavior for the sake of doing the right things.

The Dem politicians do what they do now because they are looking out for their jobs. They take their clues from others in high places who are needed to keep their jobs.

Now the football players in Bloomfield need to rush Grant Street -- blitz if you will -- to raise a stink. Luke has to save the day because he and the others that have come before him and who are on council now have fumbled. They screwed up. They have made dozens of mess ups on top of dozens of other mess ups.

It is time to put some new perspectives on Grant Street so we can get new reform that makes sense.

And I don't want to reform Pittsburgh now because that implies that the people that are on Grant Street now will do the reforming.

I've said that if I'm elected to city council, I want to be the one who is the chairman of the Citiparks committee. I want that job.

Furthermore, if I'm elected to the post of 'controller' I'll be sure to review each of the past master plans and call them bogus by pointing out their weaknesses.

It is obvious to me that bad decisions are being made -- constantly -- because they rely upon bad data. The priorities are messed up. The benchmarks are a joke. And they don't have the perspectives nor creativity to clean up the mess.

The ones who made the mess are the ones who are least capable of cleaning it up.