Good HEALTH to another blogger.

Don't eat too much fiber.

Chloe Rules! - Zap! Thud! � Nuclear Stress Test Results: Good News, More or Less Anyway, if you'll excuse me, I have to go grocery shopping at Office Max for some cardboard for dinner….

Dr. R got a new gig in the school system

Dr. R, the Phillips Principal, talks to a parent and student (Catherine and Erik) outside of school one day in a past year.

It is being reported in the P-G that our favorite school principal, the one who is the principal where my sons attend public school, Dr. Barbara Rudiak, is getting a new job within the PPS system. Seems she is 'moving up' with her new position.

Barbara Rudiak -- from principal, Phillips Elementary, to executive director of school management, elementary schools.

This is a good-news and bad-news thing for us as we've been so spoiled with her devotion to the students and operational skills at Phillips.

By the way, Phillips Elementary School is on the South Side. We walk to school each day. Half of the school is a "Spanish magnet" and the other half is a "Neighborhood" school. There are two classes of each grade, K to 5.

I call this year our last as a "gravy year" in that both boys are attending the same school. Next year our oldest goes to 6th grade and will be in a different building (Frick Middle School).

By the way, welcome Rodney Necciai -- from principal, Knoxville Elementary, to principal, Phillips Elementary.

---

My kids are on track to attend Schenley High School. That school is getting a new pricipal too. Plus, Tonight OnQ: it's the end of an era at Schenley High School in Oakland. Roger Babusci - the school's popular english teacher and director of school musicals -- is retiring. We'll look back on his impressive tenure ... and talk with the students he inspired.

Lincoln Blog by Lowman Henry, CEO of Lincoln Institute of Public Opinion

Lincoln Blog by Lowman Henry, CEO of Lincoln Institute of Public Opinion If you were walking down the street and someone came up behind you, stuck a gun in your back and demanded all you money - but then turned around and gave you a couple of your own dollars back while keeping the rest for himself - you would still consider yourself to have been mugged. The fact the criminal gave you some of your own money back doesn't change the fact that you were robbed.

And so it is with the 'tax reform' bill currently on the fast track through the Pennsylvania legislature on its way to a political commercial near you. Pennsylvania's system of real property taxation has been viewed as draconian and inequitable for decades. Now, with voters hopping mad over last year's legislative pay jacking, 'tax reform' is suddenly about to happen.

I'm not too fond of the robbing saga, but whatever works.

Magic tricks.

I'm more in tune to level headed reason. These folks in Harrisburg are do-nothing types. They don't have the determination nor the moxie nor creativity to do much. But, they do want to make themselves look good as voters are headed to the polls. They save what they can muster so as to pull a rabbit out of a hat in the final push of an election cycle.

Drowning continues to be a significant health concern within this country.

Please share this information, especially parents of young children. It came from the Lifesaving Resources' E=Blast. Pool fun

NATIONAL SAFE KIDS WEEK KICKS OFF MAY 2, 2006

When it comes to safety, most parents do not know that drowning is one of the top two causes of accidental death among children. National Safe Kids Week activities and communications will educate parents and children about the steps they can take to help prevent pool and spa injuries and deaths and highlight new proposed legislation in this area.

There will be a special focus about preventing entrapment, which is a little known risk that has killed at least 33 children and injured almost 100 children between 1985 and 2004.

National Safe Kids Week, May 6-13, will highlight the importance of pool and spa safety through the theme “Safe Pools for Safe Kids.” A national press conference involving Safe Kids Worldwide, Founding Sponsor Johnson & Johnson, James A. Baker, III, Secretary of State under former President George Bush, daughter-in-law Nancy Baker and U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) will kick off the week on May 2 in Washington.

In addition, local Safe Kids coalitions around the country will host interactive events to teach parents and children about safe behavior around pools and spas such as actively supervising children around water and installing safety devices in and around pools and spas.

Safe Kids has also created checklists (in PDF) about how to practice safe behaviors around the water and teach your kids to do the same.

Get legal - Get OpenOffice.Org

As part of my past (and future) campaigns, I have given out hundreds of CDs with music, message and OPEN SOURCE software. Of course these political CDs include an installer for OpenOffice.org 2.0.

One week after "World Intellectual Property Day", the OpenOffice.org Marketing Project announces a new campaign: "Get legal - Get OpenOffice.org". A new website - http://why.openoffice.org - explains how to escape from Microsoft Office licence costs and compliance worries - for good. Webmasters and bloggers worldwide are encouraged to display the campaign banner to help promote the campaign.

2006 has seen proprietary software companies and their agencies increase their efforts to stamp out illegal copies of their software. Last week, the Business Software Alliance used "World Intellectual Property Day" to announce a record reward for anyone informing against illegal software in UK organisations. Microsoft acquired a company specialising in detecting software installed on PCs. Microsoft also announced its intention to extend its use of the internet to put piracy detection software into copies of MS-Office on people's PCs.

For many users, this is a worrying development. Microsoft licences are often complex, and it is easy to become non-compliant, especially as the number of PCs in an organisation increases. Illegal copying has proliferated in many developing countries, where foreign currency is scarce and proprietary licence fees are simply unaffordable.

OpenOffice.org 2 offers a simple way out of the licence trap. OpenOffice.org 2 is a free alternative to Microsoft Office products such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft Powerpoint. OpenOffice.org 2 is released under an open-source licence: anyone may use the software for any purpose (including commercial). Users are encouraged to pass on copies to friends, family, students, employees, citizens - anyone.

OpenOffice.org 2 uses files created by Microsoft Office equivalents. Users need little or no retraining. Studies have shown that the costs of migrating to OpenOffice.org 2 are minimal - a tenth of the cost of migrating to the new Microsoft Office 2007.

No wonder a poll has shown 86% of users would prefer to try OpenOffice.org 2 rather than buy Microsoft Office 2007.

Get freedom from licence worries - Get Legal - Get OpenOffice.org.

About the OpenOffice.org Community

The OpenOffice.org Community is an international team of volunteer and sponsored contributors who develop, support, and promote the leading open-source office productivity suite, OpenOffice.org 2. OpenOffice.org 2 is released under the GNU Lesser General Public Licence (LGPL).

The OpenOffice.org Community acknowledges generous sponsorship from a number of companies, including Sun Microsystems (founding sponsor and primary contributor), Novell, Red Hat, Intel, and Google.

Links

The campaign website http://why.openoffice.org contains links to the studies referenced in this press release. The OpenOffice.org Community can be found at http://www.openoffice.org. OpenOffice.org 2 may be downloaded free of charge from http://download.openoffice.org. Further information about the suite may be found at
http://www.openoffice.org/product

Press Contacts

John McCreesh (UTC +01h00)
OpenOffice.org Marketing Project Co-Lead
jpmcc@openoffice.org
+44 (0)7 810 278 540

Cristian Driga (UTC +0200)
OpenOffice.org Marketing Project Co-Lead
cdriga@openoffice.org
+40 7887 000 60

Louis Suarez-Potts (UTC -04h00)
OpenOffice.org Community Manager
louis@openoffice.org
+1 (416) 625 3843

Worldwide Marketing Contacts:
http://marketing.openoffice.org/contacts.html

Attribution

Microsoft, Microsoft Office, Word, Excel, and Powerpoint are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

Famed swim coach George Haines dies at 82 - Tuesday May 2, 2006 2:48PM

SI.com - Olympics - Famed swim coach George Haines dies at 82 - Tuesday May 2, 2006 2:48PMGeorge Haines, who coached three U.S. Olympic swim teams and guided such 1960s and '70s stars as Mark Spitz, Don Schollander and Donna de Varona, died at 82.

George was quite a coach. He was very productive, to say the least. (Free read, FYI.)

In Western PA, we don't have anything like Santa Clara.

Pittsburgh used to have a team that dominated like Santa Clara did.

Swimmers ready to take to the water at one of the oldest indoor swim pools in North America. There were swimmers in the same spot back in time. This pool was the home to Olympians who competed in the Olympic Games of 1928 and 1932.

The swimmers from Homestead won a number of national relay titles, back in the day. That was a wave or two before Haines.

Council OK's free Downtown Wi-Fi - and I have a problem with 'cutting edge' hype

Council OK's free Downtown Wi-Fi Council President Luke Ravenstahl said the deal makes Pittsburgh 'a cutting-edge city.'

Luke, don't say such foolishness. Cutting-edge in terms of being hoodwinked.

I'm glad to see some changes. But, we're not cutting-edge. We're not even close. The deal from the PDP is going to insure Pittsburgh remains behind the times. The deal expands the digital divide and offers little of value.

Cutting edge is wi-fi on mass transit -- as they do in Japan on high-speed trains that travel 13-floors below sea level.

Cutting edge is wi-fi for free that covers the other 22 hours of a day. Not just for 120 minutes.

Cutting edge is a wi-fi digital media campus that goes to under served areas, not for the elite.

Cutting edge is wi-fi, computers and hives of information for every resident in the city who is in school. The students are cutting-edge, not office workers who won't want to log on anyway.

Wi-fi but not so high.

Cutting edge isn't a network that isn't 'secure.' I'd never log onto that network to check my email as the security is absent.

Cutting edge was 2003 when the airport had wi-fi in the food court, or 2004 when the wings of the airport went wi-fi. We've got 200 plus wi-fi hot spots for surfers to hit downtown already.

Cutting edge for Pittsburgh is what Spokane had a year or two ago. Where's the edge or the cut?

Cutting edge would be wi-fi rivers, wi-fi T-line to Overbrook and South Hills Village, and wi-fi East Busway, West Busway and swim pools.

Cutting edge would be wi-fi at higher speeds, such as what Earthlink offered. This speed is not that fast, because is 500 people push a key at the same time, we'll see a slight delay.

Cutting edge would come to the city without the foundations needing to kick in $.5 million.

Cutting edge would go higher than 2 stories. We've got downtown buildings that are higher than that. But in neighborhoods, all the buildings would be covered with the wi-fi network -- as homes are generally 2 stories high.

Cutting edge would not see prices go from $40 per month per pole to $20 per month per pole -- it would be $0 per pole per month. I don't think that the city owns most of the poles anyway. And the PDP (Pgh Downtown Partnership) could do cutting-edge by working with building owners and putting the antennae on the buildings directly.

Cutting edge is a wi-fi deal that covers the entire region if not the county. We can't even cover the entire city. This wi-fi deal is more like a pimple of coverage for wi-fi areas that exist already.

Cutting edge is what we had in the city's cable franchise agreement, years and years ago. But, we let that deal slide without oversight. We let the fruit die on the vine. Where are the broadband computers and uses at the rec centers now? FUMBLE.

Cutting edge needs to come from people who know how to spell email. I'm not sure Mayor O'Connor can send and receive email. The drivers of cutting-edge technology need to be more than "at the table" someone at the table needs to pick up the bill. Waitstaff, fetch another round of bottled waters, be happy to be at the table for scraps, and then, pay the tab as well.

In China, everyone in the city gets free internet. Just as we all can dial 411 or 911 -- that's the level of dial up that is nearly NATION WIDE in China. That's not cutting edge. Here, you still have to pay up to $20 a month to get dial up.

Cutting edge is Internet 2.

Cutting edge would be video on demand to see the proceedings from today's city council meeting, even if you didn't catch it on your cable.

Nor is cutting edge a slots parlor, nor an all-star game for a game with steroid abusers, nor a skateboard park, nor a tunnel that is closed for 2 hours a day just to change directions of its traffic for the 600 cars that drive through it.

Let's think, we'll get wi-fi for downtown for 2 hours each day -- and that amount of time equals the time that the Wabash Tunnel is closed each day.

Council OKs Downtown Wi-Fi plan - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "'This is the starting point,' said Councilwoman Tonya Payne, who praised the plan.

Really, this isn't a starting point. Rather, it is the ONLY POINT. There isn't any 'phase 2' nor 'phase 3.' This is it. They came. They picked our cherries. They couldn't put Humpty together again.

In a few months, I'll be able to ask, "Where is free wi-fi in Knoxville?" And I'll be able to say, "I told you so."

Now I'm able to ask, "What about the computer labs in the Rec Centers?" We have computer rooms in Orbsby and Warrington. But there are no computer labs there. And, we offered to build them three years ago at no charge to the city. Now I'm able to say, "I told you."

I'm sick of always being right and having my city perform so poorly.

May Day -- from 2004

Tourist on a May Day visit.

In the Forbidden City.

Details

Power, but under the foot of the lion is a cub at play.

PA House, Senate of Gov might pull another quickie on property tax reform

The House, Senate and Gov. Rendell are about to pull another fast one on us on Monday.

Background: It's reported that there is an agreement about the proposed law to reduce property taxes. The conference committee that has been working on the legislation will issue its report Monday morning at 10:30. Under current rules, this means Gov. Rendell could sign it into law Monday night.

Speculation – no one knows for sure – is that the House will pass the conference committee report Monday afternoon; the Senate Monday evening; and the governor sign it Monday night.

This is the same process used to pass the gambling law in 2004 and the pay raise in 2005 – no public hearings on the final bill and no opportunity for citizens to read it, understand it, hear different opinions about it, and express their own opinions to their lawmakers.

But until Monday morning, we won't know what the final conference committee report says. The original bill was 89 pages long. We don't know how long the conference committee report will be. It may have nothing new in it. Or it may have special provisions that we haven't seen before. We don't know, and we can't know until Monday morning when we can see it for ourselves.

This is a major piece of legislation that will have a profound impact on Pennsylvania. It is not something that should be rushed through the process, and there is no reason why citizens, the news media, and public interest groups from across the political spectrum should be prevented from commenting on it before
the vote.

So what's the rush? Lawmakers want to spend the next two weeks before the primary election telling voters that they cut property taxes. This is politics, not policy.

What To Do? Now's when we see whether lawmakers have learned anything from the citizens' anger over the pay raise. Whether you like the property tax bill or not, you deserve the chance to participate in its passage or defeat.

Democracy Rising PA believes in a process that looks like this:

1. The conference committee should issue the report.

2. The House and Senate should send it to the appropriate standing committees for at least one public hearing.

3. Then, after at least 14 calendar days, the bill should come up for a vote.

(edited slightly)

May 1 -- a day of celebration, or a week if you are in China

Worldwide, May 1, is a day to celebrate.

In China, the people now celebrate a seven day holiday. The factory workers get seven days off. Schools are closed. The break comes with encouragements to travel within China. Those in the city go to the country. Those in the country go to the city. Flags and banners are hung. Tourist places buzz.
A week of family time often means park time, water time and togetherness.

In the US, we don't celebrate May 1st, not so much. Protests are planned this year.

The Great American Boycott, “A Day Without Immigrants,” or “A Day Without Latinos,” is being pushed by some. It is a day where immigrant workers, and their allies, will remove their labor, purchasing power, and presence from the economic workings of the United States.

"Without Latinos baseball would be about as interesting as being trapped in an elevator with George Will."

Source: Dave Zirin, http://www.edgeofsports.com. He writes a great article and the bulk of facts and comments flowed from him. I subscribe to his email blasts, and you're encouraged to do so as well.

Six of the top ten hitters in the National League are from Latin America including MVP Albert Pujols. The AL has 5 out of 10 including batting leader and 2003 MVP Miguel Tejada. Latinos dominate baseball. Eight of the last 10 AL MVPs have been won by immigrants, seven by Latinos.

In the 2006 World Baseball Classic, Team USA got crushed. Currently 36% of Major League players were born in Latin America. Almost one third of all minor leaguers are from the Dominican Republic alone.

Pittsburgh Pirates : News : Pittsburgh Pirates News PITTSBURGH -- With the July 11 Midsummer Classic just 77 days away, the Pittsburgh Pirates, Major League Baseball and local officials are gearing up for what will be an exciting week of baseball in the Steel City.

Major League owners searching for talent on the cheap, setting up baseball academies south of the border where players can be signed in their early teens for pennies, and then discarded if they don’t make the cut. As one player said to me, “The options in the DR are jail, the army, the factory, or baseball.”

Many prospects make it to the United States for minor league ball and then stay, illegally, to chase the dream of never working to death in a factory. The outer boroughs of New York City are filled with semi-pro teams of men on the other side of
thirty still thirsting for that contract, hoping it comes before the INS comes knocking on their door.

Pittsburgh is gearing up for the All-Star Game in July. Humm.... We've also got some "No Sweatshop Bucco Protests" set to unfold too. No Major League player has come out publicly (yet) and said they are joining the national boycott on May 1.

Today I hope to go to a high school baseball game. Heck, we can't even have Rookie Ball any longer in our local park -- yet alone a Major League Academy to train young hopefulls. The Pirates and others of MLB would rather invest in talent south of the border and ignore those at home. So much for pulling for the home team. And, that's also where they'll get their baseballs and uniforms produced as well. Often in sweatshops.

And to tailgate for football games is soon going to be a thing of the past in Pittsburgh as they try to curtail the extra parking spaces to only those who have 'season passes.'

There isn't any baseball in the Olympics after 2008, when the Olympic Flame is put out in China. There is more talk about the "NEW China" in our newspapers.

We've got a lot of work to do. Better to NOT have a week long vacation. With the spike in gas prices, it makes one wonder.

Concert: Dave Nachmanoff and musical tidbits

AL STEWART & Dave Nachmanoff play Club Cafe on Sunday, May 6, 2006

$20 Advance / $22 Day of Show
Doors 6PM Show 7PM

"Past, Present and Future", his first USA release, was the first record Stewart made incorporating historical data, elements of film, literature and current affairs into his lyrics. It became a cult album which has now sold close to a million copies worldwide. His next album, "Modern times", cracked the US top 40 album chart which led to Al and his band touring the United States.

"Year Of The Cat", released in 1976, became Al's first platinum (one million units) album in the United States. It featured two top 20 singles, "Year Of The Cat" and "On The Border". Bouyed by this success, he moved to Los Angeles and released "Time Passages" in 1978 which also sold platinum and featured the singles "Time Passages" and "Song On The Radio". This period was followed by worldwide tours with his band "Shot In The Dark".

Our friend, Dave Nachmanoff, joins Al Stewart on tour in many venues. He played here with Al at Hartword at a wine festival a few years ago.

Dave played two shows for us in the past too. One was at Club Cafe on 9-11. Jim Roddey and Dan Onorato were both invited and came to speak that night as well. And, our new minister, Lynn, from Sunnyhill.org, made her first Pittsburgh event then too.

Dave also gave a concert and helped to open the new Musicians Hearing Center at UPMC, something that my wife started at Eye and Ear Institutue.

The musican's hearing center is doing well these days as well. The service provides no charge hearing protection for the musicans and teachers in Pgh Public Schools. Catherine, my wife, went to Langley High School to have a photo taken with musicians there for a UPMC publication. On Friday, Catherine worked with the kids at an Elementary School, Dillworth. They have an 'arts focus' and do morning assembly that includes drumming, loud drumming. Now the kids there have hearing protection -- just like they have at the PSO, Pgh Symphony Orchestra.

If you can, come to the show on Sunday at Club Cafe. You'll have a wonderful time.

PA HOUSE RESOLUTION 655 P.N. 3740 - Make Sept. 11 a holiday

HOUSE RESOLUTION 655 P.N. 3740 Designating September 11 as a State holiday in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

WHEREAS, There can be no greater tragedy than the intentional 4 taking of innocent lives; and ..."

Click to see the bill as it was introduced on March 17.

Today is May 1, a worldwide holiday. More on that in another posting.

I think we should celebrate 3.14, Pi Day. That would speak volumes in terms of science, technology and our history of eating, plus all things circular. But, to celebrate it and to make it a state holiday are not the same.
 

I'm not for 9-11 as a state holiday. I'm not for 3.14 as a state holiday either.

June 1 is Childrens' Day in China. Some might say that every day is kids' day. Plus, we've got Mothers Day, Fathers Day and in the city, take your dad to school day too.

Court tosses Mount Lebanon rule requiring canvassers to register

PennLive.com: NewsFlash - Court tosses Mount Lebanon rule requiring canvassers to register 'Requiring people to tell the police in advance that they want to discuss political and religious matters with their neighbors is offensive to the very essence of a democracy,' said Witold Walczak, the Pennsylvania Legal Director of the ACLU.

What does this mean for Rosslyn Farms? They have some strict laws too.

All Star Tickets -- gotta go ON LINE

All-Star Week tickets will be available only through this online system, and customers must purchase tickets in strips, which include the same number of tickets for both ballpark events and All-Star FanFest at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. There is a limit of two strips per customer. In addition, All-Star FanFest tickets are on sale now and can be purchased in individual or group packages.

Diamond for Governor charts at 16% -- and it is VERY early for him at this point

This comes, in part, from the campaign of Diamond, so it might be taken with that understanding.Russ Diamond for Governor Diamond attracts 16% of the vote if he is included in the poll at this time. Third party candidates often receive more support in early polls than they will actually receive on election day. However, the impact of Diamond's inclusion in the poll is dramatic--the overall poll results switches from a 3-point Swann lead to a 4-point Rendell lead.

Splash with new contruction -- and the splash comes with a real splash! 

SF Mayor Urges New Vision for Lagging US Broadband - Apr 21, 2006 - Digital Communities

This vision of a kayak, rope and inter-tube, gives a good representation of America's broadband connections and infrastructure. A fix that only caters to those on downtown sidewalks is no fix at all. 

America is losing ground in technology and with broadband. Being behind the times is hurting our region and nation -- and our kids -- in many economic ways.

SF Mayor Urges New Vision for Lagging US Broadband - Apr 21, 2006 - Digital Communities SF Mayor Urges New Vision for Lagging US Broadband

Think that fiber bringing gigabit bandwidth to the home is somewhere out in the distant technological future? Think again. This is today's technology that Japan's NTT Communications Corp. is already installing in homes.

Last year, according to Larry Smarr, director of California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), NTT had 1.6 million fiber customers. This year it is 4.6 million and the company is investing billions a year to aggressively achieve the goal of fiber based Internet service to 30 million homes by the end of 2010.

Smarr was speaking at a recent Big Broadband Conference organized by optical networking advocacy group FirstMile.US. Presentations from the conference have just now been made available online in streaming video, http://www.calit2.net/newsroom/article.php?id=831.

Mayor's search for Fifth-Forbes developer is winding down

Mayor's search for Fifth-Forbes developer is winding down 'We want to make sure that we have not only the best plan but the developer who can deliver,' he said.

The way to make sure we have the best plan and developer is not to hold a set of private meetings and hatch deals behind closed doors. The public process regarding this public land is absent. This, again, proves why Pittsburgh has a smokey city image full of cronie deals.

This isn't best for Pittsburgh. It might be BEST for O'Connor and his debt.

Bob O'Connor got into debt when he spent $1-million on a fruitless campaign in 2001. Now he has to pay off.

Network Neutrality needs to be legislated now

Something is fishy!

Dismantling the Internet, Reviewed by Zoe Hoffman

On June 27, 2005, the US Supreme Court ruled that giant cable companies like Comcast and Verizon are not required to share their cables with other Internet service providers. Federal government -- from the FCC to the White House --and the media have worked cooperatively to quietly block open access to cyberspace. Mainstream media have censored and covered up Federal moves to commandeer, monopolize, and turn the Internet into an extension of itself. From Fox News to CNN, there has been dead silence as the greatest bastion of democracy in history is being dismantled - and resurrected in the image of AOL.

"Web of Deceit: How Internet Freedom Got the Federal Ax, And Why Corporate News Censored the Story," Elliot D. Cohen, Ph.D, Buzzflash, 6/18/05
http://www.buzzflash.com/contributors/05/07/con05238.html

Downtown Wi-Fi plan hits City Council firewall

Of course the wi-fi deal needs to be sent back to the drawing table. Don't approve it! As it is, it stinks.

Downtown Wi-Fi plan hits City Council firewall A bid to bring wireless, outdoor Internet access Downtown ran into static before City Council yesterday, when members asked that the deal be reworked.

Just three council members voted for a proposal to allow the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership and its contractor, US Wireless Online, to post Wi-Fi antennae on 53 city light posts Downtown, around PNC Park, and near Mellon Arena. Three other council members abstained, and three were not present.

The contract for the wi-fi deal was delivered to City Council at 10:20 am on Wednesday. The city council meeting started at 10 am the same day. They asked for a vote on the day they delivered a contract.

I'd vote no on that alone.

I'd call for another public hearing because the contract wasn't available when we gathered to talk about the deal on Monday, at a public hearing.

Then at the meeting, the $40 per pole charge was pulled out of thin air by Mr. Peduto.

Table the bill. Call for another public hearing. Have the PDP bring enough copies of their handouts for the public as well.

Shreveport Times quotes Tom Murphy, "don't give it away." (ugh!)

Regionalism... Humm. In Pittsburgh, we've got too many cooks to spoil the soup. Yet Murphy was here!

The Shreveport Times A regional approach to economic development — rather than separate groups — can lead to greater prosperity in this region, according to the results of a study released today.

The five-day panel study was conducted recently by Urban Land Institute Advisory Services with the Northwest Louisiana Association of Realtors. The panel included experts in real estate, urban planning, economics, residential development, construction, economic development and municipal government from across the country.

The panel recommended preserving and exploiting area natural resources, beginning with Red River.

Older neighborhoods bordering Shreveport and Bossier City downtowns could then be clustered with growing art and culture offerings, as well as mixed-use zoning, to produce residential-retail-cultural urban villages, according to panelist Zane Segel, a Houston-based developer, marketing consultant and real estate broker.

“The beauty of the region is what you’re proudest of,” panelist and former Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy told about 100 gathered at the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce this morning to hear the results.

“It’s a tourist attraction, a community value and a regional asset. Don’t give it away.”

Also under the prescribed master plan, as the region would grow, it should take steps to ensure educational and economic parity so all of its members could benefit together.

The final report will be completed and finished in a couple of months, said Leigh Ferguson, director of Urban Living and executive vice president of Sloss Real Estate Group in Birmingham, Ala., who guided the panelists in their charge. The next stage, he added, would be to enroll the region’s grass-roots stakeholders into forming a committee to weigh the panel’s suggestions and ultimately implement them.
"

I'm scratching my head. What if you're most proud of your diversity. Then do you need to have a regional approach?

New Orleans is a city of diversity. Well, it used to be.

Then there is the 'don't give it away' quote. It was printed without attribution, but I think it might have come from Tom Murphy. ??? That's what I've been saying with this expression of 'picking our cherries.' Some in Pittsburgh are happy to give away our most valued assets in terms of tax breaks. I don't want tax breaks for downtown -- because downtown is a place where we should be proud.

Perhaps the Steelers are our proudest institution -- so we give them a stadium and this year upgrade it with more public funds to put in 700 seats. But, we are not to give it away? Say what?

Today we learn that the Library Report is out and really, it is the library that is our most valued asset for the community. But you can get books and computer time at the library for free. They give it away.

In the end, I think we need to be most proud and most protective our two very important things. On a macro level, we need to be certain to extend and defend our freedom. On a micro level, we need to be most proud of our children, our families, and perhaps our kids friends if not their peers and the next generations.

If those are what make drives us -- Freedom and Future (as in kids) -- then I think it makes sense to figure out if they are extended with 'central planning' and a 'regional approach.'

Being flexible seems to work better when it comes to families and individuals.
Give of ourselves to the young.

I like to talk about a system where there is a 'framework for freedom' -- and that generally means we don't do a regional approach.

Finally, I do agree that you need to 'give it away' -- as in our freedom. The comment about the asset, 'don't give it away' stinks when you talk about these values.

You can't put freedom in a bottle. You can't put freedom in a fence and protect it like a lump of coal. You can't guard that asset and NOT give it away and still have it. Freedom, by its very nature, needs to be given away. The more you give, the more you get. Freedom and love work that way. This is a bit of a self-less passion.

And the same holds true with our kids. We raise them, we teach them well, we are devoted to them -- but we don't own the kids. We can't control the kids. We need to set the kids free too. They grow up. They move out. They are set free to make the world theirs -- shape the world -- and with some preparation, make it FREE for their kids yet to come.

Pittsburgh is a place where we raise our kids, create community, celebrate freedom, and give of ourselves to those around us who we trust and respect. The assumption and hope is to trust and respect authority and everyone, in these parts.

Wiki Woes for U.S. Politicians

Main Page - PittsburghPlatform My Platform Wiki site, now reads, this page has been accessed 75,920 times. On the 16th of the month, it was 69,077 times. The front page of the platform wiki is getting more than 500 hits per day.

Source: http://www.politicsonline.com/

A Georgia gubernatorial candidate accepted the resignation of her campaign manager Wednesday after he was accused of changing the online Wikipedia biography of an opponent in the upcoming Democratic primary.

Secretary of State Cathy Cox's opponent, Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor, said campaign manager Morton Brilliant altered an online encyclopedia entry to include a reference to Taylor's son being arrested for DUI after an accident that killed his passenger. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales confirmed these accusations. The Taylor for Governor campaign responded by accusing Cox of exploiting a family tragedy for political purposes and calling for her resignation, although Cox denied any knowledge of the addition.

This story is only the most highly publicized of a number of recent campaign scuffles involving Wikipedia. Brilliant has also been accused of editing the Wikipedia profile of current Governor Mark Sanford. Nearly twenty more changes have since been made to Sanford’s profile, presumably by both sides of the aisle.

Wikipedia has attempted to deal with problems concerning politically motivated revisions by tightening its submission guidelines and setting up alerts so that operators know when Capitol Hill staffers edit online profiles.

Go to the source, Politics Online, to get the links to Related Articles: Cox to 'Deal With' Wiki- Attack; Campaign Manager Resigns Amid Wikipedia Flap; South Carolina Politicos Get Tangled in Web Forum.

In other online, local news, Chris L of GrassRootsPA.com, is going to be a guest on with Ron Morris, TAEradio.com, this Saturday (tomorrow).

I'll be at a swim meet this weekend.

Gas-tax-plank-Martin - PittsburghPlatform

Gas-tax-plank-Martin - PittsburghPlatform Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania (LPPA) calls for tax break at the pumps

Sandals Offers Democrats an Alternative

On the podcast interview with the One Man Think Tank, I was asked a question of "buy, hold, or sell" in terms of Rick Santorum. My advice was "hold" as I don't think Casey can deliver much to the state nor the nation.

This is from the D's race.

Casey's Hypothetical Lead on Santorum Slips;

Says May 16th is the Final Opportunity for Democrats to Avert Disaster in November Election

PITTSBURGH, PA -- A new poll released today by the Allentown Morning Call shows Bob Casey’s lead in a hypothetical matchup against Rick Santorum has slipped to single digits. This decline has occurred six months before Election Day and well before the TV ad blitz expected by Rick Santorum. Throughout the Democratic primary, Alan Sandals has said that the more voters learn about Bob Casey’s positions, the less support he will enjoy. This explains the rationale behind Casey’s attempts to limit the number of debates, keep the debate footage out of the public domain, and avoid debating in the major population centers of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
In a statement from Pittsburgh, Sandals said the following today:

“The erosion of support for Bob Casey in a hypothetical matchup against Rick Santorum is an unfortunate but predictable trend that underscores the great concern of mainstream Democrats about the vulnerability of the Casey candidacy. When he was recruited to run a year ago, the party leadership thought Democrats needed to imitate Republicans in order to win, but I have always disagreed with that strategy.

Democrats should stand for the principles we believe in, including women’s rights and the right to choose, an end to the military occupation of Iraq, support for stem cell research, and adequate controls to reduce handgun violence. Casey’s positions on these issues do not match the views of most Democrats and most moderate Republicans and Independents.

Voters in Pennsylvania need and want a U.S. Senate Candidate who will implement real change, but they won't find one in Bob Casey. May 16 is the final opportunity for Democrats to stand up and avert disaster in November.”

Not only is there Sandals, but the D's have Chuck Pennacchio as well.

Speaking up on wi-fi and technology

I just gave an interview to a media organization about the wi-fi deal and the rush to get an All-Star deal in place. They are rushing to launch a foolish plan. It seems to me that city hall wants an all-star strike out. They rush (haste makes waste) like there is no tomorrow. They want to swing three times at the same pitch.

Time and again, I speak up. I'm free to speak up. Others don't. Here is why....

This was snipped from comments at Pittsblog.

Regarding media coverage - I get the sense that they go as far as the community will allow. Most of these tech-focused organizations are all in the same game: self-protection. There seems to be an unspoken agreement to keep the bar low, disburse sizable grants to the same organizations again and again despite lackluster results, and not press for accountability of the millions of dollars spent annually on technology/R&D economic development initiatives in this region.

You'll hear people complain in private or off the record, but I think there's definitely a code of silence. Once you're in--on either the funder side or the recipient side, you keep your mouth shut, or your career options in this city are toast.

---

4/25/2006 9:13 PM

Anonymous said...

I agree the Pittsburgh Technology Council has become like the Allegheny Conference involved in tons of activities that no one really needs. Mike you should do an op-ed on them like you did on the Allegheny Conference.

Regarding the media - I agree no one speaks openly about these organizations and most of the boards are rubber stamps.

With this wi-fi deal before city council, the same truth holds. Those in the biz and on the various boards of other organizations don't want to rock the boat. Earthlink can't tell the city that the PDP plan is JUNK -- as if it goes into being, Earthlink will need to have a relationship with their customers over some of those poles (hot spots).

Same too with the Wireless Neighborhoods.

Deceased voter gets card from Diven - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Woops.

Deceased voter gets card from Diven - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review For a dead man, James J. Bradley Jr. has a lot of political pull.

First, his name appeared in March on a nominating petition for the re-election of state Rep. Michael Diven, R-Beechview -- more than three years after Bradley, of Baldwin Township, died of a heart attack.

Now Diven has sent Bradley a birthday card, wishing him good health.

The sending of cards is a political trick. The four-color card of the photo of the state capital is nice -- and we all pay for it. Newsletters are often an expression of PR for the candidate up for re-election and less to do about real 'news.' Those behaviors stink and people have had enough.

Keith is pushing Big Charlie K as an All-Star. Voting starts soon.

All this jazz about getting wi-fi in time for the All-Star game takes an interesting spin if this "player" gets elected to the team.


There is some questions out there about 'write-in votes' with the new voting machines. How do you write in a person to the All Star squad? See the comments for a report that came in via email.

One-Man Think Tank: INTERVIEW: Pittsburgh political blogger Mark Rauterkus

One-Man Think Tank: INTERVIEW: Pittsburgh political blogger Mark Rauterkus INTERVIEW: Pittsburgh political blogger Mark Rauterkus

Get to know Steel City political blogger and state Senate candidate Mark Rauterkus on this edition of One-Man Think Tank, the state's top alternative newscast.

Downtown housing in need of boost, but how?

City Councilmembers say, "Pick our cherries."

It is bad economic policy, and bad progressive policy, to discount to our most valued assets so the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

City Councilman Bill Peduto has never seen a tax break that was big enough. Bill Peduto wants to take our most valued assets and diminish that tax burden so as to put a heavy tax on the neighborhoods. Bill Peduto is okay with policies that make the rich richer and the poor poorer.

Downtown housing in need of boost, but how?A debate on how to spur the emerging Downtown housing market is set to start today in Pittsburgh City Council.

On one side is Councilman William Peduto, who wants to replace the project-by-project tax breaks with a blanket abatement for most new construction. He's won some backing from Downtown advocates and developers.

Of course Peduto has won agreement with the downtown developers. They are the rich. They are the ones who pay into campaign fundraisers and go to $1,000 a plate events at The Rivers Club.

They drive the Pgh Downtown Partnerships so that they can get wi-fi on the sidewalk cafe meanwhile the kids in the neighborhoods who could USE wi-fi for homework, at home, can't.

They want to pick our cherries. They want to put in wi-fi coverage only in downtown hot spots. They want to ignore the neighborhoods. They want to give bigger tax breaks to the super rich. They want to subsidize the areas that don't need tax breaks. They want to put new tax breaks on places when the old tax breaks expire.

Instead, you need to tax the land. That's the policy of our great history that has given us affordable housing and downtown density. That's the policy that would make for a new revival in the city, the county and the region -- with Pittsburgh being a home to new development and new economic prosperity -- for everyone.

Equity matters. So, you don't allow a downtown deals to take root. You insist upon everyone being equal. You insist that wi-fi goes everywhere, or not at all.

You don't widen the digital divide as Peduto is trying to do.

You don't sit there at the table with a grin and say, 'community has been at the table' yet community is getting the shaft. Being at the table is one thing. Getting served is another. And getting the bill is yet another. They'll put the citizens at the table, not serve them, and have them pay because we've been at the table.

They get to pick the cherries -- they get the sweetheart deal -- they get to live off of foundation money -- they get to make tax breaks, again, for downtown deals that didn't work the last time -- and WE, the taxpayers and neighborhood workers get to pay the deal.

Here is the table.....

See that foot in the upper left part of the photo. That's how people vote, with their feet. Have a seat at this table. Pick up the bill, taxpayers. Service not required nor expected.

Suggested fixes: I'm not in favor of subsidized housing for rich people downtown with subsidized parking for their rich cars.

I'm not in favor of new planning groups to gather at the table set by city hall but leave out citizens, schools, taxpayers and people like me who represent the opposition. They can hatch up spledid plans -- but they need to be part of the city.

I'm not in favor of doing downtown plans when the city can't get flood control in other sections of the city, such as Hays. City needs to do the hard work that needs to be done to fix things that need to be fixed -- first.

I'm not in favor of doing TIF deals -- ever. So, let's agree to not do any TIF deals first and then let's do our best to figure out how we can set the TIF ceiling to ZERO. These new efforts from Petudo are needed now and are being put forth because the city is at its TIF limit. The tool box is spent and new tools and new city spending is needed by big spending.

Libertarian Reform Caucus site

Mind food> I really like the article, 'What is a Platform from the Liberty Reform Party.

Yahoo Photo Album -- of raw food

Help...

I just set up a photo album on Yahoo Photo, a new service. Can you give this a peek to see what you think, please.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mark_rauterkus/my_photos

Did the link work? What do you think of the images? Can you navigate? Did you watch with a slide show?

Thanks for the feedback.

All of these photos, and a ton of others, are being put into the public domain.

After more thought, yep, I'm still certain that the Wi-Fi plan for downtown is a bad deal for Pittsburgh.

Free Software for Schools by Open Source Victoria (Book) in Books > Computer Science & Technology > Applications & Software > Educational Software

This is an 81 page book. You can download it for free as a PDF. Teachers and school folks, as well as parents and college education majors, looking for new tools should give this a peek, at least.

Free Software for Schools by Open Source Victoria (Book) in Books > Computer Science & Technology > Applications & Software > Educational Software Free Software for Schools

by Open Source Victoria
This item rated Everyone by its creator.

Price: select the products you want to purchase

* FREE Download

What do you think, running mates? Should I give these guys a call?

Raj Bhakta from the "Apprentice" now to become Representative

Reply to: manjari@rajforcongress.com
Date: 2006-04-24, 11:42AM EDT

Become Part of Political and Television Documentary History

By winning his party’s nomination against all odds, he stunned the political establishment once, now he’s doing it again: Raj Peter Bhakta, the bow-tied star of Donald Trump’s “the Apprentice” is letting cameras where they’ve never been allowed before- on a political campaign!

Raj accepted the Philadelphia Republican nomination in a nationally publicized press conference last month that appeared in USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, New York Post, Forbes, CNN and MSNBC.

Now, Raj is seeking a stellar team of the nation’s best and brightest to become part of a made for television documentary about what a smart, young, dedicated and aggressive campaign team can do.

Do you think you have what it takes to win elections on the ground? Are you tired of politics as usual? Can you hold up under the spotlight of the camera? Can you deal with the media; design and implement a winning web strategy; work extreme grassroots; set up rallies with hundreds of voters and inspire volunteers?

Participants will be selected primarily from top colleges and universities on the basis of previous achievement, personal dynamism, energy and zeal for reform. Participants must be willing to dedicate themselves to the campaign on a full time basis over the summer. They will be paid a weekly stipend and be provided housing.

The top three performing volunteers will go to Washington with Raj. To join the team please call Raj at 215-628-4001 or email Manjari@rajforcongress.com

Paid for by Raj for Congress

Compensation: To be determined
no - Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
yes - Phone calls about this job are ok.
no - Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.
no - Reposting this message elsewhere is NOT OK.

Let's face it, I'm a "little fish," Yet, I swim upstream often. And, I do like to reside in a clean, clear, setting where I'm willing and able to accept scrutiny -- yet alone the lights of the network TVs.

Blooming flowers. For the past two years, around this time of year, our family has been packing for a trip to China. We went May 1 in 2004 and May 16 in 2005. Now in 2006, we're saying home. Just last month my wife went to the American Academy of Audiology in MN and was able to visit with one of her associates from Chengdu. She now works in LA. In the months to come, a new Ph.D. student is going to enter the program at Pitt -- a student Catherine taught in Chengdu on those trips. For me, I've still got these photos to organize.

Speaking of rivers, wireless, and interesting photos of food, this woman is bringing home dinner. Guess where she was?

Pittsburgh's Wi-Fi plan fails to cover the rivers and bridges

Wi-Fi on the water and with the rivers and even Voyager!

Today in city council chambers, the good people with The Pittsburgh Voyager were given special notice. Presently, a new vessile, a floating classroom and lab is being built. It will take 150 passengers and join the fleet on the North Side. A few other boats are working on the rivers now, taking school kids on field trips daily.

The rivers are NOT in the plan for wi-fi. It would be simple to put the wi-fi connections along the bridges and cover the water spaces. That is an attraction. These kids, their teachers and adults on their trips would be able to check email from a lap-top if the rivers were wi-fi ready.

One of our bridges was named for Rachel C. We could have a festival on the bridge and have vendors show their wares via the web and wi-fi -- if that was made into the plans.

Genetically Modified Food Conundrum - Yahoo! News

The Genetically Modified Conundrum - Yahoo! News
By Alyce Lomax

The U.S. is sometimes described as the bastion of biotech crops, the great hope for the sparkling future of genetically modified (GM) foods. That's seen as a boon to some of the companies that have been spearheading efforts to develop such crops and distribute them throughout the food supply. Likewise for the biggest food providers, who hope to market and sell these wares throughout the world. Yet there's still the fact that GM foods remain controversial, to say the least.

Feeling hungry? The images below were taken at markets in China and Thailand. Can you identify the items? Click on the photo get get a larger (expanded) view. I'm putting images and many others are put into the public domain.

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(To be honest, the worms are not to be eaten so much by people. This photo was taken on a street devoted to pets, aquariums and such. But, the butchers row is very near.)

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People flee! People vote with their feet! And the solutions are silly ones that don't work!

Another great report from the Allegheny Insitutue is out. This one concerns that magical topic -- population loss.

The city is shrinking. The county is shrinking. And, I don't see it getting any better.

All the redding up that Bob O'Connor is trying to do isn't going to help much. Redding up is a valued activity -- but -- the undertaker does a good job too when a dead body arrives and a new haircut, suit and layer of make-up is applied -- to redd up the corpse for its final viewing and eventual trip to the worms.

Redding up could mean a new coat of red lipstick for the funeral home as another flock bites the dust and departs.

Real solutions go way beyond 'redding up.' To reverse the flow is going to take serious efforts and those are the things that people want to see and get behind.

According to recently released estimates from the Census Bureau (census.gov/popest/eval-estimates/county/c8/county-2000c8.html), Allegheny County suffered a net loss of around 43,000 citizens to other counties and states between April 2000 and July 2005. During the same period, the surrounding counties of Butler, Washington and Westmoreland together added about 12,500 net domestic migrants. All other Southwest Pennsylvania counties showed net outflows of domestic migrants. Thus, even if all the net migration increases in Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties came from Allegheny County, it would mean that approximately 30,000 of Allegheny County’s net domestic outmigration left the region.

For example, putting wi-fi downtown in time for the All-Star Game is another example of fresh lipstick for all things that are 'deads-ville' here. The plan won't help. And, I contend that this is just another solution that HURTS the city in its hope of making a rebound.

The wi-fi plan for downtown is a crock of crap. The redd up efforts are ways to better sort the crap and put it into various crocks.

Another vivid example, the HOV Wabash Tunnel. This construction project was built with taxpayer money (mostly federal funds) and only 300 cars a day use it. The Wabash Tunnel is a crock-of-crap addition to our landscape that isn't helping one bit. We spent all the money -- and it didn't change the flow.

However, if the Wabash Tunnel was kept as a HOV lane -- and a bike/blade and pedestrian lane was put next to the HOV lane -- then we'd have something to brag about and use. More bikes would use the HOV lane than cars on any given day.

But, did City Council's Jim Motznik request that a bike lane be inserted within the Wabash Tunnel -- as I suggested at public comment weeks ago? I don't know, but I doubt it.

Do little leaders are going to lead Pittsburgh down the pathway we've been on --- outward migration.

North Catholic is leaving. Our Catholic Elem School, Bishop Leonard, is going to close and be merged into St. Mary's of The Mount. We already lost the Waldorf School from our neighborhood. Sure, it moved within the city, but why didn't a new school open there to join this school here? South Vo Tech is closed. Langley HS is at half of its capacity. CAPA, downtown's new high school for creative and performing arts, was built to serve the city and accept up to half of its students from the WPIAL schools, (i.e., beyond the city's borders). CAPA is lucky to get a dozen students from beyond the city -- as folks don't want to go to school here, don't want to live here and care less to be in a city that is full of so many miss-givings.

We've got problems. And, we've got people in leadership who are happy to let the problems linger while they hold onto their seats of power.

The King's Men are not up to the job at hand when it comes to this population decline. And the solutions we've come to expect from the King's Men don't help.

Court defeats audit - PittsburghLIVE.com

Jack Wagner, our state's Auditor General, gets put into the realm of "meaningless" when it comes to his power to do an audit on public money in the hands of public officials.

Go figure.

This is just another vivid example of why our state is shrinking. People vote with their feet. People are leaving Pennsylvania.

Corruption! Tradition! Smoke! Not only is there a legacy of a 'smokey city' but in these instances it is also a 'smokey state.' Things are not transparent. Things are not open.

As a state senator, I would change the law so as to guarantee that the auditor general and any voter in the state has the right to audit any source of funds from politicians and governmental assets.

Court defeats audit - PittsburghLIVE.com Court defeats audit

By Brad Bumsted, STATE CAPITOL REPORTER

HARRISBURG -- Pennsylvania's fiscal watchdog, the state auditor general, has no authority to audit the Legislature's $135 million slush fund or its other expenses, Commonwealth Court ruled Monday.

Short of a reversal on appeal, the ruling means that more than $400 million in annual legislative spending won't be audited independently, said citizens' activist Gene Stilp, of Dauphin County, who filed a lawsuit last year claiming the Legislature's internal audit is a 'sham.'

The court dismissed Stilp's lawsuit in a 5-1 ruling.

Stilp, now an independent candidate for lieutenant governor, filed his lawsuit based on stories the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review published last year that reported legislators tapped the so-called 'surplus' money to collect unvouchered expenses authorized by a July pay raise. They repealed the 16 to 54 percent raises in November after outraged constituents complained."

Merits of wireless Internet in Downtown are debated

Merits of wireless Internet in Downtown are debated: "A Downtown wireless Internet network wouldn't get in the way of a later citywide system, one computing executive told Pittsburgh City Council yesterday.

Yes it could, said another.

An online poll runs along with this story. The question should be: Should the Pittsburgh Foundation community pay nearly $1-million to a company to build a downtown wi-fi network so people in PNC Park can be wireless? Or, should a no money be used from the generous Pittsburgh donors so that a city-wide network that is funded by EARTHLINK that is to reach all 88 neighborhoods, not just one, and with the EarthLink we'd get FASTER service and continual upgrades too?

I presented at that meeting. The PDP (Pgh Downtown Partnership) plan sucks. It sucks like old Easter Eggs. It sucks bad.

I gave my testimony. And four or more others were there to agree with me, even after I left the room and questions from Peduto and Shields were put to speakers. The visiting speakers took my stance -- and did not agree with the 'done deal mentality' that council seems hell-bent to deliver by the all-star game.

I'll be at city council today with three charts of my own.

Independent bid: Diamond welcomed in governor's race

The Herald Standard - Independent bid: Diamond welcomed in governor's race As an independent candidate, Diamond, a Lebanon County businessman, is certain to add pit bull bite to the strains of poodle-esque yapping from Democrat Gov. Ed Rendell and GOP nominee Lynn Swann.