Category: Politics

Putting the army in Salvation Army

Rancho Cordova’s recent ordinance banning certain businesses including tattoo parlors and check-cashing businesses also targets thrift stores. According to the Bee today, Salvation Army had recently planned to move into a new location in Rancho and is now being banned by that ordinance and is gearing up for a fight, including possible legal action against Rancho.

The ban is aimed at improving the “public health, safety and welfare” of Rancho Cordova. I suppose a gently used blazer or a macrame picture frame touched by an elderly woman might contain deadly biotoxins.

Continue reading “Putting the army in Salvation Army”

Flooding, of a limited nature

Sunday morning, I reached for the hot water tap in my bathroom, only to have it snap off in my hand, sending a six-foot geyser of hot water straight up to the ceiling. The shut-off under the sink was likewise dysfunctional, and there was a problem with the water main cutoff, too. Yes, the dreaded hat trick of disaster: I got me a flood.

Thinking quickly, I slammed a mixing bowl over the geyser to re-direct the water into the sink, where it could drain without more mess and potential damage. And then I started calling people.

First on the scene: The on-call guy from the Sacramento Suburban Water District. Now, I’m already grudgingly in awe of the water pressure my house has — water was literally bouncing off the ceiling when the geyser first erupted — and now I’m likewise impressed by the speed, helpfullness and thoroughness of the guy who turned up on Super Bowl Sunday to help. He told me my neighborhood is a “spider’s web” of pipes, and for him to turn off the water to my house from his end would require shutting off untold number of my neighbors as well.

He smiled, and shook his head, “I’m not shutting off the neighborhood on Super Bowl Sunday.”

Continue reading “Flooding, of a limited nature”

San Francisco mayor in you-know-what scandal

Gavin Newsom, creep
From NBCSandiego.com

I don’t think we want to be in his shadow anymore…

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom issued an apology Thursday following reports that he had an affair between his former assistant, the wife of his campaign manager, who resigned earlier this week.

Via NBC San Diego. An affair between? Please! Just the basic facts are enough!

Should that star spangled banner yet wave?

Now that the dust as settled on last week’s MySpace debate, I figured we could take a few swings at this situation in Orangevale:

An Orangevale man is being fined $2,500 for flying five American flags on county streetlight poles.

The best part of this story is that the man being fined, Ed Andrews, took up a collection last summer in his neighborhood and raised $400 for the flags and brackets. Well done, Ed.

Now the lawyers are involved as well as the Sacramento County supervisors:

At an impromptu meeting on a neighbor’s driveway Wednesday evening, Sacramento County’s Director of Transportation Tom Zlotkowski explained that allowing American flags on light poles around Acer Way and Ortiz Court would mean any other flags could be put up.

Hmmm, I wonder about that, but, sure, OK.

“But yet people could go out and burn the flag if they wanted to, but yet we’re having a problem flying the flag and showing our patriotism,” said Michele Turner, whose future stepson is due back from Iraq in a few days.

There’s the issue, Sacramento. Where do you draw the line? If a gal has to pay to have repairs made to her sidewalk, why can’t folks fly old glory in their neighborhood?

That’s some good fiddling, Heather Fargo

What, me worry?
Mayor and buyers celebrate railyard sale

A telling quote from Mayor Fargo in the Bee’s report today on the railyard sale:

“I never thought I’d be spending most of my political career on this site,” Fargo said of her longtime role as railyard booster.

With 59 murders in Sacramento this year, easily the highest total in a decade, including at least 3 in the last week, along with other horrible stories of assaults, unidentified bodies turning up almost daily, and gunfire at the entrance to Arden Fair (that’s just this week), really, what else could she be remembered for? I bet you a Sac Rag t-shirt we bust through 60 by the end of the year.

Continue reading “That’s some good fiddling, Heather Fargo”

County’s new mapping tool goes live

Sac County rolled out a new online mapping application “that provides maps and information about services and facilities available to or near a specific property.” It’s called e-Map-It, and it’s available on their page of online services, which is actually a really nice list. As far as e-Map-It goes, it seems pretty useful. If you were looking at houses you could get all sorts of info on utilities and services. I suppose the main reason they can’t just rely on a Google maps for all the map info is because this particular one is tied to parcel number and overlaying parcel number data on GMap would probably be as time consuming as building and deploying a .NET application.

UPDATE: Thanks to Bill G. pointing out that the tool doesn’t even support Firefox, I can take back my wishy-washy approval and give this thing a big fat thumbs down.

Feed the homeless (governor)

Homelessness is a problem of most metropoliseses, and especially those such as ours where housing prices skyrocketed in a short time, making affordable housing difficult to obtain by those who need it most.  Many times, people have to make do with whatever they can get their hands on.  Some people deal with such adversity better than others.

Just ask Gov. Arnold. According to SFGate.com’s Lynda Gledhill:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Wednesday that he’s “very happy in my little hotel room.”

That in response to a published report in the Sacramento Bee that he and First Lady Maria Shriver have toured a new 15-floor hotel and condominium project being built a few blocks from the Capitol.

Schwarzenegger has been living in a the penthouse in the Hyatt hotel across from the Capitol since taking office. The state has no official governor’s residence and he and Maria found no suitable house when he was first elected. The constraints of security, wanting to be close to the Capitol and necessary space for a governor with four children left almost no options.

Continue reading “Feed the homeless (governor)”

Decision 2006 #2

Well here we are, Sacramento, it’s time to get out the vote. Beckler has an entertaining post on Heckasac conjuring Aileen Voisin’s penchant for straw men and the helpful services they provide. If anyone has any enjoyable polling place stories or witnesses anything out of the ordinary (people eating $6000 combo meals outside your polling place, for example) make sure to post them here.

Still confused about tomorrow?

With the clock ticking down ’til Election Day, here is a last-minute tip for those undecided on some statewide candidates and initiatives.

Listen to candidate interviews from both sides of the aisle and the pros and cons of ballot measures.  It’s all courtesy of local political analyst Gary Dietrich. 

Just click here:

http://www.citizenvoice.org/election_interviews.shtml