Scott Walker Lacks the Vision Needed to Lead Milwaukee County
Following is an invitation I received (along with a whole lot of other folks) for a fun raiser for Scott Walker, and a copy of my response to the invitation.
Dear Perfecto
Perfecto Rivera <privera@wi.rr.com> wrote:
#yiv2105257753 st1\:*{}Dear Friend,“How Milwaukee goes, so goes Southeastern Wisconsin ”This is an invitation to join me and our host Bob Spindell for an evening of food, drinks and live harp music with County Executive Scot Walker this Saturday November 3, 2007 from 6 – 9 PM.This fund raising event will be hosted and held at the home of Bob Spindell, located at 1626 North Prospect Avenue #2209 – Milwaukee , WI .General Attendance - $30Roundtable Discussion and Photo with Scott - $100RSVP, directions and other information: Contact me at (414) 559-7957 or Bob Spindell at (414) 985-5353I hope to see you on Saturday ……. Perfecto.
"NECESSARY EVIL"
Are torture and war necessary evils, and government itself, is it a necessary evil?
Toward frozen uniformity.
Advancement toward consensus in government results in non-movement, and inaction leading to consistency and stagnancy of intellect.
Local democracy, an illusion?
Long lived local governmental boards and committees, after many years leave their aging foot prints of “cultural conformity.” New groups shape themselves after the old.
The unvarying patterns of uniformity and consistency might be described as related more to the acts of the cult but without reverence for one thing, as each ego in the group is the subject of its own veneration.
How is Liberal Defined in Regards to Shorewood
I don't think anyone would argue that the common consensus is that Shorewood is known as a bastion of liberals. At least when we look at past elections and which candidates Shorewood voters cast their lots for - if you are a liberal candidate, you needn't waste too much time in Shorewood - you've got that vote in the bag.
In actual practice, however, how well does Shorewood score on "acting Liberal" ?
Testing in Fargo
Wasn’t it embarrassing? Last week we found out that our sons and daughters may have tested well according to national norms, but on second look it seems that we have pretty easy tests compared to pretty much the rest of the nation. “What can be found exactly 3 1/2 degrees south of the Tropic of Cancer? ” This may be a question posed to the very smart kids everywhere else, but on the Wisconsin version of the test, here is what you might find; “Lake Michigan is…a. A River, b. A City, c. A Lake or d. I‘m Not Sure.” Don’t worry; fellow residents of the Badger State (GO BADGERS!!!), our kids will be fine. This is the first in a possible series of one, possibly more, investigative pieces about the state of testing, the state of the state regarding testing and the state of the correlation between field trip days and test performance.
Money talks and Shorewood walks.
What do we want our community to look like? Is this the developer's call or that of those who represent the community.
A developer produces a concept and it goes through various stages of review and “consensus” developing discussion. By the time that the concept reaches the Village Board, it is a mere formality. What does the Board say?
The ping effect.
Stream patterns produce linear elongations and movement toward distance points. On the other hand, clustering is a form of natural or natural-like concentration. Linear units are usually essential to transportable needs.
Elected officials, how about some response!
Sometime ago, I pointed out the need for Shorewood Village Board to establish priorities in relation to projects and money for future expenditures. So far, no response.
School Undercrowding.
It occurred to me while reading about West Bend's over-crowing school conditions and the millions that it will cost to remedy the situation over a number of years, that some arrangements with communities like Shorewood, where the schools are experiencing under-crowing, that mutual arrangements whether temporary or permanent, could be made. Where distances aren't that great, we could at least make temporaty accommodates. After all, we're one state aren't we? How about it, Representative Wasserman and Senator Darling? Let's hear from both of you.
Please read: "Another School Idea," posted shortly after this one, now shown ahead of this one.
Another school idea.
Tim Fojtik, I'm impressed with both your “bio” and your postings. I always look forward to your contributions. Shorewood should be proud to have you and your family as active community citizens.
BACK INTO THE FUTURE, FORWARD INTO THE PAST.
Shorewood seems to be marching forward into the past. With few modifications our land assembly is being used to accommodate the past but clad in progressive rhetoric. Traditional practice often hides mistaken concepts, while the market accommodates the lowest of tastes.
A Shorewood salute.
During my time in Shorewood, I have always found that our Village's operating and management staff have been excellent and among the highest in their professions and in their fields of work . I have observed currently that our staff are being even more efficiently organized under the leadership of our Village Manager Chris Swartz.
They are quietly at work on a day to day basis and are often taken for granted. I have always found them to be courteous and helpful. I believe that from time to time we should consciously take note of their efforts and recognize what these people do for the Shorewood and what they mean to us. I want to thank them and hope that many citizens of Shorewood join me in doing so and will show their appreciation when visiting the offices of these people.
THE BIG BANG.
Much of Shorewood's residential property is of the highest of quality and we should be proud of these major elements of our community. We are now engaged in upgrading our “business district.” We should expect that here too, we shall aim toward the highest quality.
We are not only interested in improving our tax base, for the engine that drives our renewal of Oakland and Capitol is the Tax Incremental Financing programs of the state and of our community, but we should always keep in mind that we want to achieve the highest quality center of community possible.
Those who silently serve.
There are many committees functioning as citizen committees that do a great deal of the governmental work necessary in keeping Shorewood's government operating.
Many residents never go before these committees and most are unaware of their existence. Because of my interest in the function of local government, I have from time to time attended some of the meetings of these committees. They do great work.
Proposed Shorewood Housing Loan Program Has Serious Flaws
According to stories in the Current Issue of ShorewoodNow (http://www.shorewoodnow.com/) , the Shorewood Village Board is contemplating a new loan program targeting residential housing.
As reported by Dave Fidlin -- staff writer :
What is the Affordability of Housing in Shorewood
In my previous posting, I noted that the new Loan Program the Village Board is considering, would encourage the transition of duplexes to become single family homes.
In this posting, I will attempt to illustrate the housing availability and affordability factors in Shorewood - and the differences in affordability between duplexes, single family homes, and the impact on renters.
Just Who can Afford to Buy A Home in Shorewood
In researching WHO can afford to buy a house or duplex in Shorewood, the best breakdown of the various criteria that may be relevant in the planning of any type of incentive program I found was at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States
What's Good For The Goose Takes Too Long For the Gander
National Board Certification for teachers is pretty much the end of the teacher recognition road, except maybe having the staff lounge refrigerator named in our honor. A teaching degree these days is just the beginning. In places like Shorewood, a master‘s degree is pretty much expected. With hundreds of applicants for any one available job, a master‘s is the least you can show up to the interview with. That and a new outfit. National Board Certification is a process that licensed and experienced teachers can put themselves through to get up to that last rung just a bit short of the ceiling. With it, one can get a job teaching just about anywhere nepotism or cronyism doesn’t thrive. They are the national honor society scholars, valedictorians, student council presidents, drum majors, prom queens, and line leaders, depending on how far back into your memories you want to go to define the metaphorical best.
A New, Improved & Affordable Shorewood
In Shorewood, we are foremost a residential community, and we have a larger than average stock of rental units.
Yet the Village Board seems to put an inordinate amount of emphasis on the business community while putting residential and housing concerns on the back burner.
