Politics
Voting Yes
Voting Yes for the Parks Referendum seems the best use of my vote. I spent years on the Parks & Recreation Commission. Budget cuts reduced staff so badly we had more Commissioners than Parks & Rec employees! Voting yes protects our nearly 12,000 acres of parkland and our libraries from future budget cuts.
Legacy Arts Funding to Vikings Stadium?
I have three thoughts as I read the below.
1. Aargh to the idea that arts funds would go to this cause.
2. Aargh to the robohelp aspect of the way they want you to contact your legislator, even if you don’t know who they are.
3. Aargh, just in general.
How about you? –db (more…)
Get Ready to Ruuuumble
So, one of the possible redistricting plans has Michelle Bachmann and Chip Cravaack squaring off against one another in what would become the new District 6.
Occupy Duluth? Who?? Wha?!?
Here is a brief interview with a couple of local personalities, David Ross (head of the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce) and Joel Kilgour (activist and member of Loaves & Fishes) re: Change and the Occupy movement.
httpv://youtu.be/DyzGigMPsWI
If you’re interested in what’s going on, locally, check out the Occupy Duluth Facebook Group.
Michele Bachmann at her most coherent
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFB6LQ1-WKU
Democracy is not a spectator sport
YMCA Youth in Government is a youth-led, experiential learning opportunity that involves 1,800 middle school and high school students each year. The Duluth Area Family YMCA Delegation is still accepting participants.
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Mapping Inequality in Duluth
Hey everyone! This is a map I made in college a couple years back that shows patterns of income and racial segregation in Duluth. I have been going through all the files on my computer and figured the fine folks at PDD would appreciate this one. If you want to see more, I have started a photoblog: https://codiemaps.wordpress.com. I will try to post something new every couple of weeks. (Spoiler: My next map is a pseudosociological breakdown of Minnesota’s core regions.)
Duluth Skateboarders GTFO 2011
I emailed four at-large city council candidates and First District candidate Jennifer Julsrud to ask: “What do you think of the Canal Park skateboarding ban?” (more…)
Quiet Cravaack
A couple of weeks ago I emailed Chip’s office stating my views on Obama’s jobs bill and I asked for Chip’s view on the bill and if he would be supporting it.
To date, I’ve heard nothing from him.
In the past I’ve email Franken on an unrelated matter and at least his people bothered to send me a standard response in a timely fashion.
Are elected officials obligated to reply to the questions those they represent have for them?
If not, I’ve not sure how appropriate the term ‘representative’ really is.
2011 Duluth General Election Sample Ballot
Brush up on your referendums, kids. The city and the school district have some wordy questions for you. (By the way, you should be able to click on the images below to see them larger and read them more easily. The city question is the back side of the ballot, and is a separate image below.)
Another note about the ballot: As usual, depending on what neighborhood you live in, you might also vote on a district city councilor and/or school board member. This ballot has the district council race blanked out and does not include a district school board race.
Sidewalks: Who Gets to Decide?
Did you see this front-page article in today’s paper? Should neighborhood residents be the ones to decide whether or not sidewalks are included as their street is reconstructed? Is it about building a transportation network that serves current and future residents, those who drive and those who don’t?
Duluth 2011 Primary Election Results
With 36 of 36 precincts reporting and 6,620 total ballots cast:
At-large Duluth City Councilors
(Two positions; top four candidates advance)
Emily Larson – 4,918 | 40%
Linda Krug – 4,860 | 40%
Tim Riley – 947 | 8%
Chad Smith – 645 | 5%
Eric Edwardson – 446 | 4%
Gareth W. Bates – 442 | 4%
Fourth District Duluth City Councilor
(Top two candidates advance.)
Jacqueline Halberg – 695 | 44%
Garry Krause – 649 | 41%
Ryan Miles – 134 | 9%
Wallace Newquist – 59 | 4%
Travis Silvers – 29 | 2%
At-large Duluth School Board Member
(Top two candidates advance.)
Michael Miernicki – 3,783 | 61%
Ryan Stauber – 1,882 | 30%
Doug Frisk – 515 | 8%
Democracy Help
I believe in being an active participant in our republic, but I’m also lazy. My usual decision making process is to read the statements candidates submit to the League of Women voters, but it doesn’t look like the Duluth chapter is active (at least not this year, and at least not on its website). Does anyone know where I can find cheat sheets on the city council and school board candidates? I can find endorsements from labor and political parties, but I’m trying to make up my own mind … in the quickest and laziest way possible.
Cravaack Town Hall
I didn’t wanted to go off topic on the thread regarding signs and free speech at the Cravaack town hall meeting, so I thought I’d start another one to discuss the content of the meeting.
Planning for Climate Change
Climate change is already impacting the U.S. Midwest with higher average temperatures, more frequent heavy downpours, decreased Great Lakes ice cover, and more frequent heat waves.
Projected future climate changes in the region include a likely rise of another 5-10 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100, continued increases in winter and spring precipitation, decreased summer precipitation, and a possible drop in Great Lakes water levels.
The region will likely face the greatest adaptation challenges along Great Lakes coasts and waterways, as this is where many significant economic and ecological impacts will occur as a result of a changing climate.
While climate impacts will vary regionally, it is at the state and local levels where critical policy and investment decisions are made for the systems most likely to be affected — water, land use, energy, transportation and public health and natural resources, as well as important economic sectors such as agriculture, fisheries, forestry, manufacturing, and tourism. By factoring a changing climate into planning decisions today, communities and agencies can avoid future costs.
Find out more at “Planning for Climate Change Impacts in the Western Lake Superior Region” on Thursday, Sept. 22, from 8 a.m. til 5 p.m., a workshop geared for planners and professionals, but open to everyone. The workshop will be held at the EPA Midcontinent Division (map) and costs $20, which includes speakers, lunch and materials. Registration is available online.
Sample Ballot for Duluth Primary Election on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011
Duluthians who live in the Fourth Council District, which includes parts of the West End, Piedmont Heights and Duluth Heights neighborhoods, will also vote on that council seat. The candidates are Jacqueline Halberg, Garry Krause, Ryan Miles, Wallace Newquist and Travis Silvers.
There will be more races in the General Election in November, but only one or two candidates filed for those offices, so they are not on the primary ballot. To see a complete list of candidates visit the “Duluth 2011 Election Candidate Filings” post.
Rick Nolan for Congress
What are “Essential” Services?
Yesterday, across Minnesota, battered women’s shelters closed their doors. Why? Not for lack of need, but for lack of priority by the state. So far shelters and childcare for low-income families have been placed in the “non-essential” services category. What then are “essential” services and who gets to decide?
Duluth 2011 Election Candidate Filings
Duluth citizens desiring to be a candidate for elected office must file before July 19. Candidates for city offices file with the city clerk; candidates for school board file at Historic Old Central High School in room 215.
(The list below is a final list of who filed. Updates were made to this post as filing was happening, so some comments to this post predate the completion of the list.)
Mayor of Duluth
Don Ness (incumbent) (more…)
Michele Bachmann for President
After making the official announcement today that she’s running for President of the United States, Michele Bachmann told Fox News: “Just like John Wayne was from Waterloo, Iowa — that’s the kind of spirit that I have, too.”
One little problem: The famous star of western films is from Winterset, Iowa — 150 miles from Waterloo. Serial killer John Wayne Gacy lived in Waterloo, though.
Ness Campaign Kickoff Events
Help kick off the campaign to re-elect Mayor Don Ness!
Wednesday, June 29
Noon Kickoff Speech and Reception
11:30am – 1 pm @ The Great Lakes Ballroom at the Holiday Inn
Mayor Ness will speak at 12:15pm
After Work Reception
4:30pm – 6pm @ The Zeitgeist Arts Café – 222 E. Superior St.
Meet and Greet with Mayor Ness and friends!
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Call off the Global Drug War
“In a message to Congress in 1977, I said the country should decriminalize the possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, with a full program of treatment for addicts. I also cautioned against filling our prisons with young people who were no threat to society, and summarized by saying: ‘Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself.'”
– Jimmy Carter, New York Times Op-Ed 2011/06/16
Mayor’s Mix: 17 pretty great local songs for $5
So yeah, you can find it at the Electric Fetus. If you’re like me and you think it’s pretty neat that our little city produces so much incredible talent, maybe you should buy this CD. It has a low-key vibe to it, good for your family BBQ this summer … (more…)