Monday, March 10, 2008
Lantz pulls the plug, Abel to run
With the state legislative session grinding to a close, longtime 26th District Representative Pat Lantz (D-Gig Harbor) has announced that she will not seek a seventh term.
Lantz issued a press release just after noon on Monday, stating, "I believe it is time to turn my full attention to my family -- my husband, my three children, and five wonderful grandchildren."
Within hours, former Port Orchard Mayor Kim Abel announced that she would seek the seat Lantz is vacating. There had been some speculation when Abel declined to run for a second term as Mayor, that she would file for the county commission seat being vacated by Jan Angel. Instead, she will face off against Angel, who announced her intention to challenge Lantz some months ago.
Lantz also endorsed Abel, said as a part of Abel's press release, "Kim Abel understands the needs of our district, cares deeply about our families and communities and I am delighted to offer her my support." Lantz said she actually made the decision not to seek another term back in September, but didn't want to announce her decision and be viewed as a lame duck during the legislative session, which is scheduled to end on Thursday.
That wasn't really news to Angel, who said, "I had heard when I threw my hat in the ring that she (Lantz) was not running for another term."
Angel stated, "The last eight years have given me a real good foundation. I understand the needs and issues of the 26th District."
Without going into a lot of detail at this point in time, I'll just say that as the guy who inherited what Abel left in Port Orchard, I'll be supporting Jan Angel.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 3/10/2008 08:36:00 PM
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Monday, November 19, 2007
Restoring the One Percent Cap
The Washington State Supreme Court has once again demonstrated its elitist contempt for the voters of this state by insulting our intelligence and overturning Tim Eyman's I-747. Its rationale was that we voters are too stupid to understand what we passed by a landslide back in 2001 -- in spite of the fact it more than likely kept a much stronger tax revolt at bay as property values soared in recent years.
That certainly created a serious election-year dilemma for our esteemed Governor, Christine Gregoire -- who has never seen a tax she didn't support -- and said previously she'd like to increase the one percent limit imposed by we voters.
The ink wasn't even dry on the Supreme Court ruling before her 2008 Republican opponent, former State Senator Dino Rossi, immediately called upon the governor to convene a special one-day session of the legislature to reinstate the one percent lid -- much the way former Governor Gary Locke did in 2000, instituting $30 car tabs after the court handed down its decision invalidating I-695. But Gregoire stonewalled Rossi's call for almost three weeks, leaving taxpayers at risk for big local increases. "The incumbent is not leading, she is reacting -- and slowly," Rossi chided.
Right after the Supreme Court ruling, Gregoire minimized the situation, saying she would work with lawmakers to re-impose a limit, without giving a specific number, and creating the impression she was open to something more than one, but less than six percent.
As late as June of last year, Gregoire pushed a compromise increase, stating six percent begins taxing people out of their homes (conveniently neglecting to mention it also doubles the amount of taxation every 12 years), but insisting that in spite of continually escalating property values, one percent forces cutbacks on local services.
The political reality is any compromise on the percentage is a no-win for Gregoire, who barely beat Rossi in 2004 -- and as we all know, under highly questionable circumstances. If Gregoire and the Democrats passed even a two percent cap they'll be crucified in the court of public opinion for doubling property taxes.
The Friday after Election Day, Rossi and the Republicans were spinning themselves as champions of the taxpayers. Tim Eyman, fresh from his I-960 victory, was bombastically crowing, "People are in no mood to compromise. They're ready to rip politicians' lungs out." So Gregoire issued a four-sentence e-mail saying -- for the very first time -- she supported a one percent cap.
"The voters approved Initiative 747, it has been in place for five years and I think we need to leave it in place," she said. She reportedly later told the AP -- with a straight face -- that's been her position for the past year. Perhaps she should have gone public much sooner, because that's the very first time anyone ever heard her say that.
What provoked Gregoire into action, was the fact the old six percent law went back into effect. Numerous local taxing districts had "banked" unused taxing authority, and several King County taxing districts quickly moved to use it, ignoring Gregoire's lame request not to.
Kitsap County Commissioner Chair Josh Brown also floated a trial balloon hinting Kitsap might look at increasing property taxes as well, but cooler, more experienced heads, prevailed.
In spite of the myriad of special interest Democratic constituencies pressuring the governor for an increase while the door was open, Gregoire was between the proverbial rock and a hard place. While Democrats detested Rossi and Eyman dictating Olympia's agenda and its timing, they couldn't risk their supermajorities in both houses next fall either. Openly challenging the clear will of the voters was simply an unacceptable risk.
Crediting voters with a gullibility factor between 7 and 8 on a scale of 10, Democrats cranked up their spin machine to put the best PR face on the situation. The KPBJ received identically-worded press releases from every Democratic House member in the 23rd, 26th and 35th Districts telling us how they were listening to the voters and supported Gregoire's efforts. Only the names were changed. Senator Derek Kilmer however, came out for restoring the one percent cap almost as soon as the Supreme Court decision was announced.
Republicans running for election in 2008 will leverage the very real fear of even higher taxes. If Gregoire does prevail next November -- which polling indicates is far from certain right now -- in spite of re-imposing the cap, there's nothing except an unlikely Gregoire veto preventing a Democratic-controlled 2009 legislature from increasing it.
But just once, wouldn't you love to see a political leader step up and do what's right -- without political considerations -- for NO other reason than because it IS the right thing to do? In my view, that's what true leadership is all about.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 11/19/2007 05:39:00 PM
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Sunday, April 29, 2007
Endresen To Resign in June
Amid a lot of local speculation about whether or not she would seek a fourth term, County Commissioner Chris Endresen surprised everyone by announcing on Sunday, April 29, that she will resign in June. According to onlne reports from the Port Orchard Independent as well as as the Kitsap Sun Web sites, Endresen has accepted a position as the State Director of U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell's office.
In her new position, Endresen will oversee five offices across the state -- Spokane, Tacoma, Vancouver, Everett and Tri-Cities, from her office in the Federal Building in downtown Seattle. She will reportedly oversee 18 people in those locations. She said she will continue to reside in Poulsbo and commute.
The 50-year-old Endresen is the current vice president of the Washington State Association of Counties (WASC), as well as representing Kitsap County on a myriad of local, regional and statewide boards and commissions. She is also a recent graduate of the Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington.
In March, two-term Republican Commissioner Jan Angel announced she wouldn't seek a third term. With Endresen out of the picture, 26-year old Democrat Josh Brown will become the county's senior commissioner. Angel and Brown, will appoint Endresen's replacement within five days of her resignation. If they can't agree, the appointment will be made by the governor.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 4/29/2007 10:28:00 PM
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Monday, April 23, 2007
Time For A Progress Report From SEED
With the money former county commissioner Tim Botkin has secured and has committed from the Feds, the state legislature, the Port of Bremerton, Kitsap County and all the other 100 percent taxpayer-funded sources, SEED should be approaching the $4 million mark in funding.
Meanwhile all a Google search for Kitsap SEED finds is a link to the Port of Bremerton, with a small number of press releases, and a defunct website for the project itself.
With that kind of money at stake, isn't it time Botkin named the companies he's actually got signed on the dotted line for this project, the number of prospective jobs they'll bring to Kitsap County, and when we can expect to start seeing them -- before he gets any deeper into the taxpayer's pocket?
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 4/23/2007 08:40:00 AM
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Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Misinformation and Lies Win. ISC Withdraws Track Proposal
"We just don't see any point in beating our head against the wall any more," said a resigned Grant Lynch, vice president of International Speedway Corporation (ISC), in discussing the news that the Daytona Beach, Florida speedway developer was shutting down its efforts to build a NASCAR-style speedway in Kitsap County.
It is a clear victory for for the purveyors of misinformation and blatant lies -- not to mention a complete and total lack of political cojones on the part of our elected officials. I believe it is a very sad commentary on the state of our county and our legislature when what amounts to 12 or so people can organize a disinformation campaign so effective it intimidates our public officials to the point of pure cowardice.
Phil Rockefeller, Sherry Appleton, Pat Lantz, and Larry Seaquist have proven they don't deserve to represent us. However, instead of having the humility to be ashamed for their gross inadequacy as representatives, they'll be doing a victory dance as they vote to raise our taxes again -- when they could have funded what they'll make US pay for from the revenue the speedway would have generated.
We got what we voted for... Cowards.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 4/03/2007 10:29:00 AM
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Abel to Bow Out as P.O. Mayor
In a press release issued the afternoon of April 2, Port Orchard Mayor Kim Abel announced she will not seek a second term as mayor.
She has been rumored for some time to be considering a run for county commissioner, to try and capture the seat being left vacant by Jan Angel's surprise announcement on March 28 that she wouldn't seek a third term.
However, Abel told the Business Journal that she hasn't made a decision on doing running for commissioner -- and doesn't intend to make one in the near future. She was careful to not rule out the possibility, and did say she might revisit the commissioner's race as the time got closer. But she also stated there were other opportunities that she would like to explore as well, besides being an elected official.
More if it develops...
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 4/03/2007 10:27:00 AM
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Friday, March 09, 2007
A Provocative New Local Blog
I received an email through what's known as an anonymous remailer alerting me to a new blog called 614 Division Street. Just click the link to go there. I was also surprised to find a link to our WestSound Politics blog -- as well as some others -- when I looked at it.
To those unacquainted with anonymous remailers, they are a way to send untraceable email through a third party source. I assume it came through the remailer because the author wishes to hide his or her identity. If the first post is any indication of what's to come, I can understand why.
From the looks of it, this could get real interesting...
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 3/09/2007 12:11:00 PM
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Who was Abel Speaking For?
Those members of the Port Orchard City Council who made it a point to chastise Mayor Kim Abel for appearing before the Washington State Legislature to express her unhappiness over the proposed NASCAR track in South Kitsap, were right on the money,
As a private citizen -- and an American -- Abel certainly owns right to her opinion, and to voice it. But as the mayor -- as she well knows -- she doesn't have the right to represent herself as speaking for the citizens of South Kitsap on this issue. Had she made the distinction to the legislature between private citizen and public official, it would have been one thing, but she didn't. She made it appear that her position was that of the city -- and that is a flat out lie.
In my view, the council should have publicly censured Abel for such a blatantly politically-motivated action, and sent a letter to the legislature stating that the mayor was wrong in appearing and making it exceedingly clear her testimony was her own opinion and in no way represented the position of the city.
Abel isn't the mayor of South Kitsap, and there has been no public opinion poll to learn the feelings of City of Port Orchard residents -- Abel's only constituency -- on the track. And the Elway poll taken by the county suggests a 50-50 split on the issue when measured countywide, with a majority in South Kitsap in favor of the proposal. Approval numbers also go up countywide when the "public financing" lie is clarified.
In essence, Abel intentionally lied to the legislature about exactly who she represents. She shouldn't be allowed to get away with that.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 3/09/2007 10:47:00 AM
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Sunday, December 31, 2006
Brown's dishonesty comes back to haunt him...
All the questions about newly elected County Commissioner Josh Brown's qualifications to hold office may become moot if a lawsuit filed by Central Kitsap resident Robert Ross is successful. In the suit, Ross claims Brown lied about his official residency and doesn't live in the district he was elected from, nor has he ever lived in the apartment he gave as his residence.
When asked why he filed the suit, Ross simply answered, "If he'll commit fraud to get elected, there's no telling what he'll do once he's in there." Ross then referred any additional questions to his attorney.
Brown's honesty and ethics were also an issue during the campaign. There were questions about his college degree, plus well-documented evidence of him taking opposing positions on the NASCAR issue. When speaking in front of environmentalists, Brown claimed to be opposed the project, while favoring it in front of business leaders, stating he believed the county could cut a better deal than the one being offered.
I have editorialized about what I view as Brown's basic dishonesty on numerous previous occasions, and won't bore you with it again. But I do believe it has come back to bite him in the ass. But from the information I was able to gather writing this story, there's a LOT more than what went into it. I was basically restricted by time and space considerations, so all the details couldn't be reported. But based on what I've personally seen and the folks I talked to, the facts are there and it appears they've got a pretty solid case against Brown. There's been a lot of work done documenting the evidence, and I don't think they would go out on that kind olimb without having the documentation and facts to back it up.
What could perhaps be the biggest local news story of 2006 -- including the election of Brown -- was reported first by the Business Journal. The story broke literally minutes before presstime, and appears on Page 5 of the print edition of the January issue. It also was sent out in a special breaking news email to the paper's regular email subscribers on December 29.
The suit was filed in Kitsap County minutes before the official close of business for 2006. According to Ross's attorney Michele Rodosevich of the Seattle law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine, only Brown was named in the suit, and not the county. Normally, county officeholders are defended by lawyers from the prosecutor's office. But since the suit was filed before Brown officially took office and didn't name the county, it also means the taxpayers won't pay to defend him, and Brown will need to engage and pay his own defense attorney.
"The lawsuit doesn't contend the county did anything wrong," stated Radosevich. "What's wrong is that Josh Brown gave the wrong information on his Declaration of Candidacy. You have to give the address where you actually reside and you have to live in the district from which you run. There's been some investigating done, and it appears he actually lives with his parents in Poulsbo, which is in Commissioner District One."
That information was verified by Larry Walsh of Bayside Professional Investigations. Brown claims to live in an apartment in an 18-unit complex on Perry Avenue in Bremerton. But according to Walsh, although Brown's name appears on the building's roster, he believes the apartment is vacant and has not been lived in. Walsh claims to have visited the apartment on at least 15 different occasions, at various times of the day and night, and that he never witnessed any activity at the unit, and that no one ever answered the door. "I suspect he rented it, or someone else rented it for him," Walsh said. "All the blinds are drawn and there's no lights on."
The building has six units on the second floor where the apartment is situated. Walsh said he interviewed four of the five other tenants directly adjacent to the unit, including the man across the hall and the woman next door, showing them 8 x 10 color photos of Brown. All of them claimed never to have seen Brown, or his vehicle, at the complex. They also claimed not to have seen or heard anyone in the apartment in question for several months, with most of the neighbors believing it was still empty. "The last any of them knew, it was still vacant, and one neighbor said the last tenant she recalled living there was a Mexican family," said Walsh.
Subsequently, three of the five other tenants on that floor have given legal depositions stating those facts as well.
"I'm fairly sure he's still living with his parents." When asked why he believed that, the investigator answered, "I found him at his parent's house on more than one occasion and know for a fact he spent the night there." When questioned how he could be so certain, Walsh answered, "Because I would see him leave the next morning."
The case will have to wind its way through the legal system, so it may be some time before it's resolved. In the event Brown is found to have misrepresented his residence, he will have to step down as commissioner and could possibly face criminal charges as well. "It appears he lied to the elections people as well as the Department of Licensing about his true residence," said Walsh. "Those are crimes."
What happens if Brown steps down? The remaining county commissioners, Jan Angel and Chris Endresen, will appoint someone to fill the position until the next general election in either 2007 or 2008. If it's 2008, that raises the possibility of all three commissioners being up for re-election at the same time, as both Endresen and Angel face the voters then. However, there is an election in 2007, but it's unclear if it meets the standard for a "general election" for the purposes of electing a county commissioner.
I'm willing to bet that they appoint former commissioner Patty Lent, a moderate, who was ousted in the Republican primary by conservative property rights activist Jack Hamilton. Brown kicked Hamilton's butt by almost 6,000 votes.
According to Radosevich, there is also no law governing the political considerations of the appointment. Usually, the political party of the person vacating a public office nominates three people for consideration and the commissioners pick from those. However, after researching the statues at the request of the Business Journal, Radosevich could find no specific county or state statue dictating the political party of a commissioner had any standing, and in fact, it appears they are specifically exempt from the statue governing other political appointments.
"The commissioners will have to find someone they both agree on," she said, "regardless of political party. It appears the political parties have no standing in this matter." She added that the law states that in the event the commissioners couldn't agree on a replacement, the governor would select the successor.
Due to the timing of the filing of this lawsuit -- minutes before the start of a major holiday weekend -- neither Commissioners Chris Endresen or Jan Angel could be reached for comment, nor did Brown respond to several attempts to contact him before presstime.
In my view, this is just another shining example of the failure of the forced primary system that brought us two generally unacceptable choices. Yes, Brown beat Hamilton by a huge margin. However, the sheer number of Democrats in Kitsap County, coupled with the nationwide Democratic tide, were also a factor.
And you have wonder... Convential wisdom said Patty Lent was "safe." She beat former incumbent Democrat Tim Botkin like a red-headed stepchild in 2002, meaning thousand of Democrats crossed over and voted for her. She was also popular with a lot of local D's because she tended to vote with Democrat Chris Endresen more often that Republican Jan Angel. So, what if Jim Rye hadn't challenged Sheriff Steve Boyer in the Democratic primary? Since there was no Republican challenger, the primary dictated the winner of that race. Would all of those Democrats -- and more than likely a fair number of Republicans -- that took Democratic ballots to insure the popular Boyer stayed in office, taken Republican ballots instead to vote for Lent?
I believe Jack Hamilton beat Lent because a small but vocal Republican minority was unhappy with her votes on the Critical Areas Ordinance and Impact Fees, and mobilized that unhappy core group. While she was thought to be "safe" because Hamilton is thought of as an extreme right-winger who under ordinary circumstances wouldn't have made the ballot, that proved to be a thinking error because voters were more worried about the challenge to Boyer than Lent.
Had Lent faced Brown instead of Hamilton, I believe she would have cruised to re-election, but the Boyer-Rye primary race was the monkey wrench that brought this whole situation about.
This also makes you wonder about Brown's political future. Democrats from Norm Dicks on down to the mayors, to union leaders, to the precinct committee people, all put their personal credibility on the line to support this guy. Now they're sitting there with serious egg on their faces. Will they give him a second opportunity to embarrass them?
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 12/31/2006 09:43:00 AM
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Thursday, November 30, 2006
Failure to Pass the WASL is an Indication of a MUCH larger Failure
I was appalled to see that Queen Christine has stepped in to decree a three-year delay in the requirement that students in our state be required to pass the math portion of the 10th-grade WASL as a requirement to graduate. The goal that every student pass all three portions of the WASL -- the "three 'R's" if you will -- reading, writing and math, was set in 1993. Here we are almost 14 years later, with almost 30,000 high school sophomores in danger of failing to graduate in 2008.
Superintendent Terry Bergeson has openly acknowledged that the expected spike in math scores had not materialized. Additionally, she admitted that nearly half of those sophomores were not even close to passing. While a summer retake would mean a few more students could pass, nearly half of all members of the class of 2008 will still most likely fail. Meanwhile, our questionably elected governor has said she will push for legislation in the next legislative session to postpone the math requirement for three years.
Gregoire's proposal is to allow students to graduate if they can pass the reading and writing portions of the WASL along with rigorous math classes through their senior years. "This thee-year period will give us time to overhaul our math instruction," she said.
In a phone interview, Bergeson told the Kitsap Sun, "We've already got some changes lined up." She also said she is confident a rejuvenated math program will pay off for the class of 2011.
What about the classes of 2008, 2009 and 2010?
I am no education expert, but it seems to me if they couldn't accomplish this in 14 years, another three isn't going to make much of a difference unless those changes include dumbing down the entire math curriculum to the lowest common denominator. I oppose that.
Bergeson, the former Central Kitsap Schools superintendent, was also quoted as saying, "It was disappointing for everyone. It wasn't due to a lack of effort among teachers or students. We were just not ready."
What does that mean exactly? And more to the point, after 14 years, WHY are we "just not ready?"
Bergeson added, "It showed us that it wasn't a matter of motivation. Those same students scored nearly 90 percent in the reading and writing portions, so they were clearly trying. It just became evident that we as a state had not properly prepared them for the math portion."
I am more than a little reluctant to accept that "we as a state" crap. You and I didn't have anything to do with this other than paying our taxes to fund this colossal failure. How about putting the blame where it belongs? And naturally, when we are talking about educational accountability, the Washington Education Association (WEA) -- which is always demanding more of our tax dollars and shaming liberal lawmakers to either hand them over or miss out on election campaign funds -- is conspicuously silent about its failure to educate our students properly.
More than HALF of the entire state budget is already devoted to education. The theme of just about every Democrat elected in November was that we need to support education even more. To me at least, it's painfully obvious that we aren't getting our money's worth now. So will someone explain to me how throwing even MORE money at the problem is going to solve it?
Bergeson went on to say that if the schools that had failed, it's not fair to punish students by not letting them graduate. Yeah, that makes sense -- let's send them off to college and/or out into the "real world" without a proper education and pat ourselves on the back for doing the right thing. Sorry, but that just doesn't fly with me. In my view, Bergeson, the legislature, and the WEA, all deserve a failing grade.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 11/30/2006 10:53:00 AM
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Monday, November 13, 2006
A Brief Explanation...
I have had an unexpected number of people contact me personally as well as talk to my wife, about my posting both here and in the paper about my recent health incident.
In spite of the rumors, I did NOT have a heart attack. t wasn't anything even remotely like that.
What happened was actually kind of bizarre, and in the name of simplicity, I'll give you the abbreviated version.
My grandson's day care called and said they thought he was coming down with the chickenpox -- something I never had as a child. I called my doctor who told me to go to the Kitsap County Health Department and immediately get a certain kind of vaccination. So I drove right over there and got a shot.
Without going into a lot of detail, what resulted was a severe reaction to that shot. After several days of not feeling well, I ended up with a temperature of 106 and was unable to breathe. My wife called 911 and South Kitsap Fire-Rescue was dispatched. They took me to Harrison, where I spent five days being treated for severe dehydration and a massive kidney infection.
We're still not sure if I received the wrong vaccination or if the vaccine I received was somehow contaminated. The technicians at Harrison -- where I received excellent care by the way -- sent a sample off to the CDC in Atlanta just to be sure.
So there you have it. No heart attack -- but certainly a freak occurrence. However, it taught me the importance of being certain that all the people in my life who I care about know they are loved.
And once again, I want to extend the sincerest "Thank You" to the folks at Harrison and especially to the people at South Kitsap Fire-Rescue. They saved my life.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 11/13/2006 10:53:00 AM
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Saturday, October 28, 2006
Back In The Saddle
Please accept my humble "Thank You" to all of you who called and wrote after learning I was temporarily taking some forced R & R. I am fully recovered after that slight bit of unpleasentness and back to work.
Thank you for your patience and understanding...
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 10/28/2006 10:21:00 AM
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Thursday, October 12, 2006
Silence
I have received a number of inquiries as to why there have not been any updates here for awhile.
The answer is simple... I recently spent five days as a guest at the Harrison Medical Resort in picturesque East Bremerton. Without going into a lot of detail at this time, I have been at home recovering after nearly dying in a very unexpected way under what can only be termed "bizarre" circumstances.
Both myself and my family would like to publicly express our heartfelt "Thank You" to the the Firefighter/EMTs of South Kitsap Fire-Rescue. Quite simply, I owe my life to their quick response and great training.
Thanx for your patience and understanding. More to come...
LFC
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 10/12/2006 09:01:00 PM
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Monday, September 11, 2006
CHECK's Bogus NASCAR Poll
CHECK, the group heading up opposition to the proposed NASCAR track, has released the results of its so-called poll. It shows that 57 percent of the 500 respondents contacted stated they oppose the track.
But as they say, the devil is in the details. The results are obviously bogus, and the poll results have little or no credibility. When you look at the questions respondents were asked, and the way they were phrased, it is a no-brainer to see they were designed to elicit the exact response the poll got. Frankly, I am surprised that the number was as low as 57 percent, given the bias of the questions - which I think bodes well for proponents of the track.
This is the same poll as you may recall, that CHECK originally denied was being conducted when a number of residents contacted authorities thinking it was some kind of scam.
Many of the questions revolved around the subject of Public Financing - the issue the systematic misinformation machine run by opponents have seized on as the way to turn residents who don't understand the proposal, against it. Once again, there is NO Public Financing involved in the proposal. Read the Berk Report for yourself, and see. Personally, I too am opposed to public financing - I just see any in the proposal.
Also, something else I find quite interesting is that a full 44 percent of the respondents were from the 23rd Legislative District - Bainbridge Island and North Kitsap - NOT the 26th District, where the track will actually be located.
The poll was conducted by someone named Allison Peters - a name I am not familiar with and no one I have talked to about this has ever heard of either. I did hear something on KIRO News this morning saying that she has done work for the Democratic Party. Gee, what a shocker that was! As I recall, the local Democratic Party - which is controlled with an iron fist by the local environmentalist elitists - has made no bones about its hard core opposition to the track. Does she live in McCormick Woods as well?
For anyone to give the CHECK poll any credibility says they are either uninformed or incapable of thinking for themselves. The results of the poll being conducted for Kitsap County by highly regarded pollster Stuart Elway will be out momentarily. You may recall that Elway does a lot of polling for politicians - of both parties - and is considered the best and most accurate in the state.
I believe the timing of the release of the results of the CHECK poll was intentional - with the goal of confusing residents. All I can say is don't buy into their BS. Wait for the results of the Elway poll - they will have actual credibility and be a MUCH more accurate read on the feelings of the citizens.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 9/11/2006 09:42:00 AM
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Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Is It Just Me, Or Does Northwest Airlines SUCK?
In this day and age when the airlines are having such a difficult financial time, part of me wonders why, while my experiences traveling seem to answer at least some of the questions.
I fly on average, somewhere between 50 and 75 thousand miles a year - mostly connected with my automotive writing, but for some personal pleasure as well. For the past 15 years I have flown primarily on Delta Airlines when cross-country travel is involved and as of late, Alaska Airlines when California or Arizona travel is called for.
Delta does not fly directly from Seattle to anywhere in Arizona or California - you go through its hub in Salt Lake City, and then on to your destination. This can take the better part of all day in some cases. Alaska meanwhile, flies to most California and Arizona destinations I need to go to - as well as Las Vegas - directly in just a couple of hours or so. And since I have been inching up to the million-mile mark on Delta - and Delta honors miles flown on Alaska, this seems like a good alternative for me to reach that elusive million-mile mark without spending an excessive amount of time the Crown Room in Salt Lake.
However, I recently went to Washington D.C. for an automotive press event. The only option open to get me there in time to meet the event schedule, was to fly from Seattle to Minneapolis and then on to Dulles from there, on Northwest Airlines.
I have had two experiences with Northwest Airlines - and they have both uniformly SUCKED. In the future, if the only option is flying on Northwest, I will pass on the event or insist the manufacturer fly me in a day earlier on Delta if there is a time conflict. I feel that strongly about not subjecting myself to the horrid treatment from Northwest personnel that I have experienced in every single dealing with them.
In contrast, Delta personnel have hit the long ball many times over the years to help me in a wide variety of situations - from being stranded in a foreign country with lost luggage - to simple first class upgrades they did not have to do, but did because they could.
The first negative incident with Northwest was actually a case of my wife having to go to South Dakota, and having little choice of airline. Northwest lost her luggage - on a 3-day holiday weekend. She spent so much time on hold trying to get information that her cell phone battery went dead. Naturally, the charger was in her lost suitcase.
So I started calling for her. The people I spoke with were uniformly rude and patently uncaring about her situation. In fact when I told one guy she had nothing to wear to a formal event that evening but the sweats she traveled in, his reply was, So what do you want me to do pal? Take her home and let her look through my wifes closet?
When they finally did get around to finding her luggage and delivering it - on the day of her departure - they initially delivered someone else’s suitcase, but got hers to her just as she was leaving the hotel for the airport.
The second experience was the aforementioned auto manufacturer trip. Northwest had been trying for several years to get me to try them, and even sent me a complimentary first class upgrade if I would just try them out. That was a major joke. When I tried to use it, I was told in a very condescending tone, Paying passengers come first. Well, I do not recall my ticket being free. When I questioned that, I was told to write somebody who cares a letter. I decided to write this instead.
What became abundently clear to me with each passing minute on Northwest - especially observing the interactions between Northwest personnel and its customers - was how much more friendly and helpful Delta - and Alaska - people are in comparison. Nobody on Northwest even smiles - much less wants to go out of their way to be helpful.
I have found Northwest people across the spectrum to be rude, condescending, and obviously just there to put in their time and collect their paycheck. The thought of actually helping the customer - who is the reason they even have a job - seems to be a totally foreign concept to Northwest employees.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I have heard all there is to hear about Delta being broke. But Delta customers - people like me - are fiercely loyal because we are treated like just that - customers. It is Delta people that make the difference, and in spite of some poor management decisions in the past, the reason it will survive. So if you have never flown on Delta, on your next cross-country trip give them a try. They will appreciate your business and Delta people will treat you like just what you are - a customer - not a number.
THE ABOVE ARTICLE POSTED BY West Sound Politics @ 8/30/2006 09:19:00 AM
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