PubliCola - Latest Comments

Re: Study: 40 Percent of Bike Deaths Involve Alcohol

Safety supply — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 12:40:54 -0000

Its the same with research on mobile cellphone use. The variety of injuries in which a individual is on a cellphone has to be seen in the perspective of how many individuals, at once, are on the cellphone. But in almost every situation we only get the former.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

Lysa Hansen — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 20:11:14 -0000

Correction: that was 50 people committing 27-HUNDRED crimes.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

urban muppy — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 20:09:13 -0000

The most amazing thing about the letter is that they are using a British system to deal with the 50 offenders who committed over 270 crimes.

By identifying these truly bad apples and getting them out of the system, I think they're being smart.

That's the kind of strategic thinking that's needed, as a start, for deeper social issues

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

Oriorio74 — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 16:02:05 -0000

" No one from Chicago would find it implausible that someone was robbed in the Loop, and no one from Chicago would be intimidated by downtown Seattle."

Someone getting robbed in the Loop isn't implausible at all ... however your second comment apart from being a fallacy is just wrong.

I lived near S 35th and King Drive on the South Side. At certain times 3rd and Pike is just as bad as some of the corners on South Indiana or State St.

You can't corner the market on what is and isn't intimidation because it's perception based. If someone doesn't feel safe downtown all the statistics in the world aren't going to change their mind.

Say you're swimming in waters where there are frequent reports of sharks attacking humans. I show you a stat that says you have less chance of being eaten by a shark than getting hit by lightning. Still want to go swimming?

Re: It’s Time to Invest in a Public School in Downtown Seattle

Disgusted — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 14:11:50 -0000

Vote NO on the upcomin BEX levy if it hands $5M to developers, business lobbyists and Amazon for a downtown school we don't need. Spend the $5M removing mold, rodents and asbestos that the district has allowed to remain in our squalid, over-enrolled neighborhood schools.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

Guest — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 13:23:45 -0000

Yeah and from reading your posts, I can tell you are a fuckin genius

Re: It’s the GOP that Pushed Cuts to Public Employee Pensions

IntheKnow — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 07:57:12 -0000

They don't pay into social security. They might have qualified for it working a different job but no Seattle firefighters will receive social security benefits as a result of working as a firefighter.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

Jhande — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 04:01:05 -0000

I don't need to change my name. I will just call them like I see them. Your opinion of my posts is of no great concern to me. I look at your posts, and well, you don't seem that bright.

Re: On Other Blogs Today: Koster Profiled, Kelley Challenged

Chris Nandor — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 03:23:04 -0000

I wonder if Emily ever gets tired of lying. She dishonestly claims Koster was polluting, and she falsely insinuates there is anything wrong with getting married at 19 years old.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

A-Chan — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 02:14:14 -0000

Sorry, you're not convincing. (The only thing you've convinced me of is your ability to use Google.) And I love how you attribute bizarre theories to me when I'm only pointing out your lack of knowledge of the city. That and your lack of linguistic skills in insulting
me.

I still don't think that purported robbery ever occurred, but if it did, I now believe that your robber should be regarded as a civic hero. And maybe that's why you didn't call the police---once they saw what a nudnik you are, they would have the same thought.

Re: One Question for Rob McKenna

Linda — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 01:04:55 -0000

Have the Republicans become unhinged? They have their conspiracy
theories. They have people running for office that believe reproductive
organs shut down during "legitmate rape", that evolution comes from the
"pits of hell", that rebellious children should be executed and that
Black people were better off as slaves. (See Arkansas politics for those
last two). And we can't forget that believing young adults should have
the knowledge and means to go to college is snobbery and vacines to stop
cervical cancer causes mental retardation. Does the GOP attract only
the fringe any longer?

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

Guest — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 23:11:17 -0000

oh jhande why don't you just change your handle to HeMan King of the Jungle. YOU PATHETIC TURD

Re: All Eyes on Seattle

Sandy Brown — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 23:10:58 -0000

Or . . . . maintain a strong Democratic majority in Olympia so that Armstrong and other R's have no say in the matter.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

monorail — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 22:58:33 -0000

You seem to believe that if numerous robberies happen in the immediate vicinity of the Loop (near north, south loop, west loop), that somehow negates the numerous robberies that occur within the Loop proper. Strange theory... but it does explain a lot about how your mind works (or doesn't).

I don't actually think the Loop is particularly dangerous--- out of the thousands of times I've been there, I got robbed only once (and I didn't report it because it wouldn't have done any good, and because I have a low opinion of Chicago PD---- which you would understand if you knew anything at all about Chicago). But the fact is that you are more likely to get robbed in the Loop than in downtown Seattle... and the letter-writing tourist's notion (which you apparently share) that Seattle is terrifying in comparison with Chicago is completely absurd, and could not possibly be held by anyone who's really from Chicago.

I'm obviously able to answer your questions about my personal life, but choose not to because you have your head up your ass.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

A-Chan — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 22:03:50 -0000

I notice how you are unable to answer my questions, and all of your comments play into the fantasy version of Chicago as the lawless land of Al Capone.

I never wrote that it's implausible that someone was robbed in the Loop, I just find your story implausible.
I know the sort of criminal activity in the Loop, and the crime you describe, had it occurred, would have been unusual enough to have merited a call to the police.

And by the way, about those links you included...You do know, don't you, that the "South Loop" is not part of the Loop? No Chicagoan would make that mistake.

Re: BikeNerd: Seattle’s Bike-Sharing Hurdles

Guest — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 21:49:28 -0000

move beyond the high-cost and inflexible "smart-dock" system (e.g. Velib) and to the "smart-bike" (viaCycle, SoBi) and "smart-lock" system (NextBike).

- smart-dock = $4,000 per bike

- smart-bike = $1,100 per bike

- smart-lock = $600 per bike

Don't suffer from the "Emperor Wears No Clothes" syndrome. Bikeshare is a transformational concept. It's better to get more bikes for the same amount of money than an overpriced and imported system.

www.inventropolis.com

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

monorail — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 21:06:06 -0000

You're not from Chicago, and you know absolutely nothing about Chicago. No one from Chicago would find it implausible that someone was robbed in the Loop, and no one from Chicago would be intimidated by downtown Seattle. I'm thinking you're from deep suburbia, and maybe one time you ventured into the city to go to the Hard Rock Cafe or something stupid like that.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

accountability — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 20:21:13 -0000

Unless they are a protected class.

Re: It’s Time to Invest in a Public School in Downtown Seattle

Disgusted — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 19:34:37 -0000

Who did you sleep with to get this?

Re: It’s Time to Invest in a Public School in Downtown Seattle

Lori — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 17:48:01 -0000

There are a lot of numbers in this article but they are either red herrings or lacking sufficient context for interpretation.

Who cares how many kids live in New York City? How does that support your case? Similarly, you can trade in your car keys for a bus pass or become a bicycle commuter from many parts of Seattle; this isn't something unique to downtown living!

Plus, you say that young families prefer to rent downtown - that detracts from your argument. Maybe they are renting with the intent to purchase a house a bit further from the downtown core once their children are school aged. If they were really committed to downtown living for the long-term, wouldn't they be buying condos instead of renting?

And the fact that a third of downtown residents are now 25-34 years of age (versus 22% in 1990) also seems to detract from your argument. Without knowing the average age at which women give birth in Seattle, it's hard to interpret these numbers. As the parent of an elementary school student, I know that most of my fellow parents are in their late 30s and 40s. I don't think we have a lot of 25 year old parents of 5-10 year olds living in downtown Seattle! So the fact that the downtown core increasingly comprises young adults (ie, those least likely to have school aged children) once again really weakens your case.

No, there are simply too many other absolutely pressing, crushing priorities for our district right now. There are schools where the kids eat lunch in the hallways because the cafeteria is too small. There are schools with tiles literally falling off the ceilings and drinking fountains that aren't safe to get water from. There are schools that have lost their art rooms and music rooms and had their exterior footprints turned into portable cities as they get over-enrolled year after year. My own child will spend the majority of her elementary career in a high school building that is inappropriate for young children; there is nowhere else for her school to be located right now. Let's solve all these problems first before we fall for the "build it and they will come" wishful thinking of the Downtown Seattle Association.

Re: It’s Time to Invest in a Public School in Downtown Seattle

Jhande — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 17:44:40 -0000

I have been in California, and seen Charter Schools at small storefronts in strip malls.

Re: It’s Time to Invest in a Public School in Downtown Seattle

Jhande — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 17:43:33 -0000

The Seattle Public School District should only have schools where it owns the land, and the building. A school in a non school district owned building is a fly by night operation.

Re: It’s Time to Invest in a Public School in Downtown Seattle

Jhande — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 17:37:26 -0000

What the hell is a TOD lifestyle? Whatever it is, if it has to be preached, then I am against it.

Re: On Other Blogs Today: The Greenest Governor in the Nation

Alpha — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 17:35:02 -0000

I over simplified that. My point wasn't that King should pay for the rest of the state but there are lots of very poor districts that can't raise more because they are in very poor communities. They legitimately need help but the way the levy system is set up they don't get it. The state does not willingly pay for everything they need. The schools are just super poor.

But the anti tax folks would not see much of an increase in the short run, if any, so they don't need to be reassured of no new taxes. Why bring up a tax increase they likely wouldn't even have? But for a few political points Inslee is willing to kill something that would bring some progressive reform to the school levy system. That really pisses me off.

Re: McGinn Responds to Downtown Street Disorder Complaints

Jhande — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 17:30:15 -0000

I am not so lame as to need a smartphone. I used to live down by Rainier and Henderson, and had no problem. I used to live in Pioneer Square, no problem. I used to live at about third and University, no problem. I used to live at 23rd and Cherry, no problem. I walk anywhere I wish at anytime of day, or night, in Seattle.