Friday, May 6, 2011

Five Things I Learned About Place 5

The Richardson Idol viewers already made their choice (and by viewers I mean, of course, me). They picked Dennis Stewart over Kendal Hartley. Why? Who knows. You can read their reasons here, but be warned. Viewers of TV reality shows are fickle. There are no rules they have to follow. Sometimes they are influenced by what the candidates say on stage. Sometimes they are influenced by off stage behavior. There's no requirement that they actually do any ... research or anything hard like that. So, you have to make allowances for some of their decisions (that is, *my* decisions, if you're following along).

After the jump, five things I learned about Place 5 that might make me change my mind.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Glass-Eyed Politicians in Richardson

"Get thee glass eyes;
And like a scurvy politician, seem
To see the things thou dost not."
-- William Shakespeare, King Lear

I apologize in advance to any of the candidates who, in fact, literally have glass eyes. But as the election campaign for Richardson City Council heats up, it seems to me that more candidates are seeming to see things that just aren't there.

After the jump, a rundown.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

City of Richardson Responds to RCA PAC's Misstatements

Richardson City Manager Bill Keffler sets the record straight:
Fellow Richardson Residents and Businesses:

It has come to our attention that a number of unfortunate misstatements about the City of Richardson are being made through local media outlets and throughout our community.

As employees of the City of Richardson, we take great personal pride in our daily work and remain focused on delivering the high quality services you’ve come to expect. Such misrepresentations however strike at the organizational and personal ethics and integrity that are a cornerstone of our ability to effectively deliver these services. Therefore, we feel it is important to publicly address the misrepresentations you may be hearing.

Following is a summary of misstatements with some additional information aimed at clarifying the facts you may have been wondering about.

Should you need additional information on these issues, or any others of note, don’t hesitate to contact us bill.keffler@cor.gov at 972-744-4204. We welcome the opportunity to provide information you can trust. Meanwhile we will continue to focus on excellence in public service day in and day out.

Sincerely,
Bill Keffler
City Manager

City Manager Bill Keffler's full letter can be found here.

Richardson Citizens Alliance 2011 Voter's Guide

Last week was the mailing of the highly anticipated Richardson Coalition PAC's 2011 Voter's Guide. Richardson voters can be forgiven for eagerly checking their mailboxes for the competing guide, the Richardson Citizens Alliance PAC's 2011 Voter's Guide. After all, the RCA has a war chest of $50,000 (all donated by one man), surely enough to pay postage for a mailing of their own. But so far, my mailbox has been empty. Maybe my voter's guide got lost in the mail. But, the RCA Voter's Guide is available on the RCA website.

After the jump, let's pore over the copy there.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

One Thing To Remember In Place 1

One candidate is suing the city. Over a procedural matter. Really. Over closed meetings. What's that you say? You say that state law permits closed meetings in certain cases? You say that for decades, the city charter has granted the city all powers granted to cities by state law? You say that the city charter itself, since 2007, explicitly permits closed meetings in certain cases? I know. I know. I know. But one candidate is still stubbornly suing the city over a legally tenuous claim that's been moot since 2007. An appeals court dismissed the lawsuit. Now, one candidate is back in district court trying to revive it. It's easy to remember who that candidate is. He's first on the ballot, William Gordon. And that's the one thing you need to remember in Place 1.


Political ad paid for by Mark Steger

Monday, May 2, 2011

Twitter Tracks: State Budget Cuts, City Candidate Forums, Trees

Twitter tracks from April, 2011:

  • 2011 04 01 - For your April Fool's pleasure ... Rent-a-Grave. This might sound like an April Fool's story, but it's not. http://www.slate.com/id/2285478/
  • 2011 04 01 - Richardson Heights NA urges members to turn out to *support* the city. How refreshing. Is "IMBY" an acronym? http://goo.gl/vWeKG
  • 2011 04 01 - Headline: "Unemployment rate falls to 8.8 pct, two-year low." GOP blames health care reform.
  • 2011 04 01 - I grew up loving baseball. I'm glad Rangers won pennant. Still, steroids & money & mismanagement spoiled it all for me. No excitement today.
  • 2011 04 01 - By critics' logic, we ought to pave parks. If they really want to help Richardson, they can find more sponsors to cover more costs of trees.
  • 2011 04 01 - The Adjustment Bureau (2011): Bourne meets The Matrix meets The Candidate with a touch of Mad Men style. Most of all, a love story. B+
  • 2011 04 02 - Mark's Stylebook: Maybe the rest of us don't know what a compositor is, but he can only blame himself if the movie credit reads "composter".
  • 2011 04 02 - Get yourself over to Eastside. Free food. Great weather. Party atmosphere. Hurry. 'Til 4. Oh, did I remember to say free?
  • 2011 04 03 - Metropolis (1927): Long overdue viewing of this classic. Overwrought story but some amazing imagery. Will Avatar look as good in 2100? C+
  • 2011 04 03 - RT @amiromar: "Tree the Town inspires Tree North Tx." @amiromar doubles down. No concessions, then? In your face, critics?
  • 2011 04 03 - Tree North Texas: "a plan to plant 3 million trees in North Texas." http://goo.gl/joiMO Just think of the water that'll suck up. ;-)

After the jump, more Twitter tracks.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Richardson Coalition 2011 Voter's Guide

Sears 1968 Wish Book
Sears

It's out. It's the most anticipated mailing of the year. It's even better than the Sears Christmas Wish Book of old (ask your parents). It's the Richardson Coalition 2011 Voter's Guide.

After the jump, let's pore over our new Wish Book.