Move Seen as First Step in Winning Back City Hall

Following the successful city council vote in Oakland limiting the amount of dogs allowed in a household, the San Jose City Council sent a strong signal on Tuesday night when they voted unanimously to limit the number of elected officials that individual lobbyists could own.

Once again our neighbor to the north has an intriguing proposal by the mayor of San Francisco. Stealing a march on San Jose, the true epicenter of innovation, Gavin Newsom has positioned this new program as a way to offer universal and affordable broadband Internet access to the city’s residents and businesses.  Google has responded in a big way, promising free wireless Internet service. The Mountain View company has a pile of cash and is thirsting to make a big impact.  This is important because it is unique and ground breaking.

Observant San Jose Inside readers, of which there are legions, will have noticed that we link to a variety of other websites. (link)  For those of you who haven’t observed this, do not be ashamed.  Not even our duly elected leaders catch all the details all the time, like the fine print in garbage contracts or signs at press conferences.

Ok, well, yes, dammit!  I am single.  I am SINGLE.  It’s bad enough that I have to answer the question of “how is your love life?”  500 times at family functions.  Or that I always give the same answer, “Non-existent, thank you.”  I don’t tell you this so you can feel sorry for me, but I tell you this because I hope that I can bring you a little bit closer to the sheer hell that is being a single gal in the city, in our city.

Move Necessary to Offset Spike in Gas Prices Decimating City Budget

One of the lesser casualties of hurricanes Katrina and Rita has been the spike in fuel prices that have decimated municipal budgets due to city supplied cars and gas allowances, prompting the federal government to move in and implement President Bush’s plan for oil exploration in the Alviso Slough.

I know a few things about mistakes. I have made my share of them, sometimes before rather large audiences.  In the last two weeks I have noted two doozies that deserve to be nominated on this year’s list.

Welcome to banned book week.  To celebrate, I’m going to do something covert and read a Harry Potter book.  Yes, the popular book series is on the lists of 100 most frequently banned or challenged books. (link)

Turmoil on Immigration Forum

The off-again-on-again forum on immigration and enforcement at the Mexican Heritage Plaza is now on again.  That’s good.

Picking the best movies lines of all time is a challenge similar to picking your favorite quote from a San Jose mayor.  Well, okay, it’s not exactly like that.  Alright, it’s not like that at all. 

Councilman Wanders Aimlessly Around City Hall Plaza Encouraging Visitors to Kick His Ass

In a rare show of solidarity, and just moments after a heated debate over the mayor’s official grand jury response regarding Garbagegate, the council voted overwhelmingly to place a “Kick Me” sign on Councilman Forrest Williams for his refusal to abandon the Titanic of local government that is Mayor Gonzales’ administration.

The actions of the City Council are moving from mysterious to indecipherable.  A majority refused to send the Ron Gonzales-backed response on the garbage scandal to the Grand Jury; they opted to wait.  This is, of course, the Council who according to the Grand Jury report of early summer was “duped” by Gonzales while he made a side agreement with Norcal, the garbage service provider.  Cindy Chavez, Judy Chirco and Nancy Pyle joined the early critics Dave Cortese, Chuck Reed and Linda Lezotte in refusing to rubber stamp the document authored by Gonzales with the city’s Manager and Attorney. Also, the ethically tardy Ken Yeager has refused to sign on to the report while telling confidants that he is fearful of the Gonzales’ reaction to his late blossoming of concern on this issue.  Of such stuff is San Jose’s “Profiles in Courage” made.

Mayors can’t hide, especially when there’s a crisis.  New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin may not emerge from Katrina’s wake on a first name basis with America, ala Rudy.  But he did the best with what he had – mostly his mouth.

Residents Immediately Lose Driving Privileges

During his visit to San Jose on Wednesday, Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, in his speech to the Commonwealth Club, dropped a bomb on the residents of San Jose by not only telling them they would never get their own baseball team, but that they were also living illegally in San Jose.

This week’s quote was a bit unusual in that it comes from the redoubtable Scarlett O’Hara, but how else to emphasize the incredible stupidity of the former Executive Director of the Redevelopment Agency, Susan Schick? I remember how several members of the Rotary Club suggested that I was too tough on her when I criticized her plan in 2001 to seize over fifty pieces of private property, our citizens’ “land,”  in an astonishing, wrong-headed and aggressive plan invoking eminent domain in San Jose.

Mark Baldasarre of the Public Policy Institute of California has written a thoughtful report about California’s future. (link)  He raises lots of questions about our challenges.  But he also puts answers on the table – some controversial.

Breadth of Experience Tips Scales to Despot

Immediately following the controversial appointment of City Manager Del Borgsdorf as Chairman of the Board of United Way Silicon Valley, the Board made what headhunters are calling a “coup” by hiring former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, as president.