Policy
2003 Furniture Store Guy
Another old guy reference: There’s this moment in the movie Amadeus, where the Emperor walks in on a rehearsal of Mozart’s newest music and he sees something so obviously wrong he’s rendered speechless with confusion. My ‘fix the web site’ proposal At last week’s City Council Meeting, I felt a lot like this guy (not
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Mayor as Majority Leader
The following is a heavily edited version of a very wonky thing I wrote on one of those Des Moines Facebook Pages. In that post, a resident creates a poll of “who should be mayor!” and then discusses the job in terms of “Rule 5”. I’m redoing it here because although it’s super-wonky and boring
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Please RTFM
Leave a comment on Please RTFMBelieve it or not, I now get anywhere from dozens to hundreds of requests every week, often for exactly the same thing. So, if your question is in reference to a particular article, please try reading said article thoroughly, or use the Search to find what you need, before you contact me. If you can
... continue reading.Two quick examples of the transparency problem
Leave a comment on Two quick examples of the transparency problemAt our last City Council Meeting there was a contentious discussion about providing public comment. But the problem of transparency and public engagement is actually far more profound and I am concerned that the discussion made it seem more trivial than it is. There is no obvious way for a member of the public to
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Public Comment At Committee Meetings
1 Comment on Public Comment At Committee MeetingsI think there is a misunderstanding about the whole ‘public comment’ vote near the end of last week’s Cit Council Meeting. There seems to be a perception that the issue is just one more personality conflict over some minor ‘procedural’ deal. It was not. This is a difference in philosophy so basic that we cannot
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Two Times
We have this Council Rule #19, which no other City has, where a Councilmember is limited to speaking more than twice on any issue… and no more than four minutes. It was introduced at this meeting, right after CM Martinelli and I were elected in November 2019 (Start at about 1:53): I hope you watch
... continue reading.He led the Proud Boys in the Capitol riot and shamed his town
He led the Proud Boys in the Capitol riot and shamed his town Richard Read May 16, 2021 14 min read In this article: Ethan Nordean Leader of the “Proud Boys” neo-fascist and accused political terrorist Ethan Nordean, speaking into a bullhorn, leads the Proud Boys’ march on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. A
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Categories Marina
Some good questions regarding Marina Redevelopment
1 Comment on Some good questions regarding Marina RedevelopmentIf you’re 99% of Des Moines, you have no idea that the Marina Redevelopment is going on. Last month, the City asked for questions and comments from the public which I urge you to read. But I am pretty sure you weren’t aware of that because the only outreach was in the form of flyers
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