JC Harris For Des Moines, Washington
City Council, Position #2
An essay describing one example of the off-dais bullying, misinformation and why that makes it harder for residents to get what they want. "We are also aware of your efforts to... create division in the... community. I demand you stop such evil and irresponsible actions."...
A parable on "the hard fork", an engineering term for making a clean break with a system that has outlived its usefulness. Microsoft took the hard fork about a decade ago and the results speak for themselves. There are some real lessons to be learned here....
I testified today at the Senate Ways and Means Committee hearing on SB5199, a bill to provide funding for Local Journalism co-sponsored by our own Senator Karen Keiser. You can read more on the issue here... https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/promising-proposals-in-wa-legislature-aim-to-help-journalism-crisis/...
These are the two statements I made during the 2 Feb City Council Meeting on 'censure'. I wrote them like this to conform to our current 'four minutes at a time' format. The first makes clear that there is no merit to the accusation and discusses the complete overreaction by the Council and government as a tool of bullying and intimidation. The second discusses how tricky it is to push back against such an allegation and how this form of attack is just one instance of a pattern of deceptive government that must be changed....
This is the State bill which funded the $309,000 grant from the Department of Commerce to study an Urban Creek (bioswale) along 223rd Street as part of the Skylab Marina Redevelopment drawings. (Search for “Des Moines”) This is how ‘the sausage’ is made. Cities request monies for various pet projects in the form of grants
I'm pleasantly surprised to hear that there is a lot of interest in the whole 'bioswale' and 'urban creek' discussion from the September 27, 2022 Marina Town Hall. Because nothing gets me excited quite like having a few drinks and talking about drainage. :) The problem is that every scientist you speak to tends to respond "Hell yeah!" They may even talk in terms of 'Environmental Justice' and 'under-served communities' which might create the impression that any concerns about 'costs' are reactionary and anti-environment. Au contraire......
