Search Results for 'nP'

[ephonk]

I have a large but troublesome kitchen space that I am about to remodel. The same awkward trouble spots keep popping up with every stab I take at it. I’ve had input from Home Depot guys, cabinet builders and one interior designer, but I still don’t have confidence in the current best plan.

The one thing I haven’t done is actually lay out cash for someone whose core skill is designing kitchens. If it gives me a plan I have confidence in, it’s worth it. So, can anyone recommend an architect/kitchen designer?

[JoB]

i have known instances where voice control was as good as a leash… 90% of the time, that would have been true of our last dog.. an akita/german shepherd mix. it was that 10% i worried about.

it will never be true of these.. tho i am hoping a huge dose of voice control combined with a retractable leash will give them some freedom and me some security.

I don’t blame the dogs who accosted mine. i think they can give off some pretty challenging vibes.

But i do blame their owners for not realizing that dogs don’t have to roam free to be dogs and that city parks are not the place for them to do that anyway. There are simply too many unpredictable distractions for them there.

it is hard enough to control a dog adequately on a leash when children rush around (and up to your dog without invitation) and throw balls and frisbees and squirrels sit just at the end of their leash and chitter and birds suddenly fly up in front of them and.. and.. and…

And my pet peave.. runners and bikers who come up behind you without letting you know they are coming through and expect you to look out for them. Many a runner or biker could have avoided a bite by simply hollering, “coming through”. (And no.. not my dogs, but i have seen it often enough.)

Or the adults who doesn’t understand that when a person with a dog starts backing up and asks you not to touch their dog.. you probably shouldn’t be putting your hand out to them.

oh dear.. we got me started. I’m sorry. i’ll go find another subject until i can control myself:)

[TheHouse]

This is a fantastic question (the orginal post) and I will give a nonpartisan answer.

Charisma should be completely irrelavant when deciding a leader in my opinion.

Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan all were positive leaders with great charisma that were able to engage their audiences and inspire people to bring about positive change.

On the other hand, Adolph Hitler was one of the most charismatic speakers/leaders ever and was also able to engage their audiences and inspire people to bring about change….unfortunately negative change. History will also show that Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Pol Pott, Mao ZeDong and Che Guevara also had great charisma.

So, charisma could possibly inspire a nation of equality or it could inspire a nation of genocide. At best you have a 50/50 success rate if you select a leader simply based on charisma.

In the current race, Barak Obama clearly is the most charismatic speaker that is running and even I listen to him and think “Wow…he will change this great country”. The issue is that a great portion of our country stops right there and does not make an educated decision.

No matter what side of the fence you are on, reading these will drop your IQ by 10 points but they’re funny nonetheless:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080209220453AABsdO9

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080214055108AA8ZIbt

[JoB]

can we agree to disagree on that one?

i think there are things far more unpatriotic and harmful to our soldiers than burning a flag. And they are not fighting for a flag. They are fighting for our country and rights every citizen is guaranteed by our constitution.

It may be an abuse of those rights to burn the American flag, but it is not a crime. It is inflammatory to burn a flag (not meant to be a pun) but that’s the point, isn’t it. It gets attention. I wouldn’t choose to do it, but i can certainly see why some people would.

I think our troops know how we feel about them by the things we do that directly affect them.. and the huge increase in suicide attempts in Iraq by our troops there tells me a great deal about what we aren’t doing for them. And that doesn’t even begin to address the suicide rate once they return home.

We show them respect and support by supplying them with the best equipment, the best physical and mental health care, paying them well, honoring their discharge dates, honoring the same commitments as to length and number of tours for the guard troops as for the regular troops… etc…

so far, the only “troops” in Iraq to be so guaranteed to be outfitted and treated with respect are the mercenary core under Blackwater… and by the way, the American taxpayer directly foots the bill for the majority of them. We pay them very well.

We are funding and treating mercenaries who are not accountable even to the US Military better than we treat our own soldiers. And those mercenaries are creating some of the problems our troops face there. Not cool! I think that tells our soldiers more about how we feel about them than whether someone at home protests the war by burning a flag.

Those rights are what our military is supposed to be fighting for… even in Iraq.

we show our respect for our soldiers when they get home by providing them with timely and first rate services rewarding the sacrifices they made for us. because there is no getting around the fact that serving in the Iraq war in our military is a huge sacrifice… the extent of which we hadn’t imagined. The brain traumas from the blasts alone will impair thousands for the rest of their lives.

There are sacrifices we are asking there that really are too much to ask of anyone.

I think we need to put our money where our mouth is and actually support our soldiers… because they are fighting for us. We may not agree with this war… but we can’t dismiss our responsibility to them because of that. That is patriotism in action.

As for the agreeing to disagree… another way of looking at protests at home against the war is that patriotic Americans are showing our troops they care enough about them to want to get them out of there.

just another point of view.

[JoB]

house… you will be surprised to learn that i got my FBI file by arguing with the SDS (Students for a Democratic Society) all night when my sweet husband drug me to their meetings (i spent so much time with them in the kitchen the FBI assumed I must have been in on the planning …

he, on the other hand had no file and he barely missed being caught for trying a stunt far more serious than flag burning because i hid his keys, pulled plug wires on the car and unplugged the phone at the junction box… that was before cell phones.

BTW.. I am assuming this is all long before your time and probably means nothing to you… but long story short.. i am one of the last people in the room to allow children matches… let alone supply them to burn a flag.

Your comment just shows you haven’t been listening House. What part of I came from a republican family… my family is full of firemen, policemen, nurses and many of them have served in the armed forces don’t you get. I am a democrat House. And I am a patriot. I fully support any American who chooses to serve this country.

Unlike many republicans.. i actually support the troops… not just the war we have landed in.

If a little video about a flag burning and anti-war sentiments displayed at a recruiting station are enough to make you throw up, you are going to have a really tough time when real opposition shows up. and if this war continues, it will.

by the way… an agitator is someone who tries to stir up others by stirring up controversy… do i need to go get webster’s definition… and recognizing that is what you are doing is not calling you names any more than if i caught you tagging houses and called you a graffiti artist.

you aren’t an artist house… but you sure do like to agitate.

[Jerald]

“Sucks” bothers me too, but it seems to have become commonplace. I’m not happy about it. I do approve of “less-than-stellar” — think I’ll try to use that more often.

I noticed after they remodeled the Key Arena that the seats were small and also that the legroom was significantly less. Long-leggers like me can barely sit without pressing our knees against the seat in front. And there’s absolutely no room for anyone to pass by. I’ve avoided the place whenever possible.

I love hockey, though, and hope they have a more comfortable venue in Kent.

[Anonymous]

I just went to West Seattle Dental and Joon Kae was great. Actually, I liked them all a lot.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/joon-kae-dds-seattle#hrid:ptbajNPeRmgon2WKMgoPmw

[Huindekmi]

Poll numbers are backing up what the Obama supporters are saying.

RealClearPolitics.com can show you the aggregates of poll data from 7 sources (Rassmussen, Time, CNN, Cook/RT Strategies, ABC/Wash Post, FOX News and NPR) as well as a weighted average.

Clinton vs McCain

In the latest polls, McCain is leading in all but one poll (CNN).

Obama vs. McCain

The latest polls show Obama leading in all but one poll (NPR) and then only by 1 point.

[Ken]

I am torn as to whether to post this here, or in the Chuckle forum…

It is a short, succinct analysis of the worst case scenario some republicans are already advocating.

Snagged from daily Kos front pager Hunter.

---

McCain-Huck: You Got Your Christian Crusader Rhetoric In My Crazy-Ass Foreign Policy

by Hunter

Fri Feb 08, 2008

There’s talk on the Republican side of a McCain-Huckabee ticket? Seriously? Because Huckabee is doing so well, and McCain needs to prove his right-wing social credentials, and CPAC-styled movement conservatives need their heads to spin a little more vigorously, I suppose?

I have to admit, it sounds like a brilliant plan. In the middle of a hugely unpopular war, take the most aggressively pro-war candidate and make him Commander in Chief. Then, what the hell — add a heavy dose of hardcore, far-right evangelical Christian rhetoric to the mix. “Bombs for Jesus”: doesn’t that sound like the bestest idea ever? The whole problem with Bush, you see, was the annoying subtlety with which he pursued his highly complex and well-thought-out positions. Can’t we just distill that down to even more explicit support for unending “preemptive” military action, and explicit declarations of Jesus-based manifest destiny? Why have Bush when we can have a double-dose, Mecha-Transformer-Wonder-Twin-Powers-Activate-Super-Bush?

Hey, why the hell not? Here’s another idea: let’s get everyone in America to drive a six-inch railroad spike into the back of our heads. That way we’ll all have a place to hang our raincoats.

I love modern conservatism. No matter how disastrous any outcome of conservative policy is, there’s only one possible response — let’s do more of it!

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/2/8/144617/5311/186/452389

[Anonymous]

Thanks Bonnie for you input. I have always toyed with the idea of homeschooling our kids but just wasn’t sure quite how to go about it and then I heard that you need to have someone sponsor or supervise your schooling methods and your kids progress and I have never been quite sure how to do all that and I will most definitely call the number above. Again we are happy at out present school for the most part but there are some areas I think I could do a better job of teaching our kids. The size of the classrooms sure are alot larger than when I went to school and I don;t believe many of the kids get one-on-one attention.

[bigmark]

Thanks everyone. Normally I would take a taxi, but for this trip we are taking our 9-month old daughter, and I can’t really bear the thought of getting her and her carseat, along with all of our stuff, in a taxi. So I thought that driving down to the airport and taking a shuttle over would be the easiest, assuming it’s not too expensive. Turns out that there are some very reasonable options down there. As a couple of people mentioned, AAA offers discounts that can bring the cost down to $7 – $8 a day. If I can park for $50 for the week that I’m gone, I’m already better off than what the taxi would cost me. Not quite as convenient as door-to-door service (assuming the taxi comes when requested), but a pretty good trade-off. For shorter trips, this would be an even better deal. I’m going to try it on this trip and may consider it for future trips. Fortunately, both our departure and return flights are midday, so we can budget lots of time to get there and not have to worry about doing any of this in the dark. We’ll see how it goes. Thanks everyone for your input.

[JoB]

New Resident, whether we personally knew someone who was directly affected by 911 or not, we were all affected by that tragedy.

I don’t think the person who made that remark meant to say that we weren’t affected, just that our lives have not been impacted in the way the lives of the Iraqi people have.

We were all affected. Our children will look back to where they were on that day the same way i look back to where i was the day kennedy was shot. it is a pivotal turning point in all our lives.

That said, it is important to focus our resulting rage on those who perpetrated that terrorist act.

What would i have done?

I would have pursued the Al Quaida by any and all means possible.

I would have let Pakistan know that it wasn’t ok to harbor them across the border and if neccessary i would have used clandestine surgical strikes… e\whether the Pakistani govt agreed or not.

I would have put pressure on Egypt to stop terrorist dollars from passing through their citizens to terrorist networks around the world.

I would have asked for worldwide assistance in shutting down any banking system willing to harbor funds from know Al Quaida operatives.

I would have immediately hired more middle eastern interpreters in our intelligence community.

I would have funded and followed up with the best medical care and counseling possible for all those who went into the disaster and participated in the cleanup of 911.

i would have taken alesson from England’s many years of dealing with irish terrorists. You don’t persecute the people, you prosecute terrorists.

I would have asked the muslim world to join in condemning senseless acts of violence perpetrated on innocent people.

I would have invested in aid programs around the world for muslim people living in destitution. In short.. i would have killed them with kindness.

I am assuming that you don’t want to know what i wouldn’t have done because that list would take a long time.

My very conservative republican niece once asked me why i supported terrorists when we were discussing the war… her approval.. my condemnation.

I will tell you what i told her. Not supporting the war in Iraq is not unpatriotic. It doesn’t mean i support terrorism. It simply means that i think we should have warred against the terrorists who warred against us… not Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi people.

I fully support our troops. I support actually spending the money to adequately equip them. i think it is a disgrace that families in the states have to hold fundraisers to provide their sons and daughters in the guard with adequate military gear.

I support their families. I support paying them adequately while they are in service. I think it is a disgrace that many of their families are forced to welfare programs just to exist.

I support giving guard members who serve the same kind of benefits we give regular military… all of the same protections as to length and number of tours and the same kind of benefits when they come home.

I support stepping up to the plate and actually providing the kind of services they need when they come home… medical care… housing assistance… job assistance… education benefits…etc.

I support a draft if that is what it will take to stop extending the active status of our soldiers well past their agreed upon discharge dates.

I think if we are going to war… we ought to treat the military who are waging that war for us very well.

I would rather we weren’t there. i would not have put us there. i don’t know if any other president … including our current president’s father… would have done so under the circumstances.

Iraq had nothing to do with 911.

In spite of every justification so far fed to us, that war has nothing to do with 911.

It is time to stop citing 911 it as though it has relevance to the war in Iraq.

I think we owe that to those who lost their lives in a totally senseless act of violence on 911.

We should honor them by responding to what killed them… not by perpetrating some senseless war. how can killing people who had nothing to do with that tragedy ever honor those who lost their lives?

[TheHouse]

Debating in written words is very difficult. JoB, that rant that you wrote wasn’t necessary and was full of incorrect assumptions about me. You deflected the entire Clinton discussion toards whether it was worth it to investigate. If he told the truth there would not have been an investigation on this (don’t forget that the Clintons were investigated at least 2 other times as well).

As for backing the fact that Iraq funded terrorism, it has been reported many times in the media, but here are a few links:

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/011/990ieqmb.asp

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/08/27/iraq.cell/

I will grant you that the 9/11 commission and George Tenant have stated that there were so specific links to al-Qaida, but he has funded other terrorists. Once again (as I stated above) he certainly wasn’t the 1st or only leader to do so.

I also never called you unpatriotic. However, stating that Democrats are patriots in general is an emotional, not factual statement.

I also stated that I don’t like Ann Coulter.

I’m quite used to debating with “liberals” like you JoB. Generally speaking liberals like to assign passionate words and terms to people that oppose their way of thinking to muster up sentiment. I am not a crazy religious conservative and I am not a right wing nut job. I’m grounded in people taking accountability for themselves and I support goverment removing themselves from our lives as much as possible.

Although not confirmed, you seem like you write a (D) next to your name. I would ask yourself if you need others to make decisions for you? I would ask yourself if you feel like a high percentage of your paycheck should go to other people? If your answer to any of these questions is “Yes” then you should vote Democrat. I feel the opposite, so will never vote for a Democratic candidate. That doesn’t mean that I’d vote necessarily with a Republican, but I allign closer with them then with the BIG Ds.

This is beating a dead horse. I’m going down to the Junction to make fun of all of the libs dancing back and forth across the street. I really enjoy challanging those losers (PS …speak to many of the business owners around the Junction and they despise those people)

[JoB]

house,

so i get that you think that it was a good idea for the American taxpayers to spend all of that money digging into Bill Clinton’s one sexual incident with an intern?

I am sure Ken can tell us how much.. i just know it was too much.

And that all out pursuit of this and the resulting American focus on whether we should impeach Bill Clinton for lieing was worth neglecting other issues.. such as national security.

The planning and financing for 911 occurred while America was worried about whether Bill Clinton kept his pants zipped. And Republicans created that discussion.

So you honestly believe all of that was worth the expense to this nation because in the end Bill Clinton tried to weasel out of informing his wife and family on national television that he had sexual contact … not sex… with an intern… and Republicans could rise up in moral outrage and say “he’s a liar”.

Get a grip!

We democrats didn’t treat your President that way even though we had far more reason.

Terrorism didn’t exist in Iraq before 911. It was a dictatorship and Saddam didn’t allow any competition. He killed anyone who tried to amass anything which looked liked power or influence…

And could you please site references for this money that was supposed to have floated through his country?

Wrong country House. The country you are talking about is Egypt.

and you haven’t made a peep about them

The hijackers were Egyptians House, not Iraqis.

As for those infamous Weapons of Mass destruction… we can find Hussein in a hole in the ground but the weapons were there … we just couldn’t find them. Yeah right.

This is a dead horse.

The facts speak for themselves. There were no WMD. Saddam had nothing to do with the terrorist acts on America. We entered a war with no exit strategy and no plan for controlling the massive unrest and resulting long term American presence that Dick Cheney told America was the reason for leaving Iraq quickly the first time.

I can see where you can make some kind of defense for the President being as misled as the rest of us… I suppose he could just be a fool…But there is no getting around Dick Cheney. The videotape of him explaining why getting out of Iraq was in America’s best interests the first time is unequivocal and cites all of our current problems there.

True patriotism is putting aside political maneuvering for the good of the country. And in that respect, democrats are the true patriots.

So huff and puff, call us all unpatriotic if you will House and keep repeating justifications that turned out to be just stories. Tell us how smart Ann Coulter is. Frighten America to death. Your own words betray you.

Now if you want to talk substantive differences between the Republican and Democratic candidates… that might be an interesting conversation. But just getting everyone all riled up so none of us can sleep just isn’t cutting it.

[picklemom]

Ann Coulter is an amoral, unpatriotic attention ho. She is an embarrassment to all decent Republicans, conservative and moderate alike. They should distance themselves from this mean-spirited skank. She’s as loony as Britney Spears, but I feel some pity for Spears and only contempt for the Coult-hearted lunatic. Some choice Coulter quotes:

The ethic of conservation is the explicit abnegation of man’s dominion over the Earth. The lower species are here for our use. God said so: Go forth, be fruitful, multiply, and rape the planet — it’s yours. That’s our job: drilling, mining and stripping. Sweaters are the anti-Biblical view. Big gas-guzzling cars with phones and CD players and wet bars — that’s the Biblical view.

Oil Good; Democrats bad; October 12, 2000

God gave us the earth. We have dominion over the plants, the animals, the trees. God said, ‘Earth is yours. Take it. Rape it. It’s yours.’

Fox News; Hannity & Colmes; June 20, 2001

They’re [Democrats] always accusing us of repressing their speech. I say let’s do it. Let’s repress them. Frankly, I’m not a big fan of the First Amendment.

[JanS]

Hi, House…thanks for the input….and thanks for getting this started – lol…I think the Repubs had better get on the ball at the primaries if Romney is their man…he’s not quite in the forefront right now. Ann Coulter…sense of humor…well, I suppose she thinks she has one. I sometimes feel that she says what she says not because she believes it but because of the impact it makes on others…obviously it’s impacted me in a negative way…and I think she revels in that. And I think she’s impressed with herself…likes to hear herself talk :-) I figured you’d probably like her….hehehe…

[Ken]

Perhaps you’re referring to her recent update of this scholarly classic.

On the heels of her widely successful books on Liberal treachery, Slander and Treason, Ann Coulter is about to publish a special updated edition of one of the most influential political tracts of the modern age.

http://www.zenpickle.com/Coulter.php

excerpt:

VOLUME I: A RETROSPECT

CHAPTER 10

WHY AMERICAN SOCIETY COLLAPSED

It must be admitted that all this was partly the result of extraordinary crafty tactics on the part of Liberals on the one hand, and obvious official stupidity or naïveté on the other hand. The Liberals were too clever to allow a simultaneous attack to be made on the whole of their Press. No one section functioned as cover for the other. While the alternative newspaper, in the most despicable manner possible, reviled everything that was sacred, furiously attacked the State and Government and incited certain classes of the community against each other, the national papers, also in Liberal hands, knew how to camouflage themselves as model examples of objectivity. They studiously avoided harsh language, knowing well that block-heads are capable of judging only by external appearances and never able to penetrate to the real depth and meaning of anything. They measure the worth of an object by its exterior and not by its content. This form of human frailty was carefully studied and understood by the Liberal Press.

[…]

I believe that our present generation would easily master this danger if they were rightly led. For this generation has gone through certain experiences which must have strengthened the nerves of all those who did not become nervously broken by them. Certainly in days to come the Liberals will raise a tremendous cry throughout their newspapers once a hand is laid on their favorite nest, once a move is made to put an end to this scandalous Liberal Press and once this instrument which shapes public opinion is brought under Conservative control and no longer left in the hands of Liberals and enemies of the people. I am certain that this will be easier for us than it was for our fathers. The scream of the twelve-inch shrapnel is more penetrating than the hiss from a thousand Liberal newspaper vipers. Therefore let them go on with their hissing.

[JoB]

Jimmy G and Flowerpetal, thanks for the input.

You are 100% right, it is important for the dogs to think of us as the leader of their pack.. and they do.

If you could be a fly on the wall in our home, you would wonder what i am fussing about. I have great well behaved dogs who look to us for everything. They even come when they are called which for this breed is amazing. They know all of their basic commands and most of the time, they obey them.

If only i wanted to stay home alone all of the time, they would be nearly perfect dogs.

However, we think it might be fun to go out into public with our dogs or to have people in. This is where things get a little problematic.

I am not so concerned about them having fun with other dogs as them getting to a point where it is not a hassle to walk them past another dog.

Right now, they both want to meet other dogs and cry piteously when they are restrained. One doesn’t know how (and is in class… i can’t recommend Jeff at Sound Animals enough) and the other sniffs fine but then tries to establish dominance too quickly.

And this is when they are being walked alone. When together, they make a terrible fuss and then attack one another.. like two kids fighting over who gets to say hi first.

Shibas are noisy when they act out. They make tremendous mean sounding noise with their lips curled back and hair raising which surprisingly enough scares off other dog owners before they can be corrected and have positive interaction.

I don’t blame the other owners one bit… these are ferocious sounding dogs… it just makes it difficult to expose them to other dogs and train them.

Right now i couldn’t take them to a dog park even if i wanted to… and i am not sure i do. However, they have successfully had other dogs visit in their backyard.

Resources are hard to find. Finding a trainer that would allow these dogs into a dog class was not easy.

Stella Ruffingtons has been incredible with grooming (my boy has to be muzzled to have his nails cut) but they certainly can’t stay there for daycare or overnight boarding.

I finally found a vet who understands the breed, but she is in DesMoine. I would love to find someone closer.

I found one kennel that would take them for boarding (in Monroe), but am concerned about their sanitation and won’t go back. right now they are going to the vet’s for boarding. not ideal.

I am exploring Shiba groups… there is a Seattle group that holds play dates once a month.. but they are mostly puppies.

i found a shiba rescue organization in Portland but again that’s pretty far.

And being newcomers, we don’t have friends who are dog friendly to drop by and ring the doorbell or sit over tea while the dog gets time out for misbehavior and learns that it is good behavior or banishment.

I hired a dog walker and now have someone coming in as a training partner and that helps, but it is slow progress.

I have always had rescue dogs, including an abused Akita… these two are simply the most challenging i have encountered… Yuki’s nickname when he first came to us was Cujo and it was well deserved. He’s not Cujo now, but his behavior is certainly aggressive enough at times to frighten even experienced dog handlers.

Don’t get me wrong, these are good dogs. They play together well. (They sometimes sound like they are going to kill one another when playing, but there is never blood drawn.) They eat within a foot of one another and don’t fight over food. They are leash trained. They are both affectionate with people they know.

They just need the kind of socialization they didn’t get in loving homes… and at two/three it is harder to find than when they are puppies.

We are doing our best to create an environment for them where they can learn those skills… and that will take other people and other dogs.

In the meantime, i am teaching them to like muzzles so they can be out in parts of the world where it is a little more crowded.

I agree that rescue dogs can be pretty trying, but they sure do steal into your heart.

[Ken]

Before I start trying different tags and seeing what is passed by the editor and what is purged on re-edit, can the admin (That’s you WSB) toss out a few clues?

What wordpress mods are in use. Are they different for the comments on the main page and the forum? I feel it is impolite to run a script on your host that searches for the php info file. I also assume you have disabled it :)

Have you ever used a tinyMCE plugin with WP? or the wysiwyg upgrade? There are 1400 plugins currently and some are used for posting and editing on other WP sites as well as drupal and scoop.

I understand the reasons and wisdom of limiting code input and filtering code down to a minimum for security reasons as well as estethics, but figuring out what works where is by trial and error and should not be the norm for your average user.

code test box

<br />

[credmond]

Ken, Al

–

One thing which may not have been mentioned at the RR meetings is that in two years, after the present alignment issues are resolved, KCM will hold a second round of community meetings to gather input for the redirection of existing WS bus resources. At that time it’s entirely probable that the 22, 21, 51, 37, 57 and other local routes will be re-routed more efficiently. There’s additional discussion internally at Metro – based on WS feedback on the possible Westwood Village end-of-line, that the 125 and 60 lines could be extended from White Center to Westwood. That would make Westwood a real transit center and would provide an end-of-line stop for the RR system. Delridge corridor already has nearly-RR like service. The 120 was an early beneficiary of the Transit Now funding and that line was increased in service to every 15 minutes, Monday through Saturday and 30 minute service on Sundays, for a daytime duration of 20 hours service (5:30 am through 1:30 am). Metro is also looking for ways to link the 120 with the RR, maybe looping the 120 through Westwood also.

–

Anyway, the point is that Metro is thinking ahead, does realize that WS needs and wants more service, are themselves somewhat stuck with “how” to get to downtown because the whole Viaduct issue has yet to be resolved. And, they are well aware that the spoke system of downtown-oriented buses which worked so well during the 70’s, 80’s, and part-way through the 90’s is now seriously out-of-date. There is a slow evolution within Metro that downtown isn’t the same destination point it once was.

–

And, keep writing and commenting to Metro because opinions do count and we’re pretty aware of our transportation options here in WS and Metro knows that.

[Ken]

repost of info from a main page caucus thread:

---

A note on the process of the Dem caucus.

This week I called the caucus hot line for clarification on the age of participation issue. I remember in 04 there was mention of 17 year olds being able to caucus but it was pretty much a moot point since I could not even get any of the 18 to 25 set to show up at 9 am on a Saturday no matter what kind of game they talked…

But this year we are seeing a serious increase in the youth turnout in many places across the country.

One aspect of the Dem caucus being used exclusively to choose the delegates rather than the state sponsored primary, is that the parties make the rules. The Republicans seem to be following the state primary rules for the caucus since they are using both for delegates.

The Dems are free to accept caucus input and even votes from those who are 17 now but will be 18 on or before the November general election.

Question 5 of the FAQ makes it semi clear that 17 year olds that will be able to register to vote by November, will be able to vote at the caucus.

Who can participate in their caucus? All registered voters and those who will be 18 at the time of the presidential election can vote at their caucus. You can register to vote at the caucus location and vote in the caucus. Others who are not registered can participate but can not vote.

Those I have talked to at the caucus hot line are interpreting the above somewhat ambiguous language to allow 17 year olds (who according to the Sec of State CANNOT register until they are 18) to fully participate in the caucus.

So If you know any one who will be 18 and a precinct resident and otherwise eligible to vote in November, make sure and bring them along to the caucus

Faq page:

http://www.wa-democrats.org/index.php?page=display&id=266

Addenum note: This years caucus starts at ONE PM on Saturday afternoon so even those who might have stayed up a bit too late on Friday can attend. I am pretty sure there will also be FREE COFFEE :)

[Ken]

Sue: The link above might answer some of your questions. Sorry you will miss the caucus. The caucus process is harder on absentee issues in this state than it is in a few others if I remember correctly.

Here is the detailed answer for those who might have to miss the caucus but want to participate anyway.

From the FAQ on the Dem site (since they say it better than I do…

Can I vote absentee or by proxy in the Caucuses? No. There are only three reasons you can vote in the caucuses without being there. If you serve in the military, have a medical condition that prevents your attendance, or for religious reasons cannot attend your caucus, you can request an affidavit from the State Party. To find this affadavit, go to http://www.wa-democrats.org/caucusinfo and download the Caucus Surrogate Affadavit Form. This must be returned to the State Party by February 1st. No one else can vote without being there. You can become a delegate without attending your caucus. College students registered at their home address but living away from home cannot vote but can become a delegate using the process described below.

Link to FAQhttp://www.wa-democrats.org/index.php?page=display&id=266

The caucus has some strict time allotments and some that are soft. In general normal sized precincts will be done in about two hours.

Getting there early or at least on time will be best especially for those in large precincts since the sign-in process can become a bottleneck when turnout is as big as expected.

next: ok your precinct has no PCO. Yes that means one of your neighbors will have to volunteer at the caucus to run it. They will then appoint a secretary and a tally clerk. (assuming there are at least three people from your precinct)

More details and a You tube video of the step by step are at the state party page above.

Even though you might have to miss the caucus, if your precinct has no PCO, then you should consider becoming the PCO yourself. Candidate organizations urge their supporters to become PCO’s where possible. You can be appointed after filling out a short form at a district meeting and run for the position next year. It is a rare precinct that has contested PCO elections since it is an unpaid party position, but this year also included replacing a 34th district Senator and a Rep in which case ONLY PCO’s were allowed to vote for the replacements.

Here is the PCO handbook in html format

http://www.democracyforwashington.com/civicspace-0.5/?q=pcohandbook

For more info on caucus history,

this article is pretty easy to read.

http://thenexthurrah.typepad.com/the_next_hurrah/2008/01/questions-about.html

I see my link code is now being turned into alternate text. editing to re add full urls.

[JoB]

I was listening to NPR today and heard that Kucinich has decided to withdraw from the race.

I am truly sorry to hear that because whether he could win or not, i think he elevated the discussion by his presence.

He is making a formal announcement tomorrow that is supposed to include his desire to serve in Congress.

We need him there, but i shall miss him in this race all the same.

[littlebrowndog]

This morning I was enjoying a cup of java at a popular local coffee shop. A young woman came in, laptop under her arm, and found an empty table. She began looking around, apparently for an electrical outlet, but there was not one right there. For some reason she looked up high, and right at ceiling level there was an outlet. She climbed up onto a chair, but couldn’t reach it. So she stood up on the table—in a restaurant! After she plugged in her computer, she climbed back down again and walked to the counter to order her drink. As she passed by me I politely said that I didn’t think it was cool to stand on a table that people eat off. Her response was an airy “Oh, sorry.”

I know that tables in coffee shops do not get wiped off in between customers, so as I was leaving I described what had happened to the employee at the counter and suggested she wipe down the table after that young woman left (presumably she would be climbing up there again to unplug the computer later on). The employee thanked me and said she would.

Sometimes I can only marvel over self-indulgent people who don’t stop to consider the impact of their behavior upon others.

Anyhow, was I being a busybody?

[karen]

I agree that it is hard to meet people. I’m from around here and I don’t really get the “freeze” thing but I have kids and that seems to be an ice breaker a lot of the time.

So, I am working with Tibbetts UMC to create a family space where we can have game nights, or puzzles or activities. My vision is to offer an activity once a month, something like egg dying or pumpkin carving or whatever. I’d also like to have one evening a week when adults and families can gather to visit, play games, talk, whatever.

It is our intention to start in April. If you have ideas or input, please let me know! I am all for meeting new people and having a little fun!

(And, no, this isn’t a “churchy” thing.)

I’ll be adding information as we get closer.