HorsesAss.Org

I was just reminded that we’re having one of those weird, King County Conservation District elections today where they make it extremely difficult for people to cast a vote. The result is, this is one of those few elections in King County where Republicans tend to routinely win. (See how that works? Few people vote… Republicans win. That’s all you need to know about most Republican proposals for election “reform.”)

Anyway… property rights/pro-sprawl incumbent Mark Livengood is being challenged by Max Prinsen, a past Chair of the Conservation Board, the current President of SHADOW (Save Habitat and Diversity of Wetlands), and a member of the Cedar River Council. Prinsen is also a member of and endorsed by Washington Conservation Voters.

Obviously, I urge you to vote for Max Prinsen.

Unfortunately, casting your vote isn’t all that easy. Polls are open from 11AM to 7PM today at the following locations

• Renton City Hall. 1055 South Grady Way, Renton
• Snoqualmie Valley Community Center. 4610 Stephens Ave, Carnation
• Kent City Hall. 220 – 4th Ave South, Kent
• Enumclaw Fairgrounds Administrative Office. 45224 – 284th Ave SE, Enumclaw
• Kirkland City Hall. 123 Fifth Ave, Kirkland
• Shoreline City Hall. 17544 Midvale Ave N, Shoreline
• Garfield Community Center, 2323 East Cherry St, Seattle

There are no absentee ballots and no provisionals. Hell, there isn’t even a polling place in downtown Seattle.

The King County Conservation District Board has a $6 million annual budget. Don’t you think maybe a real conservationist should help determine how that money is spent? Fewer than 1000 people generally vote in this election, so every vote counts.

UPDATE:
I have been corrected. Max Prinsen is not currently an active member of Washington Conservation Voters, though he had been some 5 or 6 years ago.

The blog that made it’s name savaging the rightwingers takes a shot, for the first time, at perhaps the nuttiest lefty blogger out there.

It’s really, really good. Check it out.

Oh, and on a totally unrelated topic, a tip of the hat to the Seattle Times’ David Postman for pointing us to breaking news… about talking urinal cakes:

SANTA FE — New Mexico is taking its fight against drunken driving to men’s restrooms around the state.

The state has ordered 500 talking urinal cakes that will deliver a recorded anti-DWI message to bar and restaurant patrons who make one last pit stop before getting behind the wheel.

“Hey there, big guy. Having a few drinks?” a female voice says a few seconds after an approaching male sets off a motion sensor in the device. “It’s time to call a cab or ask a sober friend for a ride home.”

Oh great. I’ve already got a touch of “shy bladder.” A talking urinal cake is going to shut the hose right off.

Last night on my show, former Governor Gary Locke unequivocally stated his opposition to building another elevated freeway to replace the aging Alaska Way Viaduct… and he said former Governors Rosellini, Evans and Lowry were firmly with him. (Gov. Spellman is apparently neutral.) Gov. Locke went on to say that while he enthusiastically supports the current “Tunnel-Lite” proposal, and believes the financing is in place to build it, he would back a surface-plus-transit option over a rebuild should voters reject the tunnel on March 13. The overwhelming priority for voters in the upcoming special election, Gov. Locke repeated several times, is to vote “No” on the rebuild.

Personally, I tend to agree with King County Executive Ron Sims, who last week on my show stated that Mayor Nickels’ tunnel proposal is politically dead. But what do we know? It is very clear that Gov. Chris Gregoire, Speaker of the House Frank Chopp and a handful of vocal legislators adamantly oppose a tunnel, and it is hard to imagine them backing down. But the pro-tunnel forces contain some heavy hitters and experienced politicos, so it may be too early to count them out.

What I find most striking though is the growing number of high profile political, civic and business leaders who are willing to publicly lend their credibility towards the notion that a surface-plus-transit option is not only a reasonable and serious alternative, but preferable to a rebuild. The pro-rebuild/anti-surface camp tends to brush off surface supporters as a bunch of crazy, car-hating hippies or something like that, but that’s a pretty dismissive way to describe Gov. Locke, Executive Sims and a substantial chunk of our political and business establishment. While wealthy developer (and deadbeat) Martin Selig may support a rebuild/retrofit campaign, Gov. Locke insists that many of Selig’s tenants do not. Indeed, Gov. Locke claims that the majority of businesses who would be most impacted by waterfront redevelopment are willing to tax themselves hundreds of millions of dollars via a special improvement district to help pay the cost of a tunnel. (A funding mechanism I first floated way back in November of 2005.)

I fully understand that some of our state Democratic leaders see a political upside to shoving another elevated structure down our throats: that voters elsewhere in the state will view them as finally standing up to us Seattle bullies. But I sincerely hope that such a base (and ultimately self-defeating) political motivation does not overwhelm the decision-making process should Seattle voters reject a rebuild on March 13. The final decision shouldn’t pivot on a political battle between Seattle and Olympia or between Nickels and Gregoire; it should be based on what is best for Seattle and the state. But for such an objective debate to occur, the pro-rebuild forces must actively disown the politically convenient misconception that Seattle is somehow demanding the rest of the state to pay for its “gold-plated tunnel.”

The state has committed $2.8 billion towards replacing the Viaduct. Assuming WSDOT’s cost estimates are correct, that is exactly what it will cost state taxpayers to build a new elevated structure. But if the city chooses the more expensive tunnel alternative, nobody expects the state to cough up additional funds. The tunnel will not cost state taxpayers a dime more than the $2.8 billion already committed… indeed, if the city opts for a cheaper surface-plus-transit alternative, it will save state taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars!

I find it ironic that there are state legislators — Democrats no less — who are willing to pass a state law requiring Seattle voters to tax themselves to build a new Sonics arena we’ve already rejected at the polls… while at the same time refusing to let us tax ourselves to build the Viaduct replacement alternative the city wants.

This is our city, this is our waterfront, and the Viaduct overwhelmingly carries our traffic. If we choose to raise the money locally to pay the difference between a rebuild and a tunnel, that should be our choice. And if instead we opt to let go of our 1950’s mentality and re-imagine the way we address transportation and transit issues, we should be given every opportunity to make the case that a less expensive, less auto-centric surface-plus-transit alternative is the right solution for our city.

Have you always wanted to compensate for the small size of your penis while at the same time doing right by the environment? Here’s your chance!

The FT-HS is a hybrid sports car–the name stands for Future Toyota Hybrid Sports. Its powertrain marries a 3.5-liter V-6 with a new-generation hybrid system to provide a combined output of some 400 hp driving the rear wheels.

Not only does it kick ass versus other cars in its class, but it’s a hybird. Why is this important?

What is interesting is not the direct impact of this car on the environment, though we can expect it to be better than the “traditional” V8 gasoline-powered sports cars it will compete against (a lesser evil). No, the interesting thing is the “halo” effect it could have, making hybrids cool and desirable to a new public. Even if they never end up buying that particular model, they’ll notice the technology and associate it with something they want instead of something they don’t.

Making hybrids cool… That’s an idea worth pursuing. The Honda Civic Hybrid is pretty low key, as is the Toyota Prius. Dori Monson calls Dave Ross’ car a “prissy” Prius. That’s Dori for you, but he has a point. Hybrids have an image problem. If people think of a hybrid car as more like this and this, and less like this and this, we’ll make progress.

The FT-HS isn’t yet in production, but if they move forward this year, they can have them ready for sale at Toyota dealerships just in time for a “Dori Monson Midlife Crisis” purchase.

It’s politics as unusual again tonight on “The David Goldstein Show” from 7PM to 10PM on Newsradio 710-KIRO. I like to go with the flow, so things could change, but here’s what I have lined up for tonight’s show:

7PM: What’s happening in the other Washington? Ken Vogel, formerly of the TNT and now an investigative reporter The Politicogives us an update from our nation’s capital. What’s the latest scandal? Is Obama for real? Will Republicans ever allow a vote on a resolution opposing escalating the war in Iraq? Ken will fill us in on all the latest news, rumor and gossip.

8PM: Obligatory Viaduct Hour!!! If this is a political talk show in Seattle, then we must be discussing the fate of the Alaska Way Viaduct. Former Gov. Gary Locke joins me to tell us where he stands on (or under) the Viaduct replacement controversy, and share is vision for Seattle and the downtown waterfront. Will Gov. Locke be in lockstep with Gov. Gregoire? Tune in to find out.

9PM: TBA (I’m gonna rant about stuff.)

Tune in tonight (or listen to the live stream) and give me a call: 1-877-710-KIRO (5476).

Here’s a couple of columns well worth reading, in case you missed them.

In today’s Tacoma News Tribune, Peter Callaghan rips Tim Eyman a new one: “Tim Eyman, professional victim for hire.”

How do we know he’s telling the truth now? We don’t, of course. Given his history, I find it best to assume everything he says is a lie until proved otherwise.

As Callaghan reminds us, Timmy is an admitted liar, with a well documented and steady string of deceptions. And yet our state’s editorial pages continue to give him free reign (and hundreds of thousands of dollars of free press) to run his lying, self-serving guest columns. Amazing.

Meanwhile, over at the Seattle P-I, Joel Connelly had a great column Friday comparing the shrinking reputation of the self-absorbed Ralph Nadar with the growing global stature of Al Gore: “Nader has withered; Gore has grown.”

Connelly contrasts how Nadar has self-destructed under the weight of his own ego, while “the man ridiculed by Nader in 2000 has attained new and global stature.”

Al Gore has watched his early global warming warnings be vindicated by a landslide of scientific evidence.

With the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth,” he has found a way to outflank the political press and make complicated material accessible to the public. The film is up for an Oscar, and Gore has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.

What a transition: While Nader worships at the altar of his own unappreciated brilliance, Gore speaks to the world.

Man, do I hope Gore runs for president.

Apparently, nothing happened in the world yesterday worth writing an editorial about. Absolutely nothing.

I’m out with my co-conspirators today, plotting the nonviolent overthrow of the United States government, so I probably won’t have any time to post, but I’ve got a helluva lineup scheduled for “The David Goldstein Show” tonight from 7PM to 10PM on Newsradio 710-KIRO. I like to go with the flow, so things could change, but here’s what I have lined up for tonight’s show:

7PM: Political rant-a-rama: Eli Sanders of The Stranger joins me at the top of the hour for a firsthand report from the mistrial of Lt. Ehren Watada, after which I plan to rant on just about everything that happened in the news this week except for the death of Anna Nicole Smith. Won’t mention it. Not even here.

8PM: Hate your elected officials? Maybe it’s time to change the way we elect them? Political activist and electoral reform advocate Krist Novoselic joins me for the hour to talk about Instant Runoff Voting — also called “ranked choice voting” — and other reforms that could make our democracy more democratic. (Oh… I’m also told that Krist once played in some band or something.) A Republican on the Seattle City Council? That could be the result from one reform I particularly like. Tune in to find out why I’d propose such heresy, and what Krist has to say about it. Krist will also be appearing at Seattle’s Town Hall on Weds. Feb. 21, to talk about electoral reform.

FairVote.org

9PM: What’s the matter with Oregon? TJ of the blog Loaded Orygun will fill us in on what’s happening south of the border.

Tune in tonight (or listen to the live stream) and give me a call: 1-877-710-KIRO (5476).

PROGRAMMING NOTE:
Tune in Sunday night when former Gov. Gary Locke will tell us where he stands on replacing the Viaduct, and unofficial HA D.C. Bureau Chief Ken Vogel calls in with an update on what’s happening in the other Washington.

House Speaker Frank Chopp has some funny ideas. The funniest? Frank wants to cap part of the span of the new Viaduct. What does this mean, exactly?

That great Viaduct view you see while driving north into town? Gone. Instead of a great vista, you get concrete and shadow. If you want a sneak preview, try driving south on the Viaduct now!

Second, putting another level on the Viaduct will make it even taller and more obtrusive than it is now! With a new Viaduct projected to be as much as 50 percent wider, a third deck will make it humongous.

So what goes on that third deck? Plans are for a new park, accessible by skybridge from adjacent buildings. Considering new skybridges on view corridors are against city code, that seems unlikely. Also, would real estate owners warm to the idea of thousands of people a year trudging through their lobbies to access the park? What’s more, it could even exceed the Aurora Bridge in what it’s known for…

Welcome, one and all, to Frank Chopp’s exciting new “Suicide Park”!

The blog Capitol Hill Seattle has an ethical dilemma on their hands:

Metroblogging Seattle put us up against HorsesAss.org in their Blarch Badness tournament. Don’t know if it’s cheating or not but we’ll save you the trip over there to vote.

Hmm. I suppose it might not be cheating to embed the poll — though the only conceivable motive Metroblogging Seattle had in running a tournament was to up their own page views — but it is certainly bad strategy. I wasn’t even aware of this poll until I saw a couple links come in from CHS’s post, but now that I am, hell if I’m going to be out-cheated.

Yeah sure, it’s entirely petty and childish. All the more reason to vote in the poll and kick the living bejeebus out of those dirty, traitorous cheaters over at CHS.

Of course the big news from the military court martial front this week was the surprise mistrial in the case of Lt. Ehren Watada. But the less publicized case of Marine Cpl. Trent Thomas, accused in the kidnapping and murder of an Iraqi civilian, presents an interesting parallel to Lt. Watada’s legal defense, while raising disturbing questions about the government’s efforts to undermine it.

Lt. Watada refused an order to deploy to Iraq, a statement of fact so undisputed that the defendant signed a stipulation that he would not contest it. Prosecutors understood this stipulation to be a signed confession, and thus presented little evidence otherwise supporting the charge. But Lt. Watada insists that the deployment order was unlawful, because the war itself is illegal under U.S. and international law. Under his oath of service, Lt. Watada argues, he has both a legal and moral obligation to refuse to follow an unlawful order. Admitting to the facts, Lt. Watada told the court, was not an admission of guilt. It was this failure to achieve a “meeting of minds” between Lt. Watada and the prosecutors that the presiding judge cited in throwing out the stipulation and instigating a mistrial.

Lt. Watada’s legal defense has always relied on the argument that he cannot be convicted of refusing to follow an unlawful order — a defense the judge did not allow his attorney to present. Prosecutors have argued that Lt. Watada should not be allowed to put the war itself on trial, even if that is his only means of proving his innocence. Our military, they argue, cannot function without strict discipline, and strict military discipline requires that soldiers unflinchingly follow their commanders’ orders. In refusing to allow him to argue the illegality of his deployment order, the government asserts that Lt. Watada had no legal right to question it.

Compare that to the case of Cpl. Trent Thomas, who after having an “epiphany” decided to put himself at risk of the death penalty yesterday, by withdrawing his guilty plea in the brutal killing of an Iraqi civilian.

Cpl. Trent Thomas, 25, pleaded guilty as part of a pretrial agreement to several charges Jan. 18, including kidnapping and murder, in the slaying of 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Hamandia last year. But Thomas said Thursday that he no longer believes he’s guilty and was following a lawful order.

”Sir, when my country gives me an order, I follow it,” Thomas told the judge, Lt. Col. Tracy A. Daly, adding that his squad leader and his lieutenant gave the order.

Cpl. Thomas’s defense rests on the assertion that he was issued a lawful order, whereas Lt. Watada’s defense rests on the assertion that he was not.

Hmm.

In a capital offense such as this, one can only assume that the government will give Cpl. Thomas the opportunity to present his evidence in court, but even if he succeeds in proving he was following his commanders’ orders, it is hard to imagine that he could be fully exonerated for his actions. This question of whether an order is lawful or not is not an esoteric legalism concocted out of thin air by Lt. Watada and his attorney; it is an issue routinely examined by military courts in cases such as that of Cpl. Thomas. Cpl. Thomas and his cohorts allegedly kidnapped a man, forced him into a hole, shot him, and then attempted to make it look like the victim was an insurgent planting a bomb, by placing an AK-47 and shovel next to his body. Perhaps his squad leader and lieutenant really did order him to execute a murder… but that doesn’t make it a lawful order.

Critics of Lt. Watada have long argued that this is an open and shut case — that he refused to follow an order, and thus should pay the penalty for his insubordination. But if soldiers like Cpl. Thomas can be convicted and punished for following an order, shouldn’t the alleged unlawfulness of an order be a valid defense against charges of insubordination? And if so, then shouldn’t the court permit Lt. Watada to present evidence of the illegality of our war in Iraq, the very basis of his claim that his order to deploy was unlawful?

Lt. Watada and his attorney have no illusions that they are likely to convince a military jury that the United States is in the midst of executing an illegal war in Iraq. But if he is denied the right to defend himself, it sets a very dangerous precedent: either any order to act unlawfully places a soldier at risk of court martial, regardless of their actions, or… we are willing to accept “I was only following orders” as a valid legal defense to obeying any order, no matter how heinous.

In yet another sign that the Viaduct Rebuild option is losing public support while the Surface-Plus-Transit option picks up steam, rumors are swirling that the state is prepared to spring a “February Surprise” on voters just weeks before a March 13 special election. According to multiple sources WSDOT will announce next week a new smaller, less expensive Rebuild-Lite proposal, an 11th-hour, 4-lane redesign that shaves tons of concrete and $400 million off the current 6-lane design’s $2.8 billion estimated cost.

Um… I think the governor just blinked.

In dismissing Seattle Mayor Greg Nickel’s Tunnel-Lite, state officials called the proposal untested, unstudied and two-years too late to the table, and yet Rebuild-Lite would borrow its primary innovation, a 4-lane design with wide shoulders that can be used as exit lanes during peak traffic hours. And unfortunately for rebuild proponents, I’m guessing the two Lite options would also share the same reputation as hastily concocted political gambits designed more to move voters than drivers.

The same arguments used to attack Tunnel-Lite can now be used to attack its Rebuild cousin: it is untested, unstudied and two-years too late to the table. And after years of being told that only a six-lane elevated replacement can maintain or increase traffic capacity at an affordable price, voters will now be asked to trust WSDOT that their last-minute 4-lane design can do the same job at a lower cost.

Clearly intended to influence voters in favor of a rebuild, the new, slimmed-down proposal would likely only sow confusion. Rather than being faced with the choice between the uncertain design and cost of a Tunnel-Lite versus an unappealing but unsurprising rebuild, voters will now have absolutely no idea what they’ll be getting (or paying) from either proposal. And I’m not sure what kind of mandate a 4-lane elevated structure can garner from a non-binding advisory measure that describes “a six-lane elevated structure, increased to four lanes in each direction between South King Street and new ramps at Seneca and Columbia Streets.”

Not only would an abrupt switch to a 4-lane proposal undermine the rebuild option’s most compelling feature — familiarity — it would also undermine the primary arguments against considering a Surface-Plus-Transit solution. If a 4-lane tunnel or elevated structure can suddenly maintain the same traffic capacity as the long proposed 6-lane versions, why can’t a 6-lane boulevard? And if there’s plenty of time at this late stage of the game to dramatically re-jigger both the tunnel and elevated designs, why can’t we find the time to properly study a Surface-Plus-Transit solution?

Yeah, at this point the Rebuild-Lite proposal is still just a rumor. But should it come true it will likely upset the current political dynamics of the public debate over how to replace the Viaduct… and not necessarily in the way rebuild proponents intend.

An inside politics/inside blogosphere brouhaha ended today with a statement from Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards that he would not fire two campaign staffers over “offensive” comments written on their personal-but-prominent liberal blogs. Amanda Marcotte of Pandagon and Melissa McEwan of Shakespeare’s Sister had been hired to head Edwards’ blogging and netroots outreach efforts, but came under attack from right-wingers like Michelle Malkin and others for prior posts containing foul and offensive language. And in recent days Bill Donohue of the Catholic League had been making the rounds of conservative talk shows, loudly demanding the bloggers’ scalps, accusing them of anti-Catholic rhetoric.

I’m sure the righties are uniformly disappointed that Edwards didn’t buckle under their cynical attacks — that’s what they’ve come to expect from Democrats — but reaction from the left has been mixed. The Stranger’s Erica Barnett, writing on her personal blog, is not alone in wishing that Edwards had defended Marcotte and McEwan more decisively and aggressively:

“Yes, Edwards ultimately made the right choice. But I’m not impressed by the way he initially caved under pressure. If right-wing bigots have this much clout over Edwards (and Edwards expressed no concerns about either blogger whatsoever until the wingers complained, so don’t tell me it was a sudden, unrelated revelation), I’m no longer sure he’s the kind of candidate I can support.”

As fellow HA blogger Will can attest, I’m no Edwards partisan (he is,) but I do not share Barnett’s disappointment. Rather, I think that when viewed in context, Edwards’ actions come off bolder and more significant than they first appear.

Edwards is not a “netroots candidate.” He is a creature of the D.C. political establishment, and as such has surrounded himself with advisors drawn from the consultancy class that Markos Moulitsas and Jerome Armstrong have targeted as the primary obstacle to progressive ascension in their book “Crashing the Gates.” You can be sure that risk-adverse advisors — who fear hand-to-hand combat with the far-right almost as much as they fear the growing influence of the progressive netroots — strongly urged Edwards to dump Marcotte and McEwan. Indeed, it wouldn’t surprise me if yesterday’s inaccurate firing story had been leaked by Edwards advisors seeking to force his hand.

In that context, Edwards decision to ignore the “safe” advice is not only a measure of his loyalty towards staffers who rearranged their lives to join his campaign, but an acknowledgment of a changing political landscape in which grassroots political activists are playing a larger role in turning out the vote and shaping public opinion. The conventional wisdom of the Democratic political establishment would have had Edwards jettison Marcotte and McEwan “for the good of the campaign.” The fact that it was a conventional establishment politician who rejected this wisdom is significant in itself.

Some seem disappointed by Edwards lack of forcefulness, but considering his political background and previous campaigns, I view Edwards defense of Marcotte and McEwan — however tempered — as a welcome departure from Democratic establishment business as usual. While not exactly courageous, it does show growth.

Furthermore, we cannot emphasize enough the significance of this incident in regards to what it portends for other campaigns and the blogosphere in general. Malkin/Donohue et al had intended to lower the bar on public discourse to the point where no liberal blogger who had ever put forth a controversial opinion or dabbled in the joys of foul and abusive language could seek gainful employment again. Had Edwards fired Marcotte and McEwan for language they had previously used on their own personal blogs, the far-righties and their media surrogates would have demanded that the other Democratic candidates fire their foul-mouthed bloggers too. The witch hunt would have been on, and once they had cleared the political establishment of us “hate-talking” lefties, the right’s attention would surely turn towards the private sector.

Malkin herself is a bile-spewing fascist who defends the Japanese internment and lionizes Sen. Joe McCarthy and his anti-democratic blacklists. This was never about Marcotte and McEwan. It was about silencing her political enemies. For his part Donohue now promises a “nationwide public relations blitz” against Edwards, attacking him for his religious “bigotry”… this from a man who freely laces his own public statements with anti-semitic rhetoric.

By standing up to Malkin and Donohue when it would have been much easier to cave, Edwards has decided to take a blow on behalf of a nascent progressive netroots movement most establishment Democrats neither fully understand nor appreciate. Whether or not he is my candidate, this blogger is going to stand up for Edwards in return.

Speculate all you want about Seattle developer Martin Selig’s $10,000 contribution to the No Tunnel Pro-Rebuild Alliance, but from what I hear, political payback is likely a factor. Selig is still pissed off at Mayor Greg Nickels for forcing him to pay his electric bill, and nothing would please him more than to fuck with the Mayor’s Viaduct plans in return.

Notorious for his ethical ambivalence, Selig’s standard business practice seems to be predicated on the assumption that fighting long past-due bills costs far less than the profit to be earned from investing the money elsewhere. Back in 2004 it took a strongly worded shut-off notice sent to Selig’s tenants to force him to pay a $950,000 Seattle City Light bill, but unsuspecting vendors, contractors and partners who lack such leverage are apparently forced to accept pennies on the dollar, or pursue their accounts receivable in court.

And yet Selig, routinely unable to to pay his own bills, somehow managed to scrape up $927,000 in spare change to spend on an initiative to repeal the estate tax, and hundreds of thousands of dollars more killing the Monorail.

Already the Pro-Rebuild Alliance’s largest donor, you can be certain Selig is willing to spend plenty more to assure that a massive, double-decker freeway continues to run through Seattle’s waterfront. And to finance his civic participation, you can be sure that some contractor or vendor somewhere is going to be stiffed this month by Martin Selig.