This page contains a single entry from the blog posted on February 19, 2008 7:30 AM.
The previous post in this blog was Not so graet.
The next post in this blog is Cruise on the River Styx.
Many more can be found on the main index page or by looking through the archives.
I've been studying the upcoming Portland City Council race that pits a slew of newbies against each other to take over the seat currently being warmed by Sam the Tram. I see real value in the candidacies of Amanda Fritz and Charles Lewis. And above all, I think it would be a disaster if Chris "Streetcar" Smith was elected.
In figuring out for whom to vote, I can't help but do a little strategizing. Given the crowd of candidates with equal war chests of public tax dollars thanks to "voter-owed elections," it's almost a sure thing that there's going to be a runoff. And if Smith made it to that stage, I'd want to be darn sure that his opponent in the head-to-head general election would beat him.
But as between Lewis and Fritz, who would stand the better chance of doing that? Despite Fritz's loss to Big Pipe Saltzman last time around, she does have name familiarity now, and lots of neighborhood association types know her. That may be what it would take to beat Smith, who seems to have nothing better to do but go to wonky meetings and shill for the condo-streetcar cabal. On the other hand, Lewis would provide a real breath of fresh air, and he knows how to work a crowd. He'd leave Smith panting, trying to keep up with him.
What do you think?
(Hey, do all the candidates in that race now have to count this poll as an "in-kind contribution" to their campaigns?)
UPDATE, 8:37 p.m.: Here's something else that I must consider.
Comments (12)
Chris Smith is Sam Adams' right hand man.
In the story below, citiens get an example of more to come.
The Residents along the I-Max are now beginning to see how the I-Max Light Rail line
will preserve their neighborhood, by adding 10 story mixed use buildings and Density Mandates!
Get Ready Milwaukie! Metro, Tri-Met and many of your city Council are not talking about this!
-----------------------quotes from the story----------------
"Few who live in nearby neighborhoods really understand the impact the new
zoning will have "
"But at least two members of the citizen advisory group that helped the city draft the
new zoning plan are concerned that few residents have caught on."
" While the new plan forInterstate is aimed at boosting commerce, pedestrian traffic,
MAX ridership and housing density, the degree of change suggested for new
construction in now-residential neighborhoods isn’t always obvious."
“I’m just getting to the point where I know what’s going on and it’s too late,” said Tabor
Porter, also on the community advisory group.
“It will basically ruin my house. If they build right up to the line, I don’t know what I’ll do,”
I agree with most of Amanda's positions, and she'd be a huge improvement, but I've seen her at meetings and she can come off as strange and abrasive. Last time I saw her, she ripped into Sam Adams at his safe street meeting, and while I agreed with what she said, the way she said it was offensive. People spoke up to distance themselves from her. Not politically savvy.
I know that "fixing potholes" is an expansive euphemism for several things in Portland. I know that Amanda needs to start talking common sense and I am glad that Lewis is already doing so, and well. Now we need the media to start asking and reporting the real news about Portland's dilemmas.
My take on Fritz is that she's far too enamored of "process" and far too removed from "non-activists"
Almost by definition, "activists" require far less, if any, sensitivity on the part of their representatives. The trick (apparently) is to be able to balance the needs of those who have a voice; NA's, etc., and those who naively believe that city government has their best interests at heart.
Again, I'd like to think Lewis can walk that tightrope, but don't know that much about him.
Too bad Portland doesn't use instant runoff voting, where you rank the candidates in the order you prefer them.
With IRV, you would save money (both on the voter-owned-elections fund and you would only need to pay for one round of ballots and counting), and you could rank both your favorites ahead of Smith, or leave him off entirely.
Charamba, Douro 2008
Horse Heaven Hills, Cabernet 2010
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills Pinot Grigio 2011
Avignonesi, Montepulciano 2004
Lorelle, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2011
Villa Antinori, Toscana 2007
Mercedes Eguren, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Lorelle, Columbia Valley Cabernet 2011
Purple Moon, Merlot 2011
Purple Moon, Chardonnnay 2011
Abacela, Vintner's Blend No. 12
Opula Red Blend 2010
Liberte, Pinot Noir 2010
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Indian Wells Red Blend 2010
Woodbridge, Chardonnay 2011
King Estate, Pinot Noir 2011
Famille Perrin, Cotes du Rhone Villages 2010
Columbia Crest, Les Chevaux Red 2010
14 Hands, Hot to Trot White Blend
Familia Bianchi, Malbec 2009
Terrapin Cellars, Pinot Gris 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2009
Campo Viejo, Rioja, Termpranillo 2010
Ravenswood, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2010
Waterbrook, Reserve Merlot 2009
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills, Pinot Grigio 2011
Tarantas, Rose
Chateau Lajarre, Bordeaux 2009
La Vielle Ferme, Rose 2011
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio 2011
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir 2009
Lello, Douro Tinto 2009
Quinson Fils, Cotes de Provence Rose 2011
Anindor, Pinot Gris 2010
Buenas Ondas, Syrah Rose 2010
Les Fiefs d'Anglars, Malbec 2009
14 Hands, Pinot Gris 2011
Conundrum 2012
Condes de Albarei, Albariño 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2007
Penelope Sanchez, Garnacha Syrah 2010
Canoe Ridge, Merlot 2007
Atalaya do Mar, Godello 2010
Vega Montan, Mencia
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2009
Portuga, Rose 2011
Revelation, Chardonnay, Pays d'Oc 2010
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 2005
Monte Alto, Tinto Reserva 2005
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Cabernet, Indian Wells 2009
Espiral, Vinho Rose
Vin-Koru, Pinot Gris 2011
14 Hands, Hot to Trot Red 2009
Rodney Strong, Cabernet, Sonoma 2009
Abacela, Vintner's Blend #11
Portuga, White 2010
La Bourgeoisie, Red 2009
Januik, Red 2009
Three Rivers, River's Red 2008
Kirkland, Alexander Valley Merlot 2008
Muga, Rioja Rose 2010
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2009
Mauro Molino, Barbera d'Alba 2009
Garda Chiaretto Rose
Columbia Crest, Two Vines Vineyard 10 White
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Pinot Gris, Columbia Valley 2009
L'Hortus, Rose de Saignee 2010
Maculan, Pino & Toi 2008
McKinley Springs, Bombing Range Red 2008
Trader Joe's Pinot Gris 2009
Montes Alpha, Cabernet 2007
Gran Sasso, Sangiovese, Terre di Chieti 2009
Garda, Classico Chiaretto Rose
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 1999
Picos del Montgo, Tempranillo 2008
Chateau de Montmirail, Vacqueyras 2008
La Granja 360, Syrah 2009
Montgras, Carmenere Reserva 2009
Lange, Pinot Gris 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet 2008
Kirkland, Pinot Grigio 2010
Trader Joe's Coastal Syrah 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Merlot 2008
Trader Joe's Coastal Chardonnay 2009
Vieux Papes Red
Domaine de l'Aujardiere, Chardonnay 2009
Santa Rita, Cabernet, Medalla Real 2007
Penfold's, Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet 2008
Guild, Red, Lot #02 2008
Dievole, Dievolino Sangiovese 2008
Laforet, Burgogne Chardonnay 2009
Columbia Winery, Merlot 2007
Bonterra, Cabernet 2008
Elk Cove, Pinot Gris 2009
Maquis Lien 2006
Scott Paul, Pinot Noir, Le Paulee 2007
The Occasional Book
Neil Young - Waging Heavy Peace
Mark Bego - Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul (2012 ed.)
Jenny Lawson - Let's Pretend This Never Happened
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol
Timothy Egan - The Big Burn
Deborah Eisenberg - Transactions in a Foreign Currency
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. - Slaughterhouse Five
Kathryn Lance - Pandora's Genes
Cheryl Strayed - Wild
Fyodor Dostoyevsky - The Brothers Karamazov
Jack London - The House of Pride, and Other Tales of Hawaii
Jack Walker - The Extraordinary Rendition of Vincent Dellamaria
Colum McCann - Let the Great World Spin
Niccolò Machiavelli - The Prince
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus - The Nanny Diaries
Brian Selznick - The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Sharon Creech - Walk Two Moons
Keith Richards - Life
F. Sionil Jose - Dusk
Natalie Babbitt - Tuck Everlasting
Justin Halpern - S#*t My Dad Says
Mark Herrmann - The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law
Barry Glassner - The Gospel of Food
Phil Stanford - The Peyton-Allan Files
Jesse Katz - The Opposite Field
Evelyn Waugh - Brideshead Revisited
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
David Sedaris - Holidays on Ice
Donald Miller - A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
Mitch Albom - Have a Little Faith
C.S. Lewis - The Magician's Nephew
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Shakespeare - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Ivan Doig - Bucking the Sun
Penda Diakité - I Lost My Tooth in Africa
Grace Lin - The Year of the Rat
Oscar Hijuelos - Mr. Ives' Christmas
Madeline L'Engle - A Wrinkle in Time
Steven Hart - The Last Three Miles
David Sedaris - Me Talk Pretty One Day
Karen Armstrong - The Spiral Staircase
Charles Larson - The Portland Murders
Adrian Wojnarowski - The Miracle of St. Anthony
William H. Colby - Long Goodbye
Steven D. Stark - Meet the Beatles
Phil Stanford - Portland Confidential
Rick Moody - Garden State
Jonathan Schwartz - All in Good Time
David Sedaris - Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Anthony Holden - Big Deal
Robert J. Spitzer - The Spirit of Leadership
James McManus - Positively Fifth Street
Jeff Noon - Vurt
Road Work
Miles run year to date: 21
At this date last year: 52
Total run in 2012: 129
In 2011: 113
In 2010: 125
In 2009: 67
In 2008: 28
In 2007: 113
In 2006: 100
In 2005: 149
In 2004: 204
In 2003: 269
Comments (12)
Chris Smith is Sam Adams' right hand man.
In the story below, citiens get an example of more to come.
The Residents along the I-Max are now beginning to see how the I-Max Light Rail line
will preserve their neighborhood, by adding 10 story mixed use buildings and Density Mandates!
Get Ready Milwaukie! Metro, Tri-Met and many of your city Council are not talking about this!
-----------------------quotes from the story----------------
"Few who live in nearby neighborhoods really understand the impact the new
zoning will have "
"But at least two members of the citizen advisory group that helped the city draft the
new zoning plan are concerned that few residents have caught on."
" While the new plan forInterstate is aimed at boosting commerce, pedestrian traffic,
MAX ridership and housing density, the degree of change suggested for new
construction in now-residential neighborhoods isn’t always obvious."
“I’m just getting to the point where I know what’s going on and it’s too late,” said Tabor
Porter, also on the community advisory group.
“It will basically ruin my house. If they build right up to the line, I don’t know what I’ll do,”
http://www.portlandtribune.com/news/story.php?story_id=120337022123416100
Plan puts Interstate roofs on the rise
Committee worries public still unaware of zoning changes
By Lee van der Voo
The Portland Tribune, Feb 19, 2008
Posted by Hal | February 19, 2008 9:24 AM
I agree with most of Amanda's positions, and she'd be a huge improvement, but I've seen her at meetings and she can come off as strange and abrasive. Last time I saw her, she ripped into Sam Adams at his safe street meeting, and while I agreed with what she said, the way she said it was offensive. People spoke up to distance themselves from her. Not politically savvy.
Posted by J | February 19, 2008 9:34 AM
I'd like to think Lewis is "real".
I think Fritz is surreal. Just a Sam Adams in training.
But what do I know?
Posted by cc | February 19, 2008 11:17 AM
cc normally you and I are on the same page, but that last comment couldn't have been further from the truth.
Posted by Joey Link | February 19, 2008 1:27 PM
Either would be a huge improvement on what we have had. At least Lewis seems to be aware that we need potholes fixed, so I'll prob vote for him.
Posted by Steve | February 19, 2008 2:17 PM
Joooooeeeey!
The "truth", as you call it, is yet to be determined.
Let's agree to not.
Posted by cc | February 19, 2008 2:18 PM
I know that "fixing potholes" is an expansive euphemism for several things in Portland. I know that Amanda needs to start talking common sense and I am glad that Lewis is already doing so, and well. Now we need the media to start asking and reporting the real news about Portland's dilemmas.
Posted by Lee | February 19, 2008 2:29 PM
My take on Fritz is that she's far too enamored of "process" and far too removed from "non-activists"
Almost by definition, "activists" require far less, if any, sensitivity on the part of their representatives. The trick (apparently) is to be able to balance the needs of those who have a voice; NA's, etc., and those who naively believe that city government has their best interests at heart.
Again, I'd like to think Lewis can walk that tightrope, but don't know that much about him.
Posted by cc | February 19, 2008 3:03 PM
Too bad Portland doesn't use instant runoff voting, where you rank the candidates in the order you prefer them.
With IRV, you would save money (both on the voter-owned-elections fund and you would only need to pay for one round of ballots and counting), and you could rank both your favorites ahead of Smith, or leave him off entirely.
Posted by George Seldes | February 19, 2008 7:11 PM
With IRV, you would save money...
...and your point is?
Posted by cc | February 19, 2008 10:43 PM
You can't just vote against someone just because they favor streetcars.
Sheesh!
Posted by al m | February 20, 2008 9:15 AM
They can and they will, Al :-)
BTW - the guy who likes Streetcars is also a fan of IRV.
Posted by Chris Smith | February 20, 2008 12:44 PM