Category Archives: Ruminations

Government, LocalPolitics, Ruminations

Catch the NextBus

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I’m curious about both the process our town went through selecting NextBus, Inc. and the “real-world” results of other communities.

I’ll be documenting more of what I find over the next couple days, including why the town’s Technology advisory board, in spite of staff knowing of our particular interest in this technology, was shut out of the decision-making process.

To start with, here’s the manager’s recommendation to purchase NextBus’s system. I haven’t found any other online materials documenting the criteria, methodology and test results of the trial comparisons.

While “googling” NextBus, I accidentally ran into this bit of data:

MARESCA, JAMES F. – SAN FRANCISCO,CA 94118 – NEXTBUS/EXECUTIVE

Date Amount Recipient
3/22/2002 $1,000 Price, David
6/5/2002 $500 Price, David
6/24/2002 $500 Price, David
6/24/2002 ($500) Price, David

Documented here, here and here.

One of the lobbyist for NextBus at the time, Charles S. Walsh of FLEISCHMAN & WALSH , also made a 9/16/2002 donation of $1,000 to Price.

[ UPDATE: ] Turns out two lobbyists from Fleischman & Walsh gave $1,000. Aaron Fleischman gave $1,000 on 06/05/2002.

Walsh, Charles S. Fleischman & Walsh LLP/Attorney 1,000 G 09/16/2002 Annapolis MD 21401
Fleischman, Aaron Fleischman and Walsh LLP/Attorney 1,000 P 06/05/2002 Washington DC 20008

NextBus only retained FLEISCHMAN & WALSH 2001-2003 in which they paid $20K in 2001, $100K in 2002 and $80K in 2003.

The only other Congressman to receive NextBus executive’s direct largesse, Tom Davis, Republican representative for Virginia’s 11th district, got $1,000 in 2002.

This is only of interest in light of the recent HeraldSun article on the NextBus purchase:

Federal money helped fund the bulk of the $949,025 project, he said.

“This was something that Rep. David Price’s [D-4th district] office became involved in, that there were federal dollars available for transit enhancement,” Neufang said. “We’re very appreciative that Cong. Price has assisted us in this process.”

and the comment in the manager’s recommendation:

In 2003, Congressman David Price obtained for the Town an earmark grant for an Intelligent Transportation System deployment program. The funds were to be used for obtaining a Real Time Passenger Information System for Chapel Hill Transit.

While 2002 was just a year before the initial run at doing this project, it has been quite awhile ago and both Maresca and FLEISCHMAN & WALSH have long moved on.

Government, Ruminations

Sandy Carmany’s Balancing Act

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Sandy Carmany, District 5 representative for the Greensboro City Council, has set a high standard of public outreach for elected officials with her ‘blog .

This blog is my attempt to have an ongoing dialog with citizens and keep you up to date on issues I deal with on the Greensboro City Council and other governmental bodies on which I serve. I hope to provide information and details so you will know “the rest of the story.”

She started her grand experiment March 17th, 2005

Thanks to the urging and encouragement from numerous bloggers, I am going to attempt to publish this blog and focus on the various issues I must deal with as a Greensboro City Council member. I hope to explain my stands on issues and solicit your input and concerns in order to make more informed decisions.

I’ve followed the travails of Greensboro’s Council, via Sandy’s ‘blog, almost from day one. She’s eloquent, detailed and timely. And, quite obviously, dedicated.

But now she’s taking a step back to re-balance her commitment.

“I can either do my job or write about it, but I can’t do BOTH effectively right now,”

Quite right, I understand that problem.

So does Greensboro ‘blog guru Ed Cone.

She’s overwhelmed by the demands of answering detailed questions on complex issues. She’s tired as well of the pissy little reprimands for things like not responding fast enough to comments to suit some of her readers.

I don’t blame her a bit.

But, he understands, as do many other local ‘bloggers do, the “power of this medium” and believes Carmany will rise again:

I’m sure Carmany will keep blogging, because she’s a pragmatist and she gets the power of this medium. We’re lucky to have her in Greensboro, and we need more of what she’s doing, not less.

She’s a shining light in a landscape populated by politicians unwilling to effectively reach out to their constituencies.

I hope Sandy will rediscover her balance soon.

Government, Ruminations

Where’s the Thrill of Apple Chill?

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I’ve attended Apple Chill and Festifall since their inception.

In years past it was a local affair – local folk displaying local crafts to other local folk.

That’s not the case anymore. I spent 3 hours on a beautiful afternoon walking around Downtown looking at the motorcycles, listening to a bit of music, eating at a local restaurant (foregoing the funnel cakes), buying a couple of $5 lemonades for the kids and tossing $10 away on the inflated attractions.

Other than running into a few ‘blogging-folk (Mark,BrianR,Ruby,Paul), getting a chance to talk to a number of local activists (Jack, JanetK) and visits to a few community organization booths (Community Independent School), it just wasn’t that interesting or fun.

Yes, there were a few more local shops open this year but, based on my informal survey, the vast majority of street vendors continue to be from out-of-town (heck, out-of-county). The same for visitors.

As I sit here, 11:15pm on a Sunday night, listening to the continued reverberating echoes of sirens on MLK Blvd. – sirens going on since late this afternoon – with the news of two separate shooting events (2 folks down @ 9:30pm, another just discovered in a parked car), reports of numerous violations and arrests, I realize I’m probably hearing the beginning of the end of these town festivals.

Last year I suggested we rethink the festivals in light of the minimal local participation, the financial outlays (a dedicated festival planner – $100/150K of police, fire and public services costs per event) and the concerns of some of Franklin St. business owners.

Tonight, I’ll join with Lex and the rest of the West End Group in calling for an immediate re-evaluation of these festivals.

If we can return them to their roots, maybe amp up the cultural and community outreach and reduce both the size and cost, then I can see their continued value.

As of now, we cannot continue “business as usual”.

Government, Ruminations, Technology

Wifi – For a few dollars less….

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One of the issues the soon to be disbanded Technology Committee discussed in the last year was a proposal for digital signs along our bus transit routes to report bus ETAs.

Just a week after voting to dissolve the group, the Town is poised to make an extremely expensive technology mistake.

While other municipalities, like Portsmouth UK, with 305 buses, and Cedar Rapids, with a planned 50 bus deployment, are getting security, digital ETA and both fixed and mobile Internet access, we’re about to spend $950K of Federal monies on a proprietary, single-use system from NextBus, Inc.

From the April 23rd HeraldSun:

Kurt Neufang, interim director of Chapel Hill Transit, which serves Chapel Hill, Carrboro and the UNC campus, said the digital information signs will help make the system more convenient for riders. Neufang said he hopes the signs will be installed and working by August.

“We’re trying to get it done before the beginning of the [fall] semester,” Neufang said.

Federal money helped fund the bulk of the $949,025 project, he said.

Nothing like over paying big bucks for the privilege of proprietary technology lock-in.

Why “for a few dollars less”?

Cedar Rapids is spending $125K on their 7 mile long system covering more stops, with security, mobile access and the capability for their Motorola mesh network to carry police, fire and other first-responder network traffic.

Another example of the wasted opportunity: St. Cloud, Florida

  • $4,000,000 cumulative ANNUAL savings to the community! [link]
  • 28,000 residents
  • 10,000 households
  • 15 square miles
  • $200 per household one time capital cost, $3.33 operational cost/month
  • FREE high speed access

So, for about twice the cost of 14 digital bus stop signs the community of St. Cloud is getting town-wide ubiquitous FREE high speed broadband.

Just a great example of how a citizen’s board can intervene before the Town makes a seriously expensive technology expenditure mistake.

I’ll be trying, as a citizen, to get our Council to try an approach that maximizes the use of these funds, to reconsider NextBus and to substitute a solution that delivers much more for the citizen’s dollar.

[UPDATE:] Saw this article on St. Cloud’s initial rollout. There’s been a few bumps on the road but the first 45 days of service are quite impressive: “50,000 users sessions…just 842 help line calls….3,500 registered users and 176,189 hours of usage.”

The Technology Board discussed educational strategies for making sure the citizenry’s initial expectations aligned with the reality of any initial technology rollout.

[UPDATE:] Spoke with Cedar Rapid’s Five Seasons Parking and Transportation about their system. Short story: ETA works, realtime security video doesn’t, few folk using mobile Internet capability, educational effort ongoing. Portsmouth UK is a model I think we should investigate seriously.

CivilLiberties, Government, Ruminations, Technology

Net neutrality at risk…

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The ‘net is the new Town Commons and the commons are under attack from the same feckless monopolists that charge us $200 billion in excess fees under the ’96 Telecommunications Act provisions to provide high-speed symetrical broadband but instead pilfered the bucks.

The latest offense? Throttling ubiquitous access to ‘net-based services.

Local audio activist and muni-network proponent BrianR has covered the salient issues quite well.

If you want a 2-minute video synopsis, here’s a clip from MyDD.

A Chapel Hill municipally-sponsored network will help keep the commons free for all. Next month, if all goes well, a public forum will be held on the benfits of citizen-owned communications.

CivilLiberties, Government, Ruminations, Technology

As long as men are free to ask what they must, free to say what they think, free to think what they will, freedom can never be lost

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Via Bora at Science and Politics

Julius Robert Oppenheimer was born at New York City on this day in 1904. In school he took the math and science classes befitting his early genius, but he really thrived on languages. He was known to learn a language just to read a single book in the original language, and he once accepted a speaking assignment in the Netherlands that allowed only six weeks to learn the language before his presentation. He graduated from Harvard, but language was no barrier to getting his PhD in Germany before taking teaching positions at Berkeley and Cal Tech. He was tapped to head the Manhattan Project to build the first US atomic bombs, but like many of the brilliant characters involved, he chose to examine the ethics of creating such weapons. In the anti-communist furor of the early fifties, Oppenheimer was stripped of his security clearance, which ended his influence on science policy:

This is a world in which each of us, knowing his limitations, knowing the evils of superficiality and the terrors of fatigue, will have to cling to what is close to him, to what he knows, to what he can do, to his friends and his tradition and his love, lest he be dissolved in a universal confusion and know nothing and love nothing.

There must be no barriers for freedom of inquiry. There is no place for dogma in science. The scientist is free, and must be free to ask any question, to doubt any asssertion, to seek for any evidence, to correct any errors.

We knew the world could not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried. Most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad Gita: “I am became Death, the destroyers of worlds.” I suppose we all thought that, one way or another.

As long as men are free to ask what they must, free to say what they think, free to think what they will, freedom can never be lost and science can never regress.

The optimist thinks this is the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears it is true.

– All from J. Robert Oppenheimer, 1904 – 1967

Where are today’s Oppenheimers?

With the current mad-ministrations reckless desire to wave a nuclear wand over Iran, and its history of scientific disregard, I guess even an modern-day Oppenheimer might not even be able to dissuade them from their madness.

CivilLiberties, Ruminations

Holy Blogitude?

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I follow former local blogger Justin Watt’s Justinsomnia daily, if for no other reason than to meditate over his California dreamin’ pictures.

About 3 weeks ago Justin hit a small speed bump in the blogverse when his parody of a Exodus International billboard generated his first cease-and-desist demand.

You see, Exodus is dedicated to “freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ.”

Today, the ACLU responded to Exodus’ complaint.

Seems that it’s still OK to make fun of ignorance and bigotry.

Amen!

Ruminations

Holy blogitude Batman!

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One of my all time favorite online diarist is ae of arsepoetica. She’s elevated sharpened commentary on Herr Dim Son to a high art.

Now, after a bit of the SxSW ‘blogger koolaid db has entered the fray.

Welcome db.

Here’s some of the other local folk well worth reading (far from exhaustive, presented in no particular order):

arse poetica Eclectic commentary on the world and national politics.

OrangePolitics.org Our local progressive political salon.

SqueeeeeezeThePulp Our other local political hotspot.

GreeneSpace Erudite and dense intellectual observations on new urbanism, history, Virginia Woolf and the occassional local political fracas. Each post an education

Is That Legal? Eric’s the man! Legal and historical perspectives on current affronts to our civil liberties plus dead-on commentary of the local scene.

Audio Activism BrianR’s meme – podcasting is a means for social justice.

mistersugar Anton is our local communications dynamo – Blogtogether organizer, teacher, storyteller.

dent Our invaluable IndyWeek’s scurrilous political pamphleteering.

Blogads Henry’s business model keeps many ‘blogs alive.

The Real Paul Jones Paul’s been networked from day one. Must read for keeping up on local and international trends in tech, civil liberties, poetry and local events.

Science And Politics Bora is a Red-State Serbian Jewish atheist liberal PhD student with Thesis-writing block and severe blogorrhea trying to understand US politics by making strange connections between science, religion, brain, language and sex.

Local Ecology Policy wonk Teri’s perspective on local government, cats and ecology.

roy: danger smells like clean socks Roy’s created a community infrastructure, Tabulas, that gives voice to many (an unsung hero).

Dave Johnson’s Blogging Roller Dave’s like Roy with corporate support. Mr. Roller’s software provides the plumbing for both Sun’s and IBM’s blogging communities (scary!). Java, OSS and all-things blogging.

Rantingprofs In case you didn’t read your daily NY Times. Commentary from a “different” perspective ;-)!

Josh Staiger Personal and professional observations from a local IBMr 😉

Mente Videbor David’s diary of his local run for office.

FORTH GO Xan mixes reviews of local arts with forays into statistics, Java and Hegelian heuristics.

Ruminations

SxSW – So you want to be a Rockstar Journalist?

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Advice to Rockstar Journalist wannabees:

  • Net-wise, we’re living in a Web 2.0 self-serve world. Better learn online email, blogging and pod/video-casting.
  • Don’t whine when the new kids beat you to the story!
  • Who cares about print bylines anymore? Develop your personal brand online: ‘blog every chance you get.
  • Either work for folk without paywalls, change those folks minds or end-run your paymasters by “broadcasting” your personal content elsewhere (see: developing your own brand).
  • Repurpose, refresh and extend your personal content – it’s the long tail of your brand.
  • Don’t blame tech support for your lack of initiative Mr. Wannabee Rockstar Journalist – it’s a new media world, time to embrace the change and ride the wave.

Don’t want to change? Great! I understand they always need folks to write the obits.

A little objective advice based on observations of a slew of media-critters at both SxSWi and SxSW proper.

Ruminations

UNC Carolina North: Old Dog, Old Tricks?

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Barry Jacobs doesn’t get it.

Barry Jacobs, chairman of the Orange County commissioners and a committee member, said he is not as concerned about UNC-CH leaders wielding undue influence.

“I don’t see what there is to conspire about behind closed doors because I don’t have to agree to anything, and I don’t have to be railroaded into anything,” he said, adding that he doesn’t think Broun “has any bad intentions.”

Jacobs, responding in today’s (soon to be paywalled) N&O article on allowing private consultations between Broun and UNC administrators, is off by 180 degrees.

This isn’t about railroading, this is about adhering to a commitment to have a free and transparent flow of information between partners. Previous conversations on Carolina North have deadlocked in misunderstandings because of the “surprise” introduction of principles/designs/desires late in the process.

This new effort – as well-advertised by Broun and Moeser – was to be different. Transparency was supposed to “grease the wheels”. Openess was part-n-parcel of a new style of collaboration.

Unfortunately, it appears Moeser’s folk have fallen back on old habits. I hope this is just a bump in the road – not a sign of a long trail of obfuscatory difficulties.

Barry, I expect better from a long-elected guy. Please don’t forget that closed doors are an anathema to open governance.

Ruminations

SxSW Day 1.3 – Stirling Sterling?

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Will Bruce Sterling be able to harness the waste heat generated by all of SxSWi’s “monetizing our customers” discussions and drive the conference to a successful conclusion?

5 minutes from now I should begin to know.

[UPDATE: Podcast of Sterling’s speech.]

Web 2.0, the most important Internet innovation since the browser.

Welcome to the Web 2.0 bubble…

[SxSWi] a celebration of commons-based web production…

Web sites that throw open APIs and become platforms – how do you explain that?

Why do towns have to deploy wifi? It’s a sign of Federal incompetence!

My shoes are in Slovavakia but I live out of my laptop, an increasing number of us do…

Nobody notices I’ve left Austin? I see America as %94 of the rest of the world does…

America appears like the last reels of Gone with the Wind…

Americans even look different now – I see them in Europe now – it’s like they’ve been poisoned – they’re swollen – they look like they’re going to pop…

I now understand our conflict – it isn’t a war – there’s no ranks – it’s the “Disorder” – there’s no pride in serving in war against “Disorder” because the war on disorder is a war on pride…

Gibson said “the Street finds its own uses for things – uses the manufacturers never imagined.” but we’re in a day when we need to understand how “the Street” uses things, what uses they’ve imagined.

The unthinkable and unimaginable don’t mean the end. If you put Mao in today’s China [he’d] find it unthinkable – how did it get this way?

Spime – a word I created a couple years ago, but now I realize it’s not a word, it’s a tag…

Spime – an object that has a chip that describes itself, a gps that locates it precisely, a search engine,parts that can be deconstructed – its bits tagged, reusable, reconstructable. It’s 3d modelled before it’s built – it’s initial reality is virtual reality. Spimes begin and end as data.

Why spimes? Because spimes makeup an Internet of Things. Why spimes? Because I no longer have to inventory my objects – if I need to find my shoes in the morning I just google them….

The Semantic Web is turning into a syntactic wetlands…words are turned into memes [via collaborative tags]

The cure for terror stampede today is a historic perspective…

[WillR – With passion and trembling voice, Sterling speaks: ]

Historical perspective from 1937 – carl sandburg – “the people yes, the people will live, the learning and blundering people…will live on…they will be tricked… you can’t laugh off their capacity to take it….”

The people yes
The people will live on.
The learning and blundering people will live on.
They will be tricked and sold and again sold
And go back to the nourishing earth for rootholds,
The people so peculiar in renewal and comeback,
You can't laugh off their capacity to take it.
The mammoth rests between his cyclonic dramas.

The people so often sleepy, weary, enigmatic,
is a vast huddle with many units saying:
"I earn my living.
I make enough to get by
and it takes all my time.
If I had more time
I could do more for myself
and maybe for others.
I could read and study
and talk things over
and find out about things.
It takes time.
I wish I had the time."

The people is a tragic and comic two-face: hero and hoodlum:
phantom and gorilla twisting to moan with a gargoyle mouth:
"They buy me and sell me...it's a game...sometime I'll
break loose..."

..... Man is a long time coming.
Man will yet win.
Brother may yet line up with brother:

This old anvil laughs at many broken hammers.
There are men who can't be bought.
The fireborn are at home in fire.
The stars make no noise,
You can't hinder the wind from blowing.
Time is a great teacher.
Who can live without hope?

In the darkness with a great bundle of grief
the people march.
In the night, and overhead a shovel of stars for keeps, the people
march:

“Where to? what next?”

More of the Sandburg excerpt.