I'm Bored, I'm Chairman of the Bored

Let's take this week's city council meeting scheduled today, Nov. 28, 2012.  There is nothing on the agenda.  Just as well to not have to sit through hours of Jim droning on, Mark mouthing catch phrases, Kristin moving forward (using hand gestures) and Jerome's sarcasm.

This very last meeting is really a lame duck meeting. Anything that is really outstanding for the agenda is best dealt with after Dec. 11, with the changing of the council members and selecting a new mayor and deputy mayor.

And James Bond will no doubt be fêted yet again.  Just how many of these is this town going to plan?  The image above represents the apathy cheerleader - fitting for this mood of boredom.  It also fits James Bond to a tee.  He had hundreds of ways to describe why people shouldn't bother to come to city council meetings, attend workshops or be engaged as a voter.  He could ramble on for 10 minutes or more about how he once bothered and learned it just didn't matter. Change is impossible and it's best to trust those on the dais.  Move along folks . . .

Sixteen years were already too long, James Bond knew this and decided not to run in 2008. Then at the last minute his vanity or some other bad influence led him back into election campaign mode. This was way past Bond's sell-by date and the community had to wait it out, as did staff and colleagues. 

Once or twice this year he did halt the juggernaut that Stocks and Gaspar created together with their leadership positions in running the meeting to serve their own ends. We can thank him for that. So, let the guy have his last bows tonight.

Boredom is from more than this meeting tonight.  Where is it written that the binge consumption - be it holiday foods, retail products or entertainment be practically the only news of the day?  It is a real feeling of drift to be secular, not participating in holiday and generally a non-consumer.  Possibly it is also the after effects of Manchester buying up NCT and Patch editor Marlena Medford turning over that role to Daniel Woolfolk. *Sigh*

Then there is the shitstorm of misinformation, hysteria, silliness and sex in the MSM that drives one to drink or otherwise shut down mental function to survive.  General's genital drama, Twinkies, Grand Bargain, War on Christmas, War on Men versus real undeclared and unaccountable Drone Wars and Murder of Gaza and Climate Change.  Maybe this backdrop of crazy and horror just exaggerates the dearth of local stories.

Lastly, it has been a reoccurring thought for some years now that we have got it totally wrong.  If you observe nature all around it's apparent that this is a time to turn inward and to slow down.  The days are short and the nights are long.  It is a time to conserve energy as it gets cooler.  It is a time for interactions to dramatically drop off, for sleeping longer hours and needing less to eat with the minimal energy expended.  These messages are everywhere in the trees, the birds, critters and waterways. 

So, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.  There will most likely be light posting from now until Our Mayor goes dark on Winter Solstice, something we all share whether we celebrate or not. 

h/t Iggy Pop for title

Petty to the Bitter End

   Update below - omitted clip added

Last Wednesday, Nov. 14, was the first council meeting since the election when our Mayor Stocks was voted out of office by Encinitas voters.

Was there a statement from the dais from Our Mayor Stocks? No congratulations for the new candidates or their campaigns or concession words were offered.  Nothing at the beginning of the meeting where he has often spoken off the cuff or at the end in a personal word while reporting on boards.  No, not even a statement following the several oral communications speakers whose comments contained election tactics, electorate reactions, compliments to the candidates, praise for Barth and chastising Stocks.  Of course it is ridiculous after 12 years to expect grace or the high moral ground from Jerome. Zero . . . beyond, Thank you for your comments.

Sadly, the criteria for success for Stocks has become whether or not he was rude, patronizing or dismissive.  By that standard this next to the last meeting was a success.

The rest of the meeting was devoted to financial housekeeping issues of no great importance for debate and discussion.  Someone from the public did pull item #5 from the consent calendar (meaning general administrative issue). This item was a request by Crown Castle to mount a telecomunications device on the utility pole on Blue Heron Ave. The agenda packet describes this, but it was presented as simply a contract issue of an additional device. This meant no discussion of technical or functioning was supposed to be allowed.  Although this makes sense in an efficient approach to addressing regular housekeeping chores; this kind of narrow agenda definition has been favored by the council majority for years to keep volatile public protest off limits.

The three clips that follow speak to the petitioning neighbors rejection of this staff recommendation for an added device.  Their concerns are clearly laid out and at the most basic level ask they their concerns be taken seriously.  As the Jennifer Brimley the last public speaker below so aptly states, "This is your community too and you represent us, not Crown Castle."

Jim Madaffer representing Crown Castle presents what is essentially an argument that says, this is inevitable so get used to it. Plus this rather specious claim that radiation is not the issue, the health and safety issue is having enough of these - for emergencies.

Finally in this lineup is the Jennifer Brimley clip that challenges the Crown Castle's dismissal of transmission concerns among other points. She cites "Full Signal" the documentary that exposes the underlying financial criteria for the proliferation of these devices under the guise of legitimate need. The documentary movie website states:

"Full Signal examines the contradiction between health and finance, one of the many ironies of the fight to regulate antenna placement."

Councilwoman Barth voted against this with the straightforward fact, "The need hasn't been demonstrated to me." She discussed the previous council discussions in Sept. concerning Castle Group and the reasoning for coverage. Her request for clarification from the expert brought the Catch 22 answer that you'll have to listen to yourself to decipher.

Update 11/18/12: The following clip was accidentally left off and has been embedded again.




The pettiness that the title of this post asserts is this. If the council majority would simply reject the recommendation, no dire consequences would follow beyond annoyance for the vendor and maybe the staff. There would be time for the new council to look at the petitioners' request regarding DAS in terms of views, property values and health concerns. A chance for staff and the Environmental Commission to review research and the documentary film Brimley cites.

Stocks and Bond had no compelling reason to disregard the public's request. They are finished. It was petty. And it typifies the 20 year history of voting against public will and public concerns on behalf of for-profit private sector interests.

Blog Note: The final days for Our Mayor Stocks and this blog using Jerome Stocks name and title will probably reflect his silent skulking. But, one never knows if the big shouty part of his demeanor will show itself in the next several weeks. There is no reason to believe Jerome will leave politics, so it's impossible to predict what's next.

Put a Fork in Him - He's Done

After a water report in the opening minutes of last night's meeting, the regular old man yarns of the past (bleeding away time and patience); Jim Bond decided he'd go home rather than listen to the last 10 speakers who had to wait until the end of the meeting for a turn at the podium.  Nobody cares what I have to say or something like that were his last words. Diva Bond has only 2 more meetings on city council. 

2009 Cartoon Parody in Real Time - REDUX

The Crest Drive Appeal brought 30 public speakers before the city council last Wednesday night, August 15 to defend the historic pines and vegetation along their street.  When reviewing the various city council member's discussion it was clear the parody from Leucadia blog in 2009 was being acted out in real time. The images from the 2009 Encinitas City Council Guide are included after each clip from last Wednesday.   What do you think?

"Jerome Stocks is Eddie Haskell. He has a tendency for being insincerely courteous. When the spotlight is turned off his true side comes out. He is the most willing council member to put his own fortunes ahead of the citizens, and he does that in the backroom as much as possible so he doesn't have to take responsibility."

 

"Jim Bond is Grandpa Simpson. Grandpa Simpson might have been a mover and shaker when young and still eager. He still belts out some classic lines of wisdom from time to time, but he is worn out. Expect him to provide a guiding hand on the lucky occasion, but he is over it. His heart is the right place but there is no leadership left in him."

 "Teresa Barth is Lois Lane from Superman I. Not just on the job, but eager to dig in and get to the bottom of the story and then do something about it. From an outside perspective some of her interactions might seem awkward or uncomfortable, but that is because she is so focused on the big story and has that in mind." 

It was fun to revist that lively period in Leucadia blog's history.   Ironically this parody was published on the same night that the great Leucadia tree cutting at Orpheus Park brought a crowd to city hall speaking out for the beloved trees in the neighborhood. Three more years with the council majority in control has meant very little has changed.