Thank you Governor Inslee...

If you would like to know what imperative Governor Jay Inslee thinks about the Columbia River Crossing and the transportation budget, please jump to about fifteen minutes into this linked video. And he also goes into what he thinks about light rail and his new transportation secretary from the Clackamas County commission..

SnoozeMedia, why do you? White courtesy phone, please...

If you take a look at the new blogging platform template being used over at the SnoozeMedia (tm) like over at the APIL or All Politics is Local  looks very similar to similar blogs hosted through Google, which I and several other local bloggers use to publish various commentaries. on various subjects. So why would the local newspaper of record want to copy the same template? or blogging platform?

Or did they move the whole blogging platform to Google's Blogger? I would curiously like to know the answer?

Portland's own Malcontent...

Well, if you need to read some one with a little bit of a nice hell bent from the multnomah village economy and axe grind, please head over to Jack Bogdanski's blog. He'll show many how it is done!

Another answer to effective transportation management?

I thought of a few things that I have thought of related to the Columbia River Crossing..

Why could we not use Ride Share with a background check system? Use a reputation based app on a cell phone and have it also based on facebook - social media connection? If someone is going in the same area as you, why not share the gas?

What happens if you have less than ten people in the same area going to an employment center in Portland or Washington County? Why can't we have a metro-wide solution of private vans operating? With the same type of cell phone app? And not leaving a van sitting idle in a parking lot when people are working eight to ten hours and then drives home?

Why can there there be multiple uses - users?

I know of the incentives from Washington State (though I have a feeling that Oregon might?) to make the transportation system better. And not require a new bridge like the Columbia River Crossing. No, I know that the different metropolitan transit agencies in the area may not like this idea since it is competition.

But if we need, we can offer special rides for the disabled if they do not fit these special vans. I know of one or two local taxi cab companies that operating in Portland and Vancouver that would just LOVE this business!

I do not care if the local transit agencies forms an inter-local agreement like they have now for transit service and light rail use in Portland for the Number 4, 65 and 44 to Jantzen Beach and Delta Park and the express service they offer from all of the different bus transit centers on this side of the river.

So I am just trying to get a conversation started? Why waste several billion dollars on this idea?

Mayor Leavitt? Why write this...

Mr. Mayor - Why write this letter, when you already know the answer?

You have been been a part of the Columbia River Crossing project process since 2004. I know, I have been around it myself and could tell you the answer you are going to get from both Department of transportations who are finding out they may not have the financial resources at either state level to pay for this project.

They will be looking at some how jury-rigging this process to some how find a way to toll as much of it as possible. Even as we speak, there are state legislators having problems with the whole eight to ten years of this process, the communication and lack of transparency.

Yes, I know how many different wonderful meetings you had to attend as a city council member, c-tran board member and a member of the SWRTC board? And you switched the deck chairs with other council members when you became mayor in 2009 to lessen your workload some. And in  2008-09, you took the role of head of the C-tran board chairmanship as well.

Watching you for some time, I even said to many people when you were speaking of the county commissioner firing squad with Dan Tonkovich, Jeanne Stewart and you were speaking to them at a very LOW point between the two during the last comprehensive plan process... Thought things might have improved a bit since two of the former members of the board have now retired and new people have taken their place through the elective process.

What my issue is with you, is why did you write this letter, when you know it probably will not it will not go any where?

Is this some type of public relations stunt like the one you pulled on Royce Pollard  to create some separation, since you both sounded so close in stature, temperament and ideas right before the election in October 2009? And you needed some type of political blow back to hurt him to make sure you would win...

Are you trying to tell us that you will be running for mayor and will kick off the start of that process and fund raising you know you will need to survive, because you had one of the most expensive races in Clark County elections for a mayor? And until the recent races of Clark County commissioners were in the hundred of thousands, you expect the paltry sum of under one hundred thousand will barely cover it?

Honestly, I cannot say much more. You have me breathless... to your reasons for writing this letter to nowhere...

Oh and by the way, PLEASE do some thing about your atrocious, not updated blog off blogspot...

Is this a REAL investigation? Try some thing bigger than a box of office supplies...

Mike Baker from the Associate Press has started a few articles on the minor points of privilege for the legislators. I don't mind if they cover things like internet access, cell phone services, laundry cleaning reciepts and MINOR expense reports.

Most of this is what? a couple million dollars or less?  I could understand going after may be a little birdy type of things like art in a politicians office, which for some might not understand that if you live over on the Washington Coast or the furthest South and North eastern remote counties, is going to be a working home in the capitol.

And stuff like these minor expenses, make remote working on legislation and state business from their home districts possible. To look decent, professional and representative of the best we have to offer in the state?

I have to say, if it were some thing seriously outrageous like a baseball stadium passing a kickback, someone getting special treatment or favors Or there was real serious issue? (hypothesizing only folks. No burning bush here...) Then there would be some burning fire under the political stakes.

I just do not understand why this reporter is going after small and petty sums. Does the reporter have better things to cook up during the legislative session?

Beliefs....

Some might say, what do you believe in? A higher power? Yourself, a faith?

Though some might say I believe in listening to others are experiencing. Because when you listen to others, you learn some thing about their pitfalls, their issues, their pain, their experiences.... And what I do not want to repeat.

You might call it, your average walking education. Learn the greatest things... And some references to a higher power, a higher spiritual awakening for some.

But I do not directly believe in a god or higher power, directly. i do love listening to various speeches and ideas related to it. There are many worldly faiths around? And they all have rich, wonderful histories.

And there are agnostics - atheistic pursuits that should be wonderfully also mentioned. With the world at the fingertips, you can find a lot about some thing through a search engine. Now you can find the same thing through social media sites... (way too many to list and changes over the microsecond?)

The reason why I love Clark County, Washington has such a wonderful history of different cultures. And being connected to a wider metropolitan area of nearly two million people, I explore the oddity every single day.

With a seven billion people and growing in the world and a further growing of the on-line life as more and more come on every day, we get to learn more and more.

And with a small, but growing international airport in Portland, right across the Columbia River, any person can travel all over the physical world and a physical presence can be had, that a network site or social media could never give.

So if you have belief in some thing, as long as you do not impose it on others, please share? You never know, I might come across you at some point in my travels.