A GOOD PEFORMANCE, FULL OF PROMISE, THUNDER AND HOPE; AND ANOTHER EVERGREEN STATER GOES TO THE WASHINGTON ON THE POTOMAC

Former Washington State Gov. Gary Locke

Well, as I’m writing this, I’m also waiting for Barack to say something that will break his rolling chain of golden eloquence. (a few minutes later) Well, turns out he didn’t and I’m some relieved. Seems to me there’s a rusty old saw someplace that says that the longer the speech, the greater the chance of blowing it big time. This president is perhaps the greatest orator we’ve ever had and likely the most closely scrutinized. No pressure there, eh? Max dropped by to watch it with me and at one point, we looked at each other and he grinned.

"The President is pissed."

"Big time."

We figured Barak had been saving some of this up, the way he rolled out with it. He’s been slammed a lot lately for his poor cabinet choices, "his failure" to generate more bipartisan support for his economic stimulus package; his implicit insistence that education and the arts were also part of the recovery process and his consistent tendency to read the American public and respond to them, rather than the media. He doesn’t wait for the input of his constituency, he goes out looking for it.

At one point, Max mimed reaching for a fourth of July sparkler, lighting it, and waving it. I was hearing Kate Smith singing "God Bless America," and getting teary-eyed before Max took a swig of his root beer, belched and observed,

"Good staging."

I enjoyed it, both as good television and for the performances. Now, though, it seems like the time for talking about this is over. It’s filtering down to the state level and even though Seattle’s Viaduct project didn’t get funded, Governor Christine got ahold of Mayor Greg and said she’d work to get other federal funding for it. She’ll contact Senator Patti and the Representatives involved and eventually, it’ll get done. He tells that to his constituency, then gets on with the other business at hand.

I hope that happens soon. According to our local NBC affiliate, KING 5 News, Seattle now ranks as the 10th most congested metropolitan area in the United States. That Viaduct project, like the proposed light rail system, isn’t just necessary. It’s long overdue.

Where it’s possible, I still favor a minimum reliance on federal support. I’m also a proponent of regional economic independence. I think that if the Northwest is handling the current fiscal downturn any better than other parts of the country, it’s because we’ve learned the hard way what happens with an over-dependence on the international market place.

Now that green’s been proven profitable, there’s a stampede in that direction and the industrial processes themselves are environmentally viable. They’re ideal for a small community or co-op approach, as well.

The same "revolution" has taken place in organic farming in North America. Europe’s decades ahead of us and so are other parts of the world, including Japan. Now, community gardens and small farms employing more human beings and fewer machines are not only viable, but extremely appropriate. Here in Seattle, there are low cost housing units for seniors going up which offer rooftop garden plots.

We were headed down this road before this latest economic down turn and I think it’s a real plus that we’ve blended the two priorities. Considering it was over-industrialization driven by unrealistic expectations that contributed so substantially to planetary pollution and global warning in the first place, this looks like one solution derived directly from the problem. That kind of straight-line thinking is encouraging to me.

It’s also validating to see another Evergreen State native headed for the "other Washington". Former Governor Gary Locke, the first Chinese American elected to that office, has been tapped by President Obama as Commerce Secretary. Gary’s well-qualified for the position and he’s honest. The White House seems to be making more appropriate choices in these regards and yep, that’s another reason to be guardedly optimistic.

Until next week, then, take care, stay well and God Bless.

Rusty

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LINKS TO RELEVANT SITES:
The PCC Sounder Consumer
Sightline Daily

SEATTLE SKETCHES - MR. SIMS GOES TO WASHINGTON

Seattle Skyline - photo by MS(R)M

Howdy, rowdies, from sunny Seattle. Nice to be able to say that after all this snow and ice we’ve had this winter. Hope the good weather lasts but Rainier Ralph, the beaver, (we don’t have groundhogs) saw his shadow Monday, so it looks like another six weeks of rain. Unless we get another earthquake like we had last week. Or the Lady Volcano decides to throw a hissy fit. I’ve been polling the locals and either is preferable to more wet stuff falling from the sky.

Which means we’ll probably get 42 straight days of liquid sunshine. Seattle’s like that. It’s built on seven hills in the shadow of a rain forest and enjoys about eight microclimates. The Emerald City has multiple personality disorder and that’s not surprising considering downtown had to be rebuilt on higher ground after the tides kept making the toilets back up. In winter, it’s a great place to live if you’re a duck. Or related to one. Some of us have been here so long, we’ve got webs between our fingers and toes. (Putting my hands in my pockets)

We’re also the fashion capital of the Pacific Northwest, which is to say that after grunge, we sort of slid further into the Land of Laid Back. So many of us are descended from Klondike claim jumpers that we don’t wear ties because it’s too convenient to hang us with them. We prefer Birkenstocks to boots, even in winter, because sandals and wool socks are easier to dry out than Gucci leather and somewhat kinder on the cow. As a general rule, we’re almost as polite as Canadians except when something happens far away that gives us an excuse to yell a lot in support of lofty causes. Once we get it out of our system, we retire to a neighborhood pub to quench our thirst with a politically correct microbrew.

It’s also a good place to be a woman or a minority in politics. Our governor, Christine Gregoire, is the second of her gender to hold that office in 40 years. Our two U.S. Senators are Maria Cantwell and Patti Murray. We’ve got a green mayor, Greg Nickels, who banned bottled water from city offices after piling up a month’s worth of empty plastic bottles on the steps of City Hall to make his point. Ron Sims, a black man, has been our county executive since 1996, when he took over from Gary Locke, who became our first Japanese American governor. Ron’s been appointed deputy secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and will be in charge of HUD's day-to-day operations, a nearly $39 billion annual operating budget and 8,500 employees. He’s squeaky clean so his confirmation by the Senate is not expected to be a problem.

And he’s not likely to be the minor embarrassment Heath and Human Services Secretary nominee Tom Daschle has been over that $120,000 in taxes he said he forgot to pay. I just hope he keeps better track of our money than he did his own. It does bother me a little, though, that this is the second Obama appointee with a bad memory. But I guess if the guy who’s now running the IRS after disclosure of his tax-paying problems can get confirmed, we shouldn’t be too surprised if the individual responsible for the national health policies of America slides into the cabinet as well. I guess that’s why a surgeon never works alone in an operating room. I do wonder how many times we’re going to hear "oops" again though. After eight years of the Great Decider, I don’t imagine the national constituency is going to be quite as patient as they’ve been in times past.

I know I’m not. So good luck, Ron. Don’t let ‘em rub off on you.