After an extended Eye Poll Eye readers are almost evenly split between Heather Wilson -53% and Steve Pearce - 47% in our unscientific poll (See the results here). Our gut feeling tells us that this is a pretty accurate picture of the Republican primary with both candidates running neck and neck.
This week we focus on how you feel about your safety in Albuquerque. APD's manpower levels have and continue to be an issue, but the real problem is our high crime rates. In addition, it's also important to determine public perception because perception often mirrors reality. Don't forget to vote!
Dec 31, 2007
Dec 29, 2007
The Numbers Game - APD Style
If at first you don't succeed, change the goal - that's what APD did this past week when confronted with the certainty that they could not, would not reach their goal of 1,100 officers by January 1.
Our Eyes hold that they're counting everyone with a pulse and a badge and the badge may be optional. The number of officers on the street has been an issue for some time. APD's number has ranged from a low of 857 two years ago to a high of 1,033 claimed by DC Castro just last September. It's clear that it's almost impossible to take the 5th floor at their word; which ultimately is at the heart of our crime problem.
The fact is it doesn't matter how many officers APD has if they are able to effectively police their jurisdiction. Since that doesn't seem to be the case, we'd believe that the 5th floor would be doing everything in its power to make sure that we lose as few experienced officers as possible.
Instead we've seen what can only be characterized as an exodus of experienced officers losing over 10% of APD's manpower in just 2 years with 62 retirees last year and at least 55 retiring this year. Our Eyes tell us that officers who are fully vested are leaving even though they would rather stay. In other words, they're voting with their feet; choosing to leave rather than continue to have to fight crime on our streets and an administration that just doesn't seem to get it.
So what's going on? If you've read many stories about APD over the last year, it's plain to see that they've got a problem. There are the standard issues of pay and retirement, but there also seems to be a serious division between the brass on the 5th floor and the rank and file in the field.
Lincoln once said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand" and so it is with our police department. As long as they keep playing the numbers game, it will be impossible for the public or the rank and file officers to trust APD's management and their house will continue to be divided.
We are already one of the top 10 most violent cities and we are seeing "unexpected" officer attrition. As citizens of Albuquerque, we are being placed in more and more danger by and administration that would rather play politics than do their jobs. Eventually, their house will collapse. Unfortunately, it will fall on those who it was designed to protect.
----- Correction -----
Sometimes our fingers out run our spell check... such is the case above when we typed loose when we intended lose. It has been corrected above.
"They did not meet my expectations or my direction," the mayor said Wednesday. "There will be some interesting meetings next week. Having said that, it's hard to grow a police department with the highest standards in the state. And this isn't like growing other departments (in city government). These people have badges and guns.Anyone who has been paying any attention over the last two years could have predicted APD's failure. It has been apparent that APD has been attempting to hide their actual force strength since the 2005 election when Mayor Marty set goals of 1,000 then 1,100 officers by January 1, 2008. APD has steadfastly refused to publish a list of sworn officers and their positions within the organization.
"But I've always, always told my chiefs that it's more important to grow it right than it is to grow it quickly. You pay for years when you make that mistake."
Our Eyes hold that they're counting everyone with a pulse and a badge and the badge may be optional. The number of officers on the street has been an issue for some time. APD's number has ranged from a low of 857 two years ago to a high of 1,033 claimed by DC Castro just last September. It's clear that it's almost impossible to take the 5th floor at their word; which ultimately is at the heart of our crime problem.
"A lot of people will come up and say: 'We need 1,500 officers; we need 2,000 officers,' '' Castro said. "But there is no mathematical equation that says we need X number of officers. We use our crime rates and other factors to determine that.Normally we'd agree with the Deputy Chief but there's just one problem - Albuquerque's crime rate is on the increase in two major areas, property crime and violent crime. There are a lot of reasons for our crime problems and a lack of sworn officers is just one of them.
According to the data, the metro area per capita ranks in the top 10 percent for violent crimes, which include murder, rape and robbery. And the metro area ranks in the top 13 percent for property crime, such as auto theft and burglaries.
The impact is huge. More than 5,000 vehicles were stolen and more than 6,000 homes were burgled last year.If Albuquerque's crime rates were decreasing we'd tend to agree with Castro, but the stats show an alarming increase. Currently (assuming you accept APD's 998 number which we don't), APD has 1.81 officers per thousand assuming a population of 550,000. The national average for cities over 250,000 is 2.8 officers per thousand (FBI Crime in the United States).
Each day, an average 15 autos were stolen and 17 homes or businesses were hit.
The fact is it doesn't matter how many officers APD has if they are able to effectively police their jurisdiction. Since that doesn't seem to be the case, we'd believe that the 5th floor would be doing everything in its power to make sure that we lose as few experienced officers as possible.
Instead we've seen what can only be characterized as an exodus of experienced officers losing over 10% of APD's manpower in just 2 years with 62 retirees last year and at least 55 retiring this year. Our Eyes tell us that officers who are fully vested are leaving even though they would rather stay. In other words, they're voting with their feet; choosing to leave rather than continue to have to fight crime on our streets and an administration that just doesn't seem to get it.
So what's going on? If you've read many stories about APD over the last year, it's plain to see that they've got a problem. There are the standard issues of pay and retirement, but there also seems to be a serious division between the brass on the 5th floor and the rank and file in the field.
Lincoln once said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand" and so it is with our police department. As long as they keep playing the numbers game, it will be impossible for the public or the rank and file officers to trust APD's management and their house will continue to be divided.
We are already one of the top 10 most violent cities and we are seeing "unexpected" officer attrition. As citizens of Albuquerque, we are being placed in more and more danger by and administration that would rather play politics than do their jobs. Eventually, their house will collapse. Unfortunately, it will fall on those who it was designed to protect.
----- Correction -----
Sometimes our fingers out run our spell check... such is the case above when we typed loose when we intended lose. It has been corrected above.
Dec 26, 2007
Tax Crunch
While everyone was out doing their last minute shopping and enjoying their family, friends and a well deserved eggnog, the governor's Task Force on Mortgage Lending weighed in its report on how to fix the subprime lending "crisis." The Christmas Eve story in the Journal is a perfect example of how government tries to slip a story past the public at a time when they are distracted by more pressing concerns. The last time we saw this type of chicanery was when the Almighty Alcalde tried to slip his trolley past the voters while we were focused on the 2006 mid-term elections.
According to the Journal, the Task Force's mission "was to evaluate the potential local impact of the subprime lending crisis and to come up with ways to protect consumers against abusive lending practices. (ABQ Journal - Subscription)." First of all, beware any time the government starts trying to "protect" the public, especially when it has to do with your money. Generally the result is your money being sent somewhere you don't want your money to go.
Strictly speaking the subprime mortgage "crisis" is not a crisis at all. It's the logical result of over-eager lenders making money available to people who shouldn't be getting it in the first place. The result is a tightening of the money available by the very people who were practically begging you to take out a loan just a year ago. The reality is that not everyone should own a home; there are those whose financial position is better suited to renting at least for now.
Back to the governor's Task Force... Since the subprime "crisis" was created by over-zealous lenders and brokers, you'd think that the recommendation of the task force would be some sort of restrictions on lending (not that we'd like that much either). Nooooo... The task force's recommendation is to make all private home sale prices public. Why? Because the task force blames the "crisis" on "unscrupulous appraiser[s]."
Before you start thinking "it's only fair that the assessed value track the market," remember that there's a very real possibility that people who have lived in a home for an extended period of time will be taxed right out of their home. In addition, our assessment system was taken into account when our property taxes were set so changing the assessment method will simply result in increased revenue not originally planned for. In other words, a tax increase where the hardest hit will be those on fixed incomes. (How's that for progressive taxation?!) Plus, you know that the sales data will be used to support an increase in assessed value and won't reflect market corrections when they occur.
With the state facing a substantial reduction in new revenue, we'd bet that Governor Richardson sees fit to put this on his upcoming legislative agenda. Make no mistake, this is about money not consumer protection and should New Mexico become a disclosure state we'll be filling state coffers on the backs of people who can least afford it.
According to the Journal, the Task Force's mission "was to evaluate the potential local impact of the subprime lending crisis and to come up with ways to protect consumers against abusive lending practices. (ABQ Journal - Subscription)." First of all, beware any time the government starts trying to "protect" the public, especially when it has to do with your money. Generally the result is your money being sent somewhere you don't want your money to go.
Strictly speaking the subprime mortgage "crisis" is not a crisis at all. It's the logical result of over-eager lenders making money available to people who shouldn't be getting it in the first place. The result is a tightening of the money available by the very people who were practically begging you to take out a loan just a year ago. The reality is that not everyone should own a home; there are those whose financial position is better suited to renting at least for now.
Back to the governor's Task Force... Since the subprime "crisis" was created by over-zealous lenders and brokers, you'd think that the recommendation of the task force would be some sort of restrictions on lending (not that we'd like that much either). Nooooo... The task force's recommendation is to make all private home sale prices public. Why? Because the task force blames the "crisis" on "unscrupulous appraiser[s]."
"One of the problems in the mortgage meltdown were loans based on inflated values," said task force co-chair Michael Loftin, who is executive director of Homewise, a nonprofit home ownership organization in Santa Fe. "So if you make more transparent what the values (home sales prices) are, it makes it harder to cook an appraisal."
First of all, the market has a perfectly functional mechanism for taking care of unscrupulous appraisers who either over-value or under-value property - lenders stop using them. Lending institutions rely on accurate appraisals to determine risk. When appraisals are inflated, lenders run the risk of having to foreclose on a property that cannot be sold at a price that allows them to recover their investment.
Second, the Journal story implies that appraisers have no access to sales price data and are somehow working in a vacuum seemingly coming up with prices based on some kind of gut feeling or something. Nothing could be further from the truth.
It's safe to say that most houses in Albuquerque are sold by Realtors using their private Multiple Listing Service. Every house sold through the MLS is recorded along with its sales price. Appraisers use this data (and have for years) to determine comparable prices or comps for a specific property. Since most homes are sold through the MLS the comps are usually very accurate.
So what is all of this really about? Since 2004 New Mexico has required that all sales prices be reported to the county assessors. That data was not to be used for assessing value. Of course if they have the data they will find a way to use it. Before 2004, property owners could choose to provide the sales price but weren't required to do so.
Second, the Journal story implies that appraisers have no access to sales price data and are somehow working in a vacuum seemingly coming up with prices based on some kind of gut feeling or something. Nothing could be further from the truth.
It's safe to say that most houses in Albuquerque are sold by Realtors using their private Multiple Listing Service. Every house sold through the MLS is recorded along with its sales price. Appraisers use this data (and have for years) to determine comparable prices or comps for a specific property. Since most homes are sold through the MLS the comps are usually very accurate.
So what is all of this really about? Since 2004 New Mexico has required that all sales prices be reported to the county assessors. That data was not to be used for assessing value. Of course if they have the data they will find a way to use it. Before 2004, property owners could choose to provide the sales price but weren't required to do so.
Of course this whole thing isn't about protecting anyone from predatory lending; it's about separating you from your money. Requiring every sale price to be reported will allow the assessors to easily increase your property value and therefore increase your property taxes.(Sidebar)(End Sidebar)
The Bernalillo County Assessor's office used to send out a very official letter to new homeowners that asked them to report the sales price. The letter was constructed in such a way as to make you believe that casual observers would believe that they had to report their sales price. In other words, before 2004 the county assessors would trick you into reporting your own sales price.
Before you start thinking "it's only fair that the assessed value track the market," remember that there's a very real possibility that people who have lived in a home for an extended period of time will be taxed right out of their home. In addition, our assessment system was taken into account when our property taxes were set so changing the assessment method will simply result in increased revenue not originally planned for. In other words, a tax increase where the hardest hit will be those on fixed incomes. (How's that for progressive taxation?!) Plus, you know that the sales data will be used to support an increase in assessed value and won't reflect market corrections when they occur.
With the state facing a substantial reduction in new revenue, we'd bet that Governor Richardson sees fit to put this on his upcoming legislative agenda. Make no mistake, this is about money not consumer protection and should New Mexico become a disclosure state we'll be filling state coffers on the backs of people who can least afford it.
Dec 24, 2007
Merry Christmas
Somewhere along the line those two words - Merry Christmas - became controversial. Perhaps they were caught up in the wash of political correctness that flowed from the mindless (or mindful) discrimination perpetrated against the smaller ethnic and religious groups that have always been a part of our society. Perhaps it was the direct result of certain anti-religious elements whose faith dictates the removal of religion from the public square. When all is said and done, the reason doesn't matter when the result is an increase in intolerance in the name of tolerance.
Since its founding, our country has been a majority Christian nation. That's not to say that these Christians agreed on everything. It seems that there were as many different flavors of Christianity then as there were religions in the world and perhaps more; the same holds true today.
Because of these differences our founding fathers were wise enough to construct our Constitution on the foundation of liberty and freedom. They envisioned a public square not with an absence of religion but rather with a riotous tapestry of religious thought and expression; even if that religion was based on the faith that there's no God at all.
What these men from various religions and varying degrees of faith were most afraid of is that the government would choose one religion over the others even if that religion were a form of Christianity.
It's ironic but often true that groups will use the banner of freedom and tolerance to in fact restrict the freedoms of others. The freedoms of religion, speech, the press, and assembly are freedoms designed specifically for the expression of thought even or especially when that thought is religious in nature.
We've often held that if you do not allow your views or beliefs to be challenged, perhaps you need to re-examine those beliefs and the reasons for them. The same is true for religious belief. If your faith can not withstand the simple expression of "Merry Christmas," then perhaps you should re-examine your own faith - even if that faith is a certainty in the absence of God.
So... to those of you of the Christian faith (no matter which one) who will be celebrating Christmas, we wish you a very Merry Christmas. For those of you who are of different faiths - what ever they may be - we wish you a Merry Christmas as an expression of our faith not as an attack on yours.
Since its founding, our country has been a majority Christian nation. That's not to say that these Christians agreed on everything. It seems that there were as many different flavors of Christianity then as there were religions in the world and perhaps more; the same holds true today.
Because of these differences our founding fathers were wise enough to construct our Constitution on the foundation of liberty and freedom. They envisioned a public square not with an absence of religion but rather with a riotous tapestry of religious thought and expression; even if that religion was based on the faith that there's no God at all.
What these men from various religions and varying degrees of faith were most afraid of is that the government would choose one religion over the others even if that religion were a form of Christianity.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.Unfortunately over the last twenty or thirty years, one religious voice has gained a measure of dominance over the others. In the name of religious freedom this voice has worked tirelessly to reduce or even remove the voice of Christianity in the public square.
It's ironic but often true that groups will use the banner of freedom and tolerance to in fact restrict the freedoms of others. The freedoms of religion, speech, the press, and assembly are freedoms designed specifically for the expression of thought even or especially when that thought is religious in nature.
We've often held that if you do not allow your views or beliefs to be challenged, perhaps you need to re-examine those beliefs and the reasons for them. The same is true for religious belief. If your faith can not withstand the simple expression of "Merry Christmas," then perhaps you should re-examine your own faith - even if that faith is a certainty in the absence of God.
So... to those of you of the Christian faith (no matter which one) who will be celebrating Christmas, we wish you a very Merry Christmas. For those of you who are of different faiths - what ever they may be - we wish you a Merry Christmas as an expression of our faith not as an attack on yours.
Dec 23, 2007
Holiday Spirit for the Homeless
Fellow blogger Mario Burgos' company Mudhouse Advertising has started a campaign to raise money for Art Street a program of Albuquerque Healthcare for the Homeless. Mudhouse has produced a short video to help raise awareness about homeless issues here in Albuquerque. For each viewing of the video, Mudhouse will donate $1 (up to $10,000). You can also help with your own donation by going here.
Take a couple of minutes this holiday season, view the video below and just by watching help the homeless. It won't cost you a dime (unless you want it to) and you'll be spreading a little Christmas cheer to those who have very little to be cheerful about.
Take a couple of minutes this holiday season, view the video below and just by watching help the homeless. It won't cost you a dime (unless you want it to) and you'll be spreading a little Christmas cheer to those who have very little to be cheerful about.
Dec 21, 2007
Conspiracy Revealed?
Sixteen months after the Jason Daskalos DWI diversion from APDs paddy wagon, we finally found out who is accused of conspiring with former Officer Ben Kirby. Of course, the whole conspiracy thing didn't show up until fourteen months after the incident and just coincidentally right after Kirby filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the city (read about it here).
According to our Eyes, Officer Matt Fisher is the officer being accused of conspiring with Kirby to release Daskalos. Interestingly enough, Daskalos himself isn't being investigated for his role in the whole affair. It seems as if the DA's office is treating Mr. Daskalos - who was under arrest at the time - as an innocent victim even though he was the one escaping at the time.
As we've said before, this whole thing has been kind of strange. Daskalos was arrested for DWI; he is then taken on a field trip from the DWI paddy wagon, returned to the paddy wagon, booked on DWI, tried for DWI, and ultimately acquitted. As you all know, Officer Kirby was fired for his role; but what gets us is that the DA initially chose not to prosecute but fourteen months latter ended up deciding to begin a grand jury investigation that didn't involve Daskalos.
Seemingly, the conspiracy is revealed and those who conspired are APD rank and file officers. To us this just doesn't add up. Two APD officers decide - on their own - to bust Daskalos out of DWI custody with no orders from above and no indication of any personal ties to Daskalos himself.
Folks, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that there's a lot more to this story and that we'll probably never know what really took place August 25th, 2006.
According to our Eyes, Officer Matt Fisher is the officer being accused of conspiring with Kirby to release Daskalos. Interestingly enough, Daskalos himself isn't being investigated for his role in the whole affair. It seems as if the DA's office is treating Mr. Daskalos - who was under arrest at the time - as an innocent victim even though he was the one escaping at the time.
As we've said before, this whole thing has been kind of strange. Daskalos was arrested for DWI; he is then taken on a field trip from the DWI paddy wagon, returned to the paddy wagon, booked on DWI, tried for DWI, and ultimately acquitted. As you all know, Officer Kirby was fired for his role; but what gets us is that the DA initially chose not to prosecute but fourteen months latter ended up deciding to begin a grand jury investigation that didn't involve Daskalos.
Seemingly, the conspiracy is revealed and those who conspired are APD rank and file officers. To us this just doesn't add up. Two APD officers decide - on their own - to bust Daskalos out of DWI custody with no orders from above and no indication of any personal ties to Daskalos himself.
Folks, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that there's a lot more to this story and that we'll probably never know what really took place August 25th, 2006.
Dec 18, 2007
Scam-era Scammers
As you all know by now Monday night saw the defeat of relief from governmental intrusion and tyranny. The Albuquerque City Council overwhelming voted to uphold the Almighty Alcalde's veto of Council President Brad Winter's bill to suspend scam-era operations at least until the mayoral task farce presents its report.
Everyone knows what the task farce will return, but it'd be nice for a change if our city government would err on the side of freedom and justice rather than on the side of "excess money."
To that end, we thought we'd post who is most responsible for the continuation of the scam. We have decided that these Scam-era Scammers, those people most responsible for the continuation of the red light con will be posted permanently on this website - starting with this post.
Martin J. Chavez
The Scammer in Chief, defender of the con, whose absolute faith in the infallibility of the Redflex system has cost us a bunch of cash and him a shot at the U.S. Senate.
The mayor has even tried to tell us that the system isn't turning a profit, characterizing the red light largess as "excess money." Now he's using the oldest scare tactic in the world to keep us pumping cash into city coffers citing school zone speeders as scam-era justification.
Ray Schultz - APD Chief of Police
The Chief brought the scam from his previous job in Scottsdale, Arizona. Schultz continues to support the Redflex program as if he were a stock holder often confusing his job as chief with that of a scam-era lobbyist.
Ken Sanchez - Councilor District 1
Councilor Sanchez was famously not present during the 1st scam-era moratorium vote. We don't think it would be any different than this vote as the councilor can only be characterized as being in Marty's pocket. After all Sanchez served as the mayor's treasurer until being convinced to run for council.
Debbie O'Malley - Councilor District 2
At least O'Malley is consistent in her support of the scam, but that's about all I can say for a councilor who feels that fleecing the public through scam-eras is a good idea.
Isaac Benton - Councilor District 3
Councilor Benton is consistently neo-socialist preferring government run transportation and government dictated development. It comes as no surprise that the councilor would support enriching the government while limiting the rights of everyday citizens.
Rey Garduño - Councilor District 6
We were pleasantly surprised by Garduño's initial support of the scam-era moratorium. Of course, the councilor we dubbed "Sticky Fingers" during the last election flipped his vote and flopped when it came to keeping the city's hands out of our pockets.
Sally Mayer - Councilor District 7
What more do we have to say... despite her seeming support of Councilor Winter when the Marty was caught balancing the budget with scam money, The Mayer failed the sniff test herself when it came time to protect our due process rights.
Trudy Jones - Councilor District 8
Councilor Jones got a mulligan from us when she missed this vote (and her first council meeting) in favor of participating in the Capo's tantrum. This time she showed up and failed the test.
Don Harris - Councilor District 9
We really can't figure Harris out. He complains about being sold out to the "liberals" and then sides with all of them to keep the scam-era cash coming.
All of the officials listed above need to be remembered. They have by their own actions supported expanding the administrative authority of the city while doing little to protect our freedoms.
Everyone knows what the task farce will return, but it'd be nice for a change if our city government would err on the side of freedom and justice rather than on the side of "excess money."
"During the holiday season, I ask that we reflect on what matters most, the safety of our loved ones," Chávez said in a one-page message to the council. "Virtually no one argues that this technology is not effective in catching violators. Do we really want red light runners and school zone speeders to be given a free pass this holiday season and into the school year?"Really... since when is there a school zone on I-25 and isn't school out for the non-religious, non-threatening, barely Winter break anyway? Besides, when we reflect on our loved ones we're concerned about their safety, but we're even more concerned about their liberty; something that a majority of the council and the Almighty Marty "Hugo" Chavez seem to care little about.
- ABQ Journal (Subscription)
To that end, we thought we'd post who is most responsible for the continuation of the scam. We have decided that these Scam-era Scammers, those people most responsible for the continuation of the red light con will be posted permanently on this website - starting with this post.
Martin J. ChavezThe Scammer in Chief, defender of the con, whose absolute faith in the infallibility of the Redflex system has cost us a bunch of cash and him a shot at the U.S. Senate.
The mayor has even tried to tell us that the system isn't turning a profit, characterizing the red light largess as "excess money." Now he's using the oldest scare tactic in the world to keep us pumping cash into city coffers citing school zone speeders as scam-era justification.
Ray Schultz - APD Chief of PoliceThe Chief brought the scam from his previous job in Scottsdale, Arizona. Schultz continues to support the Redflex program as if he were a stock holder often confusing his job as chief with that of a scam-era lobbyist.
Ken Sanchez - Councilor District 1Councilor Sanchez was famously not present during the 1st scam-era moratorium vote. We don't think it would be any different than this vote as the councilor can only be characterized as being in Marty's pocket. After all Sanchez served as the mayor's treasurer until being convinced to run for council.
Debbie O'Malley - Councilor District 2At least O'Malley is consistent in her support of the scam, but that's about all I can say for a councilor who feels that fleecing the public through scam-eras is a good idea.
Isaac Benton - Councilor District 3Councilor Benton is consistently neo-socialist preferring government run transportation and government dictated development. It comes as no surprise that the councilor would support enriching the government while limiting the rights of everyday citizens.
Rey Garduño - Councilor District 6We were pleasantly surprised by Garduño's initial support of the scam-era moratorium. Of course, the councilor we dubbed "Sticky Fingers" during the last election flipped his vote and flopped when it came to keeping the city's hands out of our pockets.
Sally Mayer - Councilor District 7What more do we have to say... despite her seeming support of Councilor Winter when the Marty was caught balancing the budget with scam money, The Mayer failed the sniff test herself when it came time to protect our due process rights.
Trudy Jones - Councilor District 8Councilor Jones got a mulligan from us when she missed this vote (and her first council meeting) in favor of participating in the Capo's tantrum. This time she showed up and failed the test.
Don Harris - Councilor District 9We really can't figure Harris out. He complains about being sold out to the "liberals" and then sides with all of them to keep the scam-era cash coming.
All of the officials listed above need to be remembered. They have by their own actions supported expanding the administrative authority of the city while doing little to protect our freedoms.
"Sell not virtue to purchase wealth, nor Liberty to purchase power."
Dec 16, 2007
Missing the Point... Keeping the Money
Late Friday the Almighty Alcalde vetoed Council President Brad Winter's bill to halt the Marty's red light scam-era program. The move cleared the way for the city to continue raking in MILLIONS of our dollars based on claims of increased safety. The mayor has decided that it is more important to keep them money than to assure our right to due process.
There's a reason that our judicial system is set up to include a third uninterested party - more commonly known as a judge. Their job is to both make findings of fact and to make sure that the rights of the parties involved are preserved. A judge's impartiality is required to make these decisions without prejudice. Marty's hearing officers have a direct link to the "prosecution" and cannot be considered impartial under any standard.
Folks the real issue here is freedom. Not the freedom to run red lights or to speed (both are rightfully illegal), but the freedom to defend yourself, the freedom not to be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. The absence of justice is the presence of tyranny.
From what the Journal (Subscription) is reporting, it looks like Councilors Sanchez and Mayer won't support a veto override. The jury (something you're guaranteed not to have in Marty-roo Court) is still out on Councilors Jones and Harris. Councilor Winter would need 6 votes to override the Almighty Alcalde's veto, which means he'd need at least 3 more than he got on Capo's night at the Council.
We'd suggest contacting your councilors... again. Perhaps they can be convinced to be more concerned about our liberty than their own power.
Chavez said suspending the program would be saying that violators have the right to run red lights and speed.
"I would be saying you're not going to get a ticket for running a red light and you're not going to get a ticket for speeding through a school zone," Chavez said.
Chavez's reasoning is as devoid of logic as it is justice. Last time we checked it was illegal to speed in a school zone, illegal to run a red light, and illegal to speed on the freeway. The Almighty One's veto doesn't make us safer it simply makes us less free (and millions of dollars poorer).
Before all of you scam-era supporters go off with your bumper-sticker logic saying anything to the effect of "if you don't want a citation don't speed or run a red light," consider the utter lack of thought required to take such a position and the dangers associated with simply accepting a quasi-law enforcement program built on inequity. It's the type of logic that somehow makes sense until you are wrongfully accused and you are denied the ability to defend yourself by a system that presumes your guilt.
Before all of you scam-era supporters go off with your bumper-sticker logic saying anything to the effect of "if you don't want a citation don't speed or run a red light," consider the utter lack of thought required to take such a position and the dangers associated with simply accepting a quasi-law enforcement program built on inequity. It's the type of logic that somehow makes sense until you are wrongfully accused and you are denied the ability to defend yourself by a system that presumes your guilt.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.The City of Albuquerque, the mayor, and the council have made a conscious decision not to enforce the State of New Mexico's traffic code in favor of a self-created and profit driven civil process in which the city has a direct financial interest. Due process cannot be present where one party holds the power of judgment and a financial interest in the outcome.
There's a reason that our judicial system is set up to include a third uninterested party - more commonly known as a judge. Their job is to both make findings of fact and to make sure that the rights of the parties involved are preserved. A judge's impartiality is required to make these decisions without prejudice. Marty's hearing officers have a direct link to the "prosecution" and cannot be considered impartial under any standard.
Folks the real issue here is freedom. Not the freedom to run red lights or to speed (both are rightfully illegal), but the freedom to defend yourself, the freedom not to be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. The absence of justice is the presence of tyranny.
From what the Journal (Subscription) is reporting, it looks like Councilors Sanchez and Mayer won't support a veto override. The jury (something you're guaranteed not to have in Marty-roo Court) is still out on Councilors Jones and Harris. Councilor Winter would need 6 votes to override the Almighty Alcalde's veto, which means he'd need at least 3 more than he got on Capo's night at the Council.
We'd suggest contacting your councilors... again. Perhaps they can be convinced to be more concerned about our liberty than their own power.
Dec 14, 2007
The Scam Goes On
For those of you who haven't been near a radio today, 770 KKOB AM is reporting that the Almighty One is all set to veto the scam-era moratorium passed by the city council on Capo's night. Of course the reason given will be that he would like the task farce to have time to do their work and Councilor Sanchez is already predicting the outcome will be lower fines, a continued revenue stream for the city's general fund, and Marty's guilty until proven guilty kangaroo court systems.
Of course Marty's move doesn't exactly surprise us as he really doesn't have any political pressure points right now due to his early defeat in the Democratic primary. His Honor will feel free to pretty much operate with impunity except for that pesky Council President Brad Winter and what still looks to be a somewhat hostile council.
Of course Marty's move doesn't exactly surprise us as he really doesn't have any political pressure points right now due to his early defeat in the Democratic primary. His Honor will feel free to pretty much operate with impunity except for that pesky Council President Brad Winter and what still looks to be a somewhat hostile council.
Dec 13, 2007
Indictment Follies or Indictment Folly
If you've watched enough Law & Order (and we have) you know that a District Attorney can indict a ham sandwich. That's why we were so interested when we heard about the goings on with the grand jury looking in to conspiracy charges against Officer Ben Kirby.
Kirby is the officer that was fired for taking Jason Daskalos who was in custody on charges of DWI (later determined to be not guilty), on a detour from the paddy wagon. Just this past year officer Kirby filed a wrongful termination suit against the city and shortly thereafter was notified that he's the target of a grand jury investigation (read it here) on suspicion of tampering with public records and conspiracy.
According to our Eyes the promised grand jury investigation began on Wednesday. Apparently the proceedings came to a screeching halt when one of the grand jurors asked the same question we've been asking - if conspiracy is the charge, who is the co-conspirator? Seems like a logical question to us but at that point our Eyes tell us that the DA's office decided to continue the case rather than answer the question.
We don't know why the ADA decided to do what they did but it would seem to us that you'd have a hard time proving conspiracy without conspirators. We haven't seen the DA's case and we certainly can't begin to tell you why they waited over a year to move on a case that they'd already decided not to prosecute, but their case must be shaky indeed if they can't handle the question of conspirators in a conspiracy case.
Kirby is the officer that was fired for taking Jason Daskalos who was in custody on charges of DWI (later determined to be not guilty), on a detour from the paddy wagon. Just this past year officer Kirby filed a wrongful termination suit against the city and shortly thereafter was notified that he's the target of a grand jury investigation (read it here) on suspicion of tampering with public records and conspiracy.
According to our Eyes the promised grand jury investigation began on Wednesday. Apparently the proceedings came to a screeching halt when one of the grand jurors asked the same question we've been asking - if conspiracy is the charge, who is the co-conspirator? Seems like a logical question to us but at that point our Eyes tell us that the DA's office decided to continue the case rather than answer the question.
We don't know why the ADA decided to do what they did but it would seem to us that you'd have a hard time proving conspiracy without conspirators. We haven't seen the DA's case and we certainly can't begin to tell you why they waited over a year to move on a case that they'd already decided not to prosecute, but their case must be shaky indeed if they can't handle the question of conspirators in a conspiracy case.
Dec 12, 2007
One
It just about slipped by us... yesterday was our blog-aversary. Yep, December 11, 2006 was the date of our first post. Just guess what we were talking about... Red Light Scam-eras.
Since that time, we've taken a look at a lot of different issues that affect the people of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. As you may have noticed we certainly have our own ideas and we love to find things that the city would rather keep hidden and let you know about them. After all, government workers and elected officials work for us and we should know what they're up to.
But what really makes this site fun is our readers. Those of you who agree, disagree, and post little known information make this site what it is. The Internet is truly the new village square and we're proud to be a part of the exchange of information and the expression of ideas.
Thank you for reading Eye On Albuquerque but most of all, thank you for agreeing, disagreeing, arguing, and informing our readers and the people of Albuquerque.
The Eye
Since that time, we've taken a look at a lot of different issues that affect the people of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. As you may have noticed we certainly have our own ideas and we love to find things that the city would rather keep hidden and let you know about them. After all, government workers and elected officials work for us and we should know what they're up to.
But what really makes this site fun is our readers. Those of you who agree, disagree, and post little known information make this site what it is. The Internet is truly the new village square and we're proud to be a part of the exchange of information and the expression of ideas.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.When you come here and post comments or when we post our thoughts or information, we are all exercising our rights to assembly, speech, and in some cases petitioning the Government for redress of grievances. It's our belief that if the founding fathers could have imagined the Internet or a virtual village square, the blogosphere would have been the very thing they envisioned.
Thank you for reading Eye On Albuquerque but most of all, thank you for agreeing, disagreeing, arguing, and informing our readers and the people of Albuquerque.
The Eye
Just When You Thought It Couldn't Get Any Weirder...
All you have to do is take a gander at today's Albuquerque Tribune to know how weird Albuquerque politics is becoming. Right there on the front page above the fold in front of God and everyone is the War of the Roses (or Chavez's) and the K-Mart Councilor.
Just yesterday we were busy beating-up Councilor Mayer for her actions and claims regarding the City Council Presidency. Today, we find out that she's taken a second job at K-Mart helping customers and straightening the deodorant (almost makes her a sniff test expert).
And we thought that next year's election brouhaha was going to be entertaining. Could it get any weirder than this?
Just yesterday we were busy beating-up Councilor Mayer for her actions and claims regarding the City Council Presidency. Today, we find out that she's taken a second job at K-Mart helping customers and straightening the deodorant (almost makes her a sniff test expert).
Since the week before Thanksgiving, the 57-year-old Mayer has been working five days a week at $7 an hour — 25 cents more than the city-mandated minimum wage she twice voted against.We really don't know whether to laugh or cry. Apparently, the councilor needs some holiday cash in order to make ends meet. No one should be ashamed of making an honest wage at a retail store part-time or otherwise even if you are a sitting city councilor. Frankly, we're glad to see that despite her modest K-Mart income she's standing by her principles even if we disagree with a number of them.
Still, if she could go back in time she wouldn't change her previous votes against raising the wage locally.Then and now she protests the use of the term living wage, a phrase she feels is disingenuous, believing that raising the wage a few dollars does little to make low pay livable.
"I object more to it now. It is a minimum wage," she said. "There are lots of people here who have two jobs."
If the K-Mart Councilor weren't enough, Mayor Marty and ex-wife Margaret look like they may be heading for a fight- this time at the ballot box. Margaret Aragon de Chavez announced yesterday that she plans to form an exploratory committee next spring to evaluate the idea of whether or not to run for her ex-husband's job (ABQ Tribune).
Of course Marty, would have to get past the under-card bout in court to overturn the city's mayoral term limits, but most people seem to see the effort as a mere formality as the council's term limits have already been overturned.
And we thought that next year's election brouhaha was going to be entertaining. Could it get any weirder than this?
Dec 11, 2007
Dumb and Dumber
Two of the Foolish Four were back at it today claiming that Councilor Winter made some sort of back room under-handed deal with the devil to gain his seat as President of the City Council. According to Harris, Winter sold the three water authority appointments to the "liberals" in order to obtain their support for his presidency (ABQ Journal - Subscription).
Meanwhile Dumb's sidekick Councilor Mayer was busy insisting that there was some nefarious scheme afoot since Councilor Winter's wife Nan Winter works for the Water Authority and has for some time. Mayer is quoted as saying "I don't think it passes the sniff test... It just doesn't seem right" (ABQ Journal - Subscription).
Meanwhile Dumb's sidekick Councilor Mayer was busy insisting that there was some nefarious scheme afoot since Councilor Winter's wife Nan Winter works for the Water Authority and has for some time. Mayer is quoted as saying "I don't think it passes the sniff test... It just doesn't seem right" (ABQ Journal - Subscription).
(Sidebar)Granted, the appointments to the Water Authority are important but their claims make the two Capo's Councilors look foolish and petty... again. Councilor Winter made them look even dumber-er when he named his first appointment - newly elected councilor and founding (and hopefully ex) member of the Foolish Foursome Trudy Jones.
The councilor ought to know something about stinky situations as her admitted ex-boyfriend and real estate partner continues to receive $50,000 a year contracts from the False Alarm Reduction Unit to do... well, something anyway. If you'll remember, the false alarm ordinance was sponsored by none other than The Mayer herself.
(End Sidebar)
(Sidebar)Let's face it folks, there's a reason that Mayer and Harris faced recall uprisings in their respective districts - they don't seem to be able to learn from their mistakes. You'll notice that Councilors Sanchez and Jones aren't out making themselves look like idiots (again) by giving legs to a story that had essentially gone away. You can also bet that neither of these two brain donors will be serving on the water board anytime soon.
As we've noted before, we don't think there should be a Water Authority. This quasi-governmental agency has an awful lot of authority to bond debt, set rates, punish water evildoers, and stymie economic growth. Councilor Cadigan said just last week that the board should stop extending service to new areas even when water wasn't an issue (read our take here).
Not to be out-done, last month former Councilor and Congressional Candidate Heinrich wanted to use aerial photography and drive by inspections to tell consumers the amount of water that they should be using (ABQ Journal - Subscription). Heinrich insists that the $20,000 pilot program would simply be giving advice on how much a particular household could save (ABQ Journal - Subscription), but it's a short step from should to must and we don't want any government agency peeking over our wall telling us the amount of water we are allowed to use.
(End Sidebar)
Dec 10, 2007
Eye Poll: Not that it Matters
Last week's Eye Poll looked at the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate between Tom Udall and Marty (I'm still looking for my next job) Chavez. As everyone knows by now Tom Udall vanquished the Almighty Alcalde faster than the U.S. military deposed Saddam Hussein and with nary a shot fired, but in this week's Eye Poll Marty pulled it out by a single vote - not that it matters.
Of course the now ex-candidate sent out a get out the vote email to his supporters urging them to vote in our little unscientific poll, a fact that we had planned to reveal in this posting but Marty went and dropped out of the race before we could expose his shenanigans.
We're starting to wonder if we're starting to develop an Eye Poll curse similar to the Madden curse or the Chunky soup curse in football. Only time will tell as we take a look at the Republican side of the senate equation this week. Don't forget to vote!
Of course the now ex-candidate sent out a get out the vote email to his supporters urging them to vote in our little unscientific poll, a fact that we had planned to reveal in this posting but Marty went and dropped out of the race before we could expose his shenanigans.
We're starting to wonder if we're starting to develop an Eye Poll curse similar to the Madden curse or the Chunky soup curse in football. Only time will tell as we take a look at the Republican side of the senate equation this week. Don't forget to vote!
Dec 8, 2007
No Money, No Marty
While the media is busy analyzing Marty's withdrawal from the U.S. Senate race and Marty's campaign is busy trying to make him into a political martyer for the Democratic Party, everyone is missing the main reason... money.
Our Eyes tell us that Marty held a $1000 a plate fundraiser last week at Scalo's Northern Italian Grill. The campaign had hoped to rake in around $100,000 to keep the senatorial campaign machine fueled. The Eyes have it that only 4 people showed up. We know that fundraisers include funds from people who are not present because there are a lot of people that don't have time to attend or don't want to be seen at these things. 4 people?! That means the most they could have hoped for is around $10,000.
Do the math, if a sitting mayor of New Mexico's largest city holds a fundraiser and is only able to get 4 attendees and somewhere in the neighborhood of $10,000, his immediate political aspirations are kaput. There was a time when Marty could hold a bar-b-q for $30 suggested contributions and bring in that much; but much has changed in the short time since his re-election.
The Almighty One has many problems, a police department in disarray, a hostile council, an increasingly suspicious media, and budgetary problems looming on the city's fiscal horizon, but the issue that may have finished Marty's senate bid... you guessed it, red light scam-eras.
The program was a debacle from the start. Whenever profit becomes involved in law enforcement, there's an inherent conflict of interest. People will not trust that they are being charged fairly and with Marty's Kangaroo Court system, they can't trust that they will receive a fair hearing. This lack of trust reflects directly upon the person who is in charge of the program... Mayor (and former gubernatorial candidate, former senate candidate) Martin J. Chavez.
We're pretty sure that the original idea to bring these scam-eras into our lives originated with Chief of Police Ray Schultz who had experience with them in Scottsdale Arizona. However, the decision to bring them here lies directly with The Almighty Alcalde.
Ironically, Marty's pursuit of scam-era money may have put an end to his ability to raise money for his senate campaign as nothing we can think of has consistently damaged his image on both ends of the political spectrum. For those of you who think public financing is a good idea, consider this. If Marty had access to our tax money to pay for his senate campaign there's little doubt that he would still be in the race; and there's little doubt that he would do a considerable amount of damage to Tom Udall before it was all over.
Our Eyes tell us that Marty held a $1000 a plate fundraiser last week at Scalo's Northern Italian Grill. The campaign had hoped to rake in around $100,000 to keep the senatorial campaign machine fueled. The Eyes have it that only 4 people showed up. We know that fundraisers include funds from people who are not present because there are a lot of people that don't have time to attend or don't want to be seen at these things. 4 people?! That means the most they could have hoped for is around $10,000.
Do the math, if a sitting mayor of New Mexico's largest city holds a fundraiser and is only able to get 4 attendees and somewhere in the neighborhood of $10,000, his immediate political aspirations are kaput. There was a time when Marty could hold a bar-b-q for $30 suggested contributions and bring in that much; but much has changed in the short time since his re-election.
The Almighty One has many problems, a police department in disarray, a hostile council, an increasingly suspicious media, and budgetary problems looming on the city's fiscal horizon, but the issue that may have finished Marty's senate bid... you guessed it, red light scam-eras.
The program was a debacle from the start. Whenever profit becomes involved in law enforcement, there's an inherent conflict of interest. People will not trust that they are being charged fairly and with Marty's Kangaroo Court system, they can't trust that they will receive a fair hearing. This lack of trust reflects directly upon the person who is in charge of the program... Mayor (and former gubernatorial candidate, former senate candidate) Martin J. Chavez.
We're pretty sure that the original idea to bring these scam-eras into our lives originated with Chief of Police Ray Schultz who had experience with them in Scottsdale Arizona. However, the decision to bring them here lies directly with The Almighty Alcalde.
Ironically, Marty's pursuit of scam-era money may have put an end to his ability to raise money for his senate campaign as nothing we can think of has consistently damaged his image on both ends of the political spectrum. For those of you who think public financing is a good idea, consider this. If Marty had access to our tax money to pay for his senate campaign there's little doubt that he would still be in the race; and there's little doubt that he would do a considerable amount of damage to Tom Udall before it was all over.
Dec 7, 2007
The Almighty has Fallen - Out of the Race
There's good news and bad news this Friday... the good news is that there's now no chance (as if there were much of a chance in the first place) that Marty will get the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate; which also means he will not replace Pete Domenici in the Senate. The bad news is that he will have the next two years to continue pillaging the City of Albuquerque.
The Albuquerque Journal and the rest of the media are all trying to be the first to tell you that Marty is out and that Tom Udall has his full support. (Guess that scam-era moratorium veto just became a sure thing.) All this despite the fact that he's leading in this week's Eye Poll 52% to 48%. Of course in true Marty fashion he sent out a blast email to the Martycrat faithful asking them to head over to Eye On Albuquerque and vote for him in our little unscientific poll.
The next question is will Marty bounce back to a gubernatorial run, over to a Congressional run, or challenge the city charter in order to make him mayor for life (kind' a like another Chavez recently - Hugo).
There's no doubt that today The Almighty has fallen. The only remaining questions are how far and what kind of vengeance he will mete out while serving out the rest of his term.
The Albuquerque Journal and the rest of the media are all trying to be the first to tell you that Marty is out and that Tom Udall has his full support. (Guess that scam-era moratorium veto just became a sure thing.) All this despite the fact that he's leading in this week's Eye Poll 52% to 48%. Of course in true Marty fashion he sent out a blast email to the Martycrat faithful asking them to head over to Eye On Albuquerque and vote for him in our little unscientific poll.
Hello Everyone,We're all for getting out the vote, but for an Internet poll?! Sheesh! Perhaps the Martycrats figured out that there's no way to push the primary. More importantly, The Almighty One was probably having a hard time finding enough support to make it past the pre-primary convention with its mandatory 20%.
A local blog here in Albuquerque has a poll online asking, "Who do you favor in the Democratic Primary?" I believe over the last 2 years of my third term as Mayor we have made tremendous strides in Albuquerque by becoming green, being a business friendly city,and building out all our amenities. I would like to bring the strong leadership that I have brought to Albuquerque to the U.S. Senate.
Today, I am asking you to spend 30 seconds by clicking here and voting for me, Martin Chavez. Thank you so much in advance.
If there is anything I can do for you in the future please feel free to contact my campaign office at 830-2008.
Thanks,
Marty
"While I deeply appreciate all the support I have received, it has become very clear to me that Democrats should not be divided in the upcoming election. It is crucial to the future of New Mexico and this country that a Democrat become the next U.S. Senator. A hotly contested primary, as this one certainly could be, would likely dramatically weaken the Democratic nominee and place the general election in jeopardy."Rrrrriiiiiight! Marty has been bashing Udall since before Udall even announced to announce to announce. We're having a hard time believing that he suddenly has put the good of the Democratic party before his personal ambitions.- Martin Chavez
Senate Race eMail Announcement
The next question is will Marty bounce back to a gubernatorial run, over to a Congressional run, or challenge the city charter in order to make him mayor for life (kind' a like another Chavez recently - Hugo).
There's no doubt that today The Almighty has fallen. The only remaining questions are how far and what kind of vengeance he will mete out while serving out the rest of his term.
Eye on the Grapevine: Playing for Time
A couple of months ago the Albuquerque Police Officers Association ran a full page ad in the Albuquerque Journal. It was smack dab in the middle of the Balloon Fiesta and timed to put maximum pressure on the Almighty Alcalde and Chief Schultz. The ad puts APD's strength at just 900 officers at a time when DC Castro had just told an Oshkosh paper that APD had 1,033 officers (read it here).
According to the grapevine, the above ad seemed to have the intended effect as Chief Schultz opened negotiations shortly thereafter telling the powers that be over at the APOA that negotiations would take a month or so. That was early October (read about it here) and the additional money approved by the council has still not found its way to the officers of APD. The story is that talks between the union and the 5th floor have stalled and the Chief Schultz is telling union officials that everything will get done, just give him some time.
We really don't know for sure that Schultz and the union have been talking at all. However, it does make sense in light of the lack of follow-up by the union. There's little doubt that the ad had an impact and that back in October the APOA had the upper-hand. In fact, many Eye readers questioned why union President Ron Olivas failed to press his advantage.
If indeed Schultz and company had opened negotiations, the union would understandably be reluctant to continue the campaign. However, our friends over at the union better understand that time is not on their side.
At the time, Marty had just announced for Senate and there were thousands of visitors from all over the world in town to see the colorful fiesta. The smart political move was to play for time, get the visitors out, and hopefully the media and the public would lose interest. So far the move seems to have worked.
According to the grapevine, the above ad seemed to have the intended effect as Chief Schultz opened negotiations shortly thereafter telling the powers that be over at the APOA that negotiations would take a month or so. That was early October (read about it here) and the additional money approved by the council has still not found its way to the officers of APD. The story is that talks between the union and the 5th floor have stalled and the Chief Schultz is telling union officials that everything will get done, just give him some time.
We really don't know for sure that Schultz and the union have been talking at all. However, it does make sense in light of the lack of follow-up by the union. There's little doubt that the ad had an impact and that back in October the APOA had the upper-hand. In fact, many Eye readers questioned why union President Ron Olivas failed to press his advantage.
If indeed Schultz and company had opened negotiations, the union would understandably be reluctant to continue the campaign. However, our friends over at the union better understand that time is not on their side.
At the time, Marty had just announced for Senate and there were thousands of visitors from all over the world in town to see the colorful fiesta. The smart political move was to play for time, get the visitors out, and hopefully the media and the public would lose interest. So far the move seems to have worked.
Dec 6, 2007
Tapped-Out
Yesterday's Albuquerque Journal did a somewhat short story in the Metro section about Councilor Cadigan and his designs to use the Water Authority to control growth. We've been concerned about this exact misuse of water and the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Authority since it was stupidly created by the legislature and Governor Bill some 4 years ago (ABQ Journal - Subscription).
The excuse used at the time was that the city and county weren't playing nice in the aquifer; and perhaps they weren't. Frankly, we don't really care because just like many of the drugs advertised on TV, the cure is far worse than the disease.
The excuse used at the time was that the city and county weren't playing nice in the aquifer; and perhaps they weren't. Frankly, we don't really care because just like many of the drugs advertised on TV, the cure is far worse than the disease.
(Sidebar)The stated goal of Senate Bill 887 (2003 legislative session) was to force the City of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County to communicate better by creating a board consisting of 3 county commissioners, 3 city councilors, and a representative appointed by the mayor of Albuquerque. This board has complete control over the life blood of the city and county and now Cadigan wants to use the board's authority to stop growth in the city.
The Water Authority was the brain child of none other than accused crook Manny Aragon. That by itself should give you pause, but the real problem with the authority is that it's not directly accountable to the public.
(End Sidebar)
Albuquerque City Councilor Michael Cadigan is calling for the city-county Water Authority to flex its muscles to control development.
Cadigan, who is also a member of the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority board, said the board should block service to some new developments, even if water availability isn't the issue [Emphasis Added].
The Water Authority ought to look at all growth issues— including the impacts a development would have on schools and traffic— before giving the go-ahead for water service.
"The water supply is the teeth of urban planning," [Emphasis Added]he said.
City and county governments can only tell a developer how to build, Cadigan said, not if it can build. But developers "don't have a constitutional right to water," he said.
Look, if Comrade Cadigan gets his way the Water Authority will end up more powerful than either the city or county governments that gave life to this socialist Frankenstein. The neo-socialist underpinnings of his statements are simply terrifying for anyone who believes that government's first obligation is to protect freedom - our freedom.
Worse yet, it won't just be water that is tapped-out it'll be jobs, housing (especially affordable housing), opportunity, innovation, and all of the things that make a community and a city great - all of the things that are only present when a community is growing.
Worse yet, it won't just be water that is tapped-out it'll be jobs, housing (especially affordable housing), opportunity, innovation, and all of the things that make a community and a city great - all of the things that are only present when a community is growing.
Dec 4, 2007
Holding Kids for Ransom
Before he's even received the passed moratorium on his scam-era system, The Almighty Alcalde is telling 770 KKOB that he believes that the scam-vans are important because the stop speeders in school zones saying "if you speed through school zones you ought to get a ticket."
We couldn't agree more, except that the scam-vans are not about punishing evil-doers, it's about making money for Marty to balance the budget with (among other things). It's not like these vans are being used exclusively for school zone enforcement; just ask the 1306 freeway scam-era citation recipients from June 19th.
More importantly, be afraid... be VERY afraid when a politician who's on the ropes, running for senate, and desperate to save an unpopular yet lucrative program starts talking about children. They're usually using the poor unsuspecting innocents to hide something and distract you long enough to change the subject.
You watch; Marty will veto the council bill claiming that he just couldn't allow our children to be in danger without these scam-vans. Meanwhile, he's holding those very children for ransom and getting paid one Redflex citation at a time.
We couldn't agree more, except that the scam-vans are not about punishing evil-doers, it's about making money for Marty to balance the budget with (among other things). It's not like these vans are being used exclusively for school zone enforcement; just ask the 1306 freeway scam-era citation recipients from June 19th.
More importantly, be afraid... be VERY afraid when a politician who's on the ropes, running for senate, and desperate to save an unpopular yet lucrative program starts talking about children. They're usually using the poor unsuspecting innocents to hide something and distract you long enough to change the subject.
You watch; Marty will veto the council bill claiming that he just couldn't allow our children to be in danger without these scam-vans. Meanwhile, he's holding those very children for ransom and getting paid one Redflex citation at a time.
And the Allegations Fly...
No, we're not talking about Udall - Chavez, Wilson - Pearce, White - Carraro... we're talking the Foolish Foursome. You'd think that this was an important election with the future of the nation at stake instead of yet another failed attempt to make Ken Sanchez president of a governing body.
The accusations from last night's dinner club debacle have had us laughing all day as last night's absent councilors tried to explain away their precipitous and foolish boycott.
Perhaps the brain trust of Mayer and Harris should have done a little historical research before backing the Sanchez horse. Newly elected Councilor Trudy Jones might want to be careful who she takes political advice from. She gets a mulligan on this one but let's hope she's smart enough not to miss her second council meeting.
The accusations from last night's dinner club debacle have had us laughing all day as last night's absent councilors tried to explain away their precipitous and foolish boycott.
Mayer said that for two months, Winter had said he would support her for the job. She said he later agreed to support Sanchez but changed his mind again just before Monday's meeting when he received a call from Allen Weh, chairman of the state Republican Party.
Sanchez said he had the support of Councilor Brad Winter, a much needed vote, but minutes before tonight's meeting Winter said he wouldn't support Sanchez.
"Politically to me you're only as good as your word," Sanchez said at a news conference. "This is an issue of integrity: this is an issue of honesty."
"He said that his wife would divorce him and his wife does serve on the Water Authority. And I would hope that would not be the case when we are making decisions as members of this council," said Sanchez.
That last one is a real gem... Divorce over a position that only about 9 people care about! Funny stuff! Besides, how many of you have told everyone that would listen that you were going to vote for one candidate only to press the opposing candidate's button? (John Kerry supporters you know who you are.)
What's even more entertaining is that our Eyes tell us that "moderate Democrat" (Ok, Martycrat) Sanchez has been dissed no less than 4 previous times by the Democrat controlled County Commission. Each year Commissioner (now Councilor) Sanchez would nominate himself for the president's post only to have his fellow Democrats pass on his presidential bid.
What's even more entertaining is that our Eyes tell us that "moderate Democrat" (Ok, Martycrat) Sanchez has been dissed no less than 4 previous times by the Democrat controlled County Commission. Each year Commissioner (now Councilor) Sanchez would nominate himself for the president's post only to have his fellow Democrats pass on his presidential bid.
Perhaps the brain trust of Mayer and Harris should have done a little historical research before backing the Sanchez horse. Newly elected Councilor Trudy Jones might want to be careful who she takes political advice from. She gets a mulligan on this one but let's hope she's smart enough not to miss her second council meeting.
Dec 3, 2007
Tantrum! Council Disobedience
Four city councilors pitched a fit at tonight's council meeting and decided a dinner date at Capo's restaurant was more important than attending the meeting. Councilors Sanchez, Mayer, Harris, and newly elected Trudy Jones decided to show their displeasure with the vote to make Councilor Winter President of the Council by boycotting the meeting.
Of course the councilors made time after their main courses to drop by city hall long enough to look foolish for the media and make the 10 o'clock news, but they apparently didn't have time to do what they were elected to do - our business. The reason given by the foolish foursome - Councilor Winter decided to pull his support for Councilor Sanchez's bid for President in favor of... well, himself. Hey, who would you vote for?
Meanwhile issues like Tax Increment Funding Districts, Red Light Camera Moratoriums, and Neighborhood Recognition Ordinances were on the agenda with barely a quorum to hear them. What we're really torqued about is the fact that even though the Red Light Camera Moratorium passed 3 to 2 (Winter, Cadigan, & Garduno in favor, O'Malley & Benton against) it's not even close to veto proof. And if today's little tantrum is any indication, Winter will have a heck of a time trying to get three votes out of tonight's Capo's Dinner Club members should the Almighty Alcade decide to veto the bill.
We've got some news for the Foolish Foursome, NO ONE CARES! Most people would have a hard time naming the councilor they voted for much less which one ended up president of this "august" body. Tonight's little show of council disobedience only served to make you look foolish and petty. Not at all the best start for the new council.
Of course the councilors made time after their main courses to drop by city hall long enough to look foolish for the media and make the 10 o'clock news, but they apparently didn't have time to do what they were elected to do - our business. The reason given by the foolish foursome - Councilor Winter decided to pull his support for Councilor Sanchez's bid for President in favor of... well, himself. Hey, who would you vote for?
Meanwhile issues like Tax Increment Funding Districts, Red Light Camera Moratoriums, and Neighborhood Recognition Ordinances were on the agenda with barely a quorum to hear them. What we're really torqued about is the fact that even though the Red Light Camera Moratorium passed 3 to 2 (Winter, Cadigan, & Garduno in favor, O'Malley & Benton against) it's not even close to veto proof. And if today's little tantrum is any indication, Winter will have a heck of a time trying to get three votes out of tonight's Capo's Dinner Club members should the Almighty Alcade decide to veto the bill.
We've got some news for the Foolish Foursome, NO ONE CARES! Most people would have a hard time naming the councilor they voted for much less which one ended up president of this "august" body. Tonight's little show of council disobedience only served to make you look foolish and petty. Not at all the best start for the new council.
Comments Are Back
We've decided to re-institute comments after some careful consideration and a little cleanup work. We're still in the process of removing content that just doesn't meet our standards of good taste even if those comments include solicitations for cookie recipes. (We'd forward those particular readers to epicurious.com, a site where your sweet tooth can be satisfied without boring the rest of us with your culinary ignorance.)
Over the next few weeks we'll be working to remove the offensive and the just plain stupid. In the meantime we'll being moderating the comments on this site. You'll still be able to post anonymously but we'll only allow posts that have something to do with the topic at hand and don't include language that would make a sailor blush because that won't make the cut either. Feel free to disagree with us or with any commenter just do it within the bounds of good taste. So let the games begin... again.
Over the next few weeks we'll be working to remove the offensive and the just plain stupid. In the meantime we'll being moderating the comments on this site. You'll still be able to post anonymously but we'll only allow posts that have something to do with the topic at hand and don't include language that would make a sailor blush because that won't make the cut either. Feel free to disagree with us or with any commenter just do it within the bounds of good taste. So let the games begin... again.
Dec 2, 2007
Eye Poll: Scrap the Scam-eras
On the eve (hopefully) of the city council vote to suspend scam-era operations until Marty's task farce finishes it's work on the issue, it comes as no surprise that 67% of Eye readers wanted to get rid of the traffic scam. In last week's unscientific poll, 46% wanted to scrap the program and refund the fines, 21% simply wanted the program scraped, 7% wanted to lower the fines again, 25% wanted the program left alone, 1% didn't know, and 1% didn't care (read the results here).
No matter how you look at it 67% is a very large section of our readership population. It would be wise for the council to consider this system's growing unpopularity before they decide not to vote for a moratorium.
All of which brings to mind another issue. Councilor Winter must have the votes to suspend the rules to allow his moratorium to be even discussed. An easy out for wimpy councilors would be to simply vote against suspending the rules; which would mean that Councilor Winter's bill wouldn't be heard at this council meeting.
We've urged you to contact your councilors before and we're about to do it again. If you have already sent an email to the council - good work, but you might want to do it again tomorrow. The council has to realize that there are serious issues with the entire system from its claims of lowering accidents (it doesn't) to its complete and utter lack of due process that could more accurately be described as fraud.
We've received a copy of the class action lawsuit that was filed last Friday and have had a chance to skim through the filing. From our layman's perspective it looks damn good. We'll be talking about it more next week and we'll make a copy of it available for your own review as well.
This week's Eye Poll takes us back to politics. After all of the announcing to announce the leak to announce the announcement took place, last Thursday's entry by Congressman Tom Udall was something of a let down. That being said, we're almost positive (as positive as any Eye can be this early in a race) that he'll be the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate (unless of course he's hit by one of Marty's eco-friendly extra large buses that have been seen cruising the streets of Albuquerque lately). But that's our opinion; let us know what you think in this week's Eye Poll!
-----Council Emails-----
District 1 - Ken Sanchez - ksanchez@cabq.gov
District 2 - Debbie O'Malley - domalley@cabq.gov
District 3 - Isaac Benton - ibenton@cabq.gov
District 4 - Brad Winter - bwinter@cabq.gov
District 5 - Michael Cadigan - mcadigan@cabq.gov
District 6 - Rey Garduno - tkellerman@cabq.gov (Assistant to Councilor Garduno)
District 7 - Sally Mayer - smayer@cabq.gov
District 8 - Trudy Jones - tjones@cabq.gov
District 9 - Don Harris - dharris@cabq.gov
-----Update-----
One of the emails that we have been giving out has been incorrect. Rgarduno@cabq.gov apparently belongs to another RGarduno. We apologize for the inconvenience to Ms. Garduno.
Which brings up another gripe. Since our friends on the council have been allowed to hire their own personal assistants, they've taken their emails off the cabq.gov website and listed only their "policy analysts." We don't know about you, but those yahoos work for us and it's incumbent upon them to have a direct means of communication.
More importantly, they shouldn't be using paid staffers as a shield to keep us from taking them to task when we feel like it. They're the ones that signed up for this job and spent the money and time to be elected. (Ok... O'Malley and Garduno used our money but you get the point.) Criticism fair or not comes with the territory.
No matter how you look at it 67% is a very large section of our readership population. It would be wise for the council to consider this system's growing unpopularity before they decide not to vote for a moratorium.
All of which brings to mind another issue. Councilor Winter must have the votes to suspend the rules to allow his moratorium to be even discussed. An easy out for wimpy councilors would be to simply vote against suspending the rules; which would mean that Councilor Winter's bill wouldn't be heard at this council meeting.
We've urged you to contact your councilors before and we're about to do it again. If you have already sent an email to the council - good work, but you might want to do it again tomorrow. The council has to realize that there are serious issues with the entire system from its claims of lowering accidents (it doesn't) to its complete and utter lack of due process that could more accurately be described as fraud.
We've received a copy of the class action lawsuit that was filed last Friday and have had a chance to skim through the filing. From our layman's perspective it looks damn good. We'll be talking about it more next week and we'll make a copy of it available for your own review as well.
This week's Eye Poll takes us back to politics. After all of the announcing to announce the leak to announce the announcement took place, last Thursday's entry by Congressman Tom Udall was something of a let down. That being said, we're almost positive (as positive as any Eye can be this early in a race) that he'll be the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate (unless of course he's hit by one of Marty's eco-friendly extra large buses that have been seen cruising the streets of Albuquerque lately). But that's our opinion; let us know what you think in this week's Eye Poll!
-----Council Emails-----
District 1 - Ken Sanchez - ksanchez@cabq.gov
District 2 - Debbie O'Malley - domalley@cabq.gov
District 3 - Isaac Benton - ibenton@cabq.gov
District 4 - Brad Winter - bwinter@cabq.gov
District 5 - Michael Cadigan - mcadigan@cabq.gov
District 6 - Rey Garduno - tkellerman@cabq.gov (Assistant to Councilor Garduno)
District 7 - Sally Mayer - smayer@cabq.gov
District 8 - Trudy Jones - tjones@cabq.gov
District 9 - Don Harris - dharris@cabq.gov
-----Update-----
One of the emails that we have been giving out has been incorrect. Rgarduno@cabq.gov apparently belongs to another RGarduno. We apologize for the inconvenience to Ms. Garduno.
Which brings up another gripe. Since our friends on the council have been allowed to hire their own personal assistants, they've taken their emails off the cabq.gov website and listed only their "policy analysts." We don't know about you, but those yahoos work for us and it's incumbent upon them to have a direct means of communication.
More importantly, they shouldn't be using paid staffers as a shield to keep us from taking them to task when we feel like it. They're the ones that signed up for this job and spent the money and time to be elected. (Ok... O'Malley and Garduno used our money but you get the point.) Criticism fair or not comes with the territory.
To Comment or Not to Comment - That is the Question
As you know Eye On Albuquerque has always allowed unfettered comments. We've always enjoyed a good dust-up and giving our readers the ability to express themselves (right or wrong) has at the very least been entertaining and sometimes very informative. Our policy has been to allow people to say what they wanted to say even if it made little sense, defied logic, was off topic, or even flat-out nuts.
We always tried to keep an eye on the running dialog and have deleted a comment or two that were in bad taste or were obnoxiously hawking T-Shirts or pushing cookie recipes. The comments themselves were always from our readers who were solely responsible for their content (or lack thereof).
However, we've been increasingly concerned that some of the comments have not only left topic but left reality and far too often the realm of good taste.
So in order to avoid becoming the on-line version of the pay-per view Jerry Springer show, we've disabled the comments - at least for now. We may reactivate them at a later date and of course, we're more than happy to publish well written commentary in our Letters to The Eye section.
In fact we'd love to hear your opinion on the subject. If you'd like to see the return of our comments section, shoot us an email at editor@eyeonalbuquerque.com.
We always tried to keep an eye on the running dialog and have deleted a comment or two that were in bad taste or were obnoxiously hawking T-Shirts or pushing cookie recipes. The comments themselves were always from our readers who were solely responsible for their content (or lack thereof).
However, we've been increasingly concerned that some of the comments have not only left topic but left reality and far too often the realm of good taste.
So in order to avoid becoming the on-line version of the pay-per view Jerry Springer show, we've disabled the comments - at least for now. We may reactivate them at a later date and of course, we're more than happy to publish well written commentary in our Letters to The Eye section.
In fact we'd love to hear your opinion on the subject. If you'd like to see the return of our comments section, shoot us an email at editor@eyeonalbuquerque.com.
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