My take on...

1. Civic Center
   Baaaaaaad PR, fellas. Personally, I couldn't be happier the mayor has NOT named me to that commission. What a boondoggle. Look, we need the thing. No doubt about it. But let's be realistic. The people running this thing act like they're the most important story in town, like their open hands deserve more green than all the other open hands around town. Just feels more and more like the Toledo riverfront to me. Visited it about 15 years ago. Huge local dollars. Beautiful convention center. And it was vacant. Well, that's not exactly true. It was occupied by the city's homeless. Pretty successful now, thanks to a lot of redevelopment, but boy-o, was it ever bad then.
   
   
2. Parking Tickets
   Interesting topic from Ms. Bilbo. Evidentally, our fine city is hemoragging green by booking people for ridiculously minor offenses. No wonder the county's pissed about the $25. According to the article, there were 4,860 parking and noise ordinance violations from 2001-2005. The city then issued arrest warrants for 3,647 of them. As Bilbo points out, that's 75 percent! So drive carefully, Peoria. Your name might be on a list. And if it is, I hope you're not allergical to latex, cause you're going to get searched in your...well...most sensitive areas. Or you can handle the situation like this Des Moines lady, who faked her death to avoid paying parking tickets. Dramatic, yes. But I give her points for style.
   
   Here's my recommendation to the city: set up a freaking e-commerce site already. Join the nineties, at least. Mail a notification to people that, to avoid being issued a warrant, they must either show up and pay in person -- or visit a website and pay by credit card. That's easy money, kiddos.
   
   Unpaid fines are almost always an issue of inconvenience. As in...drive to the courthouse during lunch, try to find a parking spot, go through the metal detector, find the right line, wait in said line, have cash or a checkbook on hand, and then kiss the ass of an unfriendly clerk who makes less money than a school bus driver. Just give me a freaking web address, already. I'll pay! I'll pay!
   
   Do the math: 3,647 fines at, let's say, $75 each...that's $273,525. Not bad money, that. Add in what we save in unecessary bookings, lawsuits, etc., and we might just have enough for Bill's precious fire engine.
   
   
3. Covergirl
   Nice cleavage shot from today's Journal Star (though someone needs to teach 'em how to make their photos web ready). Anyway, I'm sure there are worse ways to come home from the war. Welcome back, soldier.
   
   
4. UAE
   This is such a non-issue. People, we live and work in a global economy. There is no such thing as national anything, anymore. Hell, we have soldiers fighting in our own army who aren't even citizens, yet (and hats off to 'em, by the way). British companies are managing our ports right now, and Britain is home to some of the most radical muslims in the world. To me, this is political gamemanship.
   
   However, W was pretty naive to step into the trap. Should have smelled the stink coming a mile away. Yet, he and his merry team of advisors walked right into it. Again. You would have thought the wisedom (snort) of all the king's men/women would have saved him from this fiasco. It's just a good thing for America that everything else is going so well...
   
   
5. Best New Blogger
   Sure, I love Polly and Bill and CJ and the gang. But my new fav is peoriaillinoisan. Fun info, great links, and even the occassional scoop. Keep it up, man-o.
   
   (Incidentally, I just noticed the bastard beat me to the picture above. Jerk.)
   
   
6. Loyalty
   Many thanks to the people who keep visiting this site -- even though I haven't been posting to it, lately. I'll try harder.
   
   

Separated @ Birth: Episode VI

Polly Peoria As A Child

Willy Nilly As A Child

Next Up...

I've been busy. Sorry.

I'll try to launch the next few additions of Separated at Birth, Peoria-style, tonight. You just might see a local congressman...a prominent business leader...a minor TV celeb...and a surprise appearance from a local blogger or two.

Stay tuned!

Quote of the Day

Quote:

"In times of change, learners inherit the earth; while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists."

- Eric Hoffer

Translation:

"Learn to speak Chinese."

WORLD WAR III

Let's take a look at a few highlights from the last two years, shall we? See if you notice any commonalities among the following incidents. (Warning, it's a long list.)

RUSSIA: February 6, 2004 - Bomb on Moscow Metro kills 41.

PHILIPPINES: February 27, 2004 - Superferry 14 is bombed in the Philippines by Abu Sayyaf, killing 116.

IRAQ: March 2, 2004 - Suicide bombings at Shia holy sites kill 181 and wound more than 500.

PAKISTAN: March 2, 2004 - Attack on procession of Shia Muslims kills 43 and wounds 160.

TURKEY: March 9, 2004 - Attack on an Istanbul restaurant.

SPAIN: March 11, 2004 - Coordinated bombing of commuter trains in Madrid kills 191 people and injures more than 1,500.

SAUDI ARABIA: April 21, 2004 - Bombing of a security building in Riyadh kills five.

SAUDI ARABIA: May 1, 2004 - Yanbu attack kills seven.

SAUDI ARABIA: May 29, 2004 - Islamic militants kill 22 people at an oil compound.

RUSSIA: August 31, 2004 - A blast near a subway station entrance in northern Moscow, caused by a suicide bomber, kills 10 people and injures 33.

RUSSIA: September 1 – 3, 2004 - Beslan school hostage crisis in North Ossetia, Russia, results in 344 dead. MOST ARE CHILDREN.

INDONESIA: September 9, 2004 - Australian embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia is bombed, killing eight people.

ISRAEL: October 7, 2004 - Three car bombs explode, killing at least 34 and wounding 171.

SAUDI ARABIA: December 6, 2004 - U.S. consulate attacked in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, killing five LOCAL employees.

PHILIPPINES: December 12, 2004 - A bombing at the Christmas market in General Santos kills 15.

LEBANON: February 14, 2005 - A car bomb kills former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri and 20 others in Beirut.

QATAR: March 19, 2005 - A car bomb attack on theatre in Doha kills one Briton and wounds 12 others.

EGYPT: April 7, 2005 - A suicide bomber blows himself up in Cairo's Khan al Khalili market, killing three foreign tourists and wounding 17 others.

IRAN: June 12, 2005 - Bombs explode in the Iranian cities of Ahvaz and Tehran, leaving 10 dead.

ENGLAND: July 7, 2005 – Bombs explode on one double-decker bus and three London Underground trains, killing 56 people and injuring over 700. The attacks are believed by many to be the first suicide bombings in Western Europe.

ENGLAND: July 21, 2005 - Small explosions in three London Underground stations and one double-decker bus.

EGYPT: July 23, 2005 - Car bombs explode at tourist sites in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, killing at least 88 and wounding more than 100.

BANGLADESH: August 17, 2005 - Around 100 homemade bombs explode in 58 different locations, killing two and wounding 100, many of whom are children.

INDONESIA: October 1, 2005 - A series of explosions occurs in resort areas of Jimabaran Beach and Kuta in Bali.

RUSSIA: October 13, 2005 - A large group of Chechen rebels (all Muslims) launched coordinated attacks on Russian federal buildings, local police stations, and the airport in Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria. At least 137 people were killed.

IRAN: October 15, 2005 - Two bombs exploded at a shopping mall in Ahvaz, Khuzestan. Six people died and over 100 were injured.

IRAQ: October 24, 2005 - Multiple car bombs explode outside the Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, killing at least 11. It is thought that the attacks were targeting journalists inside the Palestine Hotel and the Sheraton Ishtar.

ISRAEL: October 26, 2005 - A Palestinian suicide bomber detonates a bomb near a falafel stand in Hadera, Israel that kills himself and six others. Twenty-six people were wounded.

INDIA: October 29, 2005 - Multiple bomb blasts hit markets in New Delhi, leaving at least 61 dead and more than 200 injured.

JORDAN: November 9, 2005 - Three explosions at hotels in Amman leave at least 60 dead and 120 wounded.

ISRAEL: December 5, 2005 - A suicide bomb attack kills at least five people in Netanya.

So what did you notice? One of the first things I picked up on is that you have more to fear from islamic terrorists if you're a muslim.

The second point is that none of these occured on US soil. And we're arguably the biggest targets these groups have. Say what you want about W., but I say the boy's getting the job done on the terror front.

The third point is that this IS world war iii. It's going on in every country that has a major islamic presence. Now that's not something you'll see on an islamic recruiting brochure.

The fourth point is that in each of these situations, there was little to no public outcry from the Islamic world. Not in their media. Not by the leaders of their faith. And certainly not by demonstrations in the streets (with the exception of the Lebonese assasination). Is this behavior now par for the course with this people? Now fast-forward to their reaction to a cartoon.

Me thinks they might have a priorities problem.

The fact is, we're in a cultural war that's just not going to go away anytime soon.

Separated @ Birth: Episode V

Come on folks... A lot of you browsing, and that's great, but let me know what you think, will ya? Anyone in mind for Episode VI?

State Representative Aaron Schock

aka "Doogie Howser, M.D.", Neil Patrick Harris

Separated @ Birth: Episode IV

Peoria Media Gadfly, Phil Luciano

Galactic Freedom Fighter, Graak the Ewok

Separated @ Birth: Episode III

Peoria Councilman, Gary Sandberg

Actor & Musician, Jack Black

Separated @ Birth: Episode II

Here's the next installment. As always, I'm open to new ideas from the peanut galleries. Who's next?

Peoria Councilman, John Morris

The Late Great John Belushi

Separated @ Birth: Episode I

This is the first post in a new series, focusing on local popular and political celebrities. Can't say why I've chosen the folks I have, but it's not out of spite. I really do like most of them. Just having a little fun. You'll be seeing local celebs of every persuasion.

So without further ado, the first Peoria Separated at Birth:

Peoria Councilwoman, Barbara Van Auken

TV's Maude, Actress Bea Arthur

Another, "Oh Crap," Parent Moment

Hat tip to BJ over at OneProblem for this little gem. It's an article from New York Magazine about the whole girl on girl movement among high school (and younger) girls.

Crap. Remember when parents only had to worry about guys hitting on their daughters?

I went to big high school a couple of decades or so ago. There were almost 700 kids in my class. But for the life of me, I can't picture a scene like this one going on the hallways. (Fantasized about the chick part of it, yes. Hell, I was sixteen once. But actually see and experience it? No way.)

Just another example of the liberalization of our culture. I'm not talking politics as much as the "if it makes you feel good, do it" mentality. What a load of crap.

I think the whole pseudo-lesbo thing is less about loving other girls as it is about girls feeling the need to go above and beyond to turn on boys. It's about very low self-esteems. One girl in the article said it best:

"It's either to please a man, or to try it out, or just to be fun, or '’cause you're bored, or just '’cause you like it . Whatever."

To please a man, she says. That's the one out of her list that rings most true.

Super Bowl Observations

1. Is it just me or does Steeler's coach, Bill Cower, look like the bad guy from Dick Tracy? You know, the one with the huge chin?
   
   
2. The Stones need no special effects, fancy camera angles or exposed nipples. They owned the stage. Three hundred years old and they flat out rock. Loved it.
   
   
3. The ads mostly suck this year. The guys throwing his Sprint cell phone into the face of another guy as a "crime deterrent" made me cackle out loud. Didn't see it coming. Loved it. My other favorite ad (on target, on message) is one I've seen before: the two city-killing monsters fall in love and have a baby...the new Hummer H3. Fun ad. Third on the list was the lady on the airplane who falls on top of a guy just as the lights come on.
   
   
4. The refs ruined this game. Way too many calls. Way too many bad calls.
   

Joining The Mile-High Club

While I don't know what you mean by mile-high club, but I was talking about PeoriaIllinoisan's new blog that shows shots of Peoria from the air.

The shots have the look of GoogleEarth to me...which is one of the coolest e-toys ever.

Go check out his new blog here.

What's wrong with City Council

Bill Dennis said: "We have new city council members because of this outrage (crime)."

Funny, I thought it was because of fire station 11. Oh, no, that's right, it was because of the garbage tax. Or was it the flower baskets? No, it was the private meetings, right?

The new council came in with huge expectations because they made a lot of huge promises. Mostly, though, our city's financial conditions will not allow those promises to be met for some time.

(Incidentally, thank God for the new mall that so many of you "damn the northside" crowd opposed. That sucker accounted for more than $2 million in much-needed new revenues. Imagine what the budget would have looked like without it!)

I like a lot of the progress the new council is making. And I think Ardis is doing a bang-up job. The one thing I don't like about this council, though, is that they seem to micromanage everything the city staff or the commissions are doing.

It reminds me of working at UPS while in college. I was a sorter, which means I had a constant flow of packages that I had to place in an appropriate bin based on their address. While I and my colleagues were doing this, there was a guy who's sole job was to watch us and time us with a stop watch. All night long, he recorded our times.

Now isn't that the picture of efficiency? Isn't that ridiculous? Well, so is examining in the tiniest detail every move that the staff makes and commenting on it publicly. Why do we hire these people if we don't trust them? If we don't trust them, hire someone you do. God knows I wouldn't want to work for the city. It's just not worth the hassle of dealing with this council.

So I say, relax guys. Stay focused on the big picture and keep the ship of state (or city in this case) moving forward. Make us all proud. Cut out the chicken shit stuff, already, and be leaders.
Nobody likes a micromanager.

(Or a dorkwad, Polly.)

Another kid problem...

While we're on the subject of issues facing our kids, I'll relate a problem that drives me absolutely freaking nuts as a parent. It's the sexualization of pre- and early-teen girls.

Have you had to shop recently for girls in this age bracket?

While I'm far from a prude (though my daughter might disagree with that assertion), I am astounded at the clothes that are being foisted on young girls, today. They make thongs for kids!!!

Maybe it has something to do with this progression:

1. Young female pop star makes a splash in the industry. Her image: virginal. Her audience: pre-pubescent girls.
   
   
2. Within one or two years, her image changes to one of the sexually aware. Her image: tease.


3. Another year or two down the road and her image becomes: skank. She's sexually explicit in her actions, lyrics and dancing (and lifestyle), and is now publicly exploring bisexuality. Basically, she's become the kid you knew in school that was popular with the guys in junior high because she put out, but by 11th or 12th grade, she's used up and hard looking.
   
   
4. Then she becomes this (see picture). Don't you want this for your little girl?
   

Don't get me wrong. I'm not blaming the pop music industry, though they certainly play a part. But I am pointing out that our popular culture today is promoting sexuality at younger and younger ages. And trust me, if a kid isn't mature enough to get a driver's license, then they're not mature enough to handle the mental, emotional and (I'll say it) even spiritual baggage that accompanies becoming sexually active.

So where does that leave us as parents? Certainly, for me, it means not shopping at thong-pushing places like Abercrombie & Fitch at the very least. Mostly, I think it means we need to be painfully honest, open and up-front with our kids. Telling all about the ins and outs of sex (so to speak) and why it's vitally important for them to wait until they're old enough to handle it. (And, in my opinion, married. But that's just me.)

It also means teaching our daughters to value themselves, to reject the pop culture lie that they need to adopt a sexy image in order to be liked or appreciated or even loved.

It means saying and showing them a better goal for life than becoming another Britney.

Who knew parenting would get so complicated?

D150 Blame Game II

Tried to post a reponse to a post on The Peoria Pundit. It disappeared. Tried another one. It disappeared. So...

Here's my reply to Bill's post...which is reply to my post:

Of course kids need to feel safe in school. Of course D150 needs to address issues of violence and do whatever they can to make our children feel safe. Duh! No brainers on both counts.

My point, though, is that there is a greater problem out there -- and it exists on the streets and in the homes of big percentage of our city. It's the stuff LaVetta is screaming about each week. The stuff you (Bill) praised her for addressing. It's the stuff the "rest" of Peoria can safely choose to ignore. Why? Because it's not in our neighborhoods, is it? It's in someone else's. And it's not our kids that are threatened as they walk down the street. Indeed, our kids are driven around in cars and minivans and SUVs, aren't they?

The reason we make such a big deal out of the schools is because that is the one place "our kids" come in contact with the problem. Sure, kids from the Southside and other areas live in constant contact with the drugs and the crime and the violence. But the rest of us can ignore the their issues and pretend it's not there. After all, our kids are safe at home and on their well-kept blocks.

But God forbid the infection of violence and poverty leak into our schools where our children come in contact with it. Keep that garbage on the Southside where it belongs, right?

Let me ask you this? Where's the outrage over the people getting shot and robbed and stabbed and beaten in these neighborhoods? Don't children have a "right to feel safe" in their neighborhoods, too? Or is it simply an issue that kids from the nice neighborhoods are exposed to this stuff from time to time at school -- and that's the real source of the outrage.

Again, I say the problem is in our culture -- in our neighborhoods and homes -- and not our schools. We must choose to face up to the real cancer and stop spending all of our resources (and time) on band-aids.

Frankly, I wouldn't want D150's job for anything. And I applaud them for trying so hard to do what they do. Sure, they screw up from time to time. And yes, they could do a much better job of communicating (internally and externally). But they're doing more of a job than any educator should have to do.

Um...Sorry.

I had a setting set wrong and all of your comments were stuck in a virtual purgatory, patiently awaiting their time.

Well, they've been released. And so have you! So comment like the wind, my friends. Your words will be both seen and heard.

(If someone reads them out loud, that is.)