If you live in Florida will you vote

Tomorrow is the day of reckoning in the Sunshine State. Voters will cast their votes in the primary election. Many have not made up their minds and pollsters are in doubt about eventual outcomes.
Some pollsters predict a significant number of voters will give Romney the margin that he needs to surge ahead. Even with a victory in Florida, Romney is by no means the chosen GOP representative. His detractors are many, his supporters fickle, and independents are very skeptical.
His continued support of his own Romneycare plan in Massachusetts continues to cause him grief. Rick Santorum had pointed questions for Romney during the last debate, and Mitt's answers raised many questions about his plan and Obamacare, that federal plan about to be argued in front of the Supreme Court in March.
If the Supremes shoot down Obamacare, it does not bode well for Mitt, even if he is selected to oppose Obama in November.
All Tahoma will be watching the results as they pour in tomorrow night.

Oakland and Occupy

Oakland police arrested 400 Occupiers over the weekend, putting additional strain on the city's resources. Civic leaders remain perplexed over the protesters continued staging of large demonstrations in their city.
Threats of arrest have not deterred the youthful protesters despite police presence wherever and whenever they gather. The mayor of Oakland is doing her best to keep the interruption of the port as her main goal. Port activity is a mainstay of commercial operations around the city.
While protesters in other cities have moved on or moved to smaller venues, the oakland group continues to plague local authorities.
No solution appears to be in the offing, and politicians remain frustrated and concerned as police activities consume precious budget dollars.
Perhaps a call to Sacramento will happen this week in an attempt to rally state aid in some form.
Keep your eye on Oakland.

Real Estate decline in Sonoma County

The Mayor received first hand information regarding a vacant property in Santa Rosa, CA. (yes, it's a long way from Tahoma). The site includes 10+acres of flat land, 1/4 mile north of Rohnert Park. While rural in character, this parcel has been for sale for a few years with no takers due to Sonoma county development restrictions and habitat considerations for the infamous California Tiger salamander, the bane of developers throughout the county.
The parcel has PG&E gas and electric at the prop line, and adjacent parcels are restricted to 10a. minimums.
What then, is the issue? Answer: it closed Thursday in a private party transaction, not family related, for , are you ready?------$35,000!!!!!!!!
That's right-$35,000. cash. Seller had inherited the property from a distant relative, hence the assessment was above $300000 by county records.
It has an approved perc and all the parcel needs for development is a well, and it's in the best well water area of Sonoma County.
Lesson learned: a little luck, a little aggressive action, and good things can happen.
Sonoma county assessor just bought more Pepto-Bismal as the sale price will lower the property taxes over 90%.

Homewood Mtn Resort OPEN

Good news for skiers and boarders on the Westshore: Homewood Mtn. Resort is open-all open. The north and south lodges are both open, ski/snow board school-open, restaurants open. Deals start at $49.
Finally a ski season on the westshore. This bodes well for all Tahoma businesses and residents alike. With cold temps at night and cool temps during the day(low angle sunlight), skiing should be good for weeks, even with the bare minimum on the ground.
The Snobot works his Tahoma magic(see PDQ store icon).
Put on the wax, and get to it!!!

Italians Winter in S.F.

With a high pressure weather system hovering over the California coast, it was a perfect day to head for the City. The Mayor and his 1st Deputy drove south across the Golden Gate Bridge to enjoy the view and take in an exhibition at the DeYoung Museum. The bay was flat as a floor, and the Farallon Islands stood out in sharp relief 20 miles away to the west. Temps were in the 60's and the calm bay waters highlighted the lack of a breeze. A few hardy sailors had little to worry about as they waited for a little wind.

Masters of Venice
The exhibition at the DeYoung has been installed for about 3 months and has drawn an amazing crowd of art lovers from around the country and the world. The collection features the work of Italian Renaissance Painters whose works were collected by Hapsburg royalty in the 15th and 16th centuries. Most of the works have been loaned by the national museum in Vienna.
The most famous works were completed by stalwarts of the Italian school: Veronese, Titian, and Tintoretto(the little tintore).
Their work encompasses examples of high art, spanning the period that marked the transition from muted,classical subjects done in egg tempora, to paintings using oil based color suffused with light. Mythology became more thematic as painters moved away from Biblical studies to well known characters from the Grecian and Roman pantheon.
Most of theses works have not been exhibited abroad as a collection; and this one installation is truly a monumental project with global attraction. Well worth the time and effort.
It has received the Mayor's highest accolade: 5 stars!

Lunch by the Bay
Any decent artistic adventure creates an appetite, and in due time, Sausalito came into view and a shore side spot called Bar Bocce was selected. An amiable lunch crowd filled the place and outside seating was at a premium. We enjoyed a hand made pizza and a fine well-anchovied Caesar salad. A fine time was had by all.

Apple Apple Who's Got Apple

Apple released quarterly reports and blew analysts projections out of the water. Sales were up dramatically, prodded by sales of iphones and ipads. Earnings per share exceeded $13., way ahead of projections. Cash on hand for the corporate power house approach 100 billion dollars.
Yes, $100!
So, we love our electronic connection devices, and so does everybody else. Do you have one? If not, why not? Are you a caveman/woman? Are you out of touch with 21st Century technology? Well, it's not too late-get crackin', Bunkie.

Obama on his game

Pres. Obama gave a 1hour 5 min. speech to the nation, his 3rd State of Union speech, that touched on a number of timely topics: the economy, the economy,jobs, the economy, more jobs, the economy, do- nothing Congress, not much doing Congress, lethargic Congress, lazy Congress, worthless Congress, and the military.
Little did we know that as he was speaking, Navy Seal Team 6 was in the process of rescuing 2 hostages held in Somalia by Somali pirates. 9 pirates were killed during the raid, neither hostage was hurt. They are both receiving medical exams, putting an end to their months long ordeal.
Maybe one day soon, these Somalis will learn that there is no future in international piracy.
Obama essentially said that he will move this country forward by promising to sign into law those bills passed by Congress that address the needs of the USA.
Fine, now prod the slugs into action. Get Harry and Nancy,et.al. to drop the partisan position, forget the election for awhile, and get something done. We all know about fiddlin' while Rome burns, but, Come on! It's way past due for some degree of hope for the middle class.

Republican Rebuttal
The Governor of Indiana, the republican Mitch Daniels, gave a somber report that sounded soporific throughout. What a yawner! What we expected didn't happen. The Repubs were clearly out flanked by Obama. He gave their rebuttal during his speech. His speech writers(Obama's) knew what people wanted to hear and they included all the talking points, gutting the republicans response. So, Florida looms on the near horizon as candidates hone their efforts to emerge from the running mob.

The military, via the Seal Team, gets high marks for again conducting a flawless intervention(ala Osama). Keep up the good work. Makes the Pentagon look good, at least a little.

Oil Iran Money Europe

European countries announced participation in a boycott of Iranian oil, siding with the US in its attempt to bring Iran back from its pursuit of nuclear weapons. This action was in addition to a disruption of money transfers, freezing of accounts, and termination of banking activity with the Iranian Central bank. All these decisions come after Iran's threats to close the oil choke point at the Strait of Hormuz. The effort was led by President Sarkozy, who, in an election year, must walk a fine line between domestic policy and international relations. Only last week, an Afghani soldier opened fire on some unarmed members of the french army in Afghanistan, killing 6 and wounding 15. While untimely regarding the assault on the troops, this boycott has been in the works for sometime. The US continues its efforts to pressure Iran in an attempt to bring some order to the leaders of the country.
Good luck!

Marine Pleads at camp Pendleton

A Marine NCO Sergeant plead guilty to a charge of Dereliction of Duty in Afghanistan in a plea deal at his Court martial. He will receive a reduction in rank, loss of pay, and 3 months restriction. Seven other members of his unit had charges dropped or were acquitted of all charges. This trial ends an ordeal that came after charges were filed several years ago. Strong debate followed when it became known that these Marines were on a combat patrol in a contested area known to harbor insurgent forces, either the Taliban or Al Queda operating against the Afghan government.
Such charges pose great risks to members of the Corps doing their duty in Afghanistan where they operate with stringent controls that hamper their ability to respond when attacked. I'm sure many of the same rules were in effect in Vietnam many years ago, only now with electronic monitoring, communications capability, and length of time deployed, things are much different.
This closes a chapter on a multi-faceted campaign with more to follow.

Florida Debate

GOP rivals faced off in Florida on TV in a debate style(?) format with Brian Williams as moderator/question poser. Newt seems to be stepping up his game as he is obviously more comfortable in the position as the new 'leader ' of the group of Obama challengers. With the Florida primary a week away, lots of campaigning remains to be done.
All participants made points, few if any faux pas were evident, and all in attendence enjoyed the experience.
Did it help viewers/voters make up their minds? I'm sure it did help some; but these Republican candidates are trying to separate themselves from the pack of conservative partisans who want to be the Conservatives conservative. Within the broad definition, that could be any of the candidates, depending on your personal definition.
Mitt(Willard) Romney is playing catchup, a new role for him during this campaign. Ron Paul is playing 'stay close as possible'-don't flame out,yet, and Rick Santorum is playing 'stay even, stay close, stay in".
No hard ball questions really got the juices flowing, but NBC wanted as much exposure as the candidates without getting splattered with mud should there be any thrown.
Again, it's only January, and for some, November is a long way off.

State of the Union
Tomorrow night, President Obama will give his final state of the union as a 1st term president. He knows it's an election year so this speech is really a campaign speech. He's launching himself for 2012. He hopes to convince voters, including the ever expanding numbers of independents, that only he can propel the country out of the troubling recession that refuses to go away. However, he has to be careful that he doesn't dwell on the fact that we really are in a recession that has existed for his entire term(despite a definition with an early termination date).
Dems around the country are hoping that he can help win back the house as he tries to win another 4 years in the White House.
We'll be watching from downtown Tahoma.

Homewood Mountain Resort

Can JMA Partners survive the latest obstacle to their development plans? It is doubtful, given their extended projects and local competition. JMA , the San Francisco based owners, are certainly not gamblers, and to look at this project realistically from here on out, would indicate that it is too risky to plunge ahead, defending a legal broadside from the Sierra Club and a bunch of octogenarian opponents from Homewood who detest change of any sort.
So, maybe Obama will give some funds for a high speed rail project around the lake that would relieve traffic, or maybe a high speed catamaran ferry service that could whisk skiers, homeowners, and tourists to their lakeside destinations.
In the meantime, locals better prepare fpr a long economic downturn withput any prospects of a turnaround for 10-20 years.

Old Joe Pa

And so, Joe Paterno passes into history with a legacy clouded by recent events in Pennsylvania. After he was fired, he announced a diagnosis of lung cancer, thought to be treatable. However, this was obviously not the case.
I'm sure his last days on this earth left him with many unanswered questions about his later years, when, surrounded by fans, he succumbed to the fate of many rich and famous: It will always be so, I can do no wrong, I am above the rest.
As an example of how this trait can play out, his case will remain a textbook example. NO matter of the years of success, one must always be aware of the true nature of man and all his foibles.
RIP
Joe Paterno

Rain/Snow Rainbows

Yes, that is snow. Looks like snow, smells like snow, cold as snow, white like snow. Ergo, it's snow. As of 5pm on the 21st, only about 8" has hit Homewood at the lake and about 16" on the mountain.
There's more coming and that's good. Sunday, during the 49er vs. Giants game at the 'Stick, rain is expected. This will end up at Homewood as more snow. Maybe another foot or so. Keep the snow dance going.
Perhaps it has something to do with the Snobot erected in front of PDQ Market in Tahoma. With the old phone stand as its body, the mechanical artwork begs for snow as it mutely testifies to its prayerful mode. With several community-based additions, the theme has found a local audience among hardcore Tahomans. Very creative: local folk art for the season.
Nice.
Drove to the Wine Country early today for meetings regarding athletic activites. While driving north on 101 around Novato, a vivid rainbow formed over the highway. No, the Mayor doesn't chase rainbows, but this was certainly worthy of chasing: its colors were intense, its arc complete, and for those on the road heading north, it was worth a peak. Probably not as distracting as texting, but it did beg to be seen.

Marines in Afghanistan Draw Scrutiny

The internet continues to pose problems for indiscreet users. Recently, a video made the You Tube rounds featuring an alleged group of Marines peeing on some dead bodies. Outrage reverberated around the globe from the usual suspects. Diplomats, officials, and pundits had to pile on for the customary reasons. Even the top brass jumped in, feeling threatened by an apparent breach of Geneva Convention Rules of warfare. Ha! What a pathetic response. These folks obviously are not familiar with the "rules" of modern warfare.
Rule#1. There are no rules except those made today at this minute.
Rule#2 Fight for your survival
Rule #3 Fight for your unit survival
Rule #4 Take no prisoners
Rule#5 P on the enemy dead, whoever they are
Rule #6 Damn the politicians and their ilk

South Carolina in the News

As the political season of 2012 advances through the winter, the latest results are confounding experts around the country.
The GOP is experiencing a myriad of election results with mixed signals. Mitt Romney, former front runner, must now play catch up. Rick Santorum was declared the winner in Iowa after a final count and apparently, Newt Gingrich is the winner in South Carolina. To whom does this make sense? The record of South Carolina indicates its voters have picked the GOP nominee for the past 30 years. This does not bode well for Mr. Romney. Recent disclosures about offshore accounts, Bain Capital attachments, and a lack of catching fire in SC have combined to torpedo his efforts to date. While he may still be the most well funded, he better make some changes fast or Florida will be his undoing.
Newt is a southerner(Georgia) and knows his people. He speaks to them, despite his baggage and all its ugly parts. Can he catch fire? Who knows in this election cycle? The question remains: who can successfully compete against a sitting incumbent with an enormous war chest, said to exceed $200 million dollars? It's quite a mountain to climb, even if it is only January.
Keep watching.

Any snow yet?

NOAA, our official weather forecaster, advises that Tahoma should expect significant amounts of real S-N-O-W!!!!!!
For at least the next 5 days, we can anticipate snow falling 1/2" to 1" per hour, more or less. This is not a high rate, but it will come amid freezing temps and it will stick around and provide a base for future amounts that are sure to follow.
The Storm Door is Open!
Let's enjoy the moment and get ready for some football on Sunday. Wear Red?

49ers-Not so nice?
An article in the WSJ quotes a Stanford University economist and reports that the city of Santa Clara(pop. 103,000) is taking great risks by allowing the 49ers/NFL to build a stadium within the city. He notes that no stadium built recently paid the projected dividends in revenue and jobs. The taxpayers in Santa Clara will be on the hook for the loan amounts necessary to build this billion dollar albatross. Opponents are going ahead with a referendum vote before the voters as the financing scheme has revealed serious flaws, including the sale of naming rights, ticket purchase rights, and the lack of private investment money.
All in all, it appears city officials are naive boosters, ignorant of history, economics, and current events. Woe the poor taxpayer in the City of Santa Clara, they are being taken for a ride by the York Family(owners of 49ers), the NFL(franchise designers), and wealthy builders and contractors who stand to earn almost a billion.

Friends of the West Shore

So, Friends of the West Shore have come out against the Homewood Mountain Resort with guns ablazin'. The Sierra Club is right there,too. And The League to Save Lake Tahoe. An Oakland, CA law firm was hired to draft comments that were presented to the planning commission/TRPA. The comments rip TRPA, citing, generally its lack of authority based on an outdated document in current use by the agency.
Given the scope of the document, the money invested in professional opinions rendered, it is apparent that the HMR, as designed, is a gross over development of a pristine lakeside environment, little changed in the last 75 years. Since some of the FOWS(Friends of the West Shore)are well into their 9th decade on this earth, they can relate to the time frame pre World War II, when natives Americans still were encamped along portions of the lake during the summer months. It underscores the reach of old money, how ancients refuse to adapt to change, how they cling mightily to the past, and refuse to go quietly into the darkness.
What will happen now? A revew of the plan will be undertaken, without a doubt. The resort owner/developer will get frustrated and pull out, abandoning the project. And Lake tahoe will be saved from itself.

Homewood Mountain Resort Legal problems again

No sooner than the ink dried on the TRPA approval of the Homewood Resort than lawyers representing Friends of West Shore filed a brief to halt the development. So, this could be the end of it. The goal of zero development can only be called quixotic. Here in California, the growth controls have been in place longer than in most other states, save Hawaii. An entire generation of environmentalists are now mature planners and have witnessed the results of their handiwork statewide: over development in places, a little in some others, and virtually none in some others, such as Tahoe and Sonoma County.
Yes, there will be an increase in traffic, but we are witness to the increases every weekend during ski season. On the other hand, we have public transit( several different entities), a bike path, a new transit center near completion, and even a private ferry service(true!).
None of this makes a difference to those individuals who view the old days as the place that we must return to for a variety of reasons, none of which are reasonable nor rational.
How it all plays out, nobody knows, but the economic climate is precarious at best, and disastrous at worst. Developers are sure to interpret this and other lawsuits as the final straw, and combined with low snowfall, lack of tourism generally, high gas prices, higher individual and sales taxes, falling real estate prices statewide, and lack of local help will surely kill the investment. One can't blame the business interests for looking elsewhere to take the calculated risk.

49ers Win Big

Local West Shore 49er fans enjoyed watching their team win over the New Orleans Saints at Candlestick Park on SAturday. It was quite a game,too: filled with comeback drama, last minute heroics, improbable heroes, and the stunned looks of a vanquished foe.
Highlights included a scoring run of 28 yards by 9er QB Alex Smith. This presumed game winner slipped into momentary obscurity as Drew Brees marched his Saints right back up the field to score the apparent game winning score with only 137 seconds remaining on the game clock. It was now time for Vernon Davis' late game step up.
ALex Smith found Davis over the middle on a cross pattern that took the 9ers down to the Saints 22 yd. line. Then, after some consultation, he found Davis again on a post pattern that Davis snared on the goal line as he was tackled by a Saint defender.
That catch has now been labelled "The Grab", in keeping with other 49er history -making catches.
This weekend, the San Francisco team will host Eli Manning and his New York Giants. It's a perfect matchup to settle the NFC rep for the Super Bowl. It will be a great game as both teams peak at the right time.
Now if we can get about 10' feet of snow by the weekend, it will be almost a perfect world, almost.

Weather to change

Good news: weather forecasters predict real precipitation for next week. Get ready-winter might yet arrive in Tahoma.
It is not over, not by a long shot. But, we've already had primaries in New Hampshire and Iowa, and South Carolina is just around the corner. Then Florida at the end of the month. By February 1st, we'll know who has the GOP nod to challenge Obama in November.

Snow measurements

The Chronicle's front page has the first and not the last story of our current snow condition: non c'e'!(There isn't any). So, here we go again. Last year there was too much snow at this time and more on the way. Now, this year, the weather eyes are looking out there and what do they see? Nothing, nothing at all. Niente, nulla, nada.
Reports of lift ticket sales being off 75% are no doubt conservative. It's unfortunate, but it translates into reduced income across the landscape: restaurants-empty, hotels/motels-empty, retail shops-empty, sports equipment store-empty(and all those 2012 models sitting,waiting, hoping. Unlike the economy, which can be tweaked by policy makers, the weather must wait for Mother Nature to awake from her seasonal slumbers and get back to work.
So, take advantage: fix something around the house, sharpen your skills, read a book, contemplate your decision last year to move to the ski slopes. It all works.
Be patient, more.

Happy New Year

Welcome to 2012. Want to make a prediction? Hardly worth the effort. The mayor and his chief of staff went to SF for a nice meal at the Baker St. Bistro at the Presidio Wall. It's around the corner from Liverpool Lil's. Got it? Not quite Union St, maybe some outer Chestnut St. but definitely Presidio. Tiny place with outside seating,too.(heaters nec.) Menu with the usual suspects and a few surprises. The owners were cordial and several diners were obviously former guests from the 'hood.
The interior was tastefully decorated for the season with not one but two lighted trees(over the doors,out of the way:code!) The wine list French and some California. The food-excellent! Sweetbreads and Duck Confit; french onion soup and goat cheese salad, finished with a pear tart and a cappucino. Nicely done.
The bar tenders at Liverpool Lil's were anticipating a big night and a bigger morning as they pre -mixed some Bloody Mary preparations. A lively crowd was seated at tables and at the bar, taking advantage of Lil's 3 TV's. Parking was still available w/i walking distance and the fog stayed outside the Gate.
Conversation at nearby tables centered on the economy and predictions were modest in terms of improvement. The elections were not mentioned.
So, pray for snow, that's what we advise on this January 1, 2012.
Tomorrow is the real holiday for us working stiffs, so don't go looking for any civil servants around downtown tomorrow.
Ciao