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junipero

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Fr Junípero Serra was a Majorcan Franciscan friar who founded the mission chain in Alta… more »

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May 21 junipero commented on McGinn and Harrell Garner Barbs, then Dual Endorsement from 37th LD.

@1 the thing that's "reaaaaaaally wrong" here is that Seattle's media barely covers Southeast Seattle and as a result few people realize just how strong McGinn still is down there. He's got a lot of support from people of color - many of whom realize he actually is strongly for police reform - and it came through loud and clear last night.

May 17 junipero commented on Kay Smith-Blum Won't Seek Second Term on School Board.

Hearing rumors that the privatizers and right-wingers who call themselves "education reformers" may try to take over the board this year with money from Gates, Bloomberg, and the usual suspects. If so then the school board race suddenly becomes the most important priority in town for progressives.

May 6 junipero commented on The City Council's SLU Rezone Actually Provides Less Affordable Housing Than the Mayor's.

At last Thursday's debate Harrell asked "how could anyone support McGinn's SLU proposal and look a housing advocate in the face?" Looks to me that Harrell didn't actually ask the housing advocates at all, and at least one of the main ones supported McGinn's plan.

Apr 30 junipero commented on Seattle Community College's Plan to Fully Cover Tuition Costs for Poor Students.

This sounds like a completely awesome program. Not sure why Ansel Herz derailed this into a discussion of mayoral politics, and hope that doesn't detract from what is a very good idea that deserves support.

Apr 30 junipero commented on Hope and No Change: First Mayoral Forum Promises a Spirited Debate About Nothing.

Murray as "putative frontrunner" - according to whom? McGinn had a clear lead on him in the SurveyUSA poll. They all tried to land a punch on him last night but nobody really connected. And now the public is underwhelmed with the field of challengers. McGinn is an underestimated incumbent, the Harry S Truman of this race.

Apr 26 junipero commented on What Does Ed Murray Have Against Rail in Seattle?.

@27 I think we'd all love for Olympia to lavish cash on Seattle. But as long as Seattle represents just 9% of the overall state population it ain't gonna happen without the support of at least some of the other 91%. Murray doesn't get that. McGinn does.

@20, Sound Transit wasn't planning to even study more rail lines in Seattle until the '20s. That would mean nothing new would be getting built until the late '20s or the early '30s. McGinn got that timeline moved up by almost a decade. That was possible only by getting other ST board members to agree. Murray couldn't have done that.

Apr 26 junipero commented on What Does Ed Murray Have Against Rail in Seattle?.

Ed Murray has been waging war on Sound Transit for years. His attack on sub-area equity would be a nuclear bomb politically. Support around the region and in Olympia for more transit funding would vanish and Seattle would be totally fucked. This is far more reckless and destructive than anything we've seen from the current mayor or any other in recent memory. Glad to see McGinn slap this down hard.

Apr 22 junipero commented on Council Stands Up to Vulcan in South Lake Union.

Ugh, this is ridiculous. Nobody seems to understand how housing works in a city like this. The Council didn't "stand up to Vulcan," they stood up to affordable housing. If you want to prevent rents for existing units from rising higher than current tenants can afford, you need to encourage developers to build more housing.

If Vulcan can't build more units, the people who would rent them don't vanish into thin air. They instead go rent somewhere else, and with fewer units being allowed to be built, it becomes more likely that they will rent a unit that someone else already had for a lower price.

I get that people want to be progressive and that they believe the way to express it in this case is to "fight the man" and "stand up to developers." But all they've done here is ensure that more people are going to be evicted and struggle to afford to live in this city.

You don't stop gentrification by limiting height. By limiting height, you give gentrification a big boost.

Apr 18 junipero commented on Liberal Bicycle Mafia Endorses the Mayor.

The city is promising much more than the two cycletracks you mentioned - McGinn has been talking about a citywide network. McGinn proposed using the commercial parking tax to fund the bike master plan, but the City Council used it instead for Mercer Street. So McGinn got the VLF proposal on the ballot in 2011 which would have funded more bike projects, but unfortunately it didn't pass.

Apr 17 junipero commented on McGinn Wins!.

Everyone wants to say that McGinn is weak, but he's still the frontrunner. He had a clear lead in the SurveyUSA poll and keeps winning these informal unscientific polls too. He's among the top fundraisers, has a low burn rate, and has been increasing his take each month. And last night showed he's got a good campaign with a lot of grassroots supporters. The insider class has wanted to talk down his chances for a while now, but the facts on the ground show a different story.