Hey Tookie

I tried to comment on your post but got a message that comments were restricted to "team members." Anyway, here's what I was going to say:

I think your advice is admirable. City government practices have been frozen into their current form for way too long. The claim that bidding out garbage & recycling pickup to private contractors could put the city in danger "five years or more down the road" once all its trucks & equipment were sold was just utter nonsense.

In times of economic difficulty, people either change their past practices or they hunker down and hope troubles don't find them. Guess which option is best?

The OTHER Stimulus Package

How many times has someone said to you, "I would love to [retire, switch jobs, start my own business, etc., etc.], but I have to keep my health insurance"? I hear this statement every six months or so.

My fearless forecast: Once the health insurance reform plan is enacted, the next 18 months to two years will see a breaking up of many of those glaciers. Once people realize they can take financial risks without running the ultimate risk (losing insurance, bankrupting their family with medical bills), we will see an eruption of entrepreneurial activity, retirement pursuits, and people pursuing various long-delayed dreams.

All you young people who have been waiting for the old folks to move on so you could have a crack at the job world, take heart. Health insurance reform is going to have the unexpected consequence of giving you that opportunity.

One Question

I have only one question for the guy who wrote to the Whig and the QPD regarding his treatment by the police department.

What was your BAC? Obviously you must have been over the limit, since you were convicted. Practically all drunk drivers think they are "in good control of their faculties and not posing a danger to anyone." If your BAC was .08 or barely over, I'll have a little sympathy. Over .10, sorry, pal, you deserved to be pulled over, cuffed, and taken to the station.

Funny how his protesting e-mails neglected to mention that significant little detail.