Quick Hit – Scott Walker Recall Petition

As if I needed more motivation to help in the “re-election” of Scott Walker, today’s announcement of signatures received for the recall has put me over the edge.  I am now, in No Limit Poker terms, “All In” for keeping him in office.  If the obvious lack of leadership in the City of Milwaukee, for last 30 years is any indication, putting Tom Barrett in charge (or David Obey for that matter) would put our state back into the cesspool we lived in under Diamond Jim Doyle.  The next 5 months are going to be absolutely annoying, and unfortunately I have to be in the group that annoys.  Not because I want to, but because I now feel like I HAVE TO.  This most recent Democrat tactic of recalling politicians because they have a different ideological view is not only irresponsible, it’s abhorent.  Thank you Democrats for widening the schism.

Milwaukee Lakefront – Blank Canvas

When I think about Milwaukee, one of the first things that pops into my head (from a positive standpoint) is the 10+ miles of shoreline, courtesy of Lake Michigan. While driving down said lakefront, via Lincoln Memorial Drive, all I see, for the 3 miles from The Calatrava to Lake Park Bistro (especially in the winter), is desolation. Oh, there’s McKinley Marina, Alterra Coffee, and the Northpoint Snack Shack, but other than that, its snow-covered flat space with an occasional tennis court thrown in. What a freakin’ travesty. Not only do we pollute one of Wisconsin’s greatest natural resources during heavy storms in the summer, we fight, tooth and nail, any sort of development, and the ability to create a world-class destination for Southeastern Wisconsin residents, and beyond.

What to do, what to do?!?! The first order of business is to raze the tennis courts on Lincoln Memorial Drive and E. Lafayette Hill Road and bid out, to a handful of developers, the ability to develop a commercial property in the same vain as Trocadero, Cafe Hollander, and Brocach (ie: a restaurant/bar overlooking the lake/marina year round). Then I’d go north and take a look at the Bradford Beach House. Now, this venture has been tweaked within the last 3 years or so, but (and this is a common theme) the DNR won’t allow “true” restaurants on Lake Michigan – there in lies the problem(s). The DNR is a joke, and this type of barrier to progress is exactly why. They are the “leaders” in blocking development, and in my opinion, their time has come. The Governor and the State of Wisconsin need to wake up and realize that this entity is hurting more than they are helping and they need to be stopped. Can you imagine going to lunch at a restaurant (overlooking the marina/Lake Michigan), on E. Lafayette Hill Road, than walking across the street to a pub in Veterans Park for a drink or two, followed by a walk down a vibrant Lincoln Memorial Drive to Summerfest, or a walk through the Art Museum/Calatrava? NOW all you have is the ability to grab a quick coffee (quick being a relative term considering Alterra is the only commercial property around the area, so it’s always packed), then jumping back into your car, find another parking spot around the Art Museum, then drive home – sound like a destination to you? As for other development, there are acres of land north of Bradford Beach (Northpoint Tower area, Lake Park Bistro/Lake Park Golf Course) that could be reviewed and zoned for commercial use, but I will leave that to your imagination….

Bottomline, things need to change. Milwaukee is dying a slow death and our outright refusal to utilize and market our lakefront, commercially, is contributing greatly to that death. The thought or belief that parks and green space retain, or better yet, attract people to your city is a complete and utter myth. What attracts people to your city is vibrancy, coupled with a sense of safety. Having a lakefront that is highlighted, solely, by a coffee shop in the middle of Lincoln Memorial Drive does little to nothing to create excitement. You want people to visit your city, you want people to feel compelled to spend money in your city, and you can only do that by giving them a compelling reason to come to your city. And to clarify, I’m not strictly talking about conventions, and people from outside the state, I’m talking more about those people who have left the city for one reason or another, or those that have lived in the far west, north and south suburbs so long, making a trip into Milwaukee is the exception rather than the rule. I have family and friends that do not live in Milwaukee County, and have absolutely no inclination to come into Milwaukee. The shortsightedness of the City of Milwaukee has given surrounding cities the opportunity to build up their downtown areas (see downtown Waukesha), giving Milwaukee less and less people to frequent restaurants, shops, bars, even parks…..Leaders, whether they be public or private, need to constantly look at their product and come up with the most effective way of promoting their product, utilizing all tools available. Milwaukee’s greatest tool to attract residents (new and old), visitors, and businesses is the lakefront. To ignore that fact is to allow your “business” (and in this case the City of Milwaukee is the business) to fail. Saying that, I also challenge non-Milwaukeeans to take up this fight as well, because if Milwaukee fails, so does the state. Whether you like it or not, Milwaukee is the largest city in this state and if you, as a state, let your largest “customer” crumble, so goes the rest of the state.

Our desire, heck obsession, to follow the policies of 1950′s government will create a Detroit in Wisconsin and I fear, within the next 15-20 years, Milwaukee will be an afterthought. We will be a city without a sports team (yes, once the Bucks leave, the Brewers will not be far behind), our arts community will be whittled down to nothing, any sort of commercial development will be a pipe dream and the downtown area will become a wasteland. These factors, amongst others, will cause more and more people to migrate farther out of the city, delving us further into obscurity. It WILL happen if we continue on this path of apathy around our lakefront, but it can be reversed if we choose to be proactive in and around our lakefront instead of kowtowing to the DNR and others.

The Grading Of NFL Quarterbacks – 2011

OK, so I prefer, on this blog, to comment on politics, but considering this year’s NFL season and “The Year Of The Quarterback” I thought I’d lend my opinion(s) on the current crop of quarterbacks.  It’s especially interesting considering the weird Tim Tebow phenomenon and the record number of 5,000 yard passers – so here we go:

A’s

• Aaron Rodgers – Packers
• Drew Brees – Saints
• Peyton Manning – Colts
• Tom Brady – Patriots

B’s

• Eli Manning (plus) – Giants
• Ben Roethlisberger (plus) – Steelers
• Matthew Stafford – Lions
• Matt Ryan – Falcons
• Tony Romo (minus) – Cowboys
• Matt Schaub (minus) – Texans

C’s

• Jay Cutler (plus) – Bears
• Cam Newton (plus) – Panthers
• Joe Flacco (plus) – Ravens
• Michael Vick – Eagles
• Alex Smith – 49ers
• Sam Bradford – Rams
• Andy Dalton – Bengals
• Mark Sanchez – Jets
• Carson Palmer- Raiders
• Philip Rivers – Chargers
• Rex Grossman (minus) – Redskins
• Kyle Orton (minus) – Chiefs

D’s

• Matt Hasselbeck (plus) – Titans
• Tim Tebow (plus) – Broncos
• Kevin Kolb – Cardinals
• Ryan Fitzpatrick – Bills
• Christian Ponder (minus) – Vikings
• Josh Freeman (minus) – Buccaneers

F’s

• Tavaris Jackson – Seahawks
• Colt McCoy – Browns
• Blaine Gabbert – Jaguars
• Matt Moore – Dolphins

Now this is by no means scientific or even statistically relevant – just my own little opinion on who ROCKS the NFL (at the QB position) and who DOESN’T.  I do have, for most of these guys, a fairly well thought out reason(s) for my selection, but I will leave it to you to spur the discussion.

Quick Hit: Democratic Candidate for Kohl’s Seat = Tom Barrett Running For Governor

Just some quick insight on the news that Tammy Baldwin is running as the Democratic candidate for the soon to be vacant Herb Kohl Senate seat:; two things popped in my head when I heard the news 1) I laughed, somewhat uncomfortably, considering Baldwin’s history. It’s funny that she would be a legit candidate, but not so funny if she were to actually win. 2) The “selection” of Tammy Baldwin, on the Democratic side looks eerily similar to the forced candidacy of Tom Barrett when he ran against Scott Walker in the 2010 Governors race. We’ll obviously have to wait and see how the Republican primary goes and then more importantly the campaign(s) round out for 2012, but sufficed to say, it will be interesting to watch

Liberal Milwaukee Trolley – I mean Folly

When will the left, especially in the Milwaukee area, ever learn?  Trains were breaking edge technology in the 1830′s, know what they are now?!?!?  A novelty….It’s fun to take the kids to East Troy during Christmas to see how the citizens of East Troy and surrounding areas made their way into “the Big City” for a quarter, but a funny thing happened over the past 180+ years….CARS and FREEWAYS.  Now we have to listen to the inane ramblings of our do nothing  mayor and all of his rail supporters propose stupid expenditures that help nobody.  Now I can (and will) wax poetic on the stupidity of many, if not all, of the rail proposals for Milwaukee, SE Wisconsin and surrounding areas, but the Milwaukee Trolley, I mean Folly, takes the freaking cake.

The idea in and of itself is dumb.  The beginning route is going to cost $64.6 million dollars, paid for by federal tax dollars set aside for garbage such as this, to the tune of $55 million.  The other $9 millions will be dealt with by instituting a TIF district (yeah, and THAT doesn’t hurt the tax payer).  The best part of this “project” is the proposed maintenance costs of $2.65 million (and I would argue that cost is extremely low) would be handled by fares, parking revenue (which is limited by ripping up road for trolley rail) and corporate sponsorships.  My prediction is that Northwestern Mutual, Johnson Controls and other large corporations better pony up a boat load of money because if the ridership of the bus system is any indication as to how many people will ride this debacle, the tax payers are in for a huge cost responsiblity.  Here’s another great addition to this project – that $64.6 cost I mentioned earlier?!?!  Yeah, that’s for 1.8 miles of rail line.  If I’m doing my math correctly, the base cost (not including overruns and the additional costs I’ll discuss later) is almost $36 MILLION dollars per mile.  Another quick “funny” side note to this is, they will want to expand this line (as you’ll see in the attached URL).

Now comes the best part: the Folly rail line didn’t take into account, when they were proposing this to the Common Council and the taxpayers, the fact that AT&T, WE Energies, and other utility lines would have to be moved.  You might say to yourself, “come on, how hard can it be?!?!”  Well, according to the utility companies it could cost an additional $55 million dollars or MORE to reroute…..$55 million MORE!!!!  The more I read about this, and many other rail projects around the area, the more I cringe.  If Milwaukee goes through with this, it is proof positive that Liberals and specifically Milwaukee Democrats have absolutely no concept of economics.  Milwaukee couldn’t afford this in the 90′s to the mid 2000′s, when the economy was good, what person or persons could ever justify one of the worst expenditures of money ever proposed?!?!?  Don’t answer that, Tom Barrett and Milwaukee Democrats already have.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/groups-get-involved-in-pscs-streetcar-utility-case-ss3n2hd-136917283.html

 

Quick Hit – Scott Walker Recall Efforts

A few quick observations on the Scott Walker Recall effort: 1) I’ll just start with this; The mere fact that people are organizing, capturing signatures, and mobilizing the recall of the Governor is a joke.  The recall option is out there for egregious behaviour (which I define as criminal, or darn near close to it), NOT for removing public officials because you don’t like legislation a politician puts up for vote.  To do the latter opens a Pandora’s box that I think widens the political divide even more (and that is the LAST thing we need right now).  2) If this ballot ever sees the light of day, Walker WILL win.  With that win, the public sector unions in Wisconsin and many other states will be crippled (which in my opinion is long overdue).  The unions are, in poker terms, ALL IN, and I for one am glad their arrogance and stupidity has driven them to this joke of an effort.  3) Although it is a joke, it isn’t funny.  Why you ask?  Well read the attached article and think to yourself, what could we have done with the money that is being spent to facilitate this tom foolery?  I hope we learn a valuable lesson from this – I know the unions will.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/walker-recall-would-cost-9-million-tb3n2d0-136837838.html

Quick Hit – Explanation of “Quick Hit”

Before I started my addictive ride on Facebook, I liked to employ a little thing on this blog called “Quick Hits”.  It is/was VERY similar to a Facebook post (before I Facebooked), but it gives/gave me an opportunity to vent a bit on things without (quite honestly) all of the research it may have needed.  But none-the-less, it afforded me the opportunity to get it out there for nothing other than a stress reliever.

Since I am in the Facebook world and frequent it often, I probably will employ this “Quick Hit” posting philosophy more often.  I will definitely try and dig deeper and provide more “insight” on many topics, but sometimes there just isn’t enough time and/or energy to give everything that annoys me it’s proper due

So there you go: a quick tutorial on the Quick Hit!!!

Back to Blogging – Must Be An Election Year

Well from the looks of it, I haven’t posted in about a year and a half.  I surprisingly didn’t follow up on my September of 2010 posts, after the Scott Walker and Ron Johnson wins, considering those were epic and fun to watch.  I also did not follow the absolutely disgusting display of “protests” by our admirable State Senator’s and public sector employees.  And lastly, I haven’t waxed poetic about the past recalls in 2011 and the impending one in 2012 – but not to worry….I will.

I do try and keep these types of conversations civil, as I state in my “mission statement” for this blog, but I will admit, it is going to be difficult for me, this time around to not be snarky, sarcastic, and somewhat demeaning of the other side.  If I start to get too out of hand, I’ve learned to back off (a little).  The reason I will have such a difficult time is the tactics that have been employed by the left in this state are simply abhorent.  I will go into some more detail as to what actions I find especially stupid, but sufficed to say, there is plenty to discuss.

If you happen across this blog, or are directed to it, I hope you share your opinions (positively and negatively) and I will engage accordingly.  The next couple of months are going to be an extremely bumpy one.  Not just in state politics, but locally and nationally as well.  I will also be blogging about many local sports issues that are out there – Packers playoffs, Bucks swan dive, Badgers Football and their need for a real coach, Badger Basketball and their issues, along with the impending Ryan Braun debacle, and much more.

Happy 2012 and enjoy the ride!!!

Primary JUSTICE

September 14, 2010 has passed.  With that, we see that the primaries, locally, statewide, and nationally providing much glee to those of us who believe that smaller government, upgraded national security, and less socialism is necessary for our country to get back on the right track.  Now those on the left side of aisle will “spin” the news to reflect good things for the Democrats, like the Tea Pary “win” in Deleware, and inconsequential wins in local races (despite other overwhelming wins in relation to the BIG PICTURE), but the bottom line is the Republicans, and hopefully the Tea Party supported candidates, are not only going to win, but DOMINATE!!!  You can put any silver lining on this, but as a friend of mine once said, you can’t “dress up a pig”, or an even more decriptive analogy; “you can’t polish a t**d!”.  Whatever euphimism you choose to use, the end game is the Republicans are going to contend to take over the House and/or the Senate (despite the MSM), and whether you like it or not, that’s a good thing.  We saw, in a VERY SHORT amount of time, what a liberal (sorry progressive) economic ”plan” can do to a  free market system.  If the voters have learned anything, it surely is THAT! 

There are 7 crucial weeks coming up.  That time needs to be filled with vigor and enthusiasm, especially if there is a severe desire to win the general election.  This is a watershed moment.  A President that was voted in with an OVERWHELMING majority about 2 years ago is now being treated like one of the worst Presidents ever.  To say this an indictment on the individual candidates across the country I believe is shortsighted.  Are the candidates really that worthless?!?!? Sure, most of them are, but it’s more than that.  This is the same “mandate” the citizens gave Washington two years ago when they voted Obama into office.  Unfortunately they were so blinded by their hatred for Bush they voted in the most unqualified candidate this country has seen in almost a century.  Hopefully the electorate has learned their lesson and are looking to correct that MAJOR mistake.  We most certainly will have that answer in about 7 weeks; the fun part is watching the left squirm, kick, scream, and cry, all the while realizing that the landslide is unstoppable.

Milwaukee Lakefront “Development” Advisory Commission

Attached is a copy of the vision, purpose and criteria of the Milwaukee Lakefront Development Advisory Commission (LDAC).  I have, over the years, commented to friends and family my utter disappointment in Milwaukee regarding the total lack of ANY development on the city’s lakefront.  My ideas are summarily shot down from those on the left AND the right, which is somewhat confusing, but not totally surprising.  My contention, as it relates to Milwaukee’s lakefront – most specifically the land from the Summerfest grounds north to UWM area, is that it is grossly under utilized.  Admittedly Veterans Park, Bradford Beach, McKinley Marina, and Lake Park are nice, but so is the Altera Coffee House (across from McKinley Marina) and to a lesser developmental extent, Lake Park Bistro.  All that land and only two real commercial areas to sit back and enjoy Milwaukee’s most valuable resource?  Laughable! 

That takes me to the attached document.  The vision, purpose and criteria laid out in this document serves as a perfect window into the psyche of Milwaukee’s leaders, and to some extent the backward thinking citizens of this city, as it relates to lakefront development.  I will take a few of the more blatant observations and comment on those, because if I commented on every one, we’d be here for hours…..

First, let’s look at the vision: there are two statements in this vision, when looked at with a little more detail, seem to scream “anti-development”.

“1) Preserve and protect the scenic and natural beauty of the lakefront.”

“2) Recognize the unique opportunities of different parts of the lakefront and allow only projects that must be at the lakefront.”

On its face, both of these “visions” seem fair and very worthwhile, but when I read between the lines all I see are road blocks to development.  If a building proposal were to be put in front of the commission that caused the view of the lake from say Brady Street to be blocked, but was tasteful and well done (structurally and aesthetically) it would be shot down – according to this “vision”.  The second one really gets me.  “….allow only projects that must be at the lakefront.”?  What does that exactly mean?  I know it is discussed later on in the document, but I wanted to point it out here, because I believe that the vagueness of this “vision” lends itself to early and easy rejection of commercial proposals, based solely on opinion.

As I delve further into this document, some of the criterion of Principle Number 2 strikes me as “odd”.  Not necessarily the actual acts themselves, but the fact that the commission felt the need to consider them “Goals”.  I’m specifically talking about “2.4 Goal: Encourage non-activities.  2.4.3 Moon gazing, 2.4.4 Handholding, 2.4.6 Sitting around, 2.4.8 Contemplating, 2.4.9 People watching 2.4.10 Doing nothing at all.”  REALLY????  When putting a commission together to recommend developmental proposals to the County and City, you feel the need to include, in your criteria, moon gazing, handholding, and DOING NOTHING AT ALL?  I’m sorry, but including those “activities” into your vision makes the whole document, and quite frankly your organization seem weird. 

Moving on to Principle number 3.  This principle is important and I agree with most of the goals cited…  Quality is important.  Quality of the buildings, landscaping, grounds maintenance, and the like are vital to making sure the lakefront remains a destination.  What I take issue with, and it coincides with many other principles and goals this commission has, is the discouraging of large surface parking lots, and increased traffic congestion”.  Couple that with Goal 3.2 “Assure that any buildings that are built, rehabilitated or replaced are designed to maintain vistas and site lines of the lake.” and you have MORE discouragement of any proposal for commercial development, much less actual development.

Principle number 5 speaks to the issue: Allowing only projects that must be at the lakefront.  Again, what does that mean?  I read the goals and criterion and it is SO subjective as to make it almost impossible to get any commercial (bar, restaurant, shop, etc) development on the lakefront.  We live in a city that has vast areas that can be developed.  The Park East area, the Valley, Pabst Brewery location, just to name a few.  So if I propose a bar that has a deck overlooking the lake, because I know people, when they come down to my bar would like to “have a view”, this commission could easily pull this Principle out and ask “MUST this be at the lakefront?”  If history, and the lack of commercial development on the lakefront is any indication, the answer would be NO.  That bar could be built or started up in dozens of different areas around the city.  It’s the difference between forward thinking cities and backwards thinking cities.  Milwaukee is unique.  It is one of the few major cities in this country that has a major body of water to utilize for many things.  We use if for drinking water, beach(s) for families and assorted other outdoor activities, and unfortunately a dumping ground for sewage (different topic, different day).  What we don’t use, effectively, is it’s beauty.  If you own a house on Lake Drive, you have it.  If you own a condo (with a lake view) on Prospect Avenue, you have it, but if you live in Waukesha, Wauwatosa, Northwest Milwaukee, etc and you want to hang out, have a drink and a nice, reasonable dinner, YOU DON’T.  Why, you ask?  Because Milwaukee and the surrounding area don’t think it’s a good idea. 

It’s a travesty that we don’t utilize one of our most important resources to encourage people to consider downtown Milwaukee (specifically the lakefront) as a destination.  Sure people will use Veterans Park, Bradford Beach, and the tennis courts by the Marina, but what about those of us that do not want to play volleyball, lie out in the sun, feel the need to buy a boat to utilize the marina, or just “Moon gaze”?  What if I just want to go to the lakefront after work for a nice relaxing dinner and take in the view?!?!?  Our city is dying.  People are leaving, and not coming back.  What are we doing about it?  Nothing!  We raise taxes, we make it more difficult to do business in this city than in other’s around the area, and we develop NOTHING, especially around Lincoln Memorial Drive.  That’s not only stupid, it’s irresponsible.  It’s not 100 % the fault of the Bob Bauman’s of the world, the citizens of the city and county of Milwaukee have a stake in this too.  We need to demand that they make this city relevant, and I believe a good start would be to open up the minds of people like the members the LDAC and start looking at ways of making the lakefront not only a park space, but a thriving commercial area attracting people from ALL over the area. 10785_Lakefront_Development_Adv_Comm_Mission_and_crit