Who the heck wrote that?… Speaking of anonymous blogging, I received a smart-aleck email the other day asking me if I receive a check every time I mention the SDPolitics blog. You may know that blog is run and written by a mystery person, but I find it a must read everyday. I often find breaking news and other tidbits that are worth posting, and when I do, I’m gonna give credit. Alternatively, SDPolitics several times has mentioned the FlashReport as the first source of something juicy. It’s mutual, apparently.
My answer back to the emailer: "It is professional courtesy to give credit where credit is due….I don’t see FR and SDPolitics being in competition, and I believe the mutual links drive readership at both sites."
By the way, I support Jon in his decision that these pages are attributed, and I wouldn’t have it any other way for myself…but it is a decision other bloggers need to make for themselves. Just call me pro-choice on this issue. As I commented after Matt Cunningham’s post the other day, "Here’s to Samuel Adams, oftentimes the anonymous propagandist for the revolution. Without guys like him, we’d have no blogs, and without Al Gore, we’d have no blogosphere."
Logan Jenkins on CD 50… The SDUT columnist yesterday provides possible "scary" scenarios when it comes to holding a June runoff for the balance of Duke Cunningham’s term on the same ballot as the primary for the next term. As it is clear Democrat Busby will not win it outright on Tuesday, you have to start mulling these things!
Pick the winner in the 50th… Announcing the FlashReport’s first ever (I think?) "Pick ’em and Win" election contest. And, I have to give consultant Jack Orr credit for running one of these every election. Ok, here are the rules:
1) Select the top four CD 50 Republicans in their order of finish on Tuesday.
2) Tie-Break One: Pick the percentage for the leading Republican.
3) Tie-Break Two: Pick the percentage for Francine Busby.
What will you win? Fifteen seconds of fame on these pages, I guess, isn’t that good enough? Just send me your picks here. Oh, by the way, if the election is as close as some say, it may be impossible to announce a winner until the ROV certifies the thing. On the other hand, if there are only two entrants, I may announce the winner before 8 pm on Tuesday. (Kidding,of course.)
Leave it to Government to Mess things Up… The City of National City in trying to pass a 1% sales tax increase in June, apparently submitted their own ballot argument to their own city clerk which exceeds the 300 word limit…by 41 words! And, the Libertarians are suing (where’s the GOP in National City?). Here are some excerpts from the press release:
TAX PROPONENTS CAN’T COUNT!
How can we count on them to spend our money properly?
Randy Myrseth, a disabled veteran and registered Libertarian, is suing the authors of a ballot argument for being unable to count.
The authors are proponents of Proposition D, a National City June ballot measure which, if approved in this June election, will raise the sales tax throughout National City by one full percentage point. These high tax advocates are being sued because they submitted the official ballot argument which exceeds the legal word limit – by a lot!
By state law, ballot arguments are strictly limited to 300 words or less. Myrseth, a National City resident, is suing because the proponents submitted a ballot argument of 341 words — 41 words over the limit.
According to Myrseth, "Anyone can submit an argument to support or oppose a ballot measure, no matter how foolish the argument, just as long as it’s 300 words or less. These guys submitted an argument with 341 words."
The five authors who are being sued are:
-Anne Campbell, the City Librarian for National City
-Adolfo Gonzales, the National City Chief of Police
-Robert V. Mendina, president of a local fireman’s union
-Robert "Dukie" Valderrama, the Port Commissioner for National City
-Rosalie Alvarado, the president of the National City School District.
"In their jobs, those folks [the ballot authors] are responsible for spending taxpayer monies, and they can’t even count their own words," says Myrseth. "I don’t expect they’d be any better at counting or protecting the taxpayers’ money. No wonder they want a tax increase!"
I’m sure we’ll see more on that one. Have a pleasant Sunday.