Sen. Gregg Withdraws as Commerce Secretary Nominee, Citing Conflicts - First 100 Days of Presidency - Politics FOXNews.com

Sen. Gregg Withdraws as Commerce Secretary Nominee, Citing Conflicts - First 100 Days of Presidency - Politics FOXNews.com: "Republican Sen. Judd Gregg withdrew his nomination to be President Obama's commerce secretary on Thursday, citing 'irresolvable conflicts' over issues like the economic stimulus package and the census."
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If he had stayed on he would have gone down in history as the ultimate stooge for the Democrats. Not only was his defection moving perilously close to a 60 vote Democrat filibuster-proof majority. Add the fact that Obama took the Census away from him, which would have set up the Democrats to control national and state politics for ten years. Gregg saved himself from making Benedict Arnold look like George Washington--at least in Republican Party lore.

Spaceflight Now | Breaking News | Two satellites collide in orbit

Spaceflight Now | Breaking News | Two satellites collide in orbit: "In an unprecedented space collision, a commercial Iridium communications satellite and a defunct Russian satellite ran into each other Tuesday above northern Siberia, creating a cloud of wreckage, officials said today."
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My brother put me onto this story. And I say to myself, this is one amazing coincidence. All that space out there, and two satellites just happen to run into each other. Not only that, but one is Russian and one is US. Why, it's enough to make you think that...maybe it wasn't an accident.

What This Country Needs Are More Pitchfork Moments Like These | Crooks and Liars: "Hundreds of people trying to save their homes from foreclosure flocked to Connecticut's wealthy Gold Coast this weekend to give financial kingpins a piece of their mind.
Homeowners are fed up – and many are frustrated that those who lead the companies that gave them their subprime mortgages live in luxury while they struggle so hard to meet their loan payments and not fall behind.

On Sunday, hundreds of angry homeowners and volunteers traveled in vans and minibuses and protested outside Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack’s multi-million-dollar mansion to tell the wealthy finance czar how they really feel."
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Mystery Reader captures the zeitgeist of the moment.

Daily Herald | Dispute over Palatine subdivision unsettled; will come up again April 20

Daily Herald | Dispute over Palatine subdivision unsettled; will come up again April 20: "The Palatine Village Council has pushed back the vote on the proposed changes for the Maison Du Comte subdivision near Harper College to April 20.

Despite a council chamber full of residents Monday night, the board reasoned without a homeowners association representing the residents, they didn't want to take a vote.

'I can't go from door to door and meet with every husband and wife and find out what they want,' Councilman Mike Jezierski said."
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Welcome to Palatine, Illinois, where only HOAs have standing to represent the interests of home owning residents of the community. Homeowners, go home. I keep telling people that HOAs have become an extension of local government. Now do you believe me?

Daily Kos: State of the Nation

Daily Kos: State of the Nation: US was 3 hrs away from economic collapse: "According to Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D) (PA-11), in mid-September of 2008, the United States of America came just three hours away from the collapse of the entire economy. In a span of 2 hours, $550 billion was drawn out of money market accounts in an electronic run on the banks.

Rep. Kanjorski: 'It would have been the end of our economic system and our political system as we know it.'

Kanjorski's bombshell begins to detonate at roughly 2:10 into the video."
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This C-SPAN interview with Kanjorski is absolutely astounding. I'd like to know just how a gigantic run on the banks of this nation occurred. Who started it?

Rip up a house in repo, go to jail - Huntington Homes - OCRegister.com

Rip up a house in repo, go to jail - Huntington Homes - OCRegister.com: "Last week a fellow Realtor mentioned that a neighbor held a “demolition sale” on their soon-to-be foreclosed home. She said the owner sold everything he could even including the bathroom fixtures! Any and everything was for sale. I let her know that was a very serious situation and lenders were beginning to prosecute people for doing so."
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Fred Pilot sent this link. The thing is, I don't think people really go to jail for this. The article just says some lawyer pointed out vandalism is illegal. Fine. But are banks, local governments, and HOAs actually calling the cops after they repo the home and see that the fridge is gone? Or do they just sell it for whatever it fetches and take their money out of it?

City won't reduce community's fees | HeraldTribune.com | Sarasota Florida | Southwest Florida's Information Leader

City won't reduce community's fees | HeraldTribune.com | Sarasota Florida | Southwest Florida's Information Leader: "NORTH PORT - The Heron Creek gated community sought a break from a steep increase in road and drainage fees, but city officials rejected the request Monday, saying the charges were fair.

The North Port City Commission, in its capacity as the Road & Drainage District's governing body, refused to reduce the Heron Creek Country Club and Golf Course's assessment from $75,431 to $50,196."
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A 50% price increase? Ouch.

Ask Dr. Joyce Starr and about Homeowner Rights internet radio show 2/12/2009 | How to Lose Your Home for $400 or Less

Ask Dr. Joyce Starr and about Homeowner Rights internet radio show 2/12/2009 | How to Lose Your Home for $400 or Less: "Host Name: RIGHTSRadio.com
Show Name: How to Lose Your Home for $400 or Less
Length: 30 min
Description:
h:33321 s:421935
A homeowner based in Texas missed a $400 payment to his homeowners association - which soon mushroomed into an additional $3000/plus in legal fees, foreclosure and eviction. "
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Link goes to archived file of internet radio show.

Bouncing Red Ball » 20+ really thin buildings and houses in Japan

Bouncing Red Ball » 20+ really thin buildings and houses in Japan
Check out these razor blades. Some of them look like a stiff breeze would knock them over.

GOP Lawmaker Calls for Probe of Obama Decision to Oversee Census - First 100 Days of Presidency - Politics FOXNews.com: "A Republican lawmaker is calling for an investigation of President Obama's plan to move the U.S. census into the White House.

Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, is sending a letter to committee leaders requesting a hearing.

'I'm deeply concerned' about 'the White House controlling the day-to-day operations of the Census Bureau,' Blackburn told FOXNews.com."
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I knew this was coming, and if it goes forward there will be a lawsuit over it. Article I, Section 2, of the Constitution says the census must be done as Congress directs, and Congress passed laws saying the Census Bureau is part of the Commerce Department, not the White House. If Obama wants to change that, fine, but I think he has to ask Congress to change the law and that will lead to a public debate.

KTNV ABC,Channel 13,Las Vegas,Nevada,News,Weather,Sports,Entertainment,KTNV.com,Action News .:. Contact 13 Investigation: Red curbs in one Southwest neighborhood: "Builder KB homes put in streets in the development that are too narrow for emergency vehicles to get through if cars are parked on both sides.

Even so, homeowners have been allowed to park on their street for at least a year.

'They've given us no alternatives for parking,' says neighbor Dara Jackson.

On one day, the red stripe went down, neighbors went to bed and when they woke up, 'We come out here getting ready to go to work and the whole side of our street is vacant,' says another neighor, Gladis Aguiler. Eleven cars were gone with no explanation. 'Our first thought was that our car had been Stolen,' Minkler explains. But they hadn't been stolen. Every car parked on their street had been towed away just hours after the curb was painted."
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Monica Caruso sent this along. Whoever is responsible, the bottom line is that, as usual, nobody involved in the process has any respect for the rights of individual homeowners. Not the developer, not the city, not the police, not the tow company...nobody. And that is the essential, unchanging fact of common interest housing.

Jewish street patrols curb crime – and generate controversy | csmonitor.com

Jewish street patrols curb crime – and generate controversy | csmonitor.com: "The four enforcers may not be members of the New York Police Department, but to the hardware store manager, if they’re not exactly the law, they’re certainly keepers of the peace. They’re members of a volunteer civilian patrol called Shomrim (Hebrew for “watchers”), which, in addition to Williamsburg, has independently run chapters in Crown Heights, Flatbush, and Borough Park – all Brooklyn enclaves densely populated by religious Jews.

Some people see them as a model for helping curb urban crime, though others fault them for clashing with outside groups – and even among themselves."
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Privatization in action...

Japanese Firms Start Testing Robot-infrastructure Communication -- Tech-On!: "Shimizu Corp and Yaskawa Electric Corp opened the 'Smart Showroom' demonstration space as the first step of the 'Smart Robotics Building' project, which involves the use of robot technologies in intelligent buildings.

The project is aimed at providing various services and comfortable living environment through combination of building infrastructure technologies and robot technologies. Robots will play the roles of receptionist, guide, delivery personnel, cleaners, guards, etc in place of humans. For example, they will approach visitors, attend to and take them to their destinations in the building."
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When the housing market recovers, or perhaps as part of generating that recovery, I think developers will be making expanded use of electronics, including robotics. They have to find some way to make the product more interesting and life-changing. Having a robot house-train your dog would be a step forward. First the robot has to be house-trained, I suppose. But if Skynet Corporation is involved you can count me out.

Action Report: Elderly condo residents may have to go without power | News for New Orleans, Louisiana: " METAIRIE, La. – A group of Metairie Senior Citizens are hoping that they will be able to stay in what they call the perfect place to spend their retirement years. They say they can't afford special charges for repairs, and their condo manager says if they can't pay, the seniors may end up living in the dark... Each owner is billed by the condominium association for the cost of repairs, which average about $1500 per condo, and the bills went out in mid-January. The rules say they must be paid, or power can be cut off in a month."
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Hey, this common interest housing is such a great thing for old people, isn't it?

I think if I ever retire (which is doubtful given that my so-called pension depends on funding from the State of Illinois) I'll buy a trailer and live like James Garner in The Rockford Files, except that instead of solving crimes I'll spend my days watching the skies for UFOs. Somebody has to do it.

News from The Associated Press

News from The Associated Press: Mexican drug violence spills over into the US?: "U.S. authorities are reporting a spike in killings, kidnappings and home invasions connected to Mexico's murderous cartels. And to some policymakers' surprise, much of the violence is happening not in towns along the border, where it was assumed the bloodshed would spread, but a considerable distance away, in places such as Phoenix and Atlanta.

Investigators fear the violence could erupt elsewhere around the country because the Mexican cartels are believed to have set up drug-dealing operations all over the U.S., in such far-flung places as Anchorage, Alaska; Boston; and Sioux Falls, S.D."
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I think it has already begun to happen in the Chicago area.

Fox News: graph of job loss during recessions
See that light blue line that is still headed off a cliff? That's the current recession. Based on experience we may see a turnaround soon. Let's hope so.

Look what is or was under consideration in Texas:: "HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

COMMITTEE:

Urban Affairs


TIME & DATE:

11:30 AM, Wednesday, August 20, 2008

PLACE:

Conrad Hilton Ballroom - Univ of Houston

CHAIR:

Rep. Kevin Bailey



The Committee on Urban Affairs will take testimony on Interim Charge #2:
'Research and update legislation that permits residential neighborhoods
who deed restrictions have lapsed to reinstate those deed restrictions or
create needed deed restrictions through a petition committee by expanding
them to more areas.'

Invited Testimony Only"
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Thanks to the anonymous poster who sent this along. Don't have covenants? No problem. Your neighbors will impose them on you.

An interview with Robert Barro - The Atlantic Business Channel: "The last thing is just about the stimulus bills as it stands. Two things here. One thing is what do you think about the ratio of spending to tax relief in the bill. And the second is, if you judge it by Larry Summers standard -- that stimulus be temporary, timely and targeted -- does it clear the bar?

This is probably the worst bill that has been put forward since the 1930s. I don't know what to say. I mean it's wasting a tremendous amount of money. It has some simplistic theory that I don't think will work, so I don't think the expenditure stuff is going to have the intended effect. I don't think it will expand the economy. And the tax cutting isn't really geared toward incentives. It's not really geared to lowering tax rates; it's more along the lines of throwing money at people. On both sides I think it's garbage. So in terms of balance between the two it doesn't really matter that much."
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Robert Barro is a famous Harvard economist who specializes in macroeconomics. He goes on to imply that Lawrence Summers is not high on his list of brain trust candidates.
ps: I am not an economist and have no firm opinion on whether the bailout/stimulus/boondoggle will prove to be a success or a failure. However, as a political scientist I do know a porkfest when I see one. That scares me. It would be an amazing coincidence if a bill was (a) perfectly tailored to pull the US out of the worst recession in decades; (b) driven entirely by liberal Democrats, and (c) coincidentally happened to fatten up all the interest groups that shoveled cash as Obama & Co. during the presidential campaign. We shall see, however. If in three years bread costs $10 per loaf, we will probably think the porky Obama bailout bill failed. Hope that doesn't transpire and we end up hailing Obama as an economic genius.

Could HOAs hurt the value of your home? | LOCAL NEWS | KHOU.com | News for Houston, Texas

Could HOAs hurt the value of your home? | LOCAL NEWS | KHOU.com | News for Houston, Texas: "Homeowner activist Beanie Adolph said she’s found “solid evidence” that some HOAs in Houston are not protecting the value of homes. In fact, she says they’re doing the opposite. Adolph is convinced that HOAs do more harm than good when they threaten to foreclose, which is legal under Texas law. With the help of her son, who is a lawyer, Adolph has sorted through seven years of data from Harris County. She says in Houston neighborhoods where HOAs filed foreclosures, property values went up 32 percent. In subdivisions where HOAs didn’t file any foreclosures, prices increased 59 percent."
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With a link to their updated HOA data base.

Get Ready For the U.S. Census Fight, Chicago-style - The Sleuth

Get Ready For the U.S. Census Fight, Chicago-style - The Sleuth: "'With all of its political implications, hijacking the Census from the Commerce Dept. and letting it be run out of Rahm's office is like putting PETA in charge of issuing hunting permits,' a Senior Republican Senate Aide fumed to the Sleuth. (The aide said he needed to remain anonymous for fear of 'being redistricted -- Chicago style.'"
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This is huge, and it is getting hardly any coverage. As I said the other day (see below), the Obama Administration is getting ready to play hard ball with the Census. This is an astounding power grab and I expect a court battle over it. The Constitution says the Census has to be done a certain way: "[An] Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct." [Article I, Section 2]. "They" means Congress. And Congress has passed laws putting the Census under the control of the Secretary of Commerce. Seems to me that Congress has the authority to hand the whole thing over to the President, but they haven't done that, and it wouldn't happen without the Mother of All Debates. We are talking about laying the foundation for 10 years of gerrymandered districts at every level of government. I see no way the President can make up his own rules on something of constitutional status that is governed by specific statutes.

Should a city have limits? | CharlotteObserver.com

Should a city have limits? | CharlotteObserver.com: "The city of Charlotte often expands, gobbling up new territory to increase its tax base. The city's footprint has grown thanks to North Carolina's aggressive annexation law, which allow cities and towns to absorb nearby communities without the consent of the impacted residents. Supporters of the 1959 annexation law say it's an important reason why, for the most part, the state's cities are financially healthy. They argue that without the law, N.C. cities would resemble places such as St. Louis and Cleveland, where a small, struggling city is surrounded by a ring of more affluent suburbs. But there is a band of opponents who say municipalities have far too much power in their annexations, and they want to give residents a say."
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Liberals (David Rusk and Myron Orfield, for example) tend to favor these aggressive annexation laws because big cities can eat up their suburbs, along with the people and assets that have moved there. They want cities to have "elastic" boundaries, as David Rusk puts it, so everybody in the metropolis can be forced to live under one big general purpose city government that redistributes wealth, runs a welfare state, and controls everything through master planning. Conservatives and libertarians (Bob Nelson, Peter Gordon, Fred Foldvary) generally oppose all this stuff because it is wasteful, inefficient, and undemocratic. At the extreme, they want small private governments all over the place that respond to mobile consumers who can jump elsewhere to find what they want. That way government is small and efficient. So this debate over Charlotte is part of a larger ideological struggle.

Bloomberg.com: News

Bloomberg.com: The Bailout that Ate The Earth: "The stimulus package the U.S. Congress is completing would raise the government’s commitment to solving the financial crisis to $9.7 trillion, enough to pay off more than 90 percent of the nation’s home mortgages.

The Federal Reserve, Treasury Department and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation have lent or spent almost $3 trillion over the past two years and pledged to provide up to $5.7 trillion more if needed."
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And this is before the Obama Bailout.

Foreclosures bringing bad debt - Home & Garden - MiamiHerald.com

Foreclosures bringing bad debt - Home & Garden - MiamiHerald.com: "In uncomplicated words, you assess the remaining members their share of the special assessment and then you take the bad debt and assess the members for the shortage. You must assess the foreclosed unit along with the other units. Then you treat the unpaid as a bad debt."
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And that's how you do the Special Assessment Pokey.

Man Reported For Loud Music Accused Of Threats, Man Allegedly Threatens To Slit Neighbors' Throats After They Reported Him Over Loud Music - CBS News: "(AP) Police said a Manchester, N.H., man threatened to slit his neighbors' throats after they reported him for playing loud music. A 32-year-old man was charged with three counts of criminal threatening and two of criminal mischief after he admitted punching a hole in the neighbors' wall."
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Maybe he punched a hole in the wall so they could hear the music better.

Washington Times - 'Doom' rhetoric seen by some as 'not presidential': "From crisis to catastrophe. Off a cliff. Dark, darker, darkest. Mortal danger of absolute collapse. Armageddon.

President Obama and top Democrats on Capitol Hill are deploying these and other stark predictions of doom and gloom to push through their economic-stimulus package. In terms not heard in Washington since the late 1970s under President Jimmy Carter's watch, the new president has sought to terrify Americans into supporting the $800 billion-plus bailout bill.

While President Bush was accused shortly after taking office in 2001 of 'talking down the economy' - and for saying the economy was 'slowing down' - Mr. Obama is using ever-heightening hyperbole to hammer home his message. But the strategy brings great risk for the 'Yes, We Can' man, who just three weeks ago told America in his inaugural address that despite 'a sapping of confidence across our land,' his election meant Americans had 'chosen hope over fear.'"
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Maybe the Obama Administration and the congressional Democrats will run out of synonyms for disaster. What then? We will be suffering from a Synonym Deficiency of Unprecedented Proportions!

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - SC Governor: We’re moving close to ‘a savior-based economy’ « - Blogs from CNN.com

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - SC Governor: We’re moving close to ‘a savior-based economy’ « - Blogs from CNN.com: "“A problem that was created by building up of too much debt will not be solved with yet more debt,” Gov. Mark Sanford said Sunday, making a reference to the federal deficit spending that will likely finance the federal stimulus package.

“We’re moving precipitously close to what I would call a savior-based economy,” Sanford also said Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union.

The South Carolina Republican said such an economy is “what you see in Russia or Venezuela or Zimbabwe or places like that where it matters not how good your product is to the consumer but what your political connection is to those in power.”"
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That's an interesting metaphor.

Chesapeake parents take stand over teen's grades | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com

Chesapeake parents take stand over teen's grades | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com: "How's this for punishment?

Trenton O'Neal stood near a light pole at the intersection of Airline Boulevard and Ahoy Drive in Chesapeake for hours on Saturday, a chest-to-trunk poster board of his bad grades dangling from his neck."
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Tough love?

Regulators close failed banks in Ga., Calif. - Yahoo! Finance

Regulators close failed banks in Ga., Calif. - Yahoo! Finance: "WASHINGTON (AP) -- Regulators on Friday closed FirstBank Financial Services in Georgia and two California banks, Alliance Bank and County Bank, marking nine failures this year of federally insured institutions."
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Nine this year? It is only February 8.

With condo foreclosures, others feel the pain, too: "When too many condominium owners lose their units to foreclosure, condo associations feel the financial pain.

That's bad news for homeowners and real estate investors who depend on these associations to take care of building maintenance, property insurance, utilities, landscaping and other shared amenities.

While most owners pay their association dues as they are obligated to do, a rising number have fallen behind for various reasons."
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True enough. But the writer then gathers a vast spectrum running from CAI to CAI to CAI. The best quote is from collections-and-foreclosure specialist David Swedelson, who offers this compassionate observation: "If a minority of the homeowners can't afford the assessments, maybe those owners need to find another place to live."

The President always wanted to re-evaluate the census process? - Moe_Lane’s blog - RedState

The President always wanted to re-evaluate the census process? - Moe_Lane’s blog - RedState
Prediction: Our new president is about to politicize the 2010 census. He has stripped his new secretary of commerce, Judd Gregg, of his power to control the census and will have it run directly from the White House. That will mean remarkable transformations in the US population that miraculously occurred between 2000 and 2010...and all of them will redound to the benefit of the Democratic Party.

Crime: Landlord Orders Ex-Husband To Pay Murdered Wife's Rent

Crime: Landlord Orders Ex-Husband To Pay Murdered Wife's Rent: "The ex-husband of a woman who was murdered at a Christmas party along with 8 other people has been ordered by her landlord to pay her rent. The landlord says she gave insufficient notice to vacate the premises, and broke her lease. Apparently they require 60 days notice before being shot dead by your sister's ex-husband in a Santa suit."
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Mystery Reader sent this heart-warming story full of Christmas cheer, involving a murdered wife, the ex-husband who killed her, and the landlord who accused her of breaking her lease by getting murdered.

Real Estate Blog - How to be an authority in your Niche marketing

Real Estate Blog - How to be an authority in your Niche marketing
In which Mr. William Johnson tells you how to be an authority on townhouses.

Cohousing offers green living, sense of belonging - Kansas City Star

Cohousing offers green living, sense of belonging - Kansas City Star: "Cohousing is a type of intentional community, where like-minded residents get together years in advance to plan, design and build homes in a neighborhood where they will eventually live together. What makes it 'cohousing' is the focus on mutual support and a sense of communal living that stresses the sharing of resources to have less of an environmental impact. It's different from a homeowner's association mainly because there's no decision-making hierarchy or board - all important moves are made by consensus."
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Cohousing is actually voluntary, unlike CIDs, which are about as voluntary as being drafted into the military. It isn't for everybody, but it has been around in the US since the late 1980s and in Scandinavia for longer than that.

Community Associations Institute: Nuisance Dogs Bill - We need your help!: "CAI-CT supports legislation that would provide authority for animal control officers to impound the dog of a resident of a condominium association. Many of our associations have experienced the problem of roaming animals, but in some cases, animal control officers have stated that they do not have the authority to go onto private community association property. In several instances, vicious dogs have terrorized communities because animal control officials have felt they did not have the authority to provide assistance. Proposed legislation would allow for enhanced public safety in all communities."
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OK, but why wouldn't the animal control officer just ask for permission from the condo association to impound the Hound of the Baskervilles that is terrorizing the community? If the situation is that bad, presumably the condo association has been asking for animal control to show up.

Homeowners association tells couple they can't fly American flag|The Batavian - Batavia, daily news and community views, Genesee County, online newspaper

Homeowners association tells couple they can't fly American flag|The Batavian - Batavia, daily news and community views, Genesee County, online newspaper

Association for condos sets program : SearchChicago Homes : Condo watch

Association for condos sets program : SearchChicago Homes : Condo watch: "The Association for Condominium, Townhouse and Homeowner Associations will host the South Suburban Expo on March 7 in Orland Park.

'The South Suburban Expo provides an excellent opportunity for board members to get the education they are seeking and the opportunity to meet industry professionals who can help them with many of their needs and questions,' said Beth Lloyd, president of ACTHA.

The event will be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Palos Country Club, 13100 Southwest Highway. About 60 companies that market their products and services to condo buildings will be at the free trade show portion of the expo."
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ACTHA is the CAI alternative in this area. I note that the seminars for board members are $40.

Bloomberg.com: Stop me if you've heard this one before...: "Feb. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Fannie Mae, the mortgage-finance company under U.S. government control, will loosen rules for homeowners seeking to lower their loan payments by refinancing.

Fannie Mae will drop some credit-score requirements, reduce income-documentation standards and waive the need for appraisals in some cases, according to a notice yesterday to lenders posted on the Washington-based company’s Web site. The changes apply to loans that the company owns or guarantees.

The company, which accounts for more than 40 percent of the $12 trillion in U.S. residential mortgage debt, is seeking to break a “logjam” in refinancing and allow more homeowners to take advantage of near-record low interest rates..."
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Great. Just great. Let's get those people back in the housing market--the ones who have low credit scores, can't document their claimed income, and want to buy a house that's worth less than the mortgage. What could possibly go wrong with a clever arrangement like this?

Oldest fossil evidence of animals found - UPI.com: "'Demosponges appeared during the Neoproterozoic era, 1,000 to 542 million years ago, an era of climatic extremes and biological evolutionary developments culminating in the emergence of animals and new ecosystems,' said University of California-Riverside Assistant Professor Gordon Love. 'These sponges currently represent the oldest evidence for animals in the fossil record.'

The preserved compounds Love and colleagues discovered in the sponges, called steranes, exist in a wide variety of biochemical configurations, said Stephen Macko, program director in the National Science Foundation, which funded the research."
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Dr. Love missed an opportunity. He should have called them "Love Sponges."

Listen to past Dave Ross Shows - 710 KIRO · MyNorthwest.com

Listen to past Dave Ross Shows - 710 KIRO · MyNorthwest.com
If you scroll down to January 29 and click that link, you can hear me talking about Governor Hairbrush, Rod Blagojevich. This is a Seattle radio station, and Dave Ross is a great interviewer.

Nearly 9 Years Later, Pebble Creek Turf War Still Entrenched

Nearly 9 Years Later, Pebble Creek Turf War Still Entrenched: "TAMPA - After years of hearings, a weeklong jury trial, two appeals and costs running into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, a ruckus over who should pay to sod a lawn in a deed-restricted community is back to square one.

A three-judge panel in Hillsborough County Circuit Court has reinstated a lawsuit filed by Edward and Billye Simmons against the Pebble Creek Homeowners Association.

The judges overturned a jury verdict in favor of the association, a ruling awarding it $118,773.31 in attorney fees and costs, and a pending foreclosure against the couple's property."
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This account of a mind-boggling war of escalation and attrition was forwarded by Fred "Sky" Pilot. I just taught my condo law course at John Marshall Law School and talked about the Nahrstedt case, where a woman's refusal to give up three cats led to a major California Supreme Court decision. She lost. Some people say, "Why do these owners insist on fighting battles where the chance of winning is slim and they will lose a fortune in attorney fees even if they win? They must be crazy." But my view is that these folks are heroes and heroines who stand on principle, draw a line in the sand, and fight as long as the law allows. They keep the system honest--to the extent that is honest--and without them the lives of all those who live in CIDs would be more regimented, less free, and diminished in quality. The free riders enjoy an enhanced quality of life that is purchased by those who fight the system.

State employee: I get $93,803 for no work -- Page 1 -- Times Union - Albany NY

State employee: I get $93,803 for no work -- Page 1 -- Times Union - Albany NY: "He spends much of his workday at the State Insurance Fund donning headphones, listening to rock 'n' roll, blues or classical tunes and his superiors are cool with that.

His work agenda involves placing his feet up on his desk, staring out his office window and counting cars on the New York State Thruway. He arrives at 7:30 a.m., leaves at 3:30 p.m., sees no one and talks to no one.

He never does any work. It's been this way for Hinton for most of this decade."
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And amazingly, New Jersey has a huge budget hole to dig itself out of.

Solis Senate Session Postponed in Wake of Husband's Tax Lien Revelations | 44 | washingtonpost.com

Solis Senate Session Postponed in Wake of Husband's Tax Lien Revelations | 44 | washingtonpost.com: "A Senate committee today abruptly canceled a session to consider President Obama's nomination of Rep. Hilda Solis to be labor secretary in the wake of a report saying that her husband yesterday paid about $6,400 to settle tax liens against his business -- including liens that had been outstanding for as long as 16 years."
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Remember the way the press (on behalf of Obama and Biden) tore into Joe the Plumber over his tax liens, as though there was some rule saying no mere citizen can ask The One a question if he ever had a tax lien? Now this.

Hundreds will be without water even though bills are paid | LOCAL NEWS | Local Breaking News and Weather from AZFAMILY.COM & KTVK 3TV - Arizona's Family

Hundreds will be without water even though bills are paid | LOCAL NEWS | Local Breaking News and Weather from AZFAMILY.COM & KTVK 3TV - Arizona's Family: "PHOENIX – A meeting with the city turned into a shouting match on Wednesday.

Hundreds of people who live at a condo complex in west Phoenix will be without water on Monday even though they have paid their bills.

City officials said they have never seen a situation like this. This is what makes it so unique and so difficult.

The condos and townhouses are owned by individual people, however the meter that controls the water goes to multiple units, not just that one person's home."
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YouTube - Glenn Beck on Obama's 'Change': Socialism

YouTube - Glenn Beck on Obama's 'Change': Socialism
This is hilarious.

SKorean granny fails driving test 771 times - Yahoo! News

SKorean granny fails driving test 771 times - Yahoo! News: "SEOUL (AFP) – A dogged South Korean grandmother has failed her driving test 771 times, police said Thursday, but a local newspaper reported she will keep trying.

The 68-year-old, identified only by her last name Cha, has taken the test almost every working day since 2005 in the southwestern city of Jeonju. She failed again Monday for the 771st time."
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ABC 13 - Top Stories

ABC 13 - Gated community goes broke: "Accusations are flying about one of the developers of an upscale Woodfin community. Versant is a gated community at the end of Baird Cove Road. The property is now bankrupt and one of the developers is accusing his partner of embezzling millions of dollars.

The town of Woodfin forced the developers to put up a 4-million dollar bond when the project began. Now that Versant is broke, the town administrator is cashing it in. several local companies are now in bankruptcy court trying to collect on unpaid bills, totaling nearly 4 million dollars."
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Good thing the town made the developer put up that bond.

Houston may ban tall-tree planting under lines | Top stories | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "A proposed ordinance before council would prohibit the planting of tall trees, including live oaks, under power lines. The measure originally was intended to strengthen existing rules to protect trees in public rights of way from being cut down or hacked up by developers.

But the proposed ban on planting live oaks under electric lines — a last-minute addition to the measure — has a vocal group of tree lovers dismayed. Their main complaint centers on the live oak’s usefulness for hiding power lines.

“If this were to pass, we would have to look a lot more at the ugliest feature of our city: power lines,” said Hugh Kelly, a former general counsel for Houston Light & Power who advocated against the change on behalf of two neighborhood groups. “And we would not be able to look at one of the prettiest features: live oaks."

City officials and Council member Sue Lovell said the provision is important because it will ensure that tall trees that require costly pruning no longer will be planted under power lines. Those expensive pruning costs are passed on to electric ratepayers, Mayor Bill White noted."
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From what I have been told the Houston area is pretty much HOA Heaven, Houston being the only major city in the US that has no zoning code. And no concept of aesthetics, either.

President Obama's Executive Pay Limit Could Be Damaging To New York - wcbstv.com: "'Without the talent of Wall Street to bring us back into a position of leadership in the global economy, we're going to be in bad shape as a world economic power,' said Kathryn Wilde of the Partnership for New York.

Wylde says the Obama salary cap [$500,000 for companies that take TARP money] will lead to a critical brain drain – China and the United Arab Emirates have already come to poach Wall Street talent. She also says lower salaries in the financial industry will mean dramatically lower tax revenues for the city and state.

'We also depend heavily on the financial services industry to fund our economy and our tax rolls,' said Wylde. 'Last year 20 percent of our income taxes in the states – 12 percent in New York City came from Wall Street.'"
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So if we don't let corporations grotesquely overpay the geniuses who wrecked our economy, they will display their patriotism by leaving for China? Buh bye. Don't let the door hit you on the *** on the way out. And it is shocking how heavily New York relies on taxing these huge salaries.

Supervisors vote to sue state | Politics | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

Supervisors vote to sue state | Politics | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California: "Riverside County supervisors voted Tuesday to sue the state to compel it to pay billions of dollars in funding for county-run social services, payments the state began delaying this week to conserve cash.

Supervisors also voted to take legal action to relieve the county of the responsibility to provide those state-mandated services, such as welfare, assistance for disabled people and mental health services, if the state does not fund them."
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First of two approaches being taken by California counties to deal with their insolvent, profligate, and supremely dysfunctional state government. See below for the LA approach. Thanks to Fred Pilot for these parallel links.

L.A. County threatens to withhold revenue from state - Los Angeles Times

L.A. County threatens to withhold revenue from state - Los Angeles Times: "Los Angeles County supervisors threatened Tuesday to withhold county revenues from the state to pay for local health and social services, a move they say they have been forced to consider because Sacramento's budget stalemate has left them $105.6 million in the hole.

'We're declaring our own Boston Tea Party,' Supervisor Gloria Molina said during Tuesday's board meeting, adding that refusing to turn over the money to state lawmakers 'will make their pain more acute.'

But it may not be legal, or, for that matter, practical."
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I can see the logic of this, but as a general rule the law frowns on self-help remedies.

Bizarre signs come out as mystery pair move into upscale Sacramento neighborhood - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee: "Sacramento police were in one of the city's most affluent neighborhoods Tuesday investigating a scheme with a twist: claims that the house involved is under the protection of a sovereign republic and that trespass could be met with 'self defense' and 'justifiable homicide.'

The bizarre case unfolded Tuesday in a gated West Natomas neighborhood that boasts million-dollar homes and some of the city's most prominent residents... two printed signs appeared on the front window, one of them warning against trespassing and claiming the home was the "Private Property of sovereign Woman of republic of California" and that federal and state employees could not access the property.

The sign mentioned "freeman," an apparent reference to the radical anti-government group that gained fame in 1996 during an 81-day standoff with federal authorities in Montana.

It also referred to the occupants' right to "Self-Preservation – Right To Repel Force By Force – Self Defense – Justifiable Homicide.""
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Fred Pilot found this suburban vignette. This is an $865,000 house in a gated community. It has been vacant for a year. Now...hey, honey...the new neighbors are here! It seems as though the police think the new occupants are squatters. Maybe there is a new theory from the posse comitatus/black helo/Freeman folks that allows them to occupy foreclosed homes. Anybody know about this?

Bone-dry Bolinas - barometer for state?

Bone-dry Bolinas - barometer for state?: "With California in a critical drought, every shower, load of laundry and glass of tap water counts. But only in Bolinas could those things cost you your water connection."
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No, it's not a barometer for the state of California. It might be a barometer for all the bizarre hippie communes with their own water supplies...that are drying up.

Historic tiny Sacramento County town has king-size problems - Los Angeles Times: "Not to mention that 'disincorporation' is complicated and expensive. The last California city to pull the plug on itself is believed to have been Cabazon in Riverside County, about 1972. The process would cost Isleton about $250,000, and the government would still have to provide full services even as it breathed its last.

If Isleton had that kind of money, Pope noted, it wouldn't need to commit civic suicide. His city may be too poor to live, but it's also too poor to die.

Many of Isleton's miseries have been self-inflicted, but it's far from the only California city in difficult straits. Hard-luck Rio Vista, just across the Sacramento River, has consulted with bankruptcy attorneys but managed to cut its way to relative safety -- for now. Vallejo, 36 miles northwest, filed for bankruptcy protection in May.

Watsonville closed all city services except police and fire for two weeks over the holidays. Calexico declared a fiscal emergency last week.

The state's 10 biggest cities are more than a quarter-billion dollars in the red this fiscal year. Next year, San Francisco and Los Angeles predict a combined $1-billion deficit."
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In California, there is a race to ghost town status between CIDs and municipalities. Who will be the last one standing?

National Weather Forecast - weather.com

National Weather Forecast - Global warming strikes!: "An Arctic cold front will sweep down through Florida on Wednesday leading to a very cold Wednesday night."
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It seems that almost the entire USA will be sub-freezing tonight. That talk Al Gore gave last week did its job.

YouTube - Nancy Pelosi: Dumber than Soap

YouTube - Nancy Pelosi: 500 million Americans losing their jobs every month
Pelosi says everything with this tone of condemnation and complete certainty in her own supreme virtue. Listen to this howler.

Chinese see funny side of financial crisis | U.S. | Reuters

Chinese see funny side of financial crisis | U.S. | Reuters: "A bank worker calls a colleague, goes one joke on the tiexue.net bulletin board.

'Hey, how's it been going?'

'Not so bad.'

'Oh, sorry, I've definitely called the wrong number.'

Others adopt a similar tone, but riffing off Communist propaganda slogans.

'In the face of the financial crisis, I have bravely stood up and am marching forward! That's because ... I can't pay back my loans and the bank has repossessed my car.'"
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Chinese humor is great, but 20 minutes later you want to hear another joke.

Bloomberg.com: News

Bloomberg.com: News: "Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Forty percent of Japanese investors said there is a risk that the U.S. government will default on its debt, a survey published by Barclays Capital showed.

Almost 34 percent of the 66 respondents in the poll sent to Japanese institutional investors from Jan. 26 to Jan. 28 said there is a “significant” or “slight” risk that the U.S. will lose its AAA sovereign debt rating this year. Twenty-two percent said they were concerned about the credit risk of German government bonds. China surpassed Japan in September to become the biggest foreign holder of U.S. Treasuries."
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The article goes on to say that foreign investors are concerned that the bond market won't be able to absorb the massive borrowing required to fund the colossal "stimulus package" Obama and the congressional Democrats are planning. The more I read about this the crazier that policy appears.

Affordability of US homes reaches new record | csmonitor.com: "US homes are now more affordable than at any time since the National Association of Realtors began tracking affordability in 1970.

The finding, announced Tuesday morning by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), means that family incomes are high enough and mortgage rates and real estate prices are now low enough that homeownership is within the reach of a record number of Americans."
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Oh, how encouraging. I shall run out forthwith and purchase myself some real estate. Maybe a few thousand shares of General Motors while I'm at it. Never have these precious assets been more affordable.

Silicon Valley home values plunge at record pace; 20 percent of homes are 'underwater' - San Jose Mercury News

Silicon Valley home values plunge at record pace; 20 percent of homes are 'underwater' - San Jose Mercury News: "Against a backdrop of dire economic news and a crumbling stock market, home values in the San Jose metropolitan area dropped more steeply in the fourth quarter of 2008 than anytime in at least 12 years. The decline left nearly one in five of all homeowners 'underwater,' owing more on their mortgages than their homes would likely fetch in a sale."

Lawsuit Filed Against Knoll-Century Hill Homeowner's Association

Lawsuit Filed Against Knoll-Century Hill Homeowner's Association: "The restrictions and covenants do not authorize a homeowner's association to impose a special assessment for anything other than defraying the cost of any construction or reconstruction of the development's properties.
Special assessments can only be authorized by a two-thirds vote of the 'Knoll' membership, the lawsuit states.

The suit alleges that the defendant's board of directors tried to have proposed amended by-laws voted upon in April 2007. Those by-laws would have given them the authority to pass and enforce a special assessment to 'purchase real property from private parties.'"
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This one has the feel of a "there's a whole lot more going on here than you find in the story" situation.

Hang it out to dry: HOAs would have to allow clotheslines - wtop.com

Hang it out to dry: HOAs would have to allow clotheslines - wtop.com: "ANNAPOLIS -- A Frederick County state delegate wants to let people harness the power of the sun to dry their clothes.

Delegate Galen Clagett, a Democrat, introduced a bill that would require homeowners associations to allow clotheslines.

The bill gives HOAs the right to regulate size, placement and appearance of clotheslines for aesthetic or safety reasons, but it would prevent them and local governments from banning the lines completely at single family houses or townhouses."
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Shu Bartholomew sent this along, and I think it is like the flags and the satellite dishes--another perfectly fine specific limitation on mindless HOA restrictions, when what we really need is a carve-out of some broad areas of civil liberties and due process for owners.

Lake Holiday News » Blog Archive » Jill Holtzman Vogel and SB 1489: The Sequel To A Flop

Lake Holiday News » Blog Archive » Jill Holtzman Vogel and SB 1489: The Sequel To A Flop
Shu Bartholomew forwarded an email from State Senator Jill Vogel saying that she has stricken this atrocious bill. Thanks to all of you who commented here and elsewhere, and did other things to mobilize some opposition and make that known to the legislators. I think all this made a difference.

Legislature Upholds Gibbons' HOA Veto - Las Vegas News Story - KVVU Las Vegas

Legislature Upholds Gibbons' HOA Veto - Las Vegas News Story - KVVU Las Vegas: "The bill would have limited the associations' ability to fine homeowners, or ban certain energy-efficiency additions such as solar panels. It also created new rules for elections and safeguards against financial abuse by managers."
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Governor Gibbons said the bill would increase assessments and lead to changes in common areas without homeowner participation. I think others see the matter differently.

LA county supervisors consider withholding funds from state | county, state, payments, budget, cns - News - OCRegister.com

LA county supervisors consider withholding funds from state | county, state, payments, budget, cns - News - OCRegister.com: "The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today discussed withholding locally generated revenues from the state, if the state begins withholding funds from the county."
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As Fred Pilot says, "So there!"

Ohio.com - Courtroom dogfight pits condo vs. resident

Ohio.com - Courtroom dogfight pits condo vs. resident: "It seems the condo association allows its owners to have a dog as long as it doesn't weigh more than 12 pounds. C.C. weighs in at about 30 pounds.

The association and C.C.'s owners have been at odds for about a year. So the association sued in Summit County Common Pleas Court, seeking a judge's order to evict C.C."
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I've heard of 30 pound limits, but never a 12 pound limit for dogs. Some developer's attorney must have been a chihuahua lover.

This situation is obviously ridiculous. Take a look at CC and tell me this dog must be removed to protect the property values or quality of life.

Thanks to Shu Bartholomew for this bizarre story.

Obama performance chief Killefer out, citing taxes - Yahoo! News

Killifer's issue was actually pretty minor. I don't really think she should have to back out. But all the other nominees with problems were dealing with significant amounts of money and pretty clear culpability.

Tom Daschle is out as Secretary of Health and Human Services, because he didn't pay his taxes.

Tim Geithner didn't pay his taxes, and he even bilked his employer, but he is Secretary of the Treasury anyway.

There is something especially hypocritical about liberal Democrats not paying their taxes. They are constantly criticizing Republicans for giving "tax breaks to the rich," while they themselves are (a) rich, and (b) creating nonexistent tax breaks for themselves. They even lecture us about how patriotic it is to pay taxes (VP Joe Biden, during the campaign). When they cheat on their taxes, as somebody said, it is like an evangelical preacher getting caught with a prostitute.

Bill Richardson was to be Commerce Secretary, but unfortunately he happens to be under investigation by a grand jury in connection with issuing state contracts to political donors. Maybe he and Rod Blagojevich can cut some government waste by sharing a cell.

Several questions come to mind. What was that stuff about "reform" and "change" again? And what kind of half-baked vetting are these nominees getting by the Obamelot brain trust--all these smartest people in the world who have graced us with their presence? How hard is it to ask "Did you pay your taxes?" I hope they do a little more homework before Obama sits down to parlay with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

And finally...tell me again why we little people have to pay our taxes?

California's credit rating cut to lowest of all 50 states | Money & Company | Los Angeles Times

California's credit rating cut to lowest of all 50 states | Money & Company | Los Angeles Times: "California today was branded the worst credit risk of all 50 states, after Standard & Poor’s cut its rating on the state’s debt because of the budget impasse.

S&P lowered its rating on the state’s $46 billion in general obligation bonds to 'A' from 'A-plus,' citing 'the state's inability to reach an agreement on a mid-year budget revision and its rapidly eroding cash position.'"
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"Rapidly eroding cash position" is one of those euphemisms we all need to keep in our hip pocket so we can pull it out when we are RUNNING OUT OF MONEY!

Deerfield Beach may shut off water at condo that owes $90,000 -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

Deerfield Beach may shut off water at condo that owes $90,000 -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com: "Narrabe is one of 28 unit owners — out of 168 — in the Deerfield Palms condo association who still pay their monthly maintenance fees, which are used to pay the community's water bill.

Residents owe the city $90,000. If they don't pay $12,929 by the first week of March, the city is threatening to turn off the water. Because the community has master meters rather than individual unit gauges, the city can't separate owners who are current on their bills from delinquent customers."
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Another condo association that can't do its job, and who gets the short end of the stick? Why, the owners, of course. Who else?

Ohio city warned to avoid tainted water - UPI.com

Ohio city warned to avoid tainted water - UPI.com: "BELLAIRE, Ohio, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- The Bellaire, Ohio, water department is warning residents to avoid contact with tap water after hydrochloric acid was mistakenly added to the system."
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Who needs terrorists when you have the Bellaire Department of Water and Acid?

Fannie Mae Logic Bomb Attack 'Tip Of The Iceberg' - Security - IT Channel News by CRN and VARBusiness: "Federal investigators indicted Rajendrashinh Makwana, 35, a contracted Unix engineer for mortgage finance company Fannie Mae, for allegedly embedding malicious code known as a logic bomb in the mortgage lender's computer network, which was set to detonate on Jan. 31, 2009.

Had the attack been successful, the malware could have destroyed the entirety of the data on all 4,000 of the mortgage finance company's servers and shut down the company for a week, experts say."
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Maybe some of that exploding logic might find its way into their decision making processes, which haven't been logical for a very long time.

Presidential Disaster Declaration For KY - News- msnbc.com

Presidential Disaster Declaration For KY - News- msnbc.com: "President Barack Obama has approved Governor Steve Beshear's request for an emergency Presidential Disaster Declaration that will assist people in need across the Commonwealth."
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Heading off a PR disaster...except that the national press wouldn't have covered it anyway.

Suitably Flip: Stimulus, Illustrated - Part II

Suitably Flip: Stimulus, Illustrated - Part II
Gasp II (see below).

Suitably Flip: Stimulus, Illustrated

Suitably Flip: Stimulus, Illustrated
Gasp.

It took 10 years, but Ogden man beats City Hall - Salt Lake Tribune: "Last week, Ogden's Landmarks Commission approved Bruce Edwards' proposal to restore a sign on his historic C.C. Keller Building on 25th Street -- a full 10 years after his original request.

'I outlasted 'em,' Edwards chortled Thursday. 'And the bottom line is, I was right.'

The original wording, dating back to about 1910 and painted on the north side of the two-story brick structure, is still barely visible: 'Every hour upon the hour for about an hour Drink Becker's Beer -- Ogden's Famous Beer.'

But in 1998, the Landmarks Commission -- whose membership has now changed -- gave the sign restoration a big thumbs down.

'One of the members said, 'We can't have beer on that sign; we want 25th Street to be family oriented,' Edwards recalled."
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Beer: the cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems. Thus spake Homer Simpson.

Get ready for the 8p-a-month mortgage as Bank of England prepares to slash rates to 1% | Mail Online

Get ready for the 8p-a-month mortgage as Bank of England prepares to slash rates to 1% | Mail Online: "Some homeowners could see their monthly mortgage payments drop as low as zero this week.

The Bank of England is expected to cut interest rates to just 1 per cent on Thursday, bringing a windfall to those with interest-only tracker loans.

If it does, Cheltenham & Gloucester customers who took out a deal at 1.01 percentage points below the Bank's base rate will be paying no interest at all.

For technical reasons, they will still have to make payments - 8p a month for a £100,000 loan - but the money will be refunded."
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That's a hard deal to beat.

Extinct ibex is resurrected by cloning - Telegraph

Extinct ibex is resurrected by cloning - Telegraph: "The Pyrenean ibex, a form of wild mountain goat, was officially declared extinct in 2000 when the last-known animal of its kind was found dead in northern Spain.

Shortly before its death, scientists preserved skin samples of the goat, a subspecies of the Spanish ibex that live in mountain ranges across the country, in liquid nitrogen.

Using DNA taken from these skin samples, the scientists were able to replace the genetic material in eggs from domestic goats, to clone a female Pyrenean ibex, or bucardo as they are known. It is the first time an extinct animal has been cloned."
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It didn't live long, but they will work out the fine points. Brave new world, here we come. Today the Spanish ibex, five years from now...Neanderthal Man?

Thanks to Jeff Hammond for the link.

Real Estate Blog - Fannie Mae Condo Changes - Interest Rate/Hazard Insurance/REO/HOA Dues

Real Estate Blog - Fannie Mae Condo Changes - Interest Rate/Hazard Insurance/REO/HOA Dues: "Fannie Mae is updating its delinquent HOA dues policy for the review processes to require that no more than 15 percent of the total units in a project can be 30 days or more past due on the payment of their condominium/association fee payments. This new policy applies to the review of both new and established attached condominium projects."
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That strikes me as pretty tough with an economy like this.

Dealer a guest at judges’ condo | Wilkes-Barre News | The Times Leader: "JUPITER, Fla. – A convicted drug dealer and attorney Robert Powell were among the people who were listed as “permanent guests” permitted to use an exclusive condominium owned by Luzerne County judges Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella, according to documents obtained Friday by The Times Leader."
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Now, that's what I call rehabilitation.

Elected officials get an earful about condo association laws -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com: "BOCA RATON - State representatives pushing to reform condominium or home association laws got an earful from residents at a Town Hall meeting here on Saturday. More than 150 residents, from Miami-Dade County to Port St. Lucie and across to Naples attended the four-hour meeting where they shared stories about the problems they face when they live in a condo or homeowner association community...[T]he most prevalent concerns were harassment or retaliation against unit owners who speak out against the actions of the board or a board member, abuse of power by associations and the lack of protection for unit owners when their boards act inappropriately or maliciously."
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Shocking. Imagine that. Abuse of power by HOA boards and nowhere for the owners to turn. Why hasn't somebody pointed that out before?

JammieWearingFool

JammieWearingFool: Where is FEMA?: "At least 42 people have died, including 11 in Kentucky, and conditions are worsening in many places days after an ice storm knocked out power to 1.3 million customers from the Plains to the East Coast. About a million people were still without electric Friday, and with no hope that the lights will come back on soon, small communities are frantically struggling to help their residents."
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The blogger's criticism is that Obama shows no concern about their well-being and FEMA isn't doing enough. Local governments are overwhelmed. Shades of Katrina?

01/29/2009 - Rod Blagojevich removed from office as Illinois governor - STLtoday.com: "SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, the boy-faced Chicago Democrat swept into office six years ago as an antidote to the scandal and corruption of his predecessor, was officially removed from office today in the wake of federal corruption charges."
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At long last, Governor Hairbrush is gone. This sociopath has all but bankrupted the state. Illinois has become an economic and political basket case in the six years the worst governor in America has blighted the political landscape. Pat Quinn, our new governor, is an honest public servant and a genuine reformer. We will see if he can do something about what is perhaps the worst state legislature in the nation.

CapeCodTimes.com - Orleans condos consider ban on smoking at home

CapeCodTimes.com - Orleans condos consider ban on smoking at home: "The Old Colony Village condominium complex is considering the following bylaw:

* Smoking is prohibited within all units, in all common areas and outside on decks and patios.
* Existing smokers can be exempt. The exemption ends when the unit is conveyed or, if rented, when the smoker moves out.
* Even if the unit is exempt, the board may respond to residents' complaints of secondhand smoke by declaring the smoke a nuisance and requiring the owner to purchase a filter system to prevent smoke from migrating to surrounding areas, seal all penetrations in walls, ceilings and floors, or stop smoking.

The condominium association is debating a smoking ban for its 143 units in response to complaints about secondhand smoke migrating into hallways and neighbors' units in the two- and three-story buildings on Old Colony Way. The proposed bylaw would prohibit smoking as units are sold but would allow the complex's board to require that a resident who smokes install a filter system, seal off places where smoke could escape, or even stop smoking."
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Within the units? I think this pretty much snuffs out (pun intended) the notion of a condominium "airspace" unit as a piece of private property.

Woodpeckers in Rossmoor may soon end up in sharpshooter's cross hairs | Outposts | Los Angeles Times: "Woody Woodpecker was annoying, but real woodpeckers are incredible birds with complex social systems and an affinity for drilling holes in trees, in which they store food.

So why would anyone want to kill them?

In the upscale Bay Area retirement community of Rossmoor, it's because acorn woodpeckers (like that pictured above) have been mistaking wooden homes, built within the birds' natural habitat, as trees.

So after months of discussions, one homeowner's association has voted to shoot and kill the birds, while another association has decided to postpone plans to do the same for up to two months."
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Shu Bartholomew and Fred Pilot have been sending me links to this deplorable situation. Whenever we get a woodpecker in the trees around our house, whoever sees it first calls everybody to come watch it. I'm a fisherman and a hunter, but the idea of killing a woodpecker is so far from my consciousness that I can't quite grasp the rationale. Wooden houses are not a new idea. So far, woodpeckers have not destroyed any of them, I suspect. I guess it makes sense that somewhere there is an HOA that will find this the only course of action.
ps: I had to change the photo because Fred advised me that I had posted a photo of the pileated woodpecker instead of the acorn woodpecker. I stand corrected.
pps: Fred insisted that I post this picture instead, and I have to admit it is a good one.

FOXNews.com - Hackers Crack Into Texas Road Sign, Warn of Zombies Ahead - Science News | Science & Technology | Technology News: "Transportation officials in Texas are scrambling to prevent hackers from changing messages on digital road signs after one sign in Austin was altered to read, 'Zombies Ahead.'"
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Your tax dollars at work. This warning is as useful as the ones I see here in Illinois. Usually these expensive signs say something like, "Buckle Your Seatbelt," and five minutes later you hit a massive traffic jam with no warning.

WWII Veteran Freezes To Death In Own Home - News Story - WNEM Saginaw

WWII Veteran Freezes To Death In Own Home: Bay City Electric & Light Restricted Power To Man's Home After He Did Not Pay Bills: "An autopsy determined Schur died from hypothermia in the home he lived in for years. A medical examiner who conducted the autopsy on Schur told TV5 and WNEM.com that Schur died a painful death due to the hypothermia. Dr. Kanu Varani has done hundreds of autopsies, and he said he’d never seen a person die of hypothermia indoors. A neighbor who lives across the street from Schur is angered that the city didn’t personally notify the elderly man about his utility situation. Schur’s neighbor, Herndon, said Schur had a utility bill on his kitchen table with a large amount of money clipped to it, with the intention of paying that bill."
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It was 32 degrees in his home. He was 93 years old. He didn't even know they had put a limiter on his meter that cut his power. How about this:

DTE [the Detroit power company] said it doesn't use limiters because the Michigan Public Service Commission discourages use of the devices. TV5 also found out that Bay City isn't regulated by the state agency because it's a municipal company. It has a review board that sets its standards. Now it could be sued as a result of its policy on limiters and the fact that it didn't personally notify Schur about the device.

"Could be sued"? How about, "Could be incarcerated"?

Kentlands burglary lawsuit settled

Kentlands burglary lawsuit settled: "A $3.25 million lawsuit filed against two Gaithersburg brothers who pleaded guilty to a 2006 burglary in the Kentlands has been settled.

According to the lawsuit, Jaime Cowger Denzel was given access to units in the Kentlands V building to do maintenance work, but residents were not informed of his criminal history or drug use. Denzel used keys held by his mother Susan Denzel, then president of the Kentlands V Condominium Association, to enter Helene Ellen Berman's unit to steal more than $200,000 worth of property, according to the lawsuit."
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They also sued the condo association and property management firm. Kentlands is a planned community that has been widely publicized as a showpiece of New Urbanism If you'd like to read a puff piece on Kentlands from the WaPo, be my guest. But it seems that life isn't as idyllic as it first appears.

Schwarzenegger Wants To Tax Car Repair, Golf - Sacramento News Story - KCRA Sacramento

Schwarzenegger Wants To Tax Car Repair, Golf - Sacramento News Story - KCRA Sacramento: "The Republican governor is proposing to extend California sales taxes to cover some services -- rounds of golf, auto repairs, veterinary care, amusement park and sporting event admissions, as well as appliance and furniture repairs.

The moves are part of his strategy to erase a nearly $42 billion budget deficit over the next year-and-a-half."
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With states struggling to cover deficits, and taxes going up, it will be hard to persuade legislators to increase oversight of CIDs, let alone cut do something about double taxation or addressing these local CID construction mandates. Schwarzenegger has two CID reform vetoes under his belt already.

Philip K. Howard: How Modern Law Makes Us Powerless - WSJ.com

Philip K. Howard: How Modern Law Makes Us Powerless - WSJ.com: "But there's a threshold problem for our new president. Americans don't feel free to reach inside themselves and make a difference. The growth of litigation and regulation has injected a paralyzing uncertainty into everyday choices. All around us are warnings and legal risks. The modern credo is not 'Yes We Can' but 'No You Can't.' Our sense of powerlessness is pervasive."
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Think about this essay in the context of HOAs and condos. A form of housing that deprives people of control over their property has become the norm in new construction. How's that for creating a sense of powerlessness?

Half the room, all the assessment in Roseville

Half the room, all the assessment in Roseville: "At least a half-dozen suburbs have declared a condominium or townhouse -- or a cluster of them -- 'housing improvement areas'' eligible for city-backed loans. The designation is from a 1996 law to help cities prevent these high-profile buildings from deteriorating, as well as to give homeowners a longer-term loan to repay than a big one-time assessment."
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Cities bailing out condos to prevent blight? Who predicted that long ago?, he asked rhetorically, knowing the answer.

PUBLIC PENSION WAR :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Personal Finance

PUBLIC PENSION WAR :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Personal Finance: "While current retirees receive the promised benefits, what happens to future pension payments if the various fund investments cannot provide the benefits promised by law?

The answer may lie in the court system. James Spiotto, an attorney with Chapman and Cutler in Chicago, helped rewrite the Chapter 9 bankruptcy laws in the 1980s. Rarely discussed, Chapter 9 provides for municipalities to go through a bankruptcy reorganization. It has only been used 564 times since enacted in 1937.

Spiotto explains that a city seeking this type of bankruptcy protection could renegotiate all of its contracts, including pension promises. That sets current workers, who want to make sure the money already in the pension plan is equitably distributed, against retirees and those nearing retirement.

Public pensions are a national crisis."
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As a fellow who has been paying into one of these public pension funds (state, not city) while the state government blithely declines to make its contributions, I do not look kindly on the notion that some bankruptcy judge will allow them to get away with it.

But note that the premise of this whole scenario is that the City of Chicago, or maybe the State of Illinois, could go bankrupt. Until recently, nobody even used the words "government" and "bankrupt" in the same conversation, let alone the same sentence.

And you think the nation's HOAs and condos are going to thrive and survive while the cities that surround them go bankrupt? Don't bank(rupt) on it.

Shock, sorrow follow arrest of neighbor in burglary case - LA Daily News

Shock, sorrow follow arrest of neighbor in burglary case - LA Daily News: "WEST HILLS - Inside Equus Estates, a tight-knit gated hillside community with a spectacular view of the San Fernando Valley, a wave of shock mixed with some sadness has descended.

Neighbors in this wealthy community of high-powered professionals have been stunned to learn that living within their protective fencing was the alleged mastermind of the 'Hillside Burglars' who stole millions in jewelry, cash and property from the homes of celebrities and Hollywood honchos."
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According to his wife, even she didn't know. I see a TV movie in her future.

14-year-old boy impersonates cop, police say -- chicagotribune.com: "Chicago police arrested a 14-year-old boy for allegedly impersonating one of their own Saturday.

The boy, who has been charged as a juvenile for impersonating an officer, walked into the Grand Crossing District station, 7040 S. Cottage Grove Ave., dressed in a Chicago police uniform, police spokeswoman Monique Bond said. The boy, who reported for duty about 1:30 p.m., partnered with another police officer for about five hours.

The boy identified himself as an officer from another district but was detailed for the day to Grand Crossing and also was savvy enough to sign out a police radio and a ticket book, according to a source. The source also said the boy went on traffic stops with the officer he went on the street with."
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That's great. The Chicago Police Department sent a 14 year old boy out on patrol with another officer and didn't become suspicious until "after his tour was over."

They say he "did not write tickets," and that's probably why they didn't pick up on the scam. Real Chicago cops don't write tickets, either.

Google plans to make PCs history | Technology | The Observer: "Google is to launch a service that would enable users to access their personal computer from any internet connection, according to industry reports. But campaigners warn that it would give the online behemoth unprecedented control over individuals' personal data."
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We seem to be headed away from private information storage on our own computers, and toward one vast repository of all our data in the hands of Lord Google the Benevolent. We will then fire up our cell phones and connect to the mother lode. This would not work for people who have data they want to keep private, but I'm sure there will always be hard disk drives in the second hand stores, alongside the typewriters and buggy whips.

I'm not sure I'm ready to trust Google quite this much, although I do store things there as a backup.

Fat dogs seized by RSPCA - Telegraph

Fat dogs seized by RSPCA - Telegraph: "The Labradors were taken from their home by an inspector from the charity who said they were just going to be weighed.

The organisation has not allowed Marie Davidson, 48, to see her animals, or even told her where they have been kept for the past three months."
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Welcome to Great Britain, where the population has lost any semblance of freedom and doesn't seem to care. Whenever people claim that Britain has an "unwritten constitution," I laugh. Folks, get it in writing next time.

Fight building over judges redoing mortgages

Fight building over judges redoing mortgages: "WASHINGTON (AP) - Most congressional Democrats say the quickest way to save homeowners like Troy Butler of Saginaw, Mich., is to let them declare bankruptcy and allow judges to dictate new mortgage terms.

Easy, except the lenders that would absorb the pain—and lose control of any deals to ease the terms—do not want to get dragged into bankruptcy court by millions of overextended borrowers."
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The US Constitution's "contract clause" prohibits states from making laws that impair the obligations of contracts. The clause is there because after the Revolution, when the nation was under the Articles of Confederation, states were canceling debts, banning mortgage foreclosure, and so forth. Merchants and banks were going nuts. The temptation is always present for politicians to make themselves popular by declaring a private debt holiday. The problem is that if Congress does things like this, banks will have to factor into every loan the possibility that the terms will be reformed by a judge somewhere down the line. If Congress wants to "unfreeze" credit markets--i.e., get banks lending freely again--this is not the way to do it.