Blogroll
A glance at what Spokesman-Review bloggers have to say
Spin Control
By Jonathan Brunt
April 15 – Councilman Mike Fagan, who is co-sponsoring legislation amending the city’s initiative process, has proposed initiatives using the direct filing method he now proposes to ban. In May 2010 he submitted two initiatives to the City Clerk’s office using the direct petition model.
Fagan said Friday he didn’t remember filing initiatives using the direct-petition option. In April 2010 he filed initiatives using the assistance of the city attorney’s office, which drafted two ballot questions. He later withdrew the proposals and refiled slightly different ones using the direct option. Fagan never made a serious effort to collect signatures on the initiatives.
Fagan, a co-director along with Tim Eyman of Voters Want More Choices, which puts a citizens initiative on the state ballot almost annually, has taken heat for his sponsorship of the initiative changes, given that he makes his living by campaigning for initiatives.
The Inlander even quoted Eyman criticizing Fagan and Councilman Steve Salvatori’s plan in last week’s edition.
“You have to continually remind yourself: It’s called the citizen’s initiative process,” Eyman said, according to the Inlander. “I really, really hope that City Council will not do this.”
The Slice
By Paul Turner
April 13 – Slice reader Lori Goldade saw the question about dealing with losing your hair.
“My husband and I were attending the PRCA rodeo in Pocatello, Idaho, when the rodeo announcer and the rodeo clown were bantering back and forth. The announcer challenged the clown to take off his hat. When he did, the announcer made a comical comment about his obvious lack of hair under the hat.
“The clown responded, ‘Hey, anyone can grow hair, but it takes a real man to be able to suck it back in!’ ”
Outdoors
By Rich Landers
April 10 – A pair of bald eagles are back raising a brood for the world to see.
Three eggs have been hatched, and the real work has begun.
A beautifully positioned webcam (http://www.ustream.tv /decoraheagles) over a bald eagle nest at the Decorah Fish Hatchery in Iowa is catching the attention of millions of viewers. The webcam gained fame last year as people logged on to watch the chicks hatch, grow and fledge.
The site linked above has video clips of the eggs being laid by the female eagle as well as the hatching events.