NY Times Mr. Compass, the police superintendent, said that after a week of near anarchy in the city, no civilians in New Orleans will be allowed to carry pistols, shotguns, or other firearms of any kind. “Only law enforcement are allowed to have weapons,” he said. That order apparently does not apply to the hundreds [...]
War on the poor
Poor pay disproportionate price in disaster aftermath
September 7, 2005
Accompanying her husband, former President George H.W.Bush, on a tour of hurricane relief centers in Houston, Barbara Bush said today, referring to the poor who had lost everything back home and evacuated, “This is working very well for them.” Unlike the former first lady, I am appalled and ashamed at the federal government’s lack of [...]
Plan to dislocate poor okayed
August 17, 2005
Plan for Central Park okayed Replacement housing for the more than 1,300 residents of the 484-unit complex is of particular concern. The Central Park Group’s plans call for only 182 new public housing units.
Improving public housing by eliminating the poor
August 16, 2005
What a happy day: a couple of ex-residents of blighted public housing got to move into new digs in the complex that replaced their old neighborhood. Nearly two years ago, the Tampa Housing Authority tore down Riverview Terrace, a six-decade-old public housing project with a reputation for drug deals and crime. In its place is [...]
Miami fights the power
August 12, 2005
(From the BlogWood mailbag) Ever heard of the Continental Management Group? They run most of South Florida’s condos. If you live in Miami, chances are they run yours. Well, Continental’s greed and poor service has gotten so bad, it’s provoked this hilarious new music video: Screw This Condo The flash is funny, but what’s going [...]
Ronda Storms attacks Planned Parenthood as “Pro Death,” cuts educational funding
July 29, 2005
On Thursday, Ronda Storms led the rabid pack of fundamentalist commissioner dogs on a personal attack against one of the few sources for unbiased women’s health care in the Tampa area. The idea came from Hillsborough County Commissioner Ronda Storms: eliminate funding for a teen educational program sponsored by Planned Parenthood. Commissioners went along with [...]
Jim Davis shows lukewarm support for working class
July 28, 2005
Trade Pact Approved By House The House narrowly approved the Central American Free Trade Agreement this morning, delivering a hard-fought victory to President Bush while underscoring the nation’s deep divisions over trade. The 217 to 215 vote came just after midnight, in a dramatic finish that highlighted the intensity brought by both sides to the [...]
BlogWood Redux: Right-to-work… for less money and an early death
July 25, 2005
Note: Continuing my place holding trend of recycling old junk, I am presenting some classic BlogWood posts that may have some relevance to today’s headlines. The following post first appeared on February 8. February 8, 2005 Right-to-work… for less money and an early death Unions have been on my mind lately, for a variety of [...]
BlogWood Redux: The sales tax holiday has no clothes
July 23, 2005
Note: As promised earlier this week, I am occasionally rerunning posts from the past that have some relevance to current events. This post first appeared on May 21, 2004. Meaningless feel-good election year tripe: The governor signed into law Thursday legislation that will cut the gasoline tax by 8 cents a gallon for the entire [...]
BlogWood Redux: Tampa’s Welfare Daddies
July 19, 2005
Note: as promised, this week will feature some BlogWood classics that may just provide a little background to current events. This post first appeared in December of 2003. Click here for more on Civitas and Ed Turanchik’s almost successful plan to take over the world. December 18, 2003 Tampa’s Welfare Daddies Corporate welfare roles in [...]