Gary Hoover: “The second (non-pollution-related) negative health impact is actually more social. I noticed that when I was doing daycare and built the "alleycart" -- a homebuilt pushcart to take small children to the Parks and back, that we had wonderful interactions in the neighborhood. People we would have passed by anonymously in a car were now truly our neighbors. We talked, they listened to the kids laugh, cry, sing, and call out as we passed by. “
Good point, Gary. I think it is funny and ironic that we discuss all these other social ills that, at bottom, have urban design as a first cause, yet we never consider in our study of transportation issues whether our choices make this WORSE! We forget how life ties all these issues together and a wrong move on one side leads to unforeseen costs elsewhere. Gary again: “Even now as I ride a cargo trike through south Minneapolis, I stop to say hello to elderly people who smile and wave, to children, and even to other middle-aged folks like myself. As more people engage in active transportation within neighborhoods, we build community and human connection, which is also very important to human health” Quite apart from the gratification, Gary, I find alternative transportation modes pretty much REQUIRE me to interact more. This then binds me into my neighborhood as a byproduct, without all the intentional methods that people sometimes shy away from. Gary: “Congestion Tax: we need to explore this disincentive for driving in congestion. You can access information on it at the BBC -- apparently it has worked well in Singapore(?), and London is setting up a program. Think of it as behavioral modification with the benefit of raising revenue to fund the transformation to a more active, healthier urban environment for us and our kids.” I don’t consider it “behavior modification”. I consider it taking externalities and returning to those who originate them. The same thing as the excess fees paid by people who create excessive solid waste. Minneapolis makes your garbage fee depend on the size of your cart and how many carts you have. Same idea as the congestion tax. Wallace Swan, Board of Estimate and Taxation: “You may remember that several years ago, I warned the city about the need to have a plan to reduce our debt--and this plan is one of the consequences of the need to address those problems. But at the same time, because of the shift of the money mentioned above, we were able to ensure that the limits upon the Library Board and Park Boards operating budgets lessen the negative impact upon the children and adults of the city. “ Not much to say except too many business people with their hands out and too many tractable people on the City Council. Those tractable people are gone, but the hangover lingers. Robert Schmid: “I know I'm going from the specific to the general again, but I just realized that this argument is not very valid. I've worked in and around some very large companies and, frankly, they run exactly the same way. “ Yeh, Victoria Heller is recyling popular mythology. She should watch the “No Shame” segment on Wall Street Week with Fortune where they constantly highlight cases of being paid huge sums for LOSING money. What was the $2 million golden handshake to Dennis Evans by the First Bank System board for Victoria? He had made a bond play that lost $300 million. Is that what you call “results”? WizardMarks: "WM: Where to start. Catholicism, as practiced in the US is "fundamentalist," as are all the Christian religions, in the sense that they proseletize for their viewpoint every chance they get--and make chances when there is a lull in the proseletyzing" By that standard, Quakerism is not fundamentalist. Heather Martens: "MPS policy continues to require Kindergarteners to use computers, to learn things like "pre-research skills" and "how information is organized." Is this time well spent for five- year-olds, most of whom are still learning letter-sound connections and how to count?" I'd say that I don't consider it as such. At least not when all other valid educational goals are being met. Jim Mork (Cooper) __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! News - Today's headlines http://news.yahoo.com _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
