On Tue, August 9, 2005 9:58 am, [EMAIL PROTECTED] said: > Wizard: > > I'm going to stop posting on this...after I respond to your comment :) > Neither side is going to change their position, and I've just become too > frustrated with those opposed to building the field changing their tactics > and arguments daily from: (1) its bad for the island and the park should > remain an open space (a good argument, one I disagree with but hey, I hear > ya) to (2) any park commissioner that votes for this plan is voting for > "patronage, special interests and cronyism"...i.e. they are corrupt > (personal attacks with no support or basis save that a few of the > Commissioners have or have had personal ties to DLS); to (3) separation of > church and state (it was argued a loooooooong time ago and now resurfaces > with no explanation as to how this would constitute an endorsement or > establishment.)
People can reach a common conclusion for multiple reasons. 2 + 2 = 4, 3 + 1 = 4, and so on. Now, I haven't followed the debate very closely, but the more I read about this, the more I find myself agreeing with positions 1 and 2, above. First, I just can't wrap my head around why the Park Board would be interested in helping a high school to build an astroturfed stadium on such a unique area of Minneapolis. (I am more than willing to be educated on the proposal. It doesn't make sense to me, but I have an open mind.) I can understand the need for recreational facilities in general, but I don't see any need for a stadium of that sort at that location -- unless it's to benefit one particular group of constituents. That brings up the second issue, which is that the Park Board appears to have a majority that favors backroom deals and application of park resources to favored friends and constituents. I think you saw that in the peculiar selection of Jon Gurban. I think you saw that in the outrageous attempt to limit free speech on park property. I even think you see that in Marie Hauser's campaign lit, which (if I remember correctly) boasts of planting more trees in the Eighth Ward than any other ward. So the fact that the proponents of this plan have ties to DLS and are vague on the details is bound to raise much more skepticism than if another government body had taken up the issue. I think that the combination of (1) a peculiar proposal; and (2) a park board majority with severe credibility problems adds up to a lot of the suspicion of this deal. Mike Skoglund // Bancroft // Non-DLS Grad. REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:mpls@mnforum.org Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
