Re: [UC] Windermere Update [including missing pets update]

[Glenn moyer]

Linda,

I've been following this story while out of town.  My thoughts are with the kitties, tenants, and owners. 

 

My thoughts also go out to all the unknown victims of L& I over the many years.

The mayors and our city council members have long refused to work for the needs of ordinary citizens. They refuse to reform various city departments and force them to be accountable to the people of Philadelphia.  They are as culpable, as the L&I lords, for the needless suffering of current victims, as well as past and future victims.

 

The calls to give "thanks" are very premature.

We need to remember all of the other unnamed fire victims and animals, who have not been able to mobilize a movement that gets them "constituent services" close to election campaigns?
 

These politicians deserve thanks when they complete the FOLLOWUP which will bring accountability to departments like L&I, Streets, Recreation, etc. But I've had too many dealings with the Mayor's complaint office and councilmanic offices to believe that they will seek structural changes and accountability!  Been there; done that.  It won't happen.

Bureaucracies do the daily business which serves the needs of the people.  They need to work for all the people and not simply the people who get constituent services!  However, the government of Philadelphia is a system of fiefdoms and solving the underlying accountability problems would undercut the powerbrokers in these departments, and the power of those dispensing the famous and highly publisized constituent services.

 

One of the current victims wrote about growing tired of the backroom deals, deceptions and secrecy. But that is the system that will always develop from selective constituent services and bureaucratic fiefdoms.

Example:  On behalf of several residents, I begged for a meeting to discuss accountability when some of our neighbors were targeted for bogus trash tickets.  After a year of waiting in vain, someone posted on this list, that bogus tickets could be easily fixed by going to a council member.

 

We were not asking for a "fix" when we were deliberately ignored.  We were asking for "representatives" to make the city bureaucracy ACCOUNTABLE.  Neither the mayor's office of complaints, nor city council members were going to mess with the fiefdom system as long as individual constituent services protected everyone's power! 

 

That is, everyone's power except the power of ordinary citizens asking for their right to an accountable government.

 

Similarly, I collected thousands of signatures to save Clark Park over a five year period.  Every year, I faced the same outrageous conduct from the department of Recreation who reacted to the fiefdom known as the leaders of FOCP. That extraordinary waste of time was begging for fairness and constitutional rights.  I didn't want constituent services, twice a year, without any appropriate followup. 

 

I hope today's vicitms are not fooled by what appears to be extraordinary constituent services on their personal behalf.  What everyone needs is to see a detailed plan for an investigation, with the intention of remaking city departments accountable for all people.  Thanking these politicians when they are the source of the ongoing problems will not help us reform our government!

I applaud the work of the victims who decided to fight back! I condemn the mayors and councilmanic districts who have worked hard to maintain Philadelphia's government as a system of fiefdoms.

 

Best wishes,

Glenn

PS  Please pray for the brave people of Africa and the middle east fighting for the rights and principles we have largely forgotten. 
   

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Linda Lee
Sent: Feb 15, 2011 6:18 PM
To: pfsni
Cc: purple
Subject: [UC] Windermere Update [including missing pets update]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Eli R. Green" <genderwarr...@gmail.com>

Date: February 15, 2011 5:04:07 PM EST

To: UCNeighbors Neighbors <ucneighb...@googlegroups.com>

Subject: [UCNeighbors] Windermere Update

Reply-To: genderwarr...@gmail.com

Hi folks -

I was onsite today most of the day.   The owners and L&I worked out that demo crews could go in to get a very limited number of possessions out for the residents.   Residents were required to sign waivers saying that they had received all of their salvageable possessions in order to get those possessions back.   

Ultimately, City Kitties and PSPCA were unable to gain entry to the building for trapping the remaining cats, or have anyone else do it on our behalf.   We do not have reason to believe at this time that we will be able to, but are fully prepared should that change.   City Kitties and Project MEOW are working together to trap around the building with the hope that cats will come out during the demolition process and that we will be able to catch them.

A few things are clear - I spoke to the building owners personally, and they further confirmed that the responsibility for this disaster of animal rescue and possession retrieval lies entirely on L&I who completely barred the process.   The pressure that was put on the mayor's office yesterday by everyone who called was effective, in that it allowed people to get possessions back.  Animals are clearly not the city's priority, and there is a general lack of understanding of which agencies are responsible for animal rescue in these situations and how it works.  There was a statement issued via NBC that PSPCA would be involved for the animal piece, and then they were denied entry into the building  by L&I orders.

If you would like to see systematic change so that this never happens again, make sure to register your complaint with the Mayor's office.   If you are so inclined, please send words of thanks to George Bengal at the PSPCA, who came again today on last minute's notice to try again on behalf of the cats.  

Peace,
Eli

Eli R. Green
e...@citykitties.org
City Kitties Rescue, Inc.
www.CityKitties.org
Facebook:   City Kitties Rescue
Twitter:  @CityKitties

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