Watch Out Kingfish! Tony Pemberton is Right Behind You!
Tony "The Fixer" Pemberton, Jackie "The Man from Comanche" Massey, Nick "Kingfish" Gradisar, & Janet "Pueblo's Canadian Godmother" Wilson were all there. Charlotte Perez, Larry Atencio, Gary Lee Clark, Nick Ayers, Thomas Croshal, & Ted Lopez Jr were there too. 10 of the total 18 candidates I know about showed up. It was mentioned that there's now 19 candidates... 19 mfn candidates!?! & some fkn morons want to whittle all 19 down to only "Top 2". This is simple math folks. Will you get a better, more thoroughly discussed outcome, w/ 10 Instant Runoffs, or just 1 "Top 2" Runoff election, months later? We would get a better Mayor w/ deeper, broader, & wider base of support w/ IRV. We the People would be able to sift through 19 candidates w/ a ranking system better than eliminating 17 of the 19 candidates down to only 2 non-majority winners. IRV would dwindle 19 candidates down to 10 in the first round, AND THEN bumping the bottom loser per runoff election, having up to 10 runoffs!!! IRV is a million times more thorough & better process. It's actually a fair electoral system. No wonder the Duopoly is against it.
"We're working on scraping this city out of the arid plains. Let's make Pueblo a shining jewel on I-25." ~Nick Ayers
Neomi (some woman) & Ruth (of the local Women League of Voters) ran the show. Taylor Voss was not there.
Tony "The Fixer" Pemberton won the debate, hands down. Tony Pemberton was a new face from the April Mayor Forum, & he came across as intelligent, compassionate, a successful business man, a good & loving family man. Tony's a contender. Tony's a major player. Tony, Mr. Middle Class, seems nice, & professional, & he seems to embody the American Dream. "If there's no jobs, we can always create jobs for ourselves." Tony could be the good honest Jesus Christ Superman that Pueblo City has been clamoring for, desperately needing, for draining the swamp.
Tony Pemberton owns several small businesses, & he's ran several music festivals.
Brian Dorsey, Russell Martinez, Melissa Madrid, Nestor Machado, & Peter Vansalisbury didn't show up. Nor did Lori Winner, Steve Nawrocki, or Keith Rickwalt, all of whom are reportedly running for Pueblo's 1st Postmodern Mayor ever.
"I have a great vision for Pueblo. Why do we have Department heads if we don't use them?" ~Janet Wilson
Nick Gradisar is in favor of Pueblo City getting herself some Muny Electric. Municipalization is the same thing as nationalization, only for a city, not a whole state, or country, or nation. Nick Gradisar did not mention Muny Wifi, or Muny Automobiles, nor Muny Trash. On Muny Electric, Nick Gradisar wants to establish it just like the Water Board is established: popularly elected & completely Independent. Muny Electric is progressive as fuck.
"Where there's a will, there's a way." ~Teresa Gripshover
Unfortunately, Gradisar doesn't have a will to tackle the homelessness problem directly head-on. Nick Gradisar will continue the current sadistic heartless policy of not giving a goddamned fuck about the homeless. When asked how he would "alleviate" homelessness, Gradisar immediately shrugs his shoulders & then throws his hands up, dismissing the entire homelessness crisis, by saying "it can't be solved". Homelessness can be eradicated, but to think that it can't even be alleviated!?! That's crazy, ridiculous, irresponsible, & psychotic. 1,000 couch-surfing homeless kids are screaming out in pain. Sorry 1,000 homeless kids in Pueblo City. Gradisar, as the presumptive supreme Kingfish dictator, won't do a goddamned thang about homelessness. I wonder who cares less for the Homeless: Winner, or Gradisar, or Satan.
Nick Gradisar, interrupting the process & speaking out of turn, added that he supports the local Salvation Army on Praire & Thatcher, & supports organizations like that.
The Black Teddy Bear - Gary Lee Clark - said right before the May Mayor Forum that he was in favor of more homeless shelters. Gary Lee Clark talked about the plans they were doing in Colorado Springs. Gary Lee Clark, from Georgia, is also in favor of Instant Runoff Voting, to make sure that the soldiers out in the field get a chance to vote in their hometown's elections. Since only 2% of both Pueblo City & County are Black, I'm always happy to see any Black folks here. Gary Lee Clark also railed against the "good ol' boys", and Nepatism in general. Clark's #1 issue for Pueblo City is cleaning up the city's crime.
Janet Wilson, who wrote a book, launched a radio station, has Pueblo House in the East Side, started talking about her plans for the homeless, which was nice to hear. That's what I want to see... plans... there's many fkn ways to "alleviate homelessness", for those who give a goddamn.
Here's 5 suggestions to alleviate homelessness:
*start building tiny houses
*3d printing produces houses @$10,000 a pop
*there's 22 empty houses per homeless person; use those houses
*Gary Clark's Colorodo Springs plan
*use the El Pueblo Boys & Girls Ranch, only get non-violent & non-raping leadership there
Janet Wilson believes that by building stronger relationships, we build a stronger community. Janet Wilson has traveled thru 160 cities. Janet Wilson sees that there's many different factions of homeless; some are mentally challenged, others have a drug addiction problem. Janet Wilson acknowledges that there's lots of land & buildings standing around now, & if the homeless had access to resources, they could have a chance of pulling themselves out of their shelterless predicament. Janet Wilson points out that many homeless are veterans, & if we're going to turn them into contributing members of society, then we need to get to the root of the problem. Why are the homeless, homeless? By figuring out the reasons they're homeless, by getting to the root of the problem, we can actually begin to solve the problem. Janet Wilson suggests "harm reduction" as a possible new way forward.
"If we don't deal with the homelessness crisis, we will pay for it in other ways." ~Janet Wilson
Ted Lopez Jr is a member of the Pillars of Unity, which is a group that I like, but he's too quiet, doesn't seem to know what's going on. Lopez used to be a City Councilman, so he knows some things, but I didn't hear a consistent vision or message, nor a developed platform. Looking at his flyer, Ted Lopez is going to increase fascism by putting more pressure on Pueblo City's "property cleanup ordinances"; he's for the "off ramp" "study" (just the study, Ted!?!) for Black Hills franchise, & at least 1 good idea: address hurdles in home-building.
Nick Gradisar suggested that the 2 local hospitals Parkview & St. Mary Corwin combining, to make them a single healthcare-providing monolith, to help St. Mary Corwin & their problems. Nick Gradisar said that St. Mary Corwin is having their issues b/c "insurance companies dictate their policy". Gradisar helped to get the Bessemer Ditch here in Pueblo City.
Nick Gradisar also wants to create the "Office of the Ombudsman", to help folks navigate the local system.
Nick Gradisar listed one of his qualifications as being "born & raised here". Gradisar said that when he was younger, Pueblo City was the 2nd biggest city in Colorado. Now that Pueblo City is #9 most populous city in Colorado, he's worried that we won't get our "share from the state". Gradisar is insinuating that Pueblo City doesn't get the respect she deserves in Denver, and it's high time to start to bring those State, & probably Federal dollars, into Pueblo City.
Nick Gradisar annoyingly speaks Ivory Tower Ebonics Snobbery. Gradisar pronounces "Economics", not as "ekanomiks", but instead, like this: "EEEEKKKanomiks". EEkafknnomics!?! R u fkn kidn me!?! He also says "Either", not as "E-ther", but as "I-ther". I-fkn-ther!?! R u fkn kidn me!?!
Gradisar's fascism showed when it came to the War on Drugs. Gradisar hinted at being against the War on Drugs, by saying that the drug issue was a "public health issue", and that addiction shouldn't be treated as a crime, nor should the mentally ill be treated as criminals. When it came to getting a Charter Convention, Nick Gradisar didn't give a damn about Constitutional Law, but now, when it comes to drugs, well street drugs, not weed, alcohol, nor all the opiods setting on the shelves of the dozens of pharmacies here, he's all about the strong arm hammer of cops/Judges/county Jail system of government oppression. Nick Gradisar loves Nixon's 1971 War on Drugs, as does Gary Lee Clark, and they both seem to believe that most of the drugs in Pueblo has been gotten rid of. Gradisar thinks another 74 more years of the War on Drugs will finally nip this thing in the bud.
Gradisar couched his pro-War on Drugs as being opposed to only the violence - which if that's all he meant, he's right about - but I remain skeptikal. Gradisar is ready to work w/ the DA's office to shut down ... just the violence? Or a fruitless continuation of Richard Milhous Nixon's 1971 War on Drugs? Gradisar is pro-marijuana, & pro-"lots of state violence against those w/ hard drugs".
Gary Clark is for more shelters, and he's for IRV, but he's also pro-Nixon's 1971 War on Drugs, just like Nicholas Gradisar, the Kingfish, the Architect, the father who birthed out "The Office of Mayor" for Pueblo City, is. The new Mayor will drain the swamp of Pueblo City. The new Mayor will not be a Pueblo insider. Tony Pemberton looks like Pueblo City's new golden pony boy, the new man of the hour.
Is Tony Pemberton a progressive?
Jackie "The Oklahoma Cowboy from Comanche" Massey on the War on Drugs: "Overrated." What does Pemberton think of more homeless shelters? The War on Drugs? Protecting Marijuana Legalization?
When Nick Gradisar was younger, he worked at the warehouse at Sears. Nick Gradisar came back to Pueblo in 1978. Gradisar has negotiated multimillion dollar contracts & union talks. Nick touts his skills as being uniquely qualified to be the HQBIC. "I love my hometown. I want to see it thrive & flourish."
Nick bragged about The Bessemer Ditch, and that Pueblo City has the best goddamned water supply in all of Kolorado (meaning "Red" in Spanish).
Tony Pemberton said that he believes in having "30 day brainstorms" to solve issues needing solving. Pemberton's fan club cheered all of his stupid answers, which is smart politics, but it's not an efficient forum.
Pemberton slammed Pueblo City for their treatment of small businesses. "You cannot keep a small business alive in Pueblo as it is." Thomas Croshal agrees w/ Pemberton that small biz's can't survive in Pueblo City.
Tony Pemberton, the Fixer, has the greatest wife in the gd'd world. Really? Pemberton has traveled to all 50 States in the Union, plus many other countries in the world. Tony Pemberton sold restaurants in Minnesota, & out of all of the cities in the world Pemberton knows, has seen w/ thine own eyes, Tony chose to live in Pueblo City, b/c we're just that dangum special. "I believe Pueblo is fantastic. It's going to grow substantially. Great growth is on its way." Pemberton bought 4 boarded up houses here in Pueblo City, & helped to change that small part of the neighborhood.
Pemberton brought his 4 children, his 7 grandchildren here to Pueblo City, and they've all started businesses, so Pemberton takes credit for all of their work. He bought a Recycling company? Pemberton is a "man of action". He's going to take care of crime, & be transparent. "Get ready for growth Pueblo."
There was a hush-shush in the crowd when Gary Lee Clark mentioned rape. Clark said that rapes were happening in Pueblo City as part of the decades-long crime spree here, which he's right about. Being opposed to rape shouldn't be met w/ a hush-shush over the crowd. Clark is anti-rape, & that's a good thing.
Jackie Massey quoted Hank Hill, in his push for VoTech, saying that "shop is the foundation for all learning". Massey said that welding is a good trade. Speaking on being an outsider, Massey said it's a good thing that he doesn't have any ties to the local business or political establishment. "I want to do what's good for the city." Massey big thing is that he's for workforce development. Get the workers educated & developed, and watch as the corporations come flooding into Pueblo City.
As of 2010, Pueblo City boasted of a population of 107,000 (approx.). Of the 107,000, 76% were white, & 44% were Hispanic, & 2% were Black. Native Americans make up 2% of Pueblo City; 1% Asian, 15% other, 4% mixed, 5% Irish, 8% Italian, & 10% German. There's more Native Americans than Black folks in Pueblo City. There's more Irish, Italians, & Germans than Black folks too.
The median income of Pueblo City is $30,000. The median age of Pueblo City is 36 years of age. There's 100 females to 94 males here, and in terms of poverty, 18% of the total population is in poverty. 24% of Pueblo City's children are in poverty too.
Pueblo County boasts of a 159,000 population. 107,000 (approx.) live in the City & the County, but 42,000 (approx.) folks live in Pueblo County, not Pueblo City.
The median age of Pueblo County is 37. The median income is $41,000, $11,000 more than the City. Of the 159,000, 80% are white, 2% Black, & 38% Hispanic. 2% is native American, 13% other, 4% mixed, 7% Irish, 7% English, 9% Italian, & 12% German.
20% of Pueblo County's children are poor (24% for the City). 15% of Pueblo County's general population is poor (18% for the City).
The County & the City's demographics are very similar. 76% - 80% white, 38% - 44% Hispanic, & 2% Black. It seems as tho there's folks who identify as both "white" & "Hispanic".
1 outta 5 kids in Pueblo County are poor where as 1 outta 4 kids in Pueblo City are poor.
3 outta 20 Pueblo Countians are poor, compared to 4 outta 20 Pueblo Citians.
"Why do we have the baseball diamond?", when there's drug addicts, police, homelessness issues... Janet Wilson, runs a nonprofit, has finance background. "Pueblo is a bit off the tracks." Janet touts her experience as a financial planner, & how Pueblo City's discretionary versus nondiscretionary spending is wack.
Charlotte Perez has been appointed to the Human Relations Commission Board.
Steve Nawrocki & Jackie Massey & Gary Lee Clark are all pro-IRV/RCV/Preferential Choice Voting. Nick Gradisar, however, wants a French election.
Larry Atencio denied that City Council voted to break their Black Hills contract in 2020. "We voted to research the options to break the Black Hills contract in 2020." Municipalization is expensive & time consuming, so while Larry Atencio is clearly for sticking by Black Hills, City Council is going to put the "break the Black Hills contract in 2020" on the ballot. Atencio says that Muni-ization isn't the only solution to our utility bills. Atencio encourages everybody to bring forth their many ideas & then to go forward w/ that. Thomas Croshal bragged about the lower rates that Fort Collins & Colorado Springs had b/c they have municipal electric. Thomas Croshal warns that "we must be careful", but he is in favor of Pueblo City getting herself her own lil Muny Electric.
Just like Nick Gradisar, Nick Ayers was born & raised here (in the County or City?). Nick Ayers are born at the struggling St. Mary Corwin hospital. Ayers says that Pueblo City should be doing better, considering the natural amenities her location offers. Pueblo can brag about their Airport, their Railroads, I-25, possible hyperloops coming in... "Pueblo should be doing better." Ayers believes that the Mayor of Pueblo should be a kind of CEO entrepenuer.
Nick Ayers is okay with breaking the Black Hills contract. $500 million is what Atencio said would be the cost of the municipalization of electricity. "In short, I'm for the Pueblo Utility Commission".
xxx
"We need to clean up our house first." ~Janet Wilson
Janet Wilson: "I'm not in favor of [the baseball field]. We've spent lots of money on the Convention Center..." Wilson likened the present situation in Pueblo City to having some guest come over to your house, and there's heroin needles all over the place, & prostitutes, and thieves, and trash... Wilson asks: "Is your guest going to come back?"
"...there's bullying in school..." ... "$6200/month" ... "we spend so much money for consultants, we might as well let the consultants be the politicians."
"I'm sorry, no baseball here." ~Janet Wilson
While the question asked about "Downtown development", the baseball/softball field was implicated, tho Lopez & Clark didn't seem to realize that. Ted Lopez wanted more downtown development, & so did Gary Clark.
Tony Pemberton hit it out of the goddamned park w/ his answer for the question: "What resources are needed for meth & heroin addicts?" Pemberton said there's needles everywhere, at Riverwalk, in the school yards, in the parks, in people's houses, etc. Pemberton did not have a solution, but he did offer a novel idea: Love. Tony Pemberton said that we shouldn't run people out of their own neighborhoods, but to actual give a damn, to start to give a goddamned fuck about one another. "Communities need to get closer & tighter." Pemberton suggested that we need to find out what is going on in their households, b/c w/o knowing what's going on, the root of the problem can't be fixed.
Tony Pemberton encourages us all to "live dangerously". Since this is a community problem, then it will take the community to fix it. We need to get into each other's lives. Find out what our neighbors are up to. Not to snoop, not to pry, but to actually give a damn, to help one another.
"We need to know each other & care." ~Tony Pemberton
Jackie Massey asks us, "How did we get here? 1 way is thru prescription pills." Others for recreation, others for "wrong situation"... we live in a unique place, marijuana will help. We need more mental health clinics. "I still clean up needles in my yard, in my house, & in my alley". We need to care about people. More options, more opportunities, ... I've lost friends & relatives to this problem. It's a mental health issue.
Thomas Croshal suggested that pot is a gateway drug. ... "started smoking marijuana & then one thing led to another... " Croshal then suggested to have a 1-Stop Shop, just 1 big ol' hole, to throw all of those folks deemed "riffraff" into.
A citizen of Pueblo told me at the May Mayor Forum that he was opposed to the War on Drugs too. He said, "It's not a gateway drug, but a gateway situation."
Janet Wilson didn't like that we have to pay for the training of new cop hires. She suggests that we offer housing instead of training. By offering housing instead, we will get the police we hire to work for us immediately, on Day 1.
"As a Pueblo native whose never seen a prosperous Pueblo..." ~Ayers, b/c apparently back in Pueblo's good ol' days, everybody was rich
When Ruth asked the unimpressive Thomas Croshal what experience he had in running a city w/ 700 employees, 22 Departments (22!?!), & 3 labor unions, Croshal said in a rare moment of political candor "None." Croshal insisted that the Mayor won't be a dictator, which he's wrong about. Once the Mayor has the support of the majority of the electorate, the Mayor will have virtually unlimited reign over everybody & everything in the City limits. 107,000 of the 159,000 Pueblo County residents will be forced to pay homage by bowing down to the Supreme Mayor Dictator Queen God Fuhrer, & kissing their ring.
Croshal said that Pueblo being a dangerous place is "fake news", it's not. There's thieves around. There's poverty. There's gangsters & drug dealers. Criminals are everywhere. Businesses have left because of the crime. There's corruption in the police force & the political establishment, and there's wanton fascism all over the place. Many a cars are being jacked. Mexican cartels are planting grows in the County. Crime is a problem. But so is the War on Drugs. So is poverty. So is homelessness.
Charlotte Perez is very against the new jail... is there one yet? there was talk, not sure if it's going to go onto the ballot.
The Oklahoma Cowboy from Comanche - Jackie Massey - has got a brand newborn (whose name means "blossoming flower"), & a super nice wife, who proves to the world that somebody can tolerate that Jackie Massey. Jackie Massey is in favor of Ted Freeman's repurposing PEDCO's 1/2 cent sales tax. On Healthcare, Massey said that in Pueblo, "80% healthcare is indigent care." Jackie then pointed out the poverty, the food deserts, unemployment, people not having jobs... VoTech is Jackie Massey's baby, and he's right about VoTech, it's just hard to get excited about. That's like getting excited about Infrastructure, which I do like. I like Vocational Education! Yeah! I would love to learn welding, & other trades.
Jackie Massey wants to develop a strong & educated local labor here, to build up that talented & educated workforce, for ourselves, but also for corporations to have a huge pool of talent to choose from.
A robust middle class is also needed for a healthy economy. Not job creators. A robust middle class.
ol' Larry (Atencio) has lived in Pueblo his entire life, except for 5 years, the best years of his life. Atencio graduated from East HS, & he got an Industrial Engineering undergraduate degree. As a councilman, ol' Larry has brought in $10 million projects to Pueblo City. ol' Larry is on a roundtable group that want a renewable energy standard; he's on a Fountain Creek board, a pueblo energy future group, a Colorado municipal league board, ol' Larry represents Pueblo in many many ways, & he'll keep on represent'n Pueblo City, cuz that's what he do.
While the establishment will split the vote in some fashion, my sense is that this race is b/t the politically-seasoned Larry Atencio & the "insider-outsider" Gradisar. As a Water Board member, Gradisar got to control the water, which is vital, but it's not the same as running 700 employees, 3 unions, 22 departments, with $100 million budget, which is what Pueblo City is made-up of.
Gradisar & Atencio are the current Top 2.
ol' Larry toots his own horn by bragging about "The Passion of Larry Atencio". Call Larry Atencio, he dares you. He'll give a damn. He'll be on the phone w/ whoever needs to hear the citizen gripe, & make that person do something about it. "Give me a call & ask me to do something & w/ the next 10 minutes, I'm working on it." He says start a group for the opoid problem, or a group dealing w/ dilapidated houses... ol' Larry doesn't shy away from the work. ol' Larry works 7 days a week.
"I don't want a Mayor's mother being a Parks & Rec director." ~Nick Ayers
Atencio is in favor of the Civil Service Commission, & their Independence, & their process. "I like the Civil Service Commission... if the Mayor comes in, then the nepotism would happen." The Civil Service Commission gives the Chief of Police or Fire Chief or Sam Azad & City Council a list of their Top 3, Top 5, or Top 10 candidates in terms of most qualified, and City Council picks from that? "Don't get rid of the Civil Service Commission. Without the Civil Service Commission, the Mayor will only hire relatives & friends."
Gary Lee Clark liked the idea of having a Citizen Hotline.
The Kingfish wants "The Office of Ombudsman" for Pueblo City, to help him rule over Pueblo City in peace, w/o having to show the damn peasants how to navigate thru this bureaucratic mess.
Of the 10 of the 18 (or 19) candidates, for now, not a single one of them has issued a War on Poverty, for the "1 out of 4" of Pueblo's kids (25%), or the 18% of the general population, or the approx 1 outta 5 impoverished Puebloan City Slickers. If you went walking down a street in Pueblo, and you passed by 100 kids, 25 of them have been given a poverty death sentence. If you passed by 100 Puebloan adults, 18 of them would be poor. That's a huge faction. Nobody outright opposed the War on Drugs. Several hinted at it, but none opposed. Nobody said a word about Solar Trees. Bezos & Musk won't be impressed w/ the millions of goathead thorns popping bike tires all over Pueblo City, or pissing peaceful folks "getting stuck w/ a secret goathead hiding in the living room carpet" off. Nothing was said about the El Pueblo Boys & Girls Ranch. Nobody talked about Goatheads. Nobody talked about Waste-2-Electricity programs. Nobody said a word about Citizen Complaint Boards, nor about putting any checks on the Police.
If one of these bastards are going to be our brand spanking new Postmodern Mayor, judging by this crop of candidates, Pueblo City is fucked.
"We're working on scraping this city out of the arid plains. Let's make Pueblo a shining jewel on I-25." ~Nick Ayers
Neomi (some woman) & Ruth (of the local Women League of Voters) ran the show. Taylor Voss was not there.
Tony "The Fixer" Pemberton won the debate, hands down. Tony Pemberton was a new face from the April Mayor Forum, & he came across as intelligent, compassionate, a successful business man, a good & loving family man. Tony's a contender. Tony's a major player. Tony, Mr. Middle Class, seems nice, & professional, & he seems to embody the American Dream. "If there's no jobs, we can always create jobs for ourselves." Tony could be the good honest Jesus Christ Superman that Pueblo City has been clamoring for, desperately needing, for draining the swamp.
Tony Pemberton owns several small businesses, & he's ran several music festivals.
Brian Dorsey, Russell Martinez, Melissa Madrid, Nestor Machado, & Peter Vansalisbury didn't show up. Nor did Lori Winner, Steve Nawrocki, or Keith Rickwalt, all of whom are reportedly running for Pueblo's 1st Postmodern Mayor ever.
"I have a great vision for Pueblo. Why do we have Department heads if we don't use them?" ~Janet Wilson
Nick Gradisar is in favor of Pueblo City getting herself some Muny Electric. Municipalization is the same thing as nationalization, only for a city, not a whole state, or country, or nation. Nick Gradisar did not mention Muny Wifi, or Muny Automobiles, nor Muny Trash. On Muny Electric, Nick Gradisar wants to establish it just like the Water Board is established: popularly elected & completely Independent. Muny Electric is progressive as fuck.
"Where there's a will, there's a way." ~Teresa Gripshover
Unfortunately, Gradisar doesn't have a will to tackle the homelessness problem directly head-on. Nick Gradisar will continue the current sadistic heartless policy of not giving a goddamned fuck about the homeless. When asked how he would "alleviate" homelessness, Gradisar immediately shrugs his shoulders & then throws his hands up, dismissing the entire homelessness crisis, by saying "it can't be solved". Homelessness can be eradicated, but to think that it can't even be alleviated!?! That's crazy, ridiculous, irresponsible, & psychotic. 1,000 couch-surfing homeless kids are screaming out in pain. Sorry 1,000 homeless kids in Pueblo City. Gradisar, as the presumptive supreme Kingfish dictator, won't do a goddamned thang about homelessness. I wonder who cares less for the Homeless: Winner, or Gradisar, or Satan.
Nick Gradisar, interrupting the process & speaking out of turn, added that he supports the local Salvation Army on Praire & Thatcher, & supports organizations like that.
The Black Teddy Bear - Gary Lee Clark - said right before the May Mayor Forum that he was in favor of more homeless shelters. Gary Lee Clark talked about the plans they were doing in Colorado Springs. Gary Lee Clark, from Georgia, is also in favor of Instant Runoff Voting, to make sure that the soldiers out in the field get a chance to vote in their hometown's elections. Since only 2% of both Pueblo City & County are Black, I'm always happy to see any Black folks here. Gary Lee Clark also railed against the "good ol' boys", and Nepatism in general. Clark's #1 issue for Pueblo City is cleaning up the city's crime.
Janet Wilson, who wrote a book, launched a radio station, has Pueblo House in the East Side, started talking about her plans for the homeless, which was nice to hear. That's what I want to see... plans... there's many fkn ways to "alleviate homelessness", for those who give a goddamn.
Here's 5 suggestions to alleviate homelessness:
*start building tiny houses
*3d printing produces houses @$10,000 a pop
*there's 22 empty houses per homeless person; use those houses
*Gary Clark's Colorodo Springs plan
*use the El Pueblo Boys & Girls Ranch, only get non-violent & non-raping leadership there
Janet Wilson believes that by building stronger relationships, we build a stronger community. Janet Wilson has traveled thru 160 cities. Janet Wilson sees that there's many different factions of homeless; some are mentally challenged, others have a drug addiction problem. Janet Wilson acknowledges that there's lots of land & buildings standing around now, & if the homeless had access to resources, they could have a chance of pulling themselves out of their shelterless predicament. Janet Wilson points out that many homeless are veterans, & if we're going to turn them into contributing members of society, then we need to get to the root of the problem. Why are the homeless, homeless? By figuring out the reasons they're homeless, by getting to the root of the problem, we can actually begin to solve the problem. Janet Wilson suggests "harm reduction" as a possible new way forward.
"If we don't deal with the homelessness crisis, we will pay for it in other ways." ~Janet Wilson
Ted Lopez Jr is a member of the Pillars of Unity, which is a group that I like, but he's too quiet, doesn't seem to know what's going on. Lopez used to be a City Councilman, so he knows some things, but I didn't hear a consistent vision or message, nor a developed platform. Looking at his flyer, Ted Lopez is going to increase fascism by putting more pressure on Pueblo City's "property cleanup ordinances"; he's for the "off ramp" "study" (just the study, Ted!?!) for Black Hills franchise, & at least 1 good idea: address hurdles in home-building.
Nick Gradisar suggested that the 2 local hospitals Parkview & St. Mary Corwin combining, to make them a single healthcare-providing monolith, to help St. Mary Corwin & their problems. Nick Gradisar said that St. Mary Corwin is having their issues b/c "insurance companies dictate their policy". Gradisar helped to get the Bessemer Ditch here in Pueblo City.
Nick Gradisar also wants to create the "Office of the Ombudsman", to help folks navigate the local system.
Nick Gradisar listed one of his qualifications as being "born & raised here". Gradisar said that when he was younger, Pueblo City was the 2nd biggest city in Colorado. Now that Pueblo City is #9 most populous city in Colorado, he's worried that we won't get our "share from the state". Gradisar is insinuating that Pueblo City doesn't get the respect she deserves in Denver, and it's high time to start to bring those State, & probably Federal dollars, into Pueblo City.
Nick Gradisar annoyingly speaks Ivory Tower Ebonics Snobbery. Gradisar pronounces "Economics", not as "ekanomiks", but instead, like this: "EEEEKKKanomiks". EEkafknnomics!?! R u fkn kidn me!?! He also says "Either", not as "E-ther", but as "I-ther". I-fkn-ther!?! R u fkn kidn me!?!
Gradisar's fascism showed when it came to the War on Drugs. Gradisar hinted at being against the War on Drugs, by saying that the drug issue was a "public health issue", and that addiction shouldn't be treated as a crime, nor should the mentally ill be treated as criminals. When it came to getting a Charter Convention, Nick Gradisar didn't give a damn about Constitutional Law, but now, when it comes to drugs, well street drugs, not weed, alcohol, nor all the opiods setting on the shelves of the dozens of pharmacies here, he's all about the strong arm hammer of cops/Judges/county Jail system of government oppression. Nick Gradisar loves Nixon's 1971 War on Drugs, as does Gary Lee Clark, and they both seem to believe that most of the drugs in Pueblo has been gotten rid of. Gradisar thinks another 74 more years of the War on Drugs will finally nip this thing in the bud.
Gradisar couched his pro-War on Drugs as being opposed to only the violence - which if that's all he meant, he's right about - but I remain skeptikal. Gradisar is ready to work w/ the DA's office to shut down ... just the violence? Or a fruitless continuation of Richard Milhous Nixon's 1971 War on Drugs? Gradisar is pro-marijuana, & pro-"lots of state violence against those w/ hard drugs".
Gary Clark is for more shelters, and he's for IRV, but he's also pro-Nixon's 1971 War on Drugs, just like Nicholas Gradisar, the Kingfish, the Architect, the father who birthed out "The Office of Mayor" for Pueblo City, is. The new Mayor will drain the swamp of Pueblo City. The new Mayor will not be a Pueblo insider. Tony Pemberton looks like Pueblo City's new golden pony boy, the new man of the hour.
Is Tony Pemberton a progressive?
Jackie "The Oklahoma Cowboy from Comanche" Massey on the War on Drugs: "Overrated." What does Pemberton think of more homeless shelters? The War on Drugs? Protecting Marijuana Legalization?
When Nick Gradisar was younger, he worked at the warehouse at Sears. Nick Gradisar came back to Pueblo in 1978. Gradisar has negotiated multimillion dollar contracts & union talks. Nick touts his skills as being uniquely qualified to be the HQBIC. "I love my hometown. I want to see it thrive & flourish."
Nick bragged about The Bessemer Ditch, and that Pueblo City has the best goddamned water supply in all of Kolorado (meaning "Red" in Spanish).
Tony Pemberton said that he believes in having "30 day brainstorms" to solve issues needing solving. Pemberton's fan club cheered all of his stupid answers, which is smart politics, but it's not an efficient forum.
Pemberton slammed Pueblo City for their treatment of small businesses. "You cannot keep a small business alive in Pueblo as it is." Thomas Croshal agrees w/ Pemberton that small biz's can't survive in Pueblo City.
Tony Pemberton, the Fixer, has the greatest wife in the gd'd world. Really? Pemberton has traveled to all 50 States in the Union, plus many other countries in the world. Tony Pemberton sold restaurants in Minnesota, & out of all of the cities in the world Pemberton knows, has seen w/ thine own eyes, Tony chose to live in Pueblo City, b/c we're just that dangum special. "I believe Pueblo is fantastic. It's going to grow substantially. Great growth is on its way." Pemberton bought 4 boarded up houses here in Pueblo City, & helped to change that small part of the neighborhood.
Pemberton brought his 4 children, his 7 grandchildren here to Pueblo City, and they've all started businesses, so Pemberton takes credit for all of their work. He bought a Recycling company? Pemberton is a "man of action". He's going to take care of crime, & be transparent. "Get ready for growth Pueblo."
There was a hush-shush in the crowd when Gary Lee Clark mentioned rape. Clark said that rapes were happening in Pueblo City as part of the decades-long crime spree here, which he's right about. Being opposed to rape shouldn't be met w/ a hush-shush over the crowd. Clark is anti-rape, & that's a good thing.
Jackie Massey quoted Hank Hill, in his push for VoTech, saying that "shop is the foundation for all learning". Massey said that welding is a good trade. Speaking on being an outsider, Massey said it's a good thing that he doesn't have any ties to the local business or political establishment. "I want to do what's good for the city." Massey big thing is that he's for workforce development. Get the workers educated & developed, and watch as the corporations come flooding into Pueblo City.
As of 2010, Pueblo City boasted of a population of 107,000 (approx.). Of the 107,000, 76% were white, & 44% were Hispanic, & 2% were Black. Native Americans make up 2% of Pueblo City; 1% Asian, 15% other, 4% mixed, 5% Irish, 8% Italian, & 10% German. There's more Native Americans than Black folks in Pueblo City. There's more Irish, Italians, & Germans than Black folks too.
The median income of Pueblo City is $30,000. The median age of Pueblo City is 36 years of age. There's 100 females to 94 males here, and in terms of poverty, 18% of the total population is in poverty. 24% of Pueblo City's children are in poverty too.
Pueblo County boasts of a 159,000 population. 107,000 (approx.) live in the City & the County, but 42,000 (approx.) folks live in Pueblo County, not Pueblo City.
The median age of Pueblo County is 37. The median income is $41,000, $11,000 more than the City. Of the 159,000, 80% are white, 2% Black, & 38% Hispanic. 2% is native American, 13% other, 4% mixed, 7% Irish, 7% English, 9% Italian, & 12% German.
20% of Pueblo County's children are poor (24% for the City). 15% of Pueblo County's general population is poor (18% for the City).
The County & the City's demographics are very similar. 76% - 80% white, 38% - 44% Hispanic, & 2% Black. It seems as tho there's folks who identify as both "white" & "Hispanic".
1 outta 5 kids in Pueblo County are poor where as 1 outta 4 kids in Pueblo City are poor.
3 outta 20 Pueblo Countians are poor, compared to 4 outta 20 Pueblo Citians.
"Why do we have the baseball diamond?", when there's drug addicts, police, homelessness issues... Janet Wilson, runs a nonprofit, has finance background. "Pueblo is a bit off the tracks." Janet touts her experience as a financial planner, & how Pueblo City's discretionary versus nondiscretionary spending is wack.
Charlotte Perez has been appointed to the Human Relations Commission Board.
Steve Nawrocki & Jackie Massey & Gary Lee Clark are all pro-IRV/RCV/Preferential Choice Voting. Nick Gradisar, however, wants a French election.
Larry Atencio denied that City Council voted to break their Black Hills contract in 2020. "We voted to research the options to break the Black Hills contract in 2020." Municipalization is expensive & time consuming, so while Larry Atencio is clearly for sticking by Black Hills, City Council is going to put the "break the Black Hills contract in 2020" on the ballot. Atencio says that Muni-ization isn't the only solution to our utility bills. Atencio encourages everybody to bring forth their many ideas & then to go forward w/ that. Thomas Croshal bragged about the lower rates that Fort Collins & Colorado Springs had b/c they have municipal electric. Thomas Croshal warns that "we must be careful", but he is in favor of Pueblo City getting herself her own lil Muny Electric.
Just like Nick Gradisar, Nick Ayers was born & raised here (in the County or City?). Nick Ayers are born at the struggling St. Mary Corwin hospital. Ayers says that Pueblo City should be doing better, considering the natural amenities her location offers. Pueblo can brag about their Airport, their Railroads, I-25, possible hyperloops coming in... "Pueblo should be doing better." Ayers believes that the Mayor of Pueblo should be a kind of CEO entrepenuer.
Nick Ayers is okay with breaking the Black Hills contract. $500 million is what Atencio said would be the cost of the municipalization of electricity. "In short, I'm for the Pueblo Utility Commission".
xxx
"We need to clean up our house first." ~Janet Wilson
Janet Wilson: "I'm not in favor of [the baseball field]. We've spent lots of money on the Convention Center..." Wilson likened the present situation in Pueblo City to having some guest come over to your house, and there's heroin needles all over the place, & prostitutes, and thieves, and trash... Wilson asks: "Is your guest going to come back?"
"...there's bullying in school..." ... "$6200/month" ... "we spend so much money for consultants, we might as well let the consultants be the politicians."
"I'm sorry, no baseball here." ~Janet Wilson
While the question asked about "Downtown development", the baseball/softball field was implicated, tho Lopez & Clark didn't seem to realize that. Ted Lopez wanted more downtown development, & so did Gary Clark.
Tony Pemberton hit it out of the goddamned park w/ his answer for the question: "What resources are needed for meth & heroin addicts?" Pemberton said there's needles everywhere, at Riverwalk, in the school yards, in the parks, in people's houses, etc. Pemberton did not have a solution, but he did offer a novel idea: Love. Tony Pemberton said that we shouldn't run people out of their own neighborhoods, but to actual give a damn, to start to give a goddamned fuck about one another. "Communities need to get closer & tighter." Pemberton suggested that we need to find out what is going on in their households, b/c w/o knowing what's going on, the root of the problem can't be fixed.
Tony Pemberton encourages us all to "live dangerously". Since this is a community problem, then it will take the community to fix it. We need to get into each other's lives. Find out what our neighbors are up to. Not to snoop, not to pry, but to actually give a damn, to help one another.
Jackie Massey asks us, "How did we get here? 1 way is thru prescription pills." Others for recreation, others for "wrong situation"... we live in a unique place, marijuana will help. We need more mental health clinics. "I still clean up needles in my yard, in my house, & in my alley". We need to care about people. More options, more opportunities, ... I've lost friends & relatives to this problem. It's a mental health issue.
Thomas Croshal suggested that pot is a gateway drug. ... "started smoking marijuana & then one thing led to another... " Croshal then suggested to have a 1-Stop Shop, just 1 big ol' hole, to throw all of those folks deemed "riffraff" into.
A citizen of Pueblo told me at the May Mayor Forum that he was opposed to the War on Drugs too. He said, "It's not a gateway drug, but a gateway situation."
Janet Wilson didn't like that we have to pay for the training of new cop hires. She suggests that we offer housing instead of training. By offering housing instead, we will get the police we hire to work for us immediately, on Day 1.
"As a Pueblo native whose never seen a prosperous Pueblo..." ~Ayers, b/c apparently back in Pueblo's good ol' days, everybody was rich
When Ruth asked the unimpressive Thomas Croshal what experience he had in running a city w/ 700 employees, 22 Departments (22!?!), & 3 labor unions, Croshal said in a rare moment of political candor "None." Croshal insisted that the Mayor won't be a dictator, which he's wrong about. Once the Mayor has the support of the majority of the electorate, the Mayor will have virtually unlimited reign over everybody & everything in the City limits. 107,000 of the 159,000 Pueblo County residents will be forced to pay homage by bowing down to the Supreme Mayor Dictator Queen God Fuhrer, & kissing their ring.
Croshal said that Pueblo being a dangerous place is "fake news", it's not. There's thieves around. There's poverty. There's gangsters & drug dealers. Criminals are everywhere. Businesses have left because of the crime. There's corruption in the police force & the political establishment, and there's wanton fascism all over the place. Many a cars are being jacked. Mexican cartels are planting grows in the County. Crime is a problem. But so is the War on Drugs. So is poverty. So is homelessness.
Charlotte Perez is very against the new jail... is there one yet? there was talk, not sure if it's going to go onto the ballot.
The Oklahoma Cowboy from Comanche - Jackie Massey - has got a brand newborn (whose name means "blossoming flower"), & a super nice wife, who proves to the world that somebody can tolerate that Jackie Massey. Jackie Massey is in favor of Ted Freeman's repurposing PEDCO's 1/2 cent sales tax. On Healthcare, Massey said that in Pueblo, "80% healthcare is indigent care." Jackie then pointed out the poverty, the food deserts, unemployment, people not having jobs... VoTech is Jackie Massey's baby, and he's right about VoTech, it's just hard to get excited about. That's like getting excited about Infrastructure, which I do like. I like Vocational Education! Yeah! I would love to learn welding, & other trades.
Jackie Massey wants to develop a strong & educated local labor here, to build up that talented & educated workforce, for ourselves, but also for corporations to have a huge pool of talent to choose from.
A robust middle class is also needed for a healthy economy. Not job creators. A robust middle class.
ol' Larry (Atencio) has lived in Pueblo his entire life, except for 5 years, the best years of his life. Atencio graduated from East HS, & he got an Industrial Engineering undergraduate degree. As a councilman, ol' Larry has brought in $10 million projects to Pueblo City. ol' Larry is on a roundtable group that want a renewable energy standard; he's on a Fountain Creek board, a pueblo energy future group, a Colorado municipal league board, ol' Larry represents Pueblo in many many ways, & he'll keep on represent'n Pueblo City, cuz that's what he do.
While the establishment will split the vote in some fashion, my sense is that this race is b/t the politically-seasoned Larry Atencio & the "insider-outsider" Gradisar. As a Water Board member, Gradisar got to control the water, which is vital, but it's not the same as running 700 employees, 3 unions, 22 departments, with $100 million budget, which is what Pueblo City is made-up of.
Gradisar & Atencio are the current Top 2.
ol' Larry toots his own horn by bragging about "The Passion of Larry Atencio". Call Larry Atencio, he dares you. He'll give a damn. He'll be on the phone w/ whoever needs to hear the citizen gripe, & make that person do something about it. "Give me a call & ask me to do something & w/ the next 10 minutes, I'm working on it." He says start a group for the opoid problem, or a group dealing w/ dilapidated houses... ol' Larry doesn't shy away from the work. ol' Larry works 7 days a week.
"I don't want a Mayor's mother being a Parks & Rec director." ~Nick Ayers
Atencio is in favor of the Civil Service Commission, & their Independence, & their process. "I like the Civil Service Commission... if the Mayor comes in, then the nepotism would happen." The Civil Service Commission gives the Chief of Police or Fire Chief or Sam Azad & City Council a list of their Top 3, Top 5, or Top 10 candidates in terms of most qualified, and City Council picks from that? "Don't get rid of the Civil Service Commission. Without the Civil Service Commission, the Mayor will only hire relatives & friends."
Gary Lee Clark liked the idea of having a Citizen Hotline.
The Kingfish wants "The Office of Ombudsman" for Pueblo City, to help him rule over Pueblo City in peace, w/o having to show the damn peasants how to navigate thru this bureaucratic mess.
Of the 10 of the 18 (or 19) candidates, for now, not a single one of them has issued a War on Poverty, for the "1 out of 4" of Pueblo's kids (25%), or the 18% of the general population, or the approx 1 outta 5 impoverished Puebloan City Slickers. If you went walking down a street in Pueblo, and you passed by 100 kids, 25 of them have been given a poverty death sentence. If you passed by 100 Puebloan adults, 18 of them would be poor. That's a huge faction. Nobody outright opposed the War on Drugs. Several hinted at it, but none opposed. Nobody said a word about Solar Trees. Bezos & Musk won't be impressed w/ the millions of goathead thorns popping bike tires all over Pueblo City, or pissing peaceful folks "getting stuck w/ a secret goathead hiding in the living room carpet" off. Nothing was said about the El Pueblo Boys & Girls Ranch. Nobody talked about Goatheads. Nobody talked about Waste-2-Electricity programs. Nobody said a word about Citizen Complaint Boards, nor about putting any checks on the Police.
If one of these bastards are going to be our brand spanking new Postmodern Mayor, judging by this crop of candidates, Pueblo City is fucked.
Comments
Post a Comment