Boise Guardian » News Media

Shameless Panhandling For GUARDIAN

dave — Tue, 22 May 2012 13:59:13 +0000

Mr. Guardian:
I have once again renewed my annual voluntary subscription (donation) to the Boise Guardian. I appreciate your efforts, while I do not have the time to do much research for you, I can support your efforts through my contribution and encourage others to do the same. Please readers of the Guardian support the great thing we call BG not only through your comments but also through a donation, doing so shows the BG our true commitment to supporting holding government accountable and supporting those who step out on a limb on our behalf. Thank you…JJ

For those so inclined, push the green DONATE button on our PayPal account. The GUARDIAN is NOT a tax deductible organization. We don’t run any advertising and the donations help defray costs for things like parking, mileage, copies, website fees, public records requests, etc. We offer a “thanks” to JJ for his unsolicited endorsement.

A Dirty Little Boise Secret?

dave — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:17:37 +0000

A reader sent us a story he found in a national magazine about Boise. “We didn’t read it ma, the big boys showed it to us.”

We haven’t had a press release from city hall– or even heard of one being sent to the legacy media–about another “National Magazine Poll,” but MEN’S HEALTH rated Boise just one slot off the TOP TEN rank for smuttiest cities in the USA.

If they get us up there with “most livable” and “bike friendly,” there may be some socially redeeming value.

Coppers Cooperate To Buy Bike Parts

dave — Tue, 08 May 2012 17:46:02 +0000

When the GUARDIAN made a call Tuesday urging coppers to get together with a bike mechanic and fix the special three wheeler which was stolen and recovered in pieces, they were ahead of the curve.

We talked to the union prez who reports the copper on the case had already contacted the manufacturer in England as well as a Boise Bike mechanic. Both are donating their services and parts to “gitterdone.”

It all started when a bad guy stole an expensive trike from a special needs victim. The trike was stolen Sunday afternoon from in front of the man’s residence. It was his only means of transportation. It was recovered at two locations Monday after the news media highlighted the story.

GUARDIAN kudos go to the media, the public, the coppers, the manufacturer, and the bike mechanic for doing the right thing and helping a fellow citizen in need. No doubt the “real media” will have an official report from the coppers public relations dept. We just wanted to make sure the story gets out now.

Politico Takes Dynamis And Beer Seller Payments

dave — Sat, 05 May 2012 17:23:32 +0000

Looks like freshman Congressman Raul Labrador has taken money from Lloyd Mahaffey, the controversial CEO of Dynamis. Interesting to note back taxes in Boise County go unpaid while political payments are made.

Betsy Russell of the SPOKESMAN-Review lists Mahaffey as a contributor to Labrador–who happens to live in Eagle where Dynamis is based–to the the tune of $3,500.

Russell also noted the Mormon Congressman was paid $5,000 by the National Beer Wholesalers PAC.

Republicans Hijack Primary Election At High Cost

dave — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 14:00:09 +0000

When U.S. District Judge Lynn Winmill ruled that Republicans had a right to determine their candidates at at closed primary election, few people understood the ramifications of that decision.

The net result is massive confusion about who can vote for what or whom. Also we predict many voters will be so overwhelmed they will simply throw up their hands and go home–probably angry. Ada County chief election officer Chris Rich tells the GUARDIAN the process is expensive, noting he has hired 145 extra election workers–one for each precinct–just to explain the ballot. He also has produced several written documents which will be mailed to each voter.

It is such a mess that Republicans can vote in the Dems primary, but Dems aren’t allowed to vote in the Repub races. If you declare yourself as an “Independent” you get a ballot with only a couple of judge’s. Furthermore, your boss, your employees, and political adversaries can check the PUBLIC RECORD voter registration rolls to learn your party affiliation. This could be troubling to newsies–like the GUARDIAN–who profess to be free thinkers and not affiliated with any party: exercise your right to vote and get branded as a liberal or conservative.

The STATESMAN’s Cynthia Sewell did a nice piece today last week which offers some tips. She also explored the background with Rich in the SUNDAY paper.

The good news is it’s just a primary election and there will not be any confusion in November when there is no party declaration. Of course from a practical standpoint MOST of the Republicans who are elected at the upcoming May 15 primary will be sure fire winners in November.

ADA ELECTIONS website has all the info you need, including a way to find your polling place by entering your address.

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Thoughts From The Road

dave — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 04:53:47 +0000

The day job has the GUARDIAN on the road making photographs and observing the “American Condition.” We share some random observations.

–The new bridge across the Coloorado River below Hoover Dam is a great time saver if you are headed south of Las Vegas, but you can’t see it (or the dam) as you drive across. Thee is a parking lot and pedestrian access on the north end of the bridge.

–Arizona entrepreneurs have figured a way to sign up residents to buy solar panels for their rooftops. The the deals amount to obligations to purchase, but are to be repaid with the money earned by selling power back to the electric company that is forced to purchase the power. The real money is in the “Renewalable Energy Credits”–a mini version of the windmills lumped into thousands of invididual homeowners.

–Old semi-trailers are used along the freeways as billboards. Either to skirt a billboard law or just because they can be moved easily.
–Trucks outnumber cars by at least two to one on I-10 from Phoenix to El Paso, Texas.

–From El Paso to San Antonio you really have to WANT a speeding ticket…the speed limit is 80 mph. Some of the trucks actually go that fast, but the 585 miles stilll go slow, even at 80!

–Amazed at the number of people who choose not to watch news or read papers. A friend in boise gave up news for Lent and liked it so much he has adopted the practive permanently.

–Motorhome culture in Arizona provides lots of jobs. The big ones are everywhere–even with gas at $4 per gallon.

–Border Patrol seems to be everywhere. The inspection station at Sierra Blanca, Texas permanently blocks I-10 just like at a border crossing. Dogs sniff vehicles and the armed agents check everyone passing through…both reassuring and disconcerting.

Coppers Cap Canine, Same Old Story

dave — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 20:32:53 +0000

It’s like watching cable TV–same story over and over. Such was the case with a local event reported Tuesday by KTVB.

Police approach a house, dog appears (usually a pit bull) “the officer says the dog ran at him growling, with his teeth bared, and the officer actually feared because of the actions and the attitude of the dog that he was about to get bit.”

Neighbors say the dog is friendly, cops justify the shooting. No reason to doubt any of the players. From what we can gather, the dog was owned by a party not involved in the original incident. No doubt the matter of a license and allowing the dog to roam will be part of the various reports that will follow.

But the GUARDIAN asks once again, how come mail carriers, meter readers, and delivery drivers never have to use deadly force to kill dogs? Surely these people come into contact with dogs more often than coppers.

By his own account, the copper was scared and that’s why he shot the dog three times. Turns out this is a long standing trend nationwide. A reader sent us a link to a site called PUPPYCIDE which details the national trend in police killing dogs out of fear.

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Daily Paper Promotes On Line Neighbor Site

dave — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 23:29:28 +0000

DISCLAIMER–The GUARDIAN has never been to an ATM machine, rarely uses the drive up teller at a bank, fakes confusion for automated “check in” at the airlines, has never sent an electronic birthday card, and generally prefers to talk face-to-face with tellers, agents, friends, and other humans.

When we saw the majority of Monday’s front page (they call it the cover these days) of the Daily Paper devoted to yet another on-line phishing expedition aimed at gathering information, we just chalked it up to a “sign of the times.”

The site they promoted is called NEXTDOOR and it professes to provide a forum for neighbors. However it collects information about folks and here is what it says in the fine print agreement:

“In the future, we may create a section of the site to present offers for goods and services we think you’d like. If you decide to participate with an offer, you may be presented with an opportunity to share information with the merchant. If you accept the offer, then we’ll send the information you requested to share with the merchant. We won’t transmit information to the merchant until you explicitly ask us to do so. At that point, the data we deliver to the merchant will be governed by the merchant’s privacy policy, not ours.”

Which means “once the genie is out of the bottle, your personal data is no longer private.”

In our neighborhood, we actually TALK to each other. If a trash can is at the curb, one of us will return it to the garage. If someone doesn’t get home in a timely fashion, a quick call will get the dog let out because we all have keys to each other’s house. And you can bet there won’t be an ad on your doorstep if you talk about insurance, dog groomers, restaurants, or movies either.

First Dope Reporter Award Of 2012 Goes To Jennifer McGraw

dave — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 00:07:55 +0000

With the high rate of turnover in the TV news business, KBOI-TV’s Jennifer McGraw can get a partial pass for not knowing, but when she got caught wading in the spring runoff in her cute plastic boots she won the first DOPE REPORTER award of the water year.

Not only did she appear on air standing in the water, she even posted a picture of her boots on her Twitter page! The caption said, “Guess what? spring has sprung and the greenbelt is flooding. Even with my boots the water is too deep.” Which begs the question, was it an inch, a foot, or a yard over your boots? If she had stayed on high ground, boots wouldn’t be needed.

As usual, the GUARDIAN will present DOPE REPORTER awards to reporters who appear on camera standing in flood water. Boots are permitted to get a good camera angle, but wading in water is for children on their way to school.

Note to Jennifer: Check past DOPE REPORTER awards and you will see it isn’t personal and really is all in good fun.

Reader nominations accepted at the CONTACT button on the home page.

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Ada Commish Candidate Resigns 16 Year Job Over Conflict With State Anti-Political Statute

dave — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 20:23:19 +0000

BULLETIN 2:25 p.m. Monday– Ada County Commish Candidate Dave Case has announced he has resigned his state job with the Board of Parole. The complete text of his PRESS RELEASE can be seen at the bottom of the page.

News outlets in the Boise area including the GUARDIAN got the following message (or a similar version) over the weekend from an anonymous source:
“Davvid Case has committed a misdemeanor by filing to run for County Commissioner. He is a parole hearing officer for IDOC which is a classified position. According toStatute 67-5311 classified state employees are not allowed to run for partisan office while employed by the State of Idaho. He is required to quit his classified
state job BEFORE he files. As a former ISP officer and current parole hearing officer he should have known the law. Or are parole bord employees above the law? Probation officers aren’t, as you well know.”

Ada County Commish candidate Dave Case works as a hearing officer for the Idaho Board of Parole and is apparently barred from “partisan political activity.” We forwarded the allegation to the candidate who says he spent considerable time Monday seeking a legal clarification. The Secretary of State sent him to the Ada County Prosecutor and he is awaiting word from that office.

Case will weigh his options and most likely resign the state job he has held for 16 years, rather than create any controversy within the office. He has called a 3 p.m. press conference Monday. Leaving his state job should clear the way for him to devote all his efforts to the campaign–something Ullman will find difficult to do while working full time as a Commish. Case currently holds elective office as an Ada County Highway District Commish, but that position is non-partisan.

It will be interesting to see if the prosecutor’s office files criminal charges, offers free legal advice, or “conflicts it out” to another county since the Ada Prosecutor provides legal counsel on a daily basis to Ada Commish Sharon Ullman, the candidate Case opposes in the May primary election.

In addition to the obvious question at hand of “is it legal,” deeper questions arise regarding the intent of the 1965 law. Would it apply to ANY run for for partisan office or only state office? Then there is the whole issue of first amendment rights, etc.

Here is section of the law that apparently would apply:
67-5311. LIMITATION OF POLITICAL ACTIVITY. (1) No classified employee of a state department covered by this act shall:
(c) Be a candidate and hold elective office in any partisan election.

CONTINUE READING FOR PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Dave Case
March 26, 2012 (208) 283-5510
Ada Commission Candidate Dave Case Resigns State Job to Continue Campaign
Boise—-Ada County Commission candidate Dave Case announced today that he
would resign his position as a hearing officer with the State Parole Commission in order
to continue his campaign for Ada Commissioner in District Three. Case made the
decision after he was made aware of Idaho Code 67-5311, section c, which states that
“No classified employee of a state department covered by this act shall: Be a candidate
and hold elective office in any partisan election.”

“Although I believe that the and between the “be a candidate and hold elective
office” should require that both conditions be present to disqualify a state employee from
seeking public office, even a partisan public office, I am willing to resign my current
position with the state to continue my campaign,” said Case.

“I consulted with the Secretary of State’s office, the Ada County Clerk and Ada
County Prosecutor, and while we received some conflicting answers, I still think it is best
to adhere to what others believe to be the spirit of the law, rather than insisting on
challenging the letter of the law,” Case said.

The issue apparently was raised by Case’s opposition on Saturday in an email to
political blogger David Frazier. The unidentified person accused Case of knowingly
violating the law by filing to run.

“Until that email I was unaware of the state code on this issue,” said Case. “But I
can assure all of my supporters that I do not think I am above the law. This was an
honest mistake, and as soon as it was brought to my attention and I had the opportunity to
research it further, I immediately corrected it.”
-

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