An upcoming election draws a field of candidates.
Once everyone is signed up, and the election season is officially underway, several candidates drop out. Cynicism is reinforced, and the public's ability to actually choose who represents them is sabotaged.
Forums are held, but, due to the wide and deep political apathy in the community, they are poorly attended. (Fewer than 40 came out to the most recent "debate" which featured four candidates for the Port Angeles City Council.)
At said debate, a range of questions are asked, with many being about less than crucial, time-waster issues (a plastic bag ban, gun control) that hardly speak to the core problems facing the City.
As someone who denies established science, I'm sure that
Travis Berglund could do wonders with the City's
fantasy-based finances...
In their coverage of said forum, the PDN wastes as much space as possible "covering" these tangential questions, because distractions are always welcome. (See also their extended coverage of the "medical episode" that the debate's timekeeper went through, which, while somewhat interesting, is nowhere near vital to the public's interest in who will run the City.) Once this slanted, skewed and intentionally incomplete article is posted online, a few diehard readers may - or may not - post a few inconsequential comments on it. But most people have learned by now that such "efforts" are, in fact, pointless.
Thus, to sum up: The process is very much manipulated behind the scenes. Deals are cut, and the public is, as much as possible, cut out. Interest is kept low by keeping cynicism high. Official press coverage is minimal and essentially meaningless. And the long-running scam that is Port Angeles is allowed to keep pathetically chugging along, bringing benefits and wealth to a favored few, while keeping 99% of the community poor, struggling, and, yes, cynical.
This is the cynical cycle that defines and powers Port Angeles. Any questions? *
*Questions not allowed. Go back to sleep.
Meanwhile, the Red Lion is now up for sale. Because so many businesses are so eager to maintain a presence in Port Angeles.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to another abandoned eyesore on our shoreline...
Tie it together for the clueless Mr. Berglund. Scientists say climate change is real. The Red Lion management knows their current location in Port Angeles is at risk from rising tides.
DeleteBut no. Travis Berglund knows better. He is smarter than all the rest. TRUST HIM to do the right thing. The informed thing.
The Port Angeles thing.
Speaking of clueless, look at the voter phamplet sent out in the paper. The writer 'splaining the fluoride issue is John Brewer, former publisher of the paper. He is such a liar and bull shit spreader how anyone can believe anything he says/writes is beyond belief. He so wants to be "in" on things he will whore himself out to anyone/anything. He followed various candidates around like a little puppy-dog during the last county elections just hoping they would pat him on the head and say "good boy."
DeleteBrewer is a loser who pretends he has some clout by hanging out and licking the heels of his masters.
DeleteHe was never a good publisher. I'm sure he was a rotten reporter at the AP, and he used to claim he was with the New York Times (but he hardly even mentions that anymore).
He is a big chuck of what is wrong with this area. Blame John Brewer, who is not a "philanthropist" as he likes to think. He's evil and a waste of air.
Brewer is just another Piece Of Shit that floats around PA.
DeleteSo CK, you've laid out your case against Port Angeles over the years of this blog with hard scathing evidence. There is no question that criminals run the show, and that the prosecutor is one of them.
ReplyDeleteBut the next step seems to be to re-focus and narrow the sunshine onto the ppower brokers themselves. I don't think there's enough real information here for them to feel any pressure.
Even since he ascended to the county throne, Randy Johnson has his masters.
Lately you speak of McAleer, but little reference to her family background and why as a person she has no moral compass. More importantly, who does the Port Board meet with that tells them what to do?
Picking on Kidd is not only low-hanging fruit, but no mention of who her handlers are. I wanna know who manipulates her. Because she's so stupid she can't manipulate herself.
And most of all, we aren't familiar enough with the real local powers, like the owners of Merrill & Ring, Green Crow, Hermann, etc. The guys who benefit from the Port's crimes. Heck, you never even told us who got that Port contract to cut the trees in Lincoln. What kind of reporting is that?
As a long-time inquiring reader, I don't care whether you do it, or the posters do it. But enough with "Port Angeles is such a cesspool" and start naming the names behind the scenes, so the villagers can then do what they must.
After all, the scams and crimes exposed here amount to little without exposing those who actually run the cabal, and who desperately avoid the sunshine. True power never reveals itself.
Anyone who has names is free - encouraged even! - to do so here. They can do so anonymously. Nothing is topping that from happening, except..?
DeleteBlue Mountain Tree Service was the company that cut the trees in Lincoln Park.
DeleteThe tree-cutting at Lincoln Park was pure city council. They needed money to purchase a new sound system at Civic Field so they manufactured an emergency "oh those medivac planes cannot land and take granny to the hospital" bullshit. They arranged the logging of the park to pay for the sound system at Civic Field. Now I have no problem with that necessarily except for the subterfuge. What I do have a problem with is the timing. The local school's ball teams and their family of supporters have had to put up with piss poor sound systems for decades but let a bullshit ball club come to town and they pull out all the stops to accommodate them, a for profit entity profiting the city or its taxpayers zippo. Bear in mind these ball players PAY the fucking league to get to play instead of getting paid to play. These kids want so bad to have one more shot at the big show they pay theives like O'hole to play ball, get local townspeople to put them up for free and then hit up the taxpayers for all those park improvements with nothing to show for it but a few nights of over-priced baseball and over priced concession stands. Rip off times 3, the taxpayers, the ball players and the townspeople putting them up. Quite a scam when you think about it.
DeleteKidd isn't low hanging fruit, she's a low hanging nut.
DeleteThat's a keeper, Anonymous 10:19 PM! Of course, Cherie isn't, though. Maybe you can block the road to keep her from coming back from her New Jersey taffeta and tiara trek? We know she won't come back via ferry, because the view of her own city depresses her...And the airport is, well, you know...
DeleteRight. Winnowing out public faith, trust and engagement.
ReplyDeleteAnd right...Just as stated above, there are, right now, as of this writing, a sum total of ZERO comments on the PDN article about the candidate debate, and the Red Lion being for sale. Why bother speaking up when you're only going to be deleted and/or ignored?
ReplyDeleteOh, you mean that debate about plastic bags? As if that is the most pressing problem in the community. Makes me vomit right on desk.
DeleteZero, and counting to nothing.
ReplyDeleteAs if commenting on the PDN site means anything.
What an absolutely sad commentary on a small town community! When everyone reading knows there is no point in commenting.
Winnowing is kind of like selecting...And speaking of selecting...
ReplyDelete"After 31 years at Discovery Bay, Security Services Northwest (SSNW) relocated its headquarters to Sequim.
SSNW purchased the 12,028-square-foot commercial building at 250 Center Park Way for $896,000 from wholesale jewelry retailer G Ju Hwa Bohemia on Aug. 21, according to the Clallam County Assessor.
The Sequim location provided “a good fit for us,” D’Amico said, noting proximity to SSNW’s workforce between Clallam and Jefferson counties, cost of housing and ability to install a high-speed fiber optic network."
Please note they did NOT select Port Angeles. It's a bigger town. It has plenty of vacant real estate. But...Life is to short to live - or work - in Port Angeles.
Along those lines, I looked at the places that are for sale that were posted here a month or so ago. Both are still for sale, and have reduced their prices by another $25k.
DeleteYes, plenty of vacant real estate.
Don’t forget dan Gase works for SSNW
DeleteAnd real estate prices are going up in Sequim.
DeleteSpeaking of low hanging fruit and nuts just hit City website looking dor information....and came across Ordinance 3588 adopted last month....it reads, "Ail ordinance of the Cite of Pear Angeles...".
ReplyDeleteAlso of note, Red Lion just recently BOUGHT an older hotel in Sequim and has rebranded it as Red Lion and is remodeling it. So they have faith in Sequim but are dumping Port Angeles. I think that's telling.
ReplyDeleteSequim is growing. Port Angeles is dying. That makes the math pretty simple. Plenty of people who will visit the park and use the ferries will just stay in Sequim instead of the slightly-more-convenient-but-oh-so-much-more-unpleasant-and-run-down Port Angeles.
DeleteAnon @ 8:27 - minor correction. Red Lion doesn’t own the property in Sequim. I believe this is a franchise.
DeleteI'm just happy to see more investment in Sequim, and that property sorely needed a remodel.
DeleteI see O-hole still has big signs up, all over town.
ReplyDeleteBecause some of the stupid villagers will be wasting their vote on him.
DeleteHe only suspended his campaign. He only needs a legal residence in town to be right back in it. Skipping the debates gets him around a lot of the sticky questions he would have had to BS his way out of.
DeleteAnd the quote of the day:
ReplyDeleteCommissioner Randy Johnson said he is excited about the CRTC’s upcoming products, but he continues to worry about the CRTC.
“It sounds to me like you’re continuing to walk a tightrope,” he told Walter.
Ya think?
With the post about Nippon doing composites made out of plant fibre, instead of the toxic waste CRTC is trying to make work, who thinks the CRTC has a chance of being a successful venture?
DeleteIt’s more than a tightrope the math doesn’t work. They might make a profit but they record the revenue before the expense
DeleteIn a sane world there would be a newspaper fact-checking stories coming out of the composites scam at the port. Here they merely dribble out puff-pieces which the paper simply cuts and pastes into the news and their job is done. Recently they put out a piece stating they have "turned a profit" which is absurd. They cannot turn a profit until they have paid back all the millions of taxpayer dollars going into this sinkhole of a scam. If you want these type scams to continue then continue electing the same scammers.
ReplyDeleteAnyone who has anything to do with the CRTC is a crook. Just like anyone with anything to do with EDC, or any of the other good ole boy cabal fronts.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the citizens should start a community lawsuit war chest, to save up enough to actually threaten the pieces of shit with an exposure lawsuit.
Kinda like the threat of re-classifying the city, they are on the run big time to avoid that at all cost. If it passes, not only do the insider appointments go down, but the state will have a little more interest in what goes on around here. The POSs wouldn't know what to do.
I'm game.
DeleteWe should start harassing the Auditor, State Attorney, and then the FEDS -- this is clear RICO, isn't it?
Find a federal level attorney who can bring the heavy hand of justice down on these morons. I have some money to kick in the kitty.
I'm doing more of my shopping in Sequim these days. Even just for the basics.
ReplyDeleteIt is weird. Even the prices for the same items in the Walmart in Sequim, are cheaper by a substantial amount, than in the Port Angeles Walmart.
The Safeway in Sequim is better stocked, and has better stock than either of the Port Angeles stores.
I came home today pretty much deciding to structure my daily shopping to Sequim. Port Angeles is just too frustrating to deal with.
5% of the ballots are already in and counted, and KONP and PDN refuse to report.
ReplyDeleteactually they never disclose how things are going in elections.
Delete