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Author Archives: DBP
Preventable Tragedies
Updated September 25, 2018 ~ This is a list of recent (last 5 years) deaths and injuries that can be reasonably attributed to the inaction of the Seattle City Council on the homelessness crisis. The victims include both housed and unhoused … Continue reading
Charade: Homeless camps and the abuse of public process
September 8, 2018 ~ The biggest gripe a citizen can have is that their government doesn’t listen to them, and that gripe has never been more on-point than when it comes to transients and drug addicts camping in Seattle parks … Continue reading
Letter from the ‘hood: No more homeless camps here, please!
August 11, 2018 ~ Camp Second Chance is a sprawling cluster of tents and shacks located on Myers Way South, in the Highland Park neighborhood of southwest Seattle, just inside the Seattle city line. The camp popped up in the summer … Continue reading
Posted in General, Homelessness, Squatters
Tagged Camp Second Chance, Highland Park Action Committee, Highland Park Washington, SHARE
1 Comment
Banned on Facebook: Sex in the Cemetery
June 9, 2018 ~ The note and photos below document criminal activity. They were sent to us by Ari Hoffman, a Jewish man who has been fighting a years-long battle against the desecration of the Bikur Cholim cemetery in Seattle, where … Continue reading
The Seattle Head Tax: What we’ve been missing
June 3, 2018 ~ Everyone’s talking about the Head Tax, about how much money it would raise, about how the money will be spent (or misspent), about how it might affect business… Almost no one’s talking about who it was … Continue reading
Posted in Corruption, General, Homelessness
Tagged affordable housing, corruption, SHARE
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There Was a Crooked Trail
May 18, 2018 ~ The closer you look at the way bike lanes and trails are being put in around Seattle, the more disturbing the picture looks. I know what you’re thinking: Bike lanes? Disturbing? Come on, Quixotic. Lighten up.–No really. … Continue reading
Posted in Corruption, General, Politics
Tagged Ballard, Ballard Coalition, Brock Howell, Cascade Bicycle Club, Missing Link, Salmon Bay Sand and Gravel
1 Comment
No Excuses: How Seattle’s activist judges endanger our citizens
May 13, 2018 ~ In a landmark court case last March, King County superior court judge Catherine Shaffer cited an obscure provision of Washington’s Homestead Act to rule that cities can’t impound vehicles or “excessively fine” their owners when those owners are living … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, General, Homelessness
Tagged Homestead Act, Judge Catherine Shaffer, jury duty, King County Courthouse, RVs
2 Comments
The Swindle Cycle
February 4, 2018 ~ I have a friend, “Joe,” whose mind zips along at a hundred miles an hour. He’s always analyzing city politics and connecting the dots. On a typical day, he’ll send me a dozen e-mails with various insights … Continue reading
Posted in Corruption, General, Homelessness, Politics
Tagged Anatomy of a Swindle, corruption, LIHI. Low Income Housing Institute
7 Comments
Taking Care of (Homeless) Business
Campaign finance laws and the Homeless Industrial Complex January 12, 2017 Seattle perceives itself as a national leader in the effort to get money out of politics. Initiative 122, approved by voters in 2015, tried to attack the problem in … Continue reading
Posted in Corruption, General, Homelessness, Squatters
Tagged All City Fence, corruption, Fred Podesta, homeless camps, Homeless Industrial Complex, Pay to Play, Seattle, Sharon Lee
2 Comments
Back to the Middle: Post-election Analysis of the Seattle 2017 Races
November 10, 2017 The following factors had the most influence on the Seattle races, in descending order of importance… ● Low voter turnout ● Low-info voting ● The media ● Labor unions ● National politics ● Local politics ● Money … Continue reading
Posted in General
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Recalling Mike O’Brien: The Basics
November 14, 2017 The right to recall an elected official is a constitutional right of the people set forth in our constitution. The procedure is governed by statute. A “typewritten charge” needs to be submitted and it has to allege … Continue reading
Posted in Corruption, General, Politics, Recall Mike O'Brien
Tagged Mike O'Brien, recall mike o'brien
1 Comment
The Ins and Outs of Recall Elections
November 12, 2017 This article is the first in a series of posts related to removing Seattle Councilmember Mike O’Brien from office. A recall election is one option we have for ridding ourselves of bad politicians. Recall elections are difficult … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, General, Politics, Profiles
Tagged Mike O'Brien, recall mike o'brien
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Ethics Evasion Commission
November 7, 2017 The Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission enforces the Seattle Code of Ethics, which was designed to keep Seattle government honest by applying fines and other penalties to elected officials, candidates, and city employees who violated the rules … Continue reading
Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 4: Where was Lorena?
October 1, 2017 ~ News of my complaint to the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission on Lorena Gonzalez made the Seattle Weekly. Good on them. One correction to their story: Weekly writer Dan Person noted correctly that I was a candidate … Continue reading
Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 3: What’s left of the Dream?
September 8, 2017 ~ Remember when the Democracy Voucher Program was proposed? It was supposed to get big money out of politics and get grassroots candidates in. We’re now six months into our first election with the vouchers and where are … Continue reading
Activating a space to discourage camping
September 4, 2017 In a recent public meeting on a homeless encampment in the Ballard, Seattle’s Director of Homelessness George Scarola told neighbors of the camp that they could “activate” public spaces to keep homeless people from camping there. According … Continue reading
Posted in Homelessness, Squatters
Tagged activating a space, Delridge Way SW, director of homelessness, Scarola, squatting
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Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 2: A complaint is filed
August 17, 2017 ~ Seattle’s new Democracy Voucher Program has a long way yet to go to fix Seattle politics. One could argue that, rather than discouraging corruption, the program is actually rewarding it. The program gives qualifying candidates access to … Continue reading
Democracy Slouchers ~ Part 1: “Honest” Elections
July 4, 2017 ~ I-122, the “Honest Elections” initiative (aka the Democracy Voucher Program) was supposed to get money and corporate influence out of Seattle politics. It looked great on paper. The PROBLEM: “Wealthy special interests have too much power in … Continue reading
Posted in Corruption, General, Politics
Tagged corruption, get money out of politics, Seattle, Seattle et
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Ghostwriter
June 5, 2017 What would you think if you discovered automobile executives had written a bill on auto safety and handed it to your senator to sponsor? And what if you learned those same executives had penned pro-industry letters to the … Continue reading
Posted in General, Homelessness, Squatters
Tagged ACLU, Ann LoGerfo, CB 118794, Columbia Legal Services, Elisabeth Smith, Mike O'Brien, social justice, tent encampments
2 Comments
Speaking Truth to Power
June 1, 2017 Here’s a video excerpt of a brave Seattle woman confronting the City Council with my “Anatomy of a Swindle” blog article. This took place on October 14, 2016. The context is a discussion about Mike O’Brien’s proposed … Continue reading
Posted in Homelessness, SHARE
Tagged Anatomy of a Swindle, Blog Quixotic, corruption, Seattle City Council
1 Comment
Democracy Vouchers: A Candidate’s View
May 14, 2017 ~ In 2015, Seattle voters passed an initiative to create a public-finance pool for candidates in city elections. It’s called the Democracy Voucher Program, and it’s funded by a special property tax. Registered voters receive four $25 coupons … Continue reading
Puff Piece
April 29, 2017 In my years of trying to bring the Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) to justice, I have been repeatedly frustrated by their slick public relations operation. Here’s an organization that engages in a number of deceptive or dishonest … Continue reading
Posted in General, Homelessness, Nickelsville, Tent City
Tagged Licton Springs, LIHI, Low Income Housing Institute, Nesbit, Sharon Lee, Wall Street Journal
1 Comment
Call Me Reverend
April 11, 2017 Call Me Reverend:The Bill Kirlin-Hackett Story Mr. Mild The first impression one gets of the Reverend Bill Kirlin-Hackett is of someone we’d expect to find singing kum-ba-ya around the campfire or handing out coffee and hugs at a 12-step … Continue reading
Encampment Complaints: A suspicious pattern
March 23, 2017 The document in the link below was produced by Seattle’s Customer Service Bureau (CSB) in response to a public disclosure request from Safe Seattle. The document shows how many citizen complaints the City got in a six-week … Continue reading
The tarnished halo of Rob Ferguson
March 12, 2017 Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson is exulting in his successful court challenge to President Trump’s immigration ban. Ferguson obviously cares about immigrant rights, but has he been as diligent in protecting people who already live here? What … Continue reading
Posted in General
Tagged Attorney General, Dwight Pelz, Immigration ban, Rob Ferguson, Scott Morrow
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Beyond the Pale: A neighbor’s view of the Ballard Locks homeless camp
March 10, 2017 The Ballard Locks (also known as Hiram M. Chittenden Locks) are a system of mechanically controlled channels that allow watercraft to travel between the inland waterways of Seattle (Lake Washington, Lake Union, the Ship Canal) and Puget … Continue reading
