there's a proposition for almost every letter of the friggin alphabet - this guide will be helpful, woot!

The children's hospital? Really?

After my research, this is what I've concluded for Berkeley measures:

FF - Yes. Our branch libraries need improvements to be safe and efficient. Measure FF will bring them up to current code standards, meet seismic requirements, and make them fully accessible.

GG - Yes. Eliminates fire station closures and places a paramedic at every Berkeley fire station, bringing Berkeley's emergency medical services in line with every other city in Alameda County.

HH - Yes. Not a tax increase. Allows the city to continue collecting previously voter authorized taxes for parks maintenance; libraries, emergency medical services (EMS) and emergency services for severely disabled persons for fiscal years 2009-2012. The taxes for these services must be re-authorized every four years. Without Measure HH, funding would be reduced.

II - Yes. Gives the city three years instead of one after each census to redraw City Council districts so that all eight have roughly the same population. The Berkeley City Council, which supports the measure, said one year wasn't enough time.

JJ - Yes. Provides safe access for patients. Controls medical cannabis with zoning that prohibits dispensaries in residential areas and an oversight commission to protect neighborhoods and businesses.

KK - NO. The Sierra Club says KK is "Anti-transit. Anti-environmental." and the League of Women Voters says KK "threatens to subvert the democratic process." It would require voter approval before traffic lanes could be reduced for rapid bus lines. The residents' initiative would require voter approval for what should be AC Transit decisions.

LL - Divided. It would expand city authority over the city's Landmark Preservation Commission. Opponents say it would lead to more high density development and that historic buildings would be destroyed. Mayor Tom Bates argues that it would bring Berkeley in-line with state guidelines. City officials would still have to follow guidelines before demolishing buildings.

VV - Yes. Provides transportation for those who can't drive or afford the rising cost of gas. All funds for operations and maintenance of public transit. Would increase an existing parcel tax by $4 per month and extend the tax for 10 years in order to fill AC Transit’s budget gap.

WW - YES! Open space preservation, new parks and trails, habitat restoration, and urban creek protection with no tax increase.


Just my .02
;)

where is the fun?

beyond the sheer delight that SO many people would receive daily from the juxtaposition of 'George W. Bush' and 'Sewage' for years to come, this measure actually has some serious merits:

1) breaking people out of their "must take everything so seriously, must produce, world is a difficult and cold" mindset that is so easy to get into in our culture.

with respect to whats written on our website: yes this is ridiculous politics. and thats f*in fantastic. more please.

2) some people think we should forget all about GWB as soon as possible. fuck that. i want to keep that mans memory alive as long as possible. those who forget history are doomed to let it be repeated. more on this in #3 below...

3) there is an argument out there (including on our site) that this somehow puts our bad-ass technology and sustainability generally as the butt of a joke. really? can you honestly say that when you read "George W Bush Sewage Plant" you think to yourself: "awww, why they got to dis our sewage plant like that?"

the following (read on Yelp) is a great response to this argument against:

I find that to be silly reason to vote no. Yes, *literally* as you point out it may be a poor symbol. But that doesn't stop us from naming streets after people like Cesar Chavez or MLK. I wouldnt not vote against naming a street after these men on the grounds that it dishonors their memory and accomplishments by attaching their names to thoroughfares of pollution.

Similarly, we shouldn't take the same literal attitude towards renaming a "sewage plant" after Bush. The point is that how we remember people informs future actions and generations. Even if it doesnt make sense when you think about it literally, by attaching Bush's name to the words Sewage Plant, we are taking one small step towards keeping the memory of this man's terrible incompetency alive. The sooner we forget that, the sooner we live through this mess again.

4) people say it dishonors the workers. well actually the union that represents the workers officially endorses it: www.seiu1021.org/politics/...here_.aspx

finally, as one of my friends put it to me recently: "it would be nice to pay my respects to george with each flush"

could not have said it better myself.