Tuesday, August 02, 2011

Money Relocation Project a Smashing Success

Racine's ballyhooed Uptown Artist Relocation Program, now in its fourth year, has relocated zero artists. It has relocated, as in lost, over $400,000 in taxpayer money. Yes, the city bought a building for $120 K, renovated it to the tune of $400 K, and flipped it for $111 K to some folks who will open a Chinese restaurant.

A horrific failure? Not according to program director Brian O'Connell. "We're getting a lot of the things we got into the Uptown project for" O'Connell told the RJT.

What were getting is zero artists and a $400,000 plus loss. If the city views this as a success, what, I wonder, would they consider failure.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is what happens when city leaders toke up. "Haaaay, let's remake this neighborhood so ARTISTS move in! It worked in Paduca!"

Well, maybe the new owners will display some Chinese art. Wall hangings, dragons and stuff. If you squint really hard, you can rationalize the artist vector. Sheesh!

Now I'm gonna make you feel really bad. Just add six or seven zeros to all of your numbers. That kind of stuff goes on every day at the federal level. Obama stash has a short shelf life. That's why we raised the debt ceiling.

Anonymous said...

Toking up, Part duece: The city guys can learn a lot from RUSD, Denis. Pay a million above market for a "new" administrative campus while losing attendance, sell the existing building for half what you said you would, and then find out we can't fit our bloated staff into the Taj building after all. (Weez fighting morale issues here). So spill over into a second building not in the original plans. Cost overruns? Hehehehe. That's what taxpayers are for.

Sean Cranley said...

Ano: "Obama stash has a short shelf life. That's why we raised the debt ceiling."

Whatta dork.

Sean Cranley said...

Reagan raised the debt ceiling 17 times. So what does that say about his "stash"? Sheesh!

Nemo said...

sean, you seem to be ignorant of the origins of the term "Obama's stash". It was first used by a pro-Obama moocher, here's the audio.


Quick, who said, “The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. Leadership means that ‘the buck stops here.’ Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase America's debt limit.”

Answer: ” Senator Barack Obama on March 16, 2006.

Biggest. Hypocrite. Ever.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for digging, my friend Nemo. Then there's the wild-ass claim of Sean's about the limit being raised 17 times under Reagan. So ludicrous it isn't a legitimate argument. Sean forgets the entire national debt was less than the first year DEFICIT ALONE is under Obama.

Sean Cranley said...

Ano: sorry for my error Reagan didn't raise the debt ceiling 17 times . . . it was 18 times. http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2011/jul/26/barack-obama/obama-says-reagan-raised-debt-ceiling-18-times-geo/

EXCERPT: More specifically, it lists 18 increases to the debt ceiling between February 1981 and September 1987. In other words, there were 18 under President Ronald Reagan, as Obama said. And there were seven increases between January 2001 and January 2009 -- during George W. Bush's presidency. We should also note that it has been raised three times already under President Obama, on Feb. 17, 2009, Dec. 28, 2009 and Feb. 12, 2010.

Who's ludicrous now? SLAM!

I live in a fact based world not one where we just make shtuff up or ingore it as it suits our "sensibilities".

EXCERPT: Here are some more facts to interupt your cognitive dissonance: These numbers, we'll add, have been growing for decades, roughly tripling since Jimmy Carter left the presidency. Under Ronald Reagan, debt as a percentage of GDP grew from 33.4 percent to 51.9 percent, and under George H.W. Bush, it grew from 51.9 percent to 64.1 percent. It declined under Bill Clinton, from 64.1 percent to 57.3 percent, before rising from 57.3 percent to 69.2 percent under George W. Bush. It's expected to soar during Obama's first four years from 69.2 percent to 100.8 percent. http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/mar/26/john-boehner/boehner-says-federal-debt-will-equal-gdp-two-years/

Oh and who is responsible for most of our debt? Hint, his initials are GWB and that doesn't even account for the Great GOPrecession that is responsible much of the debt being assigned to Obama but your fearless (by the nose) leaders. Go over to KBR and look at the graph from the Boston Globe: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rrJEL8-XMOw/TkA1Jk8MzaI/AAAAAAAAAJw/IeN-T9MyYeM/s1600/31debtlimit_graphic1A__1312092683_2361.gif

Oh and Nemo, I'm well aware that it was Obama that your quoting, no news for me there. What a politician equivocating? What gambling at Rick's? Shocking!

Thank you both for a very satisfying start to this glorious Friday!

Anonymous said...

Nemo - I know you read those posts - is there anything of value besides entertainment?

Remember the sucessful Korean businessman who wanted to open the new business on 6th Street and was shot down by O'Connell, Corridor Developer Goddess, and others? The guy was also talking about bringing others to the table with business opportunities. Instead they run it like their cab operation - spend lots of money, have no ability to run it, lose tons of money, put it out to bid and low bids come in, decide you don't like the bids so put it out again, the bids are even lower and the original high bidder gets it for even less, call it a success. Can we have more stimulus money please? We're paying for the Mayor to be in Washington for the Obama Packers party - maybe he can beg for cash.

Sean Cranley said...

I live in a fact based world not one where we just make shtuff up or ingore it as it suits our "sensibilities".

Poor Ano had to curl up into a ball and cover his eyes. It is after all his only defense.

Nemo said...

Sir Anon, in physics it has been shown that an observer can influence the outcome of an event. Let's just say in sean's universe the question is not whether the cat is dead or alive, but if its owner has paid the paw tax and could be squeezed for some more. The links he cites usually represent a refracted view of the truth, focusing exclusively on the 450nm (that's blue sean) part of the political spectrum. Usually true, rarely relivant and always propaganda sums up sean's sources.

Sean Cranley said...

La la la-la, la la la-la Nemo's world.

So in Nemo's world Politifact and the Boston Globe are "propaganda". Why? Because the information presented is inconvenient and conflicts with Cult of Con dogma.

Ano: "Then there's the wild-ass claim of Sean's about the limit being raised 17 times under Reagan." My source showing how completely Ano has been blinded by GOPropaganda is not relevant in Nemo's world how?

But hey Nemo, thanks for acknowledging that my sources are "usually true". Ya got one outta three. Not a bad day for you.

La la la-la, la la la-la Nemo's world.

Nemo said...

17? It's 18, but that, while true, misses the point (it's that whole relevant bugaboo). The debt is reaching a critical point and government largess needs to be reigned in.

I have to admit that your "La, la, la" argument is your best to date. An unmistakable improvement over your usual tired numbers, twisted statics, illogic and special spelling. Good job! Heh.

Sean Cranley said...

I agree with you that debt is reaching a critical point. I've been increasingly concerned about that since the 1990s, the last time we actually did some serious things to fix the problem.

Cuts need to be made and taxes need to be put back to the reasonable levels they were at back when we able to pay our way and when we created jobs. See Warren Buffett's NYT oped from Sunday.

Thanks for the compliment, however, my logic and statistics are both sound as your citationless statement would indicate. And seriously, you're going to pick on my typos? Seriously? You've mentioned this before and it's just plain petty, which is why I don't bother with yours. Yes you make them too, we all do. This sort of communication doesn't really warrant persnickity proofing.

Nemo said...

At least we agree that cuts need to be made. It's telling that Obama submitted a budget that calls for a massive increase in spending. I guess that most Obama supporters feel that Racine's ballyhooed Uptown Artist Relocation Program, now in its fourth year and has relocated zero artists, is a good/sound economic idea. Not me.

As far as proper grammar and spelling being "petty", I disagree. Correct grammar and spelling reflect the earnestness of the author, just as poor spelling and grammar show un-seriousness. Please cite any creative spelling adventures I have made. If you find one, I apologize for it. If not, please retract your latest lie (on this thread).

Sean Cranley said...

Denis said: "Alas I and my merchandise survived and, while this was not by any stretch an ideal situation for commerce, I am now able to amuse myself by having survived what must surely be a homophobes worst nightmare - being crushed to death by a horde of Glee fans."

I'm sure Denis didn't mean "alas" and was not regretful that he and his merchandise survived.

I didn't point this out to Denis, because it's a minor error and it would petty to do so. Nor will I be doing so with regard to your writing Nemo.

And I waste enough time on this shtuff without having to refer to the dictionary everytime I'm uncertain, or to laboriously poor over every one of my rants for dropped letters and words and mistrikes of the keyboard.

However, unless you want to be a hypocrite, I suggest that you take Denis to task for his "un-seriousness and lack of "earnestness". I can't wait to see that.

Have nice day!

Nemo said...

sean, you can't find any creative spelling adventures I have made. Now apologize, go forth and misspell no more. Heh.

Note: "alas" has its roots from the Latin word lassus, meaning "weary". I can see how Denis might be weary after fending off a Glee horde.

Sean Cranley said...

Oh Denis was using latin? Nice try Nemo: Alas - Used to express sadness, misery over loss, compassion, or apprehension of danger or evil. Webster's II. Petty hypocrite.

You're a master of one of the core tenets of the Cult of Con, never, ever admit that you're wrong, you've erred or that you have had fault. Hypocrite.

For the purpose of demonstrating you're hypocrisy, this will be the ONE and ONLY time (though I could find other examples) that I point ot a spelling or gramatical error on your part. There are a couple errors in your comment (1:25 PM) below from the Classism, Ageism, Racism? post (just below this one) about 4/5th of the way down.

EXCERPT: sean,",lots people will be unable to vote,".

Really? Name one. Oh wait, your wife knows a guy but the CIA would kill me if I learned his identity. Well, I can top that with a equally valid number.

Petty Nemoctrite!

Nemo said...

Oh my sean, aren't we in a cranky mood. sean, I asked you to show me a spelling error and you show me an extra comma. Still, in these uncertain times, it's nice to see that some things, like sean's big bile bag of pejoratives, have not changed. Heh.

Sean Cranley said...

Nemo Said: "As far as proper grammar and spelling being "petty", I disagree. Correct grammar and spelling reflect the earnestness of the author, just as poor spelling and grammar show un-seriousness."

GOPocrite.

Nemo's Cult of Con edict for the day; when failure is exposed, move the goal posts.

Nemo said...

It's not a spelling mistake, but sorry for the extra comma. In my defense, I was addressing you. That makes un-seriousness the soup de jour. Heh.

Sean Cranley said...

Hypocrite.

Nemo said...

Hypocrite? While it might not be accurate, it's at least spelled correctly. Good job! Speaking of hypocrites, when will you grace us with cries of "war criminal!" and the like about Obama? sean, he's kept us in 2 wars and added a few more depending on how you count and yet no shrill screams? Curious. Heh.