Will we ever go wireless?

Today we can all breathe a sigh of relief as the attempt to change the way California's electoral college vote is counted has apparently collapsed. But never let it be said that we don't have enough issues to worry about. San Francisco's painfully slow attempt to become a wireless city also seems to have collapsed. A thoughtful column in Slate.com points to some of the reasons why offering wireless access to all residents has not worked well in any of the cities that tried it. As frequently happens, city government has learned again that there is no free lunch. Providing free access throughout a city requires expensive infrastructure and no one is willing to pay for it. The phone and cable companies already have that infrastructure in place, so they can offer service for less than a municipality or a public/private partnership can provide. Many people can well afford to pay for their own access, the real problem is providing access for those who cannot fund their own. That's government's real job--leveling the playing field. Let's turn our attention to that instead of worrying about building a whole new system.

Welcome home!

Every once in a while, in the midst of reports about battles and budgets, the newspapers carry a really cheerful story. Today that story was about the tiny frogs that are being reestablished at the San Francisco Zoo. These miniature creatures now inhabit the shrubbery around the zoo, finally returning to the western part of the city after having disappeared for more than 50 years. Most of us will never see them but if we are patient, we may hear them in 2009 when they will be ready to head for the water and breed. Then the chirping sound of hundreds of frogs will be a sign that our tiny friends have returned to stay. Welcome home, frogs!

Manners or morals?

This week's visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to New York City has received more publicity than the visits of most other foreign leaders. Columbia University invited President Ahmadinejad to speak on campus, but apparently has had a difficulty time deciding how to treat him. According to the New York Times, the Iranian president's visit has caused a furor among students, faculty and alumni, as well as the general public. At issue is not only Ahmadinejad's willingness to appear and to answer, or evade, students' questions, but also the way in which the president of Columbia introduced the speaker. Instead of the usually polite listings of a visitor's achievements, President Lee Bolinger, chose to attack several statement made by Ahmadinejad about Israel, the Holocaust, and nuclear weapons. Was it a good choice to confront a visitor this way? This is not always an easy question to answer. Any civic group, such as the League, which is committed to airing all sides of an issue finds itself confronting points of view that are offensive to many. When can we decide that a person's point of view is so offensive we will not publicize it through forums or discussions? It is easy to be a bystander to another group's struggle with this issue, but not so easy to make decisions locally. That is why it is worth studying the reactions to Columbia University's stand and thinking about the morality as well as the manners suitable to such an occasion.

Oregon anyone?

The National League of Women Voters has announced the 2008 convention dates and location. League members who have never attended a national convention might consider making plans for this one, because it is not often that it's held on the west coast. June 2008 will be in the midst of an exciting presidential campaign and the League will have many issues to discuss. Be part of the discussion. Keep up to date with plans by visiting http://www.lwv.org but in the meantime, mark your calendar for
June 13 - June 17, 2008
Portland, OR

More worries about ballots

As if San Franciscans didn't have enough to worry about with faulty voting machines and slow ballot counting, a report from CBS news tells us that the building in which ballots are stored is unsafe. The old building, across the street from City Hall, has no fire sprinklers, Election Department Chief John Arntz confirms. Furthermore, the chain link fence is insecure. There is no word how seriously city officials are taking this unfortunate situation. There is no doubt much wringing of hands and shifting of blame in City Hall, but citizens need to stay alert to make sure something is actually done. Secure voting is a basic right and well worth the expense of maintaining security for our ballots.

How long will we wait?

Our election night ritual this year in S. F. is unlikely to include a celebration of the winners. John Arntz, who heads the city's Dept. of Elections, has warned voters that only the absentee ballots will be counted on election night. Because the Secretary of State, Debra Bowen, is not satisfied with the performance of the voting machines used in the city, each ballot cast will have to be visually inspected before it is counted. This will slow the process down as only 10,000 ballots can be counted each day. The impatient citizens of this information-hungry city will be forced into the same patience shown by citizens of developing countries as they routinely wait weeks for election results. Perhaps it will be good for us to be forced to sit back after the frantic pace of an election campaign and catch our breaths before we hear the results. One thing is certain--it is better to have reliable results than to have speedy ones that we cannot trust. We all hope these voting problems will be fixed before the next election, in the meantime we can practice our zen patience.

Reform or trick?

It's not too often that the N.Y. Times pays much attention to political maneuvering in the West, but the latest move of California Republicans is getting a big play in the East. Bob Herbert, the N.Y. Times columnist , writes of the most recent so-called Reform of the Presidential Election initiative. This would change the way California's electoral college votes are allocated. Instead of the winner-take-all system now in use here as well as almost all other states, the new system would give one vote to the winner of each Congressional district with two votes going to the overall state winner. Actually this isn't a bad idea, and the National League of Women Voters has been supporting a reform or abolishment of the Electoral College for many years. Changing the system in just one large state like California, however, would likely throw 20 or more votes to the Republicans in 2008, while the so-called red states would continue to give Republicans all their Electoral College votes no matter how many people voted for a Democrat. Reform of presidential elections should be a national matter with agreement from all the states to pursue a more equitable way of allocating votes. Civic minded people must insist that all of the issues hidden in "reform" measures be explained clearly to voters before they are asked to decide on them. Transparency in ballot measures is just as important as transparency in government.

Learning to be global

September is an exciting month in the school year as both students and teachers make a fresh start and hope that this year at least will be a great learning experience. One of the trends in Bay Area education has been the growing number of dual language schools that help children become fluent in more than one language. Private schools in the Bay Area have offered dual language programs in French and German for many years; this year a private Spanish/English dual language school has opened. Public schools in San Francisco offer dual language schools in Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese and Japanese. Some educators believe that children raised to be bilingual get an intellectual boost and are able to solve problems more easily than monolingual children. Certainly from a practical point of view, as children grow up and seek jobs, being bilingual will be an asset. In another generation we will be grateful for more global citizens, who may be able to work for a more peaceful world.

Where's your privacy?

A column by David Lazarus (formerly of the SF Chronicle) in the Los Angeles Times raises a privacy issue that has not been much discussed. The money saving deals on purchasing telephone, Internet access, and cable television from the same provider are attractive to many consumers. Few people, however, read the long, tedious privacy policies the providers send them. According to Lazarus, these policies allow companies like Times Warner to share information about the viewing and purchasing habits of subscribers. What a mass of information these companies collect--what TV shows you watch, what websites you visit--these can give companies a good idea of the kind of products and services you might want to purchase. Putting all your communication eggs in one basket may allows a company to know more about you than your best friend does. Is that a good idea?

Will the buses still run?

The Chronicle features another Muni story today, this one about the request for more than $100 million to build a new central control and communications center. It won't be easy for Muni officials to find support for this new project. People who use public transit are too busy complaining about the service to want to hand over more money, and people who never use transit are oblivious to the problems. There is no question that San Francisco needs an efficient public transit system. We have a small, compact city in which there is just not room for a one-car-per-person pattern to work. As more high rise buildings are approved, the needs grow even bigger. Why are city officials not talking seriously about raising transit fares? Muni fares are lower than on most transit lines in the country, and the service is much more extensive, but everyone is afraid to raise fares. A start would be to raise discount fares to half price instead of the current level. An adult monthly pass costs $45, while a senior pass is only $10. Not all seniors need this subsidy. Low fares should be given to those who need them, not to an arbitrary age group.

Grateful for TV

It is fashionable for many of us to complain about television programming and the effect it is having on our children and our culture, but sometimes we should be grateful. Today in Washington, Congress is holding important hearings on the Iraq War and citizens all across the country (at least those who have cable) can watch our representatives question General Petreaus and Ambassdor Crocker about conditions in Iraq. CNN3 is broadcasting the hearings. The networks will no doubt pick up highlights and play those later. And National Public Radio is carrying the program too. A generation ago, people had no choice but to turn to newspapers for coverage of Washington events, and the coverage was necessarily limited. Most of us don't have time to watch every minute of the hearings, but at least they are available and that is something to be thankful for.

When do elections start?

As media stories continue to tell us about the scramble of states to move their primaries earlier and earlier in 2008, the average voter is still not ready to make a decision for who should be president. Yet, with the growth of early and absentee voting, the early primaries may mean that some voters will cast a ballot before the end of 2007. Just yesterday Fred Thompson joined the ranks of Republican candidates and he has yet to articulate his positions, yet voters may have to choose whether or not to support him before they have a chance to get to know him. Perhaps more concerned citizens should let their representatives know that sensible voter choices are not promoted by forcing people to think about elections while they unwrap their holiday presents. Perhaps we should consider national or regional primaries that give everyone a chance to obtain the information they need to choose.

Someone is watching

Although many people debate whether police cameras on our streets are infringements of individual privacy, there is no denying that they can help reduce accidents. The SF Chronicle reports that collisions in the city have been cut in half since red-light monitors were installed at many busy intersections. In 1998 there were 773 collisions involving red light violations, but in 2006 these had been reduced to 374. Even though the monitors are installed at only 23 intersections, they seem to have raised the consciousness of motorists who might be tempted to zip through a red light. Once a driver gets in the habit of not trying to beat the light at some intersections, the behavior carries over to other intersections--and a good thing too. Our city will be a lot safer for motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians if everyone learns to follow the rules.

Something completely different

As we start the last holiday weekend of the summer, perhaps its time to turn away from social issues and relax with some of the things we like best. Many League ladies like to read and also to eat, and you can find a combination of these in a slim book by Mark Crick called "Kafka's Soup: A Complete History of World Literature in 14 Recipes". Crick has managed to devise a collection of recipes with directions given in the distinctive style of famous writers. Who could resist the opening sentence of "Tarragon Eggs a la Jane Austen" "It is a truth universally acknowledged that eggs, kept for too long, go off"? And who wouldn't fall under the spell of John Steinbeck giving a recipe for Mushroom Risotto that starts, "The porcini lay dry and wrinkled, each slice twisted by thirst and the color of parched earth." Before you head for the beach or mountains stop by your local library or bookstore and check out a few dishes. There will be time to worry about politics when Tuesday comes.