Having been playing with Google+ for a while, I’m starting to get to grips with things. I’m seeing it as a place to talk geeky stuff, where I won’t bore the large group of people I am friends with on Facebook who aren’t obsessed by the internet. Twitter remains my default place to share stuffRead… Read more »
With so much focus these days on optimizing Service Levels to match realistic budgets, here is a series of cautionary tales of regulation run amok. Let’s think about the consequences of over-regulation, not only on expenditures, but also on culture and community values. This excerpt from Mark Steyn’s book on bureaucracy is a “must read”Read… Read more »
I’m confident that somewhere in Canada, some resource strapped innovative small town has abandoned desktop software and uses a cloud based service but so far no city of any real size has even publicly said they were considering the possibility. That is, until today. Looks like Edmonton’s IT group – which is not just oneRead… Read more »
Things which caught my eye elsewhere on the web USENIX 2011 Keynote: Network Security in the Medium Term, 2061-2561 AD – Charlie’s Diary It’s nearly impossible to underestimate the political significance of information security on the internet of the future. Rather than our credentials and secrets being at risk – our credit card accounts andRead… Read more »
Day 14 This morning we started out handling a concern from a resident whose driveway was poured last week as part of the road project. The contractor was supposed to have taken off the barricades yesterday. But for some reason, they never got over there to open up the drive. So we had to callRead… Read more »
MMC Public Hearing Set for Wednesday, August 24 at 6:30 PM at Canon McMillan High School; Public Participation Encouraged As the Legislature prepares to return to session next month, there is no shortage of hot-button issues waiting to be dealt with. Controversial proposals to privatize the state liquor stores and implement experimental school vouchers areRead… Read more »
Day 13 This morning we started out the day with our regular engineering staff meeting. There wasn’t too much unusual to report – everyone just gave an update of their recent work. And some even left the meeting early after giving their report because we are so busy and they needed to get back toRead… Read more »
Yesterday, Wisconsin residents held the last two of several recall actions against state lawmakers. The historic recall elections come after a divisive fight over collective bargaining rights and the controversial performance of the Republican led state legislature. Wisconsin residents sought to recall several Republican lawmakers in an election held earlier this month and last night’sRead… Read more »
Continuing their cyber-war against Bay Area Rapid Transit (CA), hackers broke into the website for the union representing BART’s police force and published personal information for 102 officers. “These people are criminals and we’re going to forward this information to the FBI,” said union president Jesse Sekhon. “These people need to be brought to justice.Read… Read more »
It is hard to find a time in recent history where the budget picture for state and local government looked as bleak as it does now. Faced with a multi-trillion dollar federal budget deficit, credit rating downgrade and shrinking revenues, state and local governments are forced to find ever more creative ways to provide servicesRead… Read more »