Watch out for those tickets, Monday October 26, 2009

If you have a car in Chicago, you better be weary. Reported by the RedEye, Chicago's percentage of parking meter violations has risen 26% this year already. And just so you know, the area in and around the Loop accounts for half of that increase.

ABC 7 News reports:

Records show about 327,650 tickets were issued in the first eight months of the year for expired meters or overstaying a pay-and-display spot. That's up from fewer than 260,000 in the same period of 2008.

This "ticket blitz" as its being called, has accumulated around 7 million dollars in revenue for the city. These well-earned dollars go directly to our depleted general fund.

So what does that money go towards? Well one thing is, as stated by the Chicago Tribune "The city budgeted for additional parking enforcement staff in September 2008, and 32 personnel were added in late 2008 and early 2009".

But why are they ticketing so much? Well somebody has to pay for the CTA, the libraries, the school systems, the many festivities Chicago has to offer, among other things. All understandable.

But my question is, why weren't they doing this in the first place? Did they not realize that people who drive are usually idiots who don't care about the parking meter? Why now, are they cracking down when, as reported since this year, the city could have made millions of dollars to make up for its huge expenditures cough the Chicago Olympic bid cough.

Therefore, by riveting and precise analysis, Beatnik Babble Broadcast has hypothesized that the city of Chicago is not in the right concerning the matter of the parking blitz. We have assessed the situation and demand that the old parking way of life be restored and the money taken from said idiots be returned. Our conclusion is that it is not fair to make a sudden change in ticket traffic, targeting the unaware Chicagoans.

Moral of the day: Don't own a car in Chicago. If you do own a car, buy a mobile parking spot, they make them small enough to fit in purses, handbags, and murses, not wallets.

The Olympics in Chicago, Friday October 2, 2009

Do you back the 2016 Olympic bid? Well, Chicagoans, you don't need to worry about that any more.

There he is, our angel coming down from heaven on a flying white unicorn. This picture was taken after President Obama gave his heartwarming speech today for the IOC (International Olympic Commitee) as well as his wife, Michelle.

Chicago 2016’s bid leader, Patrick Ryan talked a few weeks ago about the possibility of losing this race. He said it all — THREE YEARS and TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS in fund-raising/tax payer money/debt to cover expenses — would have been worth it.

Worth it eh? I was reading the Redeye today, and they reported that 47% of people were for the games and 45% of people were against them. Those kind of opposition numbers could certainly be cause for a riot/another war we can't afford to throw ourselves into...

VS

The people who made this lovely interpretation

Maybe the IOC didn't like the lack of support in Chicago... what with videos like this one floating around youtube like it aint no thang.

What Beatnik Babble Broadcast heard was that some members on the IOC didn't like the Obama's overly-business-like nature which could be quite probable. We have heard also that the IOC is crazy.

So with people sobbing over in the business district like this poor woman is about to do, what the hell is Chicago going to do with itself?

We are shamed. We are losers. And what does Mayor Daley have to say? He says he doesn't have anything up his sleeves for our awful, painful, ugly economy.
Lost in the IOC vote today were billions of dollars in construction contracts, potentially tens of thousands of jobs and a chance to remake large parts of the lakefront metropolis.



It was also a personal embarrassment for Mayor Richard Daley, who had pushed back against some strong local opposition and strong-armed the City Council into guaranteeing the financial portion of the city's bid. Also in the RedEye, Mr. Kurt Summers, who WAS the chief staff member for the olympics, said "If the people of Chicago weren't behind this, we wouldn't have gotten a resounding message of the City Council".

Oh yeah? Is that how you saw it Senor Kurt? I think that man is either stupid, or has been lying to himself for too long that he doesn't know his ass from his mouth. I'm not sure what went into having such a "resounding message" at city council, but it certainly wasn't the other HALF of the city that never wanted the games here in the first place.
So like I asked, what happens now? Representatives of the 2016 Committee said on many occasions at public meetings that this was the plan for jobs and prosperity for our future. There appears to be no plan B."

Way to go! Glad you gave thousands of people and companies HOPE for a brighter, greener future, but since it didn't work out, you've gone and fucked this city into a hole deeper than it was in the first place.

Moral of the day: Ask to be paid in cash, all of you. Save it in a safe at home. And screw taxes and Mayor Daley.