| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2010 4:14 am |
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Local News 
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Political roundup starts with pasties I unplugged my cell, turned off my laptop and slipped out of town for a few days to enjoy and explore what Ken Burns describes as “America’s Best Idea.”While I trekked along dusty trails at 7,000 feet, I missed out on a few stunningly fun performances of American democracy. Let’s begin with the politics of pasties. In the course of my absence, a few scantily clad baristas landed in the roiling waters of the criminal justice system for allegedly doing things with a latte that shouldn’t be done in public. While police responded to the exploits of some nearly-naked purveyors of fine caffeine products, the Everett City Council went into action with a bit of legislative morality. Council members this week changed its lewd conduct law to require that those serving coffee keep their nipples, areolas and plumber’s crack covered at all times. If it can be done with pasties and a sheer undergarment, then all’s good under the law. Not every resident in this city is satisfied with this outcome and that makes me wonder if incumbents will face the wrath of a barista backlash this election. I can’t help thinking several Democratic lawmakers had their political futures in mind when an ACORN-sponsored event in Everett got canceled last month. Several progressive Democratic state representatives and one Republican had been invited to the forum billed as a conversation on economic challenges faced by low-income families in Snohomish County. ACORN is a wounded advocacy group these days. It’s suffered a series of self-inflicted black eyes, the latest coming with that video of its workers allegedly helping people posing as a pimp and a prostitute to apply for government benefits. It’s been hard to recover under a constant assault of the nation’s conservative raptors. Democrats in Congress didn’t help the healing by voting to cut off federal funds to a group they’ve long befriended. In Everett, the last-minute decision to not hold the forum had multiple explanations. Some worried controversy with ACORN elsewhere in the country would overshadow the purpose. A couple of lawmakers who planned to attend received sharply worded e-mails about their participation that made them think twice about their personal safety and maybe a little about the political discomfort they might experience. Finally, I think we can stop talking about Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon running for governor. I saw the online video testimonial, and I think that, with a little training and organic sweetener, he might be preparing for a new career beyond politics. His decision to make that unpaid commercial endorsement of an energy drink in the county building was not criminal and apparently not unethical. And while it likely won’t hurt him if he seeks re-election in 2011, it’s not the kind of behavior that will go unnoticed in the brighter glare of a statewide campaign. He would endure repeated questions about the judgment used in making that video in a taxpayer-funded building rather than extolling the company’s virtues at a news conference or ribbon-cutting at the headquarters — an accepted practice of political pitching. Reardon is one of the more skilled political figures in the state and doesn’t do much without a plan or a purpose. I’m sure there is one here and I just have to wait to see the rest of the performance. Political reporter Jerry Cornfield’s blog, The Petri Dish, is at www.heraldnet.com. Contact him at 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com. |
- Sorry, Hawkeye; M*A*S*H gets bowled over
- Former Whidbey student shot
- County archive software paid for but waiting for set-up
- Ruling expected on Sultan beating statement
- ‘Roadkill’ caucus seeks a voice for centrist Democrats
- Police seek witnesses in two accidents
- PAWS calls out for critter care-givers
- Boeing has a busy test schedule
- Ex-Boeing engineer jailed for espionage
- Morning mystery: What happened to House Bill 3181?
- Lynnwood sets height limit on grass: 8 inches
(10) - State Senate votes to toss I-960's tax-raising hurdle (9)
- School levies in Snohomish County all passing, Marysville bond failing (6)
- A tidy lawn could be law in Lynnwood (4)
- County archive software paid for but waiting for set-up (3)
- Vote on school levies by Tuesday (3)
- Two suspects sought in Everett shooting that injured two (3)
- Lynnwood makes law against too tall lawns (3)
- Schools do well in levy elections (2)
- Snohomish County's bargain housing won't last (2)
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