January 30, 2008
Tastes Great AND Less Filling
The Chron got all investigative reporting today and discovered that after getting raises in 2002, the Board now meets less than when they did before the raise. Let's see...more money...less work hours...how do we get that job?
The raise came about thanks to Proposition J, which we all passed in 2002. The proposition said that at $37,858, the members of the board needed a pay raise, which seems kind of fair considering how expensive this city is. When we made that kind of money, we were living in one of those two bedroom apartments with three roommates. Now they make $95,000 so we're guessing most of the members of the Board can now afford one-bedroom apartments.
But ever since then, the Board has been meeting less, from holding 46 meetings in 2002 to 39 last year. Members of the Board say that this allows them to have more time to meet with the masses and do all sorts of work that they couldn't necessarily do in those 46 days they meet. Plus, have art shows. Aaron Peskin points out that despite all the slackness, they do manage to get a lot accomplished and listed some big-ticket items that they have worked on recently. Others point out that 39 is way too much as it gives the Board plenty more chances to screw things up. As for Gavin's people, they get their digs in by pointing out that unlike the Board, they work 9 to 5 which is quite a way to make a living and they're barely getting by as it's all talking and no giving.
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As anyone who's ever tried to sit through one of those Supes meetings knows, they're EXCRUCIATING. I don't blame theem for wanting to meet less. If they can get the job done without subjecting themselves to torture, then I say bless 'em.
And what's with the Mayor's office being such douchebags towards the Supes lately?
$37,858 was certainly not enough, but why $95,000? That is certainly too much. I'd say somewhere between $50-70k is appropriate.
I'd be happier if we had half as many board members earning twice the pay and working twice as hard. Instead, it just seems like they hang around to participate in a year-long bitchfest.
What do you think their collective job approval rating is?
I for one am really proud of the work they have done for the people of San Francisco. That non binding vote to deny the existence of the moon was a good one. And who can forget the brilliant ban on plastic bags so now everybody at Safeway has to get their groceries DOUBLE BAGGED because the handles on their crappy paper bags break before you can even lift them off the checkout counter. Great job guys! Way to go!
Thank you Robin, well put. And they certainly didn't need those extra meetings to quash such pests as free wi-fi, and, my favorite, smoking on golf courses. I say we fire them all and let Gavin rule SF with a sexy iron fist.
wait a second. you missed the real story here. they were making 37k for a part time job before and this allowed them to convert it to fulltime. our city has gone to hell in a hand basket ever since with full time fucktards like daly having all day to dream up worthless crush the business type legislation.
Lets see,
plastic = comes from oil, non biodegradable, recyclable (but seldom done), fly away, ends up in great garbage patch in the Pacific willing sea life
paper = come from a renewable resource, biodegradable, recyclable
It seems pretty obvious what is best, even if you are double-bagging.
What is best is getting your cheap ass some canvas bags. Who really has a gripe about the plastic bag ban?
What's weird is that, in raw numbers, the number of ordinances passed each year since 2000 has remained pretty steady (about 280) and the number of resolutions has gone down from about 1000 in 2000 to about 700 in 2007. (The info is available here: http://www.sfgov.org/site/bdsupvrs_index.asp?id=4381.)
And yet, I feel like I agree with suckafree that it seems like the Supes have too much time to dream up ways to expand the local govt.
Maybe the amount of legislation introduced is larger now (even I don't have the free time to count that) or maybe the *quality* of the new laws is *better*.
Here comes a cheap shot ....
Of course they're meeting less - they send all their tough decisions to the ballot box these days. Ballot box budgeting a cop out and bad government.
I still want to know just what in the hell they plan to do about the $4 billion and counting liability for retiree healthcare benefits the City and County have promised employees but haven't set aside a dime (to my knowledge) yet to pay.
One other thing ... maybe we should encourage them to eliminate ordinances or somehow streamline them instead of passing more stuff that nobody knows about. I already feel like I need a law degree to understand some of the stuff they float.