In Praise of Bill Peduto

So, can we all take a breather from our torturous circumstance and admit that it is not Bill Peduto’s fault we’re saddled with a lying, narcissistic, idiot of a mayor? Can we be adults about this whole thing and admit it is our own fault?

Peduto was derided and scorned for dropping out of the race after his pollsters discerned even Jesus Christ could not beat Luke the Visionary. Those pollsters were proved dead-on correct as we subsequently forgave and elected that little SOB, scandals/disgraces/outrages not withstanding. And this is Peduto’s fault?

Bill went on to RETURN unused campaign contributions saying he could not
bring himself to ask people for money

when he knew he didn't have a snowball's chance of winning. Nor could he bring himself to keep the money he had in hand after he called it quits. Instead of bulking up his campaign war chest for future elections, HE RETURNED THE MONEY. Has anyone heard of any politician doing anything remotely similar? Did we give him even a modest pat on the back for this rare show of honor and integrity? Nope, we instead hurled insults at a good man who was already down.

Bill always has and always will fight for this dysfunctional city of ours. Whether it is domestic violence, Act 47, budget overruns, zoning disputes, civil liberties or even small stuff like animal control …. Bill is the one everyone runs to because Bill is the one who is sane, honorable and capable. Can we all agree on at least that much?

Last night Luke basked in the glow of the city’s love and admiration as he was duly sworn in as mayor of Pittsburgh. He grinned, partied and puffed out his visionary chest as the Pittsburgh Tax Credit Promise unraveled in the background. Outside of the camera’s glare, it was AGAIN Bill Peduto who worked tirelessly and thanklessly, mopping up the mayor’s latest mess. Hammering out a sane, legal deal with UPMC. Peduto again trying to salvage our sorry, nearly-bankrupt asses.

If we don’t have it in us to thank this man for all it is he does do ….. Can we at least not saddle him with the responsibility for the existence of “Mayor Luke Ravenstahl”? We, the citizens of Pittsburgh, created that particular monster, not Bill. We, the citizens of Pittsburgh, freely voted for Luke in landslide proportions, not Bill. And guess what? We’re now getting exactly what we asked for. Surprise, surprise.

Come on, people. Let’s get real. A good start would be to thank Councilman Bill Peduto for everything he has done and continues to do.

I for one am very happy to say, "Thank you, Bill Peduto!"

City Council Update

Pothole Practices

City Council responded to the wrong question today. With the exception of Jeff Koch, each council member assured the public that they had no power to decide which streets get paved and which are left to crack and crumble further. Koch, who spent 25 years in Public Works, felt he was elected to his council seat because of this experience and he therefore was expected to make decisions as to which streets should be paved and which should not. He further added, without any apologies, that that’s just what he intends to do.

Today’s discussion was prompted by Bill Peduto’s legislation which called for the mayor to abandon the subjective picking of streets and return to a computer-driven pothole assessment model. Council’s varied explanations were in response to public perception that street paving occurs on streets where the politically-connected resided rather than streets in the most need of repair. But their personal denials skirted the central issue which was whether “pothole politics” was in play at some level of local government. This, the real question, was left unanswered.

Councilman Jim Motznik, who like Koch used to evaluate streets when employed in Public Works, felt that the current “manual” evaluation system was working just fine. “The system does not need fixed”, was his eloquent summation of the situation. “Misinformation is being sent to the media. The public needs to know I don’t pick the streets, committee chairs don’t pick the streets, the Director of Public Works picks the streets.”

Exactly the point. The public does not trust that Public Works Director Guy Costa or any other civil servant is “picking” streets according to any objective criteria … manual or not. Council’s long commentary today did nothing to allay those fears.

Darlene Harris, who was not favorably inclined toward a computer-driven system, thought there would always be a need for the “human element”. She was also upset by the tone of the public emails she received on the subject as was Jim Motznik.

As usual, it was Councilwoman Tonya Payne who missed the boat by the widest mark. She indignantly declared that our lack of money, and not politics, was the reason all the needy streets weren’t being paved. Note to Tonya: The discussion was about the fair and objective prioritization of streets on the paving list. Not about our inability to get to all of them.

Pothole Politics

Peduto Says It’s Payback

Councilman Bill Peduto’s car slid into a pothole in front of his Point Breeze home yesterday. The accident occurred just days after the councilman released a report alleging pothole pavings were being used as perks for those in power and the politically-connected.

“That’s simply preposterous” Mayor Luke Ravenstahl retorted. “Why, right off the top of my head I can think of three public servants whose streets are in a desperate state of disrepair and have not been paved yet. If you count Peduto, that makes four and I’m sure there are plenty of others. It has always been my intention that our puny pothole paving budget be parsed out as impartially as possible.” The mayor of course was referring to Anna Dobkin, Dick Skrinjar and Marlene Cassidy; the three staffers who Ravenstahl abruptly demoted just last week.

But Peduto pointed out that numbers don’t lie and his report shows that Pittsburgh’s politically connected and ONLY the politically connected (save for the 3 demotions and himself) have had their streets repaired. “Regular citizens will never get on the list” he predicted.

It is well-known that the mayor blames Peduto for much of the disrespect he’s had to endure, including the upsetting nickname “Fluke”. So a giant pothole appearing out of nowhere and swallowing Peduto’s car whole did not surprise many of the local pundits. They were puzzled, however, as to what the three Ravenstahl staffers could have done to warrant their abrupt demotions much less being purged from the Pothole Paving List. Word is if there are any bodies to bury or skeletons to hide, these three know about them. Keeping those particular potholes uncovered might prove to be yet another impetuous decision the young mayor lives to regret.

Ravenstahl Campaign Kicks In To High Gear As Primary Looms

Phone Bank Activities Confuse Seniors

With the primary just a few short weeks away, the Ravenstahl campaign has decided to kick things up another notch. Mayor Ravenstahl’s only other opponent, Councilman Bill Peduto, dropped out of the race March 21st leaving Mr. Ravenstahl an assured winner at the polls this May 15th. Others would take an opportunity such as this to sit back on their laurels; but team Ravenstahl is moving forward with a legion of door knockers, phone bankers, and requests to the media to schedule the long-promised debates.

Anna Marie Cancellare, 82, of Bloomfield, was one of many seniors who recently heard from Ravenstahl phone volunteers asking for their votes. “I was a little confused at first”, confided Anna Marie. “They said something about ‘I Like Luke’ and I thought they were from some teen-idol fan club wanting to speak to my great-granddaughter.”

Many other seniors have also been puzzled by the calls. “I asked them who else could I give my vote to?” commented Joseph Donato Sr., also of Bloomfield. “I’m still not sure it was really them who called. After all, whose gonna bother to run in a race all by themselves? No, I think it must have been some identity theft people on the phone. And I told them that! Yep, I told them they weren’t fooling me for one minute.”

But the ‘I Like Luke” team presses on even with hurdles such as these. Their mission is to make this the most exciting and engaging uncontested election Pittsburgh has ever seen.