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Anchorage, AK Car Consumer Discussions

Re: UAW's image problem [dallasdude1]

by gagrice on Sat Dec 12 16:24:48 PST 2009

The featherbedding and work rules are supported by no empirical evidence. I know you can't say that with a straight face. What do you call 2200 pages of work rules in the Ford UAW contract? It takes about 2 pages for wage scales and another 5 pages for sick leave and vacation. Maybe five for grievance procedures. Five for layoff and rehire. What's with the other 2100 plus pages. Oh, right there are 400 blank pages for taking notes. The GOP has nothing to do with letting the cat out of the bag on Union featherbedding. In 1966 I was trying to get on with the phone company in Anchorage. I ran into a guy in San Diego that lived in Anchorage. He said the IBEW that I was trying to get on with was nothing but a hot bed of feather bedders. And when I finally was hired and moved to Anchorage by RCA, I found out for myself first hand that he was totally right. And it had nothing to do with politics. It was just a known fact around Anchorage. Much like the UAW feather bedding by many of the older workers. You know the ones that have sold the new hires down the river along with the retirees? Is there really any difference between the average American worker and the average UAW worker? Just that the UAW worker is many times over paid for the level of expertise. No such thing as a Fork lift operator worth $30 per hour. And we had them in the Teamsters and it was always a bone of contention. That is an off the street job that takes all of an hour to learn. If you are at all coordinated.

Re: 2001 Discovery II- Radiator hose blew- now transmission won't shift cor

by nanuq on Tue Nov 10 14:27:40 PST 2009

On my '96 Series I there's an ECU against the firewall on the passenger side. I removed my hood seals (that run along the fender lips to seal beneath the hood) and when I went through a car wash, it blasted enough water in under that lip that it soaked my ECU and the car wouldn't start. Yes, I have since replaced those seals, but I wonder if you don't have one or more ECUs in the same area, and they're soaked by the coolant? They're not hard to remove, then you remove the screws to open them up and dry them out.

The people have spoken.

by vcheng on Wed Nov 04 04:36:28 PST 2009

As predicted by many, people in three cities voted against red light cameras. There are primary sources from the local press for each city, but this source summarizes them in one place. from: http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/29/2950.asp Photo Enforcement Defeated at the Ballot Box in Texas, Ohio Voters in College Station, Texas as well as Chillicothe and Heath, Ohio vote to ban automated ticketing machines. Voters in three cities sent a clear message to local lawmakers yesterday by adopting charter amendments that ban photo enforcement. In addition to kicking two camera supporters from the city council, 72 percent of those voting in Chillicothe, Ohio approved a total prohibition on the use of red light cameras and speed cameras. In College Station, Texas the vote was much closer, but at the end of the night 52 percent wanted the red light cameras to come down. In Heath, Ohio 51 percent voted against the cameras. A total of nine cities nationwide have used the initiative process to ban camera enforcement since 1991, with camera proponents never having won a public vote. The triple defeat for the photo enforcement industry came despite a well-funded public relations effort in each of the cities. In Chillicothe, Redflex Traffic Systems sent a glossy mailer to every voter while the mayor demanded that the Ohio Supreme Court ban the public from even voting on the issue -- a move high court justices swiftly rejected. Citizens Against Photo Enforcement (CAPE), the group responsible for the ballot measure, claimed an additional victory as voters elected camera opponent Bruce Arnold, who won the seat of council president, Jeremy Siberell, who won the fifth ward and Dustin Proehl, the only incumbent to have voted against cameras. CAPE leader Rebecca Valentich told TheNewspaper that she was thrilled with the outcome. "We came together as individuals, and we united as a community," Valentich said. "The people have spoken, and very clearly. Our voices have been heard and thanks to the people and their strong voices, the cameras will be coming down. It is a huge victory, and one that we can all be proud of. And although our mayor has gone on record saying that he will fight the will of the people, his fight against the rights of the people will only bring a stronger united front from the community." In College Station, Texas the city's automated ticketing vendor American Traffic Solutions (ATS) bankrolled a front group to conduct mass mailings and push polling in an effort to save the program that would have earned the company more than $11 million over the life of the contract. The ATS-funded group reported raising $71,240 in contributions, but not one dollar came from anyone living in the local community. To supplement the vendor's effort, the city allocated taxpayer money to send red light camera promotional material to every voter. College Station activist Jim Ash, who led the fight to put the issue on the ballot, watched the results with a large group of supporters. "It has been nothing but celebration here," Ash told TheNewspaper minutes after the results became final. In Heath, voters were bombarded with the same advertisements from Redflex, but they failed to persuade a majority. Voters also defeated Mayor Richard Waugh who had introduced photo enforcement as the signature issue of his administration. "You can fight city hall and win, when you have a passion for what you believe in," We Demand a Vote spokesman Lori Lyons said in a statement. Yesterday's results are consistent with previous public votes on the topic. In April, eighty-six percent of the votes in Sulphur, Louisiana rejected speed cameras. In 2008, residents in Cincinnati, Ohio rejected red light cameras. Seventy-six percent of Steubenville, Ohio voters rejected photo radar in 2006. In the mid-1990s, speed cameras lost by a two-to-one margin in Peoria, Arizona and Batavia, Illinois. In 1997, voters in Anchorage, Alaska banned cameras even after the local authorities had removed them. In 2003, 64 percent of voters in Arlington, Texas voted down "traffic management cameras" that opponents at the time said could be converted into ticketing cameras.

Re: Why GW is Losing Supporters [steve_]

by gagrice on Thu Oct 29 17:52:43 PDT 2009

I spent 7 weeks in Atlanta going to a Western Union school. I went up to buy antiques in Chattanooga several times. They did have some great Antique warehouses there. Shipped a truck load back to Anchorage and sold them. Just seemed like what I would picture London black and gloomy.

Re: Why GW is Losing Supporters [steve_]

by gagrice on Thu Oct 29 17:39:02 PDT 2009

Throwing coal in a furnace with no scrubbing is bad news. It has no place in urban areas. Any kind of large fossil fuel burning equipment in dense population will cause a negative impact. The alternative for those in London at the time was freezing to death. Quick death or prolonged death, take your pick, When I went to school near Chattanooga in 1973 I could not believe the black smoke and filthy buildings. It was all new to me coming from CA and AK. Building a coal fired generator out in the middle of Utah, Arizona or Nevada with reasonable scrubbers is still the most economical electric generation. Cap n Trade will make them more expensive and possibly shut them down. If the price of electricity and oil continues to rise I would expect more people to heat with wood and or coal. Pick your poison. I have gotten used to clean air since leaving Anchorage and all the wood smoke. I don't want to have the government push us back into the dark ages with their ignorance.

Re: t&c electric problems [kochese]

by xwesx on Thu Oct 29 16:51:10 PDT 2009

Ah, I skipped that phase. ;) Here in Alaska, we often do things a little differently than the civilized world. There is a Johnstone Supply in Anchorage, which is a mere 350 miles away. I will check them out this winter when I am next down that way.