Posted inWarren Bednarz

City Councilor Warren Bednarz hit with ethics complaints

Warren Bednarz, a Salem city councilor seeking re-election this year (his opponent is Sally Cook), has been hit with two complaints filed with the Oregon Government Ethics Commission.  Both relate to Bednarz' failure to declare a conflict of interest when he voted on motions before the City Council that would financially benefit members of his family.  After a preliminary review of the first complaint, it was considered serious enough by Commission staff to warrant an investigation by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission. Here is the last page of the staff analysis. I've deleted the name of the person who filed…
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Posted inKate Brown

Oregon legislature wolf bill confirmed as howling lie

I plan to focus on being snarky about local politicians here in Salem, but when state officials do outrageous stuff, like confirm a howling lie, hey, I'm happy to cast a Snark in their direction. Today the AP is reporting what was obvious to wildlife lovers and environmentalists who opposed HB 4040, the bill recently passed by the Oregon legislature and signed by supposedly progressive Governor Kate Brown. "AG Rosenblum: Wolf delisting bill likely moots case" says: Download Oregon AG: Wolf delisting bill likely moots case - Washington Times Two weeks after the signing of new legislation that upholds in state…
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Posted inPublic Safety

City of Salem officials acting stupid on earthquake safety

Gosh, maybe this is too radical an idea for Salem's Mayor and City Council, but it sure seems like a "Public Safety" bond voters will be asked to approve in the November election should actually keep the public safe -- rather than being a massive waste of taxpayer money to build an overpriced Police Palace. A few years ago our sometimes-wise City officials recognized a scary truth: City Hall and the Library are almost surely going to collapse when the next massive Cascadia subduction zone earthquake, a.k.a. the Big One, strikes.  Children at the Library's Storytime would be crushed under…
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Posted inChuck Bennett

Chuck Bennett’s shameful role in U.S. Bank tree killings

Chuck Bennett is running for Mayor of Salem. I'm sharing an email about Bennett that voters should read before they choose between him and Carole Smith, the other candidate for Mayor.  The email shows that Chuck Bennett was complicit in a shameful moment -- the needless killing in 2013 of the five large, beautiful, healthy Japanese Zelkova trees on downtown's State Street. At the time, as now, Bennett represented Ward 1, which includes the Historic District. Yet Bennett not only did nothing to save the U.S. Bank trees from being cut down for no good reason, he actively participated in…
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Posted inUncategorized

Why Salem Political Snark? SO MANY REASONS!

(1) Keeping Them Honest. There's a whole lot of sleaze going on in politics these days. Too many public figures think they can say or do outrageous stuff, and people won't notice. Or, care. Well, Salem Political Snark does! Like the saying goes, we're doing the Speak Truth to Power thing. (2) Standing Up For the Little Guy/Gal. In Salem, as elsewhere, the folks who already have money and power try to get more by buying elections, manipulating the media, and making backroom deals. This town has its own version of the 1%, which does its best to keep on top of…
Posted inWelcome, Snark lovers!

Welcome, Snark lovers!

Click here to learn what this blog is all about. Click on a category in the right sidebar for Snarks about a particular person or subject. Give us a Facebook like. Got a suggestion for a Snark? Use the Contact form. Dirty politics, outrageous actions, sleaze, backroom deals... send me details! If they know we're looking, there'll be less misbehaving.
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