UW campaign to educate cyclists about traffic laws

Bob L.  Just My Opinion
Oct. 14 2014

Why just UW, look around, Cyclists think that they own the road and all right of ways, look at how many have been killed or injured since this state has given them the  right of way on state roadways, these cycle riders, they think that they are exempt from these laws, they don’t have an endorsement on their driver’s license that all others have to have, and a yearly license that all vehicle’s have to have and pay for to use these roadways, they don’t even have a yearly license fee on their cycles to pay for their special lanes.

When are all these so-called college educated people going to learn that all laws have to be enforced, not just the ones that they want to enforce, but no they would rather make s new law and not enforce what they have now.

And now they want ride share and the transit system to carry their cycles for them, are they paying for that service to transport their cycles plus the rider fee, it is just like the environmentalist complaining about pollution from cars and truck, but what do they do, they load their cycles on their cars instead of riding them, they hang them on the back and cover up their license plates so if they do some thing wrong, you can not read their plates, which I thought was against the law to cover up your license plates, and tail lights.

And You Wonder Why Kids Today Are So Sick!!!

Bob L.     Just My Opinion
Jan.27th 2014

People believe these scientists when they are not sure what they are doing, but when it comes to your health, people think it is a lie.

Why do you think that kids of today are more sick than kids born before the 1960’s, birth was more natural with less drugs than today, today there are more drugs prescribed for people who are sicker now then years back.

They are trying to ban cigarettes because of health hazards of smoking, then they pass laws on where you can smoke, and then go out and say it is alright to smoke marijuana, and that there is nothing harmful in that, now the only thing harmful in that is that the states and the Government want a way to charge more taxes since they cut their nose off to get more taxes from people to get them quite, but the thing is that if they keep raising taxes, they won’t have any one here to pay them, and if they can get people high they will vote for any tax and the people won’t know what they voted for, Oh it is that way now, they just voted because the lie sounded good.

How about the women who will be around people smoking marijuana, what do you think will happen then, who will they blame when their children are born unhealthy and have to live on some type od drug or some machine, or how about brain-dead, then who will you blame and who will you believe, it will be you, you were the greedy one who had to have marijuana over cigarettes, in most cases drugs have a better chance of killing you quicker or some one else just like alcohol.

But go ahead keep believing that drugs are good for you, and then see what happens and where you end up when you can no longer do your job, and then do you think that the Government will help then.

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Marijuana Use During Pregnancy Affects Baby’s Brain

By Tanya Lewis, Staff Writer
01-27-2014

Using marijuana during pregnancy could affect a baby’s brain development by interfering with how brain cells are wired, a new study in mice and human tissue suggests.

 Researchers studied marijuana’s effects on mice and brain tissue from human fetuses, and found that the active ingredient in marijuana, THC, interferes with the formation of connections between nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain responsible for higher thinking skills and forming memories.

True Meaning Of Medical Marijuana

Bob L. Just My Opinion
Jan. 5th 2014

Mayor Como has it right, medical marijuana should be only for patients suffering from cancer, glaucoma and other serious diseases, not just because they have a backache, every one has a backache of some kind, but medical marijuana was supposed to be for terminally ill people (not recreational use) where drugs did not help, or it took to many to relieve the pain which could be worse than death, they just want to relieve the pain while they are still alive, not so stoned on pain killers that they don’t know if they are dead or alive.

Major Hospitals should be the only ones to prescribe marijuana and prove that person is terminally ill and need it, and put the hospital on the hot seat for giving it to any one who is not terminally ill, and could lose their license, and if that person gives it to some one else, then they lose that right to get medical marijuana, and then they are banned from having any marijuana in their possession.

But today the law got a bunch of druggies, and Yuppies in Government, so any sensible program will be ignored for more costly programs to be passed without looking at the out come before any mistakes are made, once made then try to reverse them, but they all went to college which shows how much they learned other than dumb and dumber, they sure did not learn any thing else. And to make it worse, they want to lace food you eat with it, now this is where food labeling should be mandatory, and a ban to stop spiking food with drugs of any kind.

Now that Government has opened the door to marijuana, what is the next drug they are going to try to get legalized, give them an inch and they will want a mile, and there will be no end to it, it has already started with the Environment to where jobs have been lost, you can not solve any problem with people out of work to solve and work on the problem, but a hand full Environmental Terrorist think that they are the solution and not the problem, how many farms have been closed whether it be cattle or produce, Environmentalist and EPA, they are the biggest problem in this Country for that and jobs.

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New York Gov. Cuomo to allow limited use of medical marijuana

Reporting by Chris Francescani; Editing by Jon Herskovitz, Dan Grebler and Diane Craft
Jan. 4th 2014

NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York will soon allow the limited use of medical marijuana for seriously ill patients under a plan the state’s governor will announce in the next few days, the New York Times reported on Saturday.

Thank You For Your Comments, Farewell To All

Comment By Bob L.
Dec. 3rd 2013

As they say things can not sustain itself without money, that same thing goes for people in private life, you do not have to be a business to be able to survive without money, it is happening to Americans every day, and they are not the ones at fault, society is the cause.

People who are exposing these problems of what is going on, are being called trouble makers, trouble makers are the people who won’t listen to what is happening, and by doing this they are doing just what the Government wants, they want the people to turn against each other, and this is what is   happening.

They are using IRS, FBI, EPA, Environmentalists, Special Interest Groups, Churches, Foreign Interest (allowing Terror groups to come in as refuges, some have been caught) and they are using the Race Card every time some one does some thing that does not go their way, this is used by both sides, and by doing this, it puts more pressure on the people and getting them fighting each other, and this list of people know that this will cause the biggest problem and get them fighting so the Government and the rich can keep Americans not trusting each other, the people who you should not trust, are these same people YOU SHOULD NOT TRUST.

We the people should be trusting the people they work with each day, not the people who say that they are working for you, and if you have noticed they are not, they are only working for them selves, so we the people have to get together and take this Country back and put it back in the hands of the United States Constitution, and not in the hands of the people who are trying to DESTROY IT.

As they say people are their own worst enemy, and this is so today, they are afraid to trust the people they work with, which I do believe is true but you can not deny it, but we the people have to get over it and start to think about what you want to leave your Kids and Grandkids, WHAT FUTURE do you want to leave them, do you want them living under control of a Dictator and living under the total control of Suppression like the Novel of Ebenezer Scrooge, Dickens’ Christmas Carol.

As I go on, I agree that we are headed towards the bankruptcy of this country, just like the Citizens who will be in line headed forward to seeing a Judge in the next Ten Years because the more people who can not find a job, why can’t they, who is blocking them from finding a job, and why are we still Discriminating of all Legal American Citizens to get a good Education, Jobs, good Health Care, not free Care.

When it comes to jobs, who has control of who works and who does not, THE RICH, who control who gets hired and how, again the Rich, where does Racial Discrimination start, the people who CONTROL THE JOB, SO, who should be Prosecuted for Discrimination, not the people, but the people who set the rules of hiring, then on the other hand, unless the Companies start hiring people to work and cut back on MACHINES, there will not be any jobs to go to, and by this there will not be an income to support buying power for products and money to keep this Country Operating.

Watching Presidential Powers and The Constitution, the same thing was happening as usual, Democrats got up and went through the same thing, Name Calling, Race Card, and this is the problem every time some thing does not go their way, we as American Citizens need to get rid of this, we need to ban all Special Applications and make it that all Legal Americans are Equal, and no Special Privileges for any Legal U.S. Citizen.

This will be the last time I will be able to make any Comments, I am having to shut down my Internet Connection that keeps me from going stir crazy, I have done this since 2003 after a stroke, I know you will say good, well, I am one of those who got stung with Obamacare, and he says no one will get hurt with this plan (to take over), well it is not just hurting the Middle and Lower Class, it is also hurting the Sick and Elderly.

I want to wish you all a happy holiday season and wish you a safe and long life under what they want to tell you what to do with your life.  MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR, AND MAY YOUR GOD BE WITH YOU, I know we all have some one we believe in and follow.

The Hell With Maryland, How About the U.S. Government who’s to Blame

Comment By Bob L.
Sept. 26th 2013

What the hell’s the matter with Maryland? What’s the matter with the United States and their Education System?

Don’t put the blame on the Schools alone, you have to look at the parents too, the schools don’t just do it alone with out some parents in put, if the parents really were for an education of their Children, they would stop them from changing how these kids are being taught.

I don’t want to get into Schools and how they teach now compared to years back when schools had pride in what they did, but today they are only interested in Money and how they can get paid to not show up to teach, I don’t know of any one else who can go on strike and get back pay they lost while they were on strike and not working.

There is no education today, it is all done at home and not in school, because all they want to do is give tests, and how many kids want to go to school day after day and not learn any thing, then they want to know why kids drop out.

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What the hell’s the matter with Maryland?

September 25, 2013

There’s really no question by now that entirely too many school administrators across America are crazy, drooling morons. However, school administrators in Maryland — and some teachers, and a few students — possess a special, possibly bionic blend of stupidity and lunacy.

Let’s review the indisputable facts. Amazingly, all of these ridiculous incidents occurred in Maryland in the last several months alone.

Butter cow doused with fake blood

Comment By Bob L.
Aug. 12th 2013

This just ONE of the types of groups that run this Country today , and the courts and Government let it happen, even though there are laws against Vandalism, Hate Groups, and Harassment, and not one of these are protected by the Constitution.

But it seem that all these Groups have protection from the Government and the Courts, because when certain groups create HATE, VANDALISM, TOTAL DISRESPECT for the laws that are on the books, Governments and the Courts do NOTHING to enforce them, just make a new law.

When it comes to enforcing the law, these people stand and Quote the Constitution for their benefit, just like they did when it came to the American Flag a few years back, where they said under the Constitution that it was ok to BURN the American under your right to freedom speech, even though it is a Capital Offence to Desecrate, Deface or Burn the American Flag, and now we have a President who Swore to Protect and serve this Country and its Flag, WON”T even Honor it unless he is backed in to the wall, he turn his back on it when it is being Honored. 

I bet he would He would Honor this,
the Muslim Brotherhood Flag.

 

As long as we have a Government and Courts who will not enforce the laws we have now, new laws are not going to do any thing about the Laws that are being violated  now, except fill another book of unenforced laws of this Country, so this kind of thing will never be stopped, unless ALL these laws are ENFORCED. 

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Butter cow doused with fake blood at Iowa State Fair

Dylan Stableford, Yahoo! News
08-12-2013

An animal rights group has claimed responsibility for dousing the famed Iowa State Fair butter cow with fake blood.

The sculpture was covered with red paint early Sunday, fair officials said, and the phrase “freedom for all” was scrawled on a viewing window in front of the cow.

A group called Iowans for Animal Liberation sent an image of the vandalism to the Des Moines Register, claiming responsibility.

“After dismantling the lock to the refrigerated case housing the Butter Cow with a screwdriver, we doused the entire butter sculpture in red paint,” the group wrote in an email to the Register. “The paint represents the blood of 11 billion animals murdered each year in slaughterhouses, egg farms, and dairies.”

Police are investigating the incident.

“The butter cow is something people come to the fair to see,” Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Scott Bright told the newspaper.

The annual fair, which began in 1854, attracts more than 1 million visitors a year. It’s also a popular quadrennial stop for presidential candidates hoping to catch the attention of Iowa voters, who traditionally hold the first in the nation voting contests.

More than 100,000 people attended Sunday, fair officials said. The 10-day event runs through Aug. 18.

Called a Government Out of Control Means Dictators Close Behind

Comment By Bob L.
June 30th 2013

This seems to be the type of Government this Country wants, what I mean is that nothing can be done without asking the Government if you can use a plastic bag, water bottle, or maybe your car.

Look around, what do you see, Environmentalists, Special Interest, and the Government telling you what you can eat, how far you can drive your car, what you are going to carry your groceries in, if you have not noticed, every thing they take away for you to use, it comes with a cost of thing left for you to use.

It’s becoming a crime to smoke a cigarette, but it is alright to smoke or eat an illegal product, and that is not a crime, is that because some one is going to make more profit from the poor people again, it is ever ending, they take money away from the poor and think nothing of it, but when it comes to the wealthy, they get Tax breaks. 

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UVA student jailed for possession of bottled water, ice cream

June 29, 2013

A University of Virginia student spent a night and good part of the next day in jail after seven plain-clothes agents from the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control division ambushed her.

The student, 20-year-old Elizabeth Daly, made the mistake of walking to her car with bottled water, cookie dough and ice cream in a dark supermarket parking lot near the UVA campus, reports The Daily Progress.

The seven agents sprung aggressively into action, suspecting that the student was carrying was a 12-pack of beer. She was actually carrying a sky-blue carton of LaCroix sparkling water.

Police admit that one of the high-strung agents vaulted onto the hood of Daly’s car. She contends that one of them also drew a gun.

It’s not clear what about Daly’s appearance gave the six police officers the belief that they had probable cause to confront her en masse.

Daly, along with two roommates who were in the car, did what reasonable, unarmed people usually do when violently pounced upon by seven people. They tried to get away.

“They were showing unidentifiable badges after they approached us, but we became frightened, as they were not in anything close to a uniform,” Daly said in a written account, according to The Daily Progress.

“I couldn’t put my windows down unless I started my car, and when I started my car they began yelling to not move the car, not to start the car. They began trying to break the windows. My roommates and I were … terrified,” the student also wrote.

According to court records obtained by the Charlottesville paper, Daly “grazed” two agents with her vehicle. At this time, the records state, the unidentified passenger in the front seat of her SUV was yelling “go, go, go” and simultaneously diving into the back seat.

Once the three students managed to make it out of the parking lot, they called 911. Daly testified that her goal was to drive immediately to a police station. However, she was stopped by a vehicle with identifiable sirens and lights.

Daly had just left an annual UVA “Take Back the Night” vigil on the famous campus founded by the man who drafted the Declaration of Independence. She was eventually able to explain that she had purchased the water and junk food for a sorority benefit. She also apologized.

The seven Alcoholic Beverage Control agents were not satisfied. They charged Daly with three felonies: one count of eluding police and two counts of assaulting a law enforcement officer. In Virginia, each of these Class Six felonies carries up to five years in prison and up to $2,500 in fines.

The seven agents then had her hauled to the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail.

The incident occurred April 11. Charlottesville Commonwealth’s Attorney Dave Chapman deigned to drop the criminal charges this week.

“You don’t know all the facts until you complete the investigation,” Chapman told The Daily Progress in defense of his own actions and the actions of the Alcoholic Beverage Control agents.

It’s unclear why Chapman’s investigation took some 80 days.

The Charlottesville broadsheet also does not mention how much Daly paid her defense attorney, Francis Lawrence.

A spokeswoman for Alcoholic Beverage Control’s regional office, Carol Mawyer, refused to provide details other than saying that the bureau’s agents cunningly wear plainclothes.

“This has been an extremely trying experience,” Daly wrote in her statement. “It is something to this day I cannot understand or believe has come to this point.”

Follow Eric on Twitter and send education-related story tips to erico@dailycaller.com. Join the conversation on The Daily Caller

State shutdown would close state parks

 

Comment By Bob L.
June 21st 2013

Contingency planning for state agency operations

I can not believe that the American people are so Stupid, they complain about the intrusion of the Government in to their lives, and then turn right around and let the Governments tell them that they don’t own these State, City, County, and State Parks.

These entities’ don’t own any thing they are owned by the American people and they are only care takers of them for the people who give them Tax money to maintain them, so I do not under stand how they can tell the people how they are going to use them and when, or even charge them to use them just to have a family Picnic for the day.

Now I did not say Camp, I said Picnic for the day, that should Always be free, if you want to camp then that should be chargeable, like they say, Water if an Electric pump is used, and Power are there, they are not free to any one. 

But when they say they say they own them, they DO NOT the PEOPLE DO.

If the Government says they need money to Operate, then they need to do some House Cleaning in their Organization of Offices that are not needed, and should have never been started.

Looking at that list if Offices that will close if a budget is not achieved, they are nothing more than a Duplicate or Triplicate that one Office with fewer people could do, I know you have to give your Family and Friends a Lavished job with some one else’s money. 

A good example is Liquor Control Board could be cut and be run by the State Patrol, being the state washed their hands of Alcohol and went private, Board of Education can take over all the Colleges with fewer people, you can go on and on and see where they can cut a lot of money in this Bureaucracy of Government Agencies. 

These 34 state agencies could be totally cut in and made in to one, not Three Offices for every one office, and this could save money, Contingency planning for state agency operations, who will be shut down and who won’t.

There are probable more that could be phased into one, and use fewer people to do the work, but they think that they are so over worked, every time I have gone to a Government Office, all I see, is people waiting in line to talk to some one, while the people working there, were talking to each other and drinking Coffee, and all but two windows were closed out of Six or More that were unattended, then when someone opened a window one that was open, Closed.

It seems that Government Employees have more Breaks on the Taxpayers Dime, than they have time in working.

 

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By Lee Stoll
Thursday, June 20, 2013

LYNNWOOD, Wash. — The list of state-run programs that would be cut or scaled back by a government shutdown is 12 pages long. It would affect everything from state park summer trips to how officers keep tabs on sex offenders.

Marisol Silva’s first trip to Deception Pass State Park may be her only trip here this year.

“It’s terribly sad news,” said Silva.

If the state does not approve a new budget, parks will close just as the tourist season is starting.

Campsite and cabin reservations will be canceled.

“I’m going camping with our church in July over in Leavenworth.  I don’t know if it’s a state park.  I sure hope not,” said visitor Melynda Bly.

The list released Thursday says several offices will close down, including the Lottery, Liquor Control Board, Services for the Blind and the Arts Commission.

GPS tracking information for sex offenders will be suspended.

“I’m just astonished,” said Heidi Bride., who lost her job two weeks ago and is using WorkSource to get back on her feet.  The state will close those offices, too.  A skeletal staff will process unemployment benefits but Bride will have to find a job on her own.

“I depend on this.  I’ll be out on the streets without WorkSource,” said Bride.

College students and their families face uncertainty too.  They won’t know what financial aid will be available as they plan for the 2014 school year.

 

Digital pickpockets using technology YOU ALL Just Had To Have!!

Comment By Bob L.
05-23-2013

Now that you got what you wanted, this will cost you your BANK ACCOUNT, and you will get every thing you deserve, you YUPPIES just got a have the best and fanciest of every thing.

Read on Nitwits you got what you asked for, and lets see how you like it now.

Two Years  Ago Mar 9, 2011:  Also, Feb 8, 2011 :

and People Still want these Cards and Phones today, for what, bragging rights to show that you are a Nitwit, (a slow-witted, stupid, or foolish person).

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 KOMO NEWS

Digital pickpockets using technology to steal credit cards

By Matt Markovich
Published: May 22, 2013

SEATTLE — Convenience and speed are reasons businesses often used to encourage early adoption of a technology intended to improve our lives, especially when it comes to paying for goods and services at a cash registers.

But digital pickpockets have found a way to use the same technology to line their pockets with goods and services bought with stolen credit cards. The newest smartphones are making it easy for thieves to steal and use stolen credit cards.

To understand how it’s done, you need to understand our attraction to speed and convenience.

In an effort to speed up credit card transactions at the cash register, major credit card companies have adopted a “contactless” payment systems like MasterCard’s Paypass. It relies on radio frequency identification or RFID technology. RFID enabled credit cards are embedded with a hidden microchip that stores all the account information necessary to complete a transaction.

It’s the same information on a  card’s magnetic strip. The difference is how it’s communicated during the transaction. The RFID enable card uses a hidden antenna to broadcast the information to an electronic credit card reader.  The user completes the transaction by tapping the card over and electronic reader at the register. With the traditional card swipe, the account information is read off the magnetic strip.

Now smartphone manufacturers, including Samsung, Nokia, Motorola, LG and HTC are releasing phones that are “NFC” or Near Field Communications enabled.  NFC is  form of RFID technology that takes advantage of both transmitting and receiving data via the smartphone.

NFC enabled phones have the ability to read the data on microchip credit card but they do not come with the software to actually do it.  Software is also needed to translate the information otherwise the credit card data is meaningless.

Enter the hackers or code writers (depending on your point of view) who have not only written software to make the credit card info meaning meaningful, but software that leverages the smartphone’s ability to use NFC to transmit data to an electronic reader.

For years, digital pickpockets have built RFID readers that can electronically sniff someone’s wallet or purse for account information embedded on an RFID enabled credit card. That step has all but been eliminated by the cell phone manufacturers. The newest versions of Android smartphones have the hardware to do the same thing and more.

With a firmware modification and a free open source application that can easily be found on the internet, the average person can turn their NFC enabled smartphone into a credit card stealing machine and then use the smartphone as that stolen credit card.

The Problem Solvers want to see for ourselves just how easy an NFC enable phone make the job of a digital pickpocket easier.

We modified a Motorola Razr and installed the software to test just how easy it would be scan a RFID enabled credit card and play it back to an electronic reader.

KOMO News has elected not to name the application or the firmware modification because we don’t want to encourage others to do this behavior.

We visited eight Seattle area stores that were equipped to accept a contactless payment system like Paypass with and without the store’s knowledge. The Problem Solvers were able to use a variety of credit card numbers that had been scanned into the phone as if they were stolen by digital pickpocket.

We made successful transactions at six of the eight stores we visited. Of the two that were not successful, clerks believed it was a problem with the reader detecting the phone.

“That’s frightening” says Robbie Watson of Zelo Bike Shop after we showed him how I used a credit card that wasn’t my own to make a purchase at his store.  Since the electronic transaction doesn’t include the cardholder’s name, there was no way for Watson to verify the account number I was using was actually mine.

“Even if you showed me your ID, I couldn’t verify the account,” said Watson. “There’s something not right about this”

At Seattle Cigar and Tobacco, owner Naeen Ahmad realized the same problem when we showed him how we used the phone in his store. There’s no way to verify the info broadcast by the phone to the reader is my credit card.

“I think it’s very dangerous, extremely dangerous. It’s like anybody’s credit cards are not protected anymore,” said Ahmad.

Security consultant Steve Manzuik believes it’s going to fall on the credit card industry to make contactless transactions more secure.

“It’s a feature that hasn’t been very well thought out,” said Manzuik, who works with Leviathan Security Group, a Seattle firm that works with corporations on fixing their computer security breaches.

“The payment card industry wanted to speed things up a little and make it much faster for people to buy things,” said Manzuik. “They are moving to this standard, which clearly isn’t as secure.”

MasterCard Worldwide says it’s aware of the situation we were testing.

“The circumstances under which it can occur in the real world are extremely rare,” MasterCard spokeswoman Beth Kitchner said in a written statement.

“We don’t consider this to be a serious threat to our cardholders. MasterCard strives to stay far ahead of fraud. However if even one cardholder is impacted, we have a zero liability policy,” Manzuik said.

Nobody is going to buy a phone and be able to start scanning credit cards in an hour says Manzuik. But if you have the technical ability, it’s not that hard to figure out.

Manzuik believes people should be able to tap their phones and pay for something using and RFID enabled credit card.

“It’s the fact that they are doing it insecurely, that’s the problem,” Manzuik said.

There is now a cottage business growing on the internet of devices to protect credit cards, driver’s licenses and passports embedded with microchips from the electronic sniffing of an RFID reader. Most products consist of foil lined wallets and sleeves.

There are also tutorials on YouTube demonstrating how a person with a sharp knife can remove or disable the microchip embedded in a credit card.

If you want to simply get rid of the RFID enabled credit card but not the account, call the credit card company and ask them to issue you a card that does not have the microchip inside.

Comment By Bob L.
04-04-2013

Washington State: For a STATE that is complaining about no money, is sure spending a lot of it, and if you have not noticed, Washington state seem to be in the process of privatizing every thing that they are in control of, is this so they can give them selves more money in their Wallets, it sure looks like it.

When they Privatize, it only affects the workers, not the people at the top who used to run these Departments, it seem that they got pay raises, not let go like every one else, they are just like the federal Government, anywhere from Two to Ten different departments run and finance the same programs, they could save money if one department ran the State, the ones Elected by the people, Government does not need all though people to do what the Elected people can do, the Governor, the house, and the senate is all you need, that is what they were Elected to do, not delegate some one else to do it for them.

The same thing goes for the schools, you have to many people doing the same thing, a good Teacher can Teach and Run a school with out the help of the Government, and Unions, this is the problem, to many people in the pot, and with that many people in the pot, there is no room to do a good job of teaching, you get Teachers WHO want to Teach, and get RID of Teachers that are only looking for money, not the job. This is HOW you SAVE and HAVE money for Education, Reading Writing, Arithmetic and a Trade or Profession. There is too much Testing, Home Work and not enough In School Teaching.

What is the next thing are they going to put up for auction to the highest bidder, Highway Department, State Patrol, we can not say State Parks, or Alcohol that has already ben done, but seem to be that the people don’t like it, just YUPPIES, that way they have the parks to them selves because no one else can afford to go to them unless they don’t pay a bill or not buy some food.

If the State can not Do the job that they are Elected to do than they might as well close the doors and go back in time to where the state had no one to run it but the Indians, they did a better job than any Government has.

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Good to Go pass might become ticket for ferry

JORDAN SCHRADER | Staff writer 
Published April 04, 2013

A Good to Go windshield sticker might someday get a car across the water by boat as well as by bridge.

 An $8.7 billion transportation spending plan proposed Wednesday by a bipartisan group of state senators calls for Washington to come up with a plan for using prepaid toll passes for state ferry payments, reservations and customer service.

“We want to have one pass for everything,” Des Moines Sen. Tracey Eide told reporters while standing with fellow Democrat Steve Hobbs of Lake Stevens and Republicans Curtis King of Yakima and Joe Fain of Auburn.

Frequent toll payers set up electronic Good to Go accounts and put transponders on their vehicles for cashless payments on the eastbound Tacoma Narrows bridge, the state Route 167 HOT lanes and the SR 520 bridge.

The Department of Transportation would study what it would take to add ferries to that list while maintaining a toll contract with Electronic Transaction Consultants Corp. The study would cost $250,000 from a ferry fund with results due to the Legislature Nov. 29.

Another study – funded by a $200,000 appropriation from legislators in 2011 – has already looked at ways of paying ferry fares and concluded Good to Go should expand to ferries.

Key lawmakers appear sold on the idea.

“We believe this will provide a less costly and more effective system for the payment of everybody that uses the system,” said King, who co-chairs the Senate Transportation Committee with Eide.

A series of problems plagued the Good to Go program in 2011 after ETCC took over tolling operations statewide. A backlog of potential toll violations was caused by hundreds of thousands of Narrows bridge crossings that were wrongfully processed as unpaid.

King said many of those problems have been corrected. He noted the proposed budget would spend $150,000 on a study of whether to outsource auditing of the Department of Transportation’s toll division to independent auditors.

The last study reported a state survey had found some support among Good to Go and ferry customers for combining the systems. Ferry riders already can use an ORCA card that also works on bus and train fares.

Though the proposed study is limited to ferries, state toll division director Craig Stone said he foresees Good to Go one day being used for all kinds of modes of transportation, with airport parking one likely option.

The budget proposal released Wednesday also calls for WSDOT to reduce toll administration and overhead, an action pushed by Sen. Nathan Schlicher, a Gig Harbor Democrat.

For example, it calls for a 20 percent reduction in Narrows Bridge administrative staff costs. Stone said those costs represent 1 percent of the bridge’s budget.

The spending plan also clears the way for increases in ferry fares and Narrows bridge tolls by restoring the state Transportation Commission’s power to set both rates. Last fall’s passage of Initiative 1185 reverted that authority to the Legislature.

The commission is poised to approve two 25-cent toll increases, one taking effect this summer and the other a year later.

Read more here: http://www.theolympian.com/2013/04/04/2490572/good-to-go-pass-might-become-ticket.html#storylink=cpy