This Week in Sanity: June 18, 2021
If you're feeling overwhelmed with David Bronson and the activities of his transition team, get used to it because those feelings of dread and anxiety are unlikely to go away anytime soon. The incoming mayor and his followers — fueled by right-wing propaganda, have, in recent weeks, double-downed on the same divisive rhetoric spewed during the campaign.
But other things are happening in local politics aside from the proposed 'Bronsonville' plan, which we should also note. So don't worry, I'll cover 'Bronsonville' at the end, but for now, grab a glass of your favorite beverage. It'll help you get through it all.
Another progressive Anchorage Assemblymember faces a ridiculous recall effort led by the same individual who worked to recall Felix Rivera from his Assembly seat. That's right, Mr. Russell Biggs. But, Biggs' efforts were all for naught as the recall effort tanked miserably at the ballot box in April as voters saw through the legal yet arguably misguided recall attempt. Mr. Biggs is now actively working to raise the 2,468 signatures he needs to get the Zaletel recall in front of voters.
While Mr. Biggs is doing that...again...Anchorage Municipal Clerk Barbara Jones has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court of Alaska over the split decision in Judge Kevin M. Saxby’s order, which permitted one of two petitions filed by Mr. Biggs to proceed.
Anchorage Assemblyman Rivera was reviled by those who sought to recall him, and they failed. Zaletel will need to do some work to defeat the recall, but I think she more than likely survives it. If the Alaska Supreme Court allows the farce to continue, Zaletel will be working against a recall and running for reelection.
No word if the recall effort is planning on wasting more money on WPAi and Axiom Strategies again. The latest request for donations made to the Reclaim Midtown Facebook page received two likes and one share. Amazing!
Following a deluge of bombshell news about Donald Trump-related criminal investigations in New York, including the Manhattan district attorney’s convening of a special grand jury — the inciter of the January 6, 2021, armed insurrection has endorsed Kelly Tshibaka for U.S. Senate! Wow! That's an endorsement to be proud of!
Trump's endorsement calls Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski "bad for Alaska" and says that Tshibika is "MAGA all the way," and he's not wrong.
Days after the 2020 presidential election was called for President Joe Biden, Tshibaka penned an op-ed for Must Read Alaska, which echoed several of Trump’s unfounded voter fraud claims, including that thousands of dead people voted and that a voting machine “glitch” switched votes from Trump to Biden, which she called “credible.”
Dermot Cole has written numerous articles about the far-right candidate noting in one particular piece that "when she was at Harvard Law School two decades ago, Kelly Tshibaka wrote columns that generated some controversy, including one in which she said that "Homosexuals can come out of homosexuality because their preference is not biologically mandated. Unlike race or gender, homosexuality is a choice."
The Harvard Law School piece Cole references were written before Tshibika married and can be found here.
Happy Pride Kelly!
Kathy Henslee filed a Letter of Intent with the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) yesterday, signaling her run for a seat on the Anchorage Assembly. Henslee, who supported David Bronson in Anchorage's mayoral election, was endorsed by Jamie Allard when Henslee ran against Chris Tuck last year.
I'm not going to rehash everything I wrote this morning, but you can be sure there will be more to come since she's been a Save Anchorage member for a long time! Go figure!!
https://thebluealaskan.com/kathy-henslee-signals-run-for-anchorage-assembly/
Alaskan Educators for Education (AEFE) banned a member of the Alaska Coalition of Bipoc Educators (ACBE) from its Facebook group. ? The ACBE member wrote on Facebook that they were banned from the "so-called educational group for a post that will help people learn about #Juneteenth and the song #LiftEveryVoiceAndSing."
The ACBE member also wrote that the ban was "yet another example of white supremacist ideology and systemic racism," which seems like one hell of an allegation to make! But, on the other hand, maybe AEFE just thought the post was spam, or maybe they don't know what Juneteenth is, or maybe the group's moderator was too busy meeting with Rep. Ken McCarty, the "Eagle River representative who isn't owned by the AFL-CIO."
Oh well, maybe the banned ACBE member can ask why they were banned in 30 days.
Not much going on with Alaskan Parents' Rights in Education (APRE) this week other than the revelation that the head of the national group is none other than Suzanne Gallagher! From Oregon! The former Chairwoman of the Oregon Republican Party!
It's totally fine, though, because the moderator of the Alaska Chapter knows a lot - even more than the writers of this article, which documents how critical race theory moved from Fox News to school boards.
APRE's moderator, who testifies at Anchorage School Board meetings, wrote in response to the article that she had read it and deemed it "wrong." Facts really don't matter to APRE.
Oh Bronsonville...how we deplore you.
David Bronson's proposed plan for a homeless mass shelter is already drawing the ire of politicians on local and state levels.
Rep. Ivy Spohnholz responded to the proposal by writing that "a 400+ person mass shelter isn't a good idea anywhere," and Anchorage Assemblyman Forrest Dunbar has said that the shelter is too large, with the expense numbers seemingly unrealistic.
Dunbar has also stated that he's concerned about the proposed timeline for the mass shelter in addition to fire danger, supply chain issues, its isolation from services "and more."
Last evening, the Bronson team held a non-televised (soooo transparent ?) Town Hall meeting.
Bronson's big tent propaganda event didn't go over so well, with the incoming mayor turning red at one point, seemingly blindsided by the fact that not everyone has been wooed by his big fenced mass shelter plan nor his divisive language used throughout and after the mayoral campaign.
During the Town Hall event, Bronson said that the Salvation Army and the Hope Center were "experts" in the field of homelessness, perhaps forgetting that the Salvation Army has a long history of alleged discrimination, especially against members of the LGBTQ community. (They may actually be 'experts' in all of the wrong things).
Bronson also said that they would start enforcing fines for giving money to people outside your car window because that's exactly what JESUS would do.
Apparently, the incoming administration is also planning to issue jaywalking tickets because fining individuals living in poverty is also very JESUSY. Nothing gets people out of poverty like heaping stupid fines on them, doncha' know?
One attendee of the Town Hall who identifies as homeless and disabled expressed concerns about the accessibility of the shelter for those with health concerns.
Anchorage resident Chris Blake spoke at the Town Hall and challenged Bronson on his use of certain terms Bronson uses to speak about mental health and individuals. Blake had taken a social media reprieve shortly after attending an Anchorage Assembly meeting earlier this month in which he intended to be an ally for his LGBTQ+ friends and to possibly advocate for the homeless people he's worked with over the years.
The Bronson team should be ashamed of pitching such an unpolished pile of dog shit to Anchorage residents without being able to answer basic fundamental questions about the mass shelter.
We aren't feeling the compassion they claim to have for the homeless, the justification for not utilizing already existing structures, nor the justification for the over 15 million dollar price tag attached to the project, which will almost certainly wind up costing more than the projections.
Just imagine what Save Anchorage's response would have been if Forrest Dunbar had pitched a project like this!
Of course, our homeless neighbors need help. I'm just not sure most residents feel sticking them in a fenced-in area miles away from affluent residents and faaaaar away from accessible services is the best route to go. Besides, you can't force people to go to a mass shelter. So many unanswered questions! Still, using existing buildings seems like the better option now until the Bronson administration can put together some, you know, actual details about 'Bronsonville.'
Oh, and PS, they need to get this all done by fall. Good luck!
