12:27 a.m. - 2004-04-06
Rest Stop
I spent a good part of today working with one of the other Returning Officers. We checked a couple of possible sites for offices. With the election no closer to being called almost half of the Calgary team will lose their original choice as landlords find long term tenants. We can't ask them to forego revenue when that is the purpose of their business, but it does make our position tough. Same thing with other service providers. I've reserved photocopy and fax machines but those are somewhat limited in supply in terms of rentals in this city. The contact person called me today to ask for a definite date, since he has other people wanting the units he has. Again, I can't ask him to forego revenue when this event might not be called until the fall or later.
We discussed several technical challenges we both have and various possible solutions as we paced the pathways of the park where we stopped to have lunch. The park is the one that I helped raise nearly $1 million to build. She got a lesson in the history and politics in my neck of the woods and even seemed to enjoy the story. She reciprocated by telling me tales of her experiences as a volunteer in her church. Very similar issues even though the context was quite different. A lot of those experiences drive the way we see and respond to the issues arising as we prepare for this election. We know what we don't want our workers to have to experience based on what really bothered us years ago.
When I got home, there were two stories - one from Chicago and one from New York newspapers that were very germaine to our concerns. Both talked about the recovery of the economy but at the expense of the people who work for the companies raking in record profits. Both stories explain where the income is disappearing to corporate_taxes and Profits.
Two other e-zine stories that really interested me were because they represented two opposite views of the effect of the internet on access to resources and copyright issues. The first is a study by two professors of economy - one from Harvard and one from North Carolina - on the measured impact music downloads are having on record sales downloads. The second story from the community of scientists who want to see their thoughts and discoveries made easily available on-line to the general public to improve the level of scientific knowledge in the community. Their debate is how to ensure that happens without breaking their bank. Access. I don't think copyright is such a big issue for them because the pool of people who could "steal" their ideas or information and have any credibility would be very limited.
The final story that caught my eye was this one that explained how easy it was for foreign nationals to get false identification and how it was also possible to market it in North America for native born residents. Forgery.
The balance of my day? The other Returning Officer and I stopped in for groceries before she dropped me back home. Next was a meeting with one of the supervisors I just hired, then an evening of emailing different staff and contacts with the information they will need for their next phase of activity. Restful, Right? Of course right.
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