Yes, you can still fight City Hall! The latest news from Rosemary Shinohara at the Anchorage Daily News is that Mayor Dan Sullivan has requested a “postponement” of consideration on the new sidewalk etiquette ordinance: The administration asked that it be referred to the city’s Public Safety Commission, said Ossiander. A public hearing on the [...]

  By Shannyn Moore My sister and I were doing homework and talking about a boy in our junior high school. We were laughing about the dirty high-water pants he seemed to wear every single day. I looked up to see a tight-faced Pop. I was confused until he said, “There was a time I [...]

By Jeanne Devon And the King shall answer and say to them, Truly I say to you, Inasmuch as you have done it to one of the least of these my brothers, you have done it to me. Matthew 25:40 If that old Biblical saying holds true, it’s safe to say that Mayor Dan Sullivan [...]

  By Linda Kellen Biegel Here at The Mudflats we did a post not long ago about an incident discussed during an Anchorage School Board Meeting. It seems that Bob Griffin, a twice-failed candidate for the school board, was pulled over by the police. Here is the explanation in the words of School Superintendent Carol [...]

He’s at it again. Mayor Dan Sullivan has found a new way to stifle the voices of Anchorage residents, and keep them from making all those pesky suggestions and complaints – you know, “citizen participation.” Apathy and disconnection is far more appealing to the current administration. But, tomorrow, there is a public hearing in which [...]

In a previous post on the “Anti-Public Education Agenda”, we discussed how corporations and right-wing radicals were driving the “school choice” and education reform movements nationally and statewide. However, no one has played politics in this arena quite the way that Mayor Dan Sullivan has here in Anchorage: – Since the early days of his [...]

The thing that consoles me when I write about local issues, is that our characters here in Alaska (even though many of you are from elsewhere) are so incredibly over-the-top and ridiculous that they can be appreciated in their own right, just for the entertainment value. It’s like writing a book full of short stories [...]

So how completely impressed are we with our new Assembly Chair Debbie Ossiander? Just as impressed as we were with her the last time she was Chair. And that would be… not at all. Her ignominious rise to the top spot hinged, apparently, on her loyalty to Mayor Dan Sullivan, and she’s been eager to [...]

Remember THAT kid back in grade school? Remember coming to school and sharing the excitement of how you got the remote control car you wanted for Christmas? THAT kid would talk about his brand new remote control F-15 jet…life-sized. Or, you’d very proudly reveal the balsa wood car you’d carved yourself and painted red to [...]

I attended the first meeting of the new 2011 Anchorage Assembly, which also was (sadly) a farewell and passing of the baton by Eastside’s Mike Guttierez to the election winner, Adam Trombley. The main purpose of the meeting was to certify the most recent Municipal Election, to swear in the returning Assembly and the one [...]

Back when the Anchorage Assembly Chair was Dan Sullivan, he presided over a “meeting-before-the-meeting” of the Assembly. This is a meeting they have before their regular Tuesday Assembly meeting to basically get the organizational flotsam and jetsam out of the way…present amendments, new ordinances, etc…so that time isn’t eaten up on Tuesdays with “making the [...]

National Oceanic and Aeronautics Organization (NOAA) does regular scientific research all over Alaska but especially in the wildlife and Arctic areas. They frequently use sophisticated underwater recording equipment to gather information on marine mammals: However, on March 11, 2011 off of the coast of the Aleutian Islands, they happened to catch the sound of something [...]

Tuesday night yielded mixed results for both the Anchorage Assembly and School District. Assembly: It Could Have Been Worse Although the final verdict isn’t yet in on one progressive incumbent, and a pile of absentees are still outstanding, things aren’t looking great for Mike Gutierrez. With a 252 vote deficit to overcome, Gutierrez can in [...]

I’m putting up an early open thread because the returns will start coming in from the Anchorage race about 8:30 pm Alaska time (12:30 am East Coast). Reason #1 to Vote: Mayor Sullivan and his minions. There is some developing election gossip/news involving the Mayor… Former campaign manager for Diane Benson and new Alaskan, Caleb [...]

There are actually 6 seats up for election on the Anchorage Assembly. However, we are going to focus on three of them for two very good reasons… 1) The incumbents are under attack from Mayor Sullivan, 2) and under attack from corporations and big-monied businesses. The attack-ees are Harriet Drummond, West Anchorage: Elvi Gray-Jackson, Midtown: [...]