SI.com’s Surprise Team: Georgia!
Check out the front of the Sports Illustrated website today:
They have an excellent article, an overview of their writers’ predictions for the season.
I’m going to post my predictions for Georgia’s season tomorrow.
The Purpose of a City
The Georgia Municipal Association posted a great article from Otis White on the purpose of a city:
Cities exist to create citizens. Not to generate economic gains (they do, but as a byproduct), or provide a home to the arts, entertainment or learning (again, byproducts), and certainly not to support a government (it’s a means to an end). I would argue that the real purpose of cities is to create a group of people who will take responsibility for their community. And it’s this willingness to accept responsibility that is the difference between a resident and a citizen.
I think we in government (and our residents) forget the ultimate purpose of what we do, which (for me) is to solve common problems that a single individual cannot solve on his or her own. Things like roads, libraries, building codes, and public safety. To do these things, citizens (not residents) formed collectives. We need to continue to reinvigorate our populations and create citizens who get back in the habit of looking out for the greater good and who help create a better place to live.
I don’t know if it is the responsibility of city managers or elected officials to create citizens. But we all need to do more.
I’m adding ‘creating citizens’ to my own mission in local government.
University of Kansas Carillonneur Video
Alright, now I have to support my second alma mater, the University of Kansas. Check out this awesome video of the campanile and University of Kansas Carillonneur Elizabeth Berghout. The best part has to be the carillon playing “The Crimson and the Blue” in the background.
Boys of Fall Football Video
I believe this is an extended music video for “The Boys of Fall” by Kenny Chesney. The song tells the story of football, and this video is mixed with some great high school, college, and pro football videos and some advice from coaches and football players. This is a pretty cool video.
The Georgia fans are sure to notice #34, but did you see the pictures of young #7 (not related to Georgia)?
We Made the Paper!
Emily and I made the Summit Daily News today! Click on the image for a screenshot of the full page.
And special thanks to our good friend Josh Weiss for taking our awesome wedding photos.
Sweet ESPN Georgia Commercial
Hat tip to Brett. And I have to agree with the comments: this can’t be a Georgia fan. But Hairy Dawg responds just like a Georgia fan.
Kansas MPA in New York Times
I couldn’t be prouder than to see my Masters of Public Administration (MPA) program, the University of Kansas, get a prominent mention recently in the New York Times:
Classes in local government were first offered at the University of Kansas in the late 1940s, when city management was becoming professionalized in reaction to corruption, says Marilu Goodyear, chairwoman of its department of public administration. Students today — including civil engineers, firefighters and police officers seeking to advance to leadership positions — are often interested in careers in city management or finance. Internships are part of most M.P.A. programs. Kansas’ are distinctive: students intern full time in city government their second year. With campuses near Fort Leavenworth, the university also attracts military personnel involved in nation building and reconciliation in Iraq and Afghanistan. (Maj. Robin W. Montgomery, aide to Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, graduated last summer.)
Kansas tops the U.S. News & World Report rankings for city management and urban policy.
My friend and classmate Rob (Robin) got a huge mention! Way to go, Rob!
Public administration is an incredible field, but it often gets confused. You tell someone you work in government, and they assume you are a politician. Public administration is typically about the professional government worker (nonpartisan during working hours and unbiased) implementing policies handed down from politicians.
I would recommend an MPA for anyone looking to start, or further, a career in professional government. If you are starting out, I would recommend attending a program that has very good connections to internships. Or, find a job in a government and later go back and get an MPA. Either way, the important part of the degree is the application of real-life experience to MPA classes.
And with all this talk of MPA degrees, I have to brag about the one I just received!:
Younger Employees are Important
Just one more reason why younger people in government (or any field, really) are important:
To make matters worse, seniority rules resulted in the layoffs of younger tech-savvy employees who were among the most skilled in resolving computer problems, the report said.
“Those folks who were sleeping on cots to fix this system are the ones who were shown the door,” said one former employee.
Why I Don't Depend on Apple
Why don’t I depend on Apple products? Because you need a translator to read Apple’s press statements (the writer of that, John Gruber, is an unabashed Apple fanboy). That press release is the laughing stock of the internet right now.
My cellphone is something I depend on everyday. If it can’t get a signal (because I can’t hold it correctly or AT&T’s horrible service) or if I can’t replace the battery (batteries hold less of a charge over their lifespan, and with the iPhone, I can’t change the battery), I can’t trust it to work when I need it.
Don’t get me wrong. I love my first generation iPod Touch (seriously, love it). The apps are incredible, and everything just works. But the battery will barely last an hour now, and it crashes frequently. My iPod Touch is just an extra, something I love, but I can live with out.
My cell phone (a Blackberry) is always there for me.
My Content on My Server
And this is why I’d rather host my content on my own server (like this blog). Twitpic, the popular Twitter-related image host, blocks a tool that lets you automatically get out all of the photos you’ve uploaded.
