The Essentialness of Busses…
Busses, well, busses are important. Or so believes Steven Higashide, author of Better Busses, Better Cities. 99 Percent Invisible introduced me to Steven’s work in episode #388 — Missing the Bus. The work of Higashide belongs on a podcast like 99PI because the pod deals with the design of everyday things. And I can’t think of too many things more every day, than busses.
As a summary and an effort to pique your interest in the episode yourself, I’ll give you a sampling of some of the subjects that Higashide explores. The raw efficiency of busses, in comparison to other transit systems, is the overall thrust of the book. Their necessity in an age of Climate Change is explored and the frustrating stigma that remains with riding them takes up a significant portion of the book. This book is about more than busses. It’s about our community and society, and how we choose to organize it. After reading this book, or simply listening to the podcast, you’ll come away from the experience with the feeling of how impactful increased utilization of busses could be to our society and certainly to our environment. Give the book a read…give the pod a listen, it will be well worth your time and you will be the better for it.
I enlightened you on that story in order to tell you this one.
It’s been two weeks since the election. I’ve never experienced an election where I voted for the candidate, yet I was left with such a sense of loss. Perhaps, it’s because it was a deeply dividing election where the needed mandate and supporting legislative seats were not attained as well, that forms the foundation of this melancholia. Perhaps it’s because the inept leaders(Chuck & Nancy) gallingly lost seats in an environment of turmoil and Republican accountability. Once again, snatching defeat out of nowhere when a victorious mandated seemed assured. This election raises all sorts of questions and in the coming weeks and months when all the details and certifications are known, we’ll begin to have those answers. Until then, however, I will reach for the positive. I find that positive in District 1 of the AC Transit Board. Her name is Jovanka Beckles.
I first met Jovanka when she was paying visits to the various Democratic clubs in her pursuit of Assembly District 15 in the East Bay of Northern California. I knew that she had the resolve and experience through her years of service on the Richmond City Council to make a great Assembly member. I began doing volunteer work on her media team focusing on the obscene sums of money pouring into the race from deep-pocketed interests backing her opponent. Unfortunately, we lost that race by about 14,000 votes or a little over 7 percent. After that election, I scattered to the Santa Ana winds of Southern California. It heartened me to learn that Jovanka was running for office again, this time for the AC transit board of the region that I had called home for over 35 years. Jovanka will always have the interests of the working people in the forefront of her considerations. Whether you are a driver or a passenger, as a strong Union advocate, she will always have your back.
