Memory Loss
City Weekly first wrote about the dangers ahead for Salt Lake City's Northwest Quadrant in 2010. The official idea then was to build a beautiful, sustainable community along the likes of Daybreak and sitting right on the wetlands of the Great Salt Lake. Neither the bugs nor the birds seemed to bother those bent on development. While that idea faltered, the Legislature decided to site the state prison out there, and is now pushing for an inland port in the fragile area. What got in the way of environmental stewardship were politics and politicians' short-term memory. Salt Lake City still wants to build, but without the state as its overlord. Westside residents are rightly concerned about pollution, traffic and, yes, the Great Salt Lake. The Salt Lake Tribune ran an op-ed citing the problems while the Deseret News was joyful at the thought of more business. Vacant land is just too tempting to leave alone.
Kiss This Bear Behind
Could we at least wait until Donald J. Trump is dead? Not that that's going to happen soon to the healthiest and smartest man in the entire world, but it might be a bit early to think of naming roads after him. Of course, that idea came from fellow coal-lover Rep. Mike Noel, R-Kanab, who might as well say, "Bears Ears my ass," to the public. That's where he wants to put the Donald J. Trump National Parks Highway. "As long as we can put an expletive in front of the name," says Michael Aaron, publisher of QSalt Lake. This isn't unusual for a red state. "Consider that in Alabama, Mississippi and Virginia, 'Jackson' is in the Top 10, but not any other president, not even Washington," writes Jeff Guo of The Washington Post, who reminds us that the No. 1 road name in Utah is, wait for it, "Main."
A Win For Equity
Yea, Jackie Biskupski—finally. Last week, the Salt Lake City mayor stood up for women, and pushed back against the hateful Utah Legislature. She welcomed Women's History Month with a Gender Pay Equity policy, something the Legislature not only refused to consider but pretty much dismissed as, you know, so much hysteria from women. Sen. Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, wanted to commission a study to look at the pay gap among the state's 22,000 employees, but was shut down almost from the start, according to KUER 90.1 FM. That's what happens when your state is run largely by conservative, old white males who mostly think women should stay home and bake bread.
