Guerilla Marketing

I received a reminder on Facebook today that the Canada Day Countdown was this evening. The invite came from Craig Allen, who recently ran for Saint John city council using some guerrilla marketing techniques (chalk drawn website refers on side walks, and apples with stickers with his URL).

While Mr. Allen isn't on council, his techniques were commendable (less waste than big signs stuck about town), and led me to search for some other interesting street level marketing campaigns.

Weburbanist.com has a post with 15 interesting guerrilla marketing examples. The coolest one on the list involves a sign that simulates a car jumping over a drawbridge.

Still, by far my favourite guerrilla marketing campaign has to be one that went horribly wrong: the mooninite Boston bomb scare.

No Vendors

I realize that when a group of vendors selling random nicknacks and junk congregates in front of Rockwood Park, city parks officials might think this makes the city look less than sparkling, but today when I drove up to the park for a walk I was less than impressed that this was the first sign I saw.

I find this a bit less than inviting.

Randy Bachman

I was disappointed to hear that Randy Bachman isn't coming to Saint John in July. I would love to see him play - especially if his performance was full of stories like an episode of Vinyl Tap.

I was going to try to hold a grudge but then I listened to his CBC show this evening and heard him refer to himself, Burton Cummings Fred Turner and Neil Young as the "Four Horsemen" of Canadian rock. He went on to explain and play songs that featured this artists that shaped Canadian rock in 1960's Winnipeg.

I love Bachamn's ability to bring up how prolific he is. Bachman's style of self promotion has led me to refer to him as the Gene Simmons of Canadian music.

Rhetorical consultation

I recall some time back that Barack Obama was being called eletist. John Stewart of the Daily Show gave a good commentary that essentially said that he wanted an elitist president - a president that was better than him and could govern better than him.

I think in Saint John, 20% of the voting population voted for our non-elitist candidate in May, which was enough to make Ivan Court our mayor, and we're starting to feel the results.

Our "down-to-earth" mayor and his cronies are opposing (or stalling) a major development proposed for the city's waterfront because they are "looking out for the little guy" (in this case the little guy is a union that thinks maybe one day the port might expand its industrial operations back into the downtown) and standing up to the corporate elite (in this case a large local company that wants to invest in a city-center modern, attractive, LEED standard-built, headquarters).

We are seeing the bitter folks that didn't want an elite leader - or an elite city that moves forward - say things in the local news like "the Irvings have too much" and writing letters to the editor criticizing the city manager for completing a report on the proposal "behind closed doors."

Openness can be good, and considering all options is prudent, but we can't expect those who lead to ask our advice on every micro detail, this clearly isn't leadership. And just because we're "poor workin' folk" doesn't mean a bitter anti-business mindset is good for our city - in reality it is clearly not.

So mayor Court, get on your high horse (it comes with the robe and chain) and lead our city into an elite future.

Google Maps for cyclists

An interesting thought occurs to me as I prepare for a bike trip to a family member's cottage. I am printing off Google Maps directions that have estimated travel times between various points. These are often eerily close to the actual time it takes to get from point A to B to C.

I think it would be good if Google Maps or another mapping tool allowed for you to put in you estimated travel speed (say 17.5 km/h) and then output your directions based on how long you should expect to take between various points on the map.

If this exists already and I've just missed it, please let me know.

George Carlin

George Carlin died yesterday. A discussion of Carlin's death and works on the CBC this evening introduced me to this quote, that was part of Carlin's Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television routine:

• “We have thoughts, but thoughts are fluid. You know, [humming]. And, then we assign a word to a thought, [clicks tongue]. And we’re stuck with that word for that thought. So be careful with words. I like to think, yeah, the same words that hurt can heal. It’s a matter of how you pick them.”

I really like the quote, its a good thought expressed with good words.

Shaq attacks mortgage problems

An article at the Consumerist talks about a plan by pro basketball player Shaquille O'Neal has to help some families in Orlando who are facing mortgage difficulties. While details are sparse, Shaq plans on using his wealth to take over mortgages and provide advantageous financing terms to some Floridans in need.

How to complain for fun and profit

I read about a book that teaches about writing effective complaint letters that will get attention and empathy from readers who can respond effectively. How To Complain For Fun And Profit sounds like a good read. There is a free chapter online and the book can be purchased in PDF form. I might download it and learn to complain more effectively.

Poverty

The mayor-elect Ivan Court wants to tackle poverty. Good on him. According to News 889, Court plans to work with housing and poverty groups under a Mayor's task force to address poverty issues. Hopefully after this next 4 years serious improvements have started.

Our outgoing mayor was an advocate for housing, hopefully the new mayor will use his term to continue improving the services provided to the poor of the city.

Saint John deserves it

So Ivan Court appears to be the incoming mayor.

His "tough on business" stance could easily be a real headache to the energy boom and could very well cause the paper mills to pack up and leave town.

The two things I like about Ivan are that he is very ethical (I think his motives are pure, he and I just disagree on where the city should be going) and that he was not one of the councilors who opposed the North of Union development.

Ivan good luck.

At least Hooton is gone! This isn't to say Hooton couldn't have done a good job, but I would hate to see the Telegraph Journal succeed in swaying the electorate with horribly skewed election coverage.

Mixed feeling regarding medical school building

I was excited to read earlier this evening that a local business person has offered a building to the province for use for the local medical school (which needs a building before it can open).

I then got a knot in my stomach when I read he was doing this as a political statement with our Deputy Mayor Michelle Hooton at his side. Hooton is running for mayor against incumbent Norm McFarlane who is very supportive of the medical school and against Ivan Court the councilor who has worked on the health portfolio. Not only is she an odd choice for that, Ms. Hooton ran a nasty campaign against the current Minister of Post-Secondary Education when she was supposed to be acting as deputy mayor.

Hopefully this offer is legitimate and Hooton's sorted political past won't put a taint on this if the idea is a good one.

Nasty

Politics in town are getting very nasty.

I was driving to pick up a friend after work today and heard an ad saying "Do not vote Stephen Chase." This wasn't just "be aware of the issues" or "beware of Stephen Chase's ideas" it was directing people on who to not vote for. I was surprised. Chase has a pretty complete platform at his website. His opponents are most upset with his plans to consider public-private partnerships for water treatment.

"Journalists" and the election

I have a theory that started becoming clear when I listened to the CBC this morning featuring a "journalist" giving her opinions of the upcoming mayoral election.

The theory flies in the face of the conspiracy theorists that think the Irving Empire is using a newspaper it owns to sway voters in a certain direction. The theory is this: when a chardonnay sipping elitist out of touch candidate runs for mayor, journalists will support her because she is their kind of people.

Even if the publisher of the local paper was trying to win an election for a candidate, when that candidate goes to the same gallery openings and laughs the same forced laugh as the sort of people writing our news, it can't be very hard for him to convince them.

I know several journalists and at least one of them is a hardworking honest person, however; I think it is time for reporters to report and editors to steer conversations in the way of public interest. I don't think the news should always be unbiased, but I think the bias has to go toward something and someone far greater than the personal taste of journalists.

When in Rome do as the Vandals

Generally whenever I am told that if one doesn't vote that he or she has no right to protest I feel the need to respond that the opposite logic must hold; if one doesn't protest he or she shouldn't get to vote. I don't agree with either of these extremes, but I think the same logic is in both: to participate in any element of democracy you have to participate in all.

I respect protesting and non-institutional expression as well as traditional expression of discontent with politicians and the political system, still I don't know if thuggish vandalism is something I can get behind.

I noticed today at the entrance of Rockwood Park that two mayoral candidates' signs appeared to have been plucked from the ground, while other signs seemed untouched. Expressing oneself by putting up signs or changing the messages of signs is one thing - it adds to the expressive landscape and dialogue, but removing someone else's signs doesn’t add it subtracts.

This is not the way to win an election or a strong way of getting a point across.

Add to the discourse, don't take from it.

Less Poverty

I saw this story on the Country 94 news blog and thought it was a good sign.

[STATS CANADA DATA SHOWS POSITIVE SIGN FOR POVERTY]
18:49:04

POVERTY LEVELS IN SAINT JOHN ARE SHOWING IMPROVEMENT. NEW DATA FROM STATS CANADA SHOWS AN IMPROVEMENT IN BOTH THE LOWER SOUTH END AND OLD NORTH END. THE PER CENTAGE OF PEOPLE LIVING BELOW THE POVERTY LINE HAS DROPPED FROM 27 PER CENT IN 1996 TO 20.8 PER CENT IN 2006. URBAN RESEARCHER WITH UNBSJ, KURT PEACOCK, TELLS CHSJ NEWS THE NEWS ISN'T SO GOOD FOR THE CROWN STREET AREA. THE 2006 STATS SHOW PEOPLE LIVING THERE ARE ACTUALLY POORER THAN THEY WERE FIVE YEARS AGO.

PEACOCK SAYS THE GENERALLY POSITIVE DATA IS A RESULT OF THE GROWING ECONOMY IN SAINT JOHN.

Saint John Graffiti

I have a new blog at http://sjgraffiti.blogspot.com that features pictures of various graffiti around the city that catches my eye. I think a lot of it is neat and adds to the make up of the public landscape and discourse.

Eiders

I regretfully didn't have my camera with me but saw two groups of eiders in the harbour today. There was a large group of eiders, some other ducks and a few loons in the water in front of the former sugar refinery site. I also saw a few eiders swimming under the harbour bridge near harbour passage.

Opera Bistro

I'm taking my lady to Opera Bistro tonight for their Valentine's day dinner. It should be good. This will be my first meal at what I hear is one of the city's nicest restaurants. It will have to be good to top the meal I had at Thandi over the weekend. Maybe I'll have to start an amateur food critic blog.

Corporations don't have to be evil

I found an interesting article that tries to dispell myths that company's have to be evil and that greed is the best way to corporate wealth. It's a good read and can be found at: http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=do-all-companies-have-to-be-evil.

City takes another step back

I am disgusted with the SJ city council for making further efforts to delay the non-profit mixed income housing proposed for Leinster Street. Decisions like this keep the poor in slums.

The home owning and income property owning neighbours have been opposing this project for years now, and city councillors Ferguson, Chase, Court, Farren and Chang all agreed last night that Saint John Non-Profit Housing should again meet with neighbours to try to accommodate more of their desires.

SJNPH has met with the neighbours a lot.

SJNPH has met with city staff a lot.

Leinster Court (the development's name) has been delayed too many times.

The city needs to stop delaying developments!

Low income people need homes.