Jerad Weiner

“POLITICAL ORDER AND POLITICAL DECAY: FROM THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION TO THE GLOBALIZATION OF DEMOCRACY” by Francis Fukuyama

I highly recommend this book to anyone involved with public administration, civil service, or for anyone seeking a little context as to why our systems operate the way they do; for better or worse. My planning education emphasized more planning and city design, so this book has been helpful in providing background knowledge into public administration, political science, and history.  Despite its page count, it is a quick and easy read.  The chapters are laid out in a very concise way and the author provides clear guides to the arguments and points being made in each section.   It’s a fascinating book that illustrates the various factors that influence the way states form and modernize.

 

 

Sturgeon’s revelation, “Ninety percent of everything is crap.”

Just a reminder to focus our attention on the ten percent that isn’t.  I came across this while reading, Dennett, D. C. Intuition Pumps and Other Tools for Thinking.  A really great philosophy book which breaks down consciousness and how we perceive / make sense of the world around us.  Really mind expanding and fascinating read.

 

Emily and I got out for a walk to the ocean during a break between two stormy weeks, between her finals, and between the holidays.  We were treated to some spectacular clouds through Golden Gate Park.

I want to get back to Europe.  I enjoyed Berlin.  I’ve signed up for German 1 at City College of San Francisco.  It will cost me less than $250 dollars for the semester.  This was an easy decision.

 

I just got back from supporting a neighborhood beautification day at the Burrows Pocket Park in the Portola neighborhood.  This is one of the neighborhood projects that I’ve been fortunate to work with during my time at San Francisco Public Works.

The Burrows Pocket Park was created at the end of a dead-end street and was a collaboration between the Portola Neighborhood Association, Caltrans, San Francisco Public Works, and Architecture for Humanity.  This area used to be an overgrown, weedy lot that attracted illegal dumping and homeless encampments.  A quick online search of the project will show you images of what the site used to look like.  Due to the success of this project, the neighborhood was able to secure Four Barrel Coffee to open up on the street which has been a huge element to activating the space.  Projects like this work because they have a strong community group to help maintain and coordinate programing within the space.  Beautiful spaces need strong organizations behind them to keep them active.

My favorite component to this park is the mural which compliments the planting area and the muted colors of the coffee shop.  This park is a hidden gem in San Francisco, but you can check it out at the corner of San Bruno Avenue and Burrows Street.