Lincolnite

While most of Nebraska was distracted by a football game, HHS dropped a bombshell on Friday when it announced that the role of 450 children and family service specialists would be handed over to the state's private foster care contractors by January 1. This is shocking, and potentially horrific, news. I'll start by saying that I'm not opposed to privatizing many or even most foster care services. The general concept is sound. Furthermore, one of the things holding back the privatization movement in Nebraska is that the contracting agencies have little power but many responsibilities. The result so far has been a tremendous amount of task duplication, and a lot of waiting around for HHS to act while the agencies (and everybody on down the line) have to sit and twiddle their thumbs. From that perspective, decreasing redundancy and increasing contractor power (with sufficient oversight, of course) seems like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. Not so fast. The reality is that Nebraska is ill-prepared to make such a substantial move. HHS is still trying to figure out how to manage private contractors rather than doing the job itself. The contractors are still trying to figure out what their job is. Nobody has enough resources to do what they need to do. There's no leadership, no communication, and extreme confusion. I don't use this language very often here on Lincolnite, but if anything needs to be described as a gigantic clusterfuck, this is it. The cynic in me wonders if the private contractors are deliberately being set up to fail. All but two already have. And yet the State wants to accelerate the rate of change? HHS will take its share of abuse for any negative outcomes, but the contractors will really get thrashed. The employees with whom I have interacted at KVC are good folks, yet they are drowning because the institution for which they work can't keep up with the demands placed upon it. That's not because [insert private contractor of your choice] "sucks" or because they're corrupt, as many anonymous online commenters would like to believe. It's because they're taking on too much, too fast. Shame on them for not telling the State no, and shame on the State for failing to recognize chaos when it's so apparent. If I'm really being honest, I have to acknowledge that many cases won't be drastically affected by this change no matter how ill-advised it may be. Simple, run-of-the-mill cases are easy enough for any reasonably-prepared organization to handle. But anybody with any experience with foster care knows that "simple" describes only a fraction of cases. Take the case of the two boys currently living with us. I obviously can't give details, but this change will be positively catastrophic for our case. The case will lose a tremendous amount of institutional memory and critical, irreplaceable personal relationships. Our situation is not unique. The Unicameral must step in. Governor Dave Heineman has shown zero leadership on foster care. (He hasn't shown much leadership elsewhere either, but I digress.) HHS is making too many critical decisions too quickly and with too little input from stakeholders and the public. The best possible realistic scenario is that we get lucky and after some months of confusion, uncertainty, and stress we find that nobody has been screwed over too badly, aside from delays in many cases due to the changeover. In reality, we should expect to do real harm to children, families, and foster parents. Nothing in Nebraska's history with foster care suggests anything different is likely. I leave open the possibility that this will all go better than expected. History and common sense suggest otherwise.

LPD: Drivers still texting three months after law

Through a bit of a fluke, I ended up going to both Champions Fun Center (affiliated with daVinci's) and Chuck E. Cheese this week for two different birthday celebrations. I won't give each a full-scale review, but here's a brief blurf on each along with my quick-and-dirty opinion of which I prefer. We went to Champions on Wednesday for our oldest foster kid's birthday. We ate pizza, played games, and went bowling. The pizza is labeled as daVinci's, but it was definitely not up to the quality I would expect to find in a daVinci's restaurant. It was boring. The game selection is OK, but there is a high proportion of gambling-style "games", the sole purpose of which is to suck up tokens while youngsters give futile attempts to win the jackpot. Most games cost one token, but many cost more than that. My favorite game was a pirate-themed shoot-em-up that I played with Robbie. Bowling was fine, but the alley needed some TLC. Some of the prices are scary. $6.50 for go-karts? Yeesh, that'll add up quickly. Last night we went to Chuck E. Cheese for a friend's birthday party. More pizza, more games. The pizza was roughly the same quality as the pizza at Champions. Compared to the crappiness of the pizza at Chuck's (and Showbiz) in my memory, that's impressive. The salad bar was well-maintained and relatively well-stocked, as if the restaurant is tacitly apologizing to adults for the pizza. The game and "ride" selection was a bit more varied than at Champions. But here's the biggie: every game costs one token. That's a huge plus. My favorite game of the night was Deal or No Deal simply because I won the jackpot -- 50 tickets, woohoo! -- on my first and only play. Overall, I've got to hand the win to the rodent. Chuck E. Cheese was significantly cheaper (especially if you use coupons, which you should). It was clean, it was quieter, and it was definitely aiming for a target audience that includes all three of my boys (ages 8, 4, 3). Champions obviously caters to an older crowd, which is fine, and to a certain extent I'm comparing apples to oranges. Still, we'll be going with Chuck for the foreseeable future. Then again, considering how rarely we go to these sorts of places (knock on wood) it's not much of an issue.

Have you been paying attention to the plan to put in a CVS at 27th and Old Cheney? It's an interesting proposal for a number of reasons. The proposal is notable to me because I consider that corner to be on the edge of my old neighborhood. I grew up not far from there so I know the area well. Currently there's a unique, white office building on the corner, along with a fair amount of green space and trees. Replacing all that with a CVS will be a significant change, to say the least. You may recall that a couple years ago residents just a block up the road pitched a fit about a proposed nursing home that they felt would dirty up their neighborhood. Most of their claims were downright silly and fortunately the facility was eventually built. Today it's an inoffensive, well-maintained property. This situation is different. The difference between a boring office building and a CVS is stark. If I were one of those neighbors, this is where I would put my energy. The odds of stopping the project are slim but hey, it's worth a shot. Maybe neighbors could get a few extra trees built into the plan. Or if they really throw a fit, maybe they could even get the developer to chip in some cash to do something tasteful with the empty lot across the street. It's worth a shot. I don't have anything against CVS, and I have to admit that 27th and Old Cheney is a decent location for that sort of thing. I just happen to like the current building, and if I were a neighbor I'd be annoyed with the significant change of use. I'm surprised there hasn't been more of a fuss.

I haven't been very political here on Lincolnite so far this fall. That's not unusual. I do tend to rally for or against certain ideas or issues, but I typically don't get too rah-rah over candidates. That being said, there's an election coming up in November and you most certainly want to be educated when you go to the polls. I encourage you to check out the Journal Star's Voter's Guide for basic information on the candidates and issues. Note that there are two constitutional amendments (one, two) and two City matters on the ballot. I'll have more thoughts on those issues -- and maybe even a candidate or two -- at a later date.

If you haven't already been following it, be sure to check out Police Chief Tom Casady's ongoing list of the most significant crimes in Lincoln's history (in his opinion). He's up to number 7 right now.

Those of you who receive the Sunday paper probably saw this already, but for the rest of you there was a nice profile in Sunday's Parade Magazine of an Iraqi family that has settled in Lincoln. It's a happy story (as are almost all Parade stories), and it portrays Lincoln as a warm, welcoming place for immigrants from Iraq, Vietnam, and elsewhere. And really Lincoln has welcomed thousands of folks from around the world over the years. It's something we ought to be proud of. In fact, Lincoln has a nice reputation as a place for resettlement even among those who have never been here. A friend of mine moved here with his family about a decade ago. While choosing where to live, an advisor at the American embassy asked if they had any preferences on where they wanted to end up. They said no since they knew very little about the U.S. The woman then said, "Well, I hear Lincoln, Nebraska is a great place to raise a family". And here they are, with no plans to ever leave. It's easy for Lincoln's many immigrants to disappear into the city since they tend to largely congregate among themselves in the first generation, and since we tend to congregate among ourselves whether we're aware of it or not. But they are here, and in fairly large numbers. Don't hesitate to say hi now and then.

'Catalyst' project could move forward Could? Ugh. Also, it's hard not to predict disaster when the developer appears to be frantically searching for the cheapest possible building materials. At this point it's difficult to believe that the word "attractive" will ever come to describe this building. That's all the sadder considering how much hype went into this project's dead predecessor. Maybe next time.

I'm having a difficult time buying the idea that the gastropub concept -- as seen at new Lincoln restaurant Brix & Stone in the Haymarket -- is new. Jeff Korbelik describes the concept like so: "Popular in Europe, primarily in Great Britain, the gastropub is defined as a 'bar with good food.' Menu items often include comfort foods, burgers and a shepherd's pie. Several varieties of beers and wine also are available." Forgive me for pointing out the obvious, but that sounds like a large percentage of the restaurants in the midwest. Well, except replace the shepherd's pie with a hot beef sandwich. I'm sure there's a subtlety in the definition I'm missing out on, but right now I'm having a difficult time telling a difference between the description of a gastropub and, say, the Hi-Way Diner. Too extreme a comparison? Fine, then how about Applebee's and Granite City, or Brewsky's and 9 South Chargrill if you prefer a more local flair? Those restaurants are all about comfort food and alcohol. What's the difference? I probably sound unnecessarily alarmed, which isn't what I'm going for. I'm just clarifying that the term "gastropub" doesn't so much represent a new cuisine as it represents a not-so-subtle bit of marketingese. The phrase "homestyle cooking" has apparently fallen out of favor and gastropub is here to save the day. Whatever. No matter the name it's still the same food. I just wish Brix & Stone had opened a year ago. Today I'm in the midst of a renaissance in my diet and there's just not as much room for comfort food as there used to be. (I'm down twenty pounds on the scale as a result.) I would be more excited to hear about new vegetarian or seafood options than a chicken and waffles entree. But when I am in a comfort food mood, you bet your britches I'll give Brix & Stone a try.

I get a kick out of how much buzz the No Coast Derby Girls manage to generate around Lincoln. Most of you haven't actually seen them in action, yet I'm almost certain pretty much everybody here has at least heard of them. They are relatively visible around town, both in person and in advertising. This weekend is the Amber Waves of Pain tournament. I'm half tempted to grab a ticket just so I can see what roller derby is all about. I have to admit that I don't really "get" roller derby, but that's easy to say when I've never experienced it. The closest I've come to roller derby is trying to help three boys stay on their feet at the skating rink. That was a very physical experience, but one which mainly strained my back. Have any of you seen the No Coast Derby Girls in action? What can you tell us about them and/or roller derby in general?

I enjoy the occasional excursion through "wild" areas -- that is, relatively unmaintained spots more or less left to nature's devices. Lincoln isn't exactly overflowing with wilderness areas, but there are a few good spots to wander around. Which are your favorites? My favorite spot close to home is no secret to those of you who have been around this blog for a while. Beal Slough between 40th and 48th Streets is a pleasant place to walk my dog or go exploring with my boys. Sure trucks rumble by not far away on Highway 2, but when the season and weather is right, the cacophony from birds and bugs drowns out the traffic. More obvious spots include Wilderness Park and the Pioneers Park Nature Center. Hopefully most Lincolnites know about those areas. If you don't, for shame! Get out there and explore. What other great "wild" areas are there in town that are worth exploring?

I can only handle his humor in small doses, but I've got oodles of respect for the work done by Larry the Cable Guy (Dan Whitney) and the Git R Done Foundation. Good work, sir.