Cowtown Mayor Continues Posing

Forget about Mayor Funkhouser doing anything of substance . . . Thankfully, he has figured out how to satisfy his hipster, liberal, naive demographic: He simply talks a good game. I guess now he's supposed to be an environmentalist because he recently recieved a Honda Hybrid as a donation in exchange for a bit of cross-branding on behalf of some Honda dealership in Tiffany Springs. Similarly, he supposedly cares about the Eastside because he's made a few speeches and had to endure Steve Penn . . . It's the same kind of suburban pose which seems to believe that an hour of watching Oprah absolves somebody of all the guilt about their comfortable lifestyle.

Kansas City Mayor Mark Funkhouser will likely be trading his 10-year-old Toyota Corolla for a Honda Civic Hybrid at the end of this month.

Funkhouser says Honda of Tiffany Springs offered him the use of a new hybrid vehicle, at no cost to the city and with no strings attached. He said he did not solicit the gift or make the decision to accept it hastily.

This is supposed to be a good move but it's essentially meaningless . . . If he really cared about the planet, or more importantly environmental issues directly related to KC, maybe he could do something about all of the asbestos that's still being dumped at Citadel Plaza. Even, recently it's been proven that local condo developers are willing to choke this town to death in order to turn a profit and yet so many in KC still think luxury living development is what will save this city.

A Kansas City developer will pay $200,000 in penalties and fines for removing asbestos illegally while rehabbing a tower of condominiums.

Matt Abbott, 34, pleaded guilty Monday to criminal charges in connection with the improper removal of asbestos from a building in Kansas City. Abbott is the owner of The Manhattan condominiums, also known as University Tower apartments. On May 26, a Kansas City Health Department inspector received an anonymous tip about the asbestos removal.

An investigation showed that Abbot and other workers had removed more than 160 square feet of asbestos-containing material from the 12th floor without wearing protective clothing or protecting residents from the fibers.

An analysis showed that the materials contained 3 percent to 5 percent friable chrysotile asbestos, a regulated asbestos-containing material.

In fact, it seems that this whole damn town is awash in asbestos as of late.

Still, I guess it's much easier to make plays for cheap media coverage rather than actually do something about the pollution in Kansas City . . . Kinda sad that, so far, Mayor Kay's silly Rain Garden (mosquito pit) idea has has outpaced Mayor Funky's efforts.

Yet, this still seems like a good strategy for the Funkhouser Administration given that the great many hippie, liberal, whiny dirtbags who voted for him don't really contribute much to anyone's well being either but they always want a pat on the back because they look grubby and have good intentions. And as far as Mayor Funky's suburban, Northland supporters . . . I'm sure they admire the sentiment . . . As for the rest of us, I guess we should thank heaven if the Mayor simply finds a way to make sure that all of the bullet riddled bodies are cleared from the street.

It's not much to ask and when the Mayor isn't striking a pose for his next press event I'm sure he can make some time for issues that actually affect Kansas City.