Chicagoist: Who F*%$ed Up Our Federal Transportation Funds Grant?

mikely1

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 09:30:04 -0600

The org I work for gets up to $40,000/month in free Google advertising via a grant. Each quarter I have to submit a report to Google in order to maintain the grant. If I missed the deadline, we'd lose the grant and I'd deservedly lose my job. Everyone on the list above should lose their jobs over this. In this current climate, it is totally baffling that they couldn't meet a fucking deadline tied to $150 million. I guess since we keep voting for them, they figure they can do whatever the hell they want. People should be contemplating jumping off window ledges over this, but my guess is they're instead trying to figure out whether to have dinner at Alinea or Trotter's tonight.

Karl Klockars

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:36:32 -0600

Points taken, dopplerd. 1) I just like the mental image of tiny little governmental people sitting in uncomfortable desks and crying over the big red "zero" at the top of their science fair project. 2) I thought about saying just that, but I vaguely remember using the same time frame in a previous CTA-related post. For variety's sake (and perhaps because I was elated by the embrace of technology) I gave them a decade-or-two benefit of doubt.

Scooter Libbby

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:02:42 -0600

Only Frank Kreusi could things up this bad!

dopplerd

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:44:44 -0600

What horse shit! Glad to see that the Mayor's priorities are all about ramming through deals to sell off parking meters instead of getting its act together and getting a hundred and fifty million in FREE MONEY! Karl, A few nits to pick with your analogies. 1. This is not like turning in grade school home work a few days late. More like calling up a college professor to get them to change the final exam date in your final semester of college because you have been spending too much time playing PS3 and, like, forgot about it. 2. The signs on mass transit reporting how long until the next train arrives brings the CTA into the early '80s not into the present day.

matty

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:27:02 -0600

Great news about the inbound train arrival signs.

kicker

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:34:11 -0600

So Daley is blaming the Bush administration for not being flexible... That's a real shocker. Daley is a fool. We get the government we deserve.

Tower18

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 15:24:28 -0600

My father is the CEO of a company that applies for grants all the time. It's serious business and the deadlines are for real. His company works within those guidelines...

matilda

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 14:23:10 -0600

The local business community deserves a lot more blame for Chicago's mass transit woes. They are eager as hell to kiss Daley's ring for the Olympics and assorted financial breaks, but neither the Chamber nor local businesses make much noise about improving how so many workers--certainly not all, but many--commute to their jobs. So many offer the transit tax break and think that is all they should do, it seems.