Maybe 'Burque Doesn't Suck That Much After All

Perhaps it's just that temporary, back from vacation, energy burst, but I'm feeling good about the 'Burque tonight.

One big reason for that is driving last weekend through parts of the far outskirts of Las Vegas, NV which are growing so fast, so far and so vapid that they make our Westside sprawl look like Portland, Oregon growth management. Growing so fast they can't put the traffic lights up fast enough to meet the traffic demand from the never-ending line of identical condo buildings. For some reason seeing all that Hell on Earth made me think that: 1. maybe all the "sprawl is okay, what's wrong with sprawl?" people in the Western U.S. will move to Las Vegas, leaving towns like ABQ to come to its senses and do some real planning; 2. when Las Vegas runs out of water, as predicted by some in 2010, there will be scenes of panicking residents fighting each other to the death for a bottle of Dasani. Consider it the "you gotta reach bottom before you change" strategy...if it works for Alcoholics Anonymous, it might work for Clark County. Plus, HBO could film all the fights to the death, and create a new series to replace "Rome" when that show has finished beheading all the characters.

So then I get back in town, and read this fine, fine piece by Marston Moore at Duke City Fix about machinations sincere and less-sincere in response to fissures in the NM State Democratic Party and ideological schisms within Republicans in ABQ's District 9. I know you've read it already, but remember I was out of town this weekend. Call me naive, uninvolved and plain stupid, but I found it exactly the kind of political junkie stuff that I've been missing for years. It will be very interesting to see how local blog reporting/analysis will evolve in the 365 days leading to Election Day 2006.

It should be a bloggin' good time regardless, but we'll really know we've fundamentally changed the political discourse in ABQ when we start having Heather Wilson/Karl Rove Photoshop contests. Those are essential. And yes, continued high-level reporting and analysis will be important, too.

Last night I drove East back into town on I-40 and topped the crest of Nine Mile Hill to the blinking lights of the city. In years past I would make that mini-crest getting back from Flagstaff or camping and wonder just why the Hell I was coming back to this place. Last night, I was just glad to be home. It was real nice and all. I don't really have a cynical, sarcastic comment to write here. It was just real nice.