http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/2008/06/27/deteriorating-living-conditions-you-can-believe-in/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=deteriorating-living-conditions-you-can-believe-in n. the principle of good order<br /><br /> "Observe the strange inversion of all order and sense! Dignity debased; how vilely is the function of a consul prostituted!" ~The Craftsman Fri, 10 Feb 2012 02:25:26 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/2008/06/27/deteriorating-living-conditions-you-can-believe-in/comment-page-1/#comment-11885 Daniel Larison Mon, 30 Jun 2008 20:37:39 +0000 http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2008/06/27/deteriorating-living-conditions-you-can-believe-in/#comment-11885 There are two problems for Obama here. First, it reminds voters of his associations with the genuinely sleazy Rezko, and it shows that his relationship with Rezko was more enduring than was the case with other local area pols. Second, it has the potential to create horrible visual associations if anyone is inclined to make an ad against Obama with footage of these derelict developments. The message that can be used against him is that he used taxpayers' money to pay his friends to do a lousy job. That cuts out a lot of the circumstances and oversimplifies things, but that's the nature of these kinds of embarrassments. There may be a good explanation and Obama may be able to account for his role in all of this, but if his opponent wanted to latch on to this it would be damaging. There are two problems for Obama here. First, it reminds voters of his associations with the genuinely sleazy Rezko, and it shows that his relationship with Rezko was more enduring than was the case with other local area pols. Second, it has the potential to create horrible visual associations if anyone is inclined to make an ad against Obama with footage of these derelict developments. The message that can be used against him is that he used taxpayers’ money to pay his friends to do a lousy job. That cuts out a lot of the circumstances and oversimplifies things, but that’s the nature of these kinds of embarrassments. There may be a good explanation and Obama may be able to account for his role in all of this, but if his opponent wanted to latch on to this it would be damaging.

]]> http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/2008/06/27/deteriorating-living-conditions-you-can-believe-in/comment-page-1/#comment-11862 conradg Sat, 28 Jun 2008 04:55:04 +0000 http://www.amconmag.com/larison/2008/06/27/deteriorating-living-conditions-you-can-believe-in/#comment-11862 Hard to see much of a story here. Inner city housing development has always been difficult, private or publically managed. It would appear that the failures here aren't on the development side, but on the maintenance and management side, where there isn't enough budgeted to keep things going. Hard to lay much blame on Obama for that. At least he tried to do something, but obviously he doesn't have the power to increase maintenance budgets. Hard to see much of a story here. Inner city housing development has always been difficult, private or publically managed. It would appear that the failures here aren’t on the development side, but on the maintenance and management side, where there isn’t enough budgeted to keep things going. Hard to lay much blame on Obama for that. At least he tried to do something, but obviously he doesn’t have the power to increase maintenance budgets.

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