Category Archives: Tony_Botello
Tony: The Anatomy Of A Good KC Political Hit Piece
Don’t get too caught up in all of this holiday cheer. Currently, we’re in the nastiest part of Kansas City’s election season.
Long ago, Boss Tom Pendergast help put Kansas City’s elections in the coldest months of the year because he didn’t really like a lot of people voting. Also, the graveyard vote doesn’t complain about temperatures.
The legacy of that astute political move puts modern day City and Mayoral campaigns right in the middle of the holiday season. This is always hilarious because it forces people to pretend to be nice while slinging some really nasty rumors on background.
Nevertheless, not all political attacks are equal, so I’ve provided a quick guide to some of the most effective political strategies currently at play in the local political scene. Check it:
Tony: Check Out The Second Annual KC Confidential Holiday Blowout
It’s been a good year at KCC and this year’s X-mas party was even bigger than the last.
Once again Jardine’s provided the location for the holiday bash that hosted both familiar and fresh faces.
Two of my all time faves agreed to pose as cover models for the kickoff of this somewhat sentimental holiday party re-cap. Jennifer Janesko and Roger The Plumber got into the X-mas spirit with us last night and both have big plans.
Janesko will be staying beautiful and sexy next year in addition to creating a new line of accessories. And look for Roger to keep kicking ass in all manner of shape and form.
Speaking of . . . There many other notables at the party last night, let’s take a look:
Tony: The Week When Local Newsies Were Played For Suckers
Let’s take a quick review of this week and notice that professional newsies were played for suckers.
For the most part, everybody has checked out for the holidays.
Still, the news cycle must go on and there’s even a bit of interesting stuff happening besides the weather and news of anonymous rich guys throwing out some table scraps to po’folk.
Let’s review:
Tony: Let Streetside Die
The death of music as a physical commodity is now starting to sink in for this cowtown.
This week Streetside Records in Westport announced it was closing
Of course, the next bit of news in this saga was the inevitable, not so serious effort to save the record store via a facebook fan page and call to action.
This bit of nostalgia and sentimentality is nice but doesn’t really make any sense.
Hard as it might be: Kansas City needs to let this music landmark die!!!
Tony: Grab And Run In JoCo
Once again I want to look at another suburban trend and what it says about lives of quiet desperation in Johnson County.
Just this week grab and run thieves took more than $3k worth of merchandise at the Oak Park Macy’s store.
Of course any kind of crime is a bad thing but we have to look at this from a broader perspective.
Allow me to explain:
Tony: The Holiday Spirit Via Local Booze
This holiday season is the most socially acceptable time to get completely hammered with a bit of regularity.
Holiday parties are centered around booze and unfortunate hookups.
While police usually try and crack down on drunks behind the wheel over the holidays, they haven’t managed to completely ruin the most irresponsible time of year.
Some of the most contentious people simply try to time their drinking and maybe do a bit of pre-planning in order make sure they have a safe route home. In this quest to keep out of jail, a good bartender is always handy.
Tony: Another Season Of Metro Ice And Snow Removal Disparity
I feel compelled to point out another instance of local disparity during this recent cold spell.
Sadly, this cold weather fact checking won’t be changed any time soon but it’s important we document reality on streets across this town.
My point is simple and indisputable to anyone who has driven across The State Line of the metro area during a winter snow and/or ice blast:
KCMO streets suck compared to clean, tidy, sweet JoCo roads.
Tony: The Best Places To Warm up In Kansas City
This cold ass weather is killing me.
I hear that starting on today we’re supposed to get down to 20 below. Or at least it’s going to feel that way with all of the weather newsies who are dead-on-the-inside talking about the freezing conditions.
To wit, today I’m just going to offer a quick guide to local coffee shops that might provide the best places in Kansas City to warm up.
Check it:
Tony: What Does The Killing At The Kona Grill Mean?
Sadly, the holiday season in this cowtown is not complete without a bit of deadly fighting.
At the end of every year this town the annual murder stats begin to reach their final totals around X-mas time.
Worst of all, the holiday season during The Great Recession keeps tensions high as the lack of money puts everyone on edge.
Given all of this, the local death at Kona Grill has some disturbing implications.
Already on The Plaza there has been an increasing fear of violence. So-called riots involving nothing more than rowdy African-American teens put everyone on edge about the fate of Kansas City’s premiere destination. Employees and patrons alike expressed a widespread concern over their safety.
Now, this latest murder shows that death and violence can even come to a place occupied mostly by affluent scenesters and the cowtown upwardly mobile crowd.
Tony: Making The Local Movie Scene
Right now there’s a mostly minor ruckus over the ways that movies are made in Missouri.
The push is on to repeal the Missouri Tax Credit Program that offers breaks to local motion picture production, especially when it comes from out of State. Filmmakers and a few other people have rallied to save the incentive program but they may not be seeing the big picture.
Tony: What Did We Learn This Past Week?
It was a surprisingly busy week for the holiday season.
Usually, most people spend December dreaming of their vacation time and bonuses. Thankfully, since so many people are out of work during Obama‘s Jobless Recovery and the weather has yet to turn horrible, there’s still a great many interesting headlines floating around.
Let’s take a look:
Tony: Chris Stigall And The Local Culture Of Conservatism
Check out what could be the definitive Chris Stigall write-up. The Conservative Radio Talker has now passed into Kansas City radio history
Now it’s time to take a look at his local legacy.
Tony: Local Politics And The Power Of Personality
As of late I’ve been talking with a lot of local political hopefuls and observing how they conduct themselves in public.
Soundbytes, press releases and speeches simply aren’t accurate in conveying a candidate’s personality. After a while they all start to sound the same. There simply is no substitute for meeting a candidate in person.
Tony: Demand More Than Local Leftovers
Now’s the time when trite sentimentality dominates the news cycle at the expense of every other kind of news.
Luckily, online readers know that challenging the status quo during the holiday season is the best way to bring everybody down and spoil so much corporate propaganda.
For the most part local mainstream news coverage is just a minor interruption from advertisements to keep people buying things they don’t need. But with the ongoing downward economic spiral, I’m hoping that local plebs will start pushing back.
Therefore, let’s look at a few mainstream media news cliches that demonstrate local reporters are phoning it in:
Tony: Sign Up For the New And Improved KC Confidential RSS Feed!!!
As this new website continues to come together, I’d like to tout one of my favorite new features that’s back in a big way.
Check out the new KC Confidential site feed and sign up for it on your favorite reader at this address: www.kcconfidential.com/rss
And now, allow me to explain why this is important:
Tony: Lewellen Brothers Talk Business And Politics
Most small businesspeople eschew political involvement altogether.
However, it would be impossible for Chris and Andy Lewellen to forsake their political background. Their strategy for supporting local candidates is intriguing and offers a great glimpse of how local business and politicos can party with one another.
Tony: What Will Become Of The West Edge?
This town’s long, horrible Plaza real estate nightmare seems to be at a conclusion today.
A project that has sat empty for more than a year has now been handed off to some other sucker. Now all of this town is left guessing as to what will become of the project.
I have a few thoughts that not only summarize the whole disaster but offer some hope for new alternatives.
Tony: A Hallmark Tribute To Chocolate Pudding
Nowadays there’s not much to sing about in the corporate world.
However, the creative class at Hallmark are putting on quite a show in their cafeteria. Let’s take a look . . .
It
Sometimes a story comes along and puts all other Kansas City news in perspective.
Sure, there’s a lot of pouting on behalf of the Chiefs and the childish behavior (and subsequent) apology from their Coach Todd Haley. And we’re at the outset of what just might be one of the nastiest Kansas City Mayoral and Council elections.
However, a stolen meerkat from the Kansas City Zoo, found again in a JoCo pet store and then returned to its rightful place really exemplifies all kinds of the FAIL present in Kansas City.
Tony: Cold Weather Trends To Watch In This Town
As we approach the Winter Doldrums it’s important to sum up the bigger trends that are impacting our lives here in this cowtown.
The Great Recession isn’t really over.
And the upcoming cold weather election cycle is sure to create even more distrust of local government.
All things considered, fighting with family members is pretty much all that locals have to anticipate.
