Good morning,

Whitewater’s forecast calls for a mostly sunny day with a high temperature of twelve degrees.

In the City of Whitewater, the Urban Forestry commission meets from 4:15 p.m. to 6 p.m. The agenda is available online.

Update: A reader kindly writes that, in fact, this wasn’t a traditional leaked document, but a public one. For more about pesticides and honeybees, she suggests this link:

http://www.fastcompany.com/1709448/interview-with-a-bee-leaker-beekeeper-tom-theobald-discusses-the-epas-bee-toxic-pesticide-co.

Over at Wired, there’s a story about a whistleblower’s memo entitled, “Leaked Memo Shows EPA Doubts About Bee-Killing Pesticide:”

Over the concerns of its own scientists, the Environmental Protection Agency continues to approve a controversial pesticide introduced to U.S. markets shortly before the honeybee collapse [up to 1/3 of colonies have disappeared], according to documents leaked to a Colorado beekeeper….

The memo, obtained by Colorado beekeeper Tom Theobald and publicized by the Pesticide Action Network, was written in November by scientists from the EPA?s Environmental Fate and Effects Division, who are considering Bayer?s request to use clothianidin in cotton and mustard. They describe how a key Bayer safety study used by the EPA to justify its original clothianidin approvals, which were granted before the study was actually conducted, was sloppily designed and poorly run, making it a ?supplemental? resource at best.”

The memo is available online at the Pesticide Action Network.

Note well, that from the point of view of the EPA, the leaked memo might constitute disloyalty to the EPA on the part of the agency employee who leaked it.

For state workers, Wisconsin, for example, has a whistleblower law specifically to prohibit state government from initiating, administering, or threatening to take retaliatory action if a state employee discloses violation of state or federal law, rule, or regulation, mismanagement or abuse of authority, substantial waste of public funds or a danger to public health or safety. The the law sets out the protections offered and requirements to obtain those protections. See, Wisconsin Statutes. sec. 230.80, et seq.

Good morning,

Today’s forecast for Whitewater calls for a sunny day with a high temperature of twelve degrees.

There’s no school in the Whitewater Unified School District today; the Aquatic Center will be open.

There are two principal City of Whitewater public meetings today. At 4:30 p.m., the Community Development Authority meets, with an agenda available online. The agenda includes, among others, these items:

• Discussion and Possible Action on Strategy for Marketing in 2011
• Discussion and Possible Action on Renewal of Business Park Vacant Property Listing Contract with Equity Commercial and/or other Brokerage Firms
• Discussion and Possible Action on Whitewater Technology Park
  a. MOU – CITY OF WHITEWATER, CITY OF WHITEWATER COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, and the WHITEWATER-UNIVERSITY TECHNOLOGY PARK, INCORPORATED
  b. Innovation Manager Search
  c. Economic Development Administration Update
  d. Infrastructure Updates
  i. Starin Road Extension
  ii. Tech Park Infrastructure

Good policy is the best marketing.

Later, at 6 p.m., the Planning Commission will meet, with the meeting agenda available online. The agenda includes, among others, these items:

• Hold a public hearing for consideration of a change of the District Zoning Map for the following area to enact an ordinance to impose the R-O Non-Family Residential Overlay District Zoning classification under Chapter 19.25 of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Whitewater for 314 W. North Street (lWUP 00089), 318 W. North Street (/WUP 00090), 326 W. North Street (/WUP 00091), and 330 W. North Street (IWUP 00092)
• Hold a public hearing for consideration of a change in of the District Zoning Map to rezone from R-3 (Multi-family Residence) Zoning District to PCD (Planned Community Development) Zoning District, under Chapter 19.39 of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Whitewater and for consideration of a GDP (General Development Plan) and SIP (Specific Implementation Plan) for the proposed student apartment development for CatCon Whitewater, LLC., with the rezoning, GDP, and SIP all associated with the following parcels located along N. Prince Street and W. Florence Street are requested to change to PCD for the development of student apartments: Tax Parcel Numbers IWUP 00178C, /WUP 00178, IWUP 00178A, City of Whitewater, Walworth
  County, Wisconsin
• Review the proposed one lot Certified Survey Map associated with the development of student apartments on the northwest corner of N. Prince Street and W. Florence Street for CatCon Whitewater, LLC

I’m not sure why the City of Whitewater’s municipal manager hasn’t directed city staff scientists along these lines, but I am sure the city will incorporate these findings nonetheless: Fake Watchful Eyes Discourage Naughty Behavior.

Psychology researchers at Newcastle University hung two different posters at a restaurant, to see how customers would react. They both featured text asking patrons to bin their rubbish, but one had a picture of flowers on it and the other had a pair of staring eyes.

The number of people who paid attention to the sign, and cleaned up after their meal, doubled when confronted with a pair of gazing peepers….

“Painting a pair of eyes on a wall may be useful for preventing antisocial behavior in quiet locations,” says Dr. Bateson. And, “if signs for CCTV cameras used pictures of eyes instead of cameras they could be more effective.”