Well, it's summer again and my wife and I are dreading our electricity bills. Last summer SMUD whacked our checking account for a good $200+ per month-- to keep the house around 78 degrees. It's not like we're power abusers; we even hang dry clothes and hand wash dishes. The truth is: The cost of electricity has skyrocketed in recent years, and there is no end in sight. Add to this the fact that those in influential positions are doing little about it, and we have the recipe for a huge summer financial burden on already economically-ravished Sac County residents.

Despite all the "green" talk in these parts, you'd never know there was a conservation effort afoot. Almost every fast food joint and retail outlet we walk into is a frigid 70 degrees (or less). In fact many restaurants are so cold it's pointless to order warm food because it will be cold by the time you get half way through. Oh and movie theaters. Grrr. Many of them are so cold in the summer my wife and daughter actually bring BLANKETS (!) and bundle up in order to be comfortable. Something is wrong with that picture.

But here's the thing that gets me most: The hypocrisy on the part of so called environmentalists and politicians. Take one Kevin "Green Shades" Johnson for example. He is a classic example of a public figure whose "green" ideas are so big that he fails to see the conservation opportunities right under his nose. He emits copious amounts of rhetoric on his pie-in-the-sky "Green Rush," and how Sacramento can become the Silicone Valley of all things green, yet he stands by idle as Sacramento commercial consumers suck the megawatts up like an extra large Slurpee on a hot August day.

Ok before you put your virtual brass knuckles on, I'm not "hating" on the mayor. I actually like Kevin Johnson. Despite the widely held--but, in my opinion, false--perception that he only wants to be "boss mayor" so he can flex his ego, I believe he wants to see Sacramento grow in a positive direction. Problem is, the mayor's eyes appear to be bigger than his stomach, and instead of systematically tackling problems one by one (from small to large, to keep progress flowing in the right direction), he instead seems to put all his focus on enormous initiatives that only seem to bottleneck progress and pit residents against each other.

Whatever happened to "SMART" goals? Oh that's right, they only teach that stuff out in the business world. Here's a refresher: SMART goal= Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. How many of KJ's goals are "smart" according to this criteria?

It's a good thing Kevin Johnson is not responsible for the BP oil spill clean up. I can fathom his approach:

Reporter: "So Mr. Mayor, what's your game plan?"

Mayor Johnson [pulls a massive curtain down to unveil a chart on a big screen with all kinds of x's and o's and diagrams]: "Gentlemen I'd like to introduce my new "Operation Huge Scoop." It's a very simple concept. We are going to build a huge bowl that is roughly the same circumference of the Gulf. We are then going to tether a bunch of 747 airplanes together. We are then going tie the bowl to them. At an hour of my choosing the 747 pilots will fly over the gulf together, lower the bowl into the sea, and literally scoop up ALL the oil in one fell SCOOP!

Reporter: "But Mr. Mayor what happens if the tether breaks????"

Mayor Johnson: "Please address all your questions to my special assistant RE "The Scoop" Graswich. Yo Scoop come on up here and take some questions."

One big pie-in-the-sky idea after the next it seems. Perhaps this is why a growing number of people are contending that giving the job of Sacramento mayor to KJ was like giving the job of Joint Chiefs of Staff to "The Situation" (of Jersey Shore fame). While that may seem harsh, it's hard not to agree-- at least on some level--given Johnson's rhetoric and his endless stream of map-defining big ideas.

Don't get me wrong. I don't envy him. That's a steep mountain he has created for himself. Convincing Sacramento he is a worthy CEO is going to be a hard sell given his track record so far. Furthermore, I have absolutely no political or personal ax to grind (or advantage to gain) by knocking the man, so my opinions are 100% predicated on mere perceptions he himself is responsible for creating.

That's not to say leaving the previous eight year mayor in city hall was a better solution; it just underscores the fact that as long as Kevin thinks that his way is the only way,  the City of Sacramento, like any organization, will most likely--as the rule goes-- only rise to the highest level of his incompetency, and to think otherwise all but guarantees disappointment.

Back to conservation. I want to be clear:  I'm not suggesting Kevin Johnson is responsible for the energy crisis, nor am I suggesting he is responsible for fixing it. I'm only responding to his own "Green Initiative" and offering practical, "SMART" goals that he should consider embracing. So in that spirit I offer this: 

My Mayor: How about demonstrating your commitment to the environment by slam dunking home some low hanging "green" fruit------ such as commercial electricity abuse in summer months? How about enlisting twenty or thirty soldiers in your storied volunteer contingent to cruise Sacramento stores, restaurants, coffee shops. movie theaters, and other places of business, and spread awareness about energy abuse and what it is costing consumers? For businesses who aren't abusing, they could receive some "Green Shade Bucks" from you that could be redeemed for say, a photo opportunity or something. Maybe the Kings could even get involved and giveaway game tickets (surely they will have a few open seats next year).

Bombastically yours,

Mark Johnston
www.joesacramento.com