Who Will Stop Rep. Mark Olson?

Pam Spaulding at Pam's House Blend:

Look at the career aspirations of convicted GOP wife-beater Rep. Mark Olson -- he has quit the Minnesota House to run for state senator. Olson called his conviction for domestic assault (for shoving his wife to the ground several times) a "personal failure." He begged his House colleagues for forgiveness; no word on whether he apologized to his family.

I don't think Olson's conviction for domestic abuse will be a significant negative factor in the campaign... neither does one of the two other GOP candidates Alison Krueger.

T. W. Budig on the ECM Publications website :

I think I am the electable conservative,” said Krueger. “And the reason why, there’s an elephant in the room,” she said.

The “elephant” as Krueger sees it is the single domestic abuse charge Olson was found guilty of and one Krueger believes will dodge him through a campaign. “I think that’s what makes me more electable,” said Krueger.

“I think people will take, perhaps insensitively, take potshots at that,” she said of Olson’s criminal record. “That’s really unfortunate,” said Krueger.

He was tried, convicted, paid his debt to society etc... if you make Olson's conduct an issue, you are "insensitive".

So what else is left to stop Rep. Mark Olson from becoming Senator Mark Olson?

How about Olson's scheme with convicted felon Dean Zimmermann to scam MInnesota taxpayers for millions of dollars with an infeasible boondoggle?

Rep. Mark Olson Un-Dumps Himself and Runs for Senate

Crap... and I thought I could put this blog in mothballs.... Rep. Mark Olson is running for Senate seat 16.

Olson's campaign website has the following statement:

July 17th, 2008 - Thank you for visiting RepMarkOlson.com. This webpage is undergoing redesign. Please check back later for more information.

Rep. Mark Olson, PRT Promoter, Right-Wing Hypocrite Dumps Himself

MN Publius:

Mark Olson is not running for reelection. Just subtracting the total time wasted on his pointless amendments and floor speeches, the 2009 legislative session should be roughly six weeks shorter. Even better, House staffers will no longer have to wear helmets while passing Olson’s office. His 16 year reign of terror is over.

Strib:

Olson said his involvement in the criminal justice system and a desire to change the process was actually one of the factors that tempted him to stay in elected office.

The Star Tribune fails to mention Rep. Mark Olson's work promoting Personal Rapid Transit (PRT).

There was a time when The pod people were very proud of Rep. Mark Olson as this Advanced Transit Association newsletter Transit Pulse (PDF) item titled "PRT HATERS" attests:

There’s a real Avid guy named Ken in Minneapolis. He can whip off some pretty wild cartoons. Check out www.roadkill.com. That’s seems to be his main occupation, but he devotes inordinate amounts of time to belittling PRT designers and promoters in the wildest of ways. (One wonders how this pays him, or is he wealthy enough to bash PRT in his leisure?) Ken Avidor thinks that all PRT promoters start with a hate-LRT premise. He sees the PRT community, including ATRA, as an anti-LRT conspiracy. That’s fine: he has a right to his opinions.

Yet he attacks people more than ideas and is ready to condemn with guilt by association. He conducts political crusades to defeat Minnesota politicians who are receptive to the benefits of PRT. Seattle-based ATRA member David Gow, having sparred with Ken on-line many times, concludes that it is pointless to debate this Minnesota activist and blogger. Gow finds Ken’s typical conversations a series of false claims about PRT, none of which he can back up, including ad hominem smears and wild conspiracy theories. Ed Anderson simply describes Avidor a madman.

Your editor called him in early July to offer a copy of the recent EU report summarizing the multi-faceted, multi-year PRT research program, with urgent recommendation for a pilot program. His first reaction was, “No, don’t send it.” Later he called my offer desperation! Under the delusion that PRT is a well-moneyed monolith, he blurted out, “You guys buy those reports.” After a further step in this very unpleasant exchange, he screamed “F#@& you!” and hung up. Nice guy, this New York transplant to Minnesota!

His original name is apparently Ken Weiner, born in Brooklyn in 1955. Check out his political thinking at dumpmarkolson.blogspot.com. The website seeks to unseat a Minnesota legislator who per Ed Anderson (who ought to know) says is currently the strongest, most articulate PRT supporter there. Many think it is best just to ignore Avidor. Others say he craves attention.

... a few issues later the editor of Transit Pulse admitted that Rep. Mark Olson may not have been the best pick to advocate for PRT at the Capitol.

According to Dick Gronning of the Minnesota group, activities are dwindling and membership is down. The Minnesota Sierra Club and other environmental groups are pro-LRT, judging their Hiawatha Line as a great success and often dismissing PRT as a right-wing conspiracy. Jeral Poskey has left Taxi 2000 and relocated back to the Silicon Valley. Taxi 2000 is busy but quite. Ed Anderson also remains quiet these days. A pro-PRT Republican legislator who bucked the Democrat landslide last month is in trouble over charges of domestic abuse.

Learn more about Rep. Mark Olson's boondoggle at the PRT is a Joke web site.