I love Nenad Bogdanovic

Nicholas Comrie (27 Mart, 2007 - 10:28)

I love Nenad Bogdanovic. I only love him in the Platonic sense mind, but it is love nonetheless. This love stems from the fact that as mayor of this fair city, I think he has done a rather good job. Everywhere you look they’re re-building, re-tarmacing and re-cladding and as our dear leader I suppose he should take some of the credit. I am all for criticism of our political elite, but give a man his due when it’s due.

Walking around town the other night I was amazed by the number of buildings with new facades and fancy lighting. A few years ago these same buildings had no facades and they didn’t want to draw attention to them with lighting. We’ve got brand new benches in pleasant city parks. We’ve got more banks than the Swiss would know what to do with, and New Belgrade is a Balkan Dubai of construction. Belgrade is improving and let’s give Nenad a pat on the back.

Even with all the good work that ‘Dear Nenad’ has managed to achieve, I regularly find myself cooking up new ways of improving the city. I understand that the mayor has a website where you can submit suggestions to improve Belgrade, but I think that something a little more concrete would reap even greater rewards for the city. I think what would be of great benefit to the city, would be a city civic suggestion, action and participation website.

The site would be a forum for the posting and executing of ideas to improve the city. The site and its actions would be guided, but would aim to accept ideas, action and legislation from any interested member of the public. Those working for the website would initially assist in the posting and formulation of new ideas for changes to the city, but the intention is for a free forum, guided at the formulation process. After ideas have been discussed and an idea has become concrete, the site would then post requests for voluntary specialists (civic planners, lawyers, translators etc.) to contribute to, assess and adapt the ideas. These ideas would then evolve from a simple suggestion into actual action/legislation.

The site would aim to pull together the talents, skills and perspectives that the city possesses to further the development of the city, and to do so without significant cost. A particular untapped resource, that such a site would aim to utilize, would be Belgrade’s young, educated population. Talented, but looking for experience and recognition that will benefit them in the future, their skills and capabilities could be influential in changing their city and their future for the better. And it is my belief that there is enough talent, interest and civic pride out there; not just amongst the young but amongst all Belgraders; to make such a vision a reality.

» Nicholas Comrie

Yeah...

isokrat (27 Mart, 2007 - 11:40)

I suppose that we, the tax-payers and common citizens who pay through our nose have absolutely no merit in that? Too bad your Serbian is not good enough to hear what other Belgraders have to say about him or what the media have uncovered (namely the weekly Standard). He is particularly unpopular in his own party (DS) and will be yesterday's news come next municipal elections, Djilas is to take his place. Apparently, he has dealt with some rather unsavoury characters, specifically concerning those development/construction/architectural projects. Characters who are behind bars (not because they could not afford bail but because the judge denied them) awaiting trial for a myriad of offences...

Quote:I love Nenad

Queeria (27 Mart, 2007 - 12:57)

Quote:

I love Nenad Bogdanovic. I only love him in the Platonic sense mind, but it is love nonetheless.

Oh nooooooo. I hate spring!!! What is wrong whit you people?! :P
www.queeria.com

Well

Cyber Domacica (27 Mart, 2007 - 13:02)

I tried to contact some of the officials posting questions on http://www.beograd.org.yu/ and never got an answer.
Since I live in New Belgrade, I also visit http://www.novibeograd.org.yu/ and read their Forum, ask question, suggest all kinds of things... Sometimes they answer, sometimes they don't, and usually they do nothing. Maybe Novi Beograd is Dubai (?!), but there are no decent playgrounds for children, parking space in "blokovi" etc.

Too true

Nicholas Comrie (28 Mart, 2007 - 09:02)

Having experienced 'playgrounds' with a friend with a young son I know what a bad state they are in. Yes there should be investment in this area. In fact one of the key areas that the city government consistently fails to concentrate is upon green spaces. Apart from the obvious places there seems to be nothing of the sort in NBG despite all the open land.

Alex2

barby3 (17 Maj, 2007 - 09:22)

free porn
xxx porn
hardcore porn
porn videos
porn video
gay porn
lesbian porn
porn movies
porn pics
porn movie
asian porn
black porn
adult porn
hot porn
porn
amateur porn
porn sex
anime porn
porn clips

Quote:I love Nenad

Jelena (27 Mart, 2007 - 16:41)

Quote:

I love Nenad Bogdanovic

I don't.
What is hidden behind new facades?

Sorry to join the chorus but

bganon (27 Mart, 2007 - 18:09)

Sorry to join the chorus but love a politician - are you sure?

Yes, Belgrade is improving but lets not get ahead of ourselves. Dear Nenad is / was at the centre of a little ripple of a scandal recently owing to the fact that he wants to have the right to be Belgrade Mayor and also be a member of parliament. (Can you imagine the uproar if Ken tried to do this in blighty?)

He apparantly doesnt see anything wrong with this. Its pretty normal for most of us in Serbia to have more than one job but not when one is minted anyway and wont have enough time to do more than one job properly. I'd jump at the chance to be Belgrade's mayor but professionally I would drop everything else. There would be just too much work

Its kind of the same situation with another particularly ambitious politician with the rather famous surname of Djilas. He said he would resign his post if the Democratic Party lost Belgrade to the Radicals - he was true to his word. But that isnt it, he was re-elected to his post some days ago. Oh dear.

Dont get me wrong the aforementioned are actually some of the better politicians around that believe in a degree of accountability and responsibility. But we still have to apply the whip to make them understand that this degree is nowhere near enough.

Now, this is the correct

Atomski mrav (27 Mart, 2007 - 20:02)

Now, this is the correct analysis...

A small troll - what is the origin of the "Blighty" synonym for England?

I've found this definition

Jasmina (28 Mart, 2007 - 08:47)

I've found this definition in Wikipedia:

"Blighty is a British English slang term for Great Britain, deriving from the Hindustani word bilāyatī (विलायती), meaning "foreign", related to the Arabic word wilayat, meaning a kingdom or province. [...] The term was more common in the later days of the British Raj, but can now be considered self-consciously archaic and, when used by some speakers younger than the dissolution of the British Empire, can be intended slightly ironically. It is more commonly used as a term of endearment by the expatriate British community, or those on holiday to refer to home."

Thanks... I always wanted to

Atomski mrav (28 Mart, 2007 - 09:12)

Thanks... I always wanted to know that, as much as that "Gordon Bennet!" thing that Delboy says... :)

That is a curse of being a

mirko (28 Mart, 2007 - 10:21)

That is a curse of being a politician. No matter how good of a job you do people will not be satisfied...

I love Nenad Bogdanovic, too.

Krugolina Borup (28 Mart, 2007 - 10:29)

I love Nenad Bogdanovic, too. And I think he has done a lot of good for Belgrade, and continues to do so. When it comes to assessing his work as a mayor of Belgrade, you don't need the knowledge of his party or political activities. All you need is eyes. And I think one really has to be blind and with a very short-term memory to disregard all the good things that happened to Belgrade since he has been running the show.

Remember public transport in Belgrade in the days past? If that was just the one and only thing that improved during his governing of Belgrade, it would have been enough to give him due credit. But, it's not all.

I live at the top floor of a high building. The roof has been leaking for decades. Though it is supposed to be the joint responsibility of all the tenants in the building, no one ever wanted to give away any money for fixing it. And there was no way my family could come up with the huge amount of money needed for repair. It is only after Bogdanovic started running the show that this problem of top-floor tenants being held hostage by their neighbours throughout Belgrade was recognized, and solution offered. City government made up a special fund for helping those repairs.

Don't forget the extra bridge Belgrade needs. I remember reading about it back in the 1970's. But, nothing was ever done about it until recently. It is just that things are moving slowely, because it is such a monster project, so people don't recognize it. But HUGE amount of work was done on the project during Bogdanovic's mandate. And I think it was rather neat that they put up all the different versions of it online, and actually asked people what they think is the best one. And, then, respected the opinion of majority.

How about the project of helping young couples to get the roof over their heads a few years back, under the very special credit conditions? What was it - about 1000 appartments? Although I was irritated that I don't fall in any of their categories, and therefore can't even apply, I do have a friend who has finally - after 15 years of paying rents - gotten a chance to get a flat for her husband and two small children, by paying PAYABLE monthly installments.

These are just a few things that immidiately come to my mind when I think about the work Bogdanovic did. There's more, but I won't waste any more space by listing it. Maybe other people will. But I agree with Nichola's need to recognize Bogdanovic's work, and support it 100%. It's a nice change to the usual whining and focusing on the negative things only. Give the credit where the credit is due!

WHAT THE ....

akcija (29 Mart, 2007 - 12:54)

ne znam cime je inspirisan ovaj text, da li je narucen etc., ali ne mogu cudom da se nacudim?????
kao neko ko se ne krece mnogo u krugovima gradskih vlasti (sta bi bilo da je tako, mogu samo da zamislim) dosao sam u vise navrata do informacija da Nenad Bogdanovic i ljudi oko njega, bivaju debelo "nagradjeni" za svaki novi objekat i transakciju u Beogradu.
Naime, mogu navesti primer prodaje kuce cija se vrednost procenjivala na oko 60.000 eura. Konacna cena, kada se u to uracuna saglasnost par "gradskih otaca" iznosila je 100.000, naravno, preostalih 40.000 islo je u kovertama, a svi znamo sta to znaci.
Mislim da bi Beograd bio "much better off" Nenada Bogdanovica i njemu slicnih.
Poostite malo i druge da zive, dole ljigavi poltroni.

Word UP!

MayJAH (29 Mart, 2007 - 13:58)

Yup Nicholas: give credit where credit's DUe!
Methinks;) also that Mayor Bogdanovic is DUing mayJAH/gr8 job - specialy given the fact that he has to consult, collaborate w/DSS-baby SPS - b4 making any construcTiVe moves. Don't feel like spoiling ur romance;) & trust U me, I'm not (in2) splitting hairs - still, got 2 words 4 U: fifth park/5i parkic. Looks like: even beneath greatest Serbian/Belgrade's achievements - corruption rears it's ugly head! Not 2 mention that MAYor B is in
"slight" collision w/serBIAn CONstitutiON by SiMUTtaneousLY BeinG a delegate in Serbian CONgreSs & maYor of Balkan Babylon/BGd - unfortunately in arrogant fashion; placin' himself above the law, like most of his sorry-assed politrix buddiez! I kno/eYe know that retro/spin 'n' cheat (on vote countin')/good foe nuthin' CONstitutiON sucks byg tyme, still Bogdanovic's party/DS willingly co-wrote/& supported it along w/NAZIonalistic SRS!

Nicholas, byg thanx though 4 ur enthusiasam, love for our unique, truely charming capitol Synthidunum

Seriously, all these abundant x-clamation marx, possible smile O.D. &
sorta Hip-Hopish shorthand aside - the very tone of your post makes me think that things are moving in Positive/Rite direction; in spite of all Kostunica/& local polit-trash efforts in inventing, PeRfecting multi-gear transmission for driving in reverse.

DU enjoy your stay here, mayJAH

http://blog.myspace.com/duduah
http://blog.myspace.com/promosexxuals

Can't complain

Nicholas Comrie (30 Mart, 2007 - 14:03)

Yes I like it here or else, as I always say to those who ask, I wouldn't be here. It's not perfect but where is? Thanks for the response it was interesting, although I have to admit that my sms language needed a little sharpening to understand all that you said. Er, and what are the links for, I don't understand?

Nick mate,

Red Devil (5 April, 2007 - 19:52)

you need not speak Serbian to understand why they call Nenad Bogdanovic "Mister 10 percent." Any other mayor with a wee bit more integrity might have done a much better refurbishing job with the funds the city hall has got. The question is why are simple re-tarmacking jobs like the one in my neighbourhood four months late? Surely, surely, it must be the weather and not widespread corruption within the city's political structures Mr.Bogdanovic heads? Saying he is a good mayor by comparing him to his communist era predecessors is a bit audacious. P.S. told you England would only manage a draw in Israel.