Shelly Silver And His Shady Control Over The LMDC

There has been plenty to gripe about when it comes to Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. The way he controls every single Democratic member in the State House, how contributions flow in from groups he rewards by killing key legislation (see: congestion pricing) and his special skills of causing gridlock in Albany. Well, it seems he is also good at using state agencies known for not doing much at all to help his pet projects around the Lower Manhattan district he calls home.

From The NY Post:

In the last two years, the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. has shelled out nearly $12 million to many of the same community and cultural groups that Silver has steered pork money to, an analysis by The Post has found.

"The allocations look more like [Silver's] 'member items' these days," fumed an LMDC board member, using the Albany term for pet pork projects.

Yeah I know, I'm going off the Post here but Silver's actions are worth it. It is Democrats like him that cling to the old ways (or present) where patronage and pay to play politics rules and the best decisions for the people of New York are thrown to the wayside. It is hard to deny that a higher percentage of the LMDC's money is going to the places Silver wants and has nothing to do with developing Lower Manhattan in any kind of prudent manner.

Now the programs that are getting money aren't all bad by any means. Many of them have worthy objectives. Yet the mission of the LMDC was to help rebuild the area after 9/11 and as almost in NY government has made clear, the Corporation should be shutdown precisely because it wasn't doing it's job (not to mention being a part of the deaths of the two firefighters in the Deutsche Bank Bldg.). At the moment, it is only doing the job of providing pork for Shelly Silver.

Fighting Terror With....Viagra?

When it comes to Afghanistan, Western intelligence operatives have come to realize that carpet-bombing innocent civilians does not provide the best information. Now, making friends with the locals is great, but it seems that giving key elders that little blue pill made by Pfizer is even better.

Finally, Counting The Last Padavan-Gennaro Ballots Will Begin

Nearly two months have gone by since election day and still, one race is not over in New York. Incumbent Frank Padavan is up over 500 votes, yet his team has tried to blockade the counting of nearly 2,000 votes that were initially rejected by the Board of Election. Sen. Frank Padavan has desperately wanted this whole thing to be over with and force a concession from Jim Gennaro, but the Democrat is holding fast to the priniciple that all eligible votes be counted. Finally the courts have decided to let those last ballots be added to the mix.

From The NY Times:

The Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court ruled that the counting of about 1,750 paper ballots could proceed in the razor-thin contest, blocking an attempt by lawyers on behalf of Mr. Padavan to halt any further vote counting.

“Frank Padavan and the Republicans have now asked two different courts to stop the Board of Elections from counting legitimate ballots,” said Mike Barfield, a spokesman for the Gennaro campaign. “Each time the courts have directed that the ballots be reviewed, but Frank Padavan seems to think that the counting of valid votes should stop simply because he is ahead.”

The truth is that Gennaro has long odds in pulling this thing out, even with 1,750 ballots left to be counted. Sure, he could win them by a margin of 1,175 to 575 and win this thing by 20 votes but the chances of that are slim. Jim would make an excellent Senator in the place of Padavan, but it looks like that will have to wait for two years. Still, I'll keep my fingers crossed, ya never know, right?

Getting The Coal Truth From Tennessee Is Hard To Do

This past week has been extremely rough in the area of Central Tennessee affected by the dam break that was holding back a large amount of coal sludge. Initial reports said that only a few homes were damaged and that the analysis of the sludge was not harmful where it spread. No big deal right? Wrong. A coal fired power plant's byproducts are a serious issue and finding out what truly happened is essential here.

From The NY Times:

Authority officials initially said that about 1.7 million cubic yards of wet coal ash had spilled when the earthen retaining wall of an ash pond breached, but on Thursday they released the results of an aerial survey that showed the actual amount was 5.4 million cubic yards, or enough to flood more than 3,000 acres one foot deep. The amount now said to have been spilled is larger than the amount the Authority initially said was in the pond, 2.6 million cubic yards.

Of course, the T.V.A. was quick to dismiss the potential bad news:

“You’re not going to be endangered by touching the ash material,” said Barbara Martocci, a spokeswoman for the T.V.A. “You’d have to eat it. You have to get it in your body.”

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation also released a statement saying there was no indication of risk unless the ash was ingested.

Yet, they forget to play things out. No one is going to literally pick up pieces of ash and eat them as you'd pick berries in the forest. The problems from disasters like this are mostly in the future and residents are pissed that not much is really being done.

“We’re terribly frustrated,” said Donald Smith, 58, a laboratory facilities manager who lives in the affected area. “It seems like T.V.A. is just throwing darts at the problem, and they don’t have a clue how to really fix it.

“It was nice that they came by to talk to us. They’re making an effort. But what upsets me is they didn’t have a plan in place. Why hadn’t anybody thought, ‘What happens if this thing bursts?’ ”

Well Donald, coming up with a plan would have expended time and energy, something the Authority obviously didn't care for. They did have things ready to save valuable materials (see the article for the stuff on bowling balls for example) and were ready to work furiously to re-open the roads and especially railways that bring the coal to the plant to be processed.

In this age of government where the system has been purposefully broken by conservative ideology, it is only natural that the Authority is following the lead of the federal (and state) government. Looking after the moneyed interests always comes first before the safety and health of people affected by man-made tragedies such as this.

This Year's War On The War On Christmas Floundered

Yet again, Bill O'Reilly and his gang at Fox News tried to paint the mean ol' Democrats as trying to ruin Christmas. Apparently, trying to extend the holiday spirit to Americans that aren't Christian is a terrible thing and must be wiped out. To nuts like O'Reilly, saying "Happy Holidays" will make it hard for observant Christians to make it to mass and be able to fill their trees with ornaments at home.

At least fewer people are taking him seriously anymore, hopefully that attitude can be extended to his network throughout the year.

Fidler Wants His Cake, Tries To Eat It Too

When it comes to having an abundance of emotion, Lew Fidler can be counted among those that have it in City Hall. He can talk up a storm and pound his fist on the table for good measure. Fidler certainly did that in the wake of the property tax hike initiated by Bloomberg and shortly after the Mayor's "gutless" comment for all those that didn't vote his way. Lew was outraged, outraged I tell ya!

Check out this sternly-worded statement:

I just wanted to tell each of you that the Mayor has some frickin' nerve calling the CMs who voted no on the property tax increase "gutless". I wanted to remind all of you---or tell you if you had not heard this before---that this is the same Mayor who told me that it would be better politically to do it sooner rather than closer to the election. So who is gutless? The people who stood up and said "this is not necessary now. If we have to do it later because it becomes necessary then we will,", or the guy who says let's do it sooner so the voters might not be as mad when the election comes around.

When he called me in his round of phone calls to thank members who supported the term limits extension, he immediately went to the property tax and said---and I quote---"It would probably be better politically if we did this now rather than later anyway."

I would not share a private conversation this way if he had not made such an outrageous public comment. I guess when you have been a business executive and did not need the cooperation of democratically elected co-workers, you could function this way. After 7 years, its hard to believe that he doesn't recognize the world he works in.

Lew Fidler

Aww Lew, after seven years, it is unbelievable that you do not recognize that very same world. For the sake of your own self-interest, you voted for the term limit extension that is meant to help you and the Mayor in power. Sure, I heard your excuses before about why you oppose term limits and that this is just an opportune time to get it done. Nevermind of course that your actions helped to see an undemocratic means get to its end.

Basically, Lew stuck with the Mayor when it was advantageous to him, and now that the CM wants to be seen as fighting for the people who own homes in his district, he is a screamin' and a shoutin'. I have to admit, even though Bloomberg is a gutless wonder himself, he is right that there are gutless Councilmembers out there, like Lew Fidler.

Oceans Are Rising Faster And Faster

Thankfully the amount of climate crisis deniers is falling. More and more of us are coming to the realization that our planet, while it is massive, is very susceptible to the industrialization and pollution that we put into the ecosystem. Unfortunately, that increasing awareness has not stopped the dire predictions for the effects of our man-made change in the climate. The oceans are now expected to rise more than ever before.

From The Washington Post:

Thirty-two scientists from federal and non-federal institutions contributed to the report, which took nearly two years to complete. The Climate Change Science Program, which was established in 1990, coordinates the climate research of 13 different federal agencies.

Tom Armstrong, senior adviser for global change programs at USGS, said the report "shows how quickly the information is advancing" on potential climate shifts. The prospect of abrupt climate change, he said, "is one of those things that keeps people up at night, because it's a low-probability but high-risk scenario. It's unlikely to happen in our lifetimes, but if it were to occur, it would be life-changing."

In one of the report's most worrisome findings, the agency estimates that in light of recent ice sheet melting, global sea level rise could be as much as four feet by 2100. The IPCC had projected a sea level rise of no more than 1.5 feet by that time, but satellite data over the past two years show the world's major ice sheets are melting much more rapidly than previously thought. The Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are now losing an average of 48 cubic miles of ice a year, equivalent to twice the amount of ice that exists in the Alps.

Four feet may not sound like a lot, but when you examine world geography along the thousands upon thousands of miles of coastline, the results are devastating. Not only will rising seas wipe out many coastal cities and ports, but regions inland will see drastic changes in their weather patterns, leading to more instability than what we see now. There is a lot more in the report and I suggest everyone read it...and then get into action, reducing your own impact and advocating for change in our communities and national governments.

Here in America, we must make sure that President Obama and Congress spend money to ensure we switch to clean energy to rebuild our infrastructure. That means less cars, more mass transit and ridding ourselves of coal and oil power and replace it with solar and wind. There's no more time to waste.

Councilwoman Mendez Sets Bloomberg Straight On Term Limits

Rosie Mendez is my Councilwoman in District 2 and she stood up in front of the Mayor to address her concerns on term limits. She still wants the issue to be addressed by the public through a special election (though the Mayor feels differently of course). Except for the comment about her constituents wanting to re-elect Bloomberg, her two minutes at the podium wasn't half bad.

Is This The Future For The Republican Party?

The Republican Party is doing some heavy soul searching these days. How will they recoup from the devastating losses in the House, the Senate and State Legislatures across the country (not to forget the White House of course). What is the vision for the GOP as a dwindling set of loyal opposition? Is there a set of policies or perhaps a specific focus such as health care? Or maybe some of their leaders just want more bitter partisan attacks, including ones that hinge on race.

From TPM:

If one of the Republican Party's challenges is how to effectively oppose the first black president without coming off as racist, one of the candidates for RNC chair is hardly off to a good start -- he is now distributing a CD that includes a racially-charged song called "Barack, The Magic Negro."

Chip Saltsman, the former campaign manager for Mike Huckabee, has distributed a goodie bag to committee members that includes a CD by Paul Shanklin, a writer of right-wing parody tunes who is often featured on Rush Limbaugh. The "Magic Negro" track, which first gathered controversy in the Spring of 2007, featured Shanklin portraying Al Sharpton as an Amos & Andy stereotype, ridiculing white liberals who support Obama.

So that's how you try and woo over Republican officials to make you king of the party? I surely hope that those getting their goodie bags are throwing away that racist crap as soon as they lay eyes on it. If they do not, that thinking is going to doom them for years to come as the majority of this nation progresses on the long road to racial harmony....while they're stuck in the ditch.

A Blog-Mas Miracle For The Sampson Family

During the holiday (and really any day during the year), hearing about warm and fuzzy stories are always a nice way to fill in the relatively slow news cycle. Plenty of Americans like to watch "It's A Wonderful Life" and "Miracle on 34th Street" for that cheerful feeling. While those are works of old Hollywood fiction, there are great stories out in the real world. For the Sampson family in Aberdeen, MD their holiday miracle was fueled by an entity not around just a few years ago, the blogosphere.

See, the family was over-run by injuries, an unexpected pregnancy, being out of work, having cars repossessed and nearly losing their home. Right before they were about to be booted from their homes in this terrible economic environment, a friend of theirs, Jaki Grier was jokingly asked for $10,000 to stave off the bank from foreclosing on them. Well, Jaki didn't donate much, but the blogging she did brought in even more.

From CNN:

At the most, Jaki thought she could raise enough money to help the Sampsons pay a security deposit on an apartment after their home was auctioned.

But donations started pouring in. Within 24 hours, Grier's blog had raised $1,000, far exceeding her expectations. People started linking to Grier's blog from sites across the Internet and around the country.[...]

"Everybody wants to give to a charity, but so many times when you give to a charity you don't really see where your money goes," Grier said. "At least with this, you saw the little [donations] ticker go. I think that made people excited."

Four days after Grier's blog post, she had raised $3,400 -- enough to repair the Sampsons' car. That night, Grier went to bed ecstatic. The next morning she checked her PayPal account and was stunned to find the balance had ballooned to $10,900.

And it got even better from there. With over $11,000 taken in, the local traditional media station got word and things got even better. Someone watching the local station gave Mr. Sampson a job. Charitable outpourings from the community have happened plenty of times before, but in no way has it been this easy to post a story and get such an immediate reaction. A project can spread by word of mouth, but on the blogs it goes like wildfire. Cheers to the power of the net and to everyone that helped the Sampson's keep their home.

A Capella Christmas

I'm not the biggest fan of Christmas songs but I have to admit this medley by Straight No Chaser was a lot of fun:

For All The Lawyers On Christmas

Props to Asinus Asinum Fricat at Daily Kos for this gem:

Whereas, on or about the night prior to Christmas, there did occur at a certain improved piece of real property (hereinafter "the House") a general lack of stirring by all creatures therein, including, but not limited to a mouse.

A variety of foot apparel, e.g., stocking, socks, etc., had been affixed by and around the chimney in said House in the hope and/or belief that St. Nick a/k/a/ St. Nicholas a/k/a/ Santa Claus (hereinafter "Claus") would arrive at sometime thereafter. The minor residents, i.e. the children, of the aforementioned House were located in their individual beds and were engaged in nocturnal hallucinations, i.e. dreams, wherein vision of confectionery treats, including, but not limited to, candies, nuts and/or sugar plums, did dance, cavort and otherwise appear in said dreams.

Whereupon the party of the first part (sometimes hereinafter referred to as ("I"), being the joint-owner in fee simple of the House with the party of the second part (hereinafter "Mama"), and said Mama had retired for a sustained period of sleep. At such time, the parties were clad in various forms of headgear, e.g., kerchief and cap.

Suddenly, and without prior notice or warning, there did occur upon the unimproved real property adjacent and appurtenant to said House, i.e., the lawn, a certain disruption of unknown nature, cause and/or circumstance. The party of the first part did immediately rush to a window in the House to investigate the cause of such disturbance.

At that time, the party of the first part did observe, with some degree of wonder and/or disbelief, a miniature sleigh (hereinafter "the Vehicle") being pulled and/or drawn very rapidly through the air by approximately eight (8) reindeer. The driver of the Vehicle appeared to be and in fact was, the previously referenced Claus.

Said Claus was providing specific direction, instruction and guidance to the approximately eight (8) reindeer and specifically identified the animal co-conspirators by name: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen (hereinafter "the Deer"). (Upon information and belief, it is further asserted that an additional co-conspirator named "Rudolph" may have been involved.)

The party of the first part witnessed Claus, the Vehicle and the Deer intentionally and willfully trespass upon the roofs of several residences located adjacent to and in the vicinity of the House, and noted that the Vehicle was heavily laden with packages, toys and other items of unknown origin or nature. Suddenly, without prior invitation or permission, either express or implied, the Vehicle arrived at the House, and Claus entered said House via the chimney.

Said Claus was clad in a red fur suit, which was partially covered with residue from the chimney, and he carried a large sack containing a portion of the aforementioned packages, toys, and other unknown items.

He was smoking what appeared to be tobacco in a small pipe in blatant violation of local ordinances and health regulations.

Claus did not speak, but immediately began to fill the stocking of the minor children, which hung adjacent to the chimney, with toys and other small gifts. (Said items did not, however, constitute "gifts" to said minor pursuant to the applicable provisions of the U.S. Tax Code.)

Upon completion of such task, Claus touched the side of his nose and flew, rose and/or ascended up the chimney of the House to the roof where the Vehicle and Deer waited and/or served as "lookouts." Claus immediately departed for an unknown destination.

However, prior to the departure of the Vehicle, Deer and Claus from said House, the party of the first part did hear Claus state and/or exclaim: "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!" Or words to that effect.

Looks like Santa got away with that one!