2007 looks to be New York's year in politics yet 2006 though has left us with a mix bag. The biggest media hog? Hillary Clinton, presidential candidate and bane of many a left and right-wing blogger.
The Malling of New York City
My neighborhood pharmacy now is a Walgreens while Coliseum Books, scores of health food stores, Tower Records and CBGB's, all gone.
This is not an economic recovery. It's more like a systematic wipe out of independent, small business owners in New York.
Conspiracy Theory? Then why is ...
Brooklyn Burning
Neglect or arson? Either explanation is a condemnation of NYC. Is Brooklyn burning because Bloomberg wants to save some money or is it because developers want to get inconvenient buildings and people out of the way.
Mole333
Michael Stoler reports over at The Sun that New York City's commercial real estate sales went up 140%. And Bloomberg sipped a couple of martinis while delighting in the circus that became the tenant-run attempt to buy the (rumors have it already sold) Stuyvesant-Town/Peter Cooper apartment complex. A sell that will go down in infamy as one of the biggest rip-offs perpetrated in the name of eminent domain and urban development.
Let's not forget either another bleeding of the middle class with the Atlantic Yards project.
And speaking of urban development
WTF with the WTC
A hole in the ground.
A clueless Pataki.
A cypher of a mayor.
Scores of sick 9/11 workers with no medical benefits.
And bones still showing up, five years after the tragedy.
The Whitney Museum's 2006 Biennial
Two words : It sucked.
Dave Pollack's co-chairmanship of the state's Democratic Party
I think it's awesome that the NYC grassroots are represented in David's chairmanship of the state's democratic party. I am sure he will make us proud.
Now, if I could only get my hands on him and give him a high-end East Village makeover, I'll be a happy woman.
Anyhow ...
David's new job points to another important development ...
The rise of the NY netroots
Between independent bloggers like The Daily Gotham crew, groups like New Democratic Majority, Democracy for New York City and DL21C as well as candidates like John Hall and Brian Keeler, the netroots have started t upset New York politics as usual with a nice little bang.
Our work is just beginning though. Can't rest until we get a million people a week on these damned blogs.
This is the largest media market in the country after all.
Queens in the dark
At the heart of the republican failure to maintain our infrastructure are two key ideological concepts they hold sacred. One, that the market does everything better than the public interest, a rule to which they tolerate no exception; and two, that they themselves hate government. That's how people like Mike Brown of FEMA get appointed: if the market does everything better than government can, there's no need to staff government with competent people. And if they fail, as they inevitably do, well, that just proves the original theory.
Michael Bouldin
What fiscal equity?
The Daily Politics sees this as Pataki court-packing. And further, report that Spitzer may be backing away from his promises in this regard: "I asked Spitzer transition spokeswoman Christine Anderson whether he is sticking with $4 billion to $6 billion as the cost of providing a sound basic education to New York City, and she said: "That range was always the range caveated by the court. Now we'll just need to take another look at things."
Daniel Millstone
The banning of trans-fats from restaurants
Believe it or not, I think this move has nothing to do with health and all to do with real estate.
Yes! REAL ESTATE!
Imagine all the prime real estate that will open up when all the mom-and-pop restaurants with 100 year-old leases are all gone.
Ya. You didn't think about that.
The ban is not about cleansing the arteries. It's about cleansing New York of a whole social class that uses them in their food.
Think about that.
Michael Sandy and Sean Bell
I said it once and I am going to say it again : Paranoia ought not be a black man's best friend.
There are no black or Latino bloggers in Harlem?
This "family" of "the blogs" cannot articulate the colored and ethnically diverse vision of the country's political future because they seem incapable of understanding the social, economic, ethnical and racial dynamics that put them there in the first place. And they can't seem to understand that these dynamics are what are producing the fastest growing segment of the population who would most likely vote Democrat while looking more like J. Lo and Beyonce than Gloria Steinem...
Liza Sabater
The lessons still unlearned with the death of Nixmary Brown
Choice is not just a matter involving abortion. It's a matter involving a whole spectrum of parenting. When a woman does not choose a child born to her, she is more likely to neglect, abuse or murder that child.
Neonaticide, infanticide --they area all related to not having a choice in procreating, less in parenting.
I think of these crimes post-partum abortions.
Last but not least,
Shame on the NYDems for their complete failure to capture the State Senate and Assembly
After the speeches and cheers, I asked Sen. Schniederman in which races he was committed to assisting Democrats. Where did he see the chances for change? As I understand it, for example, no one is running against Senator Joe Bruno and if there are credible challenges mounted against those NYC Republican Senators seeking re-election, I haven't heard about them. "Brian Keeler" he said -- referring to Hudson Valley progressive blogger who is challenging Sen. Steve Saland. But Keeler probably won’t win, he conceded, given the GOP registration edge and incumbency advantage. So where will the Democratic majority come from? Well, he thinks Stewart-Cousins can win over Sen. Nick Spano and he'll put volunteers and money into that race as well as some in Suffolk. The words "1199," "Teachers" and "CSEA" all of which unions have endorsed Sen. Spano just didn’t come up. Will the Democrats unite around Matthew Titone, in Staten Island who is running for the Senate seat left open when Sen. John Marchi retired? "We'll have to wait until after the primary to see how to spend our resources." Sen. Schneiderman replied.
Daniel Millstone
