Friday, December 11, 2009

Will the MTA Destroy NYC?


Will the MTA Destroy NYC?

During the 60's, 70's and early 80's the symbol of decay driving business and people out of the city was the subway. The delay, broken trains, dirty stations, homeless not to mention the graffiti sent a message that the city downfall was our of control. Now after two decades of an complete makeover that worked, signs are pointing to a return to the subways bad old days. New Yorkers know that the subway are the life blood of the city. They also know like any good doctor that once those veins become deceased the body will soon die. New Yorker have been watching a state government which would drain even the most hopefu, fail to save the MTA from Doomsday Cuts. Now after the state bailout that raised taxi fees and taxes to freelance workers the state last week poured oil on the fire when it grabbed $143 million from the transit agency to fill its own massive budget gaps.

The broken promises did not end with the elected officials Two weeks ago the new MTA chairman Jay Walder told us there would be no fare hike in 2010. Now with the crap Albany put in place just 7 months ago, increasing everything from rental cars to cab fees and adding a payroll tax to save the MTA from doomsday service cuts, we are told they did not raise enough cash. The MTA needs a bailout from its bailout and the MTA looks to slash many bus routes, cut W, Z subway lines. We have not even talk about the fact that the 25 billion capital budget the MTA needs to keep the subway in good condition is unfunded. On May 4th after the failed bailout plan was announced GOV: LET'S DEAL WITH MTA CAPITAL BUDGET LATER * Molinaro on the M.T.A.: 'We're Screwed' , 2nd Avenue Subway Sickness? Will the subways decline again and trigger another mass exodus of the city? This time we not only have to deal with service cuts. We have to deal with a state government and MTA that the public no longer believes is telling the truth Maybe the MTA should hire lucky Leo to raise revenue? Man Makes $45K Yearly on Discarded Betting Slips Clueless Subway Goo Goos Don't Help How in the world can good government group leader and media star Gene Russianoff say the best thing to happen to the MTA was the bailout when we now know the bailout has failed, the 25 billion capital budget is unfunded and the raise in fees and taxes are driving business and the middle class out? Best and Worst in NYC Transit in 2009 , Dilan to MTA: Keep me in the loop, or else , Nicole Gelinas suggests service cuts that hit key state lawmakers' districts.

The NYT Can Break the Albany Wall Of Silence Today All the NYT has to do is ask questions to the leaders of Albany. They can even email the same question to all the elected officials. Why not use the excellent information that the U.S. Attorney who got Bruno Andrew Baxter said about the state's ethics and disclosure laws. He said Albany covers it tracks so well that is make it much harder for law enforcement to investigate and prosecute public corruption involving state officials. There's just so little transparency in the legislative process that it takes an enormous amount of time and effort to uncover what really happened." We like to see the NYT asked everyone in Albany why they operate in secrecy like organize crime and the only the only time transparency comes into play is when they make campaign promises to do more of it during election time. Meanwhile the U.S. Attorney is still looking at the legislature

Everything Changes from Day One A reunion tour that despite rumors will not be sponsored by former AIG CEO Hank Greenberg Gov on comptrol race: Spitz fits! *** A Lie from A Public Spokeman, Shocking State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli is "not concerned about who runs against him" in 2010, according to a spokesman It not good to lie when the top deputy controller is involved in a corruption investigation. Is this all there is to journalism in 2010, the press filling out copy on their pages with BS from flacks? * The jury is still out on whether the stimulus cash created jobs, DiNapoli said during a stop in Binghamton.
Inside City Hall Christie & Bloomy are new BFFs *** Gal is in running for FDNY commish *** Councilman-elect Dan Halloran claims Buildings Department inspections to check for illegal conversions lack proper proof *** Illegally Divided Homes Pose Dangers but Fill a Need *** City and Union Officials Clash Over the Effectiveness of a New Fire Dispatch System *** Teachers file suit to bounce 'rubber rooms' *** City lauds error rate of new 911 dispatching system *** Low-performing Queens high schools face closure *** Low-performing Queens high schools face closure *** Vote On Kingsbridge Armory Development Postponed Again *** Woman Being Considered FDNY's Top Post *** Calling For Charles Barron *** Times Sq. shooting gives Bloomberg ammo for new gun laws*** Diaz Jr. Urges 'No' on Kingsbridge *** Developers line up for Willets Point project Twenty-nine groups express interest in reviving the 62-acre area, in what the city says is a positive sign amid difficult economic conditions *** Bronx Democrats, Potential Challengers Back Off Espada Challenge*** A former prosecutor says the dust-up between the mayor and Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau is really about "testing the mettle" of incoming DA Cy Vance *** As Bloomberg Jokes of Media's Death, UN's Ban Lives It, Asbestos Links the Two


Election 2010 State Democrats Gear Up for 2010 Campaign *** Bronx Democrats aren't necessarily targeting Senator Pedro Espada Jr. *** A Primary Opponent For Liz Krueger? »
New York Economic Melt Down TWU: cruisin' for a bruisin' New union leader see the MTA as the enemy. Has Mike Quill returned? *** $1 McD's recession breakfast *** Cuts Ahead, a Bronx Principal Maps Out What May Have to Go *** We Weren’t Quite Ready for the Modern Toilet Age *** Nonprofits reeling after the year of Madoff *** City: Indian reservation cigarettes still sold untaxed *** Stalled construction site total hits 515 *** More foreign tourists sprechen sie Broadway *** Manhattan Beach security patrol to disband *** The New York and New Jersey Port Authorities pass a $6.3 billion budget, cutting 150 positions and slashing overtime. (AP) ***NNY officials doubt big Tier V savings *** The Times Union is unhappy that New York is raiding its Regional Greenouse Gas Initiative fund *** La Guardia fix-up won't fly *** Bloomberg's Last-Ditch Pitch To 'All My Children' *** State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli said: "We are very much in a situation where we have to look at our bill payment, the checkbook, on a daily basis, and we are very likely to come up short over the next couple of days." *** Bonus taxes for financiers in England and possibly France could be good for New York, Mayor Bloomberg said. Gov of La Mancha's Albany Taming the pension beast: Albany takes first steps toward curbing out-of-control costs (DN Ed) *** Paterson’s fundraising fibs, foibles *** Paterson blames the legislature for the lack of ethics reform. (NYP) *** Paterson says the new license plate fees are off the table now. (GNS) *** The governor’s planned cuts piles on more uncertainty for local governments. (Post-Star) *** Paterson responds to reports that former Gov. Eliot Spitzer is mulling a 2010 run. (NYP/ Newsday$) *** "The time for chatter is done, and I am willing to place my political career on the line to start a formalized tax revolt," Assemblyman Greg Ball said of the payroll tax. "We will replace pitchforks with online petitions, but the impact will be the same and this gesture will be a wakeup call to the tax-and-spend crowd in Albany that we have reached our breaking point." *** Harold Ickes is on team Paterson *** Paterson said increased license plate fees will be off the table in next year's budget *Paterson's political brain trust, according to Gerson Borrero, includes: His father (Basil Paterson), Harold Ickes, Larry Schwartz, Bill Lynch and Roberto Ramirez. The group held a strategy session last Sunday *** Gov. David Paterson signed the Tier 5 bill into law *** Paterson isn't exactly telling the truth when he says he has been too busy with the budget to raise campaign cash*** The Wit and Wisdom of David Paterson *** Ethics weaklings Gov rips 'self-policing' reform bills *** Espada Pushes On Farm Workers Rights *** Lazio's 2009 JPMorgan Bonus: $1.3 MillionLaw and Order Bus-taunt dad: I'll sue DA A Staten Island dad is threatening to sue Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes, saying his office botched a case against an allegedly sadistic bus matron *** 'Sorry' injustice 'Regretful' judge frees victim of rape lie *** Shut shops are blowing smoke: NY New York City has accused several cigarette dealers on a Long Island Indian reservation of secretly defying a court shut-down order *** Police shoot, kill gun-wielding man in Times Square *** In Holiday Crush, a Fatal Shootout in Times Sq *** Suit Filed in Wrong-Way Crash That Killed 8 on Taconic *** White Powder Found at American Express Headquarters *** Driver faces DWI charge after hitting couple*** Times Square gunman used same weapon as John Wayne, Bruce Willis did in movies *** Atlantic Yards foes see hope in the Columbia eminent domain decision *** CRM Holdings, which runs an insurance trust fund, was sued by the Workers Comp. Board and might face a second suit from the AG's office, too *** Times Square shooting shows scourge of illegal peddlers

White House Bam tells tough truths* Accepting Peace Prize, Obama Offers ‘Hard Truth’** Prez is poll-axed His 47 percent approval rating in the crucial Gallup tracking poll is the lowest ever notched for a US commander in chief at this point in his term *** BARACK OBAMA: Why America fights for peace Excerpts from President Obama's speech yesterday **Geithner Warns of ‘Headwinds’ on Road to Recovery* Geithner warning on fed bailout front conceded that Uncle Sam would take a bath on its bailout loans and aid to General Motors, Chrysler and American International Group *** Blackwater Guards Tied to Secret Raids by the C.I.A. *** Gates Expects New Sanctions on Iran *** President Obama in Oslo President Obama’s eloquent speech accepting the Peace Prize was the one he needed to give, but we suspect not precisely the one the Nobel committee wanted to hear (NYT Ed) *** Washington Fuss Over White House Hanukkah Party *** Rolling Stone's Matt Taibbi: How Obama Sold Out America *** Obama flexes muscle in Nobel speech *** The price of peace: President's Nobel Prize speech deals frankly with need for force (DN Ed)*** The EPA's Carbon Bomb Fizzles - Kimberley Strassel, Wall Street Journal *** “This is all one big overblown latke,” a rabbi said of the fuss over the White House Hanukkah Party. (WP) *** Obama Showing a New Vulnerability - Ron Brownstein, National Journal *** Obama Goes Neocon in Norway - Abe Greenwald, National Review *** The President at War and Peace - Eugene Robinson, Washington Post *** Peacenicked - George Neumayr, The American Spectator *** Supporting Obama's Afghan Surge - Stephen Hadley, Washington Post *** Obama Surrenders to General McChrystal - Margaret Carlson, Bloomberg *** Right Sanctions Can Still Stop Iran - Danielle Pletka, Wall Street Journal *** Oprah's White House Xmas show is pure fluff*** Peace Prize: President Says Piss Off (Wolff Newser)
Congress Health care's missing millions (NYP Ed) *** Many See the VAT Option as a Cure for Runaway Deficits *** Democrats Defend Bill to Rein in Wall Street *** Threatened G.M. and Chrysler Dealers Win a Round in the House *** A Tax at Every Turn*** House Approves Bill That Would Ease Federal Grip on Washington *** House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she will support a Senate proposal for a Medicare buy-in, but said she still prefers a public option. (WP) *** There aren’t many details, but one thing’s for sure: the Medicare buy-in would be expensive. (NYT) *** The proposed joblessness plan may include a spin-off of TARP to assist small businesses. (WP) *** The House moves closer to a financial regulation overhaul, but significant hurdles remain in the Senate. House Democrats defend the bill against GOP criticism. (WP/ NYT) *** Three senators – a Democrat, Republican and Independent – propose cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent by 2020. (WP) *** The foreclosure relief program is sputtering, with only 4 percent in the program moving beyond the initial phase. (WP) *** The House is expected to propose to raise the limit on federal debt. (WP) *** Older Voters at Odds With Dems' HC Plans - Ed Gillespie & Whit Ayres, RCP *** Dems Must Keep Incumbents in Swing Districts - Martin Frost, Politico *** A Better Plan for Job Creation - Rep. John Boehner, Washington Post *** Reid's New Idea is Worse Than the Public Option - Wall Street Journal *** A Bailout for Main Street? *** House Votes to Tighten Regulation of Wall Street *** Hillary Clinton: Obama's Foreign-Policy Hawk - John Hughes, CS Monitor *** Moderates Uneasy With Medicare Plan - Carrie Budoff Brown, Politico


Political Party Are Dems Trying to Follow GOP Off the Cliff? - Stuart Rothenberg, Roll Call *** Is John Thune the GOP's Answer to Obama? - Matt Lewis, Politics Daily *** Sarah Palin Op-Ed One Of WaPo's Most Read

Wall Street Goldman blinks * Goldman’s Curbs on Bonuses Aim to Quell Uproar*Goldman blinks on cash bonuses to top execs* Dubai debt rescue sends stocks higher *** Bernanke’s Unfinished Mission Sustained high unemployment is a recipe for immense human suffering. The Federal Reserve must start lending a hand to job creation (Krugman NYT) *** U.S. Retail Sales Exceed Forecasts *** 99 Weeks of Jobless Benefits a Bridge Too Far - USA Today *** Confronting High Risk and the Banks - Floyd Norris, New York Times *** Bonus Bashers Shouldn't Stop at Goldman Sachs - David Reilly, Bloomberg *** Madoff: Prison's Mr. Congeniality*** Networks Still Hosting Military Analysts Without Identifying Massive Conflicts Of Interest*** Nation's Health Care Tab to Grow Under Senate Bill FOXNews *** $500K: Obama's Pay Czar Caps Compensation at Some Bailed-Out Firms

Pay to Play Wall Street Ex-lawyer admits guilt in NYC insider trading case *** NY Times prepares to cut two dozen positions *** Ex-lawyer admits guilt in Galleon case

Environment Europe Makes a Pledge of $3 Billion for Climate Aid*** U.S. Climate Envoy: Good Cop, Bad Cop *** Will Wall Street Harm Climate Progress? - Bradford Plumer, New Republic



National Slowing Expansion, Harvard Suspends Work on Tower*** Jenny Sanford Ends Marriage *** Latino in America

Environment How to Finance a Climate Change Fund - George Soros, The Guardian *** Draft Outlines Climate Goals *** UN Draft Emissions Proposal a Nonstarter for US Climate Negotiators *** How to Break the Climate Impasse - Hampson & Zartman, Globe and Mail

Media and New Tech Citadel's swan song ABC Radio + Don Imus = bankruptcy for Citadel Broadcasting *** Ex-Bear CEO Schwartz leads Nielsen mag buy *** Stephanopoulos to Join ‘Good Morning’*** Livening Up a Staid Magazine*** Editor & Publisher and Kirkus Reviews Close *** Barnes and Noble's Nook slated for quick fixes *** Editor & Publisher closing after 108 years *** Jeff Zucker Quietly Signs New 3-Year Contract With NBC *** AOL tries new direction *** Google, Yahoo, AOL join sex-perv purge *** Conan O'Brien, David Letterman have blast with teachers' escapades *** Diane Sawyer makes teary farewell on 'GMA' *** Networks Still Hosting Military Analysts Without Identifying Massive Conflicts Of Interest *** Female cast member punched on MTV's 'Jersey Shore' Scarlet Scuttlebutt *** George: I Found "GMA" Decision 'Terribly Hard'... Here's Why *** New York mag's owner opens Web ad agency New York Media partners with search engine marketing firm Clickable to lure New York City small businesses
Blog Report BlogTalk: A Nobel Prize and Climate Skeptics *** Why should Williamsburg have the monopoly on bike lane conflicts? Brooklyn Heights has its very own cyclists-versus-local-religious-group controversy. [McBrooklyn] *** The trial has begun for the man accused of chasing down and stabbing a teenager who he said cut in line at a falafel truck at 53rd Street and Avenue of the Americas. He is claiming self-defense. [Gothamist] *** New! Tiger Woods Blog *** So, the other arena bonds really are junk: $146.8 million issuance rated "B" by S&P, interest rate could hit 14%