Karma? Coincindence?

Flippin' through the blog world, I read Kristin Hersh's most recent entry which I thought was cute. It has nothing to do with New York, but because I'm a fan, I think it's worth repeating.

We had a cheap champagne party on the last night of mixing during which Mudrock got a phone call from a Boston friend who asked him what he was working on. He told him, "50FootWave, Kristin Hersh's new band," to which the other-end-of-the-phone-guy says, "Oh yeah? My friend's recording Kristin Hersh's son's band in Boston today." Mudrock reaches the end of the conversation, looks at me and says, "Do you have another son? I mean other than the 3 that are here?" I nod and he says, spookily, "I know where he is."

Turns out Dylan's band, Happy Birthday L.A., was making their record in Boston at the very same time his dear ol' mom's creaky old band was churning out their's on the opposite coast. And Happy Birthday L.A. makes 50FootWave sound like a Juicy Fruit commercial. Grown up babies all doin' their thing and whatnot. How genuinely weird.

I'll be very curious to hear Dylan Hersh Going's music. If anyone happens to know a website of theirs or have a sample of their music, I'd love to give it a listen.

Democracy can work

From the blog, Iraq The Model we read about the evolving process of democracy in Iraq. I know that many liberals (and there are paleo-conservatives too) that Iraqis are not the uncivilized barbarians they believed them to be. Yes, it appears that for the most part, the country does understand the workings of political parties and the freedom to express their opinions by forming voting blocks with a majority and an opposition.

With all the ups and downs that appear to happen in Iraq and Afghanistan, Middle East societies understand the importance of individual liberties. Here's hoping future successes will strengthen the security of these countries and bring our men and women home when the time is right.

State News

I'm updating my sidebar with NewsCopy, a site that does a very good job keeping tabs on gubernatorial and senatorial rumbling across New York State.

The wordsmithie is staying on top of big names like William Weld, Pat Manning, Tom Golisano, Eliot Spitzer, Thomas Suozzi, John Faso, Randy Daniels, Jeanine Pirro, John Spencer and even some names you don't always hear about.

Stop by NewsCopy and catch up on State affairs.

Republicans Debating Issues

The Gotham Gazette has transcripts for two debates that occurred on October 18.
The first debate was for Council District 5, between Dr. Joel Zinberg (Republican) and Jessica Lappin (Democrat). The transcript for the debate can be found here (CD5).

A Zinberg answer highlighted:

How would you manage health care in New York City?
Joel Zinberg: The problem of health care in New York is kind of a microcosm of the country. I think a good example of misguided attempts by the current City Council is the Health Reform Act they recently passed by overriding the mayor's veto. And this was termed by an editorial in the New York Times as such chop a block solution for local governments of what is indeed a national problem.

The council decided they were going to require... they start off with a very broad idea then they finally narrowed it down to large grocery stores and... they were going to require them to provide health care. I submit, and I think the Times agrees, that, number one, it's probably pre-empted by federal legislation. Number two, it's just a bad idea. A single locality cannot mandate something, then it puts itself at a tremendous disadvantage.

What we need to do in health care is we need to be innovative, we need to, for example, my idea for reforming Medicaid utilizing our resources so that we can save that $500 million and then actually use the $500 million for things like hiring more teachers, for firefighters or police, or, heaven forbid, letting people actually get health care with that $500 million rather than throwing it out the window. I think you also have to look seriously in involving the community in breast cancer screenings. I have done— I didn't just arrange for breast cancer screenings, I was there, I performed it as a public service, and I've done it for ten years. I ran the breast clinic at the city hospital. I was trauma surgeon at a city hospital. I know about disaster planning. This is something you need someone with real-world experience to approach.

The second debate was for Council District 4, between Patrick Murphy (Republican), Dan Garodnick (Democrat) & Jak Jacob Karako (Libertarian). The transcript can be found here (CD4).

A Murphy answer highlighted:

How do you propose the city address the projected deficit in the city’s 2007 and 2008 budgets? Are there new revenue streams you would propose? Are their specific inefficiencies or wasteful programs that you would seek to eliminate?
Patrick Murphy: This is clearly the most pressing issue that we will be facing in this city. I have spent a lot of time on this issue and looking through some of the recommendations. I think the Citizens Budget Commission, which is truly a non-partisan organization, has the right road map. We are looking at a $3 to $5 billion deficit in the out years. It could be more if have a little blip on Wall Street or in real estate; then we are in even more trouble.

Here is the issue: Budget growth is coming in four areas - current benefits to city employees, pensions, state-mandated Medicaid benefits, and debt, which continues to rise. Debt has gone up $10 billion in the last five years.

Here is what have to do: All of the things that have happened in the private sector in the last 20 years haven’t happened in the city sector. We have got to start moving from a defined benefit program to a defined contribution, 401K. Twenty-two percent of city employees will be new by that time, so we can do that without changing our promises to current employees. We have to start asking employees to pay for health benefits. That has been a challenge in the private sector, but people have done it. That would be a billion dollars right there. My road map is the Citizens Budget Commission’s. This is going to be a very difficult budget.

My advice to those voting this year. If you're independent minded and may vote for a Republican mayor, but balance it by voting Democrat for Council, just remember the City Council is 48 Democrat to 3 Republican. This imbalance in the Council gives more power to the Democrats when it comes to passing legislation. If the Democrats wish to pass legislation that you disagree with, if the Mayor vetoes it, it'll go back to the Council where only 36 "yes" votes are needed for a veto override. Electing a Republican in your district does more to the whole body of government. It'll create a stronger opposition voice who can form a coalition with moderate democrats to prevent liberalism running amok! Most registered Democrats in New York are moderate and not on the far left. Most Republicans are moderate to slightly on the right, without being right-wing extremists. Of the 51 seats, there are 32 seats with Republican candidates. The Council races that would have effective Republicans are districts 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 13, 19, 20, 35, 38, 39, 43, & 46. That's just 13 seats added to the 3 we already have. That would make the Council what it should be in New York City. 35 Democrat and 16 Republican. It will still be a Democratic controlled Council with enough Republicans to make a difference. It's not expected that all will be won by Republicans, but if five or six can be added to the 3 givens, it's a start for real bi-partisan government.

"Affordable" Housing Report

Report on "Affordable" Housing:

Affordable housing production in New York is failing to meet demand, according to a report [released by] the city's public advocate, Betsy Gotbaum. The study blames the reduction in city and state funding and a restructuring of programs to address very specific objectives, localities, and demograaphics. Without current revenue to create new affordable housing, the report recommends low-interest loans and tax breaks to jump-start construction.

Sadly, we live in New York City, a regulated town, which does not help with the construction of "affordable" housing. At one time, government used to create public housing for low-income families, but now government has expanded to middle-income families. The artificial price fixing for housing is expanding the need for government involvement. Regulations and high taxes inflate the market for middle-income renters and creates a difficult task for many young professionals to find housing at an affordable range.

The State and City needs to step aside for a moment, remove the barriers for creating new housing, while lowering the taxes for builders and owners, so the market can deflate to an affordable level. Government can then go back to focusing on temporary housing for low-income familes that need help.

***UPDATE***
[Oct 24, 2005]
Today's New York Post makes the same point I make in their editorial pages.

New York City Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, after a year and a half of study, has determined that "affordable housing" in the city is "not meeting demand."

Thanks, ma'am. We never would have guessed.

So, how to fix things? Maybe encourage development by rescinding Mayor Mike's record property-tax increase? Reduce regulation?

At the presser, Gotbaum said: "Now more than ever, it is crucial that lawmakers, developers, advocates and academics have a common reference point, an objective resource for understanding the cause-and-effect relationship between government policy and affordable housing development."

Yes, yes and yes!

So . . . what're the nuts and bolts? Unfortunately, here's where Gotbaum's report falls short.

One proposal is to increase the Real Property Transfer Tax to subsidize another 80,000 housing units annually. Currently, this tax is "only" 1.5 percent max. Never mind that homeowners have paid taxes on their properties from the get-go — increasing the costs of selling real estate will only reduce housing-market mobility (buying and selling).

Another idea is to increase the fee for building permits to finance the rehabilitation of the city's deteriorated housing stock. Of course, these incremental-cost increases are inevitably shouldered by consumers.

While, yes, those who win the lottery for newly minted "affordable housing" units will be sitting pretty, what about the rest of New York?

One way Gotbaum could help is by brushing up on the basics of supply and demand.

To reduce housing costs, you need to increase supply. To boost supply, you need to reduce taxes, regulation and other barriers that make building expensive.

As long as the city has artificially inexpensive housing, it's going to be in short supply. This latest proposal is really just another lame attempt to fix a problem that the city created in the first place.

Will they ever learn?
Probably not.

Say No to Proposition Number One

This year's ballot in New York will have two Propositions. Both, in my opinion, should be voted down. Proposition Number One is a power grab by the legislature and it will only make the New York budgeting process worse. It's not that we don't need reform in how New York drafts and writes its budget, but Proposition Number One is not the way to do it.

If you are looking for interesting reads on Proposition Number One,

Stand Tall New York has:
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
and then some entries on how ill-advised this Proposition Number One is.

George Pataki, Eliot Spitzer, Hugh Carey, Ed Koch, Pat Manning and many others are afraid of what would happen if Sen. Joseph Bruno and Ass. Sheldon Silver were to increase their power in the State budgetary process. You should too.

***UPDATE***
Blogger journalist, Wordsmithie has also been covering NY's Proposition Number One (or Prop 1), and he notes that Pat Manning is the only person dubbing the proposed amendment as the Runnaway Spending Amendment. Well, it is. So we should say "No" to Proposition Number One (aka Runaway Spending Amendement).

Gotta love how some people think.

James Taranto is great with news stories that aren't always phrased the best way.

If You Must Do It, Do It Right
The Associated Press brings us this curious report from Hackensack, N.J.:

A Bergen County grand jury has handed down a 20-count indictment against an area gym teacher, accused of sexually assaulting nine underage girls.

Jose Cruz, 44, was indicted Friday on charges that he improperly fondled the girls on various occasions between January and March.

Is there a proper way for a teacher to fondle underage girls?

A New Independent Force

In New York, The Republican State Committee believes the Party is best served when they select a candidate that can run a strong and fruitful campaign to go up against a Democratic opponent. To them apparently, registered republicans in the State do not know which candidates would serve the State best and that we should trust the decisions of the committee.

Yesterday, the New York Post expressed disappointment in two matters: one, that Governor Pataki threw his support behind US Senate candidate, Jeanine Pirro, and two, strong US Senate candidate, Ed Cox opted to drop out immediately after the endorsement. This is very disconcerting, because even though the governor may be the current leader of the New York State Party, he will only be the leader for another fourteen months. When the Senate election is decided, Governor Pataki will be a private citizen. The Post somes up the GOP under Mr. Pataki simply

Fact is, the GOP — read: Pataki — has failed to cultivate new and exciting candidates. On the contrary: George Pataki's GOP has gone out of its way to push aside any potential candidates not personally selected by the governor's "in" crowd.

Since Pataki took office in 1995, there hasn't been a single GOP primary for statewide office.

In a way, the Pataki Party has discouraged alternative Republican voices outside anyone who doesn't ride his coattails. The last candidate to show he is outside the Governor's circle was fortunate to win his election the year before. Mayor Giuliani.

On the County level, we see the Republican Party doing much of the same. County Committees look for one candidate to run for a particular seat and discourage competition. Though from a financial standpoint, this makes some sense, if there is a chance of a primary, County Committees should really give it their blessing and wait for the stronger candidate to prepare for the real challenge against the Democratic candidate in the general election

One problem we see is the lack of leadership within County Committees. Recently, the Queens County Committee had a major upheavel that they tried desperately to keep under control. They were successful, but the battle scars were exposed. We also learn that the QRCC also chose not to throw support behind a young energetic candidate in Raquel Lacomba Walker. Ms. Lacomba Walker could be faulted for not petitioning for the Republican line regardless of County support, but it would've been in the best interest of the Party to back anyone who decides to run in a district where no other Republican candidate is put forth.

Unlike the QRCC, the New York Republican County Committee's ultimate goal was to field candidates in all ten Manhattan districts and was successful in fielding six. This is a good sign as they didn't shut out an opportunity to represent the Party on the ballot. However, the NYRCC did discourage having two potential primaries in two of the six council districts.

I think it is time for an alternative source to support candidates and organize a grassroots organization behind candidates who don't get support from their County Committees. Of course, every candidate should first go to their County Committee to seek support for help and direction through their respective District Leaders. But if that fails, a back-up plan is needed.

The alternative should be the Urban Republican Coalition. If the URC can build a strong organization, it can be the fallback alternative to Republican candidates wishing to run for local office. If a Raquel Lacomba Walker wishes to run and is told not to or not given any support, the URC can help the candidate petition for ballot status independently. If the candidate is backed by a County Committee but not given the resources to be competitive, the URC can help the candidate get his or her message out. If a candidate is turned away from running, because another candidate was selected as the better choice, if he or she is determined to run until the very end, the URC can work to bring about a Republican Primary, which would bring media attention and competition to a moribund local race.

Here's hoping the Urban Republican Coalition will eventually become that alternative to defending independent and reform-minded candidates wishing to run for office who are shut out of the process by the party organizations.

If I was George Steinbrenner

Now that the New York Yankee season is over, it's time to look at what they have and what they can get rid of. In a sense, the team should be blown up where possible and rebuilt. It's not as if George doesn't spend money, so dumping what you can and getting something in return, then signing some Free Agents isn't out of the question.

Here's what I'd do:
Operations and Coaching Staff
1. If Brian Cashman wants to leave, then let him go. Another GM willing to work with the Boss should be brought in and take a new approach to the team.
2. If Joe Torre wishes to stay, he will need to reassemble a coaching staff. Stottlemeyer is gone. Joe Girardi is likely going to be hired as a manager in Florida.
3. Mazzilli can certainly be brought back as bench coach or Don Mattingly can be promoted to bench coach and Mazzilli can be Third base coach.
4. Louis Sojo can be moved to First base, which could leave Roy White the odd man out.
5. I would defintely hire Chili Davis as hitting instructor. A former switch hitter, he would have a better approach to both left and right hitters.
6. Ron Guidry could be used as pitching coach, unless there is a more experienced one available.

Pitching
Trade or do not resign the following: Mike Mussina, Kevin Brown, Al Leiter, Scott Proctor and Alan Embree.
The team is stuck with Randy Johnson, so there's nothing you can do with him. I'd hold onto Aaron Smalls, Shawn Chacon, Chin-Ming Wang, Tom Gordon, Mariano Rivera (of course), Tanyon Sturtze and Carl Pavano. Jaret Wright may not be movable, but if he is, I'd move him. I'd also try to bring in a young lefty starter or long reliever. Scott Kazmir, Ted Lilly or Glendon Rush. Any trades should be for replenishing the Farm.

With the impressive performances from Wang, Chacon and Smalls, and by trading Mussina, the Yankees have five starters behind Randy Johnson. If there's a chance to sign Jarrod Washburn, then certainly a Wang, Smalls and Chacon can be traded, but for the most part, I'd focus on pitchers 6-10 that fill in the bridge from starter to Rivera. I'd also start looking for a future closer now rather than later. Rivera has one, maybe two exceptional years left and a young lightening arm needs to be brought in and develop into a premier closer for the Bronx team.

Hitting
Trade, Release or do not resign the following: Gary Sheffield, Bubba Crosby, Bernie Williams, Tino Martinez, Tony Womack, Ruben Sierra, Hideki Matsui, John Flaherty, Matt Lawton and Rey Sanchez.
Keep (some reluctantly because of untradable contracts) the following: Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano, Jason Giambi, Jorge Posada, Mark Bellhorn and Andy Phillips.

The Yankees need to clear themselves of their DH problem. Sheffield is a soon-to-be full-time DH. Ruben Sierra already is. Jason Giambi is expected to be the full-time DH next year maybe filling in at first on occasion. Womack, Lawton and Sanchez need to be replaced with better defensive players who are ten years younger. I know I say let Bernie go, but I would. I am open to resigning him as a part-time outfielder, part-time DH (for the rightside of the plate), but that offer wouldn't come until the rest of the roster spots are filled. The team needs to be younger and also another team may sign him up before you extend a one year contract to retain him. Letting Williams go to another team may be the only thing to rebuilding this team.

As for Matsui, I was for trading him mid-season for someone and perhaps try to resign him during the off-season. But now that his contract is up, I think the team needs a better defensive fielder. Matsui can hit, but his fielding is poor. I'd go for Mike Cameron for center field and try to fill the corner positions with high average hitters. Cameron can hit home runs and is great defensively, but you need to get a good outfielder who can draw walks, have minimal strikeouts and a high On Base Percentage.

The Yankees also have to steer away from the home run hitter. They still will have Rodriguez and Giambi. Posada is always dependable for a good dozen dingers along with Jeter and Cano. If they pick up Mike Cameron, he has the potential of 30+ round-trippers. A low strike-out/high BA player for back-up catcher, First Base and the corner outfield positions is key to future success. The team also needs some small-ball players. Players that can bunt for singles, steal bases, wrech havoc on the base path. Jeter is one of the only members of the 25 man roster that still thinks small ball in key situations. Your one-two and nine hitters need to be about getting on base and moving over on sac flys, bunts or singles.

If George Steinbrenner looks back at his team from 96-00 and looks at his team from 01-05, he'll see he didn't have a team made up of superstars. It was young players, trusty (and crusty) veterans and moderately priced stars. Girardi, Leyritz, O'Neil, Brosius, Knoblauch, Davis and Boggs were solid players that weren't looking for the big contract. They wanted to win as a team. At the time, the big pricetag players were Bernie Williams and Derek Jeter. But they came up through the Farm and had proven they were winners. As soon as George started throwing money around to Mussina, Sheffield, Giambi, Vazquez, Brown, and Rodriguez (or I can say as soon as New Yorkers voted in Cubs fan, Hillary Clinton), the Yankees can't seem to win again.

Here's hoping Mr. Steinbrenner has someone cross my blog and read my thoughts on bringing back a winning team.

Statewide Maneuverings

In 2004, talk of Sen. Schumer running for governor concerned democrats of a bloody battle between the Senator and Attorney General, which could have turned New Yorkers off on both candidates. Sen. Schumer decided to announce he intends on remaining as New York's senior Senator, which allowed Mr. Spitzer to take the headlines as the Democratic candidate to beat (though Nassau County Exec. Thos. Suozzi is strongly considering a now-or-never run for personal gain and to make it interesting).

The media was waiting to hear from Gov. George Pataki and if he intended to run a fourth term. The general concensus was if Mr. Pataki ran, he would lose miserably. It was also said that there were no candidates waiting in the wings to succeed Pataki and that the 2006 elections will be the major blow for the New York Republican Party.

The NY GOP proved the media wrong when rumblings from republicans throughout the State began to make ink. The US Senate race already had four unofficial candidates. Congressman and State legislators began dropping hints of statewide office interest. As soon as Gov. Pataki announced he did not wish to seek a fourth term, we started to see placement in two of the four statewide seats.

Interest from Cox, Spencer, Brecht, Brennan, Daniels, Pirro, Sweeney, Meiers, Manning, Weld, Golisano, Lazio, Faso and Balboni all seems to make me believe the New York Republican Party does have names to throw into the statewide mix.

But as we begin to see the men and women fall into their place, I'm becoming a bit concerned about the candidates that may seem to be carpetbaggers or illegitimate for the Party. If the best Republicans can do is select candidates that haven't paid their dues for New York, then it won't matter how much money is raised or spent on campaigning. You can't paint over rust. Rust will continue to grow if not treated. We're seeing that already with our mayoral selection who, if he wins, won't provide us with a future candidate in 2009.

The NY GOP needs to build within and not from the outside. If an outside candidate is facing off with a member who has paid his dues, then a Primary is necessary. We need to see if the registered voters feel comfortable with a candidate who is either from another State or was registered with another party up until October 15, 2005. It's a big concern for me. We have a two party system which needs to see two sets of ideas. If the Republican candidate for Senate or Governor sounds too close to the Democrat, then I'm going to have to assume republicanism has disappeared from the North where it was born.