Today’s Headlines

  • Sohotimmy

    That “Room 8” article indicates how crazy Diaz really is. He thinks he can use race baiting as his tool to shoot tolls down. I posted a response to his article there. It would be great if others would also.

  • re: “NYPD Plans Crackdown on Cellphone-Using Drivers” —

    I wish these efforts at law enforcement by our law enforcers would last more than 24 hours.

  • Ryan

    I think these need to be corrected to reduce confusion. Its Ruben Diaz, SR that is whack job! The link above incorrectly attributes the story to Ruben Diaz, Jr. who is a lot less crazy!

  • Lulu

    The headline list incorrectly says Ruben Diaz, Jr, but links are regarding the father, Ruben Diaz, Sr.

  • Larry Littlefield

    The newspapers continue to present the members of the state legislature as stupid, or misguided, or ignorant, or a host of other lesser vices. This is misleading. They are evil.

    For years Generation Greed has enriched small groups of insiders and sold out our collective future. Now that the bill is coming due, the plan is to direct the blame elsewhere while continuing to promise something for nothing and making a few more scores.

    How do you pay for unaffordable pension benefits? Cut wages and benefits — for younger generations of public employees — and services, but not for senior citizens.

    How do you avoid having the transit system collapse despite all that debt? Tax the wages of younger workers more indefinately, and borrow more against it, and use the money in five years (Ravitch). Or borrow even more, gample the money, and if it comes up aces Generation Greed wins, if reality sets in everyone younger loses triple.

    Etc. Etc. Etc.

    What they want is a slow deterioration with collapse deferred, more special deals, and someone else blamed.

    How can these bastards be “against the MTA?” It is a goverment agency, with officials appointed by Democratic elected officials, for whom anything other than day-to-day decisions — most notably debt and pensions — are imposed by the state legislature.

    In everything the say, they are accusing people of being morons. They must get together up there behind closed doors and laugh about the rest of us.

  • While it seems logical to register a bicycle for theft protection and identification, charging a fee disincentivizes all the right behavior. Next they will ask us to register our shoes. I’m guessing this goes nowhere.

  • My mistake on Diaz.

  • Niccolo Machiavelli

    So what Larry is saying is that they might look dumb but thats just a disguise. As they say in the American South, “You can’t out-smart a Yankee, but you can out-dumb them.” The gang of three, four or five (by tomorrow it will probably be six) are really like a collective of Mr. Haneys, the inimitable character from Green Acres, giving stupid answers to direct questions while picking your pocket as you are distracted.

  • Re. “Ravitch Opponent Ruben Diaz, Sr Says He’s Being Attacked Because of His Race”:

    Seems like the comments to the Room 8 post say all that needs to be said.

    Re. “Mayor Expected to Identify NYC’s Transpo Stim Projects This Week”:

    Does the Post really need to replace an S with a dollar sign in the headline of every article that has to do with money? Who are the people who actually find that amusing? I have yet to meet one.

  • Rhywun

    Ravitch Opponent Ruben Diaz, Sr Says He’s Being Attacked Because of His Race

    And… we have officially reached the nadir of what is possible in city/state politics re: this issue. It took a while, but I knew we’d make it.

  • Larry Littlefield

    “Does the Post really need to replace an S with a dollar sign in the headline of every article that has to do with money?”

    Does every good headline have to be a pun? Perhaps.

    “I used to be disgusted, now I try to be amused.”

    Elvis Costello

  • Rhywun

    Who are the people who actually find that amusing?

    The average Post reader? *ducks*

  • Rhywun

    They are evil.

    You might be on to something. It doesn’t get much more transparently self-serving than selling your transit-riding constituency down the river. Everyone knows politicians don’t take transit.

  • Larry Littlefield

    “It doesn’t get much more transparently self-serving than selling your transit-riding constituency down the river.”

    As I’ve said, they aren’t doing it now, they’ve done it already. It has already happened; the consequences have merely been disguised. It may have already been too late when I became outraged and fed up enough to leave my job and run against them in 2004; it certainly is now.

    Are they flailing because they actually believe the consequences of all the money sucked out by all interests over all the years can continue to be deferred indefinately by similar games? Did they expect to be gone before the whole thing blew?

    It isn’t just transit, by the way. It isn’t even just government.

  • Niccolo Machiavelli

    It seems these people are really not concerned with the fare increases and service cut and expect to blame whatever fallout there is on the perfect scapegoat the MTA. Their leverage has only increased the more they have said no and posited ridiculous “proposals”. Expect them to like that eventuality and play it forward to the budget making process. Just as there are Reagan Democrats these are Giuliani Democrats and are really the balance of power, city-wide, state-wide and nationally, even in the age of Obama.