Apr 16
2012
NY Times magazine story examines the political repercussions for Sen. Mark Grisanti and three other Republicans who voted for gay marriage and concludes their stance doesn’t carry “the risk it would have been just a couple of years ago. The four defectors aren’t guaranteed re-election. But if they lose, it is likely to be in spite of their marriage vote, not because of it”
Apr 15
2012
The key study isn’t done, and negotiations have yet to start in earnest, but it’s not too early to start posing questions about who should pay for what to keep the Bills in Buffalo. The teams’ lease on Ralph Wilson Stadium expires in July 2013 season and a story in The Buffalo News on Sunday reports that sources are saying the cost of renovating the facility will run north of $200 million. Given the cost of upgrading the home of the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs ran $295 million and $400 million respectively, that seems like a safe,[...]
Apr 15
2012
Apr 15
2012
Google co-founder Sergey Brin warns of “very powerful forces that have lined up against the open internet on all sides and around the world. I am more worried than I have been in the past … it’s scary.”
Apr 14
2012
Planes, trains and automobiles Bruce Fisher has an interesting read this week in Artvoice regard U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins’ call for $1.25 trillion in spending to repair the nation’s infrastructure. With luck, Higgins and his buildup plan could become the national counter to Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin. The proposal is bound to encounter resistance, but Higgins will gain some nature stature if it gains traction. Stay tuned. Money to ply politicians, but not to pay taxes More than two-dozen major U.S. corporations paid no net federal income taxes from 2009-11 despite posting billions upon billions of dollars in profits.[...]
Apr 12
2012
The Center for Working Families has issued a report detailing the vast sums the Bronx Bombers spent on lobbying and campaign contributions while they were pushing for subsidies to help build their billion dollar ballpark.
Apr 12
2012
Apr 11
2012
Common Council Majority Leader Demone A. Smith, whose wife pleaded guilty to fraud charges last week, has legal problems of his own. Smith’s campaign committee has not paid $1,842 in judgments filed by the state Board of Elections for its failure to file disclosure reports in a timely fashion. In addition, another campaign committee that lists Smith as its treasurer hasn’t paid $1,121 in judgments involving late and missing disclosure reports. Smith’s campaign committee has had problems meeting disclosure requirements since he first ran for public office in 2005. Investigative Post has determined that while the Committee to Elect Demone[...]