New Arena in Nassau Voted Down

The proposal went down in flames, a rout.

People are catching on. Specifically, they are figuring out that when the government spends money, it doesn't come from some magic place. It comes from taxpayers. And taxpayers have had enough.

The center of this debate has shifted massively in the last year, both locally and nationally.

Had an Op-Ed in the New York Post Yesterday

Right above Michelle Malkin!

You can see it here:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/millionaire_teachers_0TAnsJddHXPrQi80FnIrXK

People Needed

Attend THE TAX CAP RALLY

 

 
ALBANY, TUESDAY  MAY 10, 2011

What Went Unsaid at the Bedford 20/20 Indian Point Panel

I attended the Bedford 20/20 Forum on Indian Point. Sadly, after the rather lengthy comments from panel members, only three people from the audience were asked to comment. Had I been one of them, this is what I would have added:

1. The host from 20/20 said Indian Point supplied 20% of our regional power. This is inaccurate. Depending on the time of day/year, it's actually as high as 40%. It is a huge source of power.
2. While I will credit Mike Kaplowitz for acknowledging that we'll have to build a large gas or coal fired plant to replace IP, neither he, nor anyone else, mentioned cost. Long Island has the highest electric bills in the nation because they are still paying for the de-commissioning of Shoreham. Close IP, and we will leapfrog them.
3. There is a moral dimension to increasing the cost of local living that few seem to consider. Higher energy costs are, essentially, a regressive form of taxation, i.e. it affects the poor and middle class the most. Does anyone think that's desirable?
4. I thought Bedford 20/20 was all about decreasing carbon emissions. The immense new coal or gas plant that would replace IP would produce lots of emissions. IP produces zero.
5. The Japan earthquake, which was much discussed, was 1000 times as powerful as the biggest earthquake ever recorded in our area. Even then, it was the tsunami that did the real damage. It is simply not possible for events like these to happen in Buchanan, NY. We don't live in the ring of fire.
6. Even if we did shut down IP, we'd be left with the spent fuel rods, which are most people's area of concern. Shut down the plant and the net result is a huge spike in our cost of living and yet no reduction in (perceived) danger.

And as for the minister who asked us all to consider the "spiritual" aspects of the issue, I confess I have no idea what she was talking about. I hope her church can afford a higher energy bill.

Teachers Unions Explained

Very funny.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kxc6kzH-uI

Time for a Little Levity

Top ten ways to tell if you might be a member of a public employees union...

By David Letterman  

10.) You take a week off to protest in Wisconsin and your office runs better. 

9.)  On a snow day when they say “non-essential” people should stay home you know who they mean. 

8.) You get paid twice as much as a private sector person doing the same job but make up the difference by doing half as much work. 

7.) It takes longer to fire you than the average killer spends on death row. 

6.) The worse you do your job, the more your boss avoids you. 

5.) You think the French are working themselves to death. 

4.) You know that by having a copy of the Quran on your desk your job is 100% safe. 

3.) You spend more time at protest marches than at church. 

2.) You have a Democratic congressman's lips permanently attached to your butt. 

And the #1 way to tell your a public union member.  

DRUM ROLL PLEASE……. 

1.)  You pay more in union dues than you do for your health care insurance.

Even the New York Times Admits There's a Problem With Public Sector Pay

Pigs have taken flight:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/opinion/06sun1.html?emc=eta1