New York State of Mind...

Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful
So, if you've no place to go,
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

-Cahn and Styne (1945)


Yes, we in NYC are being clocked by "climate change". Though I have not consulted with Al Gore, I will be bold and call this "winter weather." Along with this "winter weather" comes frigidly cold temperatures and lots and lots of snow. I admit, it makes me giddy because there's nothing more beautiful than the streets of New York City covered in a beautiful blanket of powdery white snow. It doesn't stay white for long, but for a brief moment it's like being in a giant snow globe. It's so much fun and no shoveling needed.

Local - The New York City Council nixed plans for the redevelopment of the old Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx that would have brought 1000 new construction jobs and 1200 permanent jobs to a borough that desparately needs jobs. The reason - the developers could not guarantee a prohibitively expensive "living wage" demand of $10 an hour and insurance (or $11.50 w/o insurance). Apparently the Council decided that no jobs were better than compromising. And moreover, the city must go into further in the hole for about $1,000,000 in repairs and upkeep on the large, empty space. Merry Christmas, Bronx.

-More presents from our city government! The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) announced that it is so much in the hole with the upcoming 11% raises for transit workers that it will have to implement it's "Doomsday Plan". This means major cutbacks in subway and bus lines and services, and forcing school children to pay for their fare to schools and to severely cut back on transportation for the disabled. This is after they promised there would be no need to implement this plan when they raised the transit fare earlier this year. Happy Holidays, New York City!

-But our City isn't all bad. Our Health Department is set to lift a decades old ban on beekeeping in New York City after recently determining that honeybees are rarely harmful. According to the Daily News there are about 500 local beekeepers in New York City. Who knew?

-Oh, and so no one's feelings are hurt, the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center will now be known as "The Tree at Rockefeller Center". Really, if you insist on calling a "Christmas Tree" we will cry. I am serious...actually this was just a rumor being passed around the internet, but this is just how rumors get started.

State - Governor Patterson announced that the State of New York is broke and he will be withholding payments for schools and transportation [see above]. And now, the Governor and State Legislature can blow more money if they don't meet a January 19th deadline to apply for our cut of Obama's "Race to the Top" money for our schools.

Federal - Gossip....So our two esteemed Senators Charles "Chuck" Schumer and Kirstin "Newbie" Gillibrand were on a shuttle flight from D.C. to New York last week. The flight attendant made a general announcement that all electronic devices should be turned off and stowed away in preparation for the flight. We all know this announcement, right? Well, our dear Sen. Schumer, being a very important person responded by, well, continuing his cellphone conversation. When confronted by a female flight attendant to shut and stow, he told her that he did not have to until the doors were closed. The flight attendant responded that he had to stow when the flight crew said he had to stow. He finally relented, but not until he turned to Sen. Gillibrand and called the flight attendant a "b-word" under his breath. No, really it get's even better! So after the flight, Sen. Gillibrand took it upon herself to defend Sen. Schumer in statement that pretty much preemptively called Schumer a complete gentleman and the flight attendant a liar. What makes this really funny is that at the very same time Sen. Schumer was issuing an apology to the flight attendant for calling her a "b-word". An egg on both your faces, Senators!