Author: Rock Hackshaw

Charles Hynes has been the District Attorney for Kings County (Brooklyn) since 1989. His tenure has had its share of controversial moments. Critics have often suggested that he is too closely aligned with the political machinery of the King’s County Democrats. They believe it is not healthy for a DA to be so close to party-bosses, elected-democrats, their minions and their operatives. There may be a point to this critique.

This column is going to surprise many; especially some of those within Caribbean-American political circles. I have decided to support the present legislative initiative to allow for same-sex marriages in New York. It has been a long journey: I have come full circle.

And when the fantastic story of our time
is told
by those yet to be born
but who will announce themselves
with more generous face;
we will come out ahead:
those of us who have suffered most from it.

And that
being ahead of your time
means suffering much from it.

Well,
it's beautiful to love the world
with eyes that have not yet been born;
and it is splendid to know
you will be victorious
when all around you
is still so dark,
so cold.

Now that Anthony Weiner has resigned from the House of Representatives, the complexion of NYC’s next mayoral race has changed. Weiner was the presumed frontrunner for the office, so his expected departure leaves a significant void.

At this point in time these are the main contenders: Bill Thompson, Bill DiBlasio, Christine Quinn, John Liu, Scott Stringer, Adolfo Carrion and Marty Markowitz. Of course there are one or two others who claim to be considering the run, but so far these seven appear to be the key contenders.

I am a registered democrat. That’s well known. As a naturalized citizen, I have only been able to vote in the last four presidential elections. I have voted three times for an independent candidate (Nader), and the other vote went to Barack Obama. In the past I never felt republican nominees offered me much as an option: thus they were minimally considered.  

Let me get this correct: so far it hasn’t been proven that Congressman Anthony Weiner has committed adultery; or patronized prostitutes; or stolen money; or avoided paying taxes; or assaulted anyone;  or corrupted the morals of a minor; or taken any bribes; or perjured himself in a legal matter;  or abused his powers of office;  or was censured by the House of Representatives;  indicted or convicted; yet he is being pressured to resign; when others who have done  some of what I just outlined are still in office.  I will say this again: until it is shown that Weiner has broken some l

This will not be a lengthy column. It will be relatively straightforward. I dislike hypocrites. It is that simple. I come close to hating them; but since I try not to hate anyone or anything, I don’t quite get there. As long as Anthony Weiner hasn’t broken any criminal laws then he shouldn’t succumb to the pressures being mounted on him to resign right now. The overwhelming majority of people calling for his resignation are hypocrites. And I am talking about both Republicans and Democrats (especially the spineless Democrats).  

Last week I wrote a column on my Room Eight New York Politics blog (www.r8ny.com) about Anthony Weiner’s contemporary political problems. I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, relative to his claim of being “hacked”. Yesterday, at a hastily arranged press conference, Congressman Weiner admitted that the photo of a man’s pubic area -which went viral on the internet last week- was his. He also admitted texting it to a young female student.  He further admitted to internet- dalliances with at least six female strangers over the past three years. 

I am pissed at Anthony Weiner. I have been for a couple years now. I think he suspects it. I suspect he remembers when I confronted him at the Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats (CBID) meeting two springs ago. I am certain that he reads my column regularly (well, he has told me so a few times now).  When I wrote that he will regret not running against Bloomberg last time out, I guess he thought I was just being obnoxious. I wish he would honestly tell us all, how he now feels in retrospect.

We always need to keep in mind, that there are different types of political activists out there; just as there are different levels of involvement and activities; and there is a co-relation. There are those whose activism has been driven by family heritage: generations of political involvement and community activism from close relatives.