Category: News and Opinion

According to Bloomberg News, federal legislation to force New York City to allow anyone from other states to carry concealed handguns has 243 sponsors in the U.S. Congress. Among those sponsoring the legislation are U.S. Representative Heath Shuler, a North Carolina Democrat, Representative Cliff Stearns, a Florida Republican, and two Republican senators, David Vitter of Louisiana and John Thune of South Dakota. As the attached spreadsheet from the latest Statistical Abstract of the United States shows, North Carolina, Florida, and Louisiana all have New York City beat – in murder and rape. South Dakota has a low crime rate overall and below New York City in murder, but is sky high in rape. Needless to say, a comparison between central cities in these states and NYC would be far worse. The Northeast U.S. is generally lower than other parts of the country in crime.

Perhaps the Mayor should warn New York area residents against visiting these states, as well as being forced to follow their example.

GATE REPEATS HIS ENDORSEMENTS (and adds a couple):

Congress 9^th CD: David Weprin

My haters in blog-land do have one legit gripe: I focus too much of my writings on the Brooklyn political scene. Look; it’s my prerogative. Brooklyn is always in flux. The Brooklyn political scene is like Sam Malone’s love life: never boring.

I really tried to stay out of this one; I really did. And, as usual, I will get slapped upside the head (politically speaking) for writing this short column: but here goes.

I heard there wasn't a dry eye when Paul performed "Sounds of Silence" today, but when I finally woke from my hangover on 9/12/01, I played this one twelve times in a row. It will always be my 9/11 song, and maybe should be our national anthem.

This piece is a drosh targeted to my friends in the Orthodox community about “Hakoras Ha-Tov,” a Jewish concept which is roughly translated as either “thankfulness and appreciation,” or “dancing with those who brung ya”.

HACK ROUNDTABLE:

Push all the sanctimony aside, and the race for Assembly in the 54^th AD consists of three ciphers; two of who were handpicked by committees of Party hacks.   

According to the Wall Street Journal, “over the next decade, Mr. Bogle said stocks are likely to generate an average annual return, including dividends, of around 7%. ‘Your money will double in 10 years,’ he said. ‘How bad is that? People ought to get over the illusion [of higher expectations] and realize that they may have to invest for longer time periods, start earlier and save more.’"

That is an optimistic forecast. But New York’s public employee pension funds assume a much higher rate of return, for a mixed portfolio of stocks and lower yielding bonds. So politicians can avoid admitting how much they have harmed taxpayers and those who rely on public services and benefits, by retroactively enhancing the retirement benefits of those who already had the richest retirement benefits, as part of political deals. In New York they keep denying, even as required pension contributions soar and services are cut despite the nation’s highest tax burden. After all, those with privileges expect rationalizations to go along with them. Remember that when politicians and public employee unions organize protests against layoffs, cuts and pay and benefits for new hires, service cuts, fee increases and tax increases. And if you point out what has been done, they cover their ears and scream.

My congresswoman Nan Hayworth is a former eye doctor who has anything but 20 20 vision.  She is a tea party buffoon who defeated an honest, hardworking, reasoned congressman, John Hall.