I guess I just can’t win without losing. Anytime I write anything about Barack Obama, the e-mails and phone calls come in trickles. Whether I write something good or bad doesn’t matter.   The man has his sycophants and they are relentless.

In my last column I gave him credit for what I deemed a gutsy call on the Arab-Israeli impasse. Since then he has elaborated on his position(s) via three significant speeches, one intriguing press conference (with England’s PM) in London, and through a few communiqués to the press. 

According to T.R. Reid in his book the United States of Europe the English writer Zoe Heller wrote Help I Am Turning into An American which inspired me to write something along a similar line only from a perspective of this side of the Atlantic.  For simplicity’s sake I wrote this in list format.  So here are the reasons I believe I am turning into a European: 

I am against war.

The New York Times is reporting that New York City Transit's operating cost recovery ratio has reached 64.0%. I'll bet that recovery is far, far higher for the subway and lower for the bus; the separate MTA Bus Company (former private routes) only covers about 40.0%. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports that bus ridership has been going down since 2005, as subway ridership has going up. Bus ridership had been going down long term, too, before the free transfers with Metrocard caused a short term turnaround.

A variety of explanations is given for the fall in bus ridership. One that isn't mentioned is the increase in bicycle transportation. Take it from me, almost no one who has actually tried getting around by bike would choose a bus instead, unless they were physically unable to ride. Bus trips tend to be shorter than subway trips, either to the subway or in directions the subway does not go. Bikes are faster, given you don't have to wait for them, and no less confortable in inclement weather, given that wait for the bus is outside. And with the fare increases, biking is a lot cheaper too.

Currently the United Nations is an organization devoted to bringing together nation states from around the world.  However, the establishment of the European Union may signal a change to that formula.

The MTA website used to contain financial indicators that showed just how much of its operating costs, and its overall costs, were covered by fares. It also included performance and safety indicators.

In the new format, the performance and safety indicators are there. But the financial indicators are gone. A year and a half ago, when the MTA was slashing bus service, it showed extensive service usage and cost per rider information by bus line. I had hoped this would be expanded upon. Instead, information that was there is no longer there. Hopefully it is coming. I'll wait a couple of months before screaming bloody murder.

This piece ignores an important point, which is that most of the 54th AD has not been represented by Ed Towns since 1992, so a loss by his daughter will not necessarily be a sign a Towns’ weakness–she could win his part of the district and still lose the race.