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Yesterday, State Supreme Court Justice Glownia ruled that the lawsuit to remove the Breckenridge and South Ogden tolls on the I-190 can continue. The only thing standing in the way of removal is the State fighting the suit in court.

Governor Pataki has not embraced the idea of complete removal of the toll facilities. He would prefer a plan that reduces the tolls to an early 1980’s level that was less than 25 cents for travel into the City of Buffalo. Currently the toll is 75 cents for cars.

If the State decides to fight to retain the tolls it could present an interesting dilemma for Eliot Spitzer. As the Attorney General, it would be his responsibility to represent the State’s interest in the lawsuit. The fiscal nature of the lawsuit automatically moves it to the top of the Attorney General’s list.

Either way the suit should proceed quickly unless it is delayed for political purposes due to the upcoming gubernatorial election in November. Spitzer could use his influence to get the State to remove the tolls without a fight, or he could try to seek a delay so that it doesn’t look like he is opposed to their removal.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

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Intervention in the Middle East by the United States dates back to 1918.  By 1928 Mobil and Standard Oil had acquired many shares of the Iraq Petroleum Company.  Governments and dictators have been selectively supported and toppled by U.S. interests.  Despite over 80 years of U.S. intervention against Arabs, there are still people today clinging to the illogical statement that the terrorists in the Mid-East attack us because they hate our freedom.  They would have you believe that a group of people woke up one morning and said “we must attack the U.S. because they have freedom and democracy.”  Not only is the idea crazy, but our President continues to perpetuate the lie.

Now, enter Israel into the equation.  A nation-state the was forcefully created during the aftermath of WWII.  A nation created on land previously governed by Arabs.  The United States couldn’t pass up the opportunity to help create Israel and “install” a government that was “favorable” to our interests.  Carte blanche support of Israel has ensued, both economic support and military support, including the sale of vast quantities of devastating weapons.  Next, we have aggressive attacks by Israel against its Arab neighbors and our government says it is justified.  Gee, could this have contributed to the hatred that spawned terrorism?  It is a rhetorical question, if you answered no, you buy the crap Bush has been feeding you since September 11, 2001.

Add into the mix severe economic sanctions by the U.S. against Arabs resulting in 10’s of thousand, if not more, deaths, including children, and you have even more justification for the “hate” that spawns terrorism.

Iran’s plans for nuclear power have become a focus for George Bush to make threats ranging from sanctions to outright warfare.  Experts agree that Iran’s nuclear weapons capability is many years down the road.  The Russians nearly had a deal, several months ago, to participate with Iran to ensure the weapons grade nuclear material was not being developed.  That plan fell apart when Bush refused talks with Iran on the issue, further alienating the country.  I guess an agreement would have not have fit into the Bush agenda in the Middle East.

Israel, on the other hand, has a policy of nuclear ambiguity.  That means that Israel refuses to  disclose whether or not it has nuclear weapons.  The policy is a joke.  It is widely known that Israel does possess such weapons, including Jericho 1 & 2 ballistic nuclear missiles that are buried so far underground that they can withstand a nuclear attack and still be launched in a counter-strike.  Israel has now purchases 2 German made dolphin class submarines capable of being armed with nuclear war heads.  These submarines are capable of being submerged for long periods of time, giving Israel definite second strike capabilities.  There is no question that this purchase will escalate the tensions and violence in the region.

Now for the double standard.  Where is the outrage that should be directed at Israel?  Our government is not only not outraged, it is defending and justifying this latest unilateral act by Israel.

The two main issues in the Middle East are oil and Israel. The U.S. can buy oil without controlling the politics of the Middle East. It can deregulate energy, including nuclear energy, and resolve its energy problems without war. The Israel issue can’t be resolved as easily. Israel in its current political form is doomed. It makes no sense for the U.S. to start a world war in order to preserve Israel. It makes no sense for the Israeli tail to wag the U.S. dog. The U.S. has to control Israel. America got into this mess and only America can get out of it. America has little choice but strongly to control Israel, if it can, to control negotiations, if it can, and to lead the way in settling all the outstanding questions surrounding Israel’s existence and political nature. The alternatives are that Israel will gradually be worn down anyway and/or that the U.S. will engage in the great folly of a major war.

Every official U.S. link with and every step into a foreign country creates costs and risks for the American people. They usually are not worth it. They usually cause losses. Nowhere is this better demonstrated than in the Middle East.  (the rest is here)

Pluto is no longer a planet!

According to the new definition, a full-fledged planet is an object that orbits the sun and is large enough to have become round due to the force of its own gravity. In addition, a planet has to dominate the neighborhood around its orbit.

Pluto has been demoted because it does not dominate its neighborhood. Charon, its large “moon,” is only about half the size of Pluto, while all the true planets are far larger than their moons.

In addition, bodies that dominate their neighborhoods, “sweep up” asteroids, comets, and other debris, clearing a path along their orbits. By contrast, Pluto’s orbit is somewhat untidy.

Read more.

The election is heating up! On Wednesday, August 30th, from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m., local cable stations are hosting a statewide gubernatorial town hall meeting in four locations - Albany, New York City, Rochester and Syracuse.

Tom Suozzi will participate from Pace University in New York City, and John Faso and Eliot Spitzer will participate from the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester. Other audiences will convene at production studios in both Albany and Syracuse. Each candidate will have 25 minutes to field questions from the audiences in all four locations.

The four audiences will be connected via remote video and audio, and we are encouraging Suozzi supporters from each region to attend the town hall in their area.

For ticket information for each location, please use the reservation information below:

Albany, call (518) 640-8606

New York City, call (212) 379-3443 or Click Here to register online

Rochester, call (585)-340-8358

Syracuse, call (315) 634-6224

Please mark your calendar. If you can make it, we look forward to seeing you next Wednesday; if not, please check your local listings for cablecast information where you live and tune in to cheer Tom on!