Archive for April 8th, 2007
Unfortunately, Spitzer’s background ill suits him for economic reform. He’s a lawyer and prosecutor who never made a payroll. Like most in the state’s political and academic leadership, he just doesn’t get it. Like most New York politicians, he thinks that the “tail” of the government establishment is what wags the “dog” of economic opportunity. (emphasis mine)
Source: The Buffalo News: Douglas Turner
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The basis for my dinner compliments of my Friday shopping trip to the Broadway Market.
Bring fresh Polish sausage to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes.
Set sausage aside after cooking.
Mix 1½ pounds of homemade sauerkraut with 1 small diced onion sauteed in 2 Tbs lard, ½ cup of brown sugar and ¾ cup of water. Place in a casserole dish.
Cut cooked sausage into 3″ pieces and layer on top of the sauerkraut. Cover the casserole and bake at 325° for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
While baking, prepare potato pancakes to be ready at the same time.
Just before serving, fry pirogies in butter for 5 minutes, turning frequently.
Finished potato pancakes and sausage with sauerkraut.
And, finally, the finished meal ready to eat. I served the potato pancakes with applesauce, sour cream is also a good garnish.
It has been awhile since I’ve had an authentic Polish dinner. While not fancy, the food tastes very good and is very satisfying. My kids agreed and cleaned their plates quickly. I’ve prepared each of these items before, but this is the first time I made a 100% Polish meal. More frequent trips to the Broadway Market are in order. Click any picture for a large version, you can scroll using the arrow on the upper right or left portion of the large versions.
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Finally, someone is able to realize a real, tangible benefit from our interventionist policies in the Middle East. Ironically, the beneficiaries are receiving a lot of criticism and being accused of profiteering. I supposed that is ok, if you ignore the profit motive involved in waging war over oil.
Captured sailor Faye Turney and her fellow hostages were accused of ‘behaving like reality TV stars’ after being given permission to cash in on their ordeal.
The 15 sailors and Marines have been told they can sell their stories to the media by the Ministry of Defence, which bracketed the “exceptional circumstances” surrounding their 13-day ordeal with winners of the Victoria Cross.
News that Mrs Turney alone is likely to make at least £100,000 was condemned by former Defence Ministers, ex-soldiers - and families who have lost loved ones in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Source: Outrage as Iran captives cash in | News | This is London
Technorati tags: Iran, hostages, captives, war, foreign, intervention, Britian, Middle East, profit
“Governments must act now to stop a catastrophe for the world’s poor,” said Benedict Southworth, the director of the anti-poverty charity the World Development Movement.
Catherine Pearce, the Friends of the Earth International’s climate campaigner, said: “Climate change is no longer just an environmental issue, it is a looming humanitarian catastrophe.”
While there appears to be some truth to the statements above, there is currently no answer to the problem of global warming. The following questions need to be answered or proposed solutions could cause more widespread devastation than doing nothing.
- Is global warming caused by man-made CO2 emissions?
- Is global warming a natural cycle just following historical patterns?
- Is global warming here to stay or is it a trend that could reverse before any significant devastating effects occur?
- Can mankind do anything to affect global warming?
Until these questions can be answered, there should be no government regulations formulated to combat global warming.
One thing is certain, if the global warming alarmists have their way and convince governments to take draconian steps to combat global warming, devastating economic effects will be felt not only by developing countries, but by all countries.
Source: IOL: Climate wars loom over scarce resources
About 2,800 people took the Buffalo Police Exam.
The scored exams will be reviewed by a federal court before the city compiles a ranking of the candidates, as part of an order issued 30 years ago aimed at diversifying the department.
City officials believe a good number of minorities and women took the test, although they won’t know the exact percentage until later, said Leonard A. Matarese, human resources commissioner.
It is time to rescind outdated court rulings. If the criteria for advancing through the hiring process is this test, only the score is relevant. The 30 year old Federal Court ruling requiring Federal Court review of the results to increase diversity is wrong. The ruling is the result of LBJ’s “great society” policies that have done unspeakable damage to our economy, pride and individual sense of self-responsibility. The goal should be fielding the best candidates for the job, regardless of race, sex, orientation or any other biological factor.
The Court ruling was conceived during the period of “forced” bussing to promote integration. We’ve seen the disastrous effects of that and the misguided concept has been shelved. Courts have been striking down affirmative action quotas as unconstitutional. The Supreme Court issued a mixed ruling on the University of Michigan’s quota for admissions. This ruling has diluted the power of quotas. When quotas replace merit, everybody suffers. Quotas have the potential to put unqualified applicants into positions at a greater risk of potential failure. They are also a disincentive to gain the qualifications necessary for a job. Sloth is rewarded while diligence is penalized.
The residents of Buffalo deserve the most qualified police officers, not the most “politically correct” officers. Equal opportunity is essential, favoritism is not.
Source: The Buffalo News: Latest Local News
Check out Ray’s excellent article on The New Liberty blog.
I commented earlier on the financial aspects of the Bass Pro proposal and expressed my displeasure with the corporate welfare being offered. Today’s Buffalo News article sums up my view of the design aspects of the project. Diagrams of the project are in my earlier post.
The governor’s call for a more heritage-based plan was finalized in 2004 after a lengthy public process. The plan celebrates the site’s history and incorporates public space, recreation, and small-scale, mixed-use development that includes shops and restaurants.
Guidelines prohibit parking ramps and “large-scale big box retail spaces that discourage street level activity and interaction.”
If Larry Quinn, et al, want to drop a big box retailer, complete with massive parking, to prime waterfront property they could at least put a Walmart there. Walmart would appeal to a wider segment of the population and provide a real economic boost to city residents by increasing their spending power.
“Who appointed Larry Quinn and Mindy Rich to represent the community? Where are our elected officials?” Fisher said. “What’s happened is profoundly insulting to the people of Buffalo and Western New York, and we will fight this.”
A business leader also expressed disapproval.
“It wasn’t an inclusive process,” he said. “There was no involvement of organizations like the [Buffalo Niagara] Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Buffalo Place.”
But Quinn pointed out that he consulted with political leaders and others, including Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, Mayor Byron Brown and County Executive Joel A. Giambra.
If Quinn is correct, Higgins, Brown and Giambra are abdicating their responsibility to the citizens they represent by ignoring the original plan developed with years of public discussion.
Source: The Buffalo News: Home
If you haven’t had a chance to listen to Jim Ostrowski interview Chris Collins, Republican candidate for Erie County Executive, you can listen to the podcast here. Jim’s show is live every Thursday at 1pm on WYMN radio. Telephone calls to the show are welcome.
Luckily no one was killed or injured by the police.
If You Aren’t Growing Tomatoes, You Have Nothing to Worry About
A Pullman landlord notified police about a grow lamp in a closet, and police got a search warrant for a drug raid.Eight officers with guns drawn surprised three roommates in the apartment last weekend and discovered they were growing tomatoes.
More, from the Daily Evergreen, the Washington State student newspaper:
Just three hours earlier, two people, who Barry said were there on behalf of the landlord, were reviewing the apartment when they noticed a growth lamp in a hall closet.Pullman Police met the two citizens when they went to the police station soon after leaving the apartment to report a suspected growth.
The two people also mentioned to the officer that the roommates appeared nervous while they were in the apartment, and said it smelled like burnt marijuana.
Roommate Jacin Davis, a senior business administration major, said he was sitting on the couch watching television and did not understand how he could have come across as nervous nor how they would have smelled marijuana.
[...]
Much to their surprise, when the police came to the apartment with guns drawn, they found tomato plants growing in Barry’s closet.
“They went straight to the closet and saw tomatoes,” Barry said. “They regrouped for a second and then searched the rest of the apartment visually.” Barry said the officers found nothing and even threatened to bring dogs back to search the apartment further.
“They must have felt stupid by then,” he said.
So a growth lamp (which can be used to grow just about anything indoors), “appearing nervous,” and a secondhand claim of smelling burnt marijuana is enough for the police to storm into your house with their guns drawn.
Source: TheAgitator.com
After reading through the pre-development agreement, I can only conclude that the taxpayers are being raped. Here’s a few tidbits to ponder while your wallet gets lighter. Click the images for a larger version.
The ECHDC will pay for the required environmental review.- Bass Pro and Benderson are entitled to any applicable Empire Zone credits.
- Benderson will have the right of first refusal to develop any additional land acquired by the ECHDC.
- Bass Pro will occupy a minimum 100,000 square foot facility right along the Central Wharf, with no more than one full service sit-down restaurant.
- The ECHDC will have title to the Bass Pro structure with Bass Pro having an initial lease of 20 years with six five year renewal options.
The construction of the Bass Pro Improvements will be exempt from sales tax and the land and improvements will be exempt for real estate (property) taxes.- Bass Pro will receive $25 million for construction of the building and permanent fixtures.
- Bass Pro will pay $300,000 annually for common area maintenance. No other real estate taxes, payments-in-lieu of taxes or any other rent will be charged to Bass Pro. (That amounts to about $2.50 per square foot, comparable retail space would probably be at least $20 per square foot, if not higher.)
- The ECHDC will build a new marina at the foot of Main Street. Bass Pro will have 30 slips, at no charge, for display and guide boats.
- Bass Pro will operate and maintain the marina, which will also be available to other commercial interests and the general public. (Another revenue stream for Bass Pro.)
- The ECHDC will make available to Bass Pro to surface parking lots for BP customers with recreational vehicles and boats, as well as 30 like spaces in the parking ramp the ECHDC will construct on the Aud site.
- The ECHDC will cause the NYS Dept. of Transportation to install highway signs on the I-90 and other roadways to advertise Bass Pro.
There are other details in the agreement, I only identified the main ones pertaining to Bass Pro. This is a disgusting example of corporate welfare. Every single elected official endorsing this agreement should be recalled.
Technorati tags: Bass Pro, Buffalo, New York, corporate welfare, subsidy, taxes, government waste, ECHDC, Benderson, predevelopment, agreement
The figures touted below sound good, too good!
Western New York ranks among the nation’s 100 fastest-growing job markets for the second straight month.
The Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area added 4,000 jobs between February 2006 and February 2007, according to a new report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That puts it in the upper quarter of the latest rankings of raw job growth — 91st place out of 367 U.S. metros.
After digging a bit deeper into the statistics available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau, I’m not too impressed by the numbers. Here are a few statistics for the Buffalo/Niagara Metropolitan area covering the period 1997-2006.
- Private Sector Jobs Losses 5,300
- Government Jobs Gain 7,000
- Population Loss 27,201
That sure doesn’t look like we are on the right track. The private sector jobs losses combined with the government jobs gain means there are 12,300 more people living off of the taxpayers’ money during a period of population decline.
Source: Buffalo climbs in job rankings - Business First of Buffalo:
