By Henry J. Stern
October 18, 2006
We e-mailed you an article Friday but its transmission was somehow interrupted.
Some of you received it but many others did not. We are sending an updated
version today (Wednesday) to catch up. Friday's complete article appears
on our website, go to column
325 at
www.nycivic.org
We originally wrote to invite you to our triennial fundraiser, to be held
Thursday evening October 26, eight days from today. There is still room
at the inn, and a spectacular inn it is, 35 stories above New York Harbor
and the Statue of Liberty. Link to our
invitation and
response card.
One of Ed Koch's favorite stories goes back to the Depression, when he and
his father checked hats in his uncle's restaurant in Newark, in the hope of
receiving a tip of a nickel or possibly a dime. Part of his job was
to shout periodically, "Don't forget the hat check boys, we only work on
tips." The effectiveness of his appeal was measured by the amount the
customers left while picking up their hats and coats.
We tell the story because, seventy years later, we too are asking for funds.
Fortunately, they are not for food or rent, but they do provide the necessary
staff to help research these articles, to respond to inquiries, to sponsor
forums and to investigate municipal issues. We hope you digest the invitation
and, if you cannot attend personally, please send us some plankton, a necessary
nutrient.
Tribe Grows
The Stern family has news of its own to report. Our son Jared was
married last Sunday (October 7) to Stephanie Rooks.
Link
here to the New York Times account of the happy event.
From the Capital to the Courtroom
With regard to current events, the indictment of Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin
is appalling, with regard to the scope and enormity of his alleged crimes.
While some labor leaders are far from saints, others are generally honest.
This indictment has been heralded for many months. It was preceded
by McLaughlin’s decision not to run again for the Queens Assembly seat he
has held since 1993, and by his recent withdrawal from the Presidency of
the NYC Central Trades and Labor Council. A few years ago, McLaughlin was
considered a mayoral candidate.
Whenever we read a story like this indictment, we ask ourselves several
questions. One is how many more people like this are there with
important jobs in labor, business, law or politics that just have not yet
been uncovered for the thieves they are. Two is that the variety of
illegal acts committed here was so wide that many people must have known
of them, and why didn't anybody speak up about them. If someone did drop
a dime, how long had the crimes gone on before whosoever they may be came
to the authorities, The United States Attorney for the Southern District
of New York deserves credit for making the case. Years ago politicians were
prosecuted primarily in the Eastern District (Long Island). Today’s
Sun provides a complete rundown on the Rogues Gallery in Albany. It
is noteworthy that they all come from three counties with relatively strong
political machines: Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens.
Link the chart.
Deep Blue
The New York State non-election rolls along, with the Democrats content
with running out the clock, and the Republicans unable to get traction anywhere,
except for their personal mishaps and primary attacks on each other.
After twelve years in Albany, Governor Pataki has left his party a wreck;
Senator D'Amato may, or may not, try to put it together again. Most
likely he will be too busy lobbying the future powers that be to recapture
his dominion over the New York State GOP.
Two Guys
The Sun's lead story Monday, by
Jacob Gershman, discusses the
Spitzer-Silver relationship. It is a fascinating article, and you should link
to it in case it goes off-line. We plan to offer our own observations
on the subject, but will put that off for a short while.
Cyber Culpa
We really hope that our computer service has been fully restored. Our internet
provider, who has been faithful over the years, assured us they did no harm.
We apologize to our readers for the occasional irregularity in service; we
are not one of the major customers of any ISP (internet service provider.),
but we get through most of the time.