Spitzer

[mnagowski]

What a fall. Admittedly I was already getting quite annoyed with him, but he may have been the State's best shot at changing the way Albany is run. To think I actually had some respect for the guy at one point.

Although who knows, maybe it takes an event like this for the politicos to wake up and smell the roses. Combined with rapidly declining revenues from Wall Street, maybe push will really come to shove.

In my opinion, a hatchet job really needs to be done on about half of the state's budget, and some creative policies need to be created to address the Upstate/Downstate divide.  Upstate needs a budget like a Wisconsin or a Minnesota, not a huge urban metropolis.

[KeithK]

Couldn't happen a nicer guy.  The way he conducted himself as AG makes me pleased at the way things are going for him.

You're right about NYS government being dysfunctional though.  I don't really understand the mechanics of it, but as I understand it the legislative process is almost entirely dependent on the heads of the Assembly and Senate plus the governor.  Rank and file legislators have very little practical power.  This is almost certain to produce lousy results, given basic human tendencies.

[billhoward]

Spitzer in his prime could have taken down the Duke lacrosse players. No guilty plea but the reparations from the consent decree would've killed their lives just as much.

Four grand for a hooker for the evening ... and she wasn't even supposed to be the elite of the agency. Bill Clinton never would have paid that much.

Need to Tivo the Leno and Letterman and monologues.

[Rosey]

Spitzer is a sanctimonious dickhead hypocrite who deserves to end up in PMITA prison under RICO laws for eliminating the Emperor's Club's competition while AG.  Don't drop the soap, Eliot!

[Jim Hyla]

[quote metaezra] and some creative policies need to be created to address the Upstate/Downstate divide.  Upstate needs a budget like a Wisconsin or a Minnesota, not a huge urban metropolis.[/quote]

What do you mean by this?

[Rosey]

[quote Jim Hyla]What do you mean by this?[/quote]
Not going to speak for metaezra, but IMO for reasons of both budget and general legislative behavior, upstate NY would be a wonderful place to live if Westchester-and-south were its own state.  It would be mostly like a bigger Vermont.

As things stand, I will not live in NY again because it is ruled from Westchester/NYC/LI, and I have no interest in living in a state where all the rules are made by people who share nothing in common with me.  As a separate state, I would move back to Ithaca tomorrow.  Seriously.

Kyle

[Beeeej]

[quote krose][quote Jim Hyla]What do you mean by this?[/quote]
Not going to speak for metaezra, but IMO for reasons of both budget and general legislative behavior, upstate NY would be a wonderful place to live if Westchester-and-south were its own state.  It would be mostly like a bigger Vermont.

As things stand, I will not live in NY again because it is ruled from Westchester/NYC/LI, and I have no interest in living in a state where all the rules are made by people who share nothing in common with me.  As a separate state, I would move back to Ithaca tomorrow.  Seriously.

Kyle[/quote]

Staying out of the general Spitzer discussion for professional reasons, but wanted to drop my two cents in on this point at least... while the politics of upstate certainly differs from that of downstate, it's important also to remember that downstate to a significant extent pays for upstate.

Of course I presume in your version of "West New York," the 51st state, there'd be a libertarian tax system which works perfectly.  :-)  But there's a reason not everybody who loves upstate as much as you do would be as quick to celebrate that kind of secession.

[Rosey]

[quote Beeeej]it's important also to remember that downstate to a significant extent pays for upstate.[/quote]
Fabulous.  I'm sure upstate NYer's can cover what they need, just as those in VT and NH do.

Of course I presume in your version of "West New York," the 51st state, there'd be a libertarian tax system which works perfectly.  :-)

Please don't put words in my mouth.

But there's a reason not everybody who loves upstate as much as you do would be as quick to celebrate that kind of secession.

Sure.  Which is one of the many reasons why I won't be looking for houses in Ithaca anytime soon.

Kyle

[Beeeej]

[quote krose][quote Beeeej]Of course I presume in your version of "West New York," the 51st state, there'd be a libertarian tax system which works perfectly.  :-)[/quote]
Please don't put words in my mouth.[/quote]

Man, and I used an emoticon and everything.

[Rosey]

[quote Beeeej]Man, and I used an emoticon and everything.[/quote]
Thus justifying an ad hominem remark and straw man fallacy?

Kyle

[Beeeej]

[quote krose][quote Beeeej]Man, and I used an emoticon and everything.[/quote]
Thus justifying an ad hominem remark?[/quote]

I apologize for attributing libertarian views to you based on considerable evidence from your postings in the past, and then questioning whether those views are realistic in the context of the exact scenario we were discussing.  And I'm sorry you don't have a thicker skin and can't recognize good-natured ribbing even when it's offered to you on a platter labeled "good-natured ribbing" in 48-point Garamond.

[ugarte]

[quote Beeeej][quote krose][quote Beeeej]Of course I presume in your version of "West New York," the 51st state, there'd be a libertarian tax system which works perfectly.  :-)[/quote]
Please don't put words in my mouth.[/quote]

Man, and I used an emoticon and everything.[/quote]
He was upset that you called the new state "West New York" instead of Albania.

And while I agree with the consensus that AG Spitzer was a dickhead, he was a dickhead who set his mind to reforming a system that was more sleight of hand than invisible hand, and so insanely corrupt that stealing from shareholders was the accepted business model.

The perp walks, bullying tactics and orchestrated press conferences to set up a run for governor don't reflect well on him and call to mind another famous asshole out of NYC who I hope is also finished in politics.

[Rosey]

[quote Beeeej]And I'm sorry you don't have a thicker skin[/quote]
I in fact have an incredibly thick skin.  You are mistaking my desire to point out your dismissing my points (good-natured or not) with my taking offense at it.  I assure you, I am neither offended nor defensive. ;-)

Kyle

[Beeeej]

[quote krose][quote Beeeej]And I'm sorry you don't have a thicker skin[/quote]
I in fact have an incredibly thick skin.  You are mistaking my desire to point out your dismissing my points (good-natured or not) with my taking offense at it.  I assure you, I am neither offended nor defensive. ;-)[/quote]

Oh, well, then, carry on.  :-)  I don't think I was dismissing your points, but reasonable minds can differ on all sorts of things.

[ftyuv]

[quote krose][quote Beeeej]it's important also to remember that downstate to a significant extent pays for upstate.[/quote]
Fabulous.  I'm sure upstate NYer's can cover what they need, just as those in VT and NH do.[/quote]

Bah, NH's government is buttressed by sales taxes from all the people coming up from Massachusetts to take advantage of the lack of sales tawaitaminute....