Terror Plot Stopped in NYC

You would hope that another tragedy would not be necessary to wake people in this country up to the dangers that exist in our world.

New Info from Oklahoma

ALthough I still have not seen anything in the Buffalo News, CNN, USAToday or other MS outlets, but news is still trickling out of the U of Oklahoma.

Buffalo News - New budget chief had money woes

People are making a big deal out of the personal bankruptcy of the new County Budget Director. Personally, it depends on what he learned from the process. If he learned that the first thing you need to do in tight times is to pare your unnecessary expenses, that would be great.

And besides, someone who has experience with bankruptcy and has come out better on the other side may help take the county in the same direction, which would probably be a good thing.

Gates of Vienna: Jihad at the University of Oklahoma?

How is it that the MSM is ignoring this story? Right now perhaps the best source of information is a student newspaper at the University of Oklahoma, where a suicide bomber killed himself outside a Sooner football game.

The University of Oklahoma has not been terribly forthcoming, (IMHO).

Clarification on Canavan

Buffalo Pundit takes issue with my assessment of Polancarz and Canavan. I (admittedly carelessly) threw the term "alleged Lenihan Lapdog" oward Polancarz without much explanation, and that was a bit lazy on my part. I was rehashing Whelan's allegation without knowing whether or not it is true.

Buffalo Pundit asks whether the same could be true for Canavan, and I honestly don't know. What i do know is that Polncarz seems like more of a political animal than Canavan. It is is also terribly clear to me that Canavan is far more qualified by education and experience to be comptroller. (Drexel BS and Rutgers MBA, CPA, etc.)

I think we need a financial professional more than a politician.

Time will tell I guess.

Hard Control Board?

There are some out there that want to petition for a hard control board. I think they should think hard about that. If folks like this are going to be part of that board, I am not interested. Sheila Kee would not rule out asking the people who voted no against the sham budget to vote for it? Are you kidding me> It wouldn't balance even if they had the votes. Let's see some thoughtful meaningful cuts before we entertain ANY tax increase.

The American Thinker

This article sums up my feelings about the President's nomination of Harriet Miers. I trust him to make the right decision.

Schumer - Come Clean

Chuck Schumer has so far been given a pass by the MSM. From Investor's Business Daily:
Reportedly, the two women confessed to the act in July, were suspended with pay until Aug. 31 and finally resigned in mid-September. One would think a potential felony by staffers for a top Democrat — a case being investigated by the U.S. attorney's office in D.C. as well as the FBI — would at least get a paragraph of coverage somewhere between the grocery coupons and the obituaries.

Can you imagine the media firestorm if staffers for, say, Frist, had used Barack Obama's Social Security number to fraudulently obtain his credit report looking for stuff to derail his Senate campaign? Frist would have been before a media firing squad faster than you can say Bill Bennett.

Job growth in Buffalo trails 75% of nation - Buffalo - MSNBC.com

So far, Hillary's promise of 200,000 new jobs and the BNE's promise of 50,000 don't seem to be panning out.

USATODAY.com - Bush to choose counsel Miers for Supreme Court

It looks like the President has nominated Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. We will see how long it takes for Reid et al to rip into her. It will be interesting to see if they wait until they know anything about her. I know Chuckie won't wait to be confused by the facts.

A Decent Intro to the Mayor's Race

The Buffalo News does a pretty decent job of introducing the two candidates for mayor. I have yet to see any description of an idea that Byron took from conception to implementation (except his four bills that renamed city streets or proclamations, etc.)

By the way, someone tell Jim Heaney that being anti death penalty is Pro-Life...

Will the NY Times EVER Get it Right

Talk about stubborn! The New York Times has run its third correction of a Paul Krugman column. The funny think is, Krugman is now online only for people who are willing to pay for his content. I bet they are just lining up . . .

Polancarz - just a Politician

The legislature approved a ruse of a budgetthe alleged Lenihan lapdog Mark Polancarz quickly endorsed. Canavan responded with a point of view that you would want in a Comprtoller - content. He pointed to specific things that could be addressed to hel get us out of this mess.

I am not against raising taxes at all - however the legislature has not shown us the need to raise taxes. When we call all feel assured that every penny of waste, patronage, corruption and pork have been removed from our taxes, then I would be willing to green-light a tax increase. We are a long way from that.

Marinelli Still Doesn't Get it...

The were able to patch together 8 lame ducks and less than bright legislatorsto pass a budget that doesn't balance. It is time for a hard contol board NOW!

WBEN 930 : Police Pay Freeze Upheld

This is HUGE news for the Control board. It also goes a long way toward asking the question - is Nelson Cosgrove a hack?

Correct, but not complete

I don't disagree with the argument maid by this PrincipalBuffalo News - Charter schools receive short end of funding stick however her argumnet does not go far enough. Education funding should follow the children where they go - no question. But it should not be limited to whether they attend a traditional government-run school or a charter school. Children who go to private or parochial schools should be included as well.

The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005)

Just got back from seeing The Greatest Game Ever Played. What a great family film. I won't give anything away, but this is the kind of film that the Disney Studios used to put out. I would recommend it highly.

Time For Schumer to Step Down

IF any of this stuff happened to Delay or Frist, the MSM would be all over it.

Wal Mart

There is an interesting debate going on between two local bloggers re: Wal Mart. Buffalo Pundit clearly has the "anti wal mart" fell to it, and contains this quote: "Shop there if you want, but I’ll go to Target, where the stores are clean and the products are of better quality." I admit I shop at Target 20 x as often as Wal Mart, but let's not kid ourselves about the products. As you can see Target and Wal Mart carry a lot of similar or identical items, and Wal Mart is often cheaper.

Meanwhile, North Coast takes a decidedly more pro Wal Mart stand, pointing out (rightly) that Wal Mart is the "bad big business" poster child, even when there is more similar than different between them and other retailers. Clearly there is a chasm between Wal Mart and Wegman's, however less of a leap to Tops (another faceless corp.). Even though Tops is union, not all of there employees receive health insurance.

What's wrong with this Picture?

Our local politicians are squealing at the trough fighting over which pork projects (OK terrible metaphor/vernacular) should be funded at what level by the Power Authority. Why isn't anyone trying to get lower rates for the people and businesses in the region? It seems that if they have $50 million to throw around to various government boondoggles, we are paying $50 million too much for power - n'est ce pas?