Democracy In Albany

Welcome to Jerryland | 47 comments (47 topical, 0 hidden)

i agree (none / 0) (#5)
by DIA on Sat Jul 08, 2006 at 07:33:31 AM EST

And i'll volunteer to lead it. On one condition. The ALDC gets $1 billion and my group gets $1 billion. And we'll see who does the most with it. Ok?

And let me remind you of the short memories. A group of citizens organized last summer to try to begin a discussion on how to improve the city. With no budget they got 125 volunteers to get 3,500 signatures in the middle of a very hot summer. They exercised their power as citizens. And the mayor shit all over it and sent his thugs to the common council (who had agreed to support it) and the council voted it down. Remember that? That is what happens when citizens try to get involved.

Plenty of people are working on their own to make the city better. The people in the PTA, the people in the neighborhood associations, the people doing walk and watch programs, the people planting flowers on the streets, Citizens action, the DA's community accountability board volunteers, the working families party, that group that fixes up old buildings in arbor hill and sells them to young families, local churches, the local teacher's aide who organizes a basketball league, the guy who has an anti gang night at the YMCA, our beat cops, people who are moving to albany and investing in renovating houses....I could go on. We've learned that to improve our neighborhoods we are on our own. The mayor isn't helping. We do what we can. But the mayor has all the money and the power. There is only so much we as a community can do until he is gone and we get a new mayor who is willing to work with everyone who is trying to make this city better.

And from all of those people who are working so hard for their families, neighorhoods, schools and communities, in response to your advice to "stop crying", i would like to say, "FUCK YOU".

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But.... (none / 0) (#6)
by kateb on Sat Jul 08, 2006 at 08:19:20 AM EST

You build on that, DIA, and what a great foundation to build on. It's a defeat in the very short term, but a victory for getting going. Right?

[ Parent ]

Nothing New Under the Sun (none / 0) (#7)
by TerryONeillEsq on Sat Jul 08, 2006 at 08:46:17 AM EST

Up until 1973, Nelson Rockefeller presided over a fairly enlightened policy on the issue of illegal drugs. That year, he abruptly changed course and, without any consultation with anyone, got the Rockefeller drug laws onto the books. Ten years later, Mario Cuomo took office. The 55th bill he signed that inaugural year was intended to establish an ambitious program of creating a state-supported infrastructure of neighborhood preservation crime prevention non-profits. Notwithstanding his signature, this program never got off the ground. Instead, Mario went on to create a colossal infrastructure of prisons. For the people of our inner cities, the convergence of Rocky's laws and Cuomo's prisons created the perfect shitstorm. People went to prison. Neighborhoods went to hell.

DIA is right. People cannot rely on our elected leaders to do what is best for them. The Irish have political party whose name would be an apt motto for all the good people of Albany -- Sinn Fein -- We Ourselves.

[ Parent ]

Well, aint we testy (none / 0) (#10)
by alfrednewman on Sat Jul 08, 2006 at 12:10:48 PM EST

DIA- you seem to be in a bad mood today.

In a city of 95,000 people how many of them will actually do anything to make the city more liveable? How many of them will bend over and pick up a piece of trash that is sitting next to a garbage can?

"What? Me worry? " "whatmeworry.alfred@gmail.com"
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: a few points (none / 0) (#11)
by DIA on Sat Jul 08, 2006 at 12:34:40 PM EST

I am testy. The mayor is fucking us all over. With our tax dollars. Anyone who doesn't frequent the Fort Orange club should be testy.
First things first. You don't understand the issue. The mayor's task force is supposed to address 3 areas, not just business development. One of those is neighborhood revitalization. And now Tom Geisel is in charge of revitalizing my neighborhood.
Have you ever met any high level bankers? And could they tell their ass from a hole in the ground? Would you let them babysit your kids? Don't mistake the ability to suck up to other corporate knuckleheads and kiss ass as evidence that someone is a smart person and a good problem solver. Two different things. Being a "success" in corporate america most likely means you've never actually taking a stand for something you truly believe in. Find me a successful small business person and I might be interested in their opinion on my neighborhood. Maybe they have some ideas on how to revitalize Central Ave (remember that place, Jerry?). If I was looking for someone to figure out a way to rip off customers by charging them higher bank fees or getting them to take out an interest only loan that they can't afford...I'd give Tom Geisel a call. Until I take up an interest in usury I don't think he has much to add to the discussion about how to help my neighborhood or city. And I can only wonder what his ideas on education are. I doubt he's even a fan of your beloved private schools these days.
I'm not saying we should randomly select Albanians to give input on how to fix the city. I'm saying we should talk to the people who are already working to make their neighborhoods and city better. They don't wait for the great Mayor to ask them to do something. They do it. They've been doing it. In my neighborhood, the homeowners pick up the garbage. These people are a powerful positive force for this city. A smart mayor would work with them. Only thing we need now is a smart mayor (see my comment about bankers above. It applies to politicians as well). Glad handing and back stabbing doesn't make my streets safer or my schools better.
one last point - blaming the citizens who are working hard to make a difference despite the mayor is like blaming democrats for the problems this country faces. The republicans have controlled everything for some time. They have the power. These problems we have are their creation. Jennings has all the power in Albany. Trying to blame the citizens who care for not doing more is just plain dumb.
one really last point - the mayor sez - "I'm not going to redesign a whole committee just because some people felt they were excluded"
Being mayor is hard work. Imagine getting some feedback and actually going back and improving on your first draft. The mayor won't do that. Another great example he is setting for the kids, eh? he is so much like George W Bush its freaky.

[ Parent ]

Welcome to Jerryland | 47 comments (47 topical, 0 hidden)

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