LongIsland Blogs

• Home For The Holidays

  —The Community Alliance

  And An Opportunity To Feed The Hungry
  
  We take a break from the madness here at The Community Alliance blog, with a heartfelt wish that all of our readers and their families enjoy not only the warmth and spirit of the season, but of the cherished time spent [...]
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  Posted: November 24, 2009, 12:32pm EST
  

• Another barrier falls ..

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  "Seven of the world’s top 10 supercomputers use standard chips from A.M.D. and Intel, as do about 90 percent of the 500 fastest machines. “I think this says that supercomputing technology is affordable,” said Margaret Lewis, an A.M.D. director. “We are kind of getting away from this ivory tower.”[...]
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  Posted: November 23, 2009, 11:00am EST
  

• And The Beatings Go On...

  —The Community Alliance

  Barely Out Of One Election, Right Into Another
  
  The ballots from the November 3rd vote for County Executive are still not all counted -- and may not be until the week after Thanksgiving -- and here we are, headed into yet another election (in December, no less), this time [...]
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  Posted: November 23, 2009, 10:35am EST
  

• Be Careful What You Wish For

  —The Community Alliance

  You May Just Get It
  
  When the counting is finally over at the Nassau County Board of Elections (do you think they use fingers as well as toes?), Ed Mangano may just be Nassau's next County Executive.
  
  Who would have thunk it? Certainly not Tom Suozzi, the pundits, [...]
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  Posted: November 20, 2009, 11:20am EST
  

• Public Authorities To Get Greater Oversight

  —The Community Alliance

  Maybe We Should Have Asked For The Winning Mega Millions Numbers! ;-)
  
  We asked for it, and the NYS Assembly delivers. Accountability and transparency -- well, at least a bit -- at New York's multitude of Public Authorities.
  
  With billions in debt, and millions in unaccounted for tax [...]
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  Posted: November 20, 2009, 7:42am EST
  

• Conjure Up A Vision Of Community

  —The Community Alliance

  To Create Sustainability, Livability, And "Smart Growth," You Must First Envision The Possibilities
  
  We take you back to the founding days of The Community Alliance, somewhat after the Neanderthals roamed the central plains [and before they de-evolved for a more sendentary -- and, apparently, permanent -- life (if you [...]
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  Posted: November 19, 2009, 8:38am EST
  

• Fire In The Belly Of The Beast

  —The Community Alliance

  Students At Risk In Illegal Basement Apartments
  
  Illegal accessory apartments. Long a scourge in towns and hamlets across our island. A clear and present danger to their occupants. An onerous tax burden to law-abiding homeowners. A chronic problem for our schools. A major dtractor from our suburban [...]
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  Posted: November 18, 2009, 9:54am EST
  

• What works?

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  "The new feature, to be formally introduced on Tuesday, is a tool to make it easy for YouTube users to submit clips that news media companies can choose to highlight. The site plans to sign up other media partners.

  “We’re trying to connect media organizations with citizen reporters on" [...]

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  Posted: November 17, 2009, 11:35am EST
  

• If The Town Can Raise A Wall In Elmont. . .

  —The Community Alliance

  Why Can't They Raze A Blighted Movie Theater Or A Hotsheet Hotel?
  
  Kudos to the Town of Hempstead for lending a hand to Habitat of Humanity here in Nassau County, raising a wall on a new home being built in Elmont.
  
  The more affordable housing starts,' [...]
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  Posted: November 17, 2009, 9:29am EST
  

• Albany Must Cut Where It Hurts The Most

  —The Community Alliance

  Close To Home In Legislators' Pocketbooks And Pork Barrels
  
  If the State of New York is, indeed, running out of money, as Governor David Paterson contends (and as the numbers so reflect), just where in the budget does the State Legislature cut?
  
  Health care? Education? Those who rely' [...]
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  Posted: November 16, 2009, 3:38pm EST
  

• When The Pot Calls The Kettle Black

  —The Community Alliance

  Dumb And Dumber At The New Nassau County Legislature
  
  Forget, for the moment, that, come January, when the GOP regains control of the County Legislature, it will be, literally, back to the past. The same regime, if not the very same people, who brought Nassau to the brink [...]
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  Posted: November 13, 2009, 10:54am EST
  

• Please Don't Drink The Water

  —The Community Alliance

  On Long Island, When It Rains, It Plumes
  
  For years, we at The Community Alliance have been saying, "There must be something in the water."
  
  Why is it, after all, that we have more than our fair share of kooks, killers, Lolitas, and the lot? And how [...]
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  Posted: November 12, 2009, 10:27am EST
  

• More than hard data ...

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  "Those are two measures any taxpayer could support - if _________, and others who support the idea of school consolidation, come up with hard data to support them."
  
  Correct. Hard data is required to make any responsible decision.
  
  But it is more than hard data. It requires [...]
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  Posted: November 12, 2009, 9:05am EST
  

• Town Budget: $386 million*

  —The Community Alliance

  Town Payroll: $74 Million**
  Town's proclivity to dupe residents into believing their taxes are "frozen?": Shameless!
  
  *2010 Budget, Town of Hempstead
  **2009 Payroll (year to date), Town of Hempstead (2221 employees). Does not include Town Special Districts.
  
  As Town Supervisor Kate Murray says in the 2010 Preliminary' [...]
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  Posted: November 11, 2009, 11:52am EST
  

• Suozzi: County Exec Should Run Schools

  —The Community Alliance

  The Community Alliance: State Should Fully Fund Public Education
  
  More fodder for the media, raw meat for the disloyal opposition, and yet another fearless, if but feeble stab to inoculate us from the plague that is upon all of our houses -- the school property tax.
  
  Nassau County [...]
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  Posted: November 11, 2009, 7:41am EST
  

• The Resistance Is Coming!

  —The Community Alliance

  Enlist In The Movement To Take Back Our Town In 2011
  
  Wherever there is blight, The Resistance will be there!
  
  Wherever special taxing districts run amuck, The Resistance will be there!
  
  Wherever zoning is by exception, rather than rule, The Resistance will be there!
  
  Wherever patronage, [...]
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  Posted: November 10, 2009, 8:45am EST
  

• A golden opportunity ...

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  “The public’s in a bad mood...”
  
  Yes of course the public is in a bad mood.
  
  Why?
  
  Many reasons, but primarily because the public, which is generally ahead of the curve in understanding the need for change, is frustrated at the inability of the current "system" [...]
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  Posted: November 09, 2009, 10:55am EST
  

• The Big Chill At Hempstead Town Hall?

  —The Community Alliance

  You'd Never Know There's A Tax "Freeze" In America's Most Blighted Township
  
  
  Wonder where all of your money goes, Town of Hempstead taxpayers? How smiling Kate Murray continues to win election as Supervisor by ever-widening margins? How the faithful are compelled to vote the party line, year after' [...]
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  Posted: November 09, 2009, 8:26am EST
  

• Schmitt: Leave In The "M" For Misery

  —The Community Alliance

  Taxpayers Suffering. Job Losses Climbing. Foreclosures At Record Highs. And Peter Schmitt Is Handing Out Raises To His Legislative Aides
  
  Call it shameless. Call it chutzpah. Call it being completely out of touch with the reality of Long Island's economy. Or just call it Peter "Full Of" Schmitt doing' [...]
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  Posted: November 06, 2009, 12:21pm EST
  

• Does Corzine's Fall Foreshadow Paterson's Fate?

  —The Community Alliance

  Indicators, Pundits, And The New York Times Would Say So -- And Have
  "I am blind; I am not oblivious. . .I am running for Governor in 2010."
  -- Gov. David A. Paterson
  
  A tumbling local economy. Massive layoffs. Skyrocketing property taxes -- in fact, the highest in the [...]
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  Posted: November 06, 2009, 7:24am EST
  

• Will Shift In Nassau County Legislature Be Perk Or Pan For Parks?

  —The Community Alliance

  PARCnassau Is Hoping New Legislature Will "Do Us Proud"
  
  Will Nassau County's parks fare better under a Republican Legislature than they have under the Dems? [Did the parks -- at least the ones deemed by the County to be "active" -- do so badly under the Democrats?]
  
  And' [...]
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  Posted: November 05, 2009, 2:28pm EST
  

• "One Long Island" Metachart 11.5.09

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  [...]
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  Posted: November 05, 2009, 11:36am EST
  

• The Schmitt Hits The Fan In Nassau County

  —The Community Alliance

  Perfect Storm Of Bad Economy, High Taxes, And Democratic Malaise Give GOP Big Night
  
  The Democratic majority -- whose tenure at the helm was so much less than remarkable -- in the Nassau County Legislature. Gone.
  
  Howard Weitzman -- who, through poignant audits, served as watchdog over the [...]
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  Posted: November 04, 2009, 10:48am EST
  

• Take That, Glen Beck, Sarah Palin!

  —The Community Alliance

  Dems Take Back NY's 23rd CD For First Time Since Civil War
  
  A caution to New York Republicans, enamored, of late, with the conservatives (those of the Beck, Limbaugh, and Palin ilk), while bashing the moderates in their own party.
  
  Ahh. Divide yourselves, and be' [...]
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  Posted: November 04, 2009, 8:22am EST
  

• What We Have To Say At The Blog May Not Matter Much. . .

  —The Community Alliance

  What You Have To Say At The Polls May Make All The Difference In The World!
  
  Read, Million Dollar Garbage, only at The Community Alliance blog.
  
  Today, Tuesday, November 3, VOTE!
  
  Tell them you're not taking their garbage anymore...
  
  Polls are open in New' [...]
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  Posted: November 03, 2009, 12:01am EST
  

• Buckram Road "Random Music" CD ...

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  You can download it free here
  
  Just go to where it says "go to the music page for more" and select the downward facing arrow. To listen instead of downloading select the right facing arrow.
  
  The first 12 songs are from the new CD. The rest [...]
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  Posted: November 02, 2009, 1:48pm EST
  

• Million Dollar Garbage

  —The Community Alliance

  Talkin' Trash In The Town That Murray Bilked
  
  The Father. The Son. The Sanitary District Supervisor.
  
  No, not some religious dogma adhered to by Monks bound to a vow of silence. Just the taking by the Town of Hempstead of public tax money -- your tax dollars' [...]
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  Posted: November 02, 2009, 12:01pm EST
  

• Trick Or Trickle In Hempstead Town

  —The Community Alliance

  The Golden Age Of Tricks, Pranks, And Freezes Continues In America's Largest TownshipAnd Town Residents Are Left Out In The Cold Once Again, Holding The Kate-O-Lantern Take off that terrifying mask, Kate Murray. You're frightening the children -- not to mention, Town of Hempstead taxpayers.
  All [...]
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  Posted: October 31, 2009, 9:06am EDT
  

• Bigger (A Smidge), Better (A Bit) Bottle Bill Goes Into Effect October 31

  —The Community Alliance

  Beginning On Halloween, Those Water Bottles (on which you will pay a nickel deposit) Become Returnable
  
  A victory (sort of) for environmentalists, who decry the ageless plastic water bottle as a mainstay of the landfill for the next billion years, and for those of us who loathe seeing those [...]
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  Posted: October 30, 2009, 10:51am EDT
  

• Psst! Have We Got A Proposition For You

  —The Community Alliance

  Actually, We Have Two Of Them
  
  Unbeknownst to most voters (and even those in the know often have trouble finding them on the ballot), there are two (2) Propositions on Tuesday's ballot, both to amend the State Constitution. [No, they're not proposing to eliminate the State Legislature. How unfortunate.]
  [...]
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  Posted: October 29, 2009, 2:01pm EDT
  

• It's Not Only About The Islanders

  —The Community Alliance

  It's About Saving Nassau County From The Dust Bowl
  
  If the Lighthouse Project was only about keeping the hapless, and nearly winless, Islanders at the Nassau Coliseum (home to the International Great Beer Expo), we would almost certainly be inclined to say -- no, to' [...]
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  Posted: October 29, 2009, 8:52am EDT
  

• Fresh Start Versus Status Quo In Nassau's 8th LD

  —The Community Alliance

  Tumminello Challenges Muscarella For Seat In Nassau County Legislature
  
  If Vincent Muscarella, the longtime Republican incumbent representing Elmont (part), Floral Park (part), Franklin Square, Garden City South, Stewart Manor, and West Hempstead in the Nassau County Legislature, appears to have a familiar face, it could be because that [...]
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  Posted: October 28, 2009, 10:33am EDT
  

• What Can Browne Do For You?

  —The Community Alliance

  Judging From His Lack Of Accomplishment On The Town Zoning Board, Not Very Much
  
  At the News12 Debates, the candidates for the 5th Legislative District -- incumbent, Joseph Scannell (D) and challenger, Christian Browne (R) -- were asked about vacant stores on our Main Streets, and [...]
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  Posted: October 27, 2009, 11:51am EDT
  

• If TV Spots Decided Elections. . .

  —The Community Alliance

  . . .Nassau County Dems Would Win In A Landslide!
  
  You can't sit in front of the television set, this last week or so before elections, without being barraged by TV commercials for -- or against -- candidates for public office.
  
  Yes, most offer the typical borish "vote'" [...]
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  Posted: October 26, 2009, 2:15pm EDT
  

• You Be The Judge

  —The Community Alliance

  An Official Voters' Guide To The Judiciary
  
  "Justice is blind," or so the saying goes, and the judiciary is looked upon by the public as impartial, fair, and above the political fray.
  
  Of course, just look at the ballot -- and the lawn signs -- and you will' [...]
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  Posted: October 26, 2009, 9:43am EDT
  

• Some additional progress ...

  —Long Island Idea Factory

  "The council also unveiled their new website, developed by Karma411.com, offering an information portal for all local chambers. This new technology provides a Web 2.0 tool which empowers all the chambers of commerce members to broadcast their news and events."
  
  I was happy to play a small part [...]
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  Posted: October 23, 2009, 9:37am EDT
  

• Property Taxes, Then And Now

  —The Community Alliance

  A 10-Year Retrospective On Your Local Property Tax Levy
  
  Its not too often that we wax nostalgic, longing for those "good old days", here at The Community Alliance, but, having recently received his Statement of Taxes, this blogger figured he'd take a step back in time to see' [...]
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  Posted: October 23, 2009, 9:11am EDT