I guess it was just too much for me to hope that the quality of black and Hispanic electeds will get better in a post-Obama USA. After all, there was really nothing to base that on. And after years of frustration with the quality emerging from New York, I guess I was just grasping at straws, in hope that we could elect people, who are not only intellectually developed to tackle real issues facing the polity, but also possessive of the moral character and courage to do the right thing when the right time comes.

Look, there are no perfect politicians. In fact there are no perfect human beings anywhere. If we were all perfect, we would have nothing to strive for; so hopefully we keep reaching for the good within, hoping that one day we get to become the best we can be. I know that I am not perfect, but I do strive to be a better human being every day of my adult life. I also try to learn from my mistakes and not repeat them: to me, this is basic; this is fundamental for trying to live a decent life.  read more »

Last week, I handed in my resignation to Ms. Darlene Mealy (NYC council member of the 41st District). I assume that most of you are aware that I have been working with her since December -as the part time Communications Director. Hopefully, my last day in this role will be on the 26th of March (as per my resignation letter). .

The main reasons I have chosen to go this route are what necessitate this column. I want to make it clear that this is my choice -and mine only. I was not forced to walk the plant, nor given any subtle shoves out the door. I have given her enough notice (4 weeks) so that she can hire someone to replace me without her small staff being strained, stressed and/or stretched.

As far as I read it, I can stay on with the councilwoman, once I accept the rules and regulations around public blogging that she handed to me from the City Council’s Office of the General Counsel. I have chosen not to do that, despite many friends and relatives telling me to stay on. They all think that I can offer so much more than I have so far.

These are the rules:  read more »

This from Liz Benjamin:

Jack Uldrich, chairman of the Minnesota Independence Party, has issued a formal call for the Democrat-turned-Republican-turned-independent mayor to "give serious consideration" to a White House run.

"The two-party system has catastrophically failed America," Uldrich said. "America needs a serious, credible independent to right our sinking ship and get it back on track to a prosperous future.

"There is no one better positioned than Mayor Bloomberg to accept the mantle of this immense challenge."

To which i have to add a wake-up call: Bloomberg spent $102,000,000 of his own money to become chief realtor mayor of New York City. That's $175.00 a vote.

What does it translates to? Obama won with 65,182,692. If you consider that number for a minute, not the total of people who actually voted, then that would make Bloomberg's cost for running for president a staggering $11 406 971 100. Yes, that's $11 BILLION right there.

Blommberg didn't win because of his leadership. He bought himself a voting field devoid of any real opponents. And even the guy that was supposed to not even come close to beating him, didn't play his losing card the way he should have.
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In my last Vines column (see # 10-09), I told you that I had inside info, which stated that upon finding out Eliot Spitzer’s team had tagged him for the Lieutenant-governor slot, David Paterson said: “they surely haven’t vetted me for this job”. And now Paterson goes up on a local radio station and directly corroborates said info. This had been a news item on the blogs (see Elizabeth Benjamin’s blog) last week. I hereby reiterate what I wrote in a column recently, calling for mainstream media (and alternative mediums too) to do a better job vetting candidates before elections are held; this is a responsibility placed squarely on the shoulders of the fourth and fifth estates (non-identical twins). And by fifth estate, I refer to all the alternative mediums that have sprung up with all the technological advancements in communications, since the founding fathers ratified the constitution (and the fourth estate). For example: the internet, twittering, blogging, texting and the like, can now be considered the fifth estate.  read more »

Last night I went to an annual after-holidays party put on by the Independent Neighborhood Democrats (IND), one of my local Democratic Clubs, at the home of one of my district leaders, Jo Anne Simon. As many of you know I am sometimes at odds with IND, a theme to keep in mind as I write this piece. But, whether untied or divided, IND always puts on a great party, with ample desserts and interesting discussions with and among politicians. I had several such interesting conversations, including a conversation with one of my favorite Congressional Representatives, Nydia Velasquez, and another conversation with two members of the New York State Legislature, Assemblyman Richard Brodsky and State Senator Daniel Squadron, which covered similar themes. The gist of both discussions was that, both in Congress and in Albany, it is clear that Democrats, because of internal dissensions, are losing ground to more unified, though numerically inferior, Republicans. And this is despite the fact that Democrats have the better plan, the better ideas, and the better message. One person, referring specifically to Albany, put it this way: the left is on the run right now.  read more »