Republican City Councilmember Peter Koo rang in the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon, by becoming Democrat City Councilmember Peter Koo. This might seem very appropriate as Dragons are said to be highly ambitious, driven and unafraid to take risks. That is good, because this just may be the biggest gamble of Koo’s [...]
BY CITY COUNCILMEMBER MARK WEPRIN The news that New York City students’ scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are basically flat may come as a blow to those who are still under the illusion that the Department of Education (DOE) has brilliantly revolutionized public education in recent years. But it is no [...]
When is a temporary measure, even with a set expiration date, not temporary? When it’s initiated by government, of course. How many times have we been confronted with the supposed risk of major calamity due to state and local government budget shortfalls? How many times were these supposed impending disasters staved off by “temporary” tax [...]
Watching one of those world-record setting domino falls, where the pieces go off in all different directions and patterns, is like watching politically connected indictments in Queens these days. As the dominos fall, they get closer and closer to knocking down more elected officials. A few weeks back this column wrote about the Kool-aid many [...]
Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently made a comment that caused the education world to lose their collective minds. He suggested that the 1.1 million kids in New York City schools would be better served if we eliminated half of the 80,000 teachers currently on the payroll, and doubled the pay of the remaining teaching force. Not [...]
Councilmember Eric Ulrich has been named chair of Republican and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign in New York City. “I’m honored because I believe Governor Romney stands the best chance at defeating Barack Obama, and I know that he’ll make an excellent president during a very challenging time in our nation,” Ulrich told [...]
As more information continues to spill out about the scandal surrounding John Liu’s fundraising practices, both in his 2009 campaign for comptroller and his current effort to run for mayor, it is becoming clear that his ability to effectively do his job is in serious jeopardy. That would be the case for anyone in this [...]
In the early hours on Tuesday morning, November 15, Mayor Michael Bloomberg finally directed the NYPD to clear out the squatters in Zuccotti Park, who have been holding not only the park but the entire neighborhood hostage for the last two months. And it’s about time. What began as a simple expression of frustration about [...]
Members of the Taminent Democratic Club, a political organization that supports local government, gathered at Riccardo’s by the Bridge in Astoria on November 5 for their 80thannual dinner dance. Several members of the Taminent Democratic Club received awards, including Linda Perno for “Woman of the Year” and Jeffery Sandhaus M.D. for “Man of the Year.” [...]
By State Senator Jose Peralta The mortgage crisis has wreaked havoc across the country. Millions of Americans have lost their homes. Queens has consistently been at or near the top of the list of counties in the state hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis. And the crisis is not subsiding. According to a study recently published [...]