In June, a supermajority (67%) finally registered their disapproval of George W. Bush’s job perfomance in an ARG poll. Now it is 71%. A mere 25% approve. Only 23% approve of the way Bush is handling the economy, despite an historically high Dow Jones Industrial Average. Perhaps this was all weighing on David Broder when he wrote his column for today about the importance of urban issues in the upcoming campaign. He praised Clinton, Edwards, and Obama for having a familiarity and feel for the cities of our country.
What counts most, though, are not the specific items they are offering but the awareness they show of the constituency and the problems — and the commitment to make urban America a serious part of the governing agenda.
The cities have been waiting a long time for such attention.
The time is right. Economic disparity has reached ridiculous and dangerous levels. The midterm elections flipped congressional chairs into the hands of city reps (Ways & Means- Rangel from Harlem, Judiciary- Conyers from Detroit, Financial Services- Frank from Boston, Small Business- Nydia Velazquez from Brooklyn).
The primaries are different this time, too. New York, New Jersey, and California will all vote on February 5th, making it imperative that the candidates address issues that have previously been downplayed or ignored. For example, coyotes.
The candidate with the best coyote eradication program gets my vote.
Perhaps instead a policy that provides a bandana for every coyote.
seems reasonable. If only Colbert would understand the menace.
Or maybe those paragons of hunting, Romney, and Cheney, could be utilized…..gawd!
Up until recently, there had been a reverse migration for Blacks, from the city back to their hometown areas.
Between the whites fleeing the city, Katrina, and other such things, I’m not sure where it stands now, except that the people coming into the cities now, seem to be forcing even more minorities to leave after the price increases. Swell…, back to the low paying jobs here in rural America all for for some peace of mind, and safety.
Under Clinton, all boats seemed to rise -just sayin’
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July 23 (Bloomberg) — Everyone from Nobel Prize laureates to the world’s biggest bond investor says the Bush administration has reason to cheer the dollar’s slide to historic lows.
The currency has lost 13.2 percent since January 2001, when George W. Bush took office, the most under any president since at least Gerald Ford, who left the White House in 1977. That’s based on a Federal Reserve index that tracks the dollar against the currencies of 38 U.S. trading partners, including Germany, Japan and Canada.
A weaker dollar is helping the economy and may bolster voters’ confidence in the Republican party as the U.S. heads into a presidential election year. Rather than causing foreigners to flee U.S. securities, the depreciating currency is making American goods less expensive abroad and helping offset the worst housing recession in 16 years. Exports reached an all- time high of $132 billion in May, the government said this month.
Currency markets
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."Leave it to a liberal to pick the left coast coyotes over our own local coyotes:
http://www.wcbs880.com/content_page.php?contentType=4&contentId=532269
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Police in Middletown, New Jersey have killed a coyote. It is not known whether this coyote is the one that attacked a 5-year-oid boy.
The dead coyote was a female and weighed 35 pounds. She had been seen along the fence at Naval Weapons Station Earle looking for a hole to get through. The coyote then crossed the highway to Henry Hudson Trail, where an officer fired two rounds, wounding her. The officer then approached and killed the animal.
The New Jersey Department of Fish and Wildlife will perform an autopsy on the coyote.
The Middletown Polce Department is asking for federal help to remove the coyotes from the area.
http://theslammernj.blogspot.com/2007/05/coyotes-kill-dog-in-middletown.html
It appears that the coyotes that have been roaming about Middletown in recent weeks have struck for the second consecutive week. This time, however, the victim was somebody’s pet. Township Administrator Robert Czech confirmed this monring that two coyotes attacked and killed a Chihuahua on Highland Avenue around 4:15 a.m. Police repsonded to the scene, but were unable to catch either of the culprits. Both were last seen running alonf Highland Avenue toward Atlantic Highlands. The entire story will appear in this week’s edition of Courier.
This issue seems to be growing larger and larger as the days go on. Police recommend that all pet owners adorn their animals in a red or brightly-colored bandana to be able to distinguish them from any other wild animals that may be nearby.
Well, if my state of Illinois is any example, I’m not putting much hope in Dem control of government. Every major political power center in IL is now under Dems. I had high hopes.
What we got is Big Ego governor and legislative leaders jockeying for position to the exclusion of pretty much anything of use to the people of the state. In particular, Chicago metro public transportation is on life support with Dem legislators and the governor playing brinkmanship games with a “bailout” for city transit as well as commuter trains and suburban bus systems. Emergency plans have been prepared that would completely gut the entire transit system and make it useless for the foreseeable future.
In the meantime plans proceed for new highways and expansions in the Land of Nauseating Sprawl, with nary a mention of a “bailout” — that term applies only to energy efficient transportation, apparently. Especially when it’s mostly used by people who are not rich or white.
I hope these Dems pay in the primaries, but am not counting on it. In the meantime I’m longing for the days of George Ryan and the GOP-controlled legislature. Thanks to our local Dem crooks and liars, don’t count on IL remaining a Blue State.