Positions

New York City’s water system, one of three in the country exempt from filtration because of our pristine water and NYC’s maintenance, will be contaminated from the proposed drilling by hydraulic fracturing (hydro fracking) for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale, a geological formation in New York State. The Marcellus Shale includes the New York City watershed and spans three other states. The 1997 NYC Watershed Memorandum of Agreement recognizes the need for clean water for the state, but particularly for the NYC watershed.

The School Governance Plan created by the State Legislature implemented in 2002 and sunsetting in June 2009, made sweeping changes to the school system. The Central Board of Education was eliminated. Complete control was given to the Mayor.

In 1936 in Brown v. Mississippi(1), the United States Supreme Court said that confessions obtained by torture are constitutionally inadmissible in court. “The rack and torture chamber may not be substituted for the witness stand.” But ever since 9/11 torture has been used by the American Government against individuals whom they have seized in unhappy countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan and suspect of being terrorists or having information about terrorism.

Ex-New York City Councilman Bill Perkins in 2005 introduced a bill to allow the adults among the approximately 1.4 million legal immigrants who live in New York City but who are not yet United States citizens to vote in elections for mayor and other city offices (e.g., city council, borough president).(1) Staten Island’s three city council members, James Oddo, Andrew Lanza and Michael McMahon all opposed this measure(2), which never passed. It was however, reintroduced in 2006.

By all accounts Americans are sick of the partisanship that has divided our country into warring camps of “Red” versus “Blue”—and of the “culture wars” that have poisoned political dialogue so that citizens can’t discuss important issues without being called “liar,” “traitor,” or worse.

Transportation in the United States is reaching a crisis. Air lanes and airports are full, as are highways and railroads, leading to delays, cancellation of services, accidents and financial and economic losses. Different rules and conditions apply to each system. Airlines with large lobbying activities can get a large share of transportation subsidies and favorable laws and rules while Amtrak, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, is now under constant threat from the government which created it and supported it.