So, as I type this…Matt Leinart is falling down the NFL draft board. Tennessee passed on him as did the Jets. Three picks remain between Matt and the Buffalo Bills.

Green Bay and San Francisco hold two of those picks and neither team is looking for a QB. Oakland has the other pick and no one really considered whether they would take Leinart if he was available. I think they’ll pass and take Vernon Davis or Michael Huff. At least that’s what I’m hoping for…

That would leave Matt Leinart on the board for the Bills.

Holy Shit.

Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

Update: Oakland is the only thing standing between Matt and the Bills. I’m hoping for a flash of stupidity from Al Davis.

Holy Shit, unbelievable. The Raiders passed on Leinart.

Update 2: If the Bills take Bunkley, Justice, or Ngata over a franchise QB in Leinart…it will go down as one of the dumbest moves in the Bills ignominious draft history.

Please, please. please, please, please, please take Leinart.

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!!!!#!@#! DONTE WHITNER????!!!???

If they didn’t want Leinart or Bunkley, they should have traded out of the spot to get Whitner at the end of the first round, early second…WHERE HE WAS PROJECTED TO GO! The biggest draft reach since Erik Flowers. I’m now convinced that Ralph Wilson is trying to make us hate this team to the point where he and his senile GM just take it right out of town.

We hire a no talent assclown of a head coach, give up Moulds, Milloy, and Adams…give the Moulds money to Peerless god damn Price, sign Craig Nall, and draft this guy?

Someone kill me now.

Update 3: John Clayton said on radio that Bills had offers of a 2nd rounder from teams, including Denver, to drop down in 1st. Sure these guys could pan out BUT..they also could still have drafted these 2 guys, added a mid 2nd and still had their own high 3rd. Horrible job by Levy. Trading with Denver would have moved us down THREE spots. Seriously, I’m really beginning to hate this team.

Do you know who George Allen is? Neither does 75% of America but, he’s the “insider’s choice” to be the Presidential frontrunner for the Republican Party in 2008.

The process of building name recognition is a slow and deliberate process that begins with fluff introductory pieces in magazines like The New Republic, The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker and newspapers profiles in the Chicago Tribune, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, etc. If you start to build a little credibility, you show up on Hardball, Fox News Sunday, and other pundit shows to let America know who you are. If that goes well, you get a spot on Meet The Press and get personal features written about you in Time and Newsweek. It takes time and it’s a carefully crafted process that can ill afford slip-ups or bad publicity along the way.

George Allen is having trouble getting out of the gate in stage one.

The Republicans like him because of his “folksy charm”, southern appeal, and that he’s the son of a famous football coach. He grew up in California but has sold himself with a subtle southern accent, tobacco chewing, a love for Travis Tritt, cowboy boots, and an “aw shucks” kind of vibe. It’s all bullshit but, it was for Dubya as well. He grew up a wealthy white kid in Southern California. There’s nothing “southern” about him.

Anyhow, the reason he is being marginalized and run out of the Presidential discussion? He wore a confederate flag lapel pin in his high school yearbook picture in 1970. Uh, ok.

Who cares? Are we seriously discounting people for office because of what they wore or might have said nearly 40 years ago? Don’t get me wrong, I think Allen is a tool and I’m not certain he’s a quality candidate for the Presidency but, my position is based on his lackluster legislative record and not the quality of his wardrobe when he was 17.

I did a lot of stupid things when I was a teenager, hell, I did many things I regret during my mid-twenties. Does this mean I’m disqualified for running for office? Does our desire to blow every small transgression out of proportion and the pursuit to scoop other reporters with a scandal dissuade other qualified candidates from running for office? What’s the cutoff for disqualifying stupidity as transgressions of youth?

At the local level, I’m sure there’s many people who would love to run for office but don’t want Len Lenihan or Joe Illuzi leaking embarassing stories of their youth to the public at large.

It’s a problem that retards growth in government and precludes a slew of qualified candidates from serving the public as citizen representatives.

In the comments section of another thread, I was accused of being stereotypical of Christians and Republicans. Well, I might as well live up to the label…

May I present “Baby Got Book”

It’s painful to watch men who were once fiscal conservatives pander to the American populace with kickbacks and cheesy payoffs.

Senator Frist (appearing with several Republican Senators in the midst of difficult re-election bids) proposed a $100 gas tax holiday rebate to all Americans who paid federal taxes last year and met income guidelines. This would open the “gas rebate” eligibility to over 100 Million Americans.

100,000,000
x 100
————
10,000,000,000

$10 Billlllllion Dollllars

The money would go to all taxpayers, regardless of car ownership. Are you a taxpayer who takes the El to work everday in Chicago? Here’s your $100 “rebate”!

The money would be sent out near election time to remind everyone to vote Republican. Oh, the money for this rebate is tied to opening up the ANWR for exploration and “sensitive” drilling.

What happened to the Republican Party?

I’ve been listening to the following songs in the car all day. These songs seem perfect for driving around on a sunny day with the windows down and the radio blaring. I made a CD for just this scenario this morning…

Crazy Bitch - Buckcherry
Rosalita - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song - The Flaming Lips
I Turn My Camera On - Spoon
Eye Of The Tiger - Survivor (You knew it was coming)
Copperhead Road - Steve Earle
Hey Ladies - Beastie Boys
Drift Away - Dobie Gray
Doggy Dogg World - Snopp DO Double Gizzle
Little Green Bag - The George Baker Selection
Hung Up - Madonna
Hope I Never Lose My Wallet - The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Float On - Modest Mouse
Try A Little Tenderness - Otis Redding
Me & Julio Down By The Schoolyard - Paul Simon
Tricky - Run DMC
Rappers Delight - Sugar Hill Gang

A little bit of something for everyone…

What are your favorite songs for a warm, sunny day?

Every once in a while, a story rolls around that really exposes the absurdity of our county government and demonstrates it’s complete uselessness as a representative body.

The real county executive (Len Lenihan) appointed Lackawanna political hack Francis Warthling as the newest commissioner at the Erie County Water Authority. It is a part time job that pays a mere $22K per year. Why would a respectable businessman want such a low paying gig? Well, a water commissioner gets access to the shadow government run by the party bosses and gets to dole out sweet patronage jobs to friends and associates. I felt like I was channeling Jim Ostrowski as I typed that…

The article made me snicker at the absurdity of the proceedings while simultaneously forcing me to throw up in my mouth a little bit. A few choice bits:

With Warthling now secure, Lenihan has had a say in the placement of all three authority commissioners. His party, in theory, has a better chance at placing more of its people into jobs there.

Which is exactly the purpose of a governmental authority that sets water rates and maintains the lines that lose 41% of their water while in transit. I’m sure Mr. Warthling has a depth of experience when it comes to water engineering. Well, maybe not…at the very least, I’m certain he has highly qualified and technically adept engineers at his disposal to help him maintain the system and discover cost efficiencies.

Freshly retired county legislator Edward J. Kuwik holds a $93,600-a-year engineering job that was never advertised and for which no one else knew to apply.

Ok, maybe not. What job does Mr. Kuwik hold at the water authority? He’s a water distribution engineer. Yes, Ed Kuwik has a mechnical engineering degree. He also obtained that degree over 30 years ago and has spent the proceeding years employed as a Math teacher and as a county legislator. I find it quite hard to believe that Mr. Kuwik has spent many of his freetime hours dedicated to the study of cutting edge water distribution and filtration equipment. We could have hired some pointyheaded engineer fresh out of UB to do that job for $40K…I say with confidence that my wife is just as qualified as jolly ol’ Ed to be a senior engineer with the ECWA.

“It is not our thoughts but our actions which dictate who we are,” said Smith, quoting philosopher John Locke, during a floor debate.

I just found it funny that Damone Smith quoted John Locke on the floor of the legislature. What’s next? Lynn Marinelli quoting the words of Jefferson? Let’s move on…

“There is more political patronage at the Erie County Water Authority than in all of Erie County government,” Legislator Kathy Konst said. “Make no mistake, this appointment has nothing to do with good government.”

Well, hip-hip-hooray! A legislator with a conscience! Let’s have a parade. Wait, this just in…

But three Democrats would not go along. One of them, Lancaster Democrat Kathy Konst, was pushing her own candidate. Konst’s Daniel Amatura had served as her campaign treasurer and sits on the Lancaster Town Board, but he also is a construction contractor who has worked with water lines.

So, she was just upset that she didn’t have enough pull with Lenihan to get her patronage pick into the position. At least her candidate had, ya know, actually laid eyes on a water line at some point in his life. So, he had that going for him, which is nice.

“It is a politicized process that doesn’t have to be that way,” said Cynthia Locklear, a West Seneca Democrat “Each of you has the freedom to vote the way you want. I am saying today is the day. Today is the day you can do something. So look inside yourselves and do the right thing.”

This simply reaffirms my belief that Cindy Locklear (the lone Primary Challenge Candidate to win an EC Leg seat) is the voice of reason in this legislature. She has consistently stood up to do the right thing.

Later, when Chairwoman Lynn M. Marinelli, D-Town of Tonawanda, explained the Legislature was following a 58-year-old process dictated by law, Locklear took the unusual step of rising to interrupt the chairwoman in mid-breath to say the law does not say the party boss selects the commissioner.

“That is the elephant in the living room,” Locklear said.

BRAVO! Is it too early to nominate Cindy for County Executive?

First came Hannidate, a place for Republicans to meet others who share a love for all things Sean Hannity.

Now comes ConservativeMatch, for those looking for like-minded, uptight, political dorks who can’t stand anyone who doesn’t agree with them.

The place for Conservative Singles, Conservative Events, and more. Find people who share your cultural, political and religious values. With a culture that is often hostile to conservative values our goal is to provide alternative resources.

Yes, it’s a tough world out there for wealthy white Christians. Thank God someone has stepped in and made it easier for them to meet up and talk about their shared love of Charlton Heston movies and Ted Nugent albums.

I really wish that Buffalo School Board President Florence Johnson was still updating her well written and very informative blog.

She’s an extremely bright woman and her insights into the effects of union contracts, senior teachers, and charter schools really began to educate me on the issues facing a shrinking and wildly expensive urban school district.

In today’s Buffalo News, Buffalo School Superintendent James A. Williams again took on Phil Rumore and the Buffalo Teachers Federation as the district faces yet another $15MM shortfall in next year’s budget.

Blasting the unions, School Superintendent James A. Williams said Buffalo “is the only school system I’ve seen in the country that works hard to keep people laid off.”

Dr. Williams has been outspoken in his criticism of the union as it refuses to adopt a single carrier health insurance plan that would save the school district about $13MM each year. He has also been highly critical of the complacent nature of Buffalonians as the education infrastructure of the city crumbles.

Community leaders, from the Urban League to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to the entire faith-based community and their activists, need to get out their posters and placards and begin the push for better education. So far, all protestations are muted, at least from Williams’ point of view. And he’s right. Where are the parent rallies? Where is the teacher outrage over student failure? Where is the pressure on the mayor, the Common Council, the Buffalo Teachers Federation?

A 10-month resident, Williams says he’s never seen another city with such soft responses to challenges and crisis.

He’s absolutely right. Where is the outrage? The schools system is the absolute bedrock of our community. Without quality schools, what benefit is there to families who wish to move back into the city? The city holds school board meetings that are lightly attended and hosts community outreach meetings that get absolutely no participation. If the parents don’t demonstrate concern for the education of their children, the kids won’t either. We can pretty up the schools all we want but, if we have an obstinate teachers union and parents who demonstrate little concern for their children’s education, we’ve lost the war.

Have the parents and children been so disenfranchised by the constant battles between the school system and the unions that they have simply given up?

As a start, I’d like to see a full benefit comparison between the current three provider health insurance plan and the proposed single provider plan. It is incumbent upon Dr. Williams to issue that comparison to the public and counter the union with facts. It’s also incumbent upon Dr. Williams to bring the BTF to the table to discuss the entire contract as opposed to focusing on single issues. Otherwise, Phil Rumore will continue ignoring his phone calls and will negotiate through the court system. We need productive dialogue on both sides of the equation and pressure from parents and community groups to create it.

Rather than simply postulate my theory on what needs to be done, I’d like to hear from those with more in-depth knowledge on the issues confronting the district. Once all the facts and issues are on the table, perhaps more community groups will bring pressure to bear on the situation. Please provide your thoughts…especially if your name is Florence Johnson.

The power of Buffalo lies in the hands of activists who get their hands dirty and work to make the city a better place to live.

Meet Bob Kuebler and Ana Church who founded the Youth With a Purpose program at Holy Cross Catholic Church.

Their goal is to pick up where the education system left off by giving kids on the West Side the information and knowledge they need to start their own businesses and make their own future. The process is slow going at the start but has the potential to be a success. It’s a grassroots organization with committed volunteers rather than a city program that is subjected to the whims of budget makers.

“Everybody walks around saying, “Here, we’ll give you a summer job.’ It’s a good quick fix, but we need something long term,” said Kuebler, who got certified to offer the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship program.

The class, which began in February, is just one facet of the program. Kuebler said 300 to 500 kids come through the youth center each week, most of them skeptical about committing to new programs because they’ve seen so many come and go.

Many stop in just to hear someone call them by name and ask how they’re doing. “They want the relationship,” he said.

They can get it from programs like this - or from the neighborhood gunrunner.

Very true. Whenever I hear of an organization like this, I want to support it in some way. I have an old computer collecting some dust…I’m going to put some new parts in and donate it. It’s a start. Perhaps there is more we can do to help these groups get their positive message out and help them stay alive. They are on the front lines of our city and trying to make it a better place. They deserve our support.

Normally, I’d leave the post game analysis to the boys at BfloBlog but, I’ve gotta comment on a few things.

Seriously, Flyer fans booing JP Dumont while he was writhing in pain after a cheap shot from Dennis Gauthier was as low class as it gets.

Philly fans have a reputation as asshole knuckledraggers and they sure lived up to it tonight. Gauthier needs to be suspended by the league before he kills someone…first the cheap shot hit on Vanek in Game 2 and then the spearing of Dumont in his surgically repaired lower abdominal region. If the league doesn’t step up and discipline that punk, the Sabres are gonna have to lay down the law on their own.

As for the rest of the game, the Flyers were energized by the home crowd and played solid, physical hockey all night long. The Sabres had trouble controlling the puck and were consistently being slowed in the neutral zone. Hitchcock kept Forsberg away from Drury all night long and several Sabres spent the game floating around the ice (most notably Thomas Vanek). Perhaps the physical punishment the Flyers dished out in Game 2 had the Sabres a bit nervous. They were outhit and timid for the majority of the game.

Ryan Miller gave up a soft goal and gave up two more that were pretty much out of his control. He handled the puck poorly all night long and lacked any sort of fire.

As a positive takeaway, the Flyers seemed to tire in the third period and the Sabres had a chance to tie and go to overtime until the final seconds after being outplayed throughout the game.

I’m going to go ahead and assume that Lindy will light a fire under these guys on Thursday and get them ready to respond to the Flyers physical brand of hockey. They need to be on the attack and get control of the puck.

I figured this would go six games and I’m sticking with that call. Winning in Philly’s unfriendly confines while skating on some of the worst ice in hockey does not benefit a team that relies on speed, communication, and puckhandling.

I’m hoping a Flyer fan crawls out of his hole and visits the site…I’m feelin’ froggy.

Just to get you in the mood…

The Sabres need to get off to a quick start and take the crowd out of the game early, winning a playoff road game in an arena as rabid as Philly’s requires it.

Keys To The Game:

1.) Chris Drury showing the kids how to take control of a road game in the playoffs. I have a sneaky feeling that he’ll be involved in an early goal or he’ll administer some punishment to show the Sabres were not intimidated by the Flyers in Game 2.

2.) Ryan Miller. I expect that Philly will be looking to get off early and often. Forsberg’s line will be on the ice as often as possible and Miller will need to give us a studly performance. I think he’ll come through.

3.) Score more goals than the Flyers.

Beer for the night: Six Pack of Red Hook ESB
Food for the night: Wings From Bob & John’s

Something very excellent happened yesterday.

As a result of my appearance in The Buffalo News and the accompanying article about the upcoming Buffalo Old Home Week (more updates on that soon), an old friend reached across the miles to get in touch with me.

He is one of those friends that regardless of how much time goes by between seeing one another, you always pick up right where you left off. He was my best friend, roommate, and a groomsman in my wedding. Unfortunately, during our various moves around the country, we lost touch with one another.

He moved away several years ago to pursue career opportunities elsewhere but, he still follows the news and happenings in Buffalo via the web. He and his family in the local area came across my picture in the paper, sent an email to the reporter, and eventually got in touch with me. The power of the Internet. We spent about an hour and a half catching up on things and it felt just like the old days.

It’s a pretty great feeling.

I was going to use this post as a segue into how the Buffalo News has the power to build a bridge to Old Buffalo but, on second thought, I’d rather it just stay as a post about finding an old friend.

Cheers to friends, old and new.

“Just when I thought I was out…they pull me back in…”

The BANANA crowd is at it again. The Buffalo News and BuffaloRising have the details on the latest efforts to kill off the proposed Elmwood Hotel.

The protests and calls to action by the BANANAs failed as the Common Council and City Planning Board approved the project last month.

However, as mentioned a few weeks ago, these BANANAs are a crafty bunch. They have taken the issue to court. The lawsuit (Pollina et al. v. Common Council of the City of Buffalo et al., Index No. I-2006-3885) is seeking annulment of the City of Buffalo’s rezoning and site plan approvals for the hotel. The complaint is based on the following:

Common Council and Planning Board members failed to give “meaningful consideration” to the project’s impact on the adjoining residential neighborhood. The court documents also allege the city officials did not take into account the “unique character” of Elmwood Avenue in giving the project a green light.

Giacalone said the Council and Planning Board failed to follow various state and local environmental and zoning laws in approving the project. The lawyer also alleges the city failed to undertake a traffic study to assess the impact of the hotel.

what.the.f*ck.ever

I’d rehash the real issues that motivate this protest but, we know what they are already.

What’s at stake here is the future of the project. The case is not scheduled to be heard until June 22nd, roughly the same time that Savarino Construction had planned to begin construction. If the case is heard in court and a continuance provided or injunction delivered, the entire process could drag out for 6-12 months. Which is exactly what the BANANAs are hoping will happen. If they are able to drag this process out, this hotel is dead in the water.

Is this the message we want to send to developers? That a privately funded project that undergoes a transparent and community oriented review process has no chance of success due to the influence of 6 or 7 people?

As mentioned in my mailbag column on Sunday:

Well, here’s the thing about the hotel…I hope it forces the diversity out. I hope that the area around Elmwood becomes a Yuppified morass of Starbucks and Patagonia shops. It would mean progress. It would also mean that the hipster crowd had finally released their ironclad grip on one of the few cool neighborhoods in Buffalo. It would mean that the hipsters had moved to another neighborhood and would have begun to make it the cool and trendy place to be. I hope that HOD, Mondo, and the other hipster stores reopen there. It’s called gentrification folks, and it’s a good thing in moderation.

If you went to Chicago about ten years ago, Wicker Park was the abolute trendiest and hipster-fied spot in town. Cool little head shops, second hand clothing stores, underground music clubs, cheap beer, and cool lofty apartments. Guess what happened? The Yuppies thought it was cool too. They started renovating apartments, buying the bars, and converting those head shops into Williams Sonoma stores and cutting edge web design shops. MTV showed up and filmed a season of the Real World, lofts went for $300K and the change was complete. What happened to the hipsters? They moved a few blocks up the street to Bucktown and the Ukranian Village and turned those miserable ghetto neighborhoods into the next cool spot. Rinse, repeat.

It’s about time that the hipsters ceded control of the Elmwood strip to the Yuppies. Why do we keep pretending that Elmwood hasn’t gentrified? Last time I looked, I couldn’t find too many houses in the neighborhood for under $150K and I see a lot of Moms in $400 outfits wheeling their Nardin educated kids around the expensive little shops. It’s pretty god damn fantastic that it’s happening too.

Now, if the hipsters would pack up and shuffle over to Grant Street, we could start this whole process over again.

This statement was a vision put forth in 1992 by an iconic CEO. So, what does it mean?

In short it means “everything and everyone connected to the network” and that computing does not mean computer.

It has been the driving force behind the innovation of Sun Microsystems and the thousands of companies that have utilized Sun’s technology to create a better and more useful world. They are the words that spawned the Internet buildout and created the technical world we know today. Along the way, that CEO made a lot of enemies while being simultaneously hailed as a genius and an idiot.

On Monday, that CEO retired.

The new CEO of Sun Microsystems, former COO Jonathan Schwartz, has long understood the power of blogs as a means to create viral marketing campaigns and reach out “above the filter” to spread a corporate message. He will now be the first CEO of a Fortune 500 with a regularly updated blog. Which is incredibly significant in many ways. Anyhow, last night, he took the time to explain his vision of the future and thank Scott for his leadership, spirit of innovation, and unwillingness to capitulate in the face of inferior technology.

Here’s a bit of what he had to say:

And nearly two years ago, Scott forwarded me something a journalist had written about Sun, and about Scott personally. It wasn’t the most positive note, and it was criticizing us for the bets we’d made, and for a vision that at that point, didn’t square with the reality in front of us.

And what I told him then - is what I’ll tell you now.

No single individual has spawned so many startups, fueled so much venture investment, or raised so much capital without actually trying - just with a vision of the future that gets more obvious by the day.

No single individual has so effectively created and promoted the technologies at the heart of a new world emerging around us. A world in which the demand for network computing technology will never decline - as we share more family photos, watch more digital movies, do more banking on-line, build more communities on line, run our supply chains, automate our governments or educate our kids.

As I said before, we are in a rare industry - in which demand for what we build, for the technologies that power the network, will never cease. Not even the oil industry can count on that. We have the same vision today as we did back in 1992 - a vision that only gets more true as each day passes, and only gets easier to describe to your parents, and to an ever younger population that seems to know that vision in their hearts.

The network is the computer.

Thank you, Scott, you are a hero to us all.

Indeed. Thank you Scott.

“Oh no he di’int!”

Oh yes, he did.

By now, we’ve all heard that Tony Snow of Fox News will be the new White House Press Secretary. Tony has aso been a frequent contributor to the conservative TownHall.com website. Think Progress decided to take a look at his previous columns to see where he stood on the issues, here’s some of his comments on the President for whom he will soon be an apologist:

Bush has “lost control of the federal budget and cannot resist the temptation to stop raiding the public fisc.” 3/17/06

“George Bush has become something of an embarrassment.” 11/11/05

The list goes on and on…

I’m not one to make a stink about the ethical issues of a media member accepting a job in the White House, at least not this guy. He has been an unapologetic, right leaning commentator for years, there is no reason to be shocked by his desire to work for a Republican. I do find it interesting that Snow has never given the impression that he really respects the President as a leader, which makes his acceptance of the job a bit odd in my book.

Based on the contents of his columns, Snow is lucky that George Bush doesn’t know how to read or use the “Internets” or he probably wouldn’t have been hired.