High school basketball courts passion and athleticism
There is something remarkably compelling about high school basketball. The characters on the court and in the stands, the plot, the conflicts, the cathartic cleansing; they all help to write a story,...
View ArticleEditorial: The sad State of New York
THE ISSUE:The governor's office produces new videos featuring ... the governor!THE STAKES:What tone does this set as lawmakers talk about cleaning up New York politics? Seven years ago, the state...
View ArticleThe President takes some big steps to combat warming
The following appeared in a Miami Herald editorial:In keeping with his State of the Union promise to use his executive powers more in the face of a recalcitrant Congress, President Obama last week...
View ArticleDavid Brooks: The world according to Mr. Big
Dear Diary,I am surrounded by idiots. I create the greatest Olympics in human history. The Russian team I selected wins the medal count. I do all this while propping up Assad in Syria and sexting half...
View ArticleDavid McCumber: Nuclear waste is a nuisance
One nice thing about announcing an "all-of-the-above" energy policy, as the Obama administration has done, is that it requires all of the careful consideration and discernment that a Labrador...
View ArticleEditorial: Second-class employees
THE ISSUE:New York hasn't given management/confidential employees a raise in half a decade.THE STAKES:It's a matter of treating people with the professionalism we expect from them. For nearly five...
View ArticleNew York's destiny is in Albany
New York City's new mayor is learning the hard facts about running a city that depends on the state for so many of its needs and functions. Two of his major proposals, one for a tax on people earning...
View ArticleMaureen Dowd: Parade should be a gay old time
I have long been opposed to gays marching in the St. Patrick's Day Parade on Fifth Avenue.It isn't because my father was a past national president of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, which ran the...
View ArticleIt's imperative to address problem of income inequality
A major subject of public discussion is the problem of increasing income inequality, and as the 2014 election campaign heats up, many candidates will join the discussion.Some on the left often stress...
View ArticleEditorial: The silence on the drones
THE ISSUE:The Obama administration is silent on a questionable drone attack.THE STAKES:What happened to the president's promises of diligence and accountability? President Barack Obama gave an...
View ArticleDewey Loeffel deserves better than Band-Aid approach
During the past three months, there has been a great deal of press coverage as well as editorial comment regarding the Dewey Loeffel Toxic Superfund Site in the Town of Nassau. What has been made...
View ArticleThomas Friedman: U.S. can't jump into everything
With Russia growling over the downfall of its ally running Ukraine and still protecting its murderous ally running Syria, there is much talk that we're returning to the Cold War — and that the Obama...
View ArticleMichael Brannigan: Suffering is tough to address
Unless medicine properly addresses suffering, it betrays its aim. This hit home with me upon viewing the documentary "Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare" recently at Saratoga's Film...
View ArticleEditorial: R-C-S can't wait weeks
THE ISSUE:Most fire hydrants to the Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk middle and high schools are not functioning.THE STAKES:School and municipal officials must press for an immediate fix. The fundamentals of...
View ArticleLet investors ride out the bitcoin's busts
The following appeared in a Los Angeles Times editorial:The sudden collapse of the Mt. Gox bitcoin exchange Tuesday demonstrated to the public just how risky the virtual currency can be. Prosecutors...
View ArticleThese days, Arizona is in quite a state
Arizona. Wow. How often do you say, "Go, entrenched interests of the business community!" Yet here we are.Responding to howls from the state's economic interests, Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed a bill that...
View ArticleRex Smith: Potholes are just a sign of the problem
A pothole, an official state website tells us, occurs when water slips through cracks in pavement that is "fatigued."So now the roads are weary? Well, let's by all means be sensitive to their needs,...
View ArticleNotable quotes of the week
"You live in fear, and that's not right."—Charlene Benton, president of Ezra Prentice Homes in Albany, on oil trains that pass the public housing complex."Religious liberty is a core American and...
View ArticleEditorials: Long story short
Closing 'The Box'At any given time, an estimated 3,800 New York prison inmates -— including juveniles, prisoners with developmental disabilities and pregnant women — are being held in the extreme...
View ArticleEditorial: An explosive oil situation
THE ISSUE:The outdated tanker car involved in oil train accidents since 2008 needs to be eliminated.THE STAKES:Given the volatility of the crude oil, lives are at risk from fires and explosions....
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