As the raindrops patter away outside I am reminded of the rains on Friday, September 14th, 2001. It was the first day of rain following the 11th. It was cold. Raw. One of those fall rains that made you think it was going to be a long, hard winter.

Then I remember the days following. Warmth returned. The Indian summer they call it. It seemingly extended far into the winter from what I recall. Fueled by the fire that drove all of us to dig deeper and find the extra something in our self to push through unimaginable tragedy with remarkable strength and compassion. Compassion for fellow humans.

We rose through horror and showed the very best humanity could offer.

Every year I write these speeches and I don’t necessarily write them for one specific group or person, other then myself I suppose. If that sounds selfish I apologize. Most of the time when I write I try and reach people, and I used to do that with these, but now I honestly write to help myself get through this day.

8 years shouldn’t seem so far gone now, really it shouldn’t, but for some reason it is. I look back to then from now and I feel like I might as well be looking back to 1960. So much has changed, some for better, some for worse.

8 years ago on that rainy Friday, I visited my old high school and ran into my former English teacher, who I remember, and I honestly don’t know how I remember this seeing as how my memory is picky at best, but I remember her nearly breaking down, which I had never seen from her. I had never seen real emotion from a teacher like that before. She had mentioned that another former teacher of mine’s brother had been a firefighter who hadn’t yet been heard from.

Ever year I see her at the tribute here on Staten Island, and she still carries this open wound with her, she hasn’t forgotten. You can tell she still remembers.

Everyone should remember. While each year I preach that people seem to have forgotten, I also realize that people do remember in their own way. I just hope that people remember that while it might not be as hard for them, and it’s easy to just throw it under the rug, for others, this is more then just some day. Much more. Many people here on Staten Island either lost or know someone who lost a loved one or friend. I don’t want to be “celebrating” a “Patriot Day Sale” in 15 years.

I want simple things. A thank you to someone for doing their job, however mundane it seems, even if it’s a janitor. Common decency. It might not seem like anything at first, and I may be hoping for a miracle, but hey, it might start something good. I don’t know.

I think of myself as a bit of an oddball, some say I’m a cynic, some say I’m still a dreamer, but dammit, all I want is what’s good and right. If it’s a crime to want something from the past then I’m guilty, but what people need to realize is that the past got us where we are now.
As always, I have difficulty coming to a conclusion. Endings are never easy, especially since I know that this isn’t an ending, it’s merely a continuation, as it always will be. Even though the rains will dampen today, I will remember, I always will and I hope that anyone reading this does as well.

I just finished eating a recipe I got from “The Unsinkable Bathroom Reader.” for those of you who don’t know what that is, the Bathroom reader is a series of books, about as thick as a college textbook filled with random facts, stories and information, and as the title says, they’re meant to be read when on the can. I’ve gotten one every year, and many an entrant to my bathroom has found them enjoyable.

Anyway, the recipe was for “Bell Peppers in Creamy Sauce”, which was essentially melted marshmallows in hollowed out red peppers. Excellent right? Well, I tried them, and they were…well…not awful, but not as well as I hoped. Has the bathroom reader let me down? No, I’m sure my neighbors cats will manage to find them tasty, as they do most of what I give them(hence why they are fat.)

Those of you who read my rants and raves and musings in the past are probably scratching your head as to how I’ve managed to begin this with a story about cooking via the can. Wish I could give you a good answer but right now I’m gonna blame it on…hmmm….my lack of green socks.

I used to pound out at least 3 or 4 of these bloggy things a month, but for some reason, lately I’ve felt un-inspired, or maybe lazy, I’m not sure, but I’d like to make an attempt to connect with the masses more because I believe I am excellent, and you should all know about it. So what shall I address this time around?

Well, I know a “hot button”(where the hell did that term come from? I’ve never felt a hot button, nor do I know anyone who has, and I’ve touched many a button. I think from now on, I’m gonna call it a boiling potato issue, those I’ve touched, and eaten, and man are they deliciously excellent.) issue is this whole health care debate. While I do watch the news, and am a bit of a news person myself, I frankly am slightly confused as to why it’s such a big deal. Healthcare in this country is a mess, I will admit.

I’ve had my battles with healthcare companies over the past few years, and while they’re not as good as Letterman V. Palin, they’re tough. Shouldn’t be. You sick? Go to a doctor and the government will pay for it, plain and simple. I believe that’s how it’s done in Sweden and Norway. Seems to be workin out for them, and last I checked those countries were pretty good, hell Sweden gave me my desk and TV unit. And I like those, so why aren’t we like Norway? I like the Adderall pen I got from my doctors office as much as I like any pen I’ve stolen….er…borrowed from anywhere, but I’d like to know I got it from them cause they liked the green color, not because Pfizer or whatever crazy sounding drug company paid em for it.

Every time I’ve turned on the news in the past few weeks, it’s the same thing, people screaming at some poor schmo standing behind a podium before they can say anything. Who even knows if they’re gonna talk about healthcare? Maybe they’re gonna say “hey, who wants free muffins?” but no, some nut job who had a too many Red Bull’s has to start acting like Lou Pinella. At least let these people talk before acting like a soccer mom in Wal-mart on black Friday(man, did I just sound like Larry The Cable Guy?).

Everyone says it’s the Republicans going against the Democrats or vice versa, and that’s where I get sick to my stomach, cause frankly, I’m tired of that crap. It shouldn’t be about that at all. This is why politics make me sick. We all shoulda got over this high school garbage ages ago. They’re all adult aged and yet they don’t act it. Sometime ago, someone asked me if I was Democrat or a Republican. I am NEITHER. I like the way come people do some things, and I like the way others do other things, that doesn’t make me anything other then a human, and that is how I want to be treated.

I’m tired of all this back and forth, it gets nothing done. Especially on this Island, where everything has to go through some kinda study. We’ve had more studies done on this island about transportation then little kids in michael jackson has had kids in it’s crotch(too soon?)Know what the studies say? We need more trains and mass transit. Same thing was probably said in another study 20 years ago and not much has changed.

I don’t need a buncha eggheads with clipboards and fake plastic hard hats telling me there needs to be a train on the Island, just build the damn thing already brain-o. And don’t give me the environmentally friendly crap either. So it’ll knock a few trees down, plant em somewhere else, there’s plenty o’ room here. Go get it done. Now. I don’t care if it’s labor day weekend, firefighters and doctors don’t stop cause it’s labor day weekend. Why should anyone else? Well..alright, get to work Monday at least, and I want it done no later then next Thursday dammit. The Empire State Building was finished in 13 months, and that’s when there were only 5 channels, and we had to walk 35 miles to get to the nearest Home Depot/Jamba Juice/Jc Penny/Shop-Rite(give it time, they’ll all be in one spot sooner or later.)

Speaking of construction, my damn neighbor needs to build a driveway. 3 cars, and a front yard with enough land to build another Connecticut, but he can’t wrap his head around a few bags of quick-rete.

That, by the way is one cool invention, I used something like it a few weeks ago, and if you have enough free time(which I find is rapidly dwindling as I get older.), you could whip up something keen. Maybe I’ll start making random ramps along major highways just to screw with old people. Then when I reach that age and wonder why the left turn I took somehow deposited me in Minneapolis I can blame it on “those damn kids.” I’m gonna make an excellent curmudgeon some day. I should probably get a cane, since I  already have the rocking chair. Man do I love that rocking chair.

Since I’m not presently at that age however, I won’t complain about everything. I do have good news. I have finally accepted the new Pepsi can design. I can safely look past the fact that the new logo looks an awful lot like a plumbers crack and enjoy my tasty beverage. Some people say its bad for you, but it has water in it, and water is healthy. You don’t hear anyone saying waters bad for you do ya? Well maybe they do, but it’s usually that crazy guy in the pink leotard on a unicycle in Herald Square.

Cheese Doodles are also healthy. It’s true. Cheese is good for you, and it comes from a cow, which as we know is responsible for hamburgers, and seriously, who doesn’t love hamburgers? Anyone who doesn’t is just plain retarded with a capital bike helmet. Think about it, cheese is healthy, it’s in a food group, we give cheese slices to kids when they’re little so whats wrong with it in doodle form? Why is there a anti-doodle movement in this country? That’s racist. Racism gets you no where, ask that guy who played Kramer on Seinfeld. If you don’t like cheese doodles, you are no better then him. Did I just blow your mind or what?

So I think it’s high time I chime in on this media mess we’ve all been subjected too for the past few weeks.

First and foremost, in regards to the music-freak, I have no respect for anything that molests kids(and don't give me "allegedly", it happened. Saying it allegedly happened is like saying Jupiter is allegedly a planet.), I honestly don't. Speaking of which, shouldn't the cast of Law And Order: SVU be releasing a statement now since everyone else from Earth To Hoth has at this point? Mr. President, I love ya man, but really? This? Aren’t there more pressing issues facing the nation at this point?

So it (that's what I’m calling "him") sold a bunch of records and danced a bit(Moonwalk? really? Neil Armstrong did not do that, he kind of bounced and hopped)...that doesn't allow all the right to child abuse. I don't understand how anyone can look past that. I really don’t.

There was a catcher for the Yankees, Jim Leyritz, who was a huuuuge part of the 96 championship run. I was a fan of his since 93, followed him even after he was traded. Last year he drunk drove and killed someone, now I’m not fan. Maybe some find that wrong, but I’m sorry, when you break the law and knowingly kill or injure someone, i lose respect for someone.

No amount of money that Jackos legal team threw at those kids will truly erase those scars. And those are just the kids that came forward. Who knows how many didn't. Money doesn't heal all. They settled with his plaintiffs out of court. Unless you had something to hide, why would you do that? Especially when you have the money and the power to shut anyone up? Whoever doesn’t believe it happened or has looked over it is both blind and ignorant.

Why does everyone want to clear it’s past because it’s dead now? Being dead doesn't negate the fact that it did a lot of bad things. I’ve never liked jacko, even before the black man turned into a white woman and then to some alien looking thing that probably would have been banned from the Mos Eisley Cantina.(that’s 2 Star Wars references!) 

You can argue that “he” did a lot for music and should be celebrated for it. Well, in that same vein, Saddam did a lot for nerve gas and mass genocide, so why not celebrate him too?

The world should not come to a halt because some celebrity who was out of their mind died. I don't see L.A. being shut down because a teacher or a soldier died, and I can tell you those people did a hell of a lot more for the planet then this freakshow.

Now you can say that the soldiers and teachers aren’t "public figures" and that people have a tough time grieving for something they can't put a face or a name to. A friend of mine said; “They, sadly, don't feel any connection to these people for whatever reason but with celebrities, they do because they "see" them on a constant basis. Invite them into their homes and cars.”  This is total proof as to how royally messed up our values have become. And this is not to say that I am not guilty of following a celebrity, BUT, to completely alter my life around one is beyond me. How can people call this…thing a role model? How is dangling your own innocent newborn over a balcony forgivable?! If that was me, I’d be tossed in prison and be meeting Bubba. Celebrity does not give one free reign to act as if there are no laws.

Somewhere along the line, our values and standards got really fucked up. When I turn on Eyewitness news here in New York, I want to see New York news, like information on subway fare hikes, not 2 New York reporters covering this crapfest in L.A. Ratings be damned, what happened to real journalism?

And god forbid anyone say anything negative about jacko, because if they do, they’ll be viewed as the most horrible person on the Earth. So to the 9 or 10 other people out there who have defied the norm and spoke the truth, such as congressman Peter King, I salute you.

This is getting entirely too much attention and it is completely undeserved. So call me the worlds biggest cynic, but i do not feel an ounce of pity here.

This all leads me into my next bone of contention. While I may be a bit late commenting on it to the masses, The whole Letterman vs. palin crap really set me off. First off, Dave never said "rape", palin and her morons made that up. Second, what right does she have to preach about family values when for starters her daughter got knocked up, and second, she’s charging rape victims in Alaska for rape kits? Pot calling the kettle black there?

Third is the fact that Dave is a COMEDIAN. he's supposed to make jokes, it's what they all do. I don't see anyone pisisn up Leno or Stewarts leg when they make a joke about them. People get waaaay to easily offended nowadays, and often times it’s over nothing! All they do is protest this and that. Does it ever do anything? Sometimes it does minute things. But yea, most of the time its pointless. And then the parents wonder why the kids turn out frigged up. It's because while the parents were complaining, they weren't raising Billy and Janey and then Billy got shot and Janey and knocked up.

I don't understand how a parent can get all pissy about a few people boning on a show while they let the son or daughter watch "24", nothing against that show, just saying...if i had the choice, I’d rather have my kids see the natural act of doin' it sideways instead of Keifer torturing someone.

I've said it before and I’ll say it again. Our values are fucked up. The Brits got not problem with naked news, why can't we have that? If I saw some hot girl with her boobs floppin around tell me the economy is in the shitter, I’d damn well take it better then if Wolf Blitzer told me.

Whatever happened to free speech and freedom of expression? I don't get it. Look, I can't stand eminiem, and even though what I think he does is sometimes sexist and racist, he's got every right to say it. You know what I do? I turn the dial. Or I change the channel, and I put on something I want to see and a few moments later I forget about him.

Unless someone is flat out forcing their "expression" on you to the point of which you can't escape, then there's no problem. Forget about whatever little problem you have and move on to something that truly warrants your attention. Are the Twin robots in “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” racist stereotypes? Maybe, maybe not. But for those who get up in arms about them, realize this…that’s how a lot of kids, not all, but a lot of kids talk. Who is the movie mainly marketed to? Kids!

I have another friend who is very into be what many would call an activist. After our “mayor” decide he was gonna close firehouses, this guy went out and essentially started a grassroots campaign to keep them open. When the whole palin crap started, did he get distracted by a fight that he knew was pointless? No! He kept doing what he was doing, fighting a battle that was worthwhile, and ya know what? He succeeded! And that was worth fighting for.

Now while I know that was long winded and at times overly wordy, damn it felt good. So throw your shoes at me if you want, but I don’t feel sorry about what I’ve said.

Another year has come to an end amid more pointless “Best of the year” lists and useless “person of the year nominations. Why the hell do we suddenly feel the need to coin someone with a meaningless title every 12 seconds?

Well…it is a time of introspection, and when I look back at 2008, I’m not sure precisely where to start. Do I look back at it in an introspective way, noting the personal achievements or do it look at the miscellaneous events?

Both I suppose. While personally I did accomplish some long sought goals, I think it would be foolish for me to consider it a complete victory. For me, declaring victory in life is giving up and calling it quits early. After years of sitting on my ass, I should always realize there is always more work to be done. If something is worth fighting for, fight for it, No matter how small. Declaring victory in life is akin to being really lazy, and I was lazy for far too long. Now I look at myself, a few years away from 30, realizing how much time I’ve wasted and how many things I’ve missed.

Life…for me at least, will always be a game of catch-up, especially as I watch our generation and society become more and more over-involved in everything. I know I’ve preached and complained about the over saturation of everything before, but it’s one thing I believe strongly in. And if we can’t talk about something we’re passionate about, what do we talk about?

See, that’s another thing. Everyone seems to suddenly be in so much fear of offending someone, even if they’ve never met them that they become mindless drones, falling in line with what they believe is expected of them instead of being themselves, and eventually they wind up more miserable then before. The select few who do choose to think for themselves are then ridiculed for it, and then shunned as outcasts, never to be taken seriously. This is why there are no original thoughts anymore, and this is why MTV has become a shell of it’s self. A place where new and original ideas were shown has become a constant assembly line of pre packaged, safe to handle culture.

No one takes real chances anymore, and it’s killing or creative thought process, ever so slowly. NASA engineers put men on the moon with the equivalent of tin foil and duct tape, and they did a damn good job of it. And they did it fast and people respected and celebrated it. Now if a 10 million dollar satellite is launched from the cargo bay of the space shuttle, you’d be lucky to hear about it in the first 45 minutes of the 5 o’clock news.

The Empire State Building was built in 13 months by men who didn’t need harnesses or bureaucracy, just the promise of a good days wage and the pride in their work. And when they were done, it was for all to see and enjoy. Now if a new building goes up, we must wait for the endless amounts of permits and paperwork to be approved, a process which very often takes years. And when said product is finally produced, the common people are relegated to staring from the outside, meanwhile the elite enjoy Perrier and $90 chocolates from their penthouse.

While construction workers pride remains, the job has been beaten down by this endless paperwork, posturing by the politicians and paper pushers who think they know what’s best for the working individual, even though they themselves drive 3 BMW’s and sip said Perrier.

Everywhere we look, we hear about people losing their jobs left and right, meanwhile, we got a billionaire mayor who claims he knows the blight of the regular citizen, yet he approves luxury boxes for his friends in a baseball stadium that cost more money then the average monthly income combined of residents of one city block!

I used to be a sports fan. I happily watched the Yankees and Nascar, but even that is now giving me a sour taste. I was a Petty fan, and the Pettys represented true Nascar, as well as true people, who used their fame for good, and employed hard working honest people. but now the team is sold, the workers sadly laid off, and the name is going by the wayside. A true American sports icon will now only been seen on ESPN Classic, all because they wanted to do things their way, the way it’s been done for generations. As soon as they attempted to make with the times, things collapsed.

It becomes difficult for me to want to watch a baseball game when I hear of guys being paid 30 million dollars to play a game kids happily play for free, especially when firefighters, cops and teachers make next to nothing. When I hear some celebrity complain about not being paid 7 figures for their next movie I get angry, because I know that somewhere there’s an assembly line worker at GM or a burger flipper at Wendy’s who might not even make enough to feed their family next week. And it’s not the kind of anger that spurns Angelina to go adopt another 46 African babies to inflate her titanic sized ego. It’s the kind of anger that makes me want to do something to help real people….but how do I go about this?

I am wondering if I myself will keep getting paychecks, or if this step forward that I have taken in the past few months will merely be a dip in the ocean of uncertainty. While that may sound overly poetic, it’s the truth. Nothing is permanent it seems anymore, even things once thought so. This society of change and constant renewal is partly what got us into the mess we are currently in. We are so quick to give up on the minute things when they go wrong when we should stick with it and fix it before we create another problem.

Many people claim that come January 20th, one of those problems, albeit not small will be fixed, that change will finally come that the rights will be wronged, the course corrected. While it is good to have that dream, it’s beyond the capacity of one person to flick a magical switch and make everything better again. It is everyone’s duty to make it a better world for themselves. Maybe that’s what everyone can do to make this year more bearable.

While I personally don’t believe resolutions do any good, I’ve come to realize that one of the more important things in life is friendship. I feel like over the past few years, I’ve let many of my friends down. And yet, they stuck with me, which reminded me of what the angel in the movie “It’s a wonderful life”, Clarence Oddboy, said; “No man is a failure who has friends.” This quote should hopefully serve me well in the future, for I hope to be a better friend to all.

So it is with that I bid you good night, good luck, and have a safe, happy and productive 2009.

Those words were spoken by Natalie Portman in "Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith." And while liberty may not have died today, democracy certainly did. And the applause came from supporters of a shell of a man.

After only a month-long debate, the New York City Council passed "king" mayor michael bloomberg's bill to extend term limits, making it easier to run for a third term in office next year. It passed by a vote of 29-22 among the 51 members. Those 29 members no doubt had their votes bought by the billionaire, who will most likely pump $80million into his re-reelection campaign. This will far exceed what any other potential candidate can spend.

Thankfully, and what is hopefully only a start, after the final tally was read, a crowd of protesters immediately voiced their displeasure. I intend to join their ranks in the coming months. You can't change the rules of the game mid way through mikey. It's undemocratic, a bully tactic and simply put, wrong. You cannot override the will of the people who elected you, because they will run you out of this town, and rightfully so.

The law limiting the cities elected officials to two terms was approved twice by voters in public referendums in 1993 and 1996. Today Councilmember David Yassky proposed a similar referendum as an amendment to the bill, and each councilmember was given two minutes to speak for or against. But, it was voted down with 22 supporting it, 28 against, and one abstaining.

Supporters of the moron's bill said allowing the voters to decide for themselves would have been "ideal", but is not practical due to the possibility of a prolonged court battle, which is total bullshit. What they really meant to say is "We know what we're doing is wrong and potentially illegal but king bloomberg filled our pockets with so much cash we don't know how to oppose him because we're to busy rolling around in the money mountain we've built." The majority of the council wastes time on pointless things daily, yet they couldn’t pull this off somehow.

Bill supporter, City Council Speaker and mayoral lackey christine quinn(bloomberg) said she thinks this measure will allow New Yorkers a greater choice. What the spineless bitch doesn't realize is that the choice should have been made before she thought we would have a choice.

Another note is that of the 51 city council members, 35 of them would have been prohibited from running for re-election next year had term limits not been extended. Conflict of interest? Not so says the city's Conflict of Interest Board(yes, it is real) who ruled "the council could vote on the proposal even though they could directly benefit from the change." So the conflict of interest board is about as useless as most of the council itself. Council members are probably afraid they’ll have to go out and look for a real job like the people they claim to represent have to.

This asshole of a "mayor" is once again acting like a spoiled crybaby. In 2004 when the education board didn't give him what he wanted, he replaced opposing members with ones who sided with him.

In 2005, he fought for a football stadium on the west side of Manhattan. A part of the city that is notoriously clogged with traffic. A stadium would, in all likelihood have created a traffic nightmare unlike any ever seen. This stadium would likely have hosted a proposed NYC Olympic games. When he didn't get what he wanted, he attempted to build another Olympic stadium in Queens, which was also shot down but later turned into the new Mets stadium.

Meanwhile firehouses are closing, teachers are losing students and the poor still sleep on city streets.

And lets not forget about congestion pricing.

Congestion pricing would have fees for cars and trucks entering Manhattan in what the mayor called "an attempt to reduce traffic in the island of Manhattan", yet we all knew it was just a way to try and squeeze more money out of taxpayers wallets to build more of his pet projects. Skyscrapers and townhouses and lavish retreats for the rich and elite, like himself to look down upon the rest of the city from. This, thankfully was shot down by the state assembly.

The re-election nonsense comes from the recent economic recession(i know the press and rest of the people won't say it, but it's true, we're in a fucking recession. Stop pussyfooting around scaring people and say it.) See, "king" bloom-turd thinks he's the only one man enough for the job, when, for starters, when he talks, he sounds like schoolgirl whining about Hannah Montana losing her virginity.

He is a self made billionaire, owner of his own media empire, and yet for some reason the city he claims to care about so much is facing a fiscal crisis the likes of which hasn't been seen since the 1930's. If he is such a smart businessman, how could he not have seen this coming? I know, maybe he'll put some of his money into the city! No...wait...he's just going to implement across the board budget cuts and possible layoffs for essential city services and raise our taxes.

How can city residents afford to pay an 8% tax hike if he's putting them out of work? Those don't sound like the bullet points on the resume.. of a great savior to me...

But it's ok, because bloom-turd's got his city council buddies to back him up, because they won't say no to him. Well they did at first, then he probably started writing them all checks and they then collectively dropped their pants, pointed their ass at his crotch and said "stick it to me mikey!"

What was demonstrated today was a clear lack of caring for the people. The hairdresser from Staten Island, the cook from Brooklyn, the painter from Queens, the carpenter from the Bronx. The mayor does not care about what you think. All he wants to turn the city into a police state for the middle class and poor and a playground for the rich.

But there is hope within this madness. You still do have a voice. Come next year you can vote. And I urge you, i beg you, to please, vote for anyone but him. Vote for Anthony Weiner, Vote for Tony Avella, Vote for Bill Thompson.

Bring democracy back to the people. Help kick this bastard out of your city.

With the economy spiraling downward faster then an Eddie Murphy movie, I felt it appropriate to rile off another rant.

Two days ago the mayor announced what the New York Post is now calling a "chopping spree", in which he ordered across-the-board cuts of 2.5 percent of this year's budget and 5 percent next year's to reduce city spending by $1.5 billion in the midst of the nation's economic crisis.

He wants the FDNY to cut $33.8 mil for the 2009 fiscal year, and $68 mil for 2010. NYPD will have to lose $94.7 mil for 09, with $192.5 for 2010. But wait! The good news is not over yet! The Department of Education will need to cut $185.4 mil for 2009, while in 2010, they will need to cut $395.4 mil. Guess little Timmy and Janey will have to learn about our exciting new plan for dealing with the "threat of communism" and "President Regan's Star Wars" plan from the same text book, because the DOE? They can't afford 2 25 year old text books!

But that's not all folks, with those budget cuts, you get a brand new 7% property tax hike! Thats right! With this tax hike you too can experience exciting new locales like: The Dollar Store! or Christmas Vacation in lovely Newark! It seriously looks like my city will face another episode of what firefighters once called "The War Years."

The War Years were the late 60's, the 70's, and the 80's, when the nations economy was once again sinking like marzipan. The city was in bad shape. Crime and drugs were rampant, and there were so many fires that many times if a fire company saw a fire on the way to one they were assigned to, they had to skip it and go only to their assignment because every other company was fighting another fire. It was that bad. It may get that bad again. 

But don't worry, our politicians are doing everything they can to save us, why right now, mayor mike is working hard at fixing the budg....whats that? he's....oh....well...i'm sure after his lunch with Tom Cruise he will get right to work on finding more mone....what? He's watching Grey's Anatomy on his 65 inch big screen? Well, he had a long day, i'm sure he will get right to work tomorrow morn...huh? Spa treatments all day? Crap...

This is what happens when you have a billionaire mayor. Nothing actually gets done...except billion dollar stadiums! Yes, we definitely need those! Without those, we will have no where to place out millionaire athletes, and Snoop knows  we need to put them some where.

This mayor has done nothing good for this city, and now the city is facing a money crisis potentially worse then the 60's,70's and 80's. And he thinks that he and his cronies are entitled to vote themself into office again by adjusting term limits. Term limits exist for a reason, to rid our selves of the shit stains that are our politicians. He needs to go and soon.

My city needs someone who actually gives a damn about it's people, not it's powerful. I don't know who it is, but it's not this asshole. I'm sick and tired of bloom-turd and I don't think i'm alone. If he wants to do something good for the city, either give us some of your billions or get the fuck out of here.

About a year or so ago, i'm not exactly sure when...i made a post about my initial reaction to the closing of Yankee Stadium.

Tonight I sit before you with a fresher take if you will on the subject.

Tonight, I sit before you longingly staring back at the pieces of 1st base side wall that I...'acquired' in the insanity that followed the end of what will probably be the last Yankee game I ever attend in my life.

It was the last game at what will always be the true Yankee Stadium.

For me, that parcel of land has and always will be the penultimate home to sport. And in a few short weeks, that place...will be gone forever. It will be, in all likelihood, paved over and turned into a parking lot or some other over-priced amenity to accommodate the throngs of wall street executive types that will flock to the new 'stadium.' A building in which oversized scoreboards and gleaming glass will dominate. A place where those who chant player names and where t-shirts will be the minority, not the norm.

Bald Vinny, leader of the Bleacher Creatures stood outside the stadium last night before the game, selling his usual creature t-shirts, but instead of his usual grin and boisterousness, I immediately saw something that shook me to the bone. For the first time, i saw tears in his eyes, and a very real sense of sadness. This from the man who led an army of the greatest fans in sports and made any opposing player literally shake with fear.

Even he realized the gravity of the situation. When i asked him if he plans to move his group to the new building, he looked down for a moment and quietly said; "i don't know man...i just don't know."

It finally seems as though everyone has come to the realization that this is it. Camelot is sealing it's doors.

The ceremony before the game started was both chilling and poignant. The eerie yet amazing lookalikes of Yankees past as they walked out into center field was a sight that i will never forget, as it made any scene in "Field of Dreams" look small.

As Yankee legends took the field, some wearing their old uniforms, one had to stop and think, "wow."

Even the present day Yankees, whose season has not gone as hoped, played the game with a post season like intensity, as if they knew that they had to shine tonight, but even they knew that the real star of the night was the stadium herself. A building that is more then that, it is a place where, as the cliched saying, "heroes made here." It is a place where a dying man declared himself "the luckiest man on the face of the earth."

I once saw a picture of a sign that a fan made, which read: "Yankee Stadium, Mystique and Aura served nightly." Well last night was probably the best example of that, and sadly, likely the last.

As the outs wound down, the emotions began to surface, with many fans cheering and crying at the same time, and i am not afraid to admit i was one of them. 

As i walked down the tunnel one last time, tears still in my eyes, i bid farewell, to a piece of my childhood, and most importantly, to an old friend.

So I decided to wait a bit longer to post my birthday blog. Why did I wait longer then a week? No real reason behind the dealy other then the fact I hadn't thought of a good way to organize my thoughts. I feel that given a few days to get things together makes it come out a little better. So here I go on another set of rants.

At first I dreaded this birthday much like I do every birthday in recent years. I feel like my peak has passed, my glory days are behind me. But something clicked this year. Maybe it's Yokas repeatedly trying to slam it into my head that I'm actually in the best part of my life, or maybe it's something else, but at the end of the day last Saturday, I felt damn good. She also put together one helluva surprise party that left me shocked at first and then thankful moments later.

I have got some damn great friends, many of them better then some family, and I am beyond lucky to have them in my life. They've all put up with a lot of crap from me since 2003 and I'd likely be lying in a gutter somewhere if it wasn't for them. Thanks you guys. You really make it a lot of fun to be me, and I promise I'll try and continue to have a good time till at least my first retirement checks start coming in. After that…I'm gonna turn into the crotchety old man I've been pretending to be for the past 5 years or so.

 

Now I turn to my current events type rambling that some of you seem to enjoy so much.

 

Today the Port Authority, which owns the 16 acre site that the World Trade Center sat on announced the ever lengthening rebuilding process will take EVEN LONGER then originally thought…..which sounds a lot like many other announcements they've made since the ceremonial cornerstone for the Freedom Tower was laid in 2004. Since then, numerous starts and stops have taken place. In mid May, steel work FINALLY reached street level. Now mind you these aren't actual floors yet, just the interior core which will hold stairwells and elevators.

 

Its no wonder why the PA is pushing back the original estimated finish of the site from 2011 till….well….let's just say….2075. Officials are citing 15 problem areas, including the heavily damage Destuche.. Bank building being demolished on the southernmost part of the site, as well as subway concerns. Apparently none of these issues were thought about when the plans were being drawn up from 2002-2004. Some people blame the interstate agency folks at the Port Authority. See, the site is owned by both New York and new jersey(woo…jersey causing problems? I see another blog coming out of this another day.) What I don't understand is why jersey has any say in a building that is being built in NEW YORK!

 

Others blame New York's governors, from Pataki to Patterson for wanting their own pet ideas represented. Whatever the case may be, it's politics at its worst. The Empire State building, built at the height of the depression, was completed in 13 months! That means we could have finished about 4 of them in the amount of time it's taken to build what is essentially a basement. And I don't want to hear the argument of "it's a difficult and complex building!" So was the Empire State Building. Up till that point, nothing of that scale had ever been attempted, and yet it was done with hard work and little bureaucratic nonsense.

 

Politics has gotten so out of hand now that even though people realize that the politicos are talking out of their ass, they're so used to it that they accept it! Especially here in New York City where it's bloombergs way or no way. He is so out of touch with the common citizen that he doesn't even realize how much they're against him. His most recent budget, approved last night has cuts to AIDS services and City Housing. Add to this his treatment of the families of 9/11 victims and it proves that his leaving office at the end of next year to be a good thing. This city, like the rest of the nation hears the empty promises from politician after politician.

 

We don't need someone who's held every office in city government. We don't need someone who is a bored billionaire looking for something to do. We need a regular person with actual fresh ideas. Hopefully we'll all get that sooner rather then later.

Those words were spoken by Transformers character Optimums Prime. Simple enough, yet eloquent. However, lately I find that we as a people are being stripped of some of our freedoms.

 

The freedom of expression. The freedom of speech. When I first thought of the idea for this blog, I resisted the notion of relating it to a sci-fi character because I didn't want to retreat back to my "geeky" days, but as one person put it; "you will always be a geek." So be it. Prime's simple expression was one of the ideals our nation was founded on, that being The freedom of expression. In recent years I have noticed an apparent arresting of that freedom.

 

Everywhere we look there is some organization or government fraction attempting to and in many ways succeeding in stripping away this right. Be it the FCC or even Major League Baseball, our right to be ourselves is almost daily being buried by some new rule or law designed to give us the illusion of safety or simply because it offends someone else.

 

Our former mayor, Rudy Giuliani was a prime example of this. In 1999 the Brooklyn museum of art displayed a portrait of the virgin Mary covered in elephant dung. Rudy, outraged, threatened to cut funding. Clearly a violation of the first amendment. Thankfully a judge thought so too and reinstated the funding.

 

Another example of this has manifested itself recently in the sports world. Yankee pitcher Joba Chamberlin, after scoring a big, inning ending out, will sometimes pump his fist in the air and scream excitedly. Some say he is showboating, some call it "bush-league." Many, including myself see it as a good thing. It's a release of human emotion from an individual who has accomplished a difficult task.

 

Thankfully, Joba has stated that has no intention to stop. Good for him I say. In a society where talent less, emotionally devoid individuals are given praise for basically fitting into the mold that was created for them, it's about damn time someone broke that mold and expressed themselves.

 

If you don't like it, don't watch it, don't read it, don't take part in it, but do not attempt to shutter someone simply because you don't find what they are doing to your liking. I can't stand eminem or gangsta rap, but ya know what I do if it happens to be on the tv or radio? I change the channel or flip the dial.

 

But no, "president" bush and his cronies decide what's right and what's wrong for us. Apparently we are deemed to be just as mentally incapacitated as he and his contingent of redneck followers. This is not to say that the next heir to that throne will do any better, but at least hopefully someone will realize that Freedom is the right of all sentient beings.

Where do I begin this time?

Should I open with Staten Island Congressman Vito Fossella doing his best to one up Elliot Spitzer but coming one Budweiser too short?

 

Or should I begin with the splitting headache I'm currently enduring?

 

Or maybe I'll go with Stevie Wonder singing "Baa…rack…Obama is the neeext pres…ident."….oh how that was painful to listen too.

 

One thing about the Fossella issue got to me. When the news crews went around to the fine folks of this crazy island, asking their opinion on the situation, the response took me by surprise. Many people seemed more then willing to forgive him. Forgive him. For driving drunk. I'm sorry…but that just does not seem like a logical idea to me. "Well he didn't kill anyone…so I guess it's ok." Is just unacceptable. He broke the law. He COULD HAVE KILLED SOMEONE. The fact that he didn't shouldn't be a factor…he broke the law, but because he's a person of some kind of power, he will no doubt get away with it. If it was anyone else, they'd be getting reamed in the rear by Bubba.

 

That's part of what's wrong with society now…automatically we think that just because someone has a celebrity or other person of authority tag they are invincible to the laws that we ALL agreed on. Bullshit. Then when one of these skidmarks on society actually does get some kind of jail time, they throw out the excuse "I'm just being singled out because I'm a celebrity." No. You are being justifiably prosecuted the same way any normal person would be. But that rarely happens.

 

Last blog I commented on how society is having to much thrown at it, too much variety, too many choices, the over-saturation of pop culture and how I believe we have "A.D.D.-ed" ourselves….I found a clear example of this recently:

 

 

That is a screenshot of Bloomberg television(Yes, the same Bloomberg I can't stand, but that's merely a good coincidence.) There are…about 11 things on that one screen. How can we concentrate on anything of importance with everything going on? Some people might say this is a non issue. Maybe right now it is…but what happens one day when a surgeon is too distracted by the 34 monitors in the operating room and he accidentally nicks an artery?

 

Maybe that's an overdramatic hypothetical situation…at least I hope it is. The bottom line is, we need to do something to s-l-o-w down and enjoy what we have, because if we don't, we're just going to stress ourselves to death. How we do that? I'm not exactly sure, but it could start with something as simple as enjoying a slow day instead of dreading it.

 

Often times I find we're in a rush to get to one specific location…a location we deem massively important, so important we need to get there faster then anything. Then, when we get there…we need to get somewhere else so important that its more important then the previous place. Then once we get to that place, we have to immediately go somewhere else even more important then the previous two locations and so on and so on till our head explodes into 603,346.2 thoughts…this explosion will be covered on MSNBC's news crawl, while Brain Williams delivers the live coverage in the shot above, meanwhile viewers emails are scrolled across the right side of the screen. But that story will only last for about 32 or so seconds because Ashton Kutcher sneezed so hard it was felt in Obba Garoubladabamabad…where the United States is being criticized for not sending relief-aid packages in the 48 hours deemed appropriate by Bono.

 

Which leads me my next gripe. When did we care so damn much about "Celebri-culture" that our own lives became less Important? So Angelina Jolie walked 6 feet…big fucking deal! Jennifer Lopez got married…who the fuck cares?!!?! We care so much about the lives of these egotistical mopheads so much we have forgotten how to live our own! This is part of what is wrong with everything. People are so wrapped up in media and pop culture that the average person forgot how good it was for themselves to go out for a walk or sit in the park and read a book. And I mean a book, not the latest version of People magazine.

 

That reminds me of what Goerge Carlin once said; "Any activity engaged in by more then 4 people has its own magazine." Hes right…and now every person has access to their own shot at their 5 minutes of fame. This to me is a bad idea. Thanks to Youtube and the "MTV generation" everyone it seems can instantly become famous for whatever it is they do. Whether its pimping oneself out on national TV to have sex with whatever fake millionaire is the flavor of the week, or being a meter maid…everyone it seems…has become a celebrity, even if they don't have the talent. Hell sometimes the fact that they don't have talent makes them that celebrity.

 

This in turn leaves actual talented people either without a job or thrown into the mix with whatever jagoff the media says we must like. Good, talented people, be they actors, writers or musicians are being shut out of an opportunity to make something of themselves because of this. Our values system is in need of a major, maaaaaajor renovation.

 

Who is gonna fix this? I don't know…maybe it will be one of those nutty presidential candidates. I had an interesting conversation with someone the other day about this. Someone said to me, "I'm voting for Obama because he will be the first black president and I'm tired of race issues."

 

That to me…was one of the most idiotic things I've heard in a long, long time. Voting for someone of color simply because they are a person of color?! Come on! Vote because you believe in what they stand for! If you're tired of racism, but you're voting for a black candidate solely because they are black, you are, in essence being a bit of a racist yourself. Vote for Obama because you believe in his ideas, not because you think it's the politically correct thing to do. Same thing goes for Hillary. Don't vote for her just because she's a woman. Vote for Hillary because you like her policy ideas. Vote for Hillary because you wanna see slick Willy back in the white house. Voting for someone based on their race or gender is mind-numbingly moronic.

 

I can't wait till this presidential race is over, because then we can get over at least one of those stupid arguments. That and we can get rid of the drain clog that's currently sitting in the White House. I wonder if he's gonna hang that "Mission Accomplished" banner in the oval office for his last week in office…he probably thinks that will score him brownie points with the redneck Midwestern population that put him back into office. Oh well. In a few more months, that nightmare will hopefully start to come to an end. But who knows? Maybe these candidates will be just as crappy? Only time will tell. And with that I end this angry rant.