Viewpoint

Don’t Miss Opportunity To Do Better

In North Hemsptead, momentary political expediencies from 10 years ago are about to be hardened in place, saddled on top of citizens and taxpayers who didn’t do anything to deserve them. They desire, and pay top dollar, for better. It’s a good example for everyone of how important it is to do things right in the first place, because in any bureaucracy or a static political environment even the most obvious bad choices can become fossilized in place, with implications for decades.

Everyone lives in a place. The U.S. Census Bureau recognizes 1,189 cities, incorporated villages and unincorporated places in the State of New York. Out of those 1,189 recognized places, the three with the highest percentage of Asian residents and seven of the 10 with the highest percentage of Asian residents are within North Hempstead. Parts of New York City have many more Asian residents, but overall Asians make up only 12.7 percent of the city’s population. Of the 34 places in New York where at least 15 percent of residents are Asian, 20 of them are in Nassau County and 14 are primarily in North Hempstead. In southwestern North Hempstead, moving east and south from the Lake Success area, nearly a third of over 57,000 residents in contiguous villages and unincorporated neighborhoods are Asian. The voter rolls are changing.

Is It Time to Dissolve Nassau County?

It doesn’t have to be the disorganized, seat-of-the-pants, helter skelter dismantling that we’re heading toward. There may still be time for a controlled demolition. It is time to put on the table the possibility of dissolving the government of Nassau County. At least most of it.

Dissolution as a strategy to salvage critical functions is increasingly being raised as local governments around the United States run out of options.

A New Hope

1. And yet, there is hope. All over, in the oddest places, some people are seeing the folly.

2. When Moody’s downgraded the bonds of 16 Italian banks last week, they cited “government austerity reducing near-term economic demand.”

3. A Republican, anti-tax state legislator who represents suburban Bucks County in Pennsylvania has introduced legislation phasing out school property taxes and replacing them with state income and other taxes: “I love M&Ms as much as the next guy, but I’d be willing to pay an extra 7 cents for a $1 bag of candy if it meant my entire property tax bill would disappear,” he said.

Frothing

1. Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives took the time to pass legislation prohibiting gay marriage and “marriage-like” ceremonies on military bases, and limiting reprimand for soldiers voicing opposition to gay soldiers. This was the big accomplishment of the week. This is what our leaders are focused on. This is the way it’s going to be until after Election Day.

2. Fifty-five days after Election Day, possibly in the middle of multiple transitions in the executive and legislative branches, the payroll-tax cut, investment tax credit and enhanced unemployment insurance will all expire. Also expiring are the so-called Bush tax cuts. At the same time, the automatic, across-the-board cuts in domestic and defense spending that were part of the debt ceiling agreement will kick in, including the immediate “sequestering” of $100 billion in federal spending.

Drilling Down: The Student Loan Crisis

For months, there has been a television, radio and newspaper blackout across this country regarding the “Maple Spring” in Quebec, right on New York’s border. Since Feb. 13, a student strike has closed colleges throughout the province. Hundreds of thousands have participated in peaceful rallies and nightly marches. The spark was tuition increases. The Quebecois government refuses to negotiate and has attempted several times to brutally break it up. This is front-page news around earth, except here.

Debt To Society

1. Since 1985, college tuition and fees have gone up 559 percent. Let’s start there.

2. Since 1999, student debt in this country has increased over 500 percent, to $870 million if you believe the Federal Reserve’s estimates, or to $1 trillion if you believe everyone else. Student debt now exceeds total credit card debt. Our federal government, which backs most outstanding loans, is on the hook for hundreds of billions of it.

Public Option

Much of the map of Nassau County was drawn by sewage and garbage. Villages were hastily thrown together and incorporated, city charters were drawn up, special districts created and everything was rearranged either to keep sewage plants and incinerators out or to keep the highly-profitable enterprises in.

Sewage plants, incinerators, subways, turnpikes, sports arenas, bridges and bus lines are licenses for local agencies to print money, until the equipment ages or needs expansion. All of these things, and almost every water supply district in Nassau County, started out as private enterprises or as public investments managed by private contractors, until the low-hanging profits were picked off. Then, as service deteriorates and rates go up, the public itself steps up and sets things right.

Being Green

1. Only in heaven does anyone know how many hundreds of tons of shiny Earth Day newsletters, postcards and brochures our government officials have sent out recently, all proclaiming how green we are.

2. My bank says I’m green if I order their credit card with a picture of Earth on the front.

Don’t Fear Long Island’s Future

They are here, right now. Many of us who grew up in Nassau County were taught to be scared of them, instructed in many ways subtle and not-so-subtle that their very presence in our neighborhoods would bring down property values and lead to blight and degradation. Now they’ve quietly been let in. There aren’t as many on Long Island as other suburbs, but more are coming.

And it turns out that it’s not so bad. In fact, whatever Long Island is going to be next, whatever backbone the next Nassau County will have, they are going to be part of it. They. Them. The other.

The Point Man

ALEC is back in the news, where it probably doesn’t want to be. ALEC is the American Legislative Exchange Council, until recently virtually unknown to the general public. People are starting to understand.

Made up of about 2,000 legislators representing all 50 states and about 300 representatives from corporations and foundations, ALEC creates “model legislation,” hundreds of bills which are introduced in state legislatures across America each year. Exactly which bills were from ALEC and a lot of other details were once shadowy subjects, but since last year have been repeatedly dragged into the spotlight thanks to the work of several government and media watchdog organizations, and the independent media.