Here is an article by Fredric Dicker of the New York Post about the battle raging over redistricting which has pitted Bronx County Boss Carl Heastie against Manhattan Boss Keith Wright. Heastie accuses Wright of "trying to “colonize’’ The Bronx by demanding a three-county district controlled by Harlem powerbrokers but containing an overwhelming number of Bronx and Westchester voters, sources said. " The battle over Congressional lines has exposed some strong borough and racial animosities.
I don't agree with Heastie's conclusions ... Why are all Bronx pols so boring and cliched?
ReplyDeleteThe battle of these lines is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteTalk about keeping a low profile. This is the first time I ever heard that the Bronx has a political boss named Carl Heastie.
ReplyDeleteHe may not be well known but that doesn't mean he's not a boss.
DeleteYup ... for Mr. Heastie, every day is a struggle against anonymity.
Delete"colonize"???
ReplyDeleteShut up Heastie. This isn't the dirty South and you are insulting those of us who see clearly through your attempts to turn this into a racial issue. Everyone already knows how ineffective Bronx politicans are in creating opportunites for employment and development in the Bronx. All we have is Yankee Stadium brotha! And how many residents of the Bronx do YOU know that can actually afford a day at the stadium for their families???
His statements are interesting since BRONX politicians are the very reason why the Bronx is looked upon as THE 3rd world country of the 5 boroughs.
Yankee Stadium benefit how many Bronxites Brotha Heastie? Yet, Bronx pols and their developer friends benefit more than anyone. The real movers and shakers are the small business owners and community activists. They have a vested interest in doing everything they can to rejuvenate and attract business to the Bronx. The politicians are living off public funding and lining their pockets on the backs of the average public assistance recipient and working poor. Jobs or no jobs, politicians will receive a paycheck and a pension.
Fordham Road was once the equivalent of 34th Street in Manhattan. Fordham Road is now the MECCA for 10karat gold plated junk jewelry passed off as 14kt and COUNTERFEIT Nike and Polo products. The entire stretch of Fordham Road is filthy. You can barely drive across without an overzealous traffic agent trying to run you off the damn road in order to meet his or her ticket quota. Clothing hangs on lines under awnings OUTSIDE of stores. Quite frankly, Fordham Road reminds me of Calcutta during the height of the leprosy epidemic.
Once upon a time we had Alexanders, Loehmanns, multiple movie theaters (Loews Paradise, Capri, Valentine, RKO etc), Janns Kitchen and Webers Bakery on Fordham Road. Now its a hot ghetto mess. It has nothing to do with race and everything to do with poverty. When the Cross Bronx Expressway went in, the greedy landlords burned down most of the Bronx (perhaps they lived in Riverdale?) resulting in the end of any real interest in preserving the major shopping hubs and generating future development deals. We have a plethora of 10 dollar stores, foot lockers, etc. No Urban Outfitters, no Anthropolgie, no high end/alternative retailers AT ALL. The landlords who burned down the Bronx were like spawned lovers...if they couldnt have what they wanted, no one would have anything at all. Alhough the residents of the Fordham/Kingsbridge areas may lack the funding to better their lives in this current economy, if provided with opportunities to become part of the bigger picture through the creation of jobs that will not only stimulate the economy but also beautify and modernize their neighborhoods, the Bronx would UNDOUBTEDLY return to its former glory.
The Kingsbridge Armory is sitting smack dab in the middle of one of the POOREST congressional districts in the nation. Three years have passed and it still sits there...a monument to the stupidity and arrogance of Bronx politicians who put forth the idea that they knew what was best for the people who reside in the area. If the armory were developed, lives would have been completely trasnformed already! Perhaps not EVERY life, but certainly enough lives to stimulate further interest and instill a greater sense of community pride.
Fresh Direct on the Waterfront may be a great idea to some...fact of the matter is, an opportunity was presented to the community to develop a historic and beautiful structure and the politicians bamboozled the public into thinking a Living Wage was more important than job creation and economic stimulation.
Carve up the districts and let the chips fall where they may! We can do much better without this current crop of clowns.
It's hard for regular Bronx poliicians to get steady coverage in the citywide press when there are guys like Jeffrey Klein and James Vacca hogging the spotlight.
ReplyDeleteThe "regular" Bronx pols are an unimpressive group.
DeleteKlein and Vacca get coverage because they actually do something, unlike most do nothing local politicians.
Deleteleaves a bad taste
DeleteCarl Hestie is a chubby little douche-bag of a man who has no idea how to make the most of his position. There was a time when the Bronx Democratic party was respectable. Now the party is just a cabal of street hustlers in $200 suits fitted in the Dominican Republic.
ReplyDeleteThere's an article in today's New York Daily News saying that Congressman Charles Rangel understands Latinos want to be represented in Congress - he just doesn’t want it to cost him his job.
ReplyDelete"I can't blame any group or people who would like to be represented at the highest position possible,” Mr. Rangel told the Daily News in a statement. “But as any elected official would say - just not at my expense."
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/latino-congressional-district-supported-article-1.1032189
ReplyDeleteWell the elections are tilted in their favor.
ReplyDeleteSleazy, Lazy or Corrupt?
ReplyDeletePlease tell us who's who!!
Carol Bellamy for Mayor!
ReplyDeleteWell we know that Congressman Rangel’s district now includes more Hispanic voters. That's a change that can make a big difference.
ReplyDeleteEliot Engel has announced that he's running for re-election in the newly configured Congressional district that covers the northern Bronx and southern Westchester.
ReplyDeletezzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!
According to an article by Andrew Vitelli in the March 27 issue of The White Plains Examiner, Larchmont businessman and retired Army Lt. Col. Mark Rosen, who is a Republican, just ended his 2012 bid for Congress after redistricting took his residence out of Rep. Lowey's 18th District and put it into Rep. Engel's 17th District.
DeleteRosen had briefly thought about running from outside the district. However, he quickly realized that although such a move is legal it would not be tenable.
I'm upset that Governor Andrew M. Cuomo of New York broke his word. Please remember that Mr. Cuomo had promised he would veto redistricting maps drawn by incumbent state lawmakers. But then he ignored that pledge.
ReplyDeleteIt's just another case of "read my lips ..."
Have your say ... VOTE!
ReplyDelete