Video: Landmark NY State Eminent Domain Court Argument

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Friday October 16, 2009 · 7:37 AM PDT

2009/10/16 · 07:37

On October 14th plaintiff home, business owners and tenants argued their challenge to New York State's abuse of eminent domain to seize properties for developer Forest City Ratner's "Atlantic Yards" development plan in Brooklyn, New York. That project, the largest proposed in Brooklyn's history, is officially a basketball arena for the Nets, 16 skyscrapers of primarily market rate housing. But unofficially it is an arena and maybe one tower and vast, vast parking lots for decades.

The argument was in front of NY's high court, the Court of Appeals (yes, Supreme Court is the lowest court in NY.)

The landmark case revolves around a number of large issues including "blight" findings, public vs. private benefit, what the limits are of "public use" and smaller more arcane New York State constitutional issues.

BrooklynBoy

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Tuesday March 17, 2009 · 12:34 PM PDT

2009/03/17 · 12:34

AIG Bailout to Fund Barclays' Naming Rights Deal For Forest City Enterprises' Proposed Barclays Center Arena

On Sunday AIG revealed the counterparties who benefited from the $170 billion taxpayer bailout of the besieged company. $400 million of that bailout would go to a proposed basketball arena, which, if it’s ever built, is already slated to receive hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies funded by New York City, New York State and federal taxpayers, and is reliant on New York state’s use of eminent domain to seize homes and businesses.

BrooklynBoy

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Tuesday February 17, 2009 · 6:20 AM PST

2009/02/17 · 06:20

There is a rail yard to nowhere in Brooklyn, and the possibility of New York becoming the poster child for misuse and abuse of stimulus funds—pork of the most rancid kind. To this we should say, "Thanks, but no thanks."

Here in Brooklyn there has been a 5-year long grassroots fight against a development plan known as Atlantic Yards consisting of 16 skyscrapers (6,400 housing units) and a $1 billion (yes billion) arena proposed to to move the New Jersey Nets who were purchased by the developer, Forest City Ratner, to enable a corrupt real estate land grab in the heart of the Borough (at the intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues, at the Nexus of Prospect Heights, Fort Greene, Park Slope, Clinton Hill and Boerum Hill, to be precise).

Due to lawsuits and the financial crisis, the project has been indefinitely halted before the developer has done anything more than demolish half the neighborhood, and some preliminary work on the rail yard where part of the 22-acre project would sit (the rail yard is 8 acres).

And now the developer wants to abuse the stimulus bill to get a federal bailout for a private professional basketball arena already heavily subsidized.

BrooklynBoy

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Saturday February 14, 2009 · 8:39 PM PST

2009/02/14 · 20:39

There is a rail yard to nowhere in Brooklyn, and the possibility of New York becoming the poster child for misuse and abuse of stimulus funds—pork of the most rancid kind.

Here in Brooklyn there has been a five-year long grassroots fight against a development plan known as Atlantic Yards which consists of 16 skyscrapers (6,400 housing units) and a $1 Billion (yes billion dollar) arena proposed to to move the New Jersey Nets who were purchased by the developer, Forest City Ratner, to enable a corrupt real estate land grab in the heart of the Borough (at the intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues, at the Nexus of Prospect Heights, Fort Greene, Park Slope, Clinton Hill and Boerum Hill, to be precise).

Due to lawsuits and the financial crisis, the project has been indefinitely halted before the developer has done anything more than demolish half the neighborhood, and some preliminary prep work on the rail yard where part of the 22-acre project would sit (the rail yard is 8 acres).

And now the developer wants to abuse the stimulus bill to get a federal bailout for a private professional basketball arena already subsidized to the hilt.

BrooklynBoy

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday December 15, 2008 · 3:37 PM PST

2008/12/15 · 15:37

PEOTUS Obama shouldn't go near Adolfo Carrion with a 10-foot pole, but according to reports he is about to appoint the soon-to-be former Bronx Borough President as his Urban Affairs Director in the Office of Urban Policy.

What?! Community killer, Bronx political machine sleazeball Carrion to direct urban affairs for president Obama, former community organizer?

No, this is not a diary about "oh my god, Obama is failing." It is a diary about making a bad decision on a government official who has demonstrated over and over that he is not fit to govern, let alone be given a position of such high-standing to make policy regarding urban affairs. He has failed in the Bronx. He shouldn't be rewarded for that.

But worse than failing, his signature policy in the Bronx, for which he worked tirelessly (and corruptly), was to get a new stadium built for the richest sports franchise in the business--The Yankees.

BrooklynBoy

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Sunday November 09, 2008 · 11:14 PM PST

2008/11/09 · 23:14

I'm exhausted. My wife, far more exhausted, is in the hospital, resting healthfully and happily after giving birth to our first child, a daughter.

And guess what? We produced a "mutt." Half Zoroastrian Parsi Indian, half New York/European Jew.

I know this diary is short, but the ecstatic sensation of child birth is swimming in my head, and making it difficult to think or make sense. But I'll try, so bear with me.

We now live in a nation defined from top to bottom and bottom to top—in the wonderful and colorful vernacular of our new president—as "Mutt Nation." It has made us what we are as a nation and the multitudes of mutts are what will propel us into a better future.

Long live Mutt Nation. Long live Barack Obama. Long live my daughter, the adorable mutt that she is.

Remember When Obama Predicted What McCain is Doing Now?

BrooklynBoy

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Monday October 13, 2008 · 8:23 AM PDT

2008/10/13 · 08:23

I haven't seen a diary referring back to this, but remember back on July 30th when Senator Obama said:

"So nobody really thinks that Bush or McCain have a real answer for the challenges we face, so what they're going to try to do is make you scared of me," Mr. Obama said Wednesday in Springfield, Mo., in remarks that he echoed throughout the day. "You know, he's not patriotic enough. He's got a funny name. You know, he doesn't look like all those other Presidents on those dollar bills, you know. He's risky. That's essentially the argument they're making."

A firestorm in a furnace followed the next day with Slick Rick Davis:

BrooklynBoy

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Thursday October 09, 2008 · 10:57 AM PDT

2008/10/09 · 10:57

Nobody questions the Palin/McCain ticket’s right to attack Obama’s record, policy positions and even run negative but truthful advertisements. And nobody questions the Obama/Biden ticket’s right to do the same.

The campaign should and must be a vigorous debate on the differences between the candidates positions, record and character.

But the Palin/McCain ticket has gone out of bounds, way out bounds, in their boneheaded strategy of raising doubts about Barack Obama’s “American-ness,” patriotism and allegiances. They’ve gone so far as asking, “Who is the real Barack Obama?” Implying all sorts of things. Implying he is a terrorist and/or terrorist sympathizer. Implying that he is a Manchurian Muslim candidate. Implying that he is dangerous, and…an un-American enigma.

BrooklynBoy

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Saturday September 27, 2008 · 5:29 AM PDT

2008/09/27 · 05:29

Is there an honest soul out there who can say that Sarah Palin is fit to be Vice President? There isn't. And the steady horrified/embarrassed drumbeat of disdain, dismay and fear about John McCain's reckless choice of running mate is getting louder and louder. All day and night yesterday TV pundits couldn't hide their smirks whenever "Palin" was uttered.

Yesterday the right wing's Kathleen Parker called her "out of her league" and called for her to step down. And in his Saturday column ("Palin’s Words Raise Red Flags"), Bob Herbert has made the most cogent and fair TM argument, that I've seen, as to why McCain needs to "find a replacement for Ms. Palin on the ticket." His doesn't use kid gloves at all but does implicitly set up the Veep debate as a make or break moment, a last chance. He doesn't lower expectations, but rather gives an ultimatum:

Poll

442 votes Show Results

Palin Will be Gone By...

442 votes Vote Now!

Palin Will be Gone By...

October 3

50 votes

October 6

51 votes

October 15

17 votes

November 1

1 vote

For Certain on November 4

323 votes

Debate: What Will Obama Say About the Surge?

BrooklynBoy

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Sunday September 21, 2008 · 1:16 PM PDT

2008/09/21 · 13:16

To my mind the so-called "surge" will be the biggest question at Friday's foreign policy debate.

And the question is how will Senator Obama handle it. It is really not a tough question, and I hope (and suspect) that the Senator has a ready answer.

But there is an answer that I've not heard him give. (If he has, please forgive me.)

The answer seems simple, and turns it back on McCain/Bush. The answer is that while of course our military has performed as asked—as our men and women always do—the surge has failed to fight terrorist tactics and terrorism. And in that respect, while the surge is a successfully military tactic it has done nothing to move us toward a successful policy against terroristic tactics.

Poll

119 votes Show Results

Will the surge issue be critical in the debate?

119 votes Vote Now!

Will the surge issue be critical in the debate?

Yes

86 votes

25 votes

Not Sure

8 votes

A Narrative Grows: McCain Has Terrible Judgment and is Irresponsible

BrooklynBoy

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Friday September 12, 2008 · 11:50 PM PDT

2008/09/12 · 23:50

I've thought from the time of her announcement that the Obama campaign should pretty much ignore Gov. Palin except when using her selection by McCain to talk about McCain.

The Times has an editorial today and an oped from Bob Herbert on the Palin/Gibson celebrity interview segments.

Both posit the narrative that the Obama campaign should run long and fast with: John McCain has epitomized his complete lack of judgment and his irresponsible behavior with his appointment of Sarah Palin.

And the narrative is about McCain, Palin is just the vehicle to tell it.

Poll

3894 votes Show Results

McCain's choice of Palin epitomizes...

3894 votes Vote Now!

McCain's choice of Palin epitomizes...

bad judgment

65 votes

irresponsibility

111 votes

both and then some

3718 votes

Orrin Hatch Defends Obama on Lipstick Comment

BrooklynBoy

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Friday September 12, 2008 · 1:29 PM PDT

2008/09/12 · 13:29

Not sure why Hatch would bother to say this, other than...wow, a Republican telling it like it is. It's the first time I've seen any Republican calling the McCain campaign on its nonsense, though we could do without the sorta belittling compliment at the end of the Hatch quote.

Comments made on NY1 by Senator Orrin Hatch.

Hatch defends Obama calling the tempest in a pig poke "ridiculous."

“I think it’s ridiculous, some of the things they’ve said about Sarah Palin, and I think it’s ridiculous to make too much about Barack Obama,” said Hatch of the controversy surrounding Barack Obama’s “lipstick on a pig” comments. “I’m sure he didn’t mean it that way, the way it’s been interpreted.”

“We are fortunate in this country, because we have good people on both sides,” Hatch said. “Barack Obama is a very nice person. He’s smart, he’s intelligent, he writes well. He’s charismatic.”

Video clip included.

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Video: Landmark NY State Eminent Domain Court Argument

US Taxpayers To Pick Up Tab for Barclays' Vanity Project

Brooklyn Arena Bailout Would Become GOP Pork Poster Child

Stimulus As Rancid Pork Poster Child in Brooklyn

Obama Shouldn't Go Near Adolfo Carrion With a 10-Foot Pole

We Added a Mutt to Mutt Nation

Remember When Obama Predicted What McCain is Doing Now?

Who Is Barack Obama? He’s Our Next President, so Back off.

Country First: Herbert Calls for Palin to Be Replaced

Debate: What Will Obama Say About the Surge?

A Narrative Grows: McCain Has Terrible Judgment and is Irresponsible

Orrin Hatch Defends Obama on Lipstick Comment