Big Weekend in NYC

Today is Halloween. Halloween in New York is always a big deal. Halloween on a Saturday night in NYC, with an extra hour included due to the end of daylights savings time, is an even bigger deal. The parade downtown kicks off at 7 PM and it will be a mob scene. The bars and clubs will be jumping. Parties are being held all over town. It's going to be crazy out there in the city tonight.

And tonight, even though it's happening in Philly, is the third game of the World Series. After tonight one of the two teams will take the lead in the series and be at the halfway point for being the World Champions. Go Yanks!

And tomorrow is the New York City Marathon. Roughly 36,000 people will be running across the five boroughs, shutting down traffic and sidewalks, but making the city proud. I can't wait to see it ... on television.

And this is also the final weekend before Tuesday's municipal elections. Candidates for Mayor, Comptroller, Public Advocate, the Borough Presidencies and the City Council will be making their final pushes to win voters over and get them to the polls. In 72 hours we'll know who'll be running the city for the next four years (like we really have any doubt at this point who the victors will be). I've opined on all of this many, many times so I won't belabor the point.

It is interesting, however, that just days before the election the press is finally starting to pay some attention to the massive scandal regarding the mafia-infiltration of the Department of Buildings. According to the Times this is a "continual" problem and has becoming something of a "blemish" on Mayor Bloomberg's record. But it's not really his fault. There's really nothing he can do about it. It's even bigger than him.

A ... blemish? People have died in fires and crane collapses, 19 out of 24 inspectors are arrested for corruption, and the mafia is running the department? How about a criminal disgrace! How about this doesn't make any mayor on whose watch this is happening on unworthy of being re-elected? Hmmm, no ... it's just a "blemish." I guess all that's needed is a little make-up, a little cosmetic touch-up ... and no one will notice it. That's what $100 million will buy you.

So have a fun weekend out there in NYC tonight. It'll be one for the history books.

Hotel Bars NYC

Interesting article in the online version of Vanity Fair about the resurgence of hotel bars here in NYC.

They're not quite like regular bars (they're more upscale than that) but they're not as super-expensive or exclusive or stuffy as nightclubs and lounges (they're more chill than that). It used to be that hotel bars were the hot spots in town but in the last few decades the fell somewhat out of fashion. Now they're back.

Also, if a hotel has a great bar, it's a great way of getting free publicity for the hotel.

I've been to a few hotel bars, including the world famous Oak Bar at the Plaza Hotel (before the big renovation) and bar at the W Hotel on Lexington Avenue.

The Oak Bar was, as you might imagine, very classy and very, very expensive. It cost something like $20 for a Jack and Ginger but it was, to be fair, a very good Jack and Ginger and the peanuts were free! (Of course they serve peanuts to make you thirsty ... so that you'll spend another $20 on another beverage ...).

The bar at the W Hotel was one of those places where the beautiful people hang so, needless to say, yours truly was very out of place. I can't remember what I drank (so that tells you how good the beverages are) but the couches were very comfortable. I remember it was really dark inside and people could barely see one another. I recall that upon leaving the hotel, even though we were walking out into the New York night, I started blinking like I was coming into the bright light of day. So if you ever go there, it might be a good idea to bring some night vision goggles along.

If you'd like a comprehensive list of the hotel bars here in NYC, the always trusty New York magazine provides a good one.

World Series 2009 Game 2

We won!

Yankees beat the Phillies 3-1 last night in da' Bronx! Now the series is tied 1-1.

Fingers crossed that the Yankees win it in five -- although the Phillies have proven to be one hell of a team and that won't be easy.

Today the Yanks roll into the City of Brotherly love and the series resumes tomorrow night.

When was the last time the World Series was played on Halloween night?

This has to be one of the longest baseball seasons in history.

World Series 2009 Game 1

Yankees lost 6-0 to Philly.

CC Sabathia had a bad night. Yankee hitting had a bad night.

Cliff Lee had a good night. Phillies hitting had a very good night.

Dammit.

Better luck next time Yankees.

General Election Endorsements

Next Tuesday we New Yorkers head to the polls for the final time this year to elect the officials who will run our city for the next four years.

It's almost pointless to care, and even more pointless to vote, since the results of this election season have been in the bag for months. Bloomberg will be re-elected to a shamefully acquired third term, John Liu and Bill De Blasio will be elected Comptroller and Public Advocate respectively, and almost all the Democratic nominees for City Council and Borough President will be either be elected or re-elected (to equally shameful third terms) -- except in Staten Island and parts of Queens where some Republicans are locks to win.

How depressing. This is the greatest city in the world and yet our elections have become dull exercises in pseudo-democracy where money and the political machines determine everything -- and not the people. All "we the people" do is re-affirm the power of money and the machine by voting for the same laughing-stocks again and again.

Dammit gimme Jimmy Walker! Now there was a cool Mayor.

But he's dead. We're not. We have to dance with them that's been brung us. So, even though it won't do a lick of a good or make any difference whatsoever, here are the first Mr NYC general election endorsements:

Mayor: Bill Thompson. This is a very reluctant endorsement since his campaign has been totally amateurish and his program for saving middle class New Yorkers is as clear as mud. Doesn't exactly inspire confidence about how good a mayor he'd be. But Bloomberg has become a monster, the Man Who's Bought New York, and he's drowning the city with his money while killing the middle class. How ridiculous has it gotten? In case you hadn't noticed, HE'S ADVERTISING ON MY BLOG EVEN THOUGH I'VE BEEN CONSISTENTLY BASHING HIM FOR THE LAST YEAR! He has spent so much money, he's even advertising on a blog that don't like him! Wuzzup wid dat? So vote for Thompson and, even though it won't feel great, when Bloomberg wins you can feel good that at least you didn't contribute to the bastardization of democracy.

Public Advocate: Bill De Blasio. I have almost no idea what the PA does, who Bill De Blasio is, and what he wants to accomplish. But Betsy Gotbaum has done nothing to hold Big Mike accountable over the last 8 years. Think a Republican in this job will? Hardly. So vote for Bill.

Comptroller: This is the only race that I'm even semi-excited about. John Liu has to be the hardest working man in NYC. He's been a great City Councilman, got cars out of Central Park during the summer, and has shown an aggressiveness to take on Bloomberg that we need in a good Comptroller. So vote for him -- and you actually will feel good about electing the first Asian to city-wide office.

I'm not getting into the Borough President or City Councilperson races, just sticking with the city-wide offices. However, if you live in Queens, please don't vote for BP Helen Marshall -- she's gunning for a third term and you know how I feel about that. And in Brooklyn, I'd even vote for a Republican over BP Marty Markowitz who is a blithering, annoying fool. He's also trying for a third term and seriously thinks he might be Mayor in 2013. PLEASE DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN. DO NOT VOTE FOR THIS MORON. PLEASE!!!!! In Manhattan, I guess voting for Scott Stringer makes sense -- don't know who's running against him. And in Staten Island, the BP is a guy named James Molinaro. I think he's a Republican or a Conservative or both but, whatever, does it really matter who the BP of Staten Island is?

Gotta Love New Yorkers

Standing on the subway platform, waiting for the train home. Man and woman walk by, wearing African garb.

Woman says to man, "Blacks are God's chosen people. All blacks."

Man grunts his approval.

I guess there was nothing more to say.

SOUPY SALES: Green Pieces of Paper

Last week a New York legend, comedian Soupy Sales, died at age 83. One of the last of the great comedians in the mold of Jack Benny and the precursor to younger comics like Jerry Seinfeld, Soupy was a one of the pioneers of observational humor, someone who could take any situation and make it hilarious.

Soupy gained the most fame for a children's show he hosted here in NYC during the 1960s. On that show, he performed a song called "The Mouse" that was a riff on songs like "The Twist" and silliness like that which was popular at the time.

Later on, Soupy Sales hosted a radio show here on the old WNBC 660 AM. He did the afternoon shift, right after Don Imus and right before Howard Stern. Can you imagine that?

In this bit from a few years ago, Soupy tells the infamous story of something he did on the air on New Year's Night 1965. This has gone down as one of the greatest moments in TV history.

RIP Soupy. You'll be missed.

This WOULD be a scandal ...

... if the Mayor of New York City was a Democrat or someone not named Mike Bloomberg.

Newark Mayor Backed Bloomberg, Then Got Funds

But when it comes to scandals, the press always give Big Mike a pass.

HERE!

Sorry for the lack of blogging these last few days, I was stalled by a lousy Internet connection and a even lousier service provider who took forever in fixing it. However, now all is well and I'm back. I know you all missed me so much. How ever did you survive?

Most annoying is that during my forced absence, the Yankees finally made it into the World Series and I was unable to comment about it at the time. Well, the first of the big games is tomorrow and we'll
be following it intently. Stay tuned.

Mike: Then and Now

When Michael Bloomberg became the 108th Mayor of the City of New York on January 1st, 2002, a lot of people wondered "Why?"

Why did this very private billionaire -- a man who had a built a global financial/media empire, a man with the ultimate jet-set lifestyle who had homes all over the world, who dated beautiful women and was the consummate social animal, who could retire and live like Louis the 14th -- want such a tough, thankless, unglamorous job?

Why would he want to deal with the NYC public school system, formulate trash policies, haggle over the budget, battle the unions, attend funerals of police officers and firefighters, and get his balls broke daily in the press -- all for the salary of one dollar a year?

Was this just a huge act of noblesse oblige? Was he just so generous that he wanted to donate his superior skills (if not his money) to the people of the city that made him rich? Was he just so bored that he thought he'd try this mayor thing out for a while as a lark?

Why?

In April of 2002, 100 days into his first term, New York magazine speculated on this very question. Michael Tomasky wrote, "Just why did he want to do this? Is he happy -- really, deep down -- to have the job?"

Tomasky speculated that maybe Bloomberg was regretting his recent career move, found the job a bore, couldn't run out the clock fast enough to January 1st, 2006 when he could be free and retreat back into his lush life.

This week New York magazine answered it's own question from 2002, coming to the conclusion that Bloomberg wants to "own" New York. But it's more than that.

Mike became mayor because he was bored. He wants to remain mayor because he's in love.

With power. With fame. With public adoration. With the idea that he will single-handily shape NYC for generations to come.

This job has become an obsession to this man. It's not really a job anymore. It's like a woman he's become infatuated with and cannot stand to let go. He believes that he and only he can and should govern NYC. Only he knows how to lead us to the bright dawn of morning.

New York City is at a crossroads. We're in uncharted territory. We've never had a mayor like Bloomberg before. Never in our history has the richest man in town also been the most powerful. We're almost like a 16th Century German principality or some southern state in the 1930s.

And now, after the voters twice approved term limits, Bloomberg muscled through an extension to snag a third term. His greatness needs to spread to over a decade. According to some, Bloomberg is the best mayor we've ever had and deserves a third term.

But third terms have generally been disastrous for mayors. La Guardia's bad third term beget the criminal O'Dwyer and a mobbed up city government, Wagner's the incompetent Lindsay, and the fiscal crises, Koch's the ineffective Dinkins and a booming crime rate.

And if Bloomberg gets a third term, well, who knows who will follow him ... and what our city will be in for.