Pay up, suckers

Memo to NYS bloggers: remember to bring this up in 2016: 

Convenience store operators are not happy with plans for new black and white drivers' licenses in New York State.

State leaders said they will be secure and provide good value. However, store owners said they present a challenge in checking ages and identities.

"Having a color picture and a color print especially the red under 21 is important for us," said Jay Schhreiber of Nathaniel Square Corner. "We sell a lot of alcohol and have been very diligent to make sure everyone has been approved properly."

The state made a deal with a Canadian company to produce the licenses. The $88 million dollar contract is a 40% increase from the cost of the previous contract.

And: the new driver license contract was awarded to the high bidder! 

Holder - Corzine connection explains lack of prosecution

Wondering why former Goldman Sachs honcho, former New Jersey governor, former frontrunner for Obama's secretary of treasury, former Obama fundraiser, and disgraced MF Global financial scam artist Jon Corzine seems to have evaded the long arm of the law?

Those wondering why the Department of Justice has refused to go after Jon Corzine for the vaporization of $1.6 billion in MF Global client funds need look no further than the documents uncovered by the Government Accountability Institute that reveal that the now-defunct MF Global was a client of Attorney General Eric Holder and Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer’s former law firm, Covington & Burling.

Also providing cover for Corzine may be former FBI director Louis Freeh, recently of the Penn State scandal report.

...the trustee overseeing MF Global’s bankruptcy is former FBI Director Louis Freeh. During Mr. Holder’s 2009 Senate confirmation hearing, Mr. Freeh appeared as a witness testifying on Mr. Holder’s behalf. While Mr. Freeh stated that the two men shared no “social relationship,” the former FBI director praised the legal work Mr. Holder did for him when Mr. Freeh, then the general counsel for MBNA Bank in Wilmington, Del., retained Mr. Holder to represent MBNA Bank. “As general counsel, I could have engaged any lawyer in America to represent our bank,” Mr. Freeh said. “I chose Eric.”

Are your friends and neighbors discussing the Corzine/Obama/Holder/Freeh cabal?  Are they even aware of the MF Global scandal?  Why not?  Many of Corzine's victimized investors are farmers, just like ours here in the Finger Lakes.  And farmer or not, all of us will pass on Obama's debt to our future generations.

Bob explains Obama'a finacial reforms

Ohio solar heist was an inside job

Obama labor secretary Hilda Solis tours W&K, 2011

Back in April, we told you about another solar energy crime family, the W&K gang in sunny Ohio.  In addition to ripping off Italian investors, the green gonifs also got away with fifteen million dollars taken from Ohio taxpayers.  We feel bad for the Italians, who should have done due diligence before they parted with all those lira.  But why would the government of Ohio, a state whose economy was already swirling down the rust belt commode, allow its taxpayers to be hornswaggled?  Hadn't they heard about Solyndra?

Breitbart reports that the Toledo Blade has found the answer:  Ohio's then governor, Democrat Ted Strickland, was on the take.

So, as governor of Ohio, Ted Strickland saw that WK Solar was in trouble after the state loaned them $5 million. Why on earth would he make the decision to flush another $10 million of Ohians money down the toilet?

In 2010, WK Solar executives — including CEO Michael Cicak and president James Appold — donated almost $25,000 to Gov. Ted Strickland’s re-election campaign. Cicak also donated to Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher’s US Senate campaign. Fisher served as director of the Department of Development under Governor Strickland.
Later that year, in July of 2010, the Department of Development lent WK Solar an additional $10 million in taxpayer dollars. Strickland’s administration also approved multiple deadline extensions for required financial reports, as well as deferrals for required loan repayments. [emphasis added]

What a deal for "WK Solar executives" - a measly $25K to "green jobs" scammer Strickland got them a cool $15 million, coerced from Ohio families. 

We don't know if ex-governor Strickland is in the running to replace Steve "Ten bucks a gallon" Chu as Obama's energy secretary, but when it comes to "Strickland" and "energy," we'll stick with Strickland Propane.

Mitt gets it

Listen to Mitt Romney explain Obama's scheme to steal half a billion taxpayer dollars. We're pleased that Mitt has the guts to say it.  We understand, Mitt understands, now make sure your friends and neighbors understand.

Hit 'em where it hurts

Mitt Romney Visits Solyndra Amid Attack on Obama Jobs Record

End the sugar tax

Have you noticed that most of that candy in the grocery store is imported?

Bitter about paying artificially high prices for the non-artificial sweetener everyone uses just so a politically connected family can enjoy the sweet life? It's time lawmakers put a lid on the honey pot.

An Iowa State University study has found that the federal sugar program costs U.S. consumers roughly $3.5 billion a year and deprives the workforce of 20,000 jobs. This New Deal-era framework of barriers on sugar imports and of price supports for domestic sugar is a racket that benefits only a few, in particular the Fanjul family of Florida.

The federal sugar scam does have one benefit for Upstate New York, however - it's easier to park near the former Nestle chocolate factory!

There’s no one working in the former Nestle chocolate plant, so there’s no need for the parking restrictions around the plant, according to city of Fulton officials.

This week, lawmakers approved the elimination of 30 minute parking restrictions and a no-stopping order on Fay St., which runs along the front entrance of the closed plant, and 2 hour restrictions on a block of Lyons St. and several blocks of S. Fifth St.

“When Nestle was operating, they asked us to enforce the parking,” said Mayor Ron Woodward.  The 30 minute parking made it possible for Nestle’s customers and visitors to find a convenient place to park, he said.

Perhaps the Fanjuls just want to support Obama's traffic congestion reduction plan. 

 Abandoned Nestle plant, Fulton, NY.

County government helps developers scam taxpayers, again

Once again, a Finger Lakes county industrial development agency has subsidized a wealthy developer, leaving taxpayers on the hook.

Citing delinquent payments, the Cayuga County Industrial Development Agency decided last week to terminate its payment in lieu of taxes agreement with Ontario Realty, Inc., owner and operator of the Sterling Renaissance Festival.

County director of Planning and Economic Development Stephen Lynch said Monday that the company did not make scheduled payments totaling $27,000 to the county and town of Sterling in February 2011 and 2012 and the Hannibal Central School District in September 2011.

Here's an idea:  let's terminate all the industrial development agencies and give the money back to the taxpayers.

Tax the rich!

What a great country!  A man of limited talent, who grew up in a third world country, who's never worked a day in a real job, can still, somehow, become a multimillionaire.

Three things are apparent from President Obama's annual financial disclosure statement, released today:

He is a wealthy man, with assets of as much as $10 million.

He has a hefty stake in JPMorgan Chase, the megabank that just made a bad $2 billion bet. Obama has an account worth between $500,000 and $1 million.

JPMorgan Chase, where, surprisingly, taxpayers may be on the hook for two billion.

Nozzolio: force NY taxpayers to subsidize Virginia millionaire

AES Cayuga

The combination of an anemic Upstate economy, fanatic environmental regulations, and the abundance of cheap, clean natural gas being produced in neighboring states has resulted in hard times for the AES coal powered generator on Cayuga Lake.  In fact, AES had made the difficult business decision to enter bankruptcy, and has shut down operations at its AES Cayuga plant.  The facility's landmark steam plume has disappeared from Cayuga's shoreline, except for for brief periods this winter when the plant, which has no heating system, had to be operated to prevent freezing. 

As we've previously reported,  financial difficulties at AES have sent shock waves through local governments in the Town of Lansing, Tompkins County, and the Lansing Central School, all of whom have feasted on the millions in property tax revenues paid every year by AES.  An economist might point out that all those millions actually came from Finger Lakes residents, who pay the highest electric rates in the continental US.

Tax addicted local governments, terrified that they might loose some of their historic ability to coerce gold plated pay and benefit packages from struggling peasants, however, can rest easy this morning.  "Republican" State Senator Mike Nozzolio has decided to use the power of government to force taxpayers to buy AES' otherwise unsaleable product.

This proposed legislation, titled S.6842, recommends the establishment of a power purchase agreement with the New York State Power Authority. The legislation would ensure that the AES Cayuga plant reopens and remains operational for a minimum of three years.

Power produced under Nozzolio's little experiment in serfdom will be doled out, not to Finger Lakes homeowners, but to politically connected fats cats.

Under the legislation, energy purchased from the AES Cayuga plant would be directed to supplement the state's ReCharge NY program. The ReCharge NY program allocates low-cost power to New York State employers.

Harker

And while local taxing entities are thrilled that their cash cow will be spared, let's not forget Victoria D. Harker, CEO of AES and the real beneficiary of Nozzolio's generosity with your money.   Despite the recent problems with her coal burning operation, and unlike many of her Upstate ratepayers, Vicki will still be able to afford dinners out.  Forbes reports Ms. Harker's total compensation from AES in 2010 was $2,661,548.00, with an additional $142,578.00 provided in director's fees from Darden Restaurants.



Updates:  

The well compensated Ms. Harken's actual title is "Chief Financial Officer and President of Global Business Services."   Vicki is reported to be planning to be out the door this summer.

For the truth about New York' s feudal "ReCharge NY" program, see One of Nine.

Planning to visit Rochester?

Kodak Park demolition

Finger Lakes travelers, be aware that Rochester's fastest growing revenue source is red light cameras.

Net revenues from red light tickets are three times the city’s budgeted estimates, records show — with 2½ months to go in the fiscal year.

The additional $400,000 in fines collected to date is attributable to a faster deployment of cameras and improved collections, officials said.

Forget about that antiquated right to confront your accuser in open court.  Tickets are mailed to vehicle owners, regardless of who was driving.  

Violators receive a $50 ticket in the mail. The fine jumps to $75 if not paid, and eventually the car can be booted or towed. Fines are levied against the vehicle owner, based on the license plate.

Tim's Cogitorium follows the money, and guess what?

While the city has collected $141,045 in fines so far, that’s only half the amount that’s outstanding because over 50% of the tickets remain unpaid.  Nearly 1 in 4 tickets are in default or in collections, meaning the chances of ever getting paid are slim.

But hey, $141k isn’t pocket change.  That’s a good profit, right?  It turns out, not so much.  You see, the cameras were installed and are maintained by Arizona-based vendor Redflex Traffic Systems.  Over the same period, they have billed the city $145,164 for operating the system.  Fortunately, there is a clause in the city’s contract with Redflex saying they can’t be billed more than they take in.  So, all totaled, the city has seen a net cash influx of… let me work the arithmetic out here… carry the 1… ah, yes… $0.

While the red light scam is taking money out of citizen's already depleted pockets, one Rochester guy is still doing OK.

Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy had a big day at Saratoga Race Course, winning $2,628 one day there last summer, his tax returns showed.

Duffy’s income in 2011, in fact, was significantly higher than his boss, Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Their returns were released Tuesday.

Duffy earned $76,770 from his police pension — he’s the former police chief in Rochester, as well as the former mayor — and $152,823 as lieutenant governor.

Along with some investment  earnings, his and his wife’s total taxable income came to $237,995.

Upstaters should recall that Duffy is in charge of your economic development.  Does he think we live in Arizona, or Australia?  Perhaps we should all got to the track.

Solar energy thieves strike again

"Solar energy" thieves are getting bolder.  In Ohio, a gang of green jobs gonifs began dipping into the till the next day after gullible Italian investors ponied up five million bucks.

The executives of Willard & Kelsey Solar Group, a struggling solar-panel manufacturer, began lending themselves company funds the same day the firm received $5 million from a group of Italian investors, internal financial records show.

Michael Cicak, Willard & Kelsey's chairman of the board and chief executive officer, received a $40,000 loan that day. Mossie Murphy, chief financial officer at the time, received a $30,000 loan.

The loans to five company executives totaled more than $500,000 from August to October, 2008, records show. In addition, the top five executives also received payments of almost $1 million from November, 2008, through March, 2009.

In addition to the voluntary investment from sunny Italy, Willard & Kelsey also blew through over ten million Ohio taxpayer dollars.  Gullible, or complicit, Ohio government officials expected W&K to create thousands of jobs.  As of this writing, almost all of W&K's employees have been laid off.

Read all the details in the Toledo Blade's comprehensive report.  At what point to do we realize that the only difference between W&K, Solyndra, or you local BMW-driving green energy grant recipient and Bonnie and Clyde is that Bonnie and Clyde paid for their crimes the old fashioned way.

Arne Duncan's graduation rate scandal

Duncan ignores kids, consults with Sharpton

In the midst of Syracuse University Basketball's NCAA Tournament run, Barry Obama's "secretary of education," Arne Duncan, decided to attack the Orange and Coach Jim Boeheim:

Pittsburgh – After his team’s victory over UNC Asheville in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim took on another opponent.

Arne Duncan, the U.S. Secretary of Education.

Duncan singled out Boeheim on Wednesday in a conference call with news reporters about the graduation rates of NCAA basketball tournament teams.

Yes, so-called "educator" Duncan thought he could piggyback on the Tournament's publicity.

A story with Duncan’s comments ran in Thursday’s editions of USA Today and was accompanied by a column that chastised Syracuse for the academic performance within its men’s basketball program.

Coach Boeheim dosen't need our help to reject Duncan's forced shot.  In the post-Ashville press conference, the Coach explained:

Boeheim had one final jab left for Duncan, who played at Harvard.

“I don't think Harvard was punished when Bill Gates left early,’’ Boeheim said. “I don't think they were. I don't think he did too badly. We've also had five or six guys who left early, went to the NBA, played, and came back and graduated. We helped them graduate. We have two or three right now that are very close to graduating who are done playing with their NBA careers.

“So education is paramount to me,’’ he continued. “We want every guy to graduate, and we work very hard on that. So I think it's fair to say that I'm upset right now.’’

The bigger question here is: who is this annoying Duncan and why does have have anything to do with our children's education?  It turns out Duncan was raised among the swells in Chicago's exclusive Hyde Park neighborhood, the same side of the tracks where unrepentant terrorist William Ayers launched Four Dollar Barry's political career.

Duncan played basketball at Harvard University and had a brief professional hardwood career in Australia.  His time after returning to Chicago seems to have found Duncan involved in various non-profits, but Arne had never taught school for a single day at any level when second generation Chicago Democrat machine Mayor Richard M. Daley made him head of Chicago's failing public school system in 2001.  Even fellow Democrats recognize the destruction that Duncan left behind in the Windy City's schools.  New Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, former Obama chief of staff, has it in for Arne:

Rahm is still steaming about the contracts negotiated by Daley and Arne Duncan—who was then running CPS and is now the nation’s education secretary—which gave teachers hefty pay increases and a shorter school year. “I know what the teachers got, and I know what the politicians got,” he says, meaning no strike. “But I don’t know what the kids got.”

The Chicago public school system operates seven community colleges.  As head of Chicago's schools, Duncan was responsible for those seven institutions.  What about the graduation rate at Duncan's own legacy college system - why, it's seven percent!

If low graduation and student transfer rates at City Colleges of Chicago don’t start improving, the system’s leaders could lose their jobs. That’s because the formal job responsibilities of the chancellor, presidents and even trustees include graduation rate goals.

Cheryl L. Hyman, chancellor of City Colleges, began a “reinvention” of the system soon after her arrival in 2010. While the seven-college system has long welcomed urban, lower-income students who have few higher education options, Hyman argues that it hasn't done enough to help students graduate and get jobs...

“You cannot continue with a 7 percent graduation rate,” said Rahm Emanuel, Chicago’s mayor, at news conference last summer. “We owe the taxpayers – and most importantly the students – a better community college system.”

In light of the fact that non-educator Duncan is an expert on college graduation rates, we demand he abandon his war on success and resign from the federal government.  Seven Percent Arne needs to return to Chicago to deal with the disaster he left behind.

You borrowed half a million to send Barry to the game

Flagrant foul!

 

Now that we're in the Elite Eight, let's take a minute to look back at beginning of the NCAA Tournament.

Recall that Barry Obama and some British character flew from Washington, DC to Dayton, OH to take in one of the pre-bracket play-in games.  Nice work if you can get it, but if you went to Dayton, you'd need to fill your minivan with $4.00 gas and drive for hours.  Did Barry pop for his Dayton junket?  No, no, no - your yet-unborn grandchildren did.  Let's let another Brit lay it out.

President Obama adds $478,000 to the US national debt with Ohio basketball jaunt.

$478,000 – that’s the cost for the use of Air Force One for two 80 minute flights for the US President and the British Prime Minister to Dayton, Ohio, and back to Washington, DC, last night at a cost of $179,750 per flight hour. When you factor in the additional expense of Marine One helicopter flights from the White House to Andrews Air Force base in Maryland, as well as security on the ground in Ohio, White House advance teams, and Air Force cargo planes to carry the presidential motorcade, the total figure is far greater.

In an age of austerity, this is a significant amount of taxpayers’ money to spend on attending a college basketball game between Mississippi Valley State and Western Kentucky, especially when tens of millions of Americans are unemployed and facing financial hardship.

SU - Buckeyes, Saturday @ 7:05, on CBS.

Obamas' daughter on Spring Break, story disappears from web (updated)

Photo discovered at El Universal.mx

Malia Obama, the Obamas' 13 year old daughter, is on Spring Break in Oaxaca, Mexico.  In what we can assume is a taxpayer funded vacation to one on Mexico's most dangerous regions, the Sidwell Friends student is traveling without her parents, but with a dozen friends and a contingent of 25 Secret Service agents.  Readers looking for more info on this story are advised to  brush up on their Espanol.

Malia Ann Obama, hija mayor del presidente de Estados Unidos, Barak Obama, vacaciona en este destino turístico acompañada de un grupo de amigas y de un discreto pero fuerte dispositivo de seguridad.

Malia Ann habría llegado el pasado viernes proveniente de la ciudad de Houston, Texas, y acompañada de 12 jóvenes de su edad, con quienes se hospedó en un pequeño hotel del centro histórico de la ciudad.

English language links to this story, it seems, are being scrubbed from the web at an alarming rate.  Search Google or Bing and you're likely to find the relevant links will take you, instead, to another topic.  Rather that the typical Obama-style imperial use of taxpayer money and resources, the bigger scandal is quickly becoming an obvious attempt to make the embarrassing story disappear.

An AFP story, linked at the Huffington Post and elsewhere, reported on Malia Obama's visit to Mexico despite a Texas public safety warning, she's reportedly accompanied by 12 friends and 25 Secret Service agents. The Huffington Post story link now directs to the main page and the AFP item is fast disappearing from view. 

The Yahoo News link now diverts to a completely different story, in contrast to the url: http://news.yahoo.com/obamas-daughter-spends-springbreak-mexico-145031176.html. The headline now reads: Senegal music star Youssou Ndour hits campaign trail.

Finger Lakes parents' ability to take their own kinds to Disney World, or even  Darien Lake, is quickly being eroded by the current administration's intentionally destructive spending.  Do your friends and neighbors understand what is happening?  A good time to bring this up might be when they start bitching about gas prices.

Update:  Stories about the Mexican vacation story being removed from the web are now also being scrubbed.  

The White House's campaign to scrub a story from the internet yesterday about Malia Obama's trip to Mexico has gone meta: a media reporter's blog post about the administration's efforts to scrub the story has now been scrubbed of certain details, Politico confirmed.

Remember how the media covered up for the Bush twins? 

Supermarket tabloids ran stories labeling Jenna Bush a party girl even before President George W. Bush took office. A citation for underage drinking and a court appearance last month were also noted by the media.

But when police said Wednesday they were investigating a charge that Jenna Bush, 19, and her twin Barbara had tried to buy alcohol with false identification, the story received the full treatment: tabloid headlines like the New York Daily News' "Double Trouble," segments on network news programs, discussion on cable talk shows labeled "Jenna's Latest Jam" and stories in national newspapers.

"If they're going to make news, they're going to get covered," said Amy Sohnen, a senior producer at Fox News Channel.

Easier than robbing banks

Bonnie and Clyde, who died in a hail of bullets, would be jealous:

Green Firms Get Fed Cash, Give Execs Bonuses, Fail

US taxpayers buying into French automaker?

1983 Renault Alliance

Congratulation, Finger Lakes taxpayers, you're now going to subsidize the French auto industry.  Our own government-run car company sees opportunity in the land of escargot.

PSA Peugeot Citroen may announce as soon as this week plans to sell a stake of about 7 percent in the French carmaker to General Motors Co. as part of a development alliance, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

GM, which still owes billions to US taxpayers, has been using those confiscated funds to dish out big bonuses to the same employees who ran the industrial giant into the ground.

Does it make sense that a company who can afford to pay bonuses needs government subsidies to sell its cars, like the Chevy Volt?

According to all the reporting news sources, most managers could see bonuses for 2010 equaling 15 to 20% of their annual salary. Other reports are indicating as much as 50% of salary, while some blue collars might merely get $10K on average.

Question is, why is there any bonus at all at GM?

It is no small thing that General Motors and Chrysler are still in business today, due to the extreme generosity of the American taxpayers.

So, why should either company even think of giving bonuses to the blue collar and white collar workers at all before paying back the loans?

For those with short memories, the rotting hulk pictured above is a Renault Alliance, the ill fated offspring of the last time a US automaker got in bed with the French.

GM profitable? So was Whitey Bulger

Whitey and Catherine hiding out from the feds

Now that crack federal gumshoes have finally located Whitey Bulger in his California condo, and just in time for the presidential election, Americans who get their news from the mainstream media have been inundated with the "General Motors Turns a Profit" story: all praise to Barack Obama for rescuing Detroit. Let's check in with Jerry Hirsch at one of the house organs of the Democrat party, the Los Angeles Times.

Three years after nearly collapsing into liquidation, a resurgent General Motors Co. has posted its best annual profit, surpassing what it earned during its heyday in the mid-1990s.

In earning $7.6 billion last year, the automaker demonstrated how it has capitalized on its 2009 bankruptcy reorganization and federal bailout to shed brands, slash debt, rewrite union contracts and close surplus factories.

The record annual earnings represented "a remarkable turnaround from what appeared to be a hopeless situation," said Jesse Toprak, an analyst with automotive information company TrueCar.com.

But there's a problem with  Comrade Hirsch's rosy analysis.  In a comment posted on that article, Teresa Trujillo fills in the missing pieces.

The only reason Chrysler and GM are profitable today is because the government allowed them the discharge huge amounts of debt. Vendors, shareholders--including many retirement acount vehicles like mutual funds--were forced to take HUGE losses on their GM stock holdings when the previous version of GM, was for all intent and purpose, dismantled.

The American taxpayer has assumed a very large burden for the GM "reorganization." Anyone can see what the individual federal deficit burden is by visiting usdebtclock.org 

The U.S. federal debt is now $15.4 trillion dollars, and the debt per citizen is nearly $50,000. Rather than bailing out the "too big to fail" organizations, the government could have written a check for $10,000 to every social security number that appeared on a 2007 tax return. The federal bailouts that were authorized by congress only bailed out the tycoons and oligarchy--they could have chosen to bail out families. 

Think how much faster the economy would have recovered, how many homes would have been saved, how many jobs would have been created.  I'm still waiting to see those "shovel ready" jobs get rolling.

The Times has neglected to tell the story of how a few people are benefiting on the backs of all Americans in this story. This story is a testament to the power of the autoworkers' union.

The celebrated "recovery" of GM is really part of the largest organized crime heist in American history.  You, dear reader, your children and your grandchildren are the victims.

Coincidence?

Barry & Valerie

Bokor Tov, Boulder reminds us of a fascinating coincidence.  Valerie Jarrett, long time Obama advisor and corrupt Chicago slumlord, was born in Iran, of all places, just down the road from self-declared enemy of the American people Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.  

What are the chances?

M. Catherine Evans, last May,  provided additional analysis of the Jarrett-Obama partnership for power. 

Rot at the top

We're late to the party, but we want to make sure our readers do two things:

1.  Watch SU grad Steve Kroft's interview with Peter Schweizer, above.

2.  Order Schweizer's 2011 book, Throw Them All Out, using the link here or the box at the top of the page.

When you complete this assignment, you'll be in the market for blood pressure medication - or rope.

Update: Congress Doesn't Want to Give Up Its Insider Trading Privileges

John Heinz Kerry, featured in Throw Them All Out