Do as we say, not as we do

The State Senate has ordered a freeze on hiring and salary increases ... except for a few people it wants to hire.  Democrats are going forward with the new majority office it plans to open in Buffalo.

However, the office is expected to be staffed with six new employees, rather than the 10 originally mentioned.

Former heavyweight boxer Joe Mesi, unsuccessful in his try at elected office, already has been hired (at $70,000 a year) as regional director of the new office. Some people just can't lose.

Others, like New York taxpayers, sometimes feel they just can't win.

Comments

[grinch]

So, only 6 partonage hires to staff this pink elephant, instead of 10 - a savings of $200,000 or so! (4 jobs at $50K since these people will be politically connected and over paid as a result). Lets hope that community leaders outside of politics and a few regular, blue collar, plain old working people are chosen for these plums...I will put my name in if Stachowski or Thompson will contact me (I fit in the latter category). But I haven't put in my notice at work yet, as I do not hold any hope (dreams perhaps, but no hope)that anyone without a political connection will get any of these jobs. So in the long run, this is not a community relations office, but a backroomm where the Albany Pols can toss back a few bottles of single malt and puff a cuban or two, and say they are reaching out to the community and seeking their input - filtered through the lackeys that will have to suck up to the almighty from Albany.....

[Bob/Tonawanda]

Nice. Let's recycle a town supervisor (Grelick) to a $90k position and a boxer (Mesi) to a $70k position. Baby Joe, I'm sure your years in the ring make you a suitable candidate to a position like this while Sue Grelick's list of accomplishments include "not raising taxes" while doing the old "switch & bait" with assessments. Joe - do the honorable thing and walk away from this position instead of cozying up to the government "teet" and becoming part of the problem.
However - in the long run it's idiot voters who continue to either not vote or blindly vote the incumbents into office year after year who are to blame for stuff like this. Garbage in, garbage out...

[Sick of "Paying the Freight"]

Let's also ask our "impartial" Buffalo News Why this Article is not on the front page so the residents can read it and be informed up front!

[Mark]

If we as WNY'ers collectively have not been appalled for the last time by this budget fiasco and the ineptness of the incumbents, with their I don't give a **** attitude and we elect incumbents back in next year, we only have to look in the mirror and blame ourselves.

[frquarter]

It is a total shame that these dysfunctionals..just pee on the taxpayers...and as taxpayers we repeat the same error every election..we vote these same dysfunctionals,,thompson schoeder stachowski peoples hoyt wolker quinn maziarz delmonte.back in office,,,,MY QUESTION,WHO ARE THE INDIVIDUALS WHO APPROVED of a punch drunk boxer with a staff that will tell taxpayers about developement...you want development,,,I dont need a staff..I can tell what it will take for development..AND DONT NEED 70,000 DOLLARS......and WHO IS THE INDIVIDUAL OR INDIVIDUALS THAT GAVE THIS LOSER SUSAN A JOB AS A COUN SEL TO THE SENATE..PLUS A STAFF...I CAN COUNSEL THE SENATE,,,HERE ARE 2 THINGS YOU MUST DO,,,,LOWER TAXES AND STOP KISSING THE PIMPS BUTT SHELDON SILVER....AND FOR AN EXTRA COUNSEL GET RID OF NYC THE THORN IN THE STATES SIDE....THERE DIDNT NEED 90,000...IT WAS FREE...WAKE UP TAXPAYERS....2010 should the year the HUGE CHANGE..at election time remove all incumbants,,,,and if we dont then dont B_ _ _ cH...BLAME YOURSELF FOR THE FAILURE OF NEW YORK STATE

[HapKLein]

I don't think Mesi and Grelick's appointments should be compared together.

I suppose Mesi is considered a promising figure by the party leadership but with all the elected officials we have locally of both parties why does the state Democrats need to appoint more representation?

But Sue Grelick really has the knowledge and capability to make government efficient. She is bright and experienced and very capable. Just about all the things that Joe Mesi lacks.

[Paul]

Everybody says the republicans where to blame,Raising taxes,special interests, afraid of the unions. Not the republicans. Now we have how many yrs left, I hope everyone opens their eyes next election. Best outcome would be a independent run and win. But almost everybody is afraid to vote that way. Or people are STUCK in the habit of voting for their party and thats that.

[enoughalready]

Vote out the incumbents, and the newbies are no better! What this state needs is a constitutional convention to revamp governance top to bottom. Until then, bend over and enjoy!

[Kenmore Bill]

This is just another stimulus program that will help turn our economy around. Look at the jobs that are being "created". It is helping to reduce unemployment in Western New York. Sure, some of the appointees will need on the job training but once they are past that, think of the benefit to all those unemployed WNYers who will have enhanced access to a government that let them down in the first place. Their input will be help justify new programs, increased taxes, and more overregulation to further drive industry out of New York State. The private sector is downsizing, leaving NY or closing operations permanently, but our State government leaders keep piling on new programs and taxes because government never downsizes. It is a no win strategy.

[DON QUINLAN]

WHY DO WE BOTHER ELECTING ANY REPRESENTATIVES?I THOUGHT WE ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES TO "CARRY THE WATER FOR US"-BUT WE SEEM TO NEED ADDITIONAL BODIES TO "HELP" ADD THESE TO THE NEED TO HIRE LOBBYISTS AND IT GETS A LITTLE SILLY.
TO QUOTE THE ARTICLE "WILL NOT REQUIRE ANY NEW SPENDING"WHAT PLANET DO THESE PEOPLE LIVE ON?-HOW ABOUT ELIMINATING SPENDING?THEY SEEM TO FEEL IT IS OK TO CONTINUE SPENDING OUR DOLLARS AT THE SAME OLD RATE!
AN ASIDE TO THE BFLO NEWS-PLEASE INVESTIGATE THE OFFICE RENTAL,ETC AND REPORT WHAT POLITICALLY CONNECTED LANDLORD WILL ALSO BENEFIT--PAST RECORDS USUALLY FIND THE SPACE OCCUPIED ALSO GOES TO GREASE SOMEONES PALM.
WE CAN VOTE THEM OUT-NOT VOTE FOR THEM-BUT THEY ALL KEEP BOUNCING BACK W/ALL SORTS OF POLITICALLY APPOINTED POSITIONS--AND WE WONDER WHY PEOPLE ARE CYNICAL!!

[Holding out Hope]

Where is the leadership, anywhere, either party, in NYS politics? The Republicans sacrificed their integrity by spending and taxing under Pataki and Bruno and are showing no remorse. And forget about the Democrats -- at least they don't pretend to care about taxpayers. Woe to Upstate NY. A plague on both parties.

[BobbyCat]

A pox on both parties. The Dems are counting on a large percentage of the electorate being ignorant, as are the hard right GOP ditto heads. Sad to say there's about 20% of the electorate who don't know squat. They don't read. Many can't read. Many are undereducated. They thought that Dubya was bright; They are not computer savvy. If they receive any news at all, its from FOX or World Net Daily or, more likely, from rumors, urban and country legends. These folk don't keep up. They won't hear about the Dems hiring Mesi or Grelick.;they won't know how Stachowski and Thompson voted;
They haven't heard about the bloated state budget; many still believe that President Obama is Muslim. They are out of touch big time. They will pull the liver without knowing anything. If there is a know-nothing party, and I believe there is, both the Dems and the GOP are fighting for those poor souls because they can swing an election.

[BobbyCat]

...and pull the LEVER, too.

[Thomas]

Every State Senator has Counsel, so this job isn't being created for Grelick. Grelick is doing the job of Counsel to a Senator and to a Committee. She is an adjunct faculty member at the UB Law School, has many years experience and six or seven college degrees. The Buffalo News is comparing apples to oranges. I'm surprised that the Buffalo News failed to do their homework on this one. Moreover, Grelick is passionate about the needs of upstate, and I'm sure she will bring that passiion to Albany.

[Al]

The News should really get on with the real story. The government has already spilt the milk, and is back at the cow for more milk. The obvious lesson is to learn to be a wolf, and give up being a cow. The mooing going on is not helped by the media leading the cows to the barn for milking. Mr. Warren Buffett is so deep into investing in barns and milk machines, his dairy perspective actually said today that the federal plan to deal with the banks is a good thing. Yes, it is good for dairy farmers and heavy milk drinkers. Not good for the cows whose feed is being cut back more and more and expected to give more and more milk that will only be carelessly spilt again by the same people in charge at the Wall Street-Treasury alliance.

[Amazed at Hap and Thomas]

Hap and Thomas, the voters rejected Grelick by a landslide.

It's a slap in the face to WNY working familites for her to be rewarded with a patronage insider position that pays $90,000 for part time hours in Albany for a committee that hardly ever meets and even less often accomplishes anything.

How can you two expect the working familites of WNY to believe that appointing a bureaucrat the voters here soundly rejected to a chushy, incredibly high paying "job" in Albany as a political reward is justified?

Did I mention it's a part time job and pays $90,000 with no accountability for results?

How many people in WNY without being an ex-politician, even a badly defeated one, can get a job like that no matter how qualified?

[Al]

Today the Buffalo News printed George Will's column,
"California Sagging."
The picture could be overlayed on New York State.
But it's not the end of the story, it's only the beginning.
You really have to read Barron's Sandra Ward interview with Ray Dialo:
"Recession? No, It's a D-Process, and It Will Be Long."
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB123396545910358867.html?page=sp

[Neil]

BobbyCat....please quit griping about so-called "ditto-heads" or Fox News. A Pew Research survey conducted after the last election found Fox did indeed provide the most Fair and Balanced reporting of any of the major national broadcast news outlets. The left has the dominate, liberal, "Main Stream Media" to listen to all it wants. Why do you have to insist that the right have no balancing media sources at all as your admonishment suggests? Is MSNBC really more truthful than Fox or just less popular? I mean NBC, CBS, ABC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, The Buffalo News and on and on. Give it a rest, your not convincing anyone to switch to your POV with such drivel. You must be a big proponent of the “Fairness Doctrine,” I suppose? I know you’ll howl, but try taking a look at this piece from Hannity and tell me there isn’t a liberal media bias: http://www.foxnews.com/video2/video08.html?maven_referralObject=4836067&maven_referralPlaylistId=&sRevUrl=http://www.foxnews.com/

[OPMike]

You have to just roar with laughter after reading old Bobby Cat's rant against Fox News, World Net Daily and the "undereducated" who Bobby Cat says rely on rumor, urban and country legend.

This coming from a person who regularly reads The Guardian, a leftist rag published in Britain and famous for spewing anti-American rubbish. He even quotes extensively a phony-baloney Television Psychologist who makes goof-ball "remote diagnosis" about George Bush (a person he never met), belittling him and his family.

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. What a hoot!

Bobby Cat did you read the latest "breaking news" story from your beloved Guardian? "Obama and Biden wait in line to buy hamburgers". Wow, what a scoop! Maybe your hero Michael Moore can make this into a documentary.

[James]

I left NY State last year because I was fed up with the looser mentailty and screwed up politics. I can only say - let the last person to leave please turn off the lights. Goodby high taxes and bloated government!

[jd]

OP Mike
The rest of the facts about Obama waiting in line for burgers was that his staff had to roll in his teleprompter to order, now you know the rest of the story. By the way if I remember Bobbycat wrote a nasty piece about Paul Harvey after he died I guess he didn't like him either.
Did anyone see the photo op of Michelle Obama helping out at a soup kitchen [for 20 minutes] she dressed down , but was caught wearing almost $600.00 sneakers, seems Mobama not only enjoys $1,200 a bottle rare krystal champagne and $100.oo a lb. kobe beef she is the only first lady that travels with a full time makeup artist.

[OPMike]

Can you imagine all the ruckus if Sarah Palin was caught wearing $600 sneakers, slugging down a $1,200 bottle of champagne, filling her mouth with $100 per pound Kobe beef, or traveling with a full time makeup artist? Katie Couric and her pals at ABC, NBC, CNN, the New York Times and the Guardian would want the "red neck" Governor tarred, feathered and banished to a remote Alaska island somewhere in the North Pacific Ocean.

[jd]

The media died in 2008. I said weeks ago that I'd bet the feds. would bail out the Ny times, now I hear that just may be the case.
I find myself wondering how in hell did this happen to us. Our country is being run by Obama, Biden, Pelosi and Reid, how can this be ?
If the gvt. bails out the times this country should erupt and it just may.

[Celtic Tide]

Joe Mesi huh? Wonderful; NY is the next state to be in bankruptcy, especially when the high income earners are leaving in droves. The political machine has ruined the state, move out while you are still allowed.