Sasha's commentary for February 10, 2014

Why we can't have nice things in New York: a committee assembled by Governor Cuomo in regards to the handling before, during and after Superstorm Sandy points fingers at none other than the governor's office itself! One of the reports is loaded with negative feedback. And the conservatives blame Democrats for government incompetence. Apparently, they've been right all along. Somehow, Governor Pataki kept a good running ship.

I am convinced of one big thing: this state I love so much and would do a hell of a lot for, New York, apparently is unable to have nice things because our leaders make poor decisions at times and us New Yorkers do not get involved in our state's government.

And this shows through with other state agencies. Apparently, the state of New York State's DOT is troubling: the draft environmental impact statement I've been reading for the last week should have been completed months ago. The worst part about this? There's skepticism that true high speed rail can come to New York, even higher speed rail. But I'm an eternal optimist. My job is to believe there will be a better and brighter future. But still, I have written to the NYSDOT about my concerns and will voice them at a meeting.

But then again, New York at times can have nice things: two brothers outside of Albany built a ski resort literally in their own backyard.

This is one of those "happy" sad stories: a couple married for 67 years dies a couple days apart: the wife died a few days before her husband did. But here's the boring part: both were in their 90s.

I have utmost sympathy for Alicia Payton, as my parents are in the same boat that she is in: struggling to not just make ends meet, but pay the bills. It seems that it costs money to stay out of poverty. Americans are living closer and closer to the edge. It's not healthy, both physically and emotionally.

United Airlines has a list of cities they are axing service from Cleveland to as part of their hub closure in that city. Big business in this country has something against the Rust Belt.

I'm going to argue this: we need a statewide public advocate. New York City has one, and it's worked very well for them. Bill de Blasio used to be the public advocate, and now he's mayor of the city. And if it weren't for that he's from the city AND is overly liberal, he'd make a good governor.

Sasha's commentary for February 6, 2014: The Short Month

Since tonight is the night the Sochi Olympics open, I thought I'd take some time to make note of a couple of things going on currently in regards to the games...and I'll need to fix this!



With that said, here are some things I've found on the web:

Thinkprogress.org has a wonderful article on how the Northeast could cut carbon pollution by 75%. I was surprised to find that the Northeast already has a significant level of clean energy, as I thought we still had a boatload of dirty plants. This might prove an incentive for the New York State DOT in considerations of building a high speed rail line here in the state. Electrified track might be the way to go, but then again, an electrified right of way doesn't benefit smaller communities.

Supposedly, Russian wedding photos are weird. As a proud Russian-American, I can attest to the fact that Russians are an unusual bunch. Wonderful people, just an unusual bunch, but I say that with affection.

Apparently, Kim Jong-un is a fan of the Mac. I don't think that's what Steve Jobs had in mind as his user base: dictators of isolationist nations. How badly does the North Korean dictator love Macs? The North Korean government is working on a MacOS look-alike.

With both sarcasm and concern in my tone, the Republican Party still is lacking in knowledge of history. That bothers me, but then again, we have a governor in New York who says things that might be condescending to particular groups. On the other hand, unlike the GOP, we teach high school students the horrors of the Holocaust in New York

The Republican National Committee today excitedly announced the launch of a new startup lab to bring techies and creatives together, Silicon Valley-style, to get Republicans elected. Oh, and they named it for a Nazi gun, a type of ammo, and a philosophy that puts war before peace.

Only the Republicans, only the Republicans. The Para Bellum Labs? Doesn't have a good ring to it either. Then again, Gawker is a left-wing site, so it's a partial overreaction.

There are a thousand reasons why I want to date a girl who travels. The most obvious reason is that I enjoy exploring the world also. I enjoyed reading the article, but the article had a feel of snobbishness. It's also a strongly written article, and I mean that it's short and to the point. It makes unemployed individuals feel unworthy of affection.

Here's another one of those "old fashioned dating tip" articles. I thought the term "going steady" was for high schoolers. I thought the twenty-something used "We're an item" or "We're involved." Some of these are really obvious: asking permission for something should be a given.

And finally, I'm glad my generation is doing whatever it takes to be less car dependent. It's obvious that the government has a lot to why we're an automotive-centric nation. I wish every small community in the United States could have bus or train or light rail access.

How d' I look?

How do I look?

Marriage counseling? I'm for it!

There are a lot of things I should keep my mouth shut on, and (holy) matrimony should be one of them. There is currently an effort in Colorado to require couples who want to get married attend marriage education classes.

I will say this: I believe that people with a history of divorce should be strongly suggest to go to marriage counseling/marriage classes. Divorce itself isn't bad, but when you're blending families, it's a losing proposition. I vow I will never have more than two kids, and if (GOD FORBID) I ever find myself remarrying, I will not have more children with another spouse. I wouldn't mind having just one child even. It's one of my strange beliefs: an only child is less resource intensive and kids are more expensive than ever. And all the only children that I've met are happy and well-adjusted.

All I know is that I want to avoid the mistakes my mom and stepdad have made over the years. They've made a boatload of them, and I come from the same mold, so it makes perfect sense how I have my own bit of anxiety.  I do know this: when I get married, I'm going to get pre-marriage counseling.

Saving the Southwest Chief

In recent years, the Southwest Chief, the train that runs from Chicago to Los Angeles, has come under threat by Amtrak's bare-bones budgets and Burlington Northern Santa Fe's (BNSF) downgrading of the line between New Mexico and Kansas. In the instances that Amtrak's lines come under threat, Amtrak should be given the opportunity to buy them and given the funds to do just that.
You could say that Amtrak is a fancy form of public transit, but it still provides small downs across America with their only non-private links to the outside world. Coach buses don't stop in Westport, NY or maybe even Cut Bank, MT. One of the writers for the Taos News wrote an excellent article on the Southwest Chief's situation. Anyways, back to our discussion: it's not like the Southwest Chief does nothing for the local economies in the communities it serves: "A report presented to the subcommittee in November says ridership on the Southwest Chief between 2010 and 2012 went up 6.7 percent, with a total of 127,269 passengers in 2012. The report also says the train’s current route supports a total of 368 jobs, with $29.3 million in total economic output."

If New Mexico and Colorado sign on, then Kansas has more incentive to sign on, especially Colorado, which is in the midst of a transit boom. The Southwest Chief is a crucial part of the Amtrak network. And it has appeared that New Mexico's state legislators are appearing to be interested in such an idea, especially with the advent of New Mexico's Rail Runner commuter rail. In recent years, Congress has made it clear that transportation and infrastructure is not just not a priority, but not a concern either. Meanwhile, a newspaper in Texas believes that Amtrak is using the Southwest Chief to make a point: I kinda have to agree with that.

The trackage that the Southwest Chief runs on is historic: trains like the Super Chief ran on the Southwest Chief's trackage, and in fact, the Southwest Chief is the direct descendent of the Super Chief.

And Uriel Garcia's article had one sentence that stood out in a way that I have never seen before in an article: "In recent years, the federal government has not funded rail needs as much as it has highways and airports."

So Wait, Robert Gates vindicated Hillary Clinton?

....didn't see that one coming?

From Politico, I read something that caught my eye:

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton saw the Obama administration as deeply “controlling” on national security issues, Defense Secretary Bob Gates wrote in an essay published Tuesday and adapted from his forthcoming book.
“The controlling nature of the Obama White House, and its determination to take credit for every good thing that happened while giving none to the career folks in the trenches who had actually done the work, offended Secretary Clinton as much as it did me,” Gates writes in the piece published in The Wall Street Journal.

AND from The Hill:

Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates in an interview broadcast Sunday said former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, mulling a 2016 presidential run, would make a good commander in chief.
“Actually, I think she would,” Gates said on CBS “This Morning” when asked about Clinton.

I'm as surprised as I am interested. Hillary Clinton could be further vindicated from her role during Benghazi. I have a feeling that if Clinton does run, she's going to need Robert Gates' help.

Sasha's commentary for January 24, 2014

Some of these are articles I've come across over the last few weeks...

Overtime is dangerous, especially when you're not working a job you particularly like or your job involves some stressful factors. Although I want to side with Metro-North on their overtime policy, especially since no two jobs are alike, I will say: if the fatal Spyuten Dyuvil derailment in December was caused by fatigue, I hope MNRR hires some more crewmembers. And I know that fact alone will upset commuters, because they'll have higher fares.

If I die, may any girl who has been in a relationship with me publish my journals, unless it would make me absolutely hated. I'm not thrilled that the parents of this young lady went against her wishes and posthumously made public a letter that she said not to be opened in ten years. For a twelve year old, Taylor Smith had the insight into life that many twenty-somethings don't even have. My heart goes out to her family for their loss.

If you're the CEO of a rival mobile phone company, there's no reason why you shouldn't be thrown out of a private concert.

Somewhere last week, a rumor hit that Jenny McCarthy's son Evan didn't have autism but a different disorder. That was quickly shot down. Regardless, I can understand why those in the autism community are so opinionated about her: she has a huge following. I'll do a position blog on this at a later date.

I am skeptical of the rest of the United States' political beliefs, to some extent. There's no global group that controls global politics. Has there ever been such an anti-government sentiment in the United States like there is today?

I don't have money to donate to the Democrats, but I do feel that the Republicans are on an all-out assault on the Democrats. If I was Obama and I saw what the Affordable Care Act would have done I would have made Congress spend another two years on healthcare reform. I would have held the Republican Party accountable on that goal, and they would have to in good faith cooperate. Outside groups aren't helping either, and the Republican ones have a disproportionate advantage over Democratic-aligned ones.

The name of the parties might have something to do with strength too. The United States is a republic, not a democracy.

Once again, New York City's Democratic legislative delegation is showing itself to be beyond corrupt. I think (now, after a few months of waiting) Mayor de Blasio should come out and suggest to many members of the Assembly from the city to retire. Eric Stevenson's charges are beyond undemocratic but shady as heck. And once again, Russians are going to get a bad rap for this.