Comments on: New Yorkers Reject Paterson’s “Doomsday” Budget http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/12/new-yorkers-reject-paterson%e2%80%99s-%e2%80%9cdoomsday%e2%80%9d-budget/ a radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and social justice Mon, 23 Nov 2009 04:30:43 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Jason Oberg http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/12/new-yorkers-reject-paterson%e2%80%99s-%e2%80%9cdoomsday%e2%80%9d-budget/#comment-34045 Jason Oberg Sat, 20 Dec 2008 06:25:40 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=5433#comment-34045 Here is an article that I can't praise enough, because I, and all those I care about, are among the millions of people suffering immeasurably in the barren wasteland called New York State. I can tell you, after living here for the majority of my life, that the old cliche of New York being a cess-pool couldn't be truer. It is hardly surprising that Paterson has decided to go the way of Pataki before him and, in the American spirit, protect the rich while attacking the poor. I live way upstate, and the effects of corruption and greed are felt all the worse up here, where a person is lucky to find any employment at all, never mind employment that provides one with the semblance of an actual living. Eight dollars an hour is considered a good wage up here. Yet unlike other rural areas across the country, your bills (oh, and bills aplenty there are!) are just as high as they are anywhere else. Here in Plattsburgh, the price of gas ---before the Wall Street speculators were no longer able to speculate---was almost a full dollar more than the national average. Once again, this is a huge portion of the state where half the people are unemployed and the other half have jobs that almost make them wish they were. New York is a bureaucrat-crazy state as well. And with higher-than-usual bureaucracy, of course comes more bills, fees, late charges, penalties, and constant threats of legal action. Whatever you do, do not ask this state for any financial help, whatsoever. You will be sorry. An absolute lack of fairness and sensibility saturates Albany like a liquid in a sponge. For instance, if you happen to be a working single mother and request financial assistance to help pay for day care, you will be denied if you make more than minimum wage. Even if it's fifty cents more. However, if you spend a few years smoking crack, then go into rehab, the state of New York will happily pay for your full college tuition---I repeat, pay for your full college tuition---and pay your rent for you as well. I cite these examples from personal observations. I worked with a guy who was given this treatment. He kept doing coke here and there. New York State is a sort of mini-example of what has happened to America in general. Incompetence, unapologetic unfairness and greed, massive corruption down to the most local level, and a contempt for its residents so pervasive you can smell it in the air. Nobody is happy where I live. Nobody. People walk through life gazing into dark clouds. And thanks to our hero, Paterson, it will only get worse. Here is an article that I can’t praise enough, because I, and all those I care about, are among the millions of people suffering immeasurably in the barren wasteland called New York State. I can tell you, after living here for the majority of my life, that the old cliche of New York being a cess-pool couldn’t be truer. It is hardly surprising that Paterson has decided to go the way of Pataki before him and, in the American spirit, protect the rich while attacking the poor. I live way upstate, and the effects of corruption and greed are felt all the worse up here, where a person is lucky to find any employment at all, never mind employment that provides one with the semblance of an actual living. Eight dollars an hour is considered a good wage up here. Yet unlike other rural areas across the country, your bills (oh, and bills aplenty there are!) are just as high as they are anywhere else. Here in Plattsburgh, the price of gas —before the Wall Street speculators were no longer able to speculate—was almost a full dollar more than the national average. Once again, this is a huge portion of the state where half the people are unemployed and the other half have jobs that almost make them wish they were.

New York is a bureaucrat-crazy state as well. And with higher-than-usual bureaucracy, of course comes more bills, fees, late charges, penalties, and constant threats of legal action. Whatever you do, do not ask this state for any financial help, whatsoever. You will be sorry.

An absolute lack of fairness and sensibility saturates Albany like a liquid in a sponge. For instance, if you happen to be a working single mother and request financial assistance to help pay for day care, you will be denied if you make more than minimum wage. Even if it’s fifty cents more. However, if you spend a few years smoking crack, then go into rehab, the state of New York will happily pay for your full college tuition—I repeat, pay for your full college tuition—and pay your rent for you as well. I cite these examples from personal observations. I worked with a guy who was given this treatment. He kept doing coke here and there.

New York State is a sort of mini-example of what has happened to America in general. Incompetence, unapologetic unfairness and greed, massive corruption down to the most local level, and a contempt for its residents so pervasive you can smell it in the air. Nobody is happy where I live. Nobody. People walk through life gazing into dark clouds. And thanks to our hero, Paterson, it will only get worse.

]]> By: Brian http://dissidentvoice.org/2008/12/new-yorkers-reject-paterson%e2%80%99s-%e2%80%9cdoomsday%e2%80%9d-budget/#comment-34032 Brian Sat, 20 Dec 2008 01:57:09 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/?p=5433#comment-34032 So Peterson is even worse than Spitzer. Didn't think that was possible but is not surprising. So Peterson is even worse than Spitzer. Didn’t think that was possible but is not surprising.

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