Armwood Editorial And Opinion Blog

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

N.Y. Lawmakers Charged in Plot to Buy Spot on Mayoral Ballot - NYTimes.com

N.Y. Lawmakers Charged in Plot to Buy Spot on Mayoral Ballot - NYTimes.com: "The two men sat in the state senator’s parked car in suburban Rockland County, but New York City was at the front of their minds and the focus of their conversation. Multimedia

Graphic Untangling the Arrests in the New York Corruption Case

Rigging New York City’s Mayoral Race? GRAPHIC: The Many Faces of State Political Scandals VIDEO: U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara Statement DOCUMENT: The Complaint Against Smith, Malcolm, Et Al. Related

A G.O.P. Candidate Heard His Party’s Message: To Run, You Pay (April 3, 2013) Bribery Case Unsettles a Coalition in Albany (April 3, 2013) Accusations of Bribery Hit a Village’s Main Street (April 3, 2013) For Albany, Yet Another Corruption Case (April 3, 2013) Connect with NYTMetro

Robert Stolarik for The New York Times State Senator Malcolm A. Smith was arrested Tuesday morning in Addisleigh Park, Queens. Readers’ Comments 'It's not new legislators that we need, it's better informed voters. I have always been amazed that these shady politicians get re-elected over and over.' Patrick kabasele, New York City Read Full Comment » Post a Comment » What the senator, Malcolm A. Smith, wanted to do, the other man explained, was going to cost ‘a pretty penny.’

‘But it’s worth it,’ replied Senator Smith, a Democrat, according to a transcript of the January meeting. ‘Because you know how big a deal it is.’

His plan, described by federal prosecutors in a criminal complaint unsealed on Tuesday, was as ambitious as it was audacious. Mr. Smith was going to bribe his way onto the ballot to run for mayor of New Yo"

(Via.)

http://nyti.ms/11igJj0

NBCNews.com video: Atlanta school superintendent Hall turns herself in

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

NBCNews.com video: Atlanta school superintendent Hall turns herself in: ""

(Via.)

The Connecticut Gun-Control Package - NYTimes.com

The Connecticut Legislature is scheduled to vote Wednesday on what leaders of both parties call the most far-reaching gun-legislationpackage in the country. The bill is thorough and bipartisan. Swift approval would send a message to the entire country that, as John McKinney, the Republican State Senate minority leader, observed, some issues must rise above politics. Mr. McKinney represents Newtown, where, in December, a gunman armed with a Bushmaster XM-15 military-style rifle massacred 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The Connecticut Gun-Control Package - NYTimes.com

Tuesday, April 02, 2013

Immigrants in Solitary - NYTimes.com

Americans who are unfamiliar with the immigration justice system might be surprised to learn how much it skimps on actual justice. The notion of a fair day in court becomes only theoretical when immigrants lack attorneys, as most do, when their deportation cases are not reviewed by judges, as too often happens, and when they are locked up in prisons unable to see their families, even though they have been accused only of civil violations — and many have never been convicted of anything.

Immigrants in Solitary - NYTimes.com

The Sequester Isn't A Joke For Jeff Maryak

WASHINGTON — Until the sequester hit last month, Jeff Maryak, a 39-year-old Army reservist and combat veteran, was just one of the millions of middle-class Americans getting by, but barely.

On the plus side of the personal ledger, Maryak has a new desk job at Fort Meade. It pays him well (around $80,000 annually, before taxes), offers the possibility of promotion, and puts him squarely in the middle class, even in an area like Washington, which has one of the highest cost of living rates in the nation.

The Sequester Isn't A Joke For Jeff Maryak

Obama announces "the next great American project" - CBS News

Touting the economic as well as scientific benefits of investing in basic research, President Obama Tuesday unveiled a new initiative to study the human brain that he called "the next great American project."

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Obama: Brain initiative is "the next great American project"

"Ideas are what power our economy," Mr. Obama said at an event in the East Room of the White House. "We've been a nation of dreamers and risk takers. We do innovation better than anybody else, and that makes our economy stronger."

In his proposed 2014 budget, Mr. Obama will call for investing $100 million to launch the BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) Initiative -- a project to speed up the development and application of technologies that will help researchers create dynamic brain imaging, in order to learn how individual brain cells and complex neural circuits interact.

Obama announces "the next great American project" - CBS News

Gitmo Hunger Strikers Vow To Leave Cuba 'Alive Or In A Box'

Turmoil engulfing American prisons at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, was sparked by a new base commander whose aggressive approach to the detainees has backfired, according to defense attorneys. The camp is now in the midst of a full-blown revolt, with most of the inmate population committeed to a hunger strike, yet the commander, Col. John V. Bogdan, has rejected the simple demand made by the prisoners, the lawyers said.

With 86 U.S. detainees cleared for release, but held indefinitely nonetheless, the camp had become peaceful over the past few years, with detainees being given a measure of dignity and, for the most cooperative, additional privileges. That changed when Bogdan took control in June 2012 and began confiscating personal items such as photographs, letters and yoga mats, cranking down cell temperatures, and reimposing the practice of searching detainee Qurans for contraband.

Gitmo Hunger Strikers Vow To Leave Cuba 'Alive Or In A Box'

This is a war crime perpetuated by Congress.