NYC Gov going "Locavore" Big Time!

by Eddie C

Today on The Leonard Lopate Show the lead story was called Feeding The Soul and for anyone seeking to restore their faith in good government, it did just that. Two guest in an interview to discuss Food Works in New York City that would have seemed an unlikely pair as recently as yesterday.

One was Chef Dan Barber who has been a great advocate in the New York area for the local food movement. The other was City Council speaker Christine Quinn. Today they were on the same page. It was amazing to hear Christine Quinn's introduction sounding more like Marion Nestle in talks about what the government needs to do, hearing a powerful politician discussing things being done now and progressive plans for a sustainable future. I've never heard such a merger of bottom up activism and top down good government action before.

The city has already moved $4.5 million in public school food spending over to local farms and is trying to change the $300,000 spent on school lettuce to money being pumped into the Rockland County farm economy and processing facilities in the economically depressed Bronx. But that was just the tip of the iceberg.

continued at Daily Kos....

Heating Oil: The Oil Crisis in New York City

by Eddie C

This is not an area I'm very familiar with but apparently the complex where I live represents three of the 9,000 NYC buildings that play a large part in New York City air failing federal health standards by burning a very dirty heating oil.

A report from Environmental Defense Fund shows that just one percent of New York City's buildings, those burning the dirtiest grades of heating oil, produce more pollution than all the city's cars and trucks combined. The report "The Bottom of the Barrel: How the Dirtiest Heating Oil Pollutes Our Air and Harms Our Health," advocates phasing out the dirty oil by 2020.

The pollution produced by burning No. 4 or 6 oil—some 1,000 tons of it every year—threatens the health of all New Yorkers, creating a rain of toxic soot that aggravates asthma, increases the risk of cancer, exacerbates respiratory illnesses and can cause premature death.

Below the fold are some of the politics involved and the temporary solution my complex came up with.

continued at Daily Kos....

Tomorrow will be too late for the Bronx Zoo and New York Aquarium

by Eddie C

I've already written a diary called Save the Bronx Zoo Today. Now an email from the zoo points out that "Tomorrow will be too late for the Bronx Zoo and New York Aquarium." In the Bronx alone more than 800 teens are hired each year with more than 1,000 seasonal workers getting jobs at the zoo. Bloomberg who will bend over backwards to save every single job on Wall St. has already knocked city support down to $9 million last year and he thinks another 42% is feeling the bite? His answer to this threat to the Bronx economy can be seen at this NY1 report "every group has to feel the bite from budget cuts." With the proposed 50% cut from Albany that's far more than a bite. I covered as much as I could in Save the Bronx Zoo Today so now I will just copy and paste that letter below with some alternative actions.  

continued at Daily Kos....

"Doomsday"cuts for public transportation as politicians pay lip service to energy independence

by nyceve

I live in New York City.  Public transportation is the life blood of this teeming metropolis. Most people who live in New York don't own cars, we use public transportation for everything.  Yet, we are approaching  doomsday here, the MTA which runs our transit system has announced huge cuts due to a lack of funding. But New York’s Metropolitian Transportation Agency (MTA) faces a nearly $400 million budget shortfall this year after tax revenues plummeted in the recession. The agency’s debt load has more than doubled in the last decade, it was $13 billion in 2000. It now owes $30 billion in outstanding bonds, payable at interest rates of between two percent to five percent. Seeing the BP catastrophe destroy lives all along the Gulf Coast, and  weeping over the graphic images which recount the tragic consequences of our addiction to oil, it is unfathomable that mass transit in New York City and many other great American cities struggles to survive.

continued at Daily Kos....

Save the Bronx Zoo Today

by Eddie C

What a difference a year makes. About a year ago in my extremely popular  The Animals are Getting the Pink Slip (A Bronx Zoo photo and action diary) this is what big sister Moxie looked like; Yesterday I took my camera to see the three new lion cubs at the Bronx Zoo. The diary is called Friday Evening Photo Blogging: Lion Cubs Today! I can hardly tell Moxie and her mama Sukari apart but I got some great photos of Moxie playing loving sister to three 25 pound cubs. Now the stars of the zoo are  Nala, Adamma and Shani; What hasn't changed is that both Bloomberg and Paterson are still screwing the zoo and many cultural institutions. This year much harder than last. See below for what actions we the people have left.

continued at Daily Kos....

Friday Evening Photo Blogging: Lion Cubs Today!

by Eddie C

Hello and welcome to Friday Evening Photo Blogging. Tonight's Memorial Day weekend diary was intended to be a dedication to the Navy and Marine personnel that are enjoying my city this week but the weather in Manhattan hasn't been good enough to get good shots. So I took a trip to the African veldt today instead. You guessed it, I never made it out of the Bronx. Today I went to see the three new lion cubs that were born on January 27th and made their public début this week. So give a roaring welcome to Nala, Adamma and Shani as they get used to their new digs. Their big sister Moxie is a very good baby sitter for these 25 pound kittens.

continued at Daily Kos....