Trying to Avoid Overkill on the Transit Strike...
The Jessica alerted me to the fine line between funny and obnoxious when it comes to the Transit Strike 2005, so I'll keep the comments to a minimum. I do have a few items of interest that I wanted to mention though.
- First off, Mayor Bloomberg spoke this afternoon and had some pretty harsh comments for the the TWU. He basically said that union's "leadership thuggishly turned its back on New York City". TWU President, Roger Toussaint, responded with this comment, as seen on the FOX News this evening: "I have 2 words for Mayor Bloomberg: Have a little respect." Hmmm...
- So I have to believe that the strike can't go on for too long. Two reasons why:
1. When the MTA went to court saying that the strike is illegal (which it is...strikes are illegal in the state of New York), the judge imposed a $1 million per day fine against the union. They only have a treasury of $3 million, so you do the math. They keep this strike going for a few days and they're wiping out their cash.
2. The fines per worker are twice their daily pay. So for the workers who are striking in order to increase their salary, pension, etc., they're starting off on the wrong foot by losing 2 days pay per strike day.
(Great picture - courtesy of Gothamist)
- Great news from the College Football front: Penn State is being recognized for this excellent season. Not only did LB Paul Posluszny win the Butkus Award for the nation's top linebacker, he also won the Bednarik Award for the nation's top defensive player. Hey, and throw in a spot on the All-America first team. Today it was announced that Joe Paterno won AP Coach of the Year, which really says a lot for what he's done with the team this year. Many people thought JoePa was over the hill, that the game had passed him by. Then he goes out and assembles an amazing team full of young talent and some veterans who finally blossomed, and they come up with a fantastic season. Can't wait to watch the Orange Bowl on January 3rd.
- Can't stop listening to Thunder Lightning Strike by The Go! Team. Extremely catchy riffs, and some of the songs are rather poppy (if they were any poppier, they'd be like "Holla Back Girl"...but not quite...don't get ahead of yourself). I can't quite describe the sound....some of it has a soul tinge, some of it is funk, some of it is dance. After the first listen through, I thought to myself that this album is all over the place, but in a good way. They use horns and harmonicas, pianos and choruses of children. It really is quite enjoyable. Check out some samples on iTunes. By the way, I do realize that these guys have been quite big on the indie music scene for about a year now, but I missed the boat on them. Thanks to Eric Steinberg for passing on the music for my listening pleasure.
Nothing else from me tonight. I'll swing by tomorrow afternoon (possibly) and tomorrow night (most definitely) with the updates from the you know what...
- First off, Mayor Bloomberg spoke this afternoon and had some pretty harsh comments for the the TWU. He basically said that union's "leadership thuggishly turned its back on New York City". TWU President, Roger Toussaint, responded with this comment, as seen on the FOX News this evening: "I have 2 words for Mayor Bloomberg: Have a little respect." Hmmm...
- So I have to believe that the strike can't go on for too long. Two reasons why:
1. When the MTA went to court saying that the strike is illegal (which it is...strikes are illegal in the state of New York), the judge imposed a $1 million per day fine against the union. They only have a treasury of $3 million, so you do the math. They keep this strike going for a few days and they're wiping out their cash.
2. The fines per worker are twice their daily pay. So for the workers who are striking in order to increase their salary, pension, etc., they're starting off on the wrong foot by losing 2 days pay per strike day.
(Great picture - courtesy of Gothamist)
- Great news from the College Football front: Penn State is being recognized for this excellent season. Not only did LB Paul Posluszny win the Butkus Award for the nation's top linebacker, he also won the Bednarik Award for the nation's top defensive player. Hey, and throw in a spot on the All-America first team. Today it was announced that Joe Paterno won AP Coach of the Year, which really says a lot for what he's done with the team this year. Many people thought JoePa was over the hill, that the game had passed him by. Then he goes out and assembles an amazing team full of young talent and some veterans who finally blossomed, and they come up with a fantastic season. Can't wait to watch the Orange Bowl on January 3rd.
- Can't stop listening to Thunder Lightning Strike by The Go! Team. Extremely catchy riffs, and some of the songs are rather poppy (if they were any poppier, they'd be like "Holla Back Girl"...but not quite...don't get ahead of yourself). I can't quite describe the sound....some of it has a soul tinge, some of it is funk, some of it is dance. After the first listen through, I thought to myself that this album is all over the place, but in a good way. They use horns and harmonicas, pianos and choruses of children. It really is quite enjoyable. Check out some samples on iTunes. By the way, I do realize that these guys have been quite big on the indie music scene for about a year now, but I missed the boat on them. Thanks to Eric Steinberg for passing on the music for my listening pleasure.
Nothing else from me tonight. I'll swing by tomorrow afternoon (possibly) and tomorrow night (most definitely) with the updates from the you know what...
posted by The Ross @ 11:55 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
Ross...I lost a little respect for you with the "Holla back girl" reference. I wasn't sure if you knew this or not, but I don't consider people my friend that like Gwen Stefani or Ashlee Simpson. Good day!
Let me change my story around. The Go! Team has a sound that is very poppy, and they have a female lead singer who has a high-pitched voice. A couple of the songs sound cheerleader-ish, but overall, the music is extremely catchy and unique. I would never endorse Gwen Stefani or Ashlee Simpson's music, and it was probably the wrong comparison to make. But give The Go! Team a chance and check them out. And allow me to gain back my music cred.
The Go! Team album Thunder, Lightning Strike, is a great album. Very catch tunes. It is out there, but makes for great listening. It definitely does not sound like Stefani or the Devil (Simpson). It was a bad analogy, but i think Ross said it to explain its catchiness (if that's even a word). Check it out when you have a chance. Its good stuff.
Ross, you can't kill the Transit Strike any more than the major media already has. Even though I'm not a huge supporter of his, I'm with Bloomberg on this one. These guys have it pretty damn good (average transit worker makes 50K). To put it in perspective, starting police officers make less than the guys that clean the subways, and yet they are forced to forfeit their vacation time and stand out in the freezing cold directing traffic.
BGriff, couldn't agree with you more, brotha. If only the TWU would understand this logic and get back to providing their public service rather than disservice.
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