After Nolan Ryan broke into the big leagues he had to pump gas during the winter to make ends meet. Ryan thanked Marvin Miller in 1999 speech

"Nolan Ryan, Hall of Fame induction speech, 1999: "Also, I would like to thank somebody that definitely has had an impact on myself and my family and many ballplayers sitting in this audience today and that was Marvin Miller. I came into the game when I broke into the major leagues, and the minimum salary was $7,000, and I had to go home in the winter time and get a job. And the first year that I was in the big leagues, the job I had was at a service station pumping gas from 3:00 to 9:00pm and closing the service station so Ruth and I could live through the winter until baseball season started. She worked in a bookstore at the college. And because of Marvin's efforts and the people in baseball, we brought that level up to where the players weren't put in that situation. Marvin, I appreciate the job that you have done and the impact that it's had on my family. Thank you." from ThanksMarvin.com, via caller to WFAN Tony Paige show

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Bobby Valentine and Brian Cashman will rappel in Stamford, Conn. on Sunday for tree lighting event

11/27/12, "Cashman, Bobby V to rappel.
For the third straight year, Cashman will rappel down the 22-story Landmark Building in downtown Stamford, Conn. -- near the GM's home in Darien -- as part of the Heights and Lights Holiday Tree Lighting event Sunday. He'll be joined by Bobby Valentine, a Stamford resident, who was fired after one season as the Red Sox manager. Before taking that job, Valentine, a friend of Cashman's, served as Stamford's public safety director." (item at end of column). "Source: Andy Pettitte to return next season for Yankees," Newsday, Erik Boland

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In 1821 a major hurricane hit NY at low tide splitting Manhattan in half. Had the storm hit at high tide as Sandy did, Manhattan would have been wiped off the map

11/26/12, "New York Times Joins The Mayans," Steven Goddard

"There had been warnings. In 2009, the New York City Panel on Climate Change issued a prophetic report. (In 2012, The NY Times wonders) "Is This the End?" – NYTimes.com

Mayan prophets agree – we were warned.

In 1821, a major hurricane hit New York at low tide, [2012 Storm 'Sandy' hit at high tide] and the storm surge split Manhattan in half. Had that storm hit at high tide, lower Manhattan would have been wiped off the map.

"In 1821, stunned colonial New Yorkers recorded sea levels rising as fast as 13 feet in a single hour at the Battery. The East River and Hudson Rivers merged over Lower Manhattan all the way to Canal Street. According to Coch, the fact that the 1821 storm struck at low tide “is the only thing that saved the city.” New York Press – AARON NAPARSTEK – THE BIG ONE

Two hundred years later, Manhattan is still here and The New York Times has been taken over by morons."...image from NY Times, Freeman.






















Image above from Steven Goddard

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A $10 million MLB player living and playing in Florida will pay half a million more in Obama taxes in 2013, AP

11/23/12, "Tax increases could factor in MLB negotiations," Ronald Blum, AP

"Team executives and agents wandered into the Agave Sunset lounge at the resort where the general managers' meetings were held in Indian Wells, Calif. Four of the six flat-screen televisions were showing election coverage, with the other two turned to sports.

President Barack Obama's victory over Mitt Romney was of as much interest to baseball's money men as the game scores, given the millions of dollars routinely guaranteed in player contracts these days.

As free agents negotiate deals this offseason, tax policy is an area that comes up along with the usual issues. Some players are wrangling for as much money as they can get before the end of the year to avoid a take hike in 2013.

"Front-loading would make sense if at all possible as tax rates will definitely go up on January 1st on all high-income taxpayers," agent Greg Genske said in an email. "The only question is HOW MUCH will the rates increase????"

This much is known for now: Starting Jan. 1, there is an additional

• 0.9 percent Medicare tax on wages above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly 
• under the federal Affordable Care Act, a rise to 2.35 percent.

In addition, the Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, which could raise the highest marginal federal tax rate from 35 percent to 39.6 percent —

although a deal between Obama and Congress could change that....

With baseball contracts worth as much as $275 million (Alex Rodriguez) and the major league minimum $480,000, tax policy affects every player who spends most of the season in the big leagues.

All-Star shortstop Jose Reyes, who has a $10 million salary next year, was traded from the Miami Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays. While Florida has no state income tax, Reyes remains a New York resident from his days with the Mets and had high taxes to begin with.

• Ontario's provincial tax rises to 11.16 percent — on top of a Canadian federal level as high as 29 percent.

Among states with big league teams, income tax rates go as high as

•  10.3 percent in California and 8.82 percent in New York. 

At the other end, Florida, Texas and Washington have no state income tax. The top

• rate in the District of Columbia is 8.95 percent.

"I like ours; we're a no-tax state," Seattle Mariners general manager Jack Zdurienck said. "When we sit down with players, that's a huge benefit. I think any player out there that has an opportunity to play in a no-tax state gets benefits, enormous benefits. We hope that weighs in our favor."

According to an analysis done by a tax lawyer on the staff of agent Scott Boras, a player with a $10 million salary and average deductions who plays in Florida and is a resident of that state will see his taxes rise

•  from $3.45 million this year to $4.09 million next year

under current law. If traded to the Blue Jays, that player's 2013 tax would rise to $4.27 million. And if dealt

• to a California team,
• the tax would go up to $4.4 million.

By moving money from salary into signing bonuses, players can sometimes lower their state tax bills. Shifting money into December this year could reduce federal taxes.

"Tax measures are going to be discussed, but change most likely carries compromise on both sides," Boras said. "One thing is clear based on the nation's ballot totals: Many Americans are split on this subject."

In the end, most free agents choose teams based on where they want to play, not on lowering the tax cut on their income.

"It's a factor, maybe even a small factor," agent Craig Landis said. "If there's 50 variables, you can now make it a 51st. It's not usually going to be the drive, but it's something to consider."

And for teams, only the big spenders need worry."...  via Drudge

Team executives and agents wandered into the Agave Sunset lounge at the resort where the general managers' meetings were held in Indian Wells, Calif. Four of the six flat-screen televisions were showing election coverage, with the other two turned to sports.

President Barack Obama's victory over Mitt Romney was of as much interest to baseball's money men as the game scores, given the millions of dollars routinely guaranteed in player contracts these days.
As free agents negotiate deals this offseason, tax policy is an area that comes up along with the usual issues. Some players are wrangling for as much money as they can get before the end of the year to avoid a take hike in 2013.
"Front-loading would make sense if at all possible as tax rates will definitely go up on January 1st on all high-income taxpayers," agent Greg Genske said in an email. "The only question is HOW MUCH will the rates increase????"
This much is known for now: Starting Jan. 1, there is an additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax on wages above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly under the federal Affordable Care Act, a rise to 2.35 percent.
In addition, the Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, which could raise the highest marginal federal tax rate from 35 percent to 39.6 percent — although a deal between Obama and Congress could change that.
Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane figures agents will be on top of the changes — but the results of negotiations about the so-called fiscal cliff are unpredictable.

Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/20169524/tax-increases-could-factor-in-mlb-negotiations#ixzz2D4aucbqt

Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/20169524/tax-increases-could-factor-in-mlb-negotiations#ixzz2D4aucbqt

Team executives and agents wandered into the Agave Sunset lounge at the resort where the general managers' meetings were held in Indian Wells, Calif. Four of the six flat-screen televisions were showing election coverage, with the other two turned to sports.

President Barack Obama's victory over Mitt Romney was of as much interest to baseball's money men as the game scores, given the millions of dollars routinely guaranteed in player contracts these days.
As free agents negotiate deals this offseason, tax policy is an area that comes up along with the usual issues. Some players are wrangling for as much money as they can get before the end of the year to avoid a take hike in 2013.
"Front-loading would make sense if at all possible as tax rates will definitely go up on January 1st on all high-income taxpayers," agent Greg Genske said in an email. "The only question is HOW MUCH will the rates increase????"
This much is known for now: Starting Jan. 1, there is an additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax on wages above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly under the federal Affordable Care Act, a rise to 2.35 percent.
In addition, the Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, which could raise the highest marginal federal tax rate from 35 percent to 39.6 percent — although a deal between Obama and Congress could change that.
Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane figures agents will be on top of the changes — but the results of negotiations about the so-called fiscal cliff are unpredictable.

Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/20169524/tax-increases-could-factor-in-mlb-negotiations#ixzz2D4aucbqt

Team executives and agents wandered into the Agave Sunset lounge at the resort where the general managers' meetings were held in Indian Wells, Calif. Four of the six flat-screen televisions were showing election coverage, with the other two turned to sports.

President Barack Obama's victory over Mitt Romney was of as much interest to baseball's money men as the game scores, given the millions of dollars routinely guaranteed in player contracts these days.
As free agents negotiate deals this offseason, tax policy is an area that comes up along with the usual issues. Some players are wrangling for as much money as they can get before the end of the year to avoid a take hike in 2013.
"Front-loading would make sense if at all possible as tax rates will definitely go up on January 1st on all high-income taxpayers," agent Greg Genske said in an email. "The only question is HOW MUCH will the rates increase????"
This much is known for now: Starting Jan. 1, there is an additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax on wages above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly under the federal Affordable Care Act, a rise to 2.35 percent.
In addition, the Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, which could raise the highest marginal federal tax rate from 35 percent to 39.6 percent — although a deal between Obama and Congress could change that.
Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane figures agents will be on top of the changes — but the results of negotiations about the so-called fiscal cliff are unpredictable.

Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/20169524/tax-increases-could-factor-in-mlb-negotiations#ixzz2D4aucbqt

Team executives and agents wandered into the Agave Sunset lounge at the resort where the general managers' meetings were held in Indian Wells, Calif. Four of the six flat-screen televisions were showing election coverage, with the other two turned to sports.

President Barack Obama's victory over Mitt Romney was of as much interest to baseball's money men as the game scores, given the millions of dollars routinely guaranteed in player contracts these days.
As free agents negotiate deals this offseason, tax policy is an area that comes up along with the usual issues. Some players are wrangling for as much money as they can get before the end of the year to avoid a take hike in 2013.
"Front-loading would make sense if at all possible as tax rates will definitely go up on January 1st on all high-income taxpayers," agent Greg Genske said in an email. "The only question is HOW MUCH will the rates increase????"
This much is known for now: Starting Jan. 1, there is an additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax on wages above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly under the federal Affordable Care Act, a rise to 2.35 percent.
In addition, the Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, which could raise the highest marginal federal tax rate from 35 percent to 39.6 percent — although a deal between Obama and Congress could change that.
Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane figures agents will be on top of the changes — but the results of negotiations about the so-called fiscal cliff are unpredictable.

Read more: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/20169524/tax-increases-could-factor-in-mlb-negotiations#ixzz2D4aucbqt

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News Corp. acquires 49% stake in YES Network, Yankee stake reduced to 25%, Goldman and Providence falls to 12%

11/20/12, “News Corp to take 49 percent stake in Yankees TV channel,” Reuters

“News Corp will acquire a 49 percent equity stake in the YES Network from the New York Yankees baseball club and its partners, giving the media company a major sports presence in the largest U.S. TV market.

After three years, News Corp would be able to acquire a larger stake that could bring its ownership to 80 percent, the company said in a joint statement with Yankee Global Enterprises, the parent company of the Yankees.

News Corp declined to disclose financial details. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters the deal would value the sports channel at $3 billion.
 
The source also said the Yankees’ new stake in the network will be 25 percent, down from 34 percent, while Goldman Sachs and Providence Equity Partners’ combined stake falls to 12 percent from 32 percent. Other investors will also reduce their investments as part of the transaction.

The deal would allow the regional sports network YES to raise the current $2.99 monthly fee per subscriber it charges cable and satellite operators to carry the channel, said a source familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because these details were not yet public.

News Corp would negotiate on its behalf with operators as part of a larger package of sports channels, the source said. This could happen in the next year or so because YES’s major carriage agreements with the largest cable operators, Time Warner Cable and Comcast expire in the next 18 months, according to the source.

YES currently has 15 million subscribers. The Yankees hold one of the strongest brands in sports and enjoy nationwide popularity that extends beyond the 7.4 million homes that make New York the largest U.S. TV market….

News Corp, the media company that owns Fox Broadcasting and The Wall Street Journal, owns or holds stakes in 20 regional sports networks, providing sports programming to more than 67 million subscribers.”

————————————————-

11/18/12, “News Corporation’s Bid for a Stake in YES Would Value Channel at $3 Billion,” NY Times, Bats Blog, Sandomir, Chozick

“The Yankees and News Corporation have a family connection. George Steinbrenner and Rupert Murdoch were friendly and Mr. Murdoch’s son James sits on the board of Yankee Global Enterprises.

In recent months James Murdoch has taken on more responsibilities domestically, after he stepped down from his post in Britain amid controversy over a phone-hacking scandal at the company’s British newspaper division, which he oversaw.

In his newly expanded job as the company’s deputy chief operating officer, James oversees News Corporation’s television business, including its regional sports channels.

James Murdoch reports to Chase Carey, News Corporation’s chief operating officer and a die-hard Yankees fan.“

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3 days of weather equals catastrophic automobile and lightbulb caused end of humanity and the planet per Cincinnati baseball pundit

11/8/12, "The Morning Line, All-Baseball Edition," Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati.com, by Alex Blumer

"If you still don’t believe in Global Warming, you don’t live where I do. Ten full days without power of any kind and the day I get it back—a Nor’easter slams my world with 10 inches of snow and trees already battered by Sandy get further weakened last night. This storm arrived almost a month early in the season. By Sunday, it’s going to be back in the 60s here. Insanity. Climate Change is real, my friends.
Over in Staten Island, residents’ most pressing need is? Underwear. If you’ve got an extra 10 bucks, send it to the Red Cross. And say a prayer for the people who are suddenly homeless, cold and hungry." via Tom Nelson

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Rivera throws first pitch in Panama for WBC qualifying

11/15/12, "Rivera throws out first pitch at Classic qualifier," MLB.com, Espinoza

"Panama City native and future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera addressed reporters on Thursday, hours before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at Rod Carew National Stadium, prior to Panama playing Brazil in World Baseball Classic qualifying.

"I do have a lot of pride to do this because I'm in my hometown," the Yankees closer said. "And when you're in your hometown, it's obviously a pride and a joy to be here. I wish I would be throwing out the last pitch and not the first pitch, but it is what it is. I'm just going to be here to enjoy and support the team."

Rivera missed the most of the 2012 season after tearing his right anterior cruciate ligament in May. Reporters asked why Rivera, who turns 43 on Nov. 29, won't be participating in the Classic for Panama, but Rivera said he's not 100 percent yet.

"I'm feeling good," Rivera told MLB.com. "The rehab has been great. It's been tough, but at the same time, I'm seeing good results. I can't wait to continue and stay 100 percent. A day at a time, like I always tell you guys. A day at a time."

As for his contract negotiations with the Yankees, they're still ongoing. Rivera said he can't imagine himself in any other uniform but pinstripes.

"I won't say that," Rivera said. "Definitely, it would be the Yankees, obviously."

Rivera isn't the only high-profile MLB player who will throw out a ceremonial first pitch at the Panama World Baseball Classic qualifier, as Royals pitcher Bruce Chen is scheduled to throw out the first pitch on Friday before the Colombia-Nicaragua matchup."

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At Thanksgiving charity event arranged by Texas Rangers, Ian Kinsler declined to answer any questions about baseball

11/15/12, "At charity Thanksgiving event, Ian Kinsler balks at fielding baseball questions," Gerry Fraley, Dallas News Rangers blog

"Texas Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler discussed his golf game in detail on Thursday but refused to take baseball-related questions.

At a media event arranged by the club, Kinsler listed the golf courses he has played in the off-season and his involvement in a Thanksgiving celebration at the Family Gateway in downtown Dallas. Kinsler and his family distributed cold-weather items such as scarves to about 60 children and presented gifts to children whose birthday is in November.

Kinsler balked at the first baseball question.

“To be honest with you, I’m not really here to talk about baseball,” Kinsler said. “Sorry. … Baseball’s really not on my mind right now.”

Kinsler could be trying to forget his dreadful season.

He had career-lows in on-base percentage at .326 and OPS at .749 and a career-high for strikeouts with 90. He also led major-league second basemen in errors with 18.

Kinsler was a major figure in the Rangers’ late collapse. He hit only .207 with a .276 on-base percentage and .623 OPS for the final month of the regular season. Kinsler scored only 14 runs in 30 games.

Kinsler has not commented since the end of the season. Unlike teammates such as Josh Hamilton, MIke Napoli and Michael Young, Kinsler did not appear in the locker room to answer questions following the loss to Baltimore in the wild-card “knockout” game.

Kinsler next year will start a new five-year contract during which he is guaranteed $75 million."

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Jack O'Connell not ready for his close-up as presenter for baseball's first televised awards

11/15/12, "Watch The Super Awkward Presenter Of Baseball’s Individual Awards," Sportsgrid.com, Jordan Rabinowitz

"Well, Major League Baseball’s awards week is over. It was certainly the most talked about such week in recent memory, capped by the closest AL Cy Young race in history, the first knuckleballer to ever take home the NL Cy Young, and an AL MVP race in which the writers flipped off sabermetricians everywhere, with a resounding “Not yet, nerds!”

But this year’s awards also made a bit of history in that they were televised for the first time. And just in case you didn’t make it to the MLB Network to watch the big reveals, here are all eight for you. This wouldn’t be of any significance, except for the fact that BBWAA secretary/treasurer Jack O’Connell, the man who presented the awards, is the most painstakingly awkward human on the face of the planet. You have more charisma than him, and most likely, you have very little charisma.

O’Connell looked so desperately like he needed a teleprompter or a script, but sadly, did not have one. Shifty eyes, and weird starts and stops marked his performance. He is also uncharacteristically sullen for such a joyous event, so I don’t really know what gives. And with no audience to picture in their underpants except for Billy Ripken, he was doomed from the start. Without further ado, Mr. O’Connell."...

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Reports say good chance WFAN 660AM in NY will switch to national CBS Sports programming in 2013

10/8/12, "CBS Radio Purchases New York FM Station, Plans To Put WFAN on Signal," FangsBites

"Will the 660 AM frequency flip to another format? I expect it will, but to keep listeners happy, the simulcast will most likely stay into 2013 before CBS decides to flip it or even sell the station. We shall see."

--------------------------------------------

10/29/12, "WFAN airs on 101.9 FM this Friday," Neil Best, Newsday

"WFAN announced it would begin airing on 101.9-FM in addition to its longtime home at 660-AM at 12:01 a.m. Friday....The added station gives CBS a potential New York outlet for the national sports network that is to begin 24-hour programming Jan. 2, 2013. The company eventually could air national shows on AM and local programming on FM. In recent weeks, WFAN listeners have been hearing the "CBS Sports Minute," an element of the national network."

------------------------------------------

10/30/12, "Sports Talkers on the Rise," The Broadcast Booth, Dave Kohl

 "This would seem to bode well for WFAN going to FM, at first with a simulcast, and a possible "split" with the AM going to national programming just after the first of the year."...

--------------------------------------------

Ed. note: My experience with 'national' sports radio networks is they talk about football all year. On NY local radio you can talk about baseball all year.

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ESPN sportscaster Stuart Scott gave $25,000 to Obama campaign

11/3/12, "ESPN sportscaster Stuart Scott also doesn’t cover politics directly; he gave $25,000 to Obama’s joint fundraising committee in September."

11/3/12, "Journalists open wallets for Obama and Romney," Politico, Levinthal and Parti, via Breitbart

==============

Ed. note: The white bar you see defacing this post below was put there by illegal hackers who've been with me for several years. They vandalize my posts in a variety of ways, this is just one example.

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Main Street America made clear its unhappiness in the 2010 midterm elections. Astonishingly, the Beltway ignored this. Main Street has another chance to be heard on Tuesday-Salena Zito

11/3/12, “Main Street in revolt,” Salena Zito, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

“Two years after suffering a historic shellacking in the 2010 midterm election, Democrats astonishingly have ignored Main Street Americans’ unhappiness.

That 2010 ejection from the U.S. House, and from state legislatures and governors’ offices across the country,

didn’t happen inside the Washington Beltway world.

It didn’t reflect the Democrats’ or the media’s conventional wisdom or voter-turnout models. So it just wasn’t part of their reality.

In Democrats’ minds, it was never a question of “How did we lose Main Street?”

Instead, it was the fault of the “tea party” or of crazy right-wing Republicans.

Yet in interview after interview — in Colorado, along Nebraska’s plains, in small Iowa towns or Wisconsin shops, outside closed Ohio steel plants and elsewhere — many Democrats have told me they are furious with the president. Not in a frothing-at-the-mouth or racist way, as many elites suggest. They just have legitimate concerns affecting their lives.

These Main Street Democrats in seven battleground states supported Obama in 2008. Now they are disappointed by his broken pledges: Where is the promised bipartisanship? How could health-care reform become such a mess? What direction is the country going in?…

Obama’s progressivism no longer seems universal, upbeat and forward-looking; instead, it appears divisive, shrill and based on the worst kind of shortsighted power calculations.…

It is something else altogether to have today’s arbiters of political correctness order you to march “Forward” to a future

• with less promise, fewer choices, more intrusive government —

and to justify it by telling you to accept that the new normal of high employment, low growth and diminished world influence is good for you.

Is it any wonder that Main Street America is in revolt, since no one is telling its story?

Perhaps election night will tell it, at long last.” via Free Republic

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Arod househunting in Beverly Hills

11/2/12, "Searching for the perfect love nest! A-Rod hunts around Beverly Hills for a new home with Torrie Wilson," UK Daily Mail, Iona Kirby

"Alex 'A-Rod' Rodriguez was spotted house hunting with girlfriend Torrie Wilson on Thursday in Beverly Hills," fameflynet.uk.com

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Billionaire NYC Mayor Bloomberg’s personal fleet of private planes made 981 trips from 2007-2010, possibly emitting enough CO2 to be the single largest contributor to global warming and Hurricane Sandy (if global warming existed). Should Mike pay Sandy expenses as reparation?

2/14/11, “Flight records uncover elusive Mayor’s tracks,” WSJ, Maremont, McGinty, Saul


“Clues to his travels can be found in flight records of Mr. Bloomberg’s fleet of private planes, operated by his private financial-information company, Bloomberg LP, and also used by the mayor.

The planes flew to Bermuda, where Mr. Bloomberg owns a home, 16 times last year and 54 times in all from 2007 through 2010, according to Federal Aviation Administration records reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. On 41 trips, the aircraft left New York and spent all or part of the weekend in Bermuda. One overnight trip there coincided with the December blizzard, according to flight records.

The records also show that the Bloomberg fleet has been the single largest user of scarce slots allocated to private aircraft at La Guardia airport. The flights continued apace even after the mayor two years ago called for curbs on small commercial planes at La Guardia and other area airports to reduce congestion.

The FAA records don’t show the names of passengers, so it can’t be determined if Mr. Bloomberg was on board any particular flight. The mayor’s public schedule shows he couldn’t have been on six of the 54 flights to Bermuda. The mayor’s aides declined to comment on the other Bermuda trips….

A billionaire, Mr. Bloomberg also owns vacation homes in London and Vail, Colo., and enjoys playing golf in various locales….An entity named Bloomberg Services LLC currently operates at least four aircraft, FAA records show, and it ended the lease on a fifth last June. The aircraft also are used by Bloomberg LP executives, and by the mayor’s relatives and guests. Aides have said the cost of Mr. Bloomberg’s travel aboard his company’s planes, even for city business, is borne by the mayor, not by taxpayers. Bloomberg LP declined comment. 

Given the size of the Bloomberg Services fleet, the mayor undoubtedly wasn’t on board the majority of its flights over the past four years. Frequent destinations included Boston, London, and Washington—all home to many Bloomberg LP clients—and spots such as Raleigh-Durham, N.C., that the mayor isn’t know to often visit….
 
Bloomberg Services planes flew to another resort, the Bahamas, 14 times from New York-area airports between 2007 and 2010. The weekend before the December blizzard, for instance, a Falcon 900 took off from La Guardia for the Bahamas at 5:21 pm on Friday, Dec. 17, FAA records show. It arrived back in New York at 8:20 pm that Sunday.

Twice last April, Bloomberg Services jets left La Guardia for the Bahamas on Thursday evenings and returned on Sunday evenings.

Another frequent destination was West Palm Beach, Fla. One of the mayor’s daughters has a house near Palm Beach where she rides horses. Mr. Bloomberg’s aides declined to comment on any of the flights between New York airports and the Bahamas or West Palm Beach….

In August 2008, Mayor Bloomberg decried “chronic flight delays” at New York area airports, and threw his support behind a Bush Administration slot-auction proposal. “The largest culprit of delays today is the over-scheduling of small airplanes by airlines,” he wrote to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation.

The auction proposal was never implemented, and a spokeswoman said the FAA no longer supports it. In August 2008, the FAA further reduced the number of takeoff or landing slots for general aviation at La Guardia, from six movements per hour to three.

The largest single user of these scarce slots has been Bloomberg Services, FAA data show. Bloomberg planes departed or landed 853 times between August 2008 and the end of 2010. That is 8% of all general aviation movements at La Guardia during that period, but a tiny portion of all flights at the airport, which averages close to 1,000 daily aircraft movements.

Mr. Loeser declined to comment on any conflict between Mr. Bloomberg’s public stance on airport congestion and the number of Bloomberg Services flights at La Guardia.“

===============================

Bloomberg spent a total of $261 million of his own money to get himself elected 3 times to NYC Mayor:

11/27/09, “Bloomberg Spent $102 Million to Win 3rd Term,” NY Times, City Room, Michael Barbaro

“He has now officially spent more of his own money in the pursuit of public office than any other individual in United States history.”...

==========================

Bloomberg also has a global warming finance company, Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Naturally, he promotes global warming every chance he gets, such as on the cover of his magazine this week. 

 




 .











Ed. note: Mike Bloomberg is one of only two things. Either he's exceedingly ignorant (which I doubt), or he's mentally incapacitated (which would be unfortunate). The latter condition can be treated if the afflicted really wants to get better. Mike Bloomberg probably knows, but for those unaware of the good news, US CO2 emissions have dropped steadily since at least 2006 and are going lower. This has been acknowledged in the NY Times. A recent AP report noted US CO2 has been declining for 20 years. Though stunning, this news has been reported quietly. Because it means the global warming industry, the climate industry, the carbon trading industry are all technically bankrupt. It's over.

Other countries' CO2 hasn't dropped despite hundreds of billions spent on cap and trade and extra taxes. Even if CO2 does cause global warming and hurricanes as Mike Bloomberg maintains, it can't possibly be caused by the US. On the off chance that US CO2 from 10 years ago contributed to tropical storm Sandy as Bloomberg suggests, our CO2 is much lower now and is projected to continue to drop. Bloomberg says much more has to be done, that politicians must do more.

Politicians have driven this ponzi scheme since the beginning. No wonder Bloomberg calls out to them. Global Warming 'action' was institutionalized in US government in 1990 by George Bush the 1st in the "U.S. Global Change Research Act of 1990." (He mentions CO2 near the end).

Trillions have been taken from US taxpayers for "climate" expenses via outright agency budget allocations, tax subsidies, diversion of US military to climate or green projects, countless federal regulations, vast sums shipped out in foreign aid for no strings 'climate' endeavors, etc.

People like Mike Bloomberg are now faced with embarrassment and financial loss. Bloomberg has fashioned himself an international star of the CO2 terror industry, an industry that takes from the poor and gives to the rich. The engine of the "climate change" industry has always been demonizing ordinary Americans, portraying them as greedy villains of CO2 who must pay reparations now and in perpetuity. These reparations are to go to unelected, unaccountable thugs, parasites, and terrorists at the UN. These "caring" UN personnel will of course transfer the US taxpayer money to poor people who have suffered "climate injustice" because of Americans. UN people can also legally use the money to decorate their summer homes or put it in Swiss bank accounts for themselves. UN personnel are completely immune from all laws, can't be charged with any crime.

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6/4/12, "Climate change stunner: USA leads world in CO2 cuts since 2006," Vancouver Observer, Saxifrage

 


"Not only that, but as my top chart shows, US CO2 emissions are falling even faster than what President Obama pledged in the global Copenhagen Accord."...

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8/16/12, "AP IMPACT: CO2 emissions in US drop to 20-year low," AP, Kevin Begos

"In a surprising turnaround, the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere in the U.S. has fallen dramatically to its lowest level in 20 years, and government officials say the biggest reason is that cheap and plentiful natural gas has led many power plant operators to switch from dirtier-burning coal."...

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1/16/11, "Recession Special: Cleaner Air," NY Times, Matthew Wald

"What the government has not mandated, the economy is doing on its own:  

•  emissions of global warming gases in the United States are down.

According to the Energy Department, carbon dioxide emissions peaked in this country in 2005 and will not reach that level again until the early 2020s."...

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NRDC notes US CO2 drop and the fact that there has been minimal press coverage of it:

6/26/12, "The Incredible Shrinking Carbon Pollution Forecast - Part 2," switchboard.nrdc.org, Dan Lashof

"While there has been some press coverage of these facts (see here and here) I continue to find that most people are surprised to learn about this progress."...

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If US temperatures go up for a day, a month or 6 months, US human-caused CO2 is not, can't possibly be the reason.

 6/29/12, "US Carbon Output Forecasts Shrink Again," American Interest, Walter Russell Mead
 
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11/23/11, "Europe's $287 billion carbon 'waste': UBS report," The Australian, by Sid Maher

"SWISS banking giant UBS says the European Union's emissions trading scheme has cost the continent's consumers $287 billion for "almost zero impact" on cutting carbon emissions."...EU CO2 trading provided "windfall profits" to participants paid for by "electricity customers."" 

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11/18/10, "UN IPCC Official Admits 'We Redistribute World's Wealth By Climate Policy',
" NewsBusters, Noel Sheppard (Ed. note: Blogger sometimes doesn't allow me to link to NewsBusters as is the case here. You can probably find it by pasting into google. Sorry).

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Jersey Shore town Seaside Heights under martial law after Sandy

11/1/12, “Seaside Heights residents wait to see what remains,“ ABC News, WPVI TV, N. Muchanic

“The Fun Town Pier in Seaside Heights is now a pile of twisted metal and broken rides lying on the beach as waves lap over it.
It’s one of two piers destroyed in hurricane Sandy where the iconic Ferris wheels seem to be the only thing left standing.

“I think anybody who’s ever been to Seaside or grew up here loves this place; this the way I make my living and a lot of other people make their living. They’ll be back,” arcade worker Helen Stewart said.

It’s hard to conceive of how long that could take. Seaside Heights and nearby towns are under martial law.

“We know people are there, we’re keeping an eye on them, and they need to stay on their property. If they come off their property to come off the island, then they don’t get back on. It’ll be a while before anybody gets back on the island until we make it safe,” Toms River Police Chief Mike Mastronardy said.

That’s upsetting to homeowners who’ve only seen their barrier island from aerial shots. The pictures are devastating and they are desperate to find out if their houses are still standing.” via Free Republic

Pictures of Sandy impact

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Ed. note: Here is a You Tube video from Bay Head, New Jersey made after Sandy. Bay Head is about 10 miles north of Seaside Heights. Of interest at the You Tube site are questions people have left asking the videographer, Spraynard Kruger, if he/she could check on conditions at particular locations in town, they’re concerned about well-being of relatives living there. Spraynard mentions having to get back for “curfew” which may mean Bay Head is among “nearby towns” also under martial law mentioned in the Seaside Hts. story above. “Hurricane Sandy Destroys Bay Head NJ.” 

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Graham Spanier charged with perjury, endangering welfare of children, obstruction and conspiracy. Spanier now works for Obama (not a joke) in a ‘national security’ capacity

Spanier was  hired by the Obama administration early in 2012 to work on a “special project for the U.S. government relating [to] national security.”

11/1/12, “Graham Spanier charged with Sandusky sex abuse cover up,” BBC

“Pennsylvania State University’s former president faces charges of covering up child abuse by a long-term football coach, says the attorney general. Graham Spanier is the third official accused of protecting Jerry Sandusky, who was jailed for molesting boys.

The charges against Mr Spanier, 64, include perjury, obstruction, endangering children’s welfare and failing to report abuse. Sandusky’s arrest in November 2011 prompted a crisis at the university.

At a court in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Attorney General Linda Kelly said: “This was not a mistake by these men. This was not an oversight. It was not misjudgement on their part.
“This was a conspiracy of silence by top officials to actively conceal the truth.”

University administrators Timothy Curley and Gary Schultz were already accused of lying to the grand jury investigating the claims against Sandusky.

On Thursday, additional charges of endangering the welfare of children, obstruction and conspiracy were brought against them.

Ms Kelly alleged that the three university officials “knowingly testified falsely and failed to provide important information and evidence” about Sandusky.

Mr Curley and Mr Schultz insist they are innocent, while Mr Spanier’s lawyers have said their client was not aware of anything suspicious about Sandusky’s relationship with children.

But the grand jury report, included with the charges, said: “The actual harm realised by this wanton failure is staggering.”

Sandusky was sentenced last month to between 30 and 60 years in prison.

He was convicted in June on 45 out of 48 counts of sexually abusing 10 boys over 15 years.

Sandusky molested boys he met through the Second Mile, a charity he founded for at-risk youth.
The trial heard that the boys were abused at Sandusky’s home, in hotels and at Penn State athletic facilities.

Mr. Spanier had been president of Penn State for 16 years when he was forced out after Sandusky’s arrest.

Penn State was renowned in the US for its college football programme.”



Spanier and Sandusky, file photo, Reuters

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Spanier was hired by the Obama administration in early 2012:

7/27/12, “Graham Spanier’s gig as a federal worker is a mystery,” Washington Post, Emily Heil

“Graham Spanier might have been ousted from his post at the helm of Penn State over the sex-abuse scandal that engulfed the university, but it seems he’s found a backup employer: the American taxpayer.

Only a disgraced public figure would consider joining the much-maligned ranks of the federal workforce as a step up, reputation-wise. We can assume there were no openings for a used-car salesman.

Spanier was faulted in an internal Penn State report after the conviction on child-molestation charges of former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The report said he, head coach Joe Paterno and others helped cover up Sandusky’s abuse.

His lawyer confirms to the Loop that Spanier is working on a part-time consulting basis for a “top-secret” agency on national security issues. But the gig is so hush-hush, he couldn’t even tell his attorneys the name of the agency. In April — months after his ouster as president but before the release of the internal report — he told the Patriot-News of central Pennsylvania that he was working on a “special project for the U.S. government relating [to] national security.”

But who’s he working for? The CIA? Homeland Security? Or maybe just a dull consulting firm with a government contract?

“I have no idea,”says his lawyer, Peter Vaira. “We know the work is in security and he’s prohibited from disclosing which agency or agencies he’s working for.”

After the internal report was released, Spanier complained in a statement from his attorneys that the document didn’t make mention of his government clearance — something he apparently thought was evidence of his trustworthiness. He noted that his security clearance (which he apparently had first obtained while at Penn State) “required a re-review when the Sandusky matter surfaced in November” and that federal investigators conducted their own probe of his role in the Sandusky scandal. The federal investigation ended with his security clearance being “reaffirmed,” the statement read.

The Office of Personnel Management, essentially the federal government’s human-resources department, didn’t shed any light on Spanier’s mysterious gig as a possible federal employee. They instructed us to call individual agencies, even though we pointed out that we didn’t know which agencies to contact.

Have you spotted Spanier, sporting a government ID on a lanyard and carrying a brown-bag lunch?”

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