Good Wednesday morning. Here’s a glance at opinion content published today in The Journal News:
Albany lobbying: Editorial
We comment on news that Westchester cities like White Plains and Yonkers and Rockland towns like Ramapo have spent millions to retain lobbyists to make their cases in Albany. We write:
Newly minted White Plains Mayor Thomas Roach calls it “strange” that his city, or any local government, has to hire lobbyists to pitch for state funding in Albany.Strange, indeed, but not unusual. Local governments and their affiliated organizations spent $7 million for lobbying in 2010, according to data compiled by the New York Public Interest Research Group and the state Commission on Public Integrity. Why they spend the money is no mystery; it still seems like paying Peter to shake down Paul.
Taxpayers who already fund overlapping layers of government properly wonder why they must also pay for these nongovernment go-betweens. Aren’t there already enough extended hands in the capital? That may be the point.
Mentoring: Commentary
Wendy Gardner, a former three-term member of the Byram Hills Board of Education and a volunteer at Children’s Village in Dobbs Ferry, offers a Community View in which she argues that mentoring is a surefire way to secure better futures for our young people.
More opinion
Here’s a digest of what our colleagues at newspapers across the state are saying today:
Spill lessons go unheeded: Editorial, Poughkeepsie Journal
Silly kid stuff: Editorial, Daily News
A fresh warning from Wall Street: Editorial, Albany Times Union
Protect against privacy invasions: Editorial, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
The pension fund mess: Editorial, The Buffalo News
