Three Good Columns You Probably Haven't Seen. Two Will Educate You, One May Aggravate You.

Subject: Three Sagacious Columns
Date: 11/5/2005 3:22:49 AM Eastern Standard Time
From: starquest@nycivic.org
To: reysmontj@aol.com
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Three Good Columns You Probably Haven't Seen.
Two Will Educate You, One May Aggravate You.

By Henry J. Stern
November 4, 2005

AVLON COLUMNS DISCUSS ROLE OF THIRD PARTIES IN LOCAL ELECTIONS AND DENOUNCE CABLEVISION FOR HIDING BEHIND RESPECTED GROUPS

A column, by John P. Avlon, on the subject of third parties was published in the New York Sun on Tuesday. It is an interesting exposition of these parties' historic role, as well as an evaluation of their current prospects. We linked to it in Q-70 Wednesday, but since just 10% of our readers have so far opted to be on the Q list. we wanted to give the non-Qs another chance to link to it

With Q, you may get more frequent, shorter items, often links to news stories, columns or editorials which we find particularly worthwhile. We try to put it out in the morning, so you can find the articles early if you care to. Qs continue to receive our regular articles., which usually come out late in the day. If you are not a Q and would like to be one, just return this e-mail with Q entered on the subject line. If you do not want Q, do nothing. We send Q only to people who specifically ask to receive it, unless there is an issue which we feel has special importance or immediacy.

Another Avlon column, which appeared today, titled PROFILES IN CYNICISM, discusses Cablevision, the parent of Madison Square Garden, and its efforts on behalf of Prop One, a subject we gave you links on yesterday. Avlon makes new points, dealing with the cynicism of the pro Prop One advertising and how Cablevision hides behind the names of respected but misguided (on this issue) goo-goos. His most fiery quote: "But the hottest places in hell are for those people who try to manipulate the idealism of others for their own selfish ends."

Although every New York City newspaper has opposed Prop One, Avlon explains what it really means and how it came about. It may pass because people are ignorant of its import or misled by the advertising he describes. You don't have to be a conspiracy theorist to spot this one. Avlon's column is a juicy link. If you are excitable enough, it might even make your blood boil.


JULIA LEVY ANALYZES MAYORAL CAMPAIGN: WHAT HAPPENED AND WHY

The lead story in Wednesday's Sun, by Julia Levy, was a news analysis of the mayoral campaign. Her observations are perceptive. The article, 1539 words long, is unusually specific and more probing than most pieces written on the subject, which will climax Tuesday. There has already been some waning of interest, such as occurs in a football game when one team takes a big lead. In elections, however, the only points that count are the ones that will be scored the day we vote.

Nonetheless, this year we appear to be watching the most one-sided contest since Mayor Robert F. Wagner's first re-election in 1957, when he defeated the hapless Republican postmaster of New York, Robert K. Christenberry, who had chaired the State Athletic Commission. Mayor Koch won by similarly large margins in 1981, when he was the nominee of the Republicans as well as the Democrats, and in 1985, when he defeated City Council President Carol Bellamy, who took second place on the Liberal Party line. Ms. Bellamy, who had been a Peace Corps official, later served ten years, the maximum period allowed under term limits, as director of UNICEF (the United Nations Children's Fund).

The difference this year is that previous big winners ran on the Democratic line, sometimes with Liberal support, whereas Mr. Bloomberg's line, column A, carries the label Republican-Liberal, and sports the Republican eagle and the Liberals' liberty bell. The Conservative Party's candidate, Thomas Ognibene, runs under their symbol, a lit torch.

The headline on Ms. Levy's piece in the Sun: WITH FERRER LAGGING, POLITICAL CLASS ASKS HOW HE FELL BEHIND; Margin of His Loss Could Exceed that of Messinger, Some Predict.

Ms. Levy's lede: "It might be too early to write a post-mortem for Fernando Ferrer's mayoral campaign, but the city's political class is already beginning to discuss what might be known as a pre-mortem."

In the analysis, which jumps from page 1 to page 3, she quotes seven people, starting and ending with Ferrer's campaign manager, Nick Baldick, followed by the oft-quoted sage, Professor Douglas Muzzio of Baruch College, and continuing with blogger StarQuest, columnist and sometime campaign manager Joseph Mercurio, the redoubtable Mayor Koch, SQ redux, West Side State Senator Eric Schneiderman, and Borough President in waiting Scott Stringer.

To read the quotes, some of which are savory (although none is unsavory), link to Julia Levy. NYCivic never predicts election results, we find it as difficult as picking winners at sports, or stocks that are likely to rise.

Enjoy the weekend. We hope that those of you who get this column at your office Monday will have enjoyed it.

Don't forget that to vote on the Propositions, you have to find them on the ballot. Millions of voters don't.

#263 11.04.05 853wds

Henry J. Stern
starquest@nycivic.org
New York Civic
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