Bill de Blasio Marathon Hurricane Sandy Update

Bill de Blasio · 5,281 like this

about an hour ago · 

• We need to postpone the Marathon and keep our focus where it belongs: on public safety and vital relief operations.
  
  The pain and suffering still unfolding in our neighborhoods is too deep for words. I walked more streets with Councilman Oddo in Staten Island today, and listened to people who still remain without power, food and water – so near the race’s starting point. It's convinced me the needs are simply too great to divert any resources from the recovery. Lodgings reserved for marathoners must be re-allocated to utility workers.

Who Can Ban The Horse-Drawn Carriage Industry In New York City ?

WHO can end the carriage trade in New York City and why are they not doing anything about it considering that every online poll since 2006 has shown between 75 and 80 percent of respondents want this business to be shut down?

Animal rights activists are escalating the pressure on elected officials to ban the horse-drawn carriage industry in New York City over renewed safety and public health concerns for passengers, drivers, and the horses, themselves. Here is an excerpt from a blog post, written by Elizabeth Forel, and posted to Facebook earlier today :

• Mayor Michael Bloomberg can use his influence to get such bills passed. But he supports this business. Why? The real truth is anyone’s guess because it simply does not make sense. His daughter is a world-class equestrian, known to oppose this trade – surely she knows that New York City is a very bad environment for horses and I am sure she would never subject her horses to these conditions.
• The Speaker of the City Council, Christine Quinn, can do the same. She, too, is a big supporter of the carriage trade. Why? It is clearer here because of her allegiance to the Queens Democratic Party, which put her in power. It is all politics. But then, Quinn has killed every meaningful animal issues bill that has been in the Council since she became Speaker – so she obviously does not care.
• The City Council - The Council is not a democratic body. For the most part, which means almost always, Council Members vote the way the Speaker tells them. If not, they risk losing their committee chairs and lucrative stipends that the Speaker doles out. Unfortunately, there are virtually no City Council Members with a backbone to stand up to Quinn and say – “Enough is Enough! Let’s get those horses off the street before someone is killed.”
• The State Legislature – there is a real chance here with the bill sponsored by Senator Tony Avella and Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal. The bill is essentially the same as the historic one Senator Avella introduced in the City Council in 2007 when he was a Council Member. One big problem with this bill is that it needs a Home Rule approval memo from the City Council, which is unlikely to happen. However, the bill will be reintroduced in January when the State Legislature reconvenes and it will address these issues. Stay tuned.
• A new humane mayor. Ah there is the rub. Who will it be?

Read more : STOP THE INSANITY! Carriage Horses - NYC : Commenting on and exposing the inhumane carriage horse industry in NYC.

Distribution of Hospital Beds in Manhattan

After St. Vincent's Hospital closed, a Gross Imbalance in the Distribution of Hospital Beds in Manhattan.

How can this be responsible public healthcare policy ? Don't let the congested Lower West Side of Manhattan to be turned into a testing ground for North Shore-LIJ's free-standing first aid clinic experiment. We will pay for this risky experiment with our own lives.

After St. Vincent's Hospital closed, a Gross Imbalance in the Distribution of Hospital Beds in Manhattan

Hurricane Irene Evacuation Plan

Due to Hurricane Irene, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered the evacuation of all patients from senior centers and hospitals in low-lying areas in the Evacuation Zone. Too bad Mayor Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn have been closing senior centers and closing hospitals all across the city, leading to a mass shortage of senior centers and hospitals during natural disasters or other mass public health emergencies.