Clover is now own by Starbucks - and I believe only Starbucks will be getting them from now on...even I admit that sounds like the Borg or something - really crappy.

then again real coffee is made by in 1 oz units by quickly and forcefully pushing water through a freshly ground roast held in a puck sized wand-into a small cup.

Posted by: fsrg at November 6, 2009 5:22 PM in response to StreetLevel: Cafe DuCharme Opens on President

etson - it isnt a "stealth tax" - its a DIRECT tax - drive into the center city and pay....just like an Alchol Tax, Cigarette Tax, Toll or Gas tax -> as for its tangible results - it has the same results as any other tax, it raises money and the higher the tax the more it discourages consumption/use of what is being taxed......

Its really not that complicated, you have to raise revenues - for we (govt) do now, and for the additions that we may want (more mass transit for example) - it seems to me that if you HAVE to raise revenue, better to raise it against things you (society) doesnt want (like driving in center city, excessive consumption or importing fuel from middle east slime balls) then against things you do (like production, and innovation).

There is NOTHING stealth about it - except that politicans dont want to admit that it is a tax (raise revenue)

Posted by: fsrg at November 6, 2009 3:26 PM in response to New Kosciuszko Bridge Won't Come Cheap

Minard - you are living in la-la-land if you don't recognize that when you make something more expensive (tax), it gets used less.

And if Central London is still too congested than all that tells you is that the tax is too low.

Posted by: fsrg at November 6, 2009 1:29 PM in response to New Kosciuszko Bridge Won't Come Cheap

tybur6 - we definitly agree about congestion pricing - but considering that despite all the hue and cry re: global warming and dependency on mideast oil we still can get an effective fuel/oil tax should tell you that any broadbased effort to make auto transport expensive is a non-starter.

It is not politically difficult - it is impossible - all your opponent has to say is that you are for the rich, who will be able to drive on empty roads paid for on the backs of the middle class - look what happened to Corzine when he proposed raising the NJ tolls or the screaming about congestion pricing - which hit drivers into lower Manhattan m-f 6-6 (which more or less is ONLY the rich-what middle class person drives in to Manhattan - it cost $30+ to park)

The majority in this city/country just arent interested in having nice, fast mass transit alternatives (which is what you SHOULD get if you raise the taxes for driving)

Posted by: fsrg at November 6, 2009 12:15 PM in response to New Kosciuszko Bridge Won't Come Cheap

tybur6 - I dont have the data either but since the traffic is largely a function of trucks slowing down (Bridge traffic builds up well before there is even the slightest traffic on the rest of the BQE) the incline reduction and more lanes may be a net benefit ( I mean you could put speed bumps every 100yrds too cause that would make driving really incovenient and would reduce car trips but you have to balance the utility of surface transportation like autos vs the increased traffic/pollution.) No doubt opening the road up will invite more trips, the question is over a 365day 24/7 analysis will reducing this bottleneck ease more traffic then it invites - I dont know either- but I am guessing b/c of the nature of that spot=yes

Posted by: fsrg at November 6, 2009 11:29 AM in response to New Kosciuszko Bridge Won't Come Cheap

Epiphany -

NYC - especially LI is TOATALLY dependent on truck traffic - (look up cross harbor rail tunnel, PA, and Junipar Park Civic association - to learn how NIMBISM is what is helping to keep things this way)

Trucks slow down on inclines (they are heavy) and despite the fact that this bridge will have less of an incline than the current, inclines/bridges become bottlenecks of traffic due to trucks (and even cars) slowing down as they enter a bridge....if you have more lanes at the bridge point, it can help open up this bottleneck - thereby reducing traffic, pollution and all the ills you discuss,

Of course there is an argument that by easing the bottleneck, you will reduce overall traffic, thereby making automobile traffic more convenient, and thereby resulting in more cars and more traffic - but it is a tradeoff and as long as NYC is dependent on Trucks for freight, there isnt much you can do.

Posted by: fsrg at November 6, 2009 11:12 AM in response to New Kosciuszko Bridge Won't Come Cheap

"After they won, I waited in vain for the revelers to run up and down the street so I could have someone to party with"

You should have been on River Avenue - the party went on for hours!

Posted by: fsrg at November 5, 2009 1:35 PM in response to Open Thread

"Yeah OK, fsrq. There's lots of superstition in baseball. But your not-100%-committed-vibe may have ALSO jinxed the Yanks! Ever think of that?"

No - you jinx something by saying it as a fact or a rule, when in reality it is only a possibility (even a strong one)..

Examples - "I dont think they'll be any traffic"

"I'm not worried, no one in my family ever has a heart attack"

"This car never breaks down"

Saying the Yankees will win the WS or pennant is a jinx! saying you have worries is not.

Its simply the rules of jinxes

Dont you know anything? : )

Posted by: fsrg at November 5, 2009 1:07 PM in response to Open Thread

ENY - I wasnt shaky - I am superstitious about baseball.

As for next year I think they have a very good shot - think about how much better the team would have been if Wang was healthy and Marte was in his post-season form - and think about how amazing they would have been in the playoffs if Cano and Texiera were hitting.

Benson - I agree with your point #2 - but I think the issue isnt that we don't need a parade for sports teams (I mean why not - people like them and we have parades and fairs for much less publicly engaging things) I think the issue is why dont we have more parades for real heroes.

As great as the Yankee victory was last night, I am left with one bad feeling - what the hell am I going to do with myself until April.

Posted by: fsrg at November 5, 2009 12:32 PM in response to Open Thread

Finally the baseball world is back on its axis - Yankees=World Champions!!!!

Maybe I'm nuts but it seems like the World went crazy after the Red Sox started winning championships - Now that the baseball gods have realigned things in the correct order, I have much greater hope for our city and nation!

Bloomberg and the Yankees in a single week. Unbelievable, now if only the Arena construction would start too, I might have a spontaneous orgasm!

Posted by: fsrg at November 5, 2009 10:50 AM in response to Open Thread

MM - I'm sorry but unfortunately your nephew doesn't represent the 'average'/bulk of the NYC public school system (wish he did) - we can certainly aspire to have all children at that level, and we can try to dedicate some resources to allowing such children to flourish, but for a system like NYC Education to be even remotely successful in any meaningful way - you have to ensure that the bulk of the children can graduate, with decent reading, writing, math and civic skills and the ability to express themselves in a coherent way. Sadly huge populations of children leave school without this basic education; and that is what I believe Bloomberg and Klien have BEGUN to properly address (and against which the criticism of teaching to the test is meaningless IMHO)

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 1:16 PM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

CHL - so true - I would consider MYSELF a failure if my kids went to school (kindergarten) without being able to more-or-less read, understand numbers and basic mathematical concepts like adding and subtracting and other basic knowledge that is necessary for survival in our world.

I then consider it my obligation to tutor them to "think" in the manner that MM so eloquently described as "real learning" - frankly when it comes to my childrens education - I look at schools as an assistant to me not the other way around.

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 12:33 PM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

MM-"Real learning involves honing the cognitive processes that allow us to figure things out, make deductive leaps so necessary in the sciences, math,engineering, etc. It enables us to express ourselves decently, even argue intelligently on a blog. Real learning encourages kids to go farther and do their own research, own further reading, or experiments. It stimulates the brain..."

All true but public education in NYC (on a macro level) today is so far from this type of goal that it isnt relevant IMHO -upwards of 50% of the kids don't even graduate H.S.(and that is an improvement!!) .

First you have to teach the kids to read, write, basic math and some understanding of civics. The type of "higher" education you espouse is really for college level or in a system that provides the basic building blocks to a much higher percentage of its students.

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 12:11 PM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

fsrq, by your logic there should not be term limits for presidente de los estados unidos then.

Yeah so? The republic had no executive term limits for like 150 years and we survived....and guess what only ONE time did a president serve more than 2 terms pre-22nd Amendment -

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 11:44 AM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

"Tests definitely serve their place. But as the husband and son of NYC public school teachers, I can tell you with accuracy that CURRICULUM - the stuff that builds learning - has been drastically de-emphasized in favor of memorization of diverse, test-oriented concepts that are not fully explored. The entire basis of learning has being subordinated to training for a specific series of tests."

What does that even mean????

First lets recongnize that for huge swaths of the NYC public School education system, teaching to a test - is the ONLY teaching that has gone on for decades...second, if tests arent properly designed to evaluate critical thinking and ananlysis - then change the test.

Frankly, I am not a teacher but as a former student, I believe that teaching kids to master subjects is a far better way to have them do well subsequently on tests and trying to teach rote memorization generally doesn't work as effectively.

Anyway I think this whole thing is a red-herring by the unions and politicos, cause it is totally non-quantifiable - all you have to say is "they are teaching to the test" and there is no effective way to refute it or truly examine it. I also believe if their is a greater emphasis on now, it is only because Bloomberg and Klien are attempting to build accountability into the system - now please tell me if you de-emphasis testing how can we effectively measure progress in our childrens education? anecdotally???

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 11:37 AM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

Term limits should only be applied to legislative positions, the power of incumbency and the limited ability of citizens to truly evaluate their performance (no press attention, limited individual power, etc) make term limits a useful tool for legislative vitality
- for executive positions??? I dont agree, we all can effectivly evaluate how a Mayor, DA, Comptroller, Governor, etc..is performing - and if they are excellent - it is too rare and too valuable to just throw them out "because". People can chose to throw them out if they wish, ut should have the option to keep good people - good executives are VERY hard to find.

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 11:04 AM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

Yeah Ditmas - cause the the THOUSANDS of minority children who are graduating today (and didnt in pre-Bloomberg years) are "rich"
The thousands of minorities that are ALIVE today (not victims of homicides that took place pre-Bloomberg) are rich.

Cause the tens of thousands of smokers who are ALIVE today (who wouldnt be pre-Bloomberg) are all rich....

Try taking off your silly class-warfare glasses and looking at who the real victims of bad management are

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 10:52 AM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

Now here is an issue Thompson should have highlighted - truly a disgrace on every level. Millions of dollars of public money investment, sitting unused for NO REASON.

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 10:40 AM in response to Slope Armory Set-Back

"teaching to the test".

As opposed to what - this is the silliest of all of Thompson's and anti-Bloomberg's argument....

HOW ELSE CAN YOU DETERMINE IF THE KIDS ARE MAKING ANY EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS IF YOU DONT TEST THEM??????

Think the tests are dumbed down - fine
Think the tests are biased or inaccurate - fine
Think the tests are testing the wrong things...fine

BUT if you don't test then you have ZERO accountability (which of course is exactly what lousy administrators and lousy teachers want)

and FYI - Miss Muffett - 321 had a smaller entering class this year than expected.

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 10:40 AM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

BHO - now all that has to happen is the Yankees win tonight and you will be 0-for-prognosticating.....

As for who low turnout hurt or helped it is fairly easy to figure out - it helped Thompson - while turnout was low everywhere it was worse % in Manhattan SI, and Queens- where Thompson did poorly.

Anthony Wierner should hang himself today -he could have been Mayor.....

All I have to say is thank god - 4 more years of a good manager (everyone agrees) - you people have forgotten what a bad manager is like......

Posted by: fsrg at November 4, 2009 10:29 AM in response to Election 2009: No Big Surprises in Brooklyn

Sparafucile - While you will no doubt deny it - I can see that your hostility has much more to do with your animosity towards Orthodox Jews then to the renaming of a bridge ramp.

But 1. Brian Watkins wasnt killed BECAUSE he was a mormon AND FYI there is a NYC Parks Tennis Courts named for him (and I think some sort of memorial at the US Open Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows).

Posted by: fsrg at November 3, 2009 12:04 PM in response to Squadron Helps Drivers Get Off (The FDR)

Sorry tybur6 - I admit that I am a cutter (why not - I agree with SenatorStreet, the cutting seems to help traffic flow) but I reject Christ

Posted by: fsrg at November 3, 2009 11:50 AM in response to Squadron Helps Drivers Get Off (The FDR)

Sparafucile - what new signage?

and while I agree that the # of signs is excessive, the kid was KILLED on that ramp by a terrorist simply because of his religion. Not exactly a frivolous event, and probably is something worthy of memorializing no?

Btw as a cutter - all you right-lane suckers can do all the blocking you want - despite your efforts it is usually very easy to cut in - all you have to do is find the last person that cut in and push yourself in front of them - it would be too hypocritical for that person to refuse your entry.....works every time.

Posted by: fsrg at November 3, 2009 11:29 AM in response to Squadron Helps Drivers Get Off (The FDR)

Any real Brooklynite rides in the left and middle lane and then cuts in at the last minute - the right lane is for tourists, suckers and drunks.

Same applies to the Cadman Plaza Exit on the other side (although for the life of me I cant figure out why your not allowed to exit from the middle lane anyway - as the ramp is 2 lanes)

Posted by: fsrg at November 3, 2009 10:44 AM in response to Squadron Helps Drivers Get Off (The FDR)

bxgrl - I wasn't referring to present company- although unfortunately we (myself included) probably dont matter much either

Posted by: fsrg at November 2, 2009 6:34 PM in response to Uncertainty, Skepticism Around Arena Bond Offering

"Actually, a lot of people do still care."

No one that matters

Posted by: fsrg at November 2, 2009 5:11 PM in response to Uncertainty, Skepticism Around Arena Bond Offering

DDDB - no it isnt an "easy fact" - you cite - you OWN website as proof. Hardly a verifiable source - additionally as you yourself note this isnt $55M being given to FCR as the above article says- it is a tax credit which is far different and may apply to the affordable housing component - I dont know - and apparently neither do you.

All you did is do a google search, found the press release, and then said - "The Sky is Falling, They are giving another $55M to AY", then underneath this inflamatory headline you put some dicta about talking to someone at ESDC.....there is clearly alot more to this than you imply, but you have your agenda and cannot be trusted to do unbiased objective research, and lord knows if I spent my time chasing down the validity of everyone of your tabloid accusations I'd be as unemployed as you (without the trustfund)....

You know what - maybe FCR is getting $55M in under the table payola - but thats the problem with yelling and screaming like a hysterical madman all the time about everything - after awhile no one cares.....

Posted by: fsrg at November 2, 2009 4:54 PM in response to Uncertainty, Skepticism Around Arena Bond Offering

The owner has a good as chance of getting 3.6M as
****Bill Thompson***** has of being elected mayor - i.e. slim and none

Posted by: fsrg at November 2, 2009 3:24 PM in response to First Resale at 14 Townhouses

What is there to "say"

Obviously the bond sale is no slam dunk - so what - is this news???

And the $55M as far as I can tell (granted only cursory but I do have job unlike Messier Goldstein) is NOT allocated for AY - of course DDDB's argument is that "all money is fungible" - which of course in this context is kinda like a 'slippery slope argument' - it sounds good as a sound bite but on closer inspection doesnt hold much water.

Posted by: fsrg at November 2, 2009 3:22 PM in response to Uncertainty, Skepticism Around Arena Bond Offering

Thanks you are correct (although I do not think the commercial overlay adds any density) but either way I still think the FAR is too low (3.0) for streets like Smith and/or Court.

Posted by: fsrg at October 29, 2009 4:16 PM in response to Carroll Gardens Downzoning Sails Through Council

The thing about all this "contextual" zoning is it is totally not contextual - what I mean is, what sense does it make to have ONE zoning for an entire neighborhood -
Shouldnt the blocks immediately adjacent to mass transit be zoned larger??? - I dont necessarily mean 30 stories, but why would a building next to a subway stop be zoned EXACTLY the same as a building midblock 10 blocks in the middle of a totally residential street? Should Smith Street or Court (both wide - well trafficked blocks with commercial, residential and even offices,with busses and/or subways) have greater density than say 1st Street?

The "context" is totally missing here - because these types of rezonings arent about context at all - they are about anti-development

Posted by: fsrg at October 29, 2009 3:26 PM in response to Carroll Gardens Downzoning Sails Through Council

ninethreesix - I agree completely, and making an occasional over-the-top statement in order to be funny or make a point is fine - but it seems like *rob* posts one every 5 minutes and THAT is just annoying....(and pointless)

Posted by: fsrg at October 27, 2009 4:56 PM in response to StreetLevel: Pediatrics Office Coming to 4th Ave

Am I the only one who thinks ***Rob*** is really annoying?

Posted by: fsrg at October 27, 2009 3:08 PM in response to StreetLevel: Pediatrics Office Coming to 4th Ave

rob - you think the Korean Grocery boycott started over organic vegetables - I would say that YOU are the definition of the annoying newcomer -

we get it - you have opinions - but unlike your parents, not everyone cares to hear all of yours!

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 12:19 PM in response to Open Thread

I dont think we really should be "rating" racial incidents but if you are going to - 7 people were killed in the Freddy's Fashion Mart incident - SEVEN

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 12:16 PM in response to Open Thread

Benson - Korean Boycott was disgusting, but Dinkins was just as silent during the Crown Heights Riots -

As for the "worst racial moment" in [modern]NYC history - I'd like to nominate Freddies Fashion Mart, thank you Al Sharpton

in history the Draft Riots make everything else in NYC look like pocket change.

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 11:32 AM in response to Open Thread

DIBS - assinine comment

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 11:00 AM in response to Faulty Towers: Complaints About Condos on the Rise

BHO - your BB predictions are as likely as reliable as your election ones - Bloomberg by 15% in both recent polls (quinipiac and marist)

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 10:58 AM in response to Open Thread

DIBS - please go back and ask the first time owners of the Brownstones how many leaks, building defects and problems they faced - oh yeah you cant - they are all dead - convenient.

Unlike a car, the 1st owner of almost any home faces many 'teething' problems - it is true now and has ALWAYS been so. No story here....

MM - that David is and was ME - sorry

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 10:35 AM in response to Faulty Towers: Complaints About Condos on the Rise

Denton NY Times piece on Dinkins isnt balanced - its RIDICULOUS.

I love how revisionist historians give Dinkins credit for a tiny drop in crime in his last 2 years (7% - from insanely high numbers and I believe when he left office the homicide rate was STILL above Koch's final year (with all the same social ills that Dinkins faced).

Further any discussion of the Dinkins administration that doesnt directly discuss his abject failure related to the Crown Heights Riots and his disgusting silence regarding the Korean Grocery Store Boycott is a total white-wash (no pun intended)

Posted by: fsrg at October 26, 2009 10:30 AM in response to Open Thread

bxgrl is right!

Who the f is **Rob** to offer genetic counseling?

Posted by: fsrg at October 23, 2009 11:53 AM in response to Open Thread

The building is very nice - 1956 actually looks pretty dumpy if you ask me - didnt anyone sweep the streets back then?

Posted by: fsrg at October 23, 2009 11:51 AM in response to From Flicks to Fischer on 15th Street

Petebrklyn - under the current ruling and assuming no legislative or administrative fix (such as letting LL retroactively pay back the J-51 tax abatement):

EVERY RS apartment decontrolled in the last ELEVEN YEARS in a building receiving J-51s (which is alot, especially in buildings that did major capital improvements to get rents above 2K) go BACK under rent stabilization........that is far far more than a couple of hundred - there are a couple of hundred in Stuy town alone.

Posted by: fsrg at October 23, 2009 10:50 AM in response to Open Thread

I think the Stuy Town decision will have a significant effect on the Manhattan market-rate apartment market. tens of thousands of apartments will likely go back under RS, thereby reducing supply (people tend to stay in below market rate apartments) and thereby newcomers will have fewer choices - thereby raising prices (or at least resulting in less of a decline than otherwise) - plus this along with the move to eliminate 'luxury' decontrol in Albany will likely reduce the number of LL seeking buildings to convert to marketrate through MCIs - whether this supply issue will have a spill over effect on rents outside of Manhattan and Brooklyn Heights is debatable

Posted by: fsrg at October 23, 2009 10:03 AM in response to Open Thread

Brutal loss last night - virtually a must win Sat; Bullpen clearly not up to late season form....

Posted by: fsrg at October 23, 2009 9:45 AM in response to Open Thread

FYI (especially BHO)

Bloomberg leading Thompson by 16% in latest Marist Poll- Thank God!

http://bk.ly/QJ

Go Yanks!

Posted by: fsrg at October 22, 2009 5:01 PM in response to Open Thread

The best dogs....are the ones you get at the pound - they never forget!!!

Seriously with millions of great dogs being killed every year - how on earth could someone morally breed some B.S. "breed" like a cockapoo or Giant Schnoodle

Posted by: fsrg at October 22, 2009 4:30 PM in response to Open Thread

DIBS - Mark Texieria is one of the best hitters in the game, sure its possible that he doesnt get hot the rest of the way (10 games at most) but slumps are part of the game, the guy is 29 years old - he'll be hitting again - I just hope its tonight or in the Series at worst.

Posted by: fsrg at October 22, 2009 1:52 PM in response to Open Thread

ENY - I have a couple of issues with Girardi's moves (beyond the absolutely brainless Robertson Aceves move - there was no justification whatsoever for that move - truly bizzare)
for example I think pinch running Garner in the 7th was a mistake (and the guy has got to run - on the right count - when he goes in),
and agreed on Posada - his bat has been good but I dont know where his head is - not knowing the out, getting caught in a run down on a hit back to the pitcher, etc....He has got to wake up

Can you imagine how good the Yankees would be this post-season if Texiera's bat matched his amazing glove?? or if Swisher, Matsui or Cano really started hitting.

Posted by: fsrg at October 22, 2009 1:22 PM in response to Open Thread