As I stated in an earlier post, I recently attended a forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Buffalo Niagara titled “Who Needs County Government and Why?”. The four featured speakers discussed the history of county government in New York State and the services delivered to county residents. 90% of Erie County’s $1.2Read… Read more »
The League of Women Voters of Buffalo Niagara sponsored a forum titled Who Needs County Government and Why? The four speakers were: Dr. Joseph Stefko, Director of Public Finance, Center for Government Research, Rochester, NY James Magavern, Esq. Brenda McDuffie, Executive Director, Buffalo Urban League Kenneth Vetter, Executive Director, Erie County Fiscal Stability Authority ARead… Read more »
Dave Meslin is an interesting activist from Toronto Canada who describes himself as a “professional rable-rouser”. I love the title as we truly need more folks like Dave questioning how government operates. A common thought given the few number of people that attend public meetings or even bother to vote is that members of theRead… Read more »
There has been a great deal of attention focused on the issue of bullying among children. The news media frequently highlights cases of bullying among children that at times result in a child that has been bullied committing suicide. Bullying among adults especially in the workplace also happens more than it should and is drawingRead… Read more »
The City of Portland has designed a public toilet that it has patented and is selling to other municipalities. The public restroom contains the following features: Stainless steel anti-graffiti wall panels mounted on a slim-profile steel structure, that weighs a fraction of a typical restroom, making it easier to install in high traffic locations. ItRead… Read more »
One of my favorite quotes is: “ Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead The first edition of Britannica Encyclopedias appeared in Scotland in 1768. In 11 years a group of Internet volunteers has ended the 244Read… Read more »
Work matters. We spend a great deal of our lives at work. It is important that you get meaning and satisfaction from your job, whatever your job may be. If your boss is a jerk or if your opinions do not matter or if the values that are important to you are an issue, someRead… Read more »
I believe strongly in the public’s right to obtain information through freedom of information laws. As General Counsel to the Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority, I had the responsibility of responding to Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests. Responding to such requests can be incredibly time consuming, a more pro-active approach is to make as muchRead… Read more »
Getting things done in government requires working with other levels of government, non-profit organizations etc. Mark Funkhouser as the Director of the Governing Institute (a former Mayor of Kansas City), recently watched Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley conduct a session of StateStat, the process he has implemented to make the state’s government more efficient. As FunkhouserRead… Read more »
Larry Conley has a funny post about some misstatements by elected officials that are a good read for a little humor. Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper recently had one of those verbal gaffes that sometimes plague public officials. Hickenlooper, who often favorably refers to his Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia as a “rising star,” instead introduced GarciaRead… Read more »