Here’s a look at opinion content published in The Journal News on Saturday, Jan. 29, Sunday, Jan. 30 and today, Monday, Jan. 31:
Saturday, Jan. 29
Egypt: Commentary
Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Trudy Rubin assesses the unrest in the Middle East and what it may mean for the development of a Palestinian state.
Gun safety: Commentary
In a Community View, Karen Leitner of White Plains argues in favor of legislation introduced by Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-Long Island, that would target high-capacity ammunition clips, like the one used by Jared Lee Loughner in Tucson, Ariz.
Sunday, Jan. 30
Pensions: Editorial
We comment on a report from our Albany Bureau about that details the number of double-dippers — state employees who collect salaries and pensions simultaneously — and argue that New York’s policy makers are overdue in creating a defined-contribution pension system. We write:
Today’s Albany Bureau report on double-dippers — that is, state employees collecting salaries at the same time they are collecting pensions — is the kind of expose that makes public-employee union leaders cringe and taxpayers call their real estate agent and movers.
It also helps clarify, once again, why New York’s public-employee pension system, a grab bag endlessly stocked by taxpayers and generously dispensed by favor-currying politicians, needs to be scrapped, not merely tweaked.
The report by Bureau Chief Joseph Spector, with assistance from Journal News/LoHud.com database editor Cathey O’Donnell, details how some 2,100 state employees collected salaries and pensions last year, with 35 of them taking home more than $200,000. …
Fair housing: Commentary
In a Community View, Marlene Zarfes, fair housing director of the White Plains-based Westchester Residential Opportunities Inc., details the methodology her organization used in a study that assessed discrimination in the Lower Hudson Valley housing market.
Yonkers snow: Reisman
Phil Reisman comments on the challenge presented to Yonkers by this year’s unusually strong winter. The City of Hills is stretching its coffers to keep up with the ever-growing piles of snow.
Monday, Jan. 31
States, Congress and bankruptcy: Commentary
Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida, and New Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, both Republicans, argue that Congress should make it legal for states like New York, struggling to keep its fiscal house in order, to declare voluntary bankruptcy. Their piece was written for the Los Angeles Times.
