Drones similar to those that have been flying over New Jersey have reportedly been sighted over Greenport and other places in Columbia County: "Mysterious drone sightings reported in Hudson Valley, Capital Region." This morning, the Times Union reports that Governor Kathy Hochul is calling on President Joe Biden to send more law enforcement resources to New York and the Northeast to investigate: "New York-New Jersey law enforcement officials discuss mystery drones."
👽🛸 or 🇺🇸🛩️ ?
ReplyDeleteLet me offer an unsolicited opinion on how a new Council-Manager system and its professional City Manager could better manage this situation than a Council-Mayor system helmed by $85k a year Mayor Kamal and his $50k plus a year Mayor's Aide...
🙃 Psych! Just kidding... @Michael, breath...
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But one timeless takeaway here is that whoever leads the City of Hudson has just as little influence or control over these drones as they do over foreign wars, national fiscal policy, and social issues in far-away cities and towns.
The City of Hudson should not waste time or money debating and passing nothing-burger resolutions on out-of-scope, or even out-of-outer-space, issues.
Let's leave national, international, and even extraterrestrial/UAP issues to the FEDs; from the DOD, to DHS, State, NASA, NORAD, SETI, AARO, and the FAA, they got it covered.
He likes to do the Clint Eastwood talking to an empty chair at the RNC bit all the time, if he gets a kick out of talking to phantoms that’s his prerogative.
DeleteHappy to both straw man and steel man arguments for you.
Delete👨🌾 Your perceived straw man is other residents' non-consensual reality.
To your point though... I was referring to recent resolutions on global conflicts, or arbitrary feel-good resolutions that act as career politician time stamps and busyness that belongs in Albany or DC... not improving the basic public services of the City of Hudson.
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💡Ok - Michael, before you nitpick an immaterial sentence.... want to share with us an idea of what Hudson can do better, or what you believe it already does very well?
@ Henry Workin - great reference (though I had to look it up, I only watch Clint Eastwood movies, and not GOP conventions).
DeleteSo... is it crazy to think a blog comment section can be generative... or is it just critique and nitpicking?
I guess the former, though that is less interesting.
Dear Michael -
DeleteThis is why we pay federal and state taxes…. to fund the New York State Assembly, Congress, and the Senate, who in turn legislate, represent, and provide oversight.
❓ Do you think the average City of Hudson Common Council President (say, Tom DePietro) is more capable, and has more of a mandate (after his uncontested election win with less than 1k votes) than NYS Assembly leader Didi Barrett, incoming Representative Josh Riley, or Senators Schumer and Gillibrand?
🗳️ All four secured 40k to millions of votes in contested elections and have local offices with paid staff to listen to you, hold constituent meetings, and then _represent_ your views. They also have certain legal powers and duties beyond this zip code.
🎭 When uncontested or unsuccessful local career politicians in a town with barely 2,500 voters opine on national or international issues, it looks and feels like a high school Model United Nations cosplay. There are literally whole Youtube genres and channels dedicated to it… "Viral Town Hall Comedy" or "Municipal Meeting Mayhem."
Except, unlike a high school extracurricular, we are all paying for it with high taxes, and neighbors who are at each other's throats. Whatever representative value may be derived is clearly outweighed by the fiscal burden and politicized conflict, in my opinion.
📖 If you don't believe me… take Madison's word for it; in Federalist No. 10, he argued for a system where representatives would be chosen by a larger number of citizens so that they have "attractive merit";
"As each representative will be chosen by a greater number of citizens in the large than in the small republic, it will be more difficult for unworthy candidates to practice with success the vicious arts by which elections are too often carried; and the suffrages of the people being more free, will be more likely to centre in men who possess the most attractive merit and the most diffusive and established characters."
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p.s. 👋 @Michael, while I used to entertain the occasional brief distraction of your comments, I’m not learning anything from your commentary. I prefer a more 2020s generative internet vibe over the 1990s blog culture of troll-y nitpicking
Feel free to reach out if you have constructive new ideas on how to make Hudson work better, or if you have valid, data-driven criticisms of local Hudson government or published views and policy suggestions by residents.
Otherwise, I will no longer engage with your comments.
I wish you good health and good tidings, sir.
"@FNI - why in the world would I reach out to a random resident with any ideas I might have on how to make Hudson "work better"? "
DeleteBecause you seem so eager to make nothing-burger nitpicks I wanted to offer you a channel to do that without taking up public space with nitpicking. You of course don't need to contact me.
"Thank you for leaving me alone from now on."
We have never met. I don't know you IRL.
And I agree that this nitpicking public commentary is unproductive so you are welcome to not do it, and in turn I will also not reward it.
Note that I only asked you to think bigger, and offer ideas or constructive opinions, not just nitpicks. You could say I believe you can do better 😘
"I'll remind you that this entire exchange started because you called me out by "name","
No, it started with your comment reply. And referencing a real first name or pseudonym that you use with no PII is not a "call out" on a small public blog. It is addressing someone directly. Again, you are proving your 1990s blog vibes.
"no one owes you answers to your loaded, assumption-filled questions."
False.
Elected officials and appointed public workers owe residents certain answers that related to public funds and public work.
And you are right, of course you do not owe me any answers, especially not on this blog.
But by the same logic. I can appeal to your better angels, as Lincoln said, and ask for constructive ideas.
Asking how "Hudson can be better" is not assumption filled or loaded.
Unless that is, you don't believe in progress. 🇺🇸
Have a great week Michael!
Note for posterity... user @ Michael deleted his old comments.
DeleteCarole, it is so interesting which commenters delete old comments and which do not.
It happens quite frequently and systematically... and it is of course totally fine and it is great that you honor that as a feature on the blog.
And in a weird way it proves Peter Spear's point about the need for public spaces / agoras in Hudson, physical and digital.
Note "public spaces", not Citizen Assemblies ;-)
Miss you Peter! See soon.
My concern is that an alien civilization is surveying the Earth, and once they see how much wanton buffoonery takes place on this planet they are going to zap our ass with powerful weapons before we further infect the cosmos.
ReplyDeleteAnd, we deserve it
Delete