Copyright 2008 The New York Sun Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:39:28 -0400 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Julia Levy :: Stories from The New York Sun http://www.nysun.com/authors/Julia+Levy istoll@nysun.com (Ira Stoll) webmaster@nysun.com en-us JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/cornell-medical-school-rewrites-hippocratic-oath/26134/ Thu, 19 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST Weill Medical College at Cornell University has rewritten the Hippocratic Oath - the vow for newly trained doctors that's been around for more than 2,500 years. The oath has been rewritten before, and not just by Hollywood, which convinced most Americans that it contains the phrase: "First, do no harm." (It turns out that "do no harm" comes from another of Hippocrates' writings, "Epidemics.") The dean of the medical school at Cornell, Dr. Antonio Gotto, said Cornell's new version of the classic... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/city-sets-tourism-record-in-05/26067/ Wed, 18 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST A record 41 million tourists visited New York City in 2005, and this year the city expects a new high of 43.3 million visitors, Mayor Bloomberg and the leaders of NYC & Company announced yesterday. The mayor said visits by international tourists, who spend more when they travel to New York than do American tourists, are expected to grow at a faster pace than visits by domestic travelers. NYC & Company, the city's official tourism marketing organization, forecasts that 7.2 million... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/national/senator-likens-house-to-slavery-drawing-rebukes/25953/ Tue, 17 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST Martin Luther King Jr. fought four decades ago to free black Americans from the legacy of slavery. Yesterday, Senator Clinton compared the Republican leadership of the current House of Representatives to the very idea the civil rights leader dedicated his life to fighting. "When you look at the way the House of Representatives has been run - it has been run like a plantation," she said. "You know what I'm talking about." Mrs. Clinton, who was addressing a packed house at the Reverend Al... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/schumer-calls-on-irs-to-refund-illegally-gotten-3/25906/ Mon, 16 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST Senator Schumer has finally found a tax he opposes - the 3% federal excise tax tacked onto every cell phone bill in America. Two weeks ago, a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., ruled the tax illegal because it applies to calls that are measured in distance. Cell phone conversations are measured in time. Two other federal appeals courts with jurisdiction over seven states - Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia - also have voided the tax. Despite the three... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/lopez-dubs-mayor-honorary-lesbian-as-they-tout/25734/ Thu, 12 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST A former City Council member, Margarita Lopez, yesterday declared Mayor Bloomberg an "honorary lesbian" at a flirt-fest of a news conference during which she joined with the mayor to announce a real estate deal that is allowing a group of artists to purchase six buildings in the East Village for $6. Ms. Lopez, a Democrat who crossed party lines to endorse Mr. Bloomberg in his campaign for re-election, has disclosed her affection for the mayor before, but yesterday she took her flirtation to a... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/howard-sterns-defiant-fist-a-time-tested-symbol/25661/ Wed, 11 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST Howard Stern is using a new medium, satellite radio, to speak to the American public, but he's using a time-tested symbol, the raised fist, to convey his "revolutionary" agenda. Mr. Stern created the concept behind what the men and women at Sirius Satellite Radio call the "defiant fist." An advertising agency, Euro RSCG, designed it. The logo shows a black fist with the ring and middle fingers forming an "H" for "Howard" against a gritty red background. "It's really simple. It's a symbol of... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-prepares-for-battle-as-legislative/25515/ Mon, 9 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST With the legislative session beginning in Albany today, Mayor Bloomberg is preparing for battle. His battle will not be limited to his second-term goals, although they will play a key role. The mayor's fight will also center on mending his relationships with the lawmakers who spoiled his job creation and economic development programs when they blocked his West Side stadium project. Mr. Bloomberg provided New Yorkers with a preview of his goals for the city during his re-election campaign and... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-boosts-anti-gun-rhetoric/25477/ Fri, 6 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg yesterday boosted his anti-gun rhetoric, insisting that the only reason to carry a gun in New York City is to "kill somebody" and wondering aloud why people consider it a sport to hunt with assault rifles. During his inaugural address, Mr. Bloomberg vowed to take on "illegal guns" by taking his message to the national level and to other states. On Tuesday, he said there's no reason for companies to sell bullets that can pierce armored vests. "The last time I saw a deer wearing... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-scores-bush-anti-terrorism-funding-plan/25278/ Wed, 4 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST The Bush administration's new plan for linking anti-terrorism funding to the threat of natural disasters met with criticism yesterday from Mayor Bloomberg and a Democratic congressman who last year sought to challenge him for mayor, Anthony Weiner. For the past four years, Mr. Bloomberg has argued that cities that are the most likely terrorist targets should be the largest recipients of Homeland Security aid. Yesterday, the Homeland Security chief, Michael Chertoff, said a "risk based" approach... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayors-gun-talk-begets-a-warning-from-rifle-group/25187/ Tue, 3 Jan 2006 00:00:00 EST Only hours after Mayor Bloomberg vowed in his second inaugural address to launch a national campaign against "illegal guns," the gun rights lobby is mobilizing to respond, with the influential National Rifle Association accusing the mayor of "intimidating law abiding Americans." On Sunday, as Mr. Bloomberg was sworn in for his second term, he invoked the names of police officers shot and killed in the line of duty as he announced a new, central focus of his administration - protecting New... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-at-inauguration-presses-for-gun-control/25185/ Sun, 1 Jan 2006 18:26:49 EST Mayor Bloomberg pledged to immediately start "finishing our unfinished work" on schools and economic development while vowing to tackle what he called the city's "most urgent challenge," illegal guns, as he was sworn in this afternoon for his second term. Four years ago, when Mr. Bloomberg stood outside City Hall for his first inaugural address, the World Trade Center site was still smoldering. Today, Mr. Bloomberg declared that the city has rebounded from the devastating attack of September... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-warns-against-toting-alcohol-to-times/25163/ Fri, 30 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg has warned revelers to leave their alcoholic beverages at home and to wear waterproof clothing in case of rain on Saturday night when they head to Times Square to watch the 1,070-pound New Year's Eve ball drop. At a press conference in Times Square early yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg outlined some of the security procedures that will be in place for the 100th annual dropping of the New Year's Eve ball. The streets surrounding the New Year's event on Broadway and Seventh Avenue... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/debate-begins-over-who-won-transit-strike-union/25078/ Thu, 29 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST As more details of the Transport Workers Union contract emerged yesterday, political observers and the men and women who walked off the job last week began questioning whether it was the workers or the government that "won" after the three-day strike right before Christmas. The agreement the union's executive board endorsed Tuesday night does not appear to be significantly better or worse for workers than the proposals on the table on the eve of the strike. According to the memorandum of... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/details-on-mayors-swearing-in-ceremony-emerge/25083/ Thu, 29 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST With four days remaining before Mayor Bloomberg is sworn in for his second term at City Hall, more details of the ceremony and the celebration to follow emerged yesterday. Thousands of cups of hot cider made from New York apples have been prepared to keep the expected 5,000 guests warm before the start of the inauguration on Sunday afternoon, and old-fashioned plain doughnuts have been baked to stave off stomach grumbles. Each guest who attends the formal ceremony, at which the mayor, the... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/funding-for-public-childcare-shrinks-as-number/25086/ Thu, 29 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST The number of children enrolled in New York City public childcare has jumped in the last six years - and the amount of spending on the programs has risen at an even greater rate. However, although Mayor Bloomberg recently proposed a renewed focus on childcare, the pot of state and federal money dedicated to paying for the programs is shrinking and seems likely to continue doing so in coming years, a report released yesterday by the New York City Independent Budget Office said. "For a number of... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/star-studded-cast-for-mayors-2nd-inauguration/25018/ Wed, 28 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Eight thousand New Yorkers have received invitations, and 5,000 are expected to attend. The numbers might be enormous, but the event is one of the most exclusive of this holiday season: Mayor Bloomberg's second inauguration. The formal swearing in of the mayor, as well as the city comptroller, William Thompson Jr., and the public advocate, Betsy Gotbaum, is scheduled to kick off on Sunday at 1 p.m. at City Hall with a welcome by veteran television newswoman Barbara Walters, who is a friend of... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/post-christmas-saks-fifth-ave-is-a-human-zoo/24961/ Tue, 27 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST The sidewalks of Midtown and SoHo were packed with potential shoppers yesterday - but from initial anecdotal evidence, it appears that the overcast, drizzly day after Christmas might have proved dreary for some New York City retailers, many of whom were already hurting from last week's transit strike. With stores hoping to make up tens of millions of dollars in lost business due to the subway and bus strike, the retailers that apparently triumphed in the much-heralded post-Christmas rush were... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/how-will-the-mayors-public-image-emerge-from/24904/ Fri, 23 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Governor Pataki may be the political puppeteer pulling the strings at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority - but it was Mayor Bloomberg, who has little role in the contract negotiations with the Transport Workers Union, who was the public face of the effort to criticize the union and stand up for New Yorkers and businesses harmed by the illegal strike. When the union threatened to strike, Mr. Bloomberg cautioned that no one would win from a strike. When the strike seemed imminent, Mr... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/women-trade-sex-and-the-city-heels-for-sneakers/24850/ Thu, 22 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Ana Cores usually wears pointy toed, high-heeled black boots in the winter - but not yesterday. On Day 2 of the strike that has shut down New York's subways and buses, Ms. Cores, a social worker, donned a pair of old white Reeboks for her journey into Manhattan. "Normally, the people come well dressed," she said. "Today people were saying with this strike: 'We'd rather be comfortable.'" Just a day into the strike, New York women started turning in their "Sex and the City" heels for sneakers and... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/worst-week-of-the-year-for-this-to-happen/24768/ Wed, 21 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST The cosmetics floor at Bloomingdale's SoHo was practically vacant yesterday morning at 11:20 a.m., save for a few sales associates positioned behind makeup displays. Simeon Kline and Amber Petree, who staff the Stila counter, said that on a normal morning, they usually have sold about $1,000 worth of products like shimmer powder and lip glaze by then. But yesterday, more than an hour into the first workday of the transit strike, they hadn't made a single sale. "This is the worst week in the... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-the-twu-has-thuggishly-turned-their-backs/24782/ Wed, 21 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg was angry when the bus and subway strike was just a possibility - but yesterday, when the illegal strike became a reality, the mayor started using words like "selfish," "thuggish," and "unconscionable," to describe the Transport Workers Union members and their actions. "The leadership of the TWU has thuggishly turned their backs on New York City and disgraced the noble concept of public service," Mr. Bloomberg said, surrounded by his top commissioners and deputy mayors. He... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/political-consequences-of-transit-strike-could-be/24615/ Mon, 19 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST If the contract battle between the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Transport Workers Union accelerates into an all-out strike, the political ramifications could be considerable. The mayor and the governor are taking different tacks. The mayor has repeatedly cautioned that "no one wins" in a strike. He has threatened strikers with enormous financial penalties. The governor, meanwhile, has been supporting his appointees to the MTA board from the sidelines while traveling outside the... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/court-to-rule-on-property-rights/24551/ Fri, 16 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST The New York State Court of Appeals in February is scheduled to hear an eminent domain case that could vastly expand the state's power to take New Yorkers' private property for public use. The case centers around a vertical water shaft, Shaft 30B, which the city is currently building on a 12,500-square-foot lot at the corner of Grand and Lafayette streets in SoHo as part of its decades-old "Third Water Tunnel" project. The city and Edison Properties, which owns the property through a limited... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-outlines-strike-contingency-plan/24502/ Thu, 15 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST By rush hour tomorrow morning, setting foot into a taxi could cost $10, Fifth and Madison avenues could be shut to non-emergency vehicles, and cars with less than four passengers could be barred from entering Manhattan until 11 a.m. As the deadline for a new contract for the Transport Workers Union nears and as the workers' strike threat becomes an increasingly realistic possibility, Mayor Bloomberg yesterday outlined a detailed contingency plan for getting around the five boroughs in the... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/councils-efforts-to-extend-term-limits-will-face/24288/ Mon, 12 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST A new group, People to Stop a Self Serving Council, is banding together to resist the New York City Council's efforts to allow members to run for a third term in office. The council's expressed interest in extending term limits - which comes a dozen years after New Yorkers voted in a referendum to impose a cap of two terms for council members, citywide elected officials, and borough presidents - has drawn opposition from a number of civic groups, including Citizens Union and New Yorkers for... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/if-mta-workers-strike-mayor-to-sleep-downtown/24206/ Fri, 9 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg wants the city's subways and buses to be running as of 12:01 a.m. on December 16, but in case they aren't, the mayor has a personal emergency plan in place - sleeping on a cot at the Office of Emergency Management. Dozing on a municipal cot may not be as comfortable for Mr. Bloomberg as sleeping in his Upper East Side townhouse, but he said it might be the only reliable way for him to get to work. "I want to be able to get to work, and there's no question if there's a transit... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/companies-create-contingency-plans-in-case/24136/ Thu, 8 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST With the threat of a transit strike looming, companies in New York City are creating contingency plans to ensure that work - and play - goes on even if the city's subway and bus service grinds to a halt. Some companies are preparing to pick up workers at major transportation hubs and drive them to their offices if the subway and bus workers go on strike for the first time since 1980. Others are encouraging employees to sleep over at the homes of co-workers who live close to the office, booking... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/ny-court-ruling-raises-hopes-on-eminent-domain/24070/ Wed, 7 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Property owners angered by the Supreme Court's decision this year that the government can seize their homes and businesses received a psychological boost when a federal appeals court ruled that a New York village had overstepped its eminent domain authority. [At the same time, the town of Riviera Beach in Florida moved to seize 6,000 homes. Story, page 4.] The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit on Monday ruled that the village of Port Chester, N.Y., failed to properly alert a New York... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/city-to-examine-evacuation-plans-for-slosh-zones/24033/ Tue, 6 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST The number of New Yorkers living in hurricane zones doubled in the last decade, and the city is launching an unprecedented emergency planning process to make sure its evacuation plan is ready by the time the next hurricane season hits. The city will spend up to $200,000 on a "transportation analysis" for evacuating New Yorkers from the so-called slosh zones that would bear the brunt of major storm that hits the five boroughs. The federal Army Corps of Engineers was initially supposed to conduct... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/schumer-police-should-be-able-to-track-some-guns/23930/ Mon, 5 Dec 2005 00:00:00 EST Senator Schumer yesterday vowed to introduce legislation allowing New York City police officers to access information from the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms National Tracing Center about stolen guns and guns that were involved in crimes. At a press conference at his New York City office, Mr. Schumer said such legislation had potential to protect "the next Dillon Stewart," the New York police officer who was fatally shot last week with a gun that was stolen in Florida and had been used in a... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/poll-shows-mayors-approval-rating-reaching/23234/ Fri, 18 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST A new Quinnipiac University Polling Institute poll, the first released since the November 8 election, found that Mayor Bloomberg has reached his highest approval rating ever, 75%. The poll found that 80% of white voters support him, while 74% of black voters and 67% of Hispanic voters gave him positive ratings. Just two and a half years ago, Mayor Bloomberg's approval rating was at only 32%, according to a Quinnipiac poll. The longtime political consultant, Hank Sheinkopf, called the numbers "a... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-plants-top-associates-on-lmdc-board/23162/ Thu, 17 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg during his re-election campaign vowed to play a more forceful role in the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan. Yesterday, just eight days after his victory, Mr. Bloomberg moved to grab control of the rebuilding process, naming some of the top players in his administration to the board of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. In recent months, as Governor Pataki stepped in and overruled the LMDC on matters concerning ground zero, some, including LMDC board members, have... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/after-pledging-no-increases-mayor-talks/23093/ Wed, 16 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST When Mayor Bloomberg was running for re-election, he vowed not to raise taxes to finance his campaign proposals. At a mayoral debate, he told New Yorkers to "expect to see a continued focus on doing more with less," and promised no tax increases through mid-2007. Within a few days of his sweeping reelection, however, Mr. Bloomberg started talking about new taxes, specifically, renewing the commuter tax, which Albany eliminated from the city's budget in 1999. On Friday, Mr. Bloomberg suggested... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/fish-sellers-sold-on-new-venue/23023/ Tue, 15 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Mark Parente took over Lou's Fish Market Incorporated from his grandfather 31 years ago. Since then, he has reported every day to the Lower Manhattan Fulton Fish Market at 1 a.m. That changed yesterday. While most New Yorkers were fast asleep, Mr. Parente arrived at work not at the historic South Street Seaport facility but at the new $85 million city owned facility in Hunts Point. Mr. Parente was among 38 wholesalers and 600 employees that closed up shop Friday at the old fish market and began... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/top-democrats-already-showing-signs-of-planning/22975/ Mon, 14 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Less than a week has elapsed since Election Day, and already New York Democrats are starting to plan for Election Day 2009. A number of top Democrats, including the city comptroller, William Thompson Jr., and the president of the Bronx, Adolfo Carrion Jr., traveled to Puerto Rico this weekend for the Somos el Futuro Conference. The annual meeting is a kind of debutante's ball for rising politicians looking to come out as candidates and to begin amassing support. By early next year, Mr... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-announces-expansion-of-311-a-campaign/22923/ Fri, 11 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Within a year, New Yorkers needing food stamps, job training, or other social services will be able to find answers to their questions by calling a single number, 311. Standing in the 311 headquarters in Lower Manhattan, Mayor Bloomberg yesterday announced the expansion of the 311 Citizen Service Center. It was the first plan proposed during his campaign that he now is turning into action. "This major expansion of the 311 system will allow us to provide information and referral assistance to... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/high-profile-democrats-line-up-to-congratulate/22834/ Thu, 10 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Senators Clinton and Schumer were quick to endorse Fernando Ferrer when he won the Democratic mayoral nomination. Comptroller William Thompson Jr. and the Assembly speaker, Sheldon Silver, joined Mr. Ferrer on stage at his "victory" party Tuesday night. Yesterday, however, high-profile Democrats and Republicans alike lined up to congratulate Mayor Bloomberg on his re-election. While some of the calls may have been made out of a sense of propriety, many of the officials who dialed City Hall... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-win-opens-new-possibilities/22719/ Wed, 9 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg 's commanding win in yesterday's election immediately set off a wave of questions about the future of the city's Democratic Party and the political possibilities that might emerge for a Republican mayor who won a double-digit victory over his Democratic opponent. Yesterday, leading Fernando Ferrer by 20 percentage points with nearly all the votes counted, the mayor was exceeding Mayor Giuliani's landslide 1997 victory, when Mr. Giuliani beat Ruth Messinger by 17.3 percentage... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/democrats-prepare-for-ny-loss/22664/ Tue, 8 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST With New York Democrats poised to lose their fourth consecutive mayoral election today, some Democrats are starting to acknowledge that their losing streak hasn't happened by accident, and are calling for a serious look at the state of the party. Yesterday, as the ever-growing chasm separating the Republican incumbent, Mayor Bloomberg, from his Democratic challenger, Fernando Ferrer, in the polls grew even larger, to 38 percentage points, both candidates spent the day shaking hands and urging... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/as-marathoners-streak-through-city-bloomberg/22615/ Mon, 7 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST With marathoners running through the five boroughs yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg and his Democratic Party challenger, Fernando Ferrer, picked up speed for the final leg of their political marathon. Messrs. Bloomberg and Ferrer officially started racing after the Democratic primary in September, but Mr. Bloomberg, who has held a commanding 30-point lead in public opinion polls for more than a month, has been competing in an unofficial race - more like an ultra marathon than the traditional 26... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-elucidates-his-plans-for-a-second-term/22530/ Fri, 4 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg envisions a New York City where the police commissioner calls the shots during transportation emergencies, the mayor wields the power to spur development at ground zero, and the city can authorize as many charter schools as it wishes. In the past six weeks, the mayor has outlined these and more than 100 other campaign goals related to education, public safety, economic development, and quality of life. Yesterday, holding a commanding lead in public opinion polls just five days... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/with-ferrer-lagging-political-class-asks-how-he/22406/ Wed, 2 Nov 2005 00:00:00 EST It might be too early to write a post-mortem for Fernando Ferrer's mayoral campaign, but the city's political class is already beginning to discuss what might be known as a pre-mortem. Just seven short months ago, Mr. Ferrer was leading Mayor Bloomberg in the polls and declaring that he intended to unite Democrats across the nation with his mayoral campaign. Now, however, six days before New Yorkers head to the polls, Mr. Ferrer is trailing Mr. Bloomberg in public polls by a solid 30 points. He... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-vows-no-tax-hikes-in-the-coming-year/22259/ Mon, 31 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST City voters can expect no tax or fee increases through June 2007 if Mayor Bloomberg is re-elected, the mayor said yesterday during his first debate with the Democratic challenger, Fernando Ferrer. Mr. Ferrer, trailing in recent public opinion polls by as much as 31 percentage points, attempted to take Mayor Bloomberg down a notch by attacking his ties to Republicans in Washington and his proclivity for forging "sweetheart deals" with developers. The first matchup between Messrs. Bloomberg and... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/in-new-ad-ferrer-blasts-mayors-failure-to-secure/22219/ Fri, 28 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST Dressed in a suit and tie, Fernando Ferrer walks on water - and four separate continents - in his newest television advertisement, which attacks Mayor Bloomberg's failure to secure education aid from Albany. The 30-second spot, Mr. Ferrer's second recent negative ad, shows the Democratic mayoral nominee pacing around a two-dimensional black-and-white map of the world. "When Mike Bloomberg wants something bad enough, he really goes out of his way to get it," he says. "Like when he wanted the... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-bringing-out-one-of-his-biggest-guns/22146/ Thu, 27 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg is bringing out one of the most powerful tools in his toolbox - Rudolph Giuliani - just two weeks before Election Day. The former mayor, who helped turn the tide for Mr. Bloomberg in 2001, recorded a phone message for the man he calls "my friend Mike Bloomberg," which is being distributed widely to households in the five boroughs. "Mike took over New York in a tough time," Mr. Giuliani says in the recording. "He not only built on my record, he did more - he dealt with the new... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/mayor-touted-principal-training-programs-future/22094/ Wed, 26 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST When New York City's principal training program was launched three years ago, the mayor called it a "core element" of the city's educational reforms. Now, with the not-for-profit Leadership Academy's $75 million in initial financing due to expire, the academy board is beginning to consider what shape the program will take in the future. With questions swirling through the education community, some staffers at the academy are looking for new jobs, sources said. Some claim that the Leadership... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-meets-ground-zero-backlash/21974/ Tue, 25 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg's criticism of plans for the World Trade Center site sparked high-level objections yesterday, with Governor Pataki saying he was "perplexed," the speaker of the state Assembly saying he was "outraged," and New York's senior senator saying Mr. Bloomberg's position "does not make any sense." Over the weekend, Mr. Bloomberg disclosed his interest in ousting the developer, Larry Silverstein, from participating in the rebuilding of ground zero. Yesterday, the mayor said he envisions... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/silverstein-confused-by-mayor-questioning-role/21934/ Mon, 24 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST The World Trade Center site developer, Larry Silverstein, said yesterday he is "confused" by Mayor Bloomberg's new public questions about the future course of the downtown rebuilding project - and about whether Mr. Silverstein should have a role in it. Mr. Bloomberg has approved the site plan for the World Trade Center site and has signed off on the design for the Freedom Tower, which was designed by Mr. Silverstein's architect. In the wake of Governor Pataki's decision last month to expel the... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/bloomberg-announces-expansion-of-city-after/21897/ Fri, 21 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST Mayor Bloomberg yesterday took on another of his Democratic opponent's top priorities, announcing a major expansion and reorganization of afterschool programs in New York City. "Kids don't stop learning after 3 p.m.," Mr. Bloomberg said, standing in a Red Hook public school. "And we shouldn't stop trying to teach and guide them." There have been free and low-cost after-school programs in the city for decades. In fact, the Democratic mayoral nominee, Fernando Ferrer, often credits an... JULIA LEVY http://www.nysun.com/new-york/ferrer-seizes-on-test-scores-to-question/21775/ Thu, 20 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EST Although Mayor Bloomberg counts record leaps in student test scores among his top achievements, new national data suggest that better teaching or smarter students may have nothing to do with those gains. The city and state tests could simply be easier. With the election just three weeks away and the Bloomberg campaign reminding New Yorkers almost daily of the mayor's strides in education, some testing authorities and the Ferrer campaign jumped on the National Assessment of Educational Progress...