The New York Times isn't exactly a bastion of journalism. They are corporate media shills just one step above Faux News and Lou Dobbs. So, their endorsements are not exactly representative of the interests of the majority of the people who live here.

Even worse, this paper is financially beholden to Michael Bloomberg. Some of Bloomberg's tens of millions of dollars spent to buy the election go to ads on the NY Times website. They also are desperate, since they are losing money. So, it isn't shocking that they gave middle class readers the finger by endorsing would be Mayor for Life Bloomberg.

What is surprising is the way they endorsed the Little Mayor That Couldn't. They practically drooled over the worst NYC Mayor since Jimmy Walker. Here's a paragraph so divorced from the reality we experience here in NYC that one can not help but think that writing the editorial was outsourced abroad.

NY Times 10/23/09:

What makes the mayor stand out is not his political skill, although he has come a long way since his first clumsy days in office. He has run the $60 billion government with a keen attention to accountability and efficiency. He has chosen some of the best people in the country to work for him, and he has mostly let them do their jobs. As a result, many city services operate better than they have for years. The garbage mostly disappears on time. The police and fire departments respond quickly. Mr. Bloomberg’s 311 phone line allows New Yorkers to complain to a live human being. Often, they even see tangible results.

Let's compare this to the facts:

1) Outside of Manhattan, trash delivery is still spotty. Most people in NYC don't live in Manhattan.

2) It is generally difficult to impossible to get the NYPD to file a crime report, much less solve the crime.

3) The NYPD takes forever to show up when you call them, if they show up at all.

4) 311 is a terrible mess. It's as if it is run by the Deptartment Of Wrong Answers. Even worse, city agencies won't answer their direct numbers unless you are from a wealthy interest. Instead they insist you call 311, which gives incorrect information and misdirects calls.

5) Seldom do any people who are middle class or poor see any tangible results from the city government. The rich do get tons of taxpayer money shoveled at them, though.

The article goes on to say that Blomberg's efforts to spending millions of dollars to buy the election and his refusal to tolerate dissent are "small blemishes." That speaks volumes about the corporate media's hatred and contempt for democracy and civil liberties.

Whenever anybody says the Times is a liberal newspaper, I giggle.

If you like that funky, offbeat idea called democracy, you may be looking for someone else to vote for than Bloomberg. If you want something done about the execrable morass of NYC city government, you should definitely pick someone who won't run the city like a failed bank or brokerage firm. It's time for a decent mayor and a decent human being.

It's time for Bill Thompson for Mayor.



Photo (of Bloomberg at top): Edwin Martinez1