THE "PORK" IN NEW YORK, Thoughts of an older American on Constitutional Government in the USA Options

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

Good morning, John:

I agree with you totally about this so-called "freedom to report terrorism" act.

Does it indemnify malicious gossip?

If so, we're in for a very rough ride.

Posted by: Mike | September 12, 2007 9:50 AM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

With respect to elaborating on this "Freedom to Report Terrorism" Act", truth-championer, AND the incident with Joe Bruno and Eliot Spitzer and the mis-use of the NYSP to crush dissent up here in the Albany area where Article 78 petitions to challenge NYS government corruption are filed, which we see as being directly linked, this is what I have to say ...

The facts start here:

On August 22, 2001, a licensed professional engineer up here in Rensselaer County named Paul R. Plante was taken into custody in the lobby of the Stratton VA Hospital in Albany, N.Y. and was confined in the secure mental facility of the Stratton VA Hospital as an alleged dangerous mental patient who allegedly had been "threatening bloodshed" at the Rensselaer County Office Building in Troy, New York ...

He went to the VA Hospital, according to official VA records, "seeking sanctuary" ....

He was seeking sanctuary at the Stratton VA Hospital because he had fled Rensselaer County in fear of his life after a telephone conversation with a Robert Reiter, a BRUNO REPUBLICAN employed by Rensselaer County government, and a William "BUCK" Shea, one of George Pataki's people in the NYS Division of Veteran's Affairs who for some unclear reason was stationed in the Rensselaer County Office Building in Troy ...

Before he went to the VA Hospital, Plante called an Albany, N.Y. Police Officer, and he asked that Police Officer to come to the Stratton VA to try and find Plante, who at the tiime of that call, had no clear idea as to what was going on, other than the fact that he felt very threatened by the call from Reiter and Shea ...

When the Albany Police Officer finally got to the VA Hospital, Plante was locked up in the secure mental facility ...

The Albany Police Officer gained admittance to the secure mental facility, and after a period of time elapsed, was able to secure Plante's release from involuntary psychiatric confinement there ...

And thus began a saga and a horror story for us up here in Joe Bruno's Rensselaer County which I will recount to you further in another post or more .......

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 5:38 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

With respect to that horror story, truth-championer, and how it relates directly in our minds up here to the Spitzer "Freedom to Report Terrorism" Act" AND the incident with Joe Bruno and Eliot Spitzer and the mis-use of the NYSP to crush dissent up here in the Albany area where Article 78 petitions to challenge NYS government corruption are filed, which we see as being directly linked, here are relevant excerpts from the official report filed with the Stratton VA Hospital by the doctor who was holding Plante in custody in the secure mental facility of the Stratton VA on August 22, 2001:

EXCERPTS FROM RECORDS OF DR. WILLIAM COX OF ALBANY, NEW YORK VA HOSPITAL ON AUGUST 22, 2001 CONCERNING THIS MATTER:

"I reviewed .... faxed information from Bob Reiter and Bill Shea of the Rensselaer County Department of Veterans Affairs, both of whom I also spoke with."

"This encounter was initiated by Mr. Reiter and Mr. Shea, who reported that they had telephone contact with Plante yesterday (August 21, 2001)."

"They notified someone at Good Samaritan Hospital in Troy about the situation, and a police retention order pursuant to sec. 9.41 of the Mental Hygiene Law was issued by John Braaten, based on Mr. Reiter and Mr. Shea's verbal report."

"Neither Mr. Reiter nor Mr. Shea are credentialed mental health providers, and Plante was never examined at Good Samaritan Hospital or any other facility prior to coming here."

"Our records indicate that Plante IS NOT CONNECTED WITH MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT."

"THE AUTHOR WOULD HAVE RETAINED PLANTE INVOLUNTARILY BUT FOR (AN ALBANY, NEW YORK POLICE OFFICER), who reported he 'went out to dinner last Sunday (8/19/01)' with him and found him to be in his usual state of mind."

"(The Albany, New York Police Officer) listened patiently while Plante reviewed his version of events, and agreed with him."

"I ASKED (THE ALBANY, NEW YORK POLICE OFFICER) IF HE HAD ANY REQUESTS OR CONCERNS ABOUT PLANTE'S MENTAL HEALTH, AND HE REPLIED NEGATIVELY."

"IN FACT, (THE ALBANY, NEW YORK POLICE OFFICER) WAS MORE CONCERNED, AS WAS PLANTE, ABOUT THE LEGALITY OF THE 9.41 PETITION."

"AT THAT POINT, IT WAS MY OPINION THAT PLANTE FELL SHORT OF THE CRITERIA FOR INVOLUNTARY COMMITMENT."

signed,

William F. Cox, MD 08/22/01 1602 HOURS

end quotes

Note that I have redacted the name of the Albany Police Officer who continues to serve with that department to this day ...

And with respect to Mike's concerns above about indemnifying malicious gossip and being in for a very rough ride, note that Plante's involuntary confinement in the Stratton VA Hospital on August 22, 2001 was based on exactly that, and nothing more ...

And but for that Albany, New York Police Officer, Plante would have been kept is secure psychiatric confinement at the Stratton VA Hospital until such time as Rensselaer County was able to secure his transfer to the Samaritan Hospital secure mental facility in Joe Bruno's Troy, where a politically-connected doctor had issued an involuntary psychiatric commitment order for Plante completely sight unseen, as the VA doctor's official report notes ....

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 6:08 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

With respect to Spitzer and Bruno and the mis-use of the NYSP in connection with what Rensselaer County Court Judge Patrick McGrath was to later state in writing was an unlawful imprisonment of Plante in violation of federal and state criminal statutes, note as follows from that VA Doctor's official report above:

"I reviewed .... faxed information from Bob Reiter and Bill Shea of the Rensselaer County Department of Veterans Affairs, both of whom I also spoke with."

"This encounter was initiated by Mr. Reiter and Mr. Shea, who reported that they had telephone contact with Plante yesterday (August 21, 2001)."

"They notified someone at Good Samaritan Hospital in Troy about the situation, and a police retention order pursuant to sec. 9.41 of the Mental Hygiene Law was issued by John Braaten, based on Mr. Reiter and Mr. Shea's verbal report."

end quotes

Thr reference to a "police retention order" implicates a NYSP BCI Investigator named Chris O'Brien who was stationed in the office of Joe Bruno's son, Kenneth Bruno, who was at that time the Rensselaer County District Attorney ...

NYSP BCI Investigator Chris O'Brien is further named by name in an official VA Hospital Police Report of the incident that is filed in the official VA records concerning this Plante incident on August 22, 2001 ....

Kenneth Bruno's office and the NYSP BCI Investigator were key players in securing the involuntary psychiatric commitment order for Plante based on nothing more than lies ...

Or as Mike would say, malicious gossip ...

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 6:40 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

What follows, truth-championer, are relevant excerpts from an August 6, 2004 sworn affidavit of the Albany Police Officer which Eliot Spitzer's office managed to get suppressed, first in Rensselaer County Supreme Court, and then in federal District Court for the Northern District of New York:

1. I am qualified as a law enforcement officer in the State of New York.

2. In that capacity, I am familiar with orders for involuntary commitment issued pursuant to 9.45 of the New York State Mental Hygiene Law, commonly known as "pick-up" orders.

3. With respect to this above matter, on August 22, 2001, I returned home to find an urgent message on my telephone answering machine from PLAINTIFF (Plante) in the above matter, requesting me to come to his aid and assistance at the Stratton VA Medical Center at 113 Holland Avenue in Albany, New York 12208.

4. Upon arriving at the Stratton VA Medical Center at about 2:00 P.M. on the afternoon of August 22, 2001 and making inquiry as to PLAINTIFF's whereabouts, I found him in the custody of Dr. Cox in the secure mental health facility on the tenth floor of the VA Hospital in Albany.

5. Upon being admitted into Dr. Cox's office, I recall being told by Dr. Cox that it was "a good thing" that I was there, and that as someone who knew PLAINTIFF quite well, I could assist Dr. Cox in straightening out the situation in which PLAINTIFF found himself at that moment.

6. At that time, I recall that Dr. Cox had PLAINTIFF explain the "situation" to me in his own words, which I recall as follows:

a) that PLAINTIFF was conducting an investigation as a New York State licensed professional engineer pursuant to the laws of the State of New York into the manner in which a Jeffrey Pelletier of Poestenkill, New York, had managed to obtain a sewage disposal system construction permit from the Rensselaer County Department of Health;

B) that in the course of conducting this investigation, he had uncovered alleged wrongdoing involving public officials in the Town of Poestenkill and Rensselaer County;

c) that he was preparing a report on the manner in which this sewage disposal system construction permit had been obtained in preparation for a legal action against the public officials allegedly involved in the matter;

d) that in the course of obtaining background materials for the report, he had been threatened with retaliation by Rensselaer County officials and was told to "back off" and leave the matter alone;

e) that the day prior, August 21, 2001, despite the threats he had received from Rensselaer County officials, he entered the Rensselaer County Office Building for the purpose of a final review of public files in connection with the investigation he was conducting;

f) that on the morning of August 22, 2001, he had returned home to find two (2) messages on his answering machine from a Robert Reiter, a political appointee serving as Director of Veterans' Affairs in Rensselaer County;

g) that he then called Robert Reiter at the Rensselaer County Office Building;

h) that Robert Reiter then allegedly tried to lure him into the Rensselaer County Office Building for an alleged meeting;

i) that when he refused to come into the Rensselaer County Office Building, that Robert Reiter then allegedly told him that he was "required" to report to the mental health unit at the Samaritan Hospital in Troy, New York;

j) that Robert Reiter then put a William "BUCK" Shea on the line;

k) that William "BUCK" Shea began yelling at him that if he did not report to the mental health unit of the Samaritan Hospital immediately, that he would have to "face the consequences"; and

l) that upon hearing William "BUCK" Shea's threats, he became panic stricken and immediately left his home and went to the VA Hospital for sanctuary, because it was federal property, and because he hoped a psychologist he knew at the hospital would be able to assist him in determining what was transpiring in Rensselaer County.

TO BE CONTINUED ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:05 PM

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This post has been edited by Livyjr: Sep 13 2007, 05:27 AM

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

The Albany Police Officer's affidavit which Eliot Spitzer's office had suppressed continues as follows:

7. I then clearly recall Dr. Cox dismissing out of hand all that PLAINTIFF had just stated, and informing me instead that PLAINTIFF was being held at the VA Hospital because a 9.45 involuntary commitment order for him had been issued by a Dr. John Christian Braaten at the Samaritan Hospital in Troy, New York which directed the New York State Police to apprehend PLAINTIFF and transport him to the mental health unit of the Samaritan Hospital in Troy, New York for involuntary psychiatric care and treatment, and that PLAINTIFF was alleged to be in quite serious trouble in Rensselaer County, for which he was allegedly "wanted by the police" as I recall the words of Dr. Cox to me on August 22, 2001.

8. When I asked what that had to do with PLAINTIFF being held at the VA Hospital in Albany, I recall Dr. Cox informing me that Rensselaer County officials had faxed the New York State Mental Hygiene Law 9.45 "pick-up" order for PLAINTIFF to the VA Hospital, and that, because of that action by Rensselaer County and New York State public officials, there was then a legal jurisdictional problem involving PLAINTIFF, that because of the 9.45 order, in the words of Dr. Cox as I recall them, the VA was required to hold PLAINTIFF in custody.

9. Being familiar with 9.45 orders in my capacity as a qualified law enforcement officer in the State of New York, and being very familiar with the version of facts PLAINTIFF had provided to me at the beginning of the interview with Dr. Cox, and being very curious as to how and upon what authority Dr. Cox, a medical doctor allegedly licensed in State of New York by the Education Department, could dismiss out of hand PLAINTIFF's version of events above where PLAINTIFF is an engineer licensed to practice in the State of New York who has previously given evidence to the Federal Bureau of Investigation concerning the Rensselaer County Department of Health, I recall requesting Dr. Cox to show me the order upon which he personally was detaining PLAINTIFF.

10. When I questioned Dr. Cox as to his knowledge of the circumstances behind the issuance of this particular 9.45 order, specifically the necessary factual history alleged in the records to justify a finding that PLAINTIFF was "dangerous" as is required by New York State laws on the arrest and detainment of those alleged to be mentally ill, dangerous and incapable of providing support or treatment for themselves, I recall Dr. Cox telling me that earlier that morning, PLAINTIFF had allegedly been seen by a Dr. John Christian Braaten at Samaritan Hospital, and based upon Dr. John Christian Braaten's alleged evaluation, that PLAINTIFF had to be involuntarily committed to a mental health unit for immediate care and treatment for a mental illness.

11. At that point, I clearly recall PLAINTIFF interjecting in a calm, steady and reasonable voice, stating that he had never been to the Samaritan Hospital that day or any other day, and that he had never been seen by any Dr. John Christian Braaten at any time, period.

end quotes

As Mike said, the rough ride begins ....

Based on nothing but malicious lies and gossip ...

And so ....

TO BE CONTINUED ....

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:10 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

The Albany Police Officer's affidavit which Eliot Spitzer's office had suppressed continues as follows:

12. With that statement by PLAINTIFF, I recall asking Dr. Cox specifically, in very clear language, whether he had independent knowledge as to whether Dr. John Christian Braaten had actually seen PLAINTIFF, at which point I recall him basing his opinion solely upon the 9.45 order faxed to him by Rensselaer County officials.

13. With that admission by Dr. Cox that he had no direct knowledge or evidence of what had transpired in Rensselaer County, outside of the copy of the 9.45 order faxed to him that morning by Rensselaer County public officials, and that therefore, he could not attest to where PLAINTIFF had been or what he been doing at the time process was issued by Dr. John Christian Braaten for PLAINTIFF to be detained and transported to Samaritan Hospital of Troy, N.Y., I recall that a discussion ensued between myself and Dr. Cox as to the situation as I saw it right then from my perspective as a police officer in the State of New York subject to its laws and constitution as were Dr. Cox and PLAINTIFF as licensed professionals in the State of New York.

14. As I recall it, this discussion concerned itself with Dr. Cox's own personal legal status as a New York State licensed medical doctor if he continued to hold PLAINTIFF without any evidence of mental illness, "dangerousness" or inability to care for himself, after PLAINTIFF had identified himself to the doctor as a New York State licensed professional engineer conducting an investigation in Rensselaer County involving matters of protection and safeguarding of life, health and property in New York State.

15. As I recall him saying in reply, Dr. Cox told me that he had been informed that morning by Rensselaer County officials Joseph Cybulski and Robert Reiter, and New York State official William "BUCK" Shea, that PLAINTIFF was alleged armed and dangerous and a threat to people in the Rensselaer County Office Building, and that he had then been ordered by Joseph Cybulski, who I believe he referred to as a "doctor", to hold PLAINTIFF for transport back to Rensselaer County.

end quotes

Here is where the false "terrorism" angle enters into the picture ...

TO BE CONTINUED .....

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:14 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

The Albany Police Officer's affidavit which Eliot Spitzer's office had suppressed continues as follows:

16. When I asked Dr. Cox upon what authority, jurisdiction or discretion, Rensselaer County officials Joseph Cybulski and Robert Reiter, and New York State official William "BUCK" Shea could order the arrest and detention of PLAINTIFF in a Federal government secure mental health facility, I recall Dr. Cox resorting to the circular logic of the MHL 9.45 order; to wit: if they had it, he was not going to question its legitimacy, regardless of what PLAINTIFF might say in his own defense, or in other words, it was too late for PLAINTIFF's defense, he had already had that opportunity with Dr. John Christian Braaten that morning, and PLAINTIFF had obviously blown it according to Dr. Cox, elsewise the 9.45 order would never had issued, and PLAINTIFF wouldn't now be detained and in big trouble in Rensselaer County.

17. It is at that this point in the discussion that I recall stopping Dr. Cox in his presentation, and asking him one question to settle the dispute in the matter of PLAINTIFF's custody, for if PLAINTIFF was properly in custody, as a police officer in the State of New York, I could not and would interfere outside of resorting, as one who knew him quite well, to legal procedures created in the New York State Mental Hygiene Law to challenge such confinements:

I asked Dr. Cox to explain to me how PLAINTIFF had managed to escape from the Samaritan Hospital, given that he was at that time physically present in the City of Albany, some miles to the south of the City of Troy, where Dr. John Christian Braaten had allegedly examined him and had allegedly determined that PLAINTIFF was a person with a mental illness who needed to be involuntarily committed to the mental health unit of the Samaritan Hospital for immediate care and treatment.

18. I told Dr. Cox that if PLAINTIFF had in fact been in lawful custody at the Samaritan Hospital in Troy on August 22, 2001, and had then escaped custody before making his way to Albany, where we all were then sitting, that in my own view of my responsibilities as a police officer in New York State, I would be obligated to apprehend PLAINTIFF myself for the public safety, so that if Dr. Cox had evidence of such alleged conduct by PLAINTIFF, then he was obligated to hold PLAINTIFF, and PLAINTIFF was obligated to stay.

19. However, I told Dr. Cox, that from what I was hearing PLAINTIFF recount concerning this MHL 9.45 order, it sounded as if a Constitutional Tort had been committed against PLAINTIFF in the State of New York by these named public officials in the County of Rensselaer and the State of New York, so that the reality of the situation right there as it stood in Dr. Cox's office at that moment was that PLAINTIFF was being held against his will by Dr. Cox in a federal facility based upon null acts in the State of New York in violation of PLAINTIFF's legal and constitutional rights under New York law, and that as someone who knew him quite well, I would institute proceedings against Dr. Cox on constitutional grounds to have PLAINTIFF freed, after it was clear to him as the examining doctor that there were no medical grounds upon which to continue the detention of PLAINTIFF in the Albany VA Hospital as an alleged dangerous mental patient.

end quotes

A CONSTITUTIONAL TORT HAD BEEN COMMITTED ...

Hence the need for INDEMNIFICATION by Eliot Spitzer in his new law here ....

And so ....

TO BE CONTINUED ....

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:19 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

The Albany Police Officer's affidavit which Eliot Spitzer's office had suppressed continues as follows:

20. With that question before him of the lawfulness and constitutionality of PLAINTIFF's continued detention in the secure mental health facility of the Albany VA Hospital on August 22, 2001, after the moment when Dr. Cox admitted that he had no medical evidence upon which to base his continued detention of PLAINTIFF, I recall Dr. Cox stating for the record on an apparent recording device that he had no knowledge that PLAINTIFF had ever been seen or examined by anyone at the Samaritan Hospital in Troy, and that in his opinion, there was no evidence that PLAINTIFF was in need of care and treatment for a mental illness, nor was there evidence that PLAINTIFF was dangerous, and that therefore, there was no legal basis for him to continue detaining PLAINTIFF, at which time PLAINTIFF was released from custody by the VA Hospital on Dr. Cox's orders.

end quotes

And now we get to the part about the malicious gossip on which Plante was being held, in the next installment to come ...

And so ...

TO BE CONTINUED ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:24 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

The Albany Police Officer's affidavit which Eliot Spitzer's office had suppressed continues as follows:

21. At that time, I recall going to the office of the VA Police to inform them that Dr. Cox had released PLAINTIFF based upon a lack of medical evidence upon which to hold him.

22. Upon identifying myself to the VA Police as a law enforcement officer, I recall being shown the police report filed with the VA Police by Rensselaer County officials which had precipitated the incident at the VA Hospital that had caused PLAINTIFF to be involuntarily detained by Dr. Cox.

23. In discussing that police report with the VA Police, it is my recollection, and it is reflected in that police report, that Andrea Gallerie, a nurse with the VA satellite office in Troy, New York had reported to the VA Police in Albany, New York that PLAINTIFF was an alleged "mental patient" who she alleged was "in her care", and who she was further alleging was violent, and it was further reported to the VA Police by Robert Reiter and William "BUCK" Shea of Rensselaer County that PLAINTIFF had been threatening them and Jeffrey Pelletier of Poestenkill, New York.

24. In fact, that report to the VA Police, and upon information and belief, the source of which is the VA Police, the Office of the United States Attorney for the Northern District of New York, by Andrea Gallerie, Robert Reiter and William "BUCK" Shea is false on its face, as the evidence in this matter will clearly demonstrate.

25. In support of that statement, subsequent to discussing this matter of PLAINTIFF's involuntary detention with the VA Police on August 22, 2001, I spoke directly with New York State Police Investigator Chris O'Brien, whose name is mentioned at page two (2) of the VA Police Report which I recall seeing on August 22, 2001.

26. During that conversation, I recall Investigator Chris O'Brien confirming to me that he had spoken with PLAINTIFF late that afternoon, after PLAINTIFF had returned home from the VA after suffering chest pains as a result of his false arrest earlier that day, about having Jeffrey Pelletier of Poestenkill arrested for assaulting PLAINTIFF on or about August 7, 2001 in an effort to intimidate and deter PLAINTIFF from continuing his investigation into the manner in which Jeffrey Pelletier had obtained a Rensselaer County Department of Health sewage disposal system construction permit.

27. As I recall, Investigator Chris O'Brien informed me that he was basing his opinion that Jeffrey Pelletier should be arrested on a copy of a videotape of the August 7, 2001 Pelletier assault on PLAINTIFF which had been provided to him in the afternoon of August 22, 2001 by New York State Veterans' Service Officer William "BUCK" Shea, the same individual who had earlier that day falsely informed the VA Police that PLAINTIFF was threatening Jeffrey Pelletier.

28. Upon information and belief, the source of which is the VA Police Report which I saw on August 22, 2001, and my conversations with the VA Police and Investigator Chris O'Brien, what appears to have transpired is that once it became apparent to Rensselaer County officials and William "BUCK" Shea on August 22, 2001 that the VA would not continue to hold PLAINTIFF, and would not allow him to be returned to the custody of Rensselaer County officials for transport to the mental health unit of the Samaritan Hospital for involuntary commitment, William "BUCK" Shea apparently had misgivings about suppressing the videotape of the Jeffrey Pelletier assault on PLAINTIFF as evidence, and so brought a copy of the videotape to Investigator Chris O'Brien in an effort to distance himself from the actions of other Rensselaer County officials involved in the matter.

29. As previously stated, upon information and belief, the source of which is Investigator Chris O'Brien, based upon that videotape evidence, Investigator Chris O'Brien formed an opinion as a qualified law enforcement officer in the State of New York on August 22, 2001, that Jeffrey Pelletier should be arrested and then orally conveyed that opinion to me in a telephone conversation in connection with this matter on or about August 22, 2001.

30. Thereafter, it is my recollection that on the evening of August 22, 2001, I discussed my conversation with Investigator Chris O'Brien with PLAINTIFF and that based upon Investigator Chris O'Brien's advice, I informed PLAINTIFF that I would accompany him to the New York State Police Barracks in Schodack, New York, so that PLAINTIFF could swear out a criminal complaint against Jeffrey Pelletier.

31. During that conversation, I recall PLAINTIFF informing me that the stress caused by the day's events had made him quite ill, and that he had chest pains and shortness of breath caused by that stress, which precluded him from going to the State Police at that time, and that PLAINTIFF remained in fear of Robert Reiter and William "BUCK" Shea, and that despite Investigator Chris O'Brien's assurances that he would testify in any criminal court proceeding against Jeffrey Pelletier, PLAINTIFF remained convinced by what had occurred that day at the VA that Investigator Chris O'Brien could not offer PLAINTIFF any protection in Rensselaer County from further malicious prosecution or detention of PLAINTIFF as an alleged dangerous mental patient, so that any further attempts by him to have justice in this matter in the Town of Poestenkill would only result in his continued persecution, for which reason, it is my information and belief, PLAINTIFF was never able to follow through and have Jeffrey Pelletier prosecuted for the August 7, 2001 assault on PLAINTIFF captured on the videotape which defendant William "BUCK" Shea had in his possession on August 22, 2001, and which he allegedly provided to Investigator Chris O'Brien sometime during the day on August 22, 2001.

DATED: Albany, New York
August 6, 2004

And so ....

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:28 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

There, truth-championer, is the NIGHTMARE come back to life for us up here with this "Freedom to Report Terrorism" Act" ....

Every single person involved in this unlawful imprisonment of Plante on August 22, 2001 was INDEMNIFIED and protected by Eliot Spitzer's office when he was NYS AG ....

Despite a Rensselaer County Court Judge reviewing the facts and evidence, including this Albany Police Officer's sworn affidavit above here, and finding violations of state and federal criminal statutes, not a single one of these perpetrators ever had to stand trial ....

As to Plante, he is now listed as a dangerous mental patient here in NYS based on this fraudulent psychiatric commitment order ...

And he has all but disappeared from sight up here, in fear of his life ....

But he still owns a parcel of land up here that is coveted by land developers, and it is our fear now that the police will be back for Plante based on more malicious gossip about alleged threats and "terrorism" ....

And we quite frankly fear for his life ....

And there is where matters now stand, truth-championer ....

And thank you for your interest ....

You are one of the few who cares what happens up here, it seems ....

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 12, 2007 7:38 PM

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypoli..._86.html?page=2

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

Good Lord, John.

That reads like the stories of Franz Kafka.

I certainly don't blame Mr. Plante for choosing to stay underground.

If only there was a trustworthy police agency that could assist him and bring those responsible to justice.

Posted by: Mike | September 13, 2007 5:05 PM

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[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS DAILY POLITICS BLOG:

IF ONLY, Mike ...

You and I, we wish for a better world, dude, and we are stuck with the one we have, instead, and what is recounted above here is a part of that world that continues to fester in our lives up here where I am ....

The "FEAR FACTOR" ...

The on-going "FEAR FACTOR" ....

What is the most amazing part of this was the ease with which Eliot Spitzer's office (Nelson Sheingold) was able to bury this matter, including the sworn statements of this Albany Police Officer right above here, which really causes one to have to think about the very concept of "JUSTICE" here in NYS ...

When the NYS AG can bury the eye-witness statements of a sworn police officer as to the commission of alleged crimes here in the Albany area, so that the NYS AG could protect the politically-connected perpetrators ....

All of whom are still out there in the community in positions of power over us out here in the countryside who are against the CORRUPTION in the state ...

And so ....

The FOURTH REICH is rising, Mike ....

Bad times are ahead for those who would protest the on-going corruption in government in this state, and then try to go to a court of law to do something about that corruption through lawful means ...

You'll find the "law" being used against you as a cudgel to inflict blunt force trauma ....

And this above here is a vivid example of what I am talking about ...

And so ...

Posted by: John Galt | September 14, 2007 6:35 AM

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[Livyjr]

AND HERE IS A VIVID EXAMPLE OF THE VERY REAL COSTS TO THE CITZENS OF NEW YORK STATE RESIDING IN THE TOWN OF POESTENKILL IN RENSSELAER COUNTY OF HAVING A CORRUPT NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, A CORRUPT NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, A CORRUPT OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL DISCIPLINE IN THE NEW YORK STATE DEPRTMENT OF EDUCATION, A CORRUPT RENSSELAER COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, AND A CORRUPT POESTENKILL TOWN PLANNING BOARD ....

The cost of paying back the capital costs is also based upon nothing but WILD SPECULATION by TOWN OF POESTENKILL SUPERVISOR MARGARET "PEGGY" SCHMIDT that despite the backslide in housing starts and housing sales in Rensselaer County, somehow, despite this backslide, the Town of Poestenkill is still going to add FIFTY NEW HOMES in the next two years ...

Which is wildly optimistic and unsupported by evidence on her part ....

Which means that the few existing users of the proposed system will end up paying back astronomical costs themselves, when all these other phantom rate payers fail to materialize .......

And so ...

"Voters approve Poestenkill water district"

By BOB GARDINIER, Staff writer, Albany, New York Times Union

Last updated: 11:08 a.m., Wednesday, August 1, 2007

POESTENKILL -- Almost every eligible voter cast a ballot to decide whether to build a water district in the western part of the town.

It took nearly every vote to pass it.

Residents barely approved a measure Tuesday to form the town's first water district, a $9.2 million proposal that won by a razor-thin 274 to 264 votes.

There were just under 600 voters eligible to vote on the measure.

The voting machine count showed the measure failed by a 233-to-234 vote, but the addition of absentee ballots secured the win.

Residents at recent public hearings were clearly divided on the issue.

While many liked the safety of having a municipal water source, many were intimidated by the costs of the project and some just wanted the town left rural, Schmidt said.

Officials noted two main reasons to build water district.

One is that the town is experiencing steady development and will have 50 new homes built over the next two years, Schmidt said.

The other problem is that many residential wells are polluted.

Tests have shown that traces of trichloroethane, dichloroethane, methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), bacteria and other contaminants are in local wells.

Schmidt also said many of the small residential lots in town do not meet the required separation distance between well and septic system.

Everyone within a water district pays for the cost to build the water system.

People who hook up to the system will also pay for the water they use and the longterm operation and maintenance.

It is estimated the monthly cost for the water district will be $65 to $70 per month, which includes capital costs, water use, operation and maintenance costs.

"Hovnanian cuts prices as home sales cool"

By JEFFREY GOLD, Associated Press

Last updated: 3:42 p.m., Thursday, September 13, 2007

NEWARK, N.J. -- Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., struggling like other home builders, is offering six-figure discounts on some of its properties this weekend as it attempts to draw interest in a slumping market.

The sales blitz -- announced Sept. 5 -- involves dropping prices by more 20 percent on some of its prime real estate, including upstate New York and other markets that were once hot.

The largest discounts are on the most expensive homes, including a 3-bedroom condominium by the Hudson River in West New York, which has been reduced $240,000, or 22 percent, to $862,000 this weekend.

A 25-percent discount is being offered on a 2-bedroom home in Jackson Township, N.J., which lowers its price tag to $300,501.

Hovnanian's discounts come during the worst housing downturn in 16 years, which has slashed earnings for the Red Bank, N.J.-based company and other national home builders.

Tight credit, fueled by a meltdown in the subprime mortgage industry this year, has sidelined potential buyers who were already wary following years of escalating home prices.

No other major builder is having a sale of such magnitude, but swollen inventories are likely to lead to more discounting, said Sam Chandan, chief economist at Reis Inc., a real estate research firm.

"We've certainly seen conditions in the housing market continue to deteriorate in the last several months," Chandan said.

"The downward adjustment in prices, whether for new homes or existing homes, is going to be far more severe than what many people thought earlier this year."

Although forecasts predict continued declines in the number of homes whose construction is under way, the climate is seen as an opportunity by Hovnanian, which last week reported its fourth consecutive quarterly loss.

"Folks are ready to buy, they are just waiting to confirm that there is value out there," said Michael Skea, vice president of marketing and sales for the company's northeast sector.

This weekend's sales involves thousands of homes in 19 states and starts at 9 a.m. Friday and ends at 9 p.m. Sunday, said Skea, adding that the company has never had such a sale in its half-century of homebuilding.

The company promoted its "Deal of the Century" with radio and print ads, and Skea said "hundreds" of people have made appointments to visit homes this weekend.

"We think it will effectively overcome the malaise that people have been carrying around since the subprime debacle occurred in late February," he said.

"It's just a matter of getting the buying public to realize this is a great time to buy."

Indeed, mortgage rates remain at historic lows.

Skea said the sale would not be repeated, but an industry observer was not so certain.

"Depending on how successful it is, it might not be a one-time event," said Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH Associates, a consumer loan research firm in Pompton Plains, N.J., suggesting that buyers might wait if they thought a better discount was imminent.

Gumbinger found the sale remarkable, given low mortgage rates.

"You wouldn't think there is a need to go to the marketplace with such discounts," he said.

"This is a pretty good indication from a prominent homebuilder that the market is troubled."

Recently, other builders have offered savings as price cuts and free appliance upgrades, he said, although they have avoided such big discounts so far.

Hovnanian's Skea said the prices offered this weekend will involve "no further negotiating" and contracts must be signed by 9 p.m. Sunday.

Last week, Hovnanian reported that after paying preferred stock dividends, it lost $80.5 million, or $1.27 per share, in the quarter that ended July 31.

That compared with a profit of $74.4 million, or $1.15 per share, in the same period a year ago.

------

On the Net:

Hovnanian: http://www.khov.com/

Beazer: http://www.beazer.com/

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK TIMES

"Spitzer Aides Won’t Fight Subpoenas"

By DANNY HAKIM

Published: September 14, 2007

ALBANY, Sept. 13 — Private lawyers for two top aides to Gov. Eliot Spitzer said on Thursday that they would not fight subpoenas issued by the State Ethics Commission earlier this week.

Terence L. Kindlon, a lawyer for Darren Dopp, the governor’s communications director, said his client told him to abandon his plan to fight a subpoena and instead cooperate with the commission.

And Steven F. Reich, a lawyer for Richard Baum, the secretary to the governor, also said his client would not fight the subpoena issued to him.

Two months ago, the governor said he and his staff had “fully cooperated” with the office of Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, which issued a report in July that found that the Spitzer administration misused the State Police trying to discredit Joseph L. Bruno, the Senate majority leader.

But it soon became public that the governor’s counsel, David Nocenti, had advised Mr. Baum and Mr. Dopp against speaking to Mr. Cuomo’s investigators.

Mr. Cuomo had no power to compel them to, since he lacked subpoena power in the case.

Now, however, the matter is being investigated by the Albany County district attorney, P. David Soares, and the State Ethics Commission, and both have the ability to issue subpoenas and compel testimony.

Mr. Soares has interviewed both men in recent weeks, but not issued subpoenas, while the Ethics Commission has taken a more aggressive approach.

The subpoenas to Mr. Dopp and Mr. Baum, seeking production of various documents and e-mail messages, were issued on Monday.

Mr. Kindlon, the lawyer for Mr. Dopp, said earlier this week that he would fight the subpoena because it was overly broad.

But he said on Thursday that Mr. Dopp “feels that I am being overly cautious as a lawyer and he has directed me to refrain from seeking to quash the subpoena, so we are in the process right now of assembling the documents that have been requested and they will be delivered on schedule.”

Mr. Kindlon said neither he nor Mr. Dopp had discussed the decision with the governor’s counsel or staff.

“Darren is adamant about wanting to provide Ethics with every single thing that it requested that he has to give,” Mr. Kindlon said, adding, “the fact is that every single document that we have to turn over is supportive of Darren’s position, his position being that he hasn’t done anything wrong.”

The Spitzer administration continues to face criticism from Republicans, who say the governor and his aides have been less than candid.

Senate Republicans are conducting their own hearings and say a public review is needed to determine the extent of the effort to tarnish Mr. Bruno.

One lingering question is whether the administration and its employees are turning over e-mail messages from both their government and their private accounts.

“We want a full, complete accounting of what happened, and the only way to get that is through the e-mails,” said John E. McArdle, a spokesman for Mr. Bruno.

Christine Anderson, the governor’s press secretary, said: “We did a diligent search and turned over what was in our custody and control."

"If chamber employees were using their personal e-mails for governmental purposes relating to this issue, we believe they should turn those e-mails over to the commission.”

Asked about the statement, Mr. Baum’s lawyer, Mr. Reich, said, “Rich will provide the commission with any responsive documents that are within his custody and control.”

Ms. Anderson also said, “we’re working cooperatively with the D.A. to ensure that they get the documents they need to conduct a comprehensive review.”

After the Cuomo report was issued, the governor suspended Mr. Dopp for more than 30 days without pay; another aide, a liaison to the State Police, was also reassigned.

Mr. Dopp was recently returned to the payroll but not to work; he is using several weeks of accrued vacation time.

He is expected to be reassigned to another position in the government, but outside the governor’s staff.

Mr. Dopp’s lawyer’s move to fight the subpoena had been a controversial one.

Asked about it during a news conference on Thursday morning, Mr. Bruno, the state’s top Republican, said “People shouldn’t be bobbing, ducking, weaving, because it makes people wonder what they’re hiding.”

The Ethics Commission investigation is not expected to conclude before next week and will then be turned over to a new Commission on Public Integrity that is being created to handle ethics issues.

The State Temporary Commission on Lobbying is also being merged into the new integrity commission, though a slate of new commissioners is not yet in place.

“We will go forward proceeding as we have, investigations if there are any will continue,” said Walter Ayres, a spokesman for the Ethics Commission.

“By law, the staffs and all the operations of the two committees continue."

"There was a period this year where we did not have a chair and we did not have an executive director, and the Ethics Commission still continued to function.”

He declined comment on the investigation of the governor’s staff.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/14/nyregion...amp;oref=slogin

[Livyjr]

THE NEW YORK POST

"PUTTING ‘PRO’ INPROBE"

September 17, 2007 -- STATE Senate Republicans, stepping up their investigation of the dirty-tricks scandal that has rocked Gov. Spitzer’s administration, will hire a “national class” special counsel as soon as this week to take over what is expected to be a widening probe, The Post has learned.

The selection will be made from a final list of four candidates that includes two former U.S. attorneys, a source close to the selection said.

At least one of those under consideration is a Democrat, the source said.

“This will be a nationalclass lawyer and investigator who will be beyond reproach and won’t be open to charges of partisanship,” the source continued.

A second source said Senate Republicans are convinced that Spitzer himself was at the center of the scandal and that the special counsel, armed with the Senate’s subpoena power, “will find out if that was the case.”

Senate Investigations Committee Chairman George Winner (R-Elmira) confirmed that a decision on picking a special counsel would be made “sooner rather than later.”

“I think it’s important that we be able to say that we’re acting in a nonpartisan way with the assistance of someone of this kind of stature,”Winner said.

The special counsel will be paid from funds set aside by the Senate for “consultant services” and will charge the state a reduced fee.

“We certainly don’t want to be over the top as far as expenses to the taxpayers, and the people we have talked to are indicating that, while they’re not going to work for free, they’re not going to be running up big bills either,” said Winner.

The Senate probe is one of three investigations being conducted into the use of the State Police by top Spitzer aides in a plot to collect evidence that Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer) improperly or illegally using a state helicopter for political purposes.

The plot, first revealed by The Post on July 5, was confirmed in an explosive report issued July 23 by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

The report concluded that Bruno had done nothing wrong but found the State Police had been misused by Spitzer’s aides.

One was suspended for just over 30 days and another was demoted.

fredric.dicker@nypost.com

http://www.nypost.com/seven/09172007/news/...ro__inprobe.htm

[Livyjr]

"Two former supermarket executives charged with financial fraud"

Associated Press

Last updated: 1:54 p.m., Monday, September 17, 2007

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Two fired executives of Penn Traffic Co., a regional grocer, have been charged with fraud for repeatedly inflating reported income through improper promotional allowances, federal regulators said Monday.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint alleging the company's former chief marketing officer, Leslie Knox, and a former vice president, Linda Jones, orchestrated a scheme to inflate Penn Traffic's income and other financial results by prematurely recognizing promotional allowances.

Promotional allowances -- also known as rebates, slotting fees or vendor allowances -- are paid by vendors in exchange for various marketing and promotional activities, such as inclusion in a supermarket's weekly circular.

U.S. Attorney Glenn Suddaby said a federal grand jury has handed up indictments against Knox and Jones on related criminal charges.

Jones, 48, of Reynoldsville, Pa, and Knox, 61, of Titusville, Fla., were charged with conspiracy to commit securities and mail fraud and causing false filings to be made by Penn Traffic.

If convicted, each faces a sentence of up to 20 years and fines totaling $5 million.

According to the complaint, Penn Traffic prematurely recognized promotional allowances from the second quarter of 2001 through at least the fourth quarter of 2003.

Knox and Jones directed and took part in the scheme in an effort to meet internal budget plans, the complaint said.

As a result, the company pulled forward about $10 million in operating income that was included in Penn Traffic's public filings.

Penn Traffic, which emerged from a two-year bankruptcy reorganization in April 2005, began its own internal review before the federal investigations were launched in July that year.

Knox and Jones were fired in February 2006 in connection with the probe.

Previously, former operations director Michael Lawler, 57, of Solvay, pleaded guilty to wire fraud charges in connection with fraudulent accounting practices at the Penny Curtiss Baking Co., a subsidiary of Penn Traffic.

Penn Traffic employs about 8,800 people and operates as P&C Foods, Fresh Markets, Quality and BiLo stores in New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont and New Hampshire.

The company emerged from a nearly two-year bankruptcy reorganization in April 2005 but has continued to lose money -- $4.1 million in 2006.

It also went through a bankruptcy reorganization in 1999.

[Livyjr]

"Erie Canal operating schedule changed to save water"

Associated Press

Last updated: 11:53 a.m., Monday, September 17, 2007

ALBANY -- Locks E-7 through E-20 of the Erie Canal will operate on a modified schedule for recreational boating starting Tuesday to help conserve water, state officials said.

The locks will be open for eastbound traffic on the hour and westbound traffic on the half hour, according to the state Canal Corp.

The measures are aimed at conserving water, reducing the total amount of water needed to continue canal operations.

"In light of the lack of rainfall this summer in the Mohawk Valley, we are taking early, proactive steps to conserve water," said Canal Corporation Director Carmella Mantello in a release Monday.

"We will continue to take the appropriate steps to ensure that the Canal remains open for navigation."

The measures may be suspended if rainfall amounts return to normal.

The canal's fall hours of operation -- from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. -- began Sunday.

E-7 is in Niskayuna, Schenectady County, and E-20 is in Marcy, Oneida County.

----

Canal Corporation: http://www.nyscanals.gov.

[Livyjr]

I am a student of history, I suppose it could be said, and as such, I continue to read about this epoch, or that, or this people, or that, and this person, or that one, and in the course of all of that, I came across a very interesting little book entitled Miracle at Philadelphia by Catherine Drinker Bowen, which is about the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Phildelphia, from the perspective of the delegates, chiefly James Madison, but others, as well, through their notes and journals, which remain alive to this day, through the Constitution, itself, which can be nothing but a living document, if it is to have any validity whatsoever as something that is a source of positive law, and not just a check on the abuses of government that have destroyed all other REPUBLICS before OURS, according to the history studied by those august personages in that 1787 Constitutional Convention, which relied heavily upon the political thought of Montesquieu of France to help guide it away from those abuses of power, especially by the EXECUTIVE, which were then known to plague government in not only England at that time, but on the continent itself, with its endless wars over power that constituted much of what American history really was all about up to that time.

During the convention, there was much talk and debate about what OUR form of government was going to be, especially the United States Senate, and why we would have one, and what purpose it was to fulfill, in this REPUBLIC of OURS, where George W. Bush is now the EXECUTIVE, and his cohort Frist is in charge of the very United States Senate that was being debated by the CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION in 1787!

This following sentiment concerning the intended function of the United States Senate expressed by William Pierce of Georgia, sometime around June 13th of 1787, seems especially apt right now, with all of this debate going on in OUR Senate right now on judicial nominations, and so I want to make it a part of the record in here, where we are discussing the ramifications of having partisan or biased or prejudicial judges on the federal bench, here in OUR America, thanks to the efforts of these CONSERVATIVES who now hold all the political power in OUR America to themselves, in not only OUR executive office, but in the Senate, as well.

The debate Mr. Pierce was joining in when he made this speech in 1787 at the Constitutional Convention was about the length of time a Senator should be in office, which had been proposed to be seven years!

Mr. Pierce was for three years, as follows:

MR. PIERCE: The democratic licentiousness of the state legislatures PROVES THE NECESSITY OF A FIRM SENATE!

The OBJECT of the second branch (SENATE) is to control the democratic branch (HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES) of the national legislature.

IF IT NOT BE A FIRM BODY (the United States SENATE), the other branch (House of Representatives) being more numerous and coming immediately from the people, WILL OVERWHELM IT.

A FIRMNESS AND INDEPENDENCE MAY BE THE MORE NECESSARY ALSO IN THIS BRANCH, AS IT OUGHT TO GUARD THE CONSTITUTION AGAINST ENCROACHMENTS OF THE EXECUTIVE, WHO WILL BE APT TO FORM COMBINATIONS WITH THE DEMAGOGUES OF THE POPULAR BRANCH!

end quotes

So!

1787, only eleven years after Independence, and already concerns were being raised in OUR America about whether or not any kind of long-term stable government could ever be put in place, here in OUR America, that would not itself simply return to the tyranny and despotism that had caused us to throw off, with extreme violence, the rule of the English thug, George III!

And those individuals sitting there in that Constitutional Convention represented some of the finest minds in America at that time, with George Washington himself sitting there as the presiding officer of that Constitutional Convention, and the likes of James Madison and Alexander Hamilton as delegates.

Moreover, EACH of those present in that room at the time had direct experience of the Revolutionary War itself, and of the issues that had caused us to declare Independence from England, which included claims in the Declaration of Independence, which all of them were intimately familiar with and some had signed, about the corrupt nature of the courts that the English tyrant George III was imposing upon the colonists who declared independence in 1776:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."

"That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."

"That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the PEOPLE to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness."

"Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly, all experience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, WHILE EVILS ARE SUFFERABLE, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."

"But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, IT IS THEIR RIGHT, IT IS THEIR DUTY, to throw off such government, AND TO PROVIDE NEW GUARDS FOR THEIR FUTURE SECURITY."

"Such has been the patient sufference of these Colonies; and SUCH IS NOW THE NECESSITY WHICH CONSTRAINS THEM TO ALTER THEIR FORMER SYSTEMS OF GOVERNMENT."

"The history of the present King of Great britain IS A HISTORY OF REPEATED INJURIES AND USURPATIONS, ALL HAVING IN DIRECT OBJECT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN ABSOLUTE TYRANNY OVER THESE STATES."

"TO PROVE THIS, LET FACTS BE SUBMITTED TO A CANDID WORLD."

"HE HAS OBSTRUCTED THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers."

"HE HAS MADE JUDGES DEPENDENT ON HIS WILL ALONE, FOR THE TENURE OF THEIR OFFICES, and the amount and payment of their salaries."

"For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us";

"FOR PROTECTING THEM, BY A MOCK TRAIL, FROM PUNISHMENT FOR ANY MURDERS WHICH THEY SHOULD COMMIT ON THE INHABITANTS OF THESE STATES";

"FOR DEPRIVING US, IN MANY CASES, OF THE BENEFITS OF TRAIL BY JURY!"

end quotes

SO?

What has changed in the intervening years since that document was signed, and now?

Anything?

Or nothing at all?

A question for the moment .......

Stay tuned for further updates.

This post has been edited by Livyjr: Sep 18 2007, 06:33 AM

[Livyjr]

"Summit seeks to stop upstate 'brain drain'"

By VALERIE BAUMAN, Associated Press

Last updated: 5:43 p.m., Tuesday, September 18, 2007

ALBANY -- Martin Babinec grew up in a working class family in upstate New York, but left to make his fortune in Silicon Valley.

Opposing the current trend of workers leaving the state, he returned to his roots to raise his family in Little Falls, a central New York city of about 6,000 snug in the Mohawk River Valley.

Speaking Tuesday in Cortland to about 500 people at the 'I Live New York' summit -- an opportunity for government, education and business officials to coordinate efforts to stop the exodus of young, educated New Yorkers -- Babinec, 52, used his Silicon Valley experience to outline what New York needs to reverse the "brain drain."

"Young professionals want to be challenged," Babinec said.

"Young professionals don't want to work on yesterday's business model, they want to work on tomorrow's business model."

Silda Wall Spitzer, the wife of Gov. Eliot Spitzer, hosted the event and outlined her ideas for bringing vitality and prosperity to the state.

The population of New Yorkers between 20 to 34 years old dropped 22 percent upstate in five years ending in 2000; Buffalo alone lost 22,000, she said.

The region must have economic growth through job creation and technological innovation, she said.

She also stressed the importance of livable communities and said the economy can be improved through small, gradual changes.

All levels of government in New York must work together, she said.

"Everyone, particularly here in upstate, has their own story of sons and daughters, or sisters and brothers, or friends and neighbors who have gone to seek their fortunes elsewhere," Wall Spitzer said.

"It has been a crippling, corrosive, chronic problem in our state for at least two decades."

The governor spoke at the conference about the importance of optimism in repairing upstate economies.

"I do not want anyone to walk away from here saying the data is bad, the trendline is wrong, we can't succeed," Spitzer said.

"That's hogwash."

"We will succeed."

"We can succeed."

If upstate New York applies its strengths, the region can retain its work force and attract new talent from other states, said Babinec, the chairman, president and CEO of TriNet Group, which outsources human relations services.

Babinec can live in upstate New York and run his San Leandro, Calif.-based company with some travel and the use of new technologies like video teleconferencing.

Upstate companies should adapt to the changing technology environment to give workers the same opportunities he has, he said.

New York colleges and universities have alumni around the country who could participate in revitalizing job growth, he said.

He urged colleges and communities to improve ties so students stay in the region.

Kurt West, 22, moved to upstate New York from New Portland, Maine, to attend Clarkson University in Potsdam, near the St. Lawrence River.

He decided to stay upstate after graduation because the school helped him find work through alumni networking with ZeroPoint Clean Tech Inc., a renewable energy technology company.

Babinec calls the quality of life in upstate New York a selling point for a younger work force but said a shortage of managerial talent, particularly those with experience in fast-growing businesses, is a challenge.

Nathan Andrews, originally from Jamesville, attended the summit.

He returned upstate after years of working in Boston so he could help run his family business, Morse MFG Co. Inc., in Syracuse.

Brain drain could hurt his family's business, which manufactures equipment to handle industrial drums.

"We have a work force that is aging," he said.

"And in the next decade we are going to have a bunch of turnover in our company and I'm concerned about filling those positions."

Meanwhile, Republican Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno was in Rochester Tuesday discussing his chamber's plan for the upstate economy.

"The Senate's Upstate Now plan is a $3.7 billion, 10-point job creation and economic growth plan that will transform the upstate economy," he said.

If passed, the plan would reduce taxes for small businesses, manufacturers and key industries, and build and invest $300 million in capital funds for economic development.

The summit and Bruno's appearance in Rochester were on the same day a poll from the Siena Research Institute found that voters want state leaders to get down to business rather than focus on the scandal that has rocked Albany recently.

Two of the governor's top aides have been accused of using state police to track Bruno's whereabouts.