From Ray Sanchez, Newsday's MTA watchdog:

In approving its 2004 budget, the MTA cut the subway and bus workforce by 857 positions while increasing the workforces of Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road by 304. City subways and buses receive only 63 percent of state transit aid while moving 84 percent of the state's riders. Metro-North and LIRR move just 5 percent of riders but get 23 percent of state transit funding.

No More Mister Nice Blog has a nice post on the National Review's David Frum telling us that

it’s becoming increasingy difficult to doubt that God wants President Bush re-elected.

Too bad God had to kill all of those people on 9/11 as part of the plan.

The Statue of Liberty is still closed, for "security reasons", 27 months after 9/11. It sends a nice message about our priorities, don't you think? There is a campaign to raise private donations to re-open it, since our government can't afford the $5 million to re-open it. I just saw a banner ad on My Yahoo!

$87 billion for Iraq, $5 million for the Statue of Liberty. Think about it. I guess President Flight Suit's handlers don't want a photo op in front of a symbol that might make people think of France or immigrants.

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Statue of Liberty image from Great Buildings Online

Bush is unelectable.

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What's Google Bombing?

I agree with what she said:

To the Editor:

You quote a United States lieutenant colonel in Iraq as saying, "With a heavy dose of fear and violence, and a lot of money for projects, I think we can convince these people that we are here to help them" ("Tough New Tactics by U.S. Tighten Grip on Iraq Towns," front page, Dec. 7).

Have we become a country whose primary exports are violence and money?

ELIZABETH P. LOVE
Durham, N.C., Dec. 7, 2003

Also, read Road to Surfdom on our military attacking a union headquarters in Iraq. We'll have no collective bargaining under our occupation! The Bush regime is keeping Saddam's anti-organizing laws as it rewrites the Iraqi legal system.

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While we're on the subject of unions, Queerday gives us this story:

Calling their action "Queer Eye for Justice at H&M," U.S. Representative and presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, Gay & Lesbian Independent Democrats, UNITE union members and gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender activists staged a protest at H&M's busy Soho store in New York City, complete with a 20 foot inflatable skunk draped in a rainbow flag ascot. H&M, known for aggressively marketing to the gay community, was targeted for their anti-union contract. "The workers at H&M have made a brave decision to try to exercise their right to organize and bargain collectively," Kucinich told the crowd. "Exercising this internationally recognized human right helps keep our democracy alive."

I think Kucinich is pretty great.