Al's Blog-o-Sphere

George Bush went on TV tonight to tell us that the US Economy is in trouble.

George, did you just wake up and find that out? You mean YOUR economy is in trouble; mine has been hurting for a long time. And it’s you and your cronies that have been gaming the system and reaping huge profits at our expense that’s caused it.

Then, John McCain announced that he is putting his campaign for President on hold and postponing his debate with Barack Obama. Gee, why not just postpone the election? Keeping Bush in office, or electing McCain would be just about the same thing. Anything to avoid going head-to-head with Obama.

Then the announcement that made it all better: Niagara County is now Number 1 in the entire country!

In what?

Property taxes, of course. The Washington DC based Tax Foundation issued a report that had Niagara County at the top in terms of taxes as a percentage of home value. The combination of high taxes and low real-estate values is a double-whammy for us.

But once again, we knew that all along.

Frank Parlato Jr. wants to make casino gambling legal for American citizens. He’s a businessman in Niagara Falls NY who sees the Seneca casino there sucking the discretionary money out of the economy and not returning anything. No property taxes, no sales taxes, even the cut of profits promised goes to Albany never to be seen again. He wants to see things change and improve in NF. He wants – and has plans – to open his own casino in Niagara Falls. Continue Reading…

Sometimes, two things that ordinarily, wouldn’t draw a second thought come together in a way that approaches the surreal. I had that experience today.

I was watching the pre-game show before the Buffalo Bills game at Indianapolis. They played a commercial, maybe you’ve seen it, that features a number of Bills fans in full game-day paraphernalia against a black background expressing their love of the Bills. It’s supposed to make you want to run out and buy tickets, I suppose. [dewplayer:http://gritzmacher.net/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/anthony-casuccio-joe-dzialak-bills-fan-tribute.mp3] Continue Reading…

Just a quick post… today the TV news announced that the major sponsor of the Saturday concerts in North Tonawanda, Labatts Brewing, had withdrawn from the concert series. That pretty much seals the deal for ending the shows for the rest of the season.

Well, at least they still have the Wednesday and Friday concerts. That ought to be enough for any city, right?

In fact, that’s downright greedy. There is a certain synergy between these concerts, offering free shows to bring people into a certain place. Buffalo has Thursday at The Square. Lockport has the Molson Concerts on Friday. Lewiston has Jazz on Mondays. Artpark has, well Tuesday and Wednesday… NT had Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Continue Reading…