Monday, December 30, 2013

In memory of the ....people who used to

bet at NYC OTB, the City's New Attorney will see that Nassau OTB is open 365 days of the year without religious preference even as it downsizes and closes branches starting with Freeport and continuing with....I wonder if he has any friends or associates who bet and/or worked at NYC OTB, a "public benefit" corporation?






New York
leonard's Journal










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NY Politics

De Blasio Names City's Lawyer


    • connect
    Dec. 29, 2013 8:45 p.m. ET
    Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio has named Zachary Carter, a prominent former U.S. attorney, as the city's top legal officer.
    Zachary Carter Kevin Hagen for The Wall Street Journal
    Mr. Carter, 63 years old, served as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York from 1993 to 1999, and is known for prosecuting the Abner Louima police brutality case, as well as organized crime figures and gang members.
    Mr. de Blasio called Mr. Carter "one of the most accomplished attorneys not just in the city but in the nation" in a news conference Sunday near City Hall day.
    "The first time I met with him, I was convinced on the spot," the mayor-elect said.
    As corporation counsel, Mr. Carter will be responsible for carrying out Mr. de Blasio's legal policies and overseeing about 700 city attorneys. The work will include dropping the appeal of a ruling by a federal judge earlier this year that found the city's use of stop-and-frisk to be illegal, the mayor-elect said; Michael A. Cardozo, the corporation counsel under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, had filed the appeal.

    Related

    Mr. de Blasio also said he expects Mr. Carter to be involved in the expansion of paid sick leave under his administration, and a settlement in the so-called Central Park Five case, in which five black and Latino teenagers were convicted in the 1989 rape and beating of a white woman who was jogging in Central Park. A judge overturned the convictions in 2002.
    "We start with our values," Mr. de Blasio said. "We will drop the appeal on the stop-and-frisk case, because we think the judge was right about the reforms that we need to make. We will settle the Central Park Five case because a huge injustice was done."
    Mr. Carter said he has "tried to use the law to level the playing field for those seeking equal access to justice and opportunity" throughout his career and is looking forward to his new role.
    "Both of us believe that prosperity and access to opportunity should be broadly shared," he said, "and that we have failed as a society when we do not meet the needs of the least-advantaged among us."
    Mr. Carter was the first black U.S. attorney for the Eastern District. He is a partner at Dorsey & Whitney LLP.
    Write to Mara Gay at mara.gay@wsj.com

    He has read NY Const Art 1, Sec. 3 even if he prefers race to religious preference?
    We will see? Remember the North Lawrence Branch of Nassau OTB?


    Search Results

    1. OPEN ON 1ST PALM SUNDAY, OTB RAKES IN $2M - NY Daily News

      www.nydailynews.com/.../open-1st-palm-sunday-otb-rakes-2m-article-1.65...
      OPEN ON 1ST PALM SUNDAY, OTB RAKES IN $2M. By Jerry Bossert / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS. Monday, April 14, 2003, 12:00 AM. Print · Print; Comment.

    2. OTB FACES HAND SLAP OVER PALM - NY Daily News

      www.nydailynews.com/archives/.../otb-faces-hand-slap-palm-article-1.6672...
      Apr 16, 2003 - By Jerry Bossert / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS ... Aqueduct was also closed on Palm Sunday, but OTB thrived on action from around the country.
       
       
      HI-
      Thanks for the help. The item’s below. I’d be happy to mail you a copy, if you give me a mailing address.

      Claude Solnik
      (631) 913-4244
      Long Island Business News
      2150 Smithtown Ave.
      Ronkonkoma, NY 11779-7348 

      Home > LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays

      Stop scratching on holidays
      Published: June 1, 2012


      Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
      New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
      “You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
      Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
      “I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
      OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
      One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
      Easy money.

       
     
    Posted by at No comments:

    a common name

    http://www.lipower.org/company/profile/executive.html


    Lynda Nicolino, General Counsel and Secretary
    Ms. Nicolino joined the Authority in June 1999 in the position of Assistant General Counsel. In April 2007, the Board appointed her Acting General Counsel of the Authority, which was followed by her March 2008 appointment as General Counsel and Secretary. Prior to joining the Authority, Ms. Nicolino supervised and managed the Suffolk Regional Office for the New York State Attorney General for nearly four years during her tenure as Assistant Attorney General In Charge. Prior to her work with the New York State Attorney General, she worked both for a private law firm and as an Assistant District Attorney in Suffolk County. Ms. Nicolino graduated from Stony Brook University with a Bachelor of Arts degree and received a Juris Doctor from Hofstra University Law School.



    Home New York State Unified Court System
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    Attorney Detail
    as of 12/30/2013
     
    Registration Number: 2352805
       

    		LYNDA NICOLINO

    		LIPA

    		333 EARLE OVINGTON BLVD STE 403

    		UNIONDALE, NY 11553-3645

    		United States

    		(Nassau County)

    		(516) 222-7700
       
    E-mail Address:
    Year Admitted in NY: 1990
    Appellate Division Department of Admission: 2
    Law School: HOFSTRA
    Registration Status: Currently registered
    Next Registration: Sep 2014

    The Detail Report above contains information that has been provided by the attorney listed, with the exception of REGISTRATION STATUS, which is generated from the OCA database. Every effort is made to insure the information in the database is accurate and up-to-date.
    The good standing of an attorney and/or any information regarding disciplinary actions must be confirmed with the appropriate Appellate Division Department. Information on how to contact the Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court in New York is available at www.nycourts.gov/courts.
    If the name of the attorney you are searching for does not appear, please try again with a different spelling. In addition, please be advised that attorneys listed in this database are listed by the name that corresponds to their name in the Appellate Division Admissions file. There are attorneys who currently use a name that differs from the name under which they were admitted. If you need additional information, please contact the NYS Office of Court Administration, Attorney Registration Unit at 212-428-2800.
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    Posted by at No comments:

    Dear Cezar Andrei Floroiu, I commend to your


    attention the work of Dr. Denise L Faustman, see faustmanlab.org and pubmed.org faustman dl and the below.  Please help see that BCG falls from the sky to all those who need same.  It is safe, effective and inexpensive for those who suffer from autoimmune diseases.  (Lawyer are not safe, cheap and effective).
    Help do something for the healthcare system and commerce.




    Neurology. 2013 Dec 4. [Epub ahead of print]

    Effects of Bacille Calmette-Guerin after the first demyelinating event in the CNS.

    Ristori G, Romano S, Cannoni S, Visconti A, Tinelli E, Mendozzi L, Cecconi P, Lanzillo R, Quarantelli M, Buttinelli C, Gasperini C, Frontoni M, Coarelli G, Caputo D, Bresciamorra V, Vanacore N, Pozzilli C, Salvetti M.

    Author information

    Abstract

    OBJECTIVE:

    To evaluate Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) effects after clinically isolated syndromes (CIS).

    METHODS:

    In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, participants were randomly assigned to receive BCG or placebo and monitored monthly with brain MRI (6 scans). Both groups then entered a preplanned phase with IM interferon-β-1a for 12 months. From month 18 onward, the patients took the disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) that their neurologist considered indicated in an open-label extension phase lasting up to 60 months.

    RESULTS:

    Of 82 randomized subjects, 73 completed the study (33 vaccinated and 40 placebo). During the initial 6 months, the number of cumulative lesions was significantly lower in vaccinated people. The relative risks were 0.541 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.308-0.956; p = 0.03) for gadolinium-enhancing lesions (the primary endpoint), 0.364 (95% CI 0.207-0.639; p = 0.001) for new and enlarging T2-hyperintense lesions, and 0.149 (95% CI 0.046-0.416; p = 0.001) for new T1-hypointense lesions. The number of total T1-hypointense lesions was lower in the BCG group at months 6, 12, and 18: mean changes from baseline were -0.09 ± 0.72 vs 0.75 ± 1.81 (p = 0.01), 0.0 ± 0.83 vs 0.88 ± 2.21 (p = 0.08), and -0.21 ± 1.03 vs 1.00 ± 2.49 (p = 0.02). After 60 months, the cumulative probability of clinically definite multiple sclerosis was lower in the BCG + DMT arm (hazard ratio = 0.52, 95% CI 0.27-0.99; p < 0.05), and more vaccinated people remained DMT-free (odds ratio = 0.20, 95% CI 0.04-0.93; p = 0.04).

    CONCLUSIONS:

    Early BCG may benefit CIS and affect its long-term course.

    CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE:

    BCG, as compared to placebo, was associated with significantly reduced development of gadolinium-enhancing lesions in people with CIS for a 6-month period before starting immunomodulating therapy (Class I evidence).
    PMID:
    24306002
    [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]



    Neurology. 1999 Oct 22;53(7):1588-9.

    Use of Bacille Calmette-Guèrin (BCG) in multiple sclerosis.

    Ristori G, Buzzi MG, Sabatini U, Giugni E, Bastianello S, Viselli F, Buttinelli C, Ruggieri S, Colonnese C, Pozzilli C, Salvetti M.

    Author information

    Abstract

    We studied the effect of Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine as an immunomodulator in MS. According to the guidelines for clinical trials in MS, a single crossover, MRI-monitored trial was performed in 14 patients with relapsing-remitting MS. After treatment, MRI activity was significantly reduced. No major adverse effects were reported. Adjuvant therapy with BCG vaccine was safe and merits study in MS.

    Comment in

    PMID:
    10534275
    [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]





    Print Aa

    Lawsuit: Republic Airport workers damaged plane during blizzard

    Originally published: December 29, 2013 5:59 PM
    Updated: December 29, 2013 8:08 PM
    By LAUREN R. HARRISON  lauren.harrison@newsday.com
    This photo courtesy of FlyforMS.org shows a twin-engine
    Photo credit: Handout | This photo courtesy of FlyforMS.org shows a twin-engine plane that was allegedly damaged at Republic Airport during the 2010 blizzard. The operator of the plane used mostly to transport multiple sclerosis patients to treatment has sued two companies that operate Republic Airport, claiming the Cessna 340 was damaged after airport employees tried to tow it out of a snowdrift.
    The operator of a twin-engine plane used mostly to transport multiple sclerosis patients to treatment has sued two companies that operate Republic Airport, claiming the Cessna 340 was damaged after airport employees tried to tow it out of a snowdrift.
    Cezar Andrei Floroiu, the sole shareholder of Exigo -- a Manhattan-based company that owns the plane -- sued Farmingdale-based Flightways of Long Island Inc. and URS Corp., headquartered in San Francisco, for negligence.
    The companies' workers tore the plane's tie-down hook and part of its tail section on Dec. 27, 2010, after trying to tow it from snow, according to the suit filed Dec. 23 in the Supreme Court of the State of New York.
    Attempts to reach representatives from both companies were unsuccessful.
    "It's like pulling a car from the bumper," said Floroiu, the pilot, adding that no patients were on the flight. "You know you're just going to take off the bumper."
    The defendants acted in a "negligent manner" when they used a tow method that is prohibited by the Cessna 340 operating handbook, and without attempting easier and safer options, according to the suit.
    Following a blizzard that brought 10 to 20 inches to parts of Long Island, the plane became stuck shortly after 6 p.m. upon exiting the runway onto the taxiway.
    URS Corp. personnel advised Floroiu and his passengers to remain in the plane, while both companies tried to free the Cessna, according to the suit.
    Floroiu and approximately three others waited in the cold and the dark for four hours, since the aircraft's battery had been drained, according to the suit. After witnessing the tow attempt, Floroiu exited the plane and directed a passenger to remove snow from one of the tires with a shovel. The passengers and workers then pushed the aircraft out of the snowdrift by hand, the suit said.
    The suit seeks unspecified damages that Floroiu's attorney Benjamin Klein, of Manhattan-based The Klein Firm LLC, said would be a "five-figure number."
    "There was just no willingness on the part of either defendant to compensate my client on the damages," Klein said. "They just sort of pointed the finger at one another."
    The plane's damage rendered it unusable for more than two months, said Floroiu, causing him to lose momentum with Fly for MS -- an organization Floroiu founded in 2010 that flew to 31 countries to offer sightseeing flights to those affected by multiple sclerosis, raise funds and transport specialists and patients without access to care to hospitals for treatment."I got close to MS while investing in biotech companies that were developing [drugs] for MS," said Floroiu, a former Wall Street investor. "I was pretty impressed by the people who live with MS. It's such a terrible disease and they live with no cure. So, I thought I could do something about it."
    Posted by at No comments:

    St Catherine of Sienna of Franklin Square


    St. Catherine of Sienna Church - Franklin Square, NY - 5163520146 ...

    www.stcatherineofsienna.org/‎
    Sienna Center: St. Catherine's Chapel. A VERY BLESSED CHRISTMAS 2013. MASS SCHEDULE. NEW YEAR'S DAY. Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.
     
     
    gives financial advice  to Italian Bank.

    1. Buy the Franklin Square Branch of  Nassau OTB to protect the jobs of Franklin Square and nearby locals who work. The business is viable.  NY Politicians are not.

    2. Improve the healthcare provided to Italians in Italy and residents of Franklin Square and vicinity by combining the work of Dr. Denise L Faustman (see faustmanlab.org and pubmed.org faustman dl) with that
    being done in Italy. As you know BCG is safe and effective and may be used to treat and/or prevent a wide variety of autoimmune diseases and allergies. Italy may send BCG to the US while it improves healthcare in both Italy and the US by seeing that BCG is made available to those who need same.

    Who needs a bailout when such simple money producing ideas are so easy to find.
    Some bet before church. Some don't bet at all. Some shoot BCG and others in NY want to pay a fortune for useless and/or dangerous and/or ineffective healthcare.




    Neurology. 2013 Dec 4. [Epub ahead of print]

    Effects of Bacille Calmette-Guerin after the first demyelinating event in the CNS.

    Ristori G, Romano S, Cannoni S, Visconti A, Tinelli E, Mendozzi L, Cecconi P, Lanzillo R, Quarantelli M, Buttinelli C, Gasperini C, Frontoni M, Coarelli G, Caputo D, Bresciamorra V, Vanacore N, Pozzilli C, Salvetti M.

    Author information

    Abstract

    OBJECTIVE:

    To evaluate Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) effects after clinically isolated syndromes (CIS).

    METHODS:

    In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, participants were randomly assigned to receive BCG or placebo and monitored monthly with brain MRI (6 scans). Both groups then entered a preplanned phase with IM interferon-β-1a for 12 months. From month 18 onward, the patients took the disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) that their neurologist considered indicated in an open-label extension phase lasting up to 60 months.

    RESULTS:

    Of 82 randomized subjects, 73 completed the study (33 vaccinated and 40 placebo). During the initial 6 months, the number of cumulative lesions was significantly lower in vaccinated people. The relative risks were 0.541 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.308-0.956; p = 0.03) for gadolinium-enhancing lesions (the primary endpoint), 0.364 (95% CI 0.207-0.639; p = 0.001) for new and enlarging T2-hyperintense lesions, and 0.149 (95% CI 0.046-0.416; p = 0.001) for new T1-hypointense lesions. The number of total T1-hypointense lesions was lower in the BCG group at months 6, 12, and 18: mean changes from baseline were -0.09 ± 0.72 vs 0.75 ± 1.81 (p = 0.01), 0.0 ± 0.83 vs 0.88 ± 2.21 (p = 0.08), and -0.21 ± 1.03 vs 1.00 ± 2.49 (p = 0.02). After 60 months, the cumulative probability of clinically definite multiple sclerosis was lower in the BCG + DMT arm (hazard ratio = 0.52, 95% CI 0.27-0.99; p < 0.05), and more vaccinated people remained DMT-free (odds ratio = 0.20, 95% CI 0.04-0.93; p = 0.04).

    CONCLUSIONS:

    Early BCG may benefit CIS and affect its long-term course.

    CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE:

    BCG, as compared to placebo, was associated with significantly reduced development of gadolinium-enhancing lesions in people with CIS for a 6-month period before starting immunomodulating therapy (Class I evidence).
    PMID:
    24306002
    [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]



    Neurology. 1999 Oct 22;53(7):1588-9.

    Use of Bacille Calmette-Guèrin (BCG) in multiple sclerosis.

    Ristori G, Buzzi MG, Sabatini U, Giugni E, Bastianello S, Viselli F, Buttinelli C, Ruggieri S, Colonnese C, Pozzilli C, Salvetti M.

    Author information

    Abstract

    We studied the effect of Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine as an immunomodulator in MS. According to the guidelines for clinical trials in MS, a single crossover, MRI-monitored trial was performed in 14 patients with relapsing-remitting MS. After treatment, MRI activity was significantly reduced. No major adverse effects were reported. Adjuvant therapy with BCG vaccine was safe and merits study in MS.

    Comment in

    PMID:
    10534275
    [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]


    Delayed Plans at Italian Bank Muddy Its Fate

    By GAIA PIANIGIANI and
    Published: December 30, 2013
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    ROME — The Italian government signaled on Monday that it had no interest in nationalizing Monte dei Paschi di Siena, the country’s oldest bank, after shareholders over the weekend overruled bank management and delayed plans to raise urgently needed cash.
    A spokesman for the Italian treasury confirmed on Monday reports that the government was not eager to take responsibility for the troubled bank. The government is already dealing with a severe recession and internal political turmoil.
    The Bank of Italy and Consob, which oversees the Italian stock market, are monitoring events closely, according to an official with knowledge of the situation. Monte dei Paschi shares closed higher on Monday, but problems at the bank have the potential to provoke market turmoil in a country already suffering from a broader banking crisis and a severe shortage of credit.
    The decision by Monte dei Paschi shareholders on Saturday to postpone the share sale of 3 billion euros (about $4.1 billion) left turnaround plans for the bank in limbo and raised the possibility that it would not be able to repay government bailout funds starting in mid-2014.
    Debt to the government would then convert to Monte dei Paschi shares, in effect nationalizing the bank, which has survived numerous wars and crises since its founding in 1472 but whose future is now in doubt.
    On Saturday, shareholders gathered in Siena voted to delay the share sale at least until May, in accordance with the wishes of the charitable organization that is Monte dei Paschi’s largest shareholder.
    Alessandro Profumo, the chairman of Monte dei Paschi, had argued that the share sale must be held in January. Investment banks that were set to underwrite the transaction would not wait any longer than that, he said.
    But the Monte dei Paschi Foundation, which once distributed bank profits to local charities and other organizations in and around the historic city of Siena, asked for more time to sell its 33.5 percent stake. Antonella Mansi, president of the Monte dei Paschi Foundation, said she thought that a consortium of banks underwriting the share sale would be willing to wait.
    A spokesman for the Swiss bank UBS, the lead bank in the consortium, said on Monday that it was too early to comment on what the effects of the delay might be.
    Italy’s treasury is trying to facilitate talks between the foundation and the bank aimed at raising the capital as soon as possible, said a person with knowledge of the matter.
    According to the bank’s plan approved by the treasury and the European Commission, Monte dei Paschi has to repay €3 billion of the state aid by the end of 2014.
    Luigi Tramontana, an analyst at Banca Akros in Milan, said it could be more difficult for Monte dei Paschi to issue new shares later in the year because many other banks would also be trying to raise cash. Banks in the euro zone are trying to bolster their reserves under pressure from the European Central Bank, which is undertaking a thorough review of bank books to uncover hidden problems.
    “The rights issue’s postponement increases the uncertainty over the bank’s ability to avoid full-blown nationalization within a year or so,” Mr. Tramontana said in a note to clients Monday.
    Gaia Pianigiani reported from Rome and Jack Ewing from Frankfurt.
    Posted by at No comments:

    Sunday, December 29, 2013

    Dear John H Cox Esq.: Please help us

    in NY. We want to bet California tracks at Nassau OTB any day of the year that we wish. See eg NY Const. Art. 1, Sec. 3 etc.
    Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter



    HI-
    Thanks for the help. The item’s below. I’d be happy to mail you a copy, if you give me a mailing address.

    Claude Solnik
    (631) 913-4244
    Long Island Business News
    2150 Smithtown Ave.
    Ronkonkoma, NY 11779-7348 

    Home > LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays

    Stop scratching on holidays
    Published: June 1, 2012


    Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
    New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
    “You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
    Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
    “I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
    OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
    One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
    Easy money.



    Equity Property Management L.L.C.
    Corporate Operations Center
    200 W 75th Place
    Merrillville, IN 46410

    Phone 219.756.4242
    Fax 219.756.4244

    John H. Cox - Republican
    In-Depth Profile
    Campaign Contributions
    The Issues
    Links

    		 John H. Cox
    Occupation Accountant, Lawyer, Entrepreneur
    Company
    Website http://www.cox4senate.com/
    E-Mail volunteer@cox4senate.com
    Age 47
    Marital Status Married (Sarah)
    Ethnicity
    Address 3330 Dundee Road Suite 5-3 Northbrook, IL 60062
    Phone 847.513.6565
    Fax 847.513.6570
    Education University of Illinois at Chicago, IIT/Chicago Kent College of Law
    Notes Radio Talk Show Host - http://www.progressiveconservative.us Cox won third-place with 23 percent in last year's senate primary, beaten by Oberweis with 31.5 percent and the winner Jim Durkin with 46.
    Cox said he won't fund his campaign out of pocket, only saying he will put in "a lot less" than the $1,022,507 he pumped into his failed 2002 Senate campaign.
    Favorite pig-out food: "Ice cream. Love ice cream--not Oberweis'."
    Campaign Manager:
    Jack Howland


    Chicago Office:
    Phone number: 312-464-1547
    Fax number: 312-464-1584





    Politics and Policy

    In California, a Bid to Radically Overhaul Government

    Potential Ballot Measure, Which Likely Faces Long Odds, Would Alter State Constitution and Vastly Expand Legislature

    By
    Updated Dec. 27, 2013 9:17 a.m. ET

    Enlarge Image
    John H. Cox is pushing to get his government-overhaul measure on the ballot in California. Here, in August, he speaks at another political event. Zuma Press
    John H. Cox has a vision for making California's government more responsive and less beholden to special interests. All it would take, he says, is increasing the number of elected representatives nearly one hundredfold.
    An attorney, real-estate executive and sometime political candidate, Mr. Cox hopes to take his idea directly to the voters, employing California's ballot-measure process and bypassing the legislature he hopes to reform. His proposal, aimed for next November's ballot, calls for massively expanding the legislature by splitting the state's political districts into hundreds of smaller, neighborhood-size ones. Instead of 120 legislators, voters would elect nearly 12,000.
    Doing so, Mr. Cox says, would restore grass-roots democracy and help prevent what he considers the too-powerful influence of special interests.
    "If this passes, this would be the greatest transfer of power since 1776, because what it means is that special-interest money won't control the state legislature," Mr. Cox said in an interview. "It will be real people in the neighborhoods."
    A wholesale remaking of government in the most populous U.S. state may seem a pipe dream, but Mr. Cox said he already has spent about $500,000 of his own money and was ready to dole out "whatever it takes" to get the "Neighborhood Legislature Reform Act" in front of voters. If he succeeds and the measure passes, the state constitution would be changed and the plan would take effect, barring any court challenges.
    His first hurdle: Qualifying the measure. Last week California's Secretary of State allowed him to begin gathering signatures. He must get at least 807,615 valid signatures—or 8% of the votes cast for governor at the most recent election—from registered voters by May 19. That alone could cost $2 million to $3 million, said political consultants in the state.
    His plan also could be one of several ballot measures competing for voters' attention next fall. Currently there are 20 referendums and initiatives in the signature-collection process, while one referendum is past that stage and awaiting verification.
    Corey Cook, a political-science professor at the University of San Francisco, said such a measure likely would have a hard time passing, as complex political overhaul measures rarely do well at the ballot box.
    California, with 38 million residents, has the largest legislative districts in the country. With an average population of 930,000, the Senate districts are larger than the average U.S. congressional district. The average campaign for a Senate seat costs about $1 million. Mr. Cox's proposal would shrink Senate districts to an average of 10,000 people, and Assembly districts would go from 465,000 people to 5,000.
    Mr. Cox's plan doesn't require all 12,000 lawmakers elected by the new districts to meet in Sacramento. Instead, the districts would form "working committees" that mirror the size and geography of existing legislative areas, numbering 80 seats in the Assembly and 40 in the Senate.
    The committees would caucus and elect a member from their ranks to represent them in the state capital. Final approval of any law, however, would be subject to the vote—most likely by the Internet, according to Mr. Cox—of all the legislators from the neighborhood districts.
    Mr. Cox's measure would also cut costs, he said. Most California lawmakers now earn just over $95,000. His plan would pay each legislator $1,000 annually, plus certain expenses. Those appointed to represent the committees would earn more. Mr. Cox's plan would also cut spending by the legislature on staff and other costs in half. Such changes would save the state $130 million a year, according to a preliminary state analysis, though the cost of local elections could increase initially.
    Mr. Cox, originally from Illinois and a resident of the community of Rancho Santa Fe in the San Diego area, is president of Equity Property Management and heads his own law firm, Cox, Oakes & Associates. He was briefly a candidate for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination.
    Mr. Cox said he came up with the plan after observing the political process in New Hampshire. The state of 1.32 million residents elects a part-time assembly of 424 members, or one representative for every 3,100 people. There, he said, he witnessed impassioned speeches by neighbors and a more grass-roots approach to politics.
    The leaders of both Democratic-controlled houses of the California legislature, State Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, and Assembly Speaker John Pérez, declined to comment for this article.
    Kathy Feng, executive director of California Common Cause, a nonprofit organization that advocates for government reform, declined to take a position on the plan, but said "there are certainly going to be some real logistical concerns that people are going to have about how you manage a citizen legislature of several thousand people," she said.
    Mr. Cook, the political-science professor, said the plan could make governing a nightmare. "That is a recipe for nothing ever getting passed ever," he said. "Even in a city like San Francisco it is often difficult to get citywide consensus when you have smaller districts, and so imagine getting state consensus…when people represent such small constituencies."
    Write to Alejandro Lazo at alejandro.lazo@wsj.com
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    PJ Campo on the side of the Angels(which

    ones)?

    Bullet Train
    S

    P.J. Campo Named VP of Racing for The Stronach Group

    by | 11.06.2013 | 11:45am
    The Stronach Group announced today that P.J. Campo has been named Vice President of Racing.
    Campo, formerly Vice President and Director of Racing for New York Racing Association, will be based primarily in Florida. He will oversee The Stronach Group’s racing operations and assist Chief Operating Officer and Gulfstream Park President Tim Ritvo.
    “We’re thrilled to have P.J. as a member of our team,” Ritvo said. “We are a company that loves Thoroughbred racing, and we’re proud to have someone with P.J.’s extensive knowledge of the industry as well as his contacts. With our Championship Meet coming up, P.J. will provide support and aid our Racing Secretary Jeff Noe as well as his team.”
    Said Campo, “I’m honored to join The Stronach Group for this fantastic career opportunity. To be able to join such a great team that has such a focus on Thoroughbred racing is an opportunity like no other. I am anxious to get started and look forward to being a part of such an industry innovator who is admired throughout the world for its commitment and investment to the Thoroughbred and Thoroughbred racing.”


     PJ Campo will see that Gulfstream Park Races even if he chooses to go to Church with Andrew Cuomo,
    the Chief Religious Officer of the State of NY.


    NY Bettors who remember Campo want to bet Gulfstream Park any day that is running.

    Nassau OTB cashiers see dark clouds and lightning with the closing of the Freeport Branch and worlds floating in the air. The migration to Florida has just begun?


    HI-
    Thanks for the help. The item’s below. I’d be happy to mail you a copy, if you give me a mailing address.

    Claude Solnik
    (631) 913-4244
    Long Island Business News
    2150 Smithtown Ave.
    Ronkonkoma, NY 11779-7348 

    Home > LI Confidential > Stop scratching on holidays

    Stop scratching on holidays
    Published: June 1, 2012



    Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
    New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
    “You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
    Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
    “I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
    OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
    One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
    Easy money.


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