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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Will LGBT Activists Derail Christine Quinn's Political Machine And Mayoral Campaign ?

Old Time, Cigar-Chomping Political Boss

Will LGBT Activists Derail Christine Quinn Political Machine Mayoral Campaign ? photo 2013-05-01ChristineQuinnVillageVoiceWoundedPride_zps2402e11f.jpg

The stop-and-frisk narrative from The Village Voice : "LGBT Purists to Christine Quinn: We'd Love a Gay Mayor. Just Not You."

... Gay men of color are just as affected by stop-and-frisk as anyone else, notes Fordham University political science professor Christina Greer. "Even though the face of the LGBT community in New York City is white men, that's not the makeup," she says. "If you're black and gay, stop-and-frisk may be a primary issue." Unlike her three Democratic rivals, Bill de Blasio, John Liu, and Bill Thompson, Quinn has refused to make a blanket condemnation of stop-and-frisk.

Then there's condom-carry, an issue particularly troubling to those fighting the ongoing AIDS epidemic. As the Voice has reported, the city vigorously supports and promotes condoms through the Department of Health, but allows police to arrest alleged prostitutes found to be carrying them. Transgender women complain that the NYPD targets them simply because of the way they're dressed. Quinn reportedly sent staffers to a key meeting on the issue instead of attending herself.

... On stop-and-frisk, Quinn doesn't have the luxury of simply disregarding city policy, Duane insists. "She has to work under the policies the mayor has set," he says, "or she'd have to resign." Quinn has instead advocated for changes in police training and for the appointment of an inspector general to monitor the NYPD. Such a diplomatic solution doesn't satisfy critics like Flores. "If Christine Quinn was the head of AVP today, she would be fighting [stop-and-frisk]," he says. Quinn did make one major concession last week when she agreed to allow a council vote on allowing victims of racial profiling to sue the NYPD—the first time she hasn't blocked a bill that she opposes.

On condom-carry, Quinn certainly doesn't equivocate. "Condoms being found on somebody and used against them should be changed," she says. "If I have the power to make direct changes, I will. We need to encourage safe sex. Whether for money or not, we cannot talk out of both sides of our mouths. ...

This article may be perhaps the first time when Speaker Quinn publicly addresses the issue that the NYPD are arresting LGBT New Yorkers for carrying condoms. But her talk is cheap, as activists have learned -- the hard way.

Let's see what Speaker Quinn actually does about the way the NYPD profiles, stops-and-frisks, targets, and falsely arrests LGBT New Yorkers ?

Let's let her actual record -- of what she delivers -- to be the final judgment of her political record.

Christine Quinn Interchangeable For Michael Bloomberg ; Condom Arrests Continue

Speaker Quinn Uses Bloomberg Events To Fluff Campaign, Turns Back On Bloomberg-NYPD Discrimination Against LGBT Community

Christine Quinn's mayoral campaign is increasingly seen as desperate, since her poll numbers are beginning to fall, now that more and more voters are tuning into her dismal political record -- and to her close relationship with the unpopular mayor, Michael Bloomberg.

  • For the second time in a week, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has allowed Christine Quinn to take center stage at a big announcement by his administration. More and more, Speaker Quinn has come to be seen as interchangeable for Mayor Bloomberg during big policy announcements. “The mayor, without officially endorsing her, is helping her with his administration,” said George Arzt, a Democratic consultant. The strategy is a calculated risk: much of the criticism leveled at Ms. Quinn has been about her coziness with Mr. Bloomberg, particularly her support of the mayor’s successful effort to overturn the city’s term limits law and run for a third term. (Bloomberg Helping Quinn's Fledgling Mayoral Campaign With Media Events : NYTimes)
  • Meanwhile, as Christine Quinn uses Bloomberg administration press conferences to help rescue her sinking mayoral campaign, the Bloomberg administration continues its attack on safe sex. Advocates say too many New Yorkers land in jail after cops confiscate condoms. Clara Sierra was falsely arrested her and charged with prostitution by police, after she was found carrying condoms. She served 10 days in Rikers. On this serious issue, which affects the LGBT community, Christine Quinn sides with Mayor Bloomberg, so that she won't jeopardise his backroom support for her mayoral campaign. Speaker Quinn puts her own political ambitions over the needs of the LGBT community. It hasn't been the first time, and it certainly won't be the last. (Transgenders Face Discrimination, False Arrests By NYPD : Metro)

Monday, April 29, 2013

Christine Quinn's Flip-Flop On Term Limits

Is Quinn’s Flip Showing ? Christine Quinn’s shifting term-limits position may cost her—but not in the way everyone thinks. (New York magazine)

Christine Quinn Term Limits I like Michael Bloomberg NYMag photo Christine-Quinn-I-Like-Mike-NYMag-Term-Limits_zps74df47b1.jpg

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Latinos United Against Christine Quinn

New Facebook page, which was soft-launched last week : Latinos Unidos Contra Christine Quinn.

Christine Quinn NYPD Parar Y Revisar Stop And Frisk photo Slide1_zps3dbbc8ae.jpg

San Francisco Pride Parade PFC Bradley Manning Flip-Flop Betrayal

SF Pride : ‘Bradley Manning will not be a grand marshal’

In a CBS news report yesterday, it was announced that the San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration Committee named PFC Bradley Manning as one of the 2013 pride parade’s grand marshals. But only one day later, it was reported in The Guardian that the PFC Manning's selection to be one of the grand marshals had been rescinded.

Christine Quinn Turns Her Back On PFC Bradley Manning LGBT American Hero photo Bradley-Manning-Christine-Quinn-Export_zpsaa619b6d.jpg

PFC Manning has been accused of being one of the greatest war crimes whistleblowers in U.S. history, and the Department of Justice, in conjunction with the U.S. military and other diplomats, have chosen to aggressively prosecute PFC Manning to send a chilling message to whistleblowers everywhere. Thus, the San Francisco pride parade selection was initially seen as a rebuke by the LGBT community of the prosecutorial misconduct by the Obama administration.

But, alas, that was not to be.

When faced with criticism from the radical military extremists, San Francisco Pride Board President Lisa Williams immediately caved-in to pressure and retracted PFC Manning's honorary grand marshal selection.

Meanwhile, a courageous LGBT activist in New York City has launched a new petition on Change.org to celebrate PFC Bradley Manning : NYC Heritage of Pride : Add PFC Bradley Manning to the list of Grand Marshals for NYC Pride

Let's hope that New Yorkers will be more sophisticated and more resolute in celebrating PFC Manning as a true LGBT American hero, in spite of the campaign of torture and vindictive prosecution being waged against him by the federal government.

As usual, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, the highest elected openly LGBT politician in New York City, has continued her 1,000+ day silence about PFC Manning.

It's not known if Ms. William's flip-flop of support for PFC Manning is better or worse than Speaker Quinn's silence.

Christine Quinn Does Not Want You To Sue NYPD For Stop-And-Frisks

New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn will oppose a bill allowing stop-and-frisk lawsuits. "No redress of grievances for you !"

Christine Quinn 3.9 Million stop and frisks under Christine Quinn photo 2013-03-28Title-III-CRA-Stop-And-Frisk-Flyer_zpsc107fd2f.jpg

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, whose candidacy for mayor is collapsing under criticism by Democratic primary voters, says she would oppose a bill proposed by Councilmen Brad Lander and Jumaane Williams, which would allow New Yorkers to file lawsuits against the NYPD in state courts, alleging racial profiling by police, reported The New York Daily News.

Speaker Quinn has made it a centerpiece of her mayoral campaign to defend NYPD commish Raymond Kelly. Speaker Quinn also wants to keep "stop-and-frisk" -- a dual prong political calculation to appear "touch on crime," even if it means keeping a racist, illegal, and unconstitutional police tactic.

''Stop-and-frisk is the biggest use of racial profiling in the United States of America,'' said John Liu last week.

How could it come to be that Speaker Quinn, who once lead the Anti-Violence Project, would abandon victims of discrimination and excessive police use of force ?

This is what happens, over and over again, when Speaker Quinn puts her own political ambitions over fairness, justice, and equality.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

St. Vincent's Hospital Closing Becomes Mayoral Campaign Issue, Featured In New Campaign Ad

The latest ad by New York City is Not for Sale 2013 blames Christine Quinn for her role in St. Vincent’s Hospital closure.

A group of citizen activists has previewed an advance look at a new TV advertisement that blames New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn for the closing of St. Vincent's Hospital.

The TV ad, released by the group known as NYC Is Not For Sale 2013, exposes how there has been an appearance of a quid-pro-quo between Speaker Quinn and Rudin Management Company, the real estate developer, which foreclosed on St. Vincent's Hospital. Members of the Rudin family, who own the billion-dollar Rudin Management Company enterprise, donated $30,000 to Speaker Quinn, who conveniently later supported a zoning change that paved the way for the Greenwich Village hospital to close.

Read more : SEE IT: New ad blasts Christine Quinn for role in closing of St. Vincent’s Hospital

In exchange for $30,000 in campaign donations, did New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn sell out her community ?

Do the political campaign donations by Beth R. DeWoody, Madeleine R. Johnson, Eric C. Rudin, Jack Rudin, Katherine Rudin, and William C. Rudin, who each donated $4,950 to Christine Quinn's presumed 2013 mayoral campaign, amount to influence peddling ? After all, since even before St. Vincent's Hospital closed, Speaker Quinn has been toeing the Rudin family line : close down St. Vincent's and replace it with an inferior urgent care center.

Christine Quinn,Rudin Family,Rudin Management,Mayor 2013 NYC,Campaign Donations,Real Estate Deals,Hospital Closings,St. Vincent's Hospital

Not only did Speaker Quinn say that we only needed an urgent care center to replace St. Vincent's, but she approved the Rudin family's plan, allowing St. Vincent's Hospital to be rezoned into luxury condos. Since 2010, the Rudin family has been trying to get approval for a billion-dollar real estate development plan for the buildings that belong to the bankruptcy estate of St. Vincent's Hospital. Since the Rudin family wants to build luxury high-rise condos on the site of St. Vincent's, and since they needed City Council approval from Speaker Quinn, do these large campaign donations explain why Speaker Quinn did nothing to restore a Level I trauma center and full-service hospital to the former St. Vincent's site ? Does Speaker Quinn's official acts come as a result of sizable campaign donations from the likes of the Rudin family ?

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Protest Against Christine Quinn at 2013 Victory Fund Champagne Brunch

Protest Against Christine Quinn at 2013 Victory Fund Champagne Brunch.

This was the fourth year in a row that activists protested against Christine Quinn at the Victory Fund's Champagne Brunch at the Mandarin Oriental.

Please use the Twitter hashtag #ABQ or #AnybodyButQuinn.

Saturday, April 20, 2013

At Mayoral Forum, Hostility Toward Quinn, Even Before Her Arrival

From The New York Times City Room blog :

Before Ms. Quinn arrived, Mr. de Blasio responded to a question about the Police Department’s stop-and-frisk policy: “I know Speaker Quinn has chosen not to be with us yet,” then criticized her support of the current police commissioner, Raymond W. Kelly.

“Unlike Speaker Quinn, I think we need a new police commissioner,” said Mr. de Blasio, the public advocate.

Later, he said that “we have Speaker Quinn to thank” for Mr. Bloomberg’s third term and twice accused her of being the preferred candidate of the real estate industry – a damning aspersion in a crowd of public housing tenants.

In the closing statements, after Ms. Quinn had noted her past as a tenant organizer, Mr. de Blasio said: “I’ve got to have a moment of truth here. Maybe 20 years ago, Speaker Quinn, you were a tenant organizer. But here, in 2013, you are the real estate community’s best friend.”

Ms. Quinn has received about $1.3 million from real estate industry donors, significantly more than any other candidate.

Christine Quinn Never Stands Up To The NYPD, Cy Vance

New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn likes to portray herself as a feminist. She brags about all the endorsements from women that she receives.

But here we have a situation where Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna clearly used excessive force against innocent women, and where is Speaker Quinn ?

Speaker Quinn has a brash personality, which she describes as courageous. But she is not courageous, or else she would stand up to the NYPD for using excessive force and brutality against innocent women. And neither does she stand up to Manhattan prosecutor Cy Vance, who refuses to prosecute Deputy Inspector Bologna. Meanwhile, civil rights attorney Ron Kuby is more visible about holding the NYPD accountable.

Read More : No Charges for Police Commanders Over Actions During Protests (NYTimes)

Friday, April 19, 2013

City Council Community Outreach Does Campaign Outreach For Christine Quinn

The Community Outreach Unit of the New York City Council, a taxpayer-financed office that has organized rallies to protect student subway discounts and sponsored adult education fairs, frequently functions as something else as well: a publicity and public relations machine for Christine C. Quinn. Read more : City Council’s Outreach Unit, Run by Quinn, Mainly Benefits Her Campaign

The New York Times described the Community Outreach Unit, a taxpayer-financed group of many political operatives, as almost entirely focused on propping up Speaker Quinn's political image, which would benefit her mayoral campaign.

"Inside the community outreach office recently, there was a photograph of Ms. Quinn handing a plaque to Whoopi Goldberg. Below, a dry erase board bore reminders about two coming events the group helped organize: a breakfast for women of faith and a celebration of Irish culture. Ms. Quinn was the featured speaker at both. At the Irish event, the unit’s workers escorted to their seats prominent Irish-American families, including relatives of Thomas Manton, the former chairman of the Queens Democratic Party, whose backing was crucial to Ms. Quinn’s election as speaker," The New York Times reported.

This isn't the first time Speaker Quinn has been accused of using taxpayer money for her campaign.

A former deputy chief of staff to Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn who recently served as a top aide to Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s re-election effort has been fined for violating city law by soliciting campaign contributions for Ms. Quinn while working for her.

In announcing the sanction on Monday, the city’s Conflicts of Interest Board said in a statement that around April 2007, the former aide, Maura Keaney, made between six and a dozen phone calls to union representatives to ask them to be on the host committee for a fund-raising event for Ms. Quinn’s re-election bid. The ethics board, which fined Ms. Keaney $2,500, noted that serving on the host committee required a campaign contribution. (NYTimes : Ethics Panel Fines Ex-Aide to Speaker)

Moreover, the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development, a nonprofit group, which has publicly supported Speaker Quinn's campaign platform for several years, requested $100,000 in City Council slush funds for each of the past three years to advocate for Speaker Quinn. By admission of the office of Speaker Quinn, these funds were granted by Speaker Quinn. (WSJ : City Grants Aids Quinn Campaign)

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Christine Quinn, Liz Holtzman, CityTime, Pay-To-Play Endorsements

Christine Quinn Kept The CityTime Gravy Train Rolling ; Lobbyists Like Liz Holtzman Kept Rolling In The CityTime Dough ; Scratch-My-Back, Pay-To-Play Endorsements ?

Elizabeth "Liz" Holtzman Richard Nixon photo liz-holtzman_zps34fe2ca6.jpg

Today, CityTime lobbyist Liz Holtzman endorsed the mayoral candidacy of Christine Quinn.

WNYC was one of many media Web sites, which reported Ms. Holtzman's connection to the $600 million CityTime scandal. Ms. Holtzman was once a four-term Congresswoman.

The city's lobbying database shows a small army of former prominent city officials who did work for SAIC and Technodyne. Defense contractor SAIC has retained former City Comptroller Liz Holtzman, Peter Powers, who served as Mayor Giuliani's top deputy Mayor for operations, and Seth Kaye, who worked in both the Giuliani and Bloomberg administrations. Technodyne's lobbyists include former Bloomberg Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications Commissioner Gino Menchini and Agostino Cangemi, who also held key posts in both administrations. (CityTime Payroll Scandal a Cautionary Tale * WNYC)

Why is Speaker Quinn desperate to accept Ms. Holtzman's endorsement ? At one time, Ms. Holtzman was mentioned as a possible candidate to replace Congresman Anthony Weiner after his resignation, but Ms. Holtzman's connection to the scandalous CityTime fraud immediately disqualified her.

Ms. Holtzman's lobbying firm was paid $120,000 in 2009, $90,000 in 2010, and $200,000 in 2011 by SAIC, the maker of CityTime, to lobby New York City politicians in order to keep NYC.gov paying CityTime's huge cost overruns. Eventually, it was estimated that SAIC over-billed New York City by $600 million, and Ms. Holtzman was one of the principal lobbyist being paid to keep that gravy train rolling. Her lobbying firm was paid $410,000 to keep the CityTime gravy train rolling into Ms. Holtzman's station.

City Councilmember Letitia James called for investigations into CityTime, but Speaker Quinn, who controls the City Council like a dictator, thwarted each attempt to launch a full City Council investigation into the CityTime overbilling scandal. (Daily News)

Maybe Ms. Holtzman is grateful that Speaker Quinn thwarted all those City Council investigations, thereby protecting Ms. Holtzman's CityTime gravy train, and, as patronage, has offered up her endorsement as pay back ?

Ms. Holtzman's endorsement was made during an announcement of a group that Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign describes as ''Women for Chris.''

Speaker Quinn's latest maneuvering with Ms. Holtzman's endorsement comes on the same day when it was announced that her campaign would immediately drop 11 percentage points in voter support if Mr. Weiner were to enter the mayoral race. Speaker Quinn also faces sharp criticism and endless protests by LGBT activists, who claim that Speaker Quinn has sold out.

2013-04-17 Extract - Liz Holtzman SAIC CityTime NYC Lobbyist Search (2009 Billing) by Connaissable

2013-04-17 Extract - Liz Holtzman SAIC CityTime NYC Lobbyist Search (2010 Billing) by Connaissable

2013-04-17 Extract - Liz Holtzman SAIC CityTime NYC Lobbyist Search (2011 Billing) by Connaissable

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Quinn Campaign Reaches New Level of Desperation with Plummeting Poll Numbers and Onslaught of Social Media Campaign

The New York Daily News published an article on Page 2 today about the growing online movement against Speaker Christine Quinn's mayoral campaign.

In the last week, it was announced that Speaker Quinn's campaign has been losing public support for her bid to replace Michael Bloomberg as mayor in this year's election. Now, comes word that Speaker Quinn's campaign operatives are beginning to openly disparage LGBTQS members of Queers Against Christine Quinn as "crazies." Queers Against Christine Quinn is a Facebook page of autonomous LGBTQS New Yorkers, who, among other issues, have been critical about how the NYPD unfairly target and falsely arrest LGBT New Yorkers in both the police department's unconstitutional stop-and-frisk program and as part of its effort to criminalise the possession of condoms. * Christine Quinn pressed on stop-and-frisk (NYPost)

Why would campaign operatives defend Speaker Quinn's inaction in the face of the NYPD's discrimination of our own LGBT community ? This must be one measure of how desperate Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign must find itself, after weeks and weeks of stining criticism over first opposing paid sick leave only to water it down, over the slush fund-related federal corruption arrest of Councilmember Dan Halloran, and over her controversial attack on the First Amendment following the critical New York City Is Not For Sale TV commercial.

If Speaker Quinn is able to find operatives to defend her failure to stand up to the NYPD's record of discrimination, then it means that her supporters are willing to go to any length, including publicly throwing the LGBTQS community under the bus, in order for her to become mayor. Now we know how much the issue of LGBT equality factors into her mayoral platform : in her campaign's mind, we are expendable.

For more information, please read Chapter 1 of the unauthorised political biography of Christine Quinn.

2013-04-01 Roots of Betrayal © 2013 by Louis Flores - Uncorrected Proof Not For Sale Chapter I Excerpt by Connaissable

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Norman Siegel and Other Lawyers Defend NY1, First Amendment, Respond to Christine Quinn Stroock Letter

Rudy Giuliani on Christine Quinn's Shoulder photo Quinn-Guiliani_zps68d89cf8.jpg

In a posting on The Gothamist : A Mini-Giuliani Is Creeping Around Inside Quinn, Former ACLU Chief Warns, we now can read the lawyerly response from the attorneys for NYC Is Not For Sale 2013, in defense of the successful "Smoke-Filled Room" TV commercial that has done serious damage to New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn's mayoral campaign.

"Norman Siegel, the former head of the NYCLU who is now representing the group that's sponsoring the ads, sent a letter to the managers of NY1 and Time Warner urging them to "reject the threats... which attempt to chill and interfere with our clients’ First Amendment rights," wrote The Gothamist. Below is the full letter from Mr. Siegel and his co-counsel, and following that is the full threatening letter from Speaker Quinn's campaign.

2013 04 10 Norman Siegel Christine Quinn NY1 Time Warner First Amendment NYC is Not for Sale Letter

And here is the malicious, menacing letter from Speaker Quinn's political campaign committee, authored by an attorney at Stroock, which almost borders on intentional interference with NY1's normal business objective, namely, the selling of time for TV political campaign commercials during an election year :

2013-04-08 Christine Quinn NY1 Stroock Threatening Letter by Connaissable

Read more on The Gothamist : A Mini-Giuliani Is Creeping Around Inside Quinn, Former ACLU Chief Warns

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Protest Against Christine Quinn at Jackson Heights Mayoral Forum

Several activists stood outside the Jewish Center in Jackson Heights tonight, to protest Christine Quinn's dismal record on LGBT equality, NYPD discrimination, and restrictions on the use of birth control.

Tonight's protest, which had been announced well in advance, was a success, activists said, because Christine Quinn cancelled her appearance at this forum.

2013-04-11 Protest against Christine Quinn - Condom Banner photo Image_zps30c06990.jpg

Tonight's mayoral forum was sponsored by the New Visions Democratic Club, by the Lesbian Gay Democratic Club of Queens, and by City Councilmember Daniel Dromm.

Activists distributed over 300 flyers outside of tonight's mayoral forum. In their interaction with passers-by and with the attendees at tonight's mayoral form, activists often mentioned how Christine Quinn was primarily responsible for extending term limits to allow Mayor Michael Bloomberg to steal a third term, how Christine Quinn's use of slush funds creates a culture of corruption in City Hall, and how Christine Quinn has failed to hold the NYPD accountable for discriminating against innocent New Yorkers.

2013-04-11 Protest against Christine Quinn - Protesters photo IMG_4260_zpsbc8753f7.jpg

LGBT activists question why Christine Quinn, who is the highest elected openly LGBT politician in New York City politics, does not stand up to the NYPD. The NYPD have demonstrated a pattern of discriminating and falsely arresting innocent LGBT New Yorkers if they carry condoms. Police claim that if LGBT New Yorkers carry condoms, then the condoms are evidence that LGBT New Yorkers are engaged in prostitution.

Activists displayed a banner, which portrayed a condom locked in a handcuff to represent how NYPD are trying to crack down on safe sex practices -- forcing us to return to backward Victorian times.

How can Christine Quinn support this kind of crackdown on the use of prophylactics, if the fact that prophylactics and birth control because legal in 1965 only after decades of attempts by Planned Parenthood to make it legal for people to use contraception.

But that's not all. The NYPD policy on stop-and-frisk also deliberately targets transgenders ; meanwhile, Christine Quinn does not hold the NYPD for discriminating against the LGBT community. The stop-and-frisk program discriminates, and, as a consequence, the City of New York ends up paying hundreds of millions in damages for violating the civil rights of innocent New Yorkers.

Here is one of the flyers, which activists distributed tonight :

2013-04-11 Christine Quinn Stop and Frisk Condom Flyer

What a disgrace for the NYPD to menace the LGBT community like this. In an article in The New York Times last week-end, it was notable that no LGBT leader in this city was quoted here to denounce the institutional discrimination by the NYPD of LGBT New Yorkers. Most notable was the absence or silence by Christine Quinn, the highest elected LGBT official in New York City politics. She is somebody, who has a sensibility of what it means to be treated different because of her identity as a woman and as a lesbian. And yet she has said nothing about how the NYPD treats others in the LGBT community solely based on their identity. And in all the articles about how stop-and-frisk is used by the NYPD against communities of color and other minority groups, there has remained a radio silence about how a municipality can discriminate against people in public spaces based on sex, race, and other factors that are expressly prohibited by the Civil Rights Act. When were municipalities given the option of not enforcing the Civil Rights Act ? And how can the NYPD deliberately violate Griswold v. Connecticut, the landmark case that legalised the use of contraceptives in the United States ? When did carrying contraception or prophylactics become a criminal behaviour ? How can this be ?

Monday, April 8, 2013

Quinn Hires Stroock To Violate NY1 Freedom Of Press

On the same day when the civic group called NYC Is Not For Sale 2013 produced and paid for a TV ad that criticised Christine Quinn's mayoral campaign, Speaker Quinn hired a very expensive law firm to bully NY1 into pulling the plug on the TV ad. Now, the NY1 program The Call is dedicating an entire hour to the topic of Speaker Quinn's questionable ethics.

Speaker Quinn's lawyer threatened NY1 with the possibility that it would lose its broadcast license if it did not remove the TV ad.

2013-04-08 Christine Quinn NY1 Stroock Threatening Letter

Why doesn't Stroock go after the artist and blogger Suzannah B. Troy ? Maybe because Ms. Troy's videos tell the truth ? Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.

For years before Speaker Quinn's campaign threatened NY1 with losing its license, entire blogs, entire YouTube channels, and several individual YouTube videos, which have been critical of Speaker Quinn, have been censored. The Christine Quinn parody puppet show video was censored by YouTube for several months.

And the No Third Term blog was censored, as well.

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Anti-Christine Quinn Group Releases Campaign Ad : The Smoke-Filled Room

New York City will be better off without Speaker Quinn as Mayor. Her record on living wage, paid sick leave, term limits, lack of support for animal rights and animal welfare, combined with her reputation for siding with the rich and powerful to advance her own political aspirations, makes it clear that as mayor, Quinn would only continue to appease special interests that do not have the well-being of all New Yorkers in mind.

Like this new group on Facebook : NYC Is Not For Sale 2013

Read more : Outside Group Pledges to Spend Up To $1 million to Defeat Christine Quinn

Many activists openly question the viability of Speaker Christine Quinn's mayoral campaign, because she has been attracting ever more criticism from unions, LGBT activists, animal rights groups, Progressive Democrats, and even some of her former major donors, such as Wendy K. Neu, who has abandoned Speaker Quinn's campaign.

If Speaker Quinn's campaign is now doomed, based on all of the opponents, who are now lining up against her, then maybe the right action by New York Democrats would be to encourage Anthony Weiner to enter the race.

It's like "Upstairs, Downstairs" amongst the anti-Quinn movement, some activists say. A handful of activists have been working for over four years to fight for integrity in New York City government on no budget, but here comes along NYC Is Not For Sale 2013, pledging to spend $1 million to defeat Speaker Quinn's mayoral campaign. Activists welcome the help, but what message does another million dollar electioneering effort say in this Citizens United era ? Look at the humour and satire in the art of Suzannah B. Troy's political commentary :

Financial Funding for the Stop and Frisk Program

Christine Quinn 3.9 Million stop and frisks under Christine Quinn photo 2013-03-28Title-III-CRA-Stop-And-Frisk-Flyer_zpsc107fd2f.jpg

Each year, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn approves the New York City budget, which provides the financial funding the NYPD to carry out its stop-and-frisk program.

Stop-and-frisk violates Title III of the Civil Rights Act. Title III states that municipalities are prohibited from discriminating in public spaces against people based on race, sex, religion and other factors. And yet, why does the City Council and its speaker approve the use of taxpayer money to fund the NYPD to carry out an illegal and unconstitutional discriminatory program ?

Saturday, April 6, 2013

NYPD Menace LGBT New Yorkers Based On Clothes : Arrests by the Fashion Police

Christine Quinn 3.9 Million stop and frisks under Christine Quinn photo 2013-03-28Title-III-CRA-Stop-And-Frisk-Flyer_zpsc107fd2f.jpg

"The elasticity that officers in New York and elsewhere have been given to police quality-of-life violations has had the unfortunate effect of leaving transgender women, especially, susceptible to the charge that they must be engaged in sex work."

The NYPD are arresting gays, lesbians, transgenders, and other gender non-conforming New Yorkers as part of their stop-and-frisk dragnet, and increasingly they are charging people, who do not conform to gender roles, with criminality. The charges are often suspicion of prostitution, and the police use and/or plant condoms as evidence of sex work, The New York Times has reported. See : Arrests By The Fashion Police

NYPD Condom Arrest - Protest Banner - Queers Against Christine Quinn : Protest against NYPD outside Democratic Mayoral Candidate Forum on LGBT Issues

Christine Quinn is not quoted in this article. How odd is it for the city's highest ranking LGBT official to not be visible, to be outraged by this crisis ? Or is her absence intentional ?

What a disgrace for the NYPD to menace the LGBT community like this. In an article of such gravity, it is notable that no LGBT leader in this city is quoted here to denounce the institutional discrimination by the NYPD of LGBT New Yorkers. Most notable is the absence or silence by Christine Quinn, the highest elected LGBT official in New York City politics. She is somebody, who has a sensibility of what it means to be treated different because of her identity as a woman and as a lesbian. And yet she says nothing about how the NYPD treats others in the LGBT community solely based on their identity. And in all the articles about how stop-and-frisk is used by the NYPD against communities of color and other minority groups, there remains a radio silence about how can a municipality discriminate against people in public spaces based on sex, race, and other factors that are expressly prohibited by the Civil Rights Act. When were municipalities given the option of opting out of enforcing the Civil Rights Act ? And how can the NYPD deliberately violate Griswold v. Connecticut, the landmark case that legalised the use of contraceptives in the United States ? When did carrying contraception or prophylactics become a criminal behaviour ? How can this be ?

Christine Quinn, who is speaker of the New York City Council, each year approves the NYPD budget without defunding the unconstitutional stop-and-frisk policy, but Speaker Quinn has become silent about how the NYPD menace the LGBT community. Some observe that her actions enable the NYPD to continue to use stop-and-frisk against the LGBT community, because Speaker Quinn is seeking the endorsement of the police union in her campaign for mayor.

Related : Christine Quinn betrays the LGBT community

2013-04-01 Roots of Betrayal © 2013 by Louis Flores - Uncorrected Proof Not For Sale Chapter I Excerpt by Connaissable

Friday, April 5, 2013

Suzannah B. Troy "Leave Britney Alone!" Christine Quinn Parody

Mayor Bloomberg-Christine Quinn-Britney Spears "Stop Picking On Me" parody!

After Mayor Michael Bloomberg begged for people to "Leave Christine Alone !", the blogger-activist-artist Suzannah B. Troy has produced a hilarious parody YouTube video based on Chris Rocker's "Leave Britney Alone !" video.

Suzannah B. Troy dressed up in drag, first as Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and then as New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. In a hilarious send-up of the "Leave Britney Alone !" video, Ms. Troy weeps and whines the way that Mr. Rocker did, only the subjects of Ms. Troy's complaints have to do with serious public issues, like the closing of St. Vincent's Hospital and the massive fraud in connection with the doomed CityTime project.

From The New York Post :

The mayor yesterday launched an impassioned defense of his longtime ally and suggested she was getting unfairly pounded for a corruption scandal involving another member of the council.

“I’ve always said that I think Speaker Quinn, who is getting criticized for this, is a person of enormous integrity, and I think she has done an excellent job of running the city,” Bloomberg declared.

“It’s not an easy job, and I think she’d done it well.”

Mayor Bloomberg was angry at critics of Speaker Quinn, like Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who has called for the elimination of Speaker Quinn's slush fund after Queens Republican Councilmember Daniel Halloran was arrested in bribery and corruption charges in connection to Speaker Quinn's slush fund.

Related : Read Chapter 1 of ''Roots of Betrayal : The Ethics of Christine Quinn'' on Scribd.

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Eric Stevenson Christine Quinn Corruption Connection ?

New York State Assemblyman Eric Stevenson is accused of corruption in an expanding probe. The state Assemblyman from the South Bronx is charged with taking $20,000 in bribes.

To nobody's surprise, Assemblymember Stevenson worked at the City Council from 2007 to 2010, where he reported to Council Speaker Christine Quinn. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Read more : Eric Stevenson: Is a once-promising career now heading for disgrace?

2013-04-02 134012670-Eric-Stevenson-Complaint by Connaissable

Rudin Real Estate-Quinn Related Campaign Donations

In exchange for $30,000 in campaign donations, did New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn sell out her community ?

Do the political campaign donations by Beth R. DeWoody, Madeleine R. Johnson, Eric C. Rudin, Jack Rudin, Katherine Rudin, and William C. Rudin, who each donated $4,950 to Christine Quinn's presumed 2013 mayoral campaign, amount to influence peddling ? After all, since even before St. Vincent's Hospital closed, Speaker Quinn has been toeing the Rudin family line : close down St. Vincent's and replace it with an inferior urgent care center.

Christine Quinn,Rudin Family,Rudin Management,Mayor 2013 NYC,Campaign Donations,Real Estate Deals,Hospital Closings,St. Vincent's Hospital

Not only did Speaker Quinn say that we only needed an urgent care center to replace St. Vincent's, but she approved the Rudin family's plan, allowing St. Vincent's Hospital to be rezoned into luxury condos. Since 2010, the Rudin family has been trying to get approval for a billion-dollar real estate development plan for the buildings that belong to the bankruptcy estate of St. Vincent's Hospital. Since the Rudin family wants to build luxury high-rise condos on the site of St. Vincent's, and since they needed City Council approval from Speaker Quinn, do these large campaign donations explain why Speaker Quinn did nothing to restore a Level I trauma center and full-service hospital to the former St. Vincent's site ? Does Speaker Quinn's official acts come as a result of sizable campaign donations from the likes of the Rudin family ?

2007-XX-XX Rudin Management Company Polication Donations to Christine Quinn - Advanced Search - New York Ci...

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Is this how Bill Rudin does business ?

In 2009, Bill Rudin and New York City Planner Amanda Burden were photographed at the same plush "Observer 100" party to celebrate money, power, and influence. In spite of their cozy relationship, Ms. Burden did not recuse herself during the zone-busting approval process for Mr. Rudin's billion-dollar luxury condo conversion of St. Vincent's Hospital. There is no such thing as a conflict of interest in New York City government, and the Department of Investigation is a joke.

The conflict of interest in respect of Ms. Burden paints a pattern of how Bill Rudin does business. Mr. Rudin also participated in an arrangement with the appearance of being a quid pro quo with former mayor Ed Koch.

But Ms. Burden and Mr. Koch were not alone in compromising the integrity of the government approval process that stacked the deck in favour of Mr. Rudin's devastating zone-busting plan, which seized a charitable community hospital as the site for his billion-dollar luxury condo conversion plan.

Did Christine Quinn Give Up On Saving St. Vincent's In Exchange for Campaign Donations From The Rudin Family ?

Christine Quinn,Rudin Family,Rudin Management,Mayor 2013 NYC,Campaign Donations,Real Estate Deals,Hospital Closings,St. Vincent's Hospital

In an apparent conflict of interest, Beth R. DeWoody, Madeleine R. Johnson, Eric C. Rudin, Jack Rudin, Katherine Rudin, and William C. Rudin each donated $4,950 to Christine Quinn's presumed 2013 mayoral campaign. During this time, the Rudin family has been trying to salvage a multi-million dollar real estate purchase of the buildings that belong to the bankruptcy estate of St. Vincent's Hospital. Since the Rudin family wants to build luxury high-rise condos on the site of St. Vincent's, do these large campaign donations explain why Speaker Quinn has done nothing to restore a hospital to the former St. Vincent's site ?

Not only that, but the Rudin family also donated over $7,000 to the campaign coffers of Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. President Stringer eventually approved the luxury condo conversion of St. Vincent's, pointing to a second public official who seems to subscribe to the "pay-to-play" corruption that the ULURP process has apparently become ?

2009 - Rudin Family Donations to Scott Stringer - St. Vincent's Conflict of Interest - Advanced Search - Ne...

Does Bill Rudin use the Association For A Better New York to further his economic interests ?

Not only has Bill Rudin and his family funneled money to the mayoral campaign of Christine Quinn, but he also helps to fluff Speaker Quinn's image in the media. Mr. Rudin put Speaker Quinn on the podium to give her a venue to talk about the post-Sandy real estate projects, from which developers are eager to make money. The emergency response to Hurricane Sandy was still on-going at the time of Speaker Quinn's speech, but the political and economic opportunism was shown to be in full swing.

Does Bill Rudin use the Partnership For New York City to further his economic interests ?

Another vehicle, which Mr. Rudin uses to great effect, is his position as a director of the Partnership For New York City, an elite chamber of commerce-like entity, which helps billionaires and large corporations buy insider influence with government leaders.

For example, while Brad Hoylman was chairman of Manhattan Community Board 2, which was overseeing the initial elements of the zone-busting real estate approval process for the luxury condo conversion of St. Vincent's Hospital, Mr. Hoylman was then employed by Mr. Rudin's Partnership.

Of course, if you were Bill Rudin, you would look successful if you had the resources, the conflicts of interest, the malfeasance, and the gall to corrupt so much of the government for your own personal gain.

Was Malcolm Smith's Candidacy Meant To Help Christine Quinn ?

One of the comments on this story : "you have to ask yourself, who does this help? who benefits if smith were to of gotten the republican nomination? this is why the fbi calls it rigging the election because if would of syphoned off votes from thompson toward smith which of course helps quinn the supposed frontrunner. quinn is next." Read more : Rivals Use Dan Halloran Slush Fund Arrests To Hit Christine Quinn

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

In The Criminal Complaint, Dan Halloran Demonstrates How Slush Funds Are Used For Fraud

In Paragraph 42 in the mayoral election corruption complaint, shown below, New York City Councilmember Daniel J. Halloran suggested to an undercover FBI agent that Mr. Halloran could increase the size of the discretionary funds he was using as a bribe by calling in favours from other councilmembers.

Would Speaker Christine Quinn, who keeps a tight control over the New York City Council slush fund, be among the councilmembers whom Mr. Halloran had in mind ?

We don't know yet, but the undercover sting that took place today shows us how Speaker Quinn's slush funds are used for corrupt purposes.

2013 03 29 Complaint Against Smith Malcolm Dan Halloran Et Al

State Sen. Malcolm Smith and New York City Councilman Dan Halloran arrested in 'bribery plot' to rig mayor race * Dem Smith schemed to run as a Republican * Faces corruption rap with Republican Halloran (NYPost)

State Sen. Malcolm Smith and city Councilman Dan Halloran were arrested this morning on charges they plotted to rig this year’s mayoral election through fraud and bribes.

The pols allegedly formed an alliance built on cash payments and fraud to get Smith — one of the state’s top Democrats — placed on the GOP mayoral ballot, sources said.

FBI agents arrested them both at their Queens homes shortly after 6 a.m.

Read more : True News From Change

Monday, April 1, 2013

Chapter 1 Excerpt of ''Roots of Betrayal : The Ethics of Christine Quinn''

An excerpt of Chapter 1 of Roots of Betrayal : The Ethics of Christine Quinn has been published as a free .pdf ; it can be found here : Roots of Betrayal : The Ethics of Christine Quinn (Scribd)

''Roots of Betrayal : The Ethics of Christine Quinn'' is on sale now.

Roots of Betrayal : The Ethics of Christine Quinn can be purchased at the following bookstores :

  • Book Thug Nation, 100 N. Third St., Williamsburg, Brooklyn ;
  • Spoonbill & Sugartown Booksellers, 218 Bedford Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn ;
  • St. Mark’s Bookshop, 31 Third Ave., Manhattan ; and
  • Bluestockings, 172 Allen St., Manhattan.

Christine Quinn Slush Fund Lawsuit Update

Update : Six-year-old federal slush-fund probe is still costing New York City taxpayers (New York Post) The 6-year-old federal slush-fund probe into the City Council is still costing taxpayers, The Post has learned. The council paid $10,430 in September to the white-collar law firm Steptoe & Johnson — part of an $83,000 contract. The council has spent $513,868 with four law firms since the feds launched their investigation. Along with Larry Seabrook, two former members — Hiram Monserrate and Miguel Martinez — and two former council staffers have been charged in the scandal. (New York Post) * Chris Quinn and the Slow Motion Return of the Slush Fund Scandal (Village Voice) * Phony Allocations by City Council Reported (The New York Times) * 6-Year Media Cover-up Of Christine Quinn's Slush Fund Scandal (True News From Change)

A 2008 lawsuit against New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn was not successful.

James Riches vs Christine Quinn Slush Funds 3001061162008001SCIV

The Appellate Court ruled that each of (i) the U.S. Attorney's Office headed by Preet Bharara and (ii) the New York City Department of Investigation headed by Rose Gill Hearn were sufficient supervision for Christine Quinn's use of fictitious accounts to hide her City Council slush fund.

Preet Bharara-Rose Gill Hearn-Christine Quinn-Slush Fund-Triptic photo Preet-Rose-Christine-Slush-Fund-Triptic_zpsdd81e018.jpg

2010-04-15 James Riches v Christine Quinn Slush Funds Appellate Decision

But as we have seen, Preet Bharara and Rose Gill Hearn have done nothing to hold Speaker Quinn accountable for the slush fund scandal even though former New York City Council Members Hiram Monserrate (New York Post) Larry Seabrook, and Miguel Martinez were convicted for their role in the slush fund scandal (The Wall Street Journal) and political aides to former Council Member Kendall Stewart also pleaded guilty to charges in connection with the scandal (USA Today).

Preet Bharara is such a disappointment, and so is Rose Gill Hearn. Meanwhile, the corruption-enabler Ms. Hearn is one of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's main political puppets, and it is under her laissez-faire watch that Christine Quinn wants to bury the newly proposed Inspector General of the NYPD. Can we see how corruption is allowed to continue unchecked, when it is impossible for the Bloomberg-Quinn administration to police themselves when Ms. Hearn is fast asleep as a bought-and-paid-for watchdog ? Gimme a break.