John W Rodat

Feckless Chapter 2: Albany County Legislature is Clumsy or Slick?

March 20, 2012 County Government

You have got to be kidding me! Well, you could be kidding me or you could be kidding me. Or us. The leadership of the Albany County Legislature has rushed past feckless to either a clumsy attempt at deception or a really slick effort at self-defeat. Or perhaps they really can’t see past the next […]

Read the full article →

Interest Costs. Just a Reminder

March 20, 2012 Capital

If you have ever had a mortgage to pay, you know painfully well how much you pay in interest costs over the life of the mortgage. With interest, total acquisition costs often come close to doubling the purchase price. A new Albany County Nursing Home project (by their own numbers) will require borrowing $70.842 million. […]

Read the full article →

Aww. C’mon

March 20, 2012 Uncategorized

Such a beautiful day for a two-wheeled vehicle … But our friends at the Albany County Legislature just won’t let us go play. More on that shortly.

Read the full article →

Fitch Credits Sale of Ulster County Nursing Home in Reaffirming County’s Bond Rating

March 20, 2012 Bond Rating

From the Mid-Hudson News Network: Fitch reaffirms Ulster County’s bond rating, cites ‘sound’ financial profile NEW YORK – Fitch Ratings Service supports the sale of the Golden Hill Health Care Center by Ulster County government. The revelation comes in the rating agency’s latest report on the county’s finances and its reaffirmation of the county’s AA- […]

Read the full article →

Orwell on Political Language

March 19, 2012 Politics

Something tells me that this will be a good week to start with a reminder from Orwell: Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind. George Orwell, Why I Write, 1946

Read the full article →

Inflation Adjusted Earnings Declined in February

March 16, 2012 Earnings

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics this morning: REAL EARNINGS FEBRUARY 2012 All employees Real average hourly earnings for all employees fell 0.3 percent from January 2012 to February 2012, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. A 0.1 percent increase in the average hourly earnings was more than offset by a […]

Read the full article →

Bits & Pieces

March 16, 2012 Economics

Today’s Grab Bag More “Winner Take All” Economics Sports star economics comes to the law profession. Dewey & LeBoeuf, the result of a 2007 merger of Dewey Ballantine and LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae. Star economics was the subject of Robert Frank’s 1995 book, the Winner Take All Society. Frank’s argument was that partly because […]

Read the full article →

In My Next Life I Want to be a Cartoonist!

March 14, 2012 County Government

John De Rosier just said in one picture what I and many others have spent thousands of words on. Here’s betting that this picture represents a turning point. Go look now!!! Still laughing.

Read the full article →

And Another County Heard From

March 13, 2012 County Government

Saratoga County, NY operates a 277 bed nursing home. Like other county nursing homes, it too loses money. Last night (while Albany was charging ahead on losing more money on a smaller facility), Saratoga County’s leadership headed in a different direction. From the Saratogian: Saratoga County Public Health Committee members voted unanimously Monday to hire […]

Read the full article →

They May be Feckless, but I Agree With Their Numbers

March 13, 2012 County Government

Just to be clear regarding that last post, I think the estimated losses of around $26 million are sound estimates. Lousy process, lousy policy, but sound estimates.

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →