I wanna be a part of it

Some fairly cool developments in New York State.

First, crusading (that's always the word used, isn't it?) Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has decided to run for Governor.

Called everything from a contemporary Teddy Roosevelt populist to an overreaching Wyatt Earp vigilante, Mr. Spitzer has transformed the Wall Street and the nation's financial markets by taking on corrupt mutual fund managers, bid-rigging in the insurance industry, and excessive corporate compensation.

I guess this isn't a surprise to people who've been paying attention, but I myself had no idea and had been secretly hoping that he would make a bigger splash.

Also, NY's draconian (again with the cliche' alert!) Rockefeller drug laws have been eased up.

Drafted in the 1970s in response to rampant heroin addiction, the laws have been harshly criticized even by their architects as outdated and excessively punitive. But political deadlock in the statehouse and spirited lobbying efforts by district attorneys who said the laws are powerful crime-fighting tools eroded efforts to change them.

Alas, they didn't introduce the notion of treatment, which many had been hoping for, but it's better than nothing. posted by Andy | link | | |
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