In honor of Thanksgiving, (otherwise known as Turkey Day) I present this photo from my first ever Turkey Hunt back on May 2nd:
No, this is not the turkey we are having tonight.
Have a good Thanksgiving everyone. Remember to be thankful for our troops, and for our freedom [...]
Lately, it seems as though most are taking it for granted that Andrew Cuomo will run for governor, and win. The polls all point to Cuomo easily defeating any challenger. But, Bloomberg News reports that there may be some issues in Cuomo’s closet.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s campaign [...]
There’s no law that everyone has to be equally miserable, although the present Congress might soon address that. Until then, Buffalo is nonetheless going with the flow down the drain instead of floating above the present nationwide depressing standard. G. Scott Thomas from Business First notes that Erie County’s [...]
While Barack Obama and Eric Holder think they are doing a good thing for America’s civilian justice system by sending the worst of the worst terrorists in the world to New York to stand trial, New York voters disagree.
Just 35% of New York State voters agree with Attorney General [...]
Tonight, I am asking readers of The Buffalo Bean to consider donating to The George W. Bush Presidential Center.
Some of you may know, back in 2003, I founded Blogs For Bush, which went on to become one of the most popular political blogs during the 2004 presidential campaign [...]
Nothing confirmed yet (last I heard), so this is probably a trial balloon. That said, I really hope it is true.
Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani has decided against running for governor, but is strongly considering running for U.S. Senate instead, sources told the Daily News.
The Republican heavyweight was considered the GOP’s best [...]
I’d rather track scarcely talented American Idol contestants, get caught up on Glee’s let’s-relive-high-school plotlines, or endure a fan’s lecture about how Earth-shatteringly wonderful 30 Rock is before hearing another hyped word about Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Many of us have been tempted to head for our zombie shelters just [...]
I disagree with a lot of things Governor Paterson has done and said, but he pretty much hits the nails on the head here.
Gov. David Paterson openly criticized the White House on Monday, saying he thought it was a terrible idea to move alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and [...]
The Artvoice Dilemma comes down to whether it’s worth pointing out any random article’s problems. It’s usually best to avoid the chore of reading an issue, much less critiquing its contents. But sometimes they churn out something so egregious that it deserves a shredding. For example, a puff interview with [...]
So, I picked up a copy of Artvoice yesterday to find their cover story this week is an interview with Brian Higgins about the public option.
Are we supposed to be impressed that Brian Higgins spoke about this issue with a left/wing publication that is as likely to factcheck Higgins [...]
The other day I was invited by the New York Biotechnology Association to an event Thursday at Roswell Park, featuring members of the Association who would be discussing the results of a study (prepared earlier this year by Archstone Consulting LLC) outlining the economic impact of the biopharmaceutical industry on [...]
News flash: the economy still stinks. If you blame the government, you have shocking company in The Buffalo News, which ran a story Sunday on how the feds aren’t quite fixing everything or anything. Unfortunately, the paper claims that Washington is at fault for a curious reason, namely because [...]
In less than a year, every member of the U.S House is up for reelection. That means, every member who voted for government-run health care has a chance to be voted out. Right now, however, I cannot stress the importance of supporting members of Congress who stood up for the [...]
Can we watch hockey without getting a political lecture? Please? Apparently, the answer is “Nope” regardless of how poorly the two subjects go together. The Buffalo Sabres aired a packaged segment during the first intermission of Saturday’s game based upon the suspicious notion that we have reason to [...]
New Jersey and New York are similar neighbors. For one, both are homes to NFL venues. Of course, the Garden State hosts two teams, even if they’re equipped with out-of-state license plates, while the Empire State has one, as long as the Bills count as a pro squad. The [...]
Well, it was a pretty good Election Day… certainly better than last year. My apologies for the lateness of this reaction post. Circumstances beyond my control kept me from writing… anyway…
It was extraordinarily gratifying to see Jon Corzine lose in New Jersey. That alone made last night beautiful. Aside [...]
Imagine if the National Republican Congressional Committee had supported Doug Hoffman from the start. Instead of throwing money at a left-winger who remained on the ballot after she quit and repaid the organization by endorsing her erstwhile Democratic foe, Hoffman would be running for re-election [...]
In case you haven’t heard, Vertical Horizon has reemerged after a five- year hiatus with a new album, “Burning the Days,” and are currently on tour doing in-store performances and club shows. This past Monday night my wife and I went to see them when they came to the [...]
While I was planning to attend the GOP Party at Adam’s Mark for my Election Day results coverage tonight, other obligations came up, and thus will not be in attendance. That said, I will be providing coverage tonight of results from my usual undisclosed location. Coverage will likely be a [...]
The Buffalo Bean has acquired a letter from Robert Simmons, Past Conservative Party Town Chair for 30 years in Amherst, on behalf of Amherst Town Board candidate, Richard “Jay” Anderson. We have posted it below:
Dear Fellow Conservative;
This year’s election for the Amherst Town Board will determine the future direction [...]
Why does New York State hate the environment so much? As of Sunday, residents must make recycling outpost excursions to get nickels back on water bottles, which of course means more car trips that will wreak havoc on efforts to maintain a small carbon footprint, or whatever. You’ll now have [...]
The Buffalo Bean is pleased to post the list form Tea New York here for your convenience. Get out there and support candidates who support less taxes, and more liberty.
Amherst
Supervisor: Barry Weinstein Town Board: Jay AndersonGrand Island:
Town Council: Jim SharpeHamburg:
Supervisor: Steve Walters Town Council: Bryan Wittmeyer, David Belissimo, and Amy ZieglerTonawanda:
Mayor: Ron PilozziWheatfield:
Supervisor: Bob CliffeNiagara County Legislature:
5th [...]Well, at least the Skyway is perfectly safe, right?
Masonry experts inspected the exterior of the Statler Towers today after a piece of the building’s stone cornice crashed 20 stories onto the pavement Wednesday night.
Part of the cornice on the historic structure’s northwest corner at Delaware Avenue and West Mohawk [...]
I don’t know Michele Iannello. Anyone on this site following that election can see I support Kevin Hardwick. Nevertheless, I must voice my thoughts on a story out yesterday about recent troubles facing Iannello and come to her defense.
The Buffalo Teachers Federation is poised to withdraw its support for [...]
I am not here to defend Chris Collins or the comments he made, but I do think there are a bunch of people not merely making too much of it, but trying to turn it into something it is not.
Collins has already apologized for what he called “a poor joke,” delivered [...]
Having fewer bad congressional representatives isn’t worth it. And, while it’s nice to enjoy shorter waiting times at restaurants and cope with less traffic, it’s ultimately not fun to have a broke ghost town to yourself. The remaining residents of New York State are coping with this lonely reality, [...]
The best thing Albany and Washington can do for the economy is nothing. The worst is basically everything they’ve attempted over the past few decades. Guess which approach they’re planning to use as they inflict their newest scheme upon Buffalo? The city’s paper happily reports that our elected overlords have concocted yet one more plan to counteract their [...]
We would have helped if asked to contribute to a noble cause. That’s especially true if Jim Kelly did the asking. A high percentage of Western New Yorkers would hack off a limb if the only Buffalo Bill with an officially retired number made the request. With that in mind, it’s curious that [...]
To hear people speak at the town board meeting last Monday night, one would think that everyone in the Town of Amherst would like to see property taxes go up so that we don’t have to lay off any employees. I am mindful of the effects of layoffs on employees [...]
I had the opportunity to sit down with Rick Lazio while he was in town yesterday. I’d never met him before. I wasn’t a New York resident during his unsuccessful Senate bid, so this was not only my first time meeting him, but my first real opportunity to assess [...]
Tell us when Bass Pro opens.
We don’t want updates, timelines, projections, limp promises, or press conferences based on optimistic speculation. Local news outlets should refuse to mention the hypothetical downtown retailer in any dispatch that doesn’t include the words “doors opened.” Instead, the press is once again informing us [...]
Should we cheer when awful times don’t get worse? New York’s percentage of idle workers remained constant during the previous two months. Unfortunately, that means that the rate has stabilized in critical condition:
From August to September, the New York unemployment rate held steady at 8.9%, which is lower than the national rate.
For once, [...]
There’s no reason to accept zero-tolerance. Treating every object with an edge as a weapon displays an utter lack of common sense, which sadly and predictably explains why such policies are being enforced in many public school systems.
One young man suffering from such grade school campus lunacy is six-year-old Zachary [...]
The Commander-in-chief’s Nobel Peace Prize aside, there’s a war to win. Regrettably, some of our representatives aren’t eager to back the crucial effort in Afghanistan at a critical time. General Stanley McChrystal’s call for 40,000 more troops is being met with opposition by politicians from one of the states targeted on [...]
Whatever you want to call it: electoral fusion, fusion voting… no one can convince me that it is a good idea. Last week, we saw another example of how it actually causes more problems in the electoral processi
The county’s two elections commissioners Wednesday said the Independence Party primary for [...]
Aged buildings look nice. Everyone prefers the warmth and character that radiates from old-timey brick facades, especially when compared to soulless concrete monstrosities. Take the Summit Building at 918-920 Main Street, which is a four-story red-bricked gem dating from 1891. For historical reference, the president at the time of its opening was merely [...]
Money? Good. Fighting cancer? Good. But money intended to aid the cancer fight could be spent ineffectually despite the astoundingly noble goal. The Buffalo News carried a recent story about a federal grant that’s by default more useful than every other project that has been or will be funded by [...]
A $1,000 per ticket fundraiser in Rochester today for Erie County Executive Chris Collins has fueled speculation that Collins may run for governor next year.
Buffalo News reporter Bob McCarthy recaps Collins’ recent activity:
The county executive, meanwhile, has been traveling the state in recent weeks to meet party leaders. He [...]
There’s a gigantic difference between charity and cushiness. It’s admirable to reach out and help those in dire straits who have money for nothing. At the same time, it’s easy for recipients to get addicted to public support. That’s especially so if they can get better health coverage from the [...]
Can somebody buy the damn Statler Towers already? The perpetual struggle to find an owner for the iconic yet largely unoccupied hotel, which has been seemingly dragging since just after Millard Fillmore lived on the spot, isn’t ending soon even though some guys may have bought it. Or [...]
It used to be that companies were “incubators for skills.” But why bother getting on-the-job training when the government will cover the cost of getting you up to speed? For one, The Buffalo News adores the idea of making everyone pay to school a few workers, as evidenced by [...]
>It figures: David Paterson starts to get it as soon as he’s politically toast. New Yorkers don’t appreciate President Obama basically encouraging the governor to spend more time with his family. But the same story notes that this doesn’t mean they like the state’s leader:
>Just 17 percent of voters [...]
There are chickens living within the city limits, and that’s weird but fine. Buffalonian Monique Watts was initially denied her attempt to keep the rather unconventional pets:
The West Side woman had to move her pet hens to Allegany County earlier this year when she learned that the City of [...]
The word “private” doesn’t appear in a recent Buffalo News story about a potential New York-based super-swift train. It’s as if local leaders don’t even bother to pretend anymore that businesses should be the entities responding to the public’s needs. Unfortunately, officials are looking exactly one place for the proposed [...]
Back in February, I blogged about reports that former governor George Pataki had been approached about running for the U.S. Senate. This idea was mocked by one local left-wing blogger, who said that he could state with confidence that “no one has any fear of Pataki running for statewide [...]
It’s an ominous moment for one’s career when the President of the United States tells you to quit your job. Granted, it’s the same president who spends his free time micromanaging banks and car companies, but David Paterson can’t feel comfortable about an anti-endorsement that submarines his chances of [...]
I believe it is not the role of political party leaders to make endorsements of candidates before a primary.
When President Bush endorsed Arlen Specter over Pat Toomey in 2004, I thought it was a bad idea.
When local Democrats endorsed Jon Powers before the primary that was also a bad idea [...]
Note to Governor Paterson: this response to the ACORN scandal isn’t going to save your career.
In another blow to ACORN, Gov. Paterson put a hold Friday on all state contracts with the embattled anti-poverty agency.
Paterson’s budget director and director of state operations ordered agencies not to move forward on [...]
Small-government sympathizers may have picked up help they’d rightly never expect. Specifically, tea party types can enjoy a new sign that the tide is officially turning in their favor: The Buffalo News is acting like it’s pro-business. Well, it’s true at least one time. A recent front-page story in [...]
As sad as it is that Byron Brown was effectively relected last night, it is just as sad that the mayoral race is over now, regardless of who won.
I’ve various comments on the radio that Buffalo voters “had a choice” for this election, but did they really? Sure, Buffalo Democrats [...]
Politics didn’t change Kirsten Gillibrand, but a new job did. She became a company woman once since she was assigned to stand for in the Senate; that’s different that how she acted while representing only New York’s 20th Congressional District in the House. Unfortunately for her, she may [...]
Just in case anyone’s not alarmed yet about the current national administration, know that President Obama is thinking like David Paterson. Treating New York’s leader like an idea factory should depress those outside of the state and scare the hell out of everyone who lives within his domain.
The New York [...]
There’s only one thing worse than a miserable human being self-righteously lecturing you about what you should be eating. Namely, it’s a miserable human being who’s funded by the government self-righteously lecturing you about what you should be eating. Unfortunately, the latter’s a reality in Western New York. A [...]
Trying to compile a list of nice things to say about Mayor Byron Brown might be frustrating. But at least it’s full-time work, even if it involves spending many hours staring at a blank sheet. With the Democratic primary less than a week away, his re-election staff managed to [...]
Craigslist is like representative democracy in Western New York: it’s a great idea in principle that often frustrates in reality. Just as it’s disheartening being led or represented by individuals such as Louise Slaughter, Byron Brown, or every aggravating soul in the Erie County Legislature who voted to increase the [...]
Buffalo’s schools suck less than before. But that’s far different than being successful. Even if the wobbly district has taken the first step that begins a thousand-mile journey, there’s still much ground ahead. The Buffalo News article detailing their status starts with a rather rosy perspective before filling in the [...]
At least he’s efficient: Leonard Stokes made sure that the money the City of Buffalo threw at him was misused as thoroughly as possible. The cash he got to prop up his failed One Sunset restaurant may as well have been shot into the sun itself. Most of the taxpayers [...]
You can tell a lot about people by the company they keep. If that maxim also applies to urban areas, Buffalo is in trouble. Queen City delegates recently convened to compare notes with fellow blighted former jewels:
They met at the Dayton Convention Center last weekend to swap ideas about [...]
It is really sad in politics when either a politician or a pundit resorts to blaming racism for their troubles, be it losing an argument, or as in Governor David Paterson’s case, fighting hard to save his career.
Gov. Paterson blamed a racist media Friday for trying to push him [...]
We pay dearly when lawmakers spend at will: American workers toil deep into summer to cover our officials’ thorough profligacy. August 12 was Cost of Government Day, which is
the day of the calendar year when the average American worker has earned enough gross income to pay off his or [...]
Two hundred dollars can buy a lot of protractors. On the other hand, it can also be used to acquire digital cameras, Rock Band controllers, Blu-ray titles, and lots of other fun junk that the cash-holder desires. Unfortunately, some of our wayward neighbors spent money intended to help them get [...]
Ahh yes… another “successful” gun buyback brings in 700 guns, and now, don’t you just feel so much safer walking the streets of the city? Maybe if you’re an anti-gun nut, you might feel good about yourself, but the people who live in the city don’t seem to be [...]
If you’ve ever watched a Buffalo Bills game, chances are they lost. The team is 36 games under .500 over its regular-season history. But that general failure didn’t prevent owner Ralph Wilson from being immortalized in the Pro Football Hall of Fame last weekend. He accepted the invitation, perhaps because [...]
Ah, isn’t it nice to know that now that Democrats are back in control of the state senate that they can go back to their same old sleazy ways? Apparently Senator Pedro Espada’s son has been given a cushy senate job worth $120,000 a year.
Weeks after Senator Pedro Espada Jr. helped resolve a [...]
The Buffalo News reports that Kathy Konst will resign from the Erie County Legislature in mid-August to be the new environment and planning commissioner it the Collins Administration. The current commissioner, Holly Sinnott is returning to the private sector.
There is plenty of speculation on whether there were any ulterior motives [...]
As Matt noted in a recent entry, a recent poll found New Yorkers would rather see Democrats control the State Senate than Republicans. At the same time, a Rasmussen survey also points out that the biggest percentage prefers that both parties take off:
Thirty-seven percent (37%) of New York voters [...]
The other day State Senators Dale Volker, George Maziarz and Mike Ranzenhofer wrote an opinion piece in the the Buffalo News arguing that the chaos of the Senate coup lead to much needed reforms.
Citing various Democrat broken promises (such as the failure to name Bill Stachowski chairman of the Senate Finance Committee [...]
The New York Times reports that back in 2002, Bush Administration officials debated whether to send American troops to Lackawanna to arrest the terror suspects who would be known as the Lackawanna Six.
Some of the advisers to President George W. Bush, including Vice President Dick Cheney, argued that a [...]
Earlier this month, Mayor Byron Brown announced yet another pointless gun buyback program would take place in August… In his announcement, he touted the program’s past “success”:
“Over the past two years, we removed 1,601 illegal guns from our city streets through our coordinated gun buyback effort and we encourage [...]
The Buffalo Bean is pleased to present the following interview with Matthew Ricchiazzi, who is running for Mayor of Buffalo, NY:
THE BUFFALO BEAN: How is your campaign going so far? What kind of response are you getting?
MATTHEW RICCHIAZZI: My campaign is as grassroots as it gets: it’s me, a few [...]
Just in case your television has been off for 20 minutes and you haven’t seen a Paddock Chevrolet commercial since then, their slogan is “A World-Class Dealership with Small-Town Values.” Apparently, those Ken-Ton-based principles include making government-influenced closures of once-fellow dealers permanent. Amanda Carpenter’s recent Hot Button column in [...]
Unlike many New York Republicans, I was not a supporter of the coup in the State Senate, which ultimately lead to a month-long stalemate, and gave Governor Paterson something to distract the voters on just how much he sucks.
A new Siena Poll shows that New York voters are [...]
Regular visitors can obviously see that The Buffalo Bean has a new design. I have been thinking about a facelift for some time now, and have just never gotten around to it. Well, I finally realized it was now or sometime long, long in the future.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy [...]
A ranking of the 50 most populous metropolitan areas in the United States, puts Buffalo, NY and Rochester, NY nearly at the bottom for job postings per capita.
In case you can’t tell from the graphic, the city with the biggest dot, by far, is Washington, DC. It [...]
On the plus side, we are lower than the national average. But, 13,000 jobs have been lost in the past year. So glad that stimulus is working.
The Buffalo News does try to put some positive spin on the news, however.
A glimmer of hope could be found in the [...]
Politico’s Patrick O’Connor ranks Rep. Chris Lee as one of Congress’s “Rookies of the Year.”
A political neophyte just a year ago, New York Rep. Chris Lee looks like a veteran lawmaker when he’s interacting with colleagues on the House floor. And he’s fostered close bonds with other young Republicans, [...]
Been trying to catch up a bit before I fall too far behind, so I wanted to bring everyone’s attention to a couple things I was alerted to via email.
First, Anthony Bialy wrote about the Buffalo Independence Day Tea Party over at Smart Girl Nation:
Maybe I should forward my [...]
And so it ends… Now the Democrats have both Monserrate and Espada back. With the “wife beater and a lying, vacillating cheat” back in line, the Democrats have a majority again.
Sen. Pedro Espada, the Bronx Democrat who joined with Republicans June 8 in a coup, flipped back to [...]
Some would argue that when Republicans were in control in the state senate, things weren’t all that great… True or not, I can’t imagine anyone arguing that Democrats have done any better.
New York’s top bean counter warned Sunday of a “budget free fall that none of us can afford” caused [...]
It looks like at least one good thing has happened as a result of the Senate coup.
Joe Mesi, the former heavyweight boxer appointed to a controversial new office in Buffalo by State Senate Democrats, resigned Thursday effective immediately.
Mesi, 35, who lost a contentious State Senate race last year to Republican [...]
And we were supposed to believe Senate Democrats were sincerely interested in reforming lax and poorly enforced ethics rules in Albany?
The fiscal crisis didn’t stop Democrats from increasing the Senate payroll 5% after grabbing control of the chamber in January, the Daily News has learned.
The annual Senate payroll is [...]
While there has been more attention on Mickey Kearns’s futile effort to oust Byron Brown in the Democrat primary, those of us on the other side of the aisle have our own useless election to pay attention to. It is so useless in fact that Buffalo Republicans have selected [...]
When I heard the news on the radio earlier today, I have to admit I was actually quite conflicted.
The State Senate was rocked today when two Democratic renegade senators broke from the party ranks and joined a surprise — and successful — move by Republicans to retake control of [...]
It is quite disturbing that Governor Paterson would sign legislation that lets drug offenders’ criminal records remain sealed, protecting them from background checks, which means that these offenders could get hired as school teachers, without the school, or parents, ever knowing. But, what is even more disturbing is that [...]
…happen to be mostly Democrats.
As Brooklyn Sen. Kevin Parker joins the growing list of indicted state lawmakers, it’s time to face a disturbing fact.
The vast majority of Albany’s crime wave can be traced to one group: New York City Democrats.
Of the 18 elected officials in state government charged with [...]
I never believed the the federal stimulus plan would have any long term benefit to the economy. It didn’t take long for Obama’s bogus promise that the stimulus would prevent the unemployment rate from going above 8 percent to be proven wrong. But, seriously, if the money is supposed to be used [...]
Governor Paterson’s quest for political survival tests his party’s loyalty, and, according to the New York Post, has the Democratic Party ”on the brink of an ‘all- out civil war’ as unelected Gov. Paterson desperately fights to hold an office few think he can win at the polls next year,”
The [...]
A new SIena poll shows that leaving New York State isn’t just for the wealthy who are fed up with ridiculous taxes. According to the new poll, 10 percent of New Yorkers want to relocate as soon as possible, and 11 percent said they leave the state if things [...]
As you all know, Kevin Hardwick has left WBEN to run for Erie County Legislature, the show continues with Dave Debo hosting the show “ a fairly regular basis” with occasional substitutes like WBEN News Reporters like Barbara Burns or Steve Cichon.
I missed the new format of the show this [...]
I couldn’t help noticing that Tom Golisano, in explaining why he is leaving New York, said that his tax dollars “will not continue to fund Albany’s bloated bureaucracy, corrupt politicians or regular handouts to the special interests.” I just find it a bit ironic since his own organization, Responsible [...]
…why Terrell Owens received the key to the city of Buffalo?
Apparently even he doesn’t know why.
Owens was asked why he deserved to receive a key.
“I don’t know why I’m deserving. But I can honestly say that me being here and my dedication, I’ll show you why I’m deserving,” [...]
Bob McCarthy reports this morning…
Canisius College political science Professor Kevin R. Hardwick is ready to trade his radio booth for a seat in the County Legislature.
Hardwick, host of WBEN’s “Hardline with Hardwick” politics and government show for the past four years, said this morning he will challenge incumbent Democrat [...]
I remember when Rush Limbaugh announced he was leaving New York because of high property taxes… The so-called “Working Families” Party went giddy.
We won, and now Rush Limbaugh is leaving New York forever.
Why is Limbaugh packing it in? In the new state budget, millionaires will now have to pay [...]
…because there is probably a high-paying job waiting for you in the New York State Senate…
Edward Hennessey, former Republican Brookhaven town board member who ran a losing comeback race as a Democrat two years ago, has found a soft landing spot as part-time $50,000-a-year counsel to the Senate Democrats.
Hennessey, [...]
The Buffalo Bean has received a letter from Jay Anderson, candidate for Amherst Town Board, to the residents of Amherst.
Dear Amherst residents:
I wish to thank the Amherst Republican Committee for their vote of confidence in nominating me as one of their candidates for the Amherst Town Board. I am deeply [...]
It wasn’t that long ago that Governor Paterson’s soda tax plan was axed… it was never popular and was considered by some to be a sacrificial lamb in the budget debate.
So, one has wonder why, Congress would consider a federal soda tax to pay for Obama’s universal/socialized healthcare [...]
In addition to the list of worthy local blogs in the blogroll to your right, for those of you on Twitter, I thought I would post a list of some local Republicans/conservatives that you ought to follow:
@eriecountyexec - Erie County Executive, Chris Collins.This morning at 10 am, I will be a guest on Hardline with Hardwick on WBEN NewsRadio. Also joining me as an in-studio guest will be Buffalo Pundit.
Today, Saturday the 9th of May, at 2 PM, Rus Thompson and Carl Paladino will be holding a Tax Protest/Revolt in Niagara Square.
From an email:
It will focus on the insanity of Albany policies, politics, and the ever increasing taxes, fees,dysfunction and downstate influence on all our representatives.
We will also be announcing a [...]
Anthony Bialy, Matt, Guest Blogger
