Hawley uses Facebook to gather constituent opinions on legislative issues

The responses to Questions 1 and 3 are proof that people who frequent Hawley's Facebook page aren't very bright..

Upstate gets back around $1.17 for every dollar we pay in taxes. NYC subsidizes us, not the other way around.

Also, corn is not a vegetable, it's a grain.

Color me surprised that a vast majority people who belong to, or visit Assemblyman Hawley's Facebook page would vote/agree with what he does.

Break up NYS? Downstate carries upstate, not the other way around***. Also, Contrary to what some of the secessionists hope, a new "Upper State" would still probably be a Blue state. In both the 2008 Presidential election and last years Governor election, The blue candidates won both upstate and and downstate separately. The Presidential election was won by around 1/2 million votes upstate and Governor was by more if I remember the math correctly. I agree that there are laws and regulations that pass that make no sense for our area but do for others, but you get that in any state.

***Edit: Chris beat me to this point!

I agree on the corn thing too. Corn is Iowa or Nebraska.

Chris, I agree with your take on #3 (I cringed when I read that)

As far as number #1, some people it does matter if one group is FORCED to pay welfare to another group.
I'm assuming most people thought it was the other way around and don't enjoy their labor being sent to other people. Which makes me wonder,since your probably one of the few that's aware of that fact and you still voted no (or thought you should vote no) than you agree upstate should be taking other peoples labor. You might be brighter than a few those voters but you should be ashamed at taking other peoples labor for your own benefit.

Our states problems are not simple and neither are the solutions. I talked to Steve about how upstate assembly members have very little say but, leaving the state isn't a solution.

Terry wrote:
"As far as number #1, to some people it does matter if one group is FORCED to pay welfare to another group."

What? #1 had to do with splitting off from downstate...downstate basically gives US welfare.

Edit- comment was written before Terry's edit.

...and, Hawley and the other secessionists don't want the split becuase they don't want downstate's money...they have grand visions of a low/no tax red state. Not going to happen.

@Terry,

Right, because roads are welfare.

This wrongheaded idea that all of our woes originate in NYC is laughable. Based on the current dollar distribution, it's _them_ that should be trying to kick _us_ to the curb.

The only reason the Island doesn't float off into the Atlantic Ocean is the million rural vacuums sucking 17 cents of every downstate dollar back to dairy land.

Governor Cuomo spent a lot of his campaign telling us what an enormous waste of time and money the State Authorities were. I'd like to see him start there.

Terry, I'm not ashamed of anything. Feel free to debate this point when you're feeling less ridiculous.

I agree we should be the ones they kick out. I am ashamed if I benefit unwillingly from other peoples labor.
You'll have to explain the road thing, I'm not a democrat so I'm not that bright.

Do you say things like "your not so bright" to peoples face or just when you behind a keyboard."

I doubt Steve Hawley has any substantive basis for pushing the upstate/downstate button shy of pandering to his support group. He knows that NYC, Westchester and Nassau counties tax dollars support upstate. He knows that without downstate's wallets our school districts would require substantially more local revenue. Rather than educate his constituency, he caters to their city-phobia by echoing the baseless desire for secession. ...At the same time alienating himself from downstate members of assembly he could be forging alliances with. If these three questions amount to Mr. Hawley's notion of what 139th District residents consider legislative priorities, I believe he needs to ring some different doorbells. My experience (a year ago) while campaigning, no one voiced concern over state vegetable, NYC or residency requirements for Medicaid benefits. How does the state save money delaying benefits 3 months? Should we assume that the applicants will drop dead without medication/treatment during that time frame and not receive benefits?!

Break the state Constitution? All I ever hear from these people is how we need to live within the "Constitution" but, all they do is talk about altering them? Doublespeak.

Oh Howard, I watched the Tea Party debate and I know for certain it's just like the bible. The constitution needs to be taken literally without any interpretation. As for state law, my friends in the Tea Party tell me it's sacred.

:-)

You know what I like the most about the new format? I Can even vote for my own stuff!

Howard, don't let facts get in the way of my Tea Party rants. They never have in the past.

:-)

The least ridiculous of these questions is the one about the proposed state vegetable, so I propose that Mr. Hawley spend his time in Albany advocating on that vital question alone; he'll do less damage that way.

It could have far-reaching consequences ...

Maybe they'll add a cornstalk to the design of the state license plate. Oops, Mr. Hawley doesn't want us to change license plates, so nix that one. No, wait, we can use the corn or onion logo on proud upstate plates to distinguish ourselves from those impious downstaters who will have a the state creature on theirs (a bloodsucker or a leach?). By the way, I used to live downstate, and let me tell you that all we did down there was think of all the ways we could stick to upstate - well, we had to do SOMETHING to occupy our time while we waited those 90 days before we could eat).

When the governor places the ceremonial bet for the Bills against the Patriots in the AFC Championship he will now know what to put in the bushel basket. That will save the governor endless weeks of dithering time trying to choose the appropriate vegetable to put up against the ... cranberry (nope that's a fruit, I think), ah there it is the baked navy bean. Yeah! I feel BETTER than Massachusetts already! A state vegetable will clearly add to our patriotic fervor.

Tourists will consider all of the states that they might visit, and narrow down the choice based on which state has the niftiest official vegetable. The onion, in that case, is the obvious choice. "Honey, let's spend ANOTHER night in New York; these onion sundaes are absolutely divine!" Sure beats out the ho-hum Massachusetts navy bean.

With the western NY delegation experiencing resurgent power and political will following the choice of a state vegetable, our men in Albany like Mr. Hawley can use the vegetable as leverage: "We won't secede from New York as long as you force those downstaters to include corn fritters in every school lunch (which, of course, will only be served to hungry children who have resided here at least 90 days).

Let's not leave it up to Mr. Hawley's scientifically accurate Facebook poll, let's put it up for statewide referendum. Now that's an economy booster. We can get all of those corn and onion lobbying groups to spend millions promoting their vegetable over the airwaves and in print. Picture it, Howard, dozens of little paid ads in The Batavian advocating for corn or onion. You would have to hire more staff to handle the business flowing in. You got it: JOBS! These may be the only jobs Mr. Hawley will ever create, so let's do it.

Following a referendum, we can have a recall vote by the dissatisfied cornhuskers or onioneaters, and the millions will flow once again!

This can also foster an entire new dimension in health care. Think of it: think tanks, scientific studies on the health benefit of the chosen veggie, experiments with corn-onion hybrids, a new department at GCC (Department of Gastro-Onionology or Associates Degree in Corn and Other Vegetables in the Yellow Family). Heck, the road to GCC is named for a Hawley, why not a new Hawley ag school at GCC? Jobs , again! The man is a genius and deserves every ounce of praise we can muster.

We can rename our sports teams to take advantage of the new-found respect for the official vegetable: Batavia Kernels? (that is if the onion isn't chosen) The Weeping Willows? (if it is) Yes, you see it, new names, means new logos, means new sports gear, means JOBS! We will put ourselves on the sports map - when the Batavia player hits the home run or makes the field goal, instead of cheering the crowd will start sobbing and crying at fever pitch. Network news coverage anyone? We will be NATIONALLY known and praised as whiners par excellence.

Plus the branding for the county. "Genesee County, the Birthplace of the State Vegetable". At the HOLM we can have a little diorama showing the humble abode in which the first state veggie was conceived.

Mr Hawley certainly knows the pulse of his district. This is EXACTLY what was on my mind when I went into the voting booth last time.

question #2......why only 90 days to establish residency for medicaid or any kind of benefits in this state........why not 180 days or 365??????

Is there any actual evidence to support the idea that people move to New York from other states because it easier to get public assistance? I think this is a solution in search of a problem.

I asked this question some time ago, and in the many responses only one actually provided evidence which indicated that there is very little evidence in support of Hawley's position.

I think his time would be more productive in going after the ones who plundered our savings and investments leading up to the 2008 economic mess. There's plenty of evidence for that. For some reason Mr. Hawley seems to prefer going after the poor as the source of the state's problems.

A new State Constitution, which can only occur through a constitutional convention, is direly needed.

In the absence of that, getting rid of Boss, wow, I just can't stop, (part time) Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver would be a big start to enacting serious reforms. The second major part is for challengers, like State Senator Tim Kennedy of South Buffalo, to challenge dinosaurs in the State Legislature (like 30 year incumbent Bill Stachowski, who had no real record to show for his time in Albany). I do not think that Steve does a bad job, he's got the right POV on important reform issues (constitutional convention, independent redistricting are two examples that come to mind), but we need to send a message to the status quo in our next State Senate election. Senator Ranzenhofer, along with the rest of his Republican colleagues in the Senate pledged to support independent redistricting and then outright broke that pledge. We need a fresh face in that Senate seat, and I think that maybe someone local should step up to the challenge.

@John Perry

Corn is only a vegetable in the grocer's sense, much like tomatoes and green peppers which are often called vegetables but are actually fruits.

You may find the quote in this NY Times article edifying as it comes from the Cornell University Horticulture Department Chairman.

http://empirezone.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/11/corn-vegetable-fruit-or-…

@Terry Paine

I call things as I see them no matter where I'm sitting. There are tons of people who would happily (or unhappily) attest to that.

You've fallen victim to scapegoating so much that you actually admit to a feeling of self loathing for living in a poorer section of your own state than other people. That's sad.

New York is one state and instead of looking at the thing as a whole, you've bought in to some ridiculous us vs. them argument. We benefit from the SUNY system, state highways and state grants that fund everything from school campuses to expanded business opportunities for entrepreneurs. Tax dollars from downstate help pay for those things. They benefit from our agriculture in the form of cheap food and milk as well as the inexpensive power we can provide. Those arenb't the only benefits that move back and forth, but they are good examples.

Of course, I don't really see it as 'moving back and forth' between two entities. I see it as one operation, one State.

Do we maybe need a makeover as far as how we do business? Sure we do, but scapegoating some nameless faceless entity is for the angry and gullible. Let's be angry and savvy instead

@Dan

I'll agree with you on the Constitutional Convention. The last time a New York State Constitution was ratified by the electorate was 1938, IIRC. Things have changed over 83 years and though amendments have been made, it seems a bit ridiculous to think that we should be doing things in fundamentally the same manner as we did pre-World War 2.

Of course this is the same state that still operates the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority that was instituted to manage facilities for the Olympic games in 1980. Now they help build gondolas or some nonsense and pay a Board of Directors. these are teh sorts of things we need to look at if your tax bill is bothering you. The residents of Yonkers et al are not the problem.

Chris - Don't get me started on authorities, the Thruway authority, which raises tolls at it's own whim without any input from the representatives the public elects or without any oversight has been outrageous almost since it's inception. We ought to eliminate the TA and start budgeting it under the state Department of Transportation with oversight and transparency. Of course, a new constitution could deal with the problem of out of control authorities in a meaningful way.

Since you guys are having so much fun, I've updating the voting widget with new graphics and added a "Top rated comments" block to the left. Putting down your opponent is only a click away.

I can't believe there wasn't a question about burning garbage and brush outside...he's clearly slipping.

Howard,,,, using big words doesn't make you smart