Monday, January 14, 2008

Homeland Security: Told 'Ja So . . .

So we are told that the Homeland Security Preparedness Center lags in hiring and training. Hate to say it, but "Told 'Ja So" back in 2005!

The state never made a good faith commitment to this project to begin with . . . and it appeared to be the result of political maneuvering to take the old OC Airport off the County's hands and keep it from ever competing with the new airport.

Mr. Picente would sell the old OC Airport if he could but he had to settle for a lease which, in my opinion, is a disaster.

The fact that today's classes are taking place at Utica College (which has had success in contrast with the center's failure) tells me that then-Mayor Julian's lobbying for the center to be next door to UC on the grounds of the State Hospital in west Utica was correct ... but the County got in the way.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

So the State doesn't create the jobs it promised and invest the money in the facilities. This sounds just like the way the EDZ Program works. A company promises jobs, get tax credits, things change and oh well the Taxpayer gets screwed again. We gave up the airport for what?

Anonymous said...

We're being played like a one armed bandit.

Spitzer wants to fast track the building of power plants and with the NYRI power line running through both the Marcy "nano" site and within close proximity to the "homeland security" site, what do you think the ulitimate plan really is?

Possible? You betcha. NYRI cannot be stopped and NYC needs the power. You won't see any power plants being built down by the city.

Anonymous said...

Strike- you are right again. We should have kept the airport right where it was. It was a great little airport with lots of potential. Picente is the classic bureaucrat with an arrogant twist. He doesn't understand issues and has no vision, and then relies on the advice of even lesser qualified minions than himself when making decisions. He is in the process of doing the same thing with the Indian Issue. He is in over his head.

Strikeslip said...

Mr. Picente may be in over his head -- but we are the ones who are drowning.

Where is the life preserver?

Anonymous said...

The Homeland Security Training Center can teach us all how to swim