Upstate New York

In a conversation after yesterday's vote by the New Jersey legislature in favor of civil unions, Garden State Equality chairman Steven Goldstein told me that New York now "lags far behind New Jersey in terms of gay rights," and offered an interesting theory for why that might be the case.

"It might be a sociological phenomenon," he said. "New York has upstate New York, which is a conservative counterpoint to the more progressive New York City, metropolitan area. We don't have a conservative part of New Jersey akin to upstate New York. Northern New Jersey is very demographically similar to New York City. South Jersey is similar to Philadelphia. We're a very urban state, a very progressive state. "

-- Azi Paybarah

STATEMENT OF SENATOR HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON CELEBRATING NATIONAL AGRICULTURE DAY

“I am so proud to celebrate - today and every day - the rich heritage and immense diversity of agriculture in New York State. Agriculture is the heart of our rural communities in upstate New York; it fosters strong social relationships and it strengthens the overall economy by providing jobs and creating local businesses. I believe strongly in supporting the programs that help New York farmers, because so much of our own livelihood and well-being depends upon the fruits of their labors.

The future of agriculture is critical to New York’s economy. We must therefore continue to fight for rural and economic development programs, resource conservation programs, and specialty crop programs that are vital to our family farms and rural communities. I recognize the growing importance and demand for New York State agricultural products and am continually working to promote the growth of the agricultural industry, by creating innovative value-added opportunities for the production, distribution and marketing of New York State commodities.”

We report today on how Upstate New York is spending millions in grants from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. You'll be relieved to know that Albany got more than twice as much security funding, per capita, as New York City this year.

Favorite quotes: "If it's the federal government asking me, it is for the intended purpose of W.M.D. incidents and HazMat incidents," said Jeffrey Harloff, Ontario County emergency management official, who's buying a mobile command center. "In reality, we're going to use it for everyday stuff in our office."  read more »

"It just seems like a tremendous waste of funding," said Lyle Jones of Jeffereson County, which couldn't figure out how to spend the money.

Street Kingdom: Five Years Inside the Franklin Avenue Posse , by Douglas Century.  read more »