Giuliani's Dark Side

Yesterday's news that Rudoplh Giuliani would not be running for governor takes me back. While Giuliani certainly deserves credit for his record as a prosecutor and as a mayor, he will always be, in addition, a 9/11 profiteer and a gutless bully. I had personal experience with his domineering ways towards NYC taxi driviers, which I wrote about for Slate in
Operation RefusalGiuliani's sorry crackdown on New York City's taxi drivers and saw in his craven deposition testimony, a bit of which can be seen on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQ8rnhi1kqU

Is New Jersey the most corrupt state?

Since the FBI takedown of public officials, the national press and indeed the world press has fallen all over the story. The press reports are typically confused and confusing, with accounts talking about "the case" or even two linked "schemes." The NY Times report is a case in point. Gail Collins' column today takes some cheap, mildly amusing shots, much too easy for a writer of her talents..

In fact, there is no "scheme," no link between the various indicted politicians, and nothing at all linking the pols withe the rabbis. The massive one-day arrest was pure theater by the FBI and the US Attorney, not a law enforcement imperative. It worked-- the case made the papers even in Australia. Politicians from Gov. Corzine on down joined the band wagon, denouncing the accused and the level of political debauchery in general.

This case also presents no real evidence of pervasive corruption in the Garden State. First of all, most of the pols are pretty small time. The biggest fish is Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano. But Hoboken is a city of 38,577, really just a small town, given some prominence by its proximity to Manhattan. Would anyone care if the mayor of a town of 38,000 in Iowa or Connecticut was arrested?

The story has legs because it fits the Sopranos-inspired narrative of New Jersey as especially and hopelessly corrupt. Maybe it is, but these cases-- linked only by the "cooperating witness," Solomon Dwek (rhymes with "dreck")-- don't show it. Dwek posed as a crooked real estate developer eager to grease palms to get his projects approved. But the people he bribed for the most part had no individual authority to grant or even speed approvals. They were mostly legislators with indirect influence at most.

Worse, there is nothing in the reports saying he had any projects to approve. Even if the evidence of bribery holds up, all it shows is some would-be developer seeking vague favors for some hypothetical projects. This is hardly a fundamental subversion of government.

Maybe the evidence will show a propensity for corruption on the part of those indicted. But how many officials turned Dwek away? We'd need to know that before registering any conclusion about the level of corruption in New Jersey. I'd be much more impressed if there was an allegation (let alone evidence) of one scheme in which a politician actually did something in exchange for a bribe. Did a real estate project get approved that should not have been approved? Did anyone even put a project on the fast track for approval?

Nothing like that is charged. Until it is, we'll have to wait for evidence that New Jersey is as corrupt as we'd all like to believe.

FBI, Arrests, and Money Laudering

I am listening to the U.S. Attorney from New Jersey press conference on the political corruption and "money laundering" arrest of 30-plus individuals including the mayor of Hoboken and the Jersey City City Council president. It smells a bit, and not for the reasons intended.

First, there seems to be no real link between the money laundering rabbi and the allegedly corrupt politicians, except that one cooperating witness seems to be involved with all of them. If that is the case, why does the U.S. Attorney and the FBI take them down (as the call it) at the same time. Is it just to generate headlines? If there is any law enforcement rationale, it's hard to follow what it is.

As to money laundering, this is a dubious crime in general. But as I understand it, money laundering generally involves someone who has a lot of cash (often from illegal activities, but not necessarily) exchanging that cash for less suspicious assets, whether real estate, securities, or bank accounts. But in this case, the cooperating witness would bring a check to the rabbis and get cash back. That sound like cashing a check; money laundering in reverse. Why is the FBI worrying about this at all?

Final Four: College Teams vs. All-Star Teams

The teams facing off in this weekend’s Final Four differ in style. But they differ more in make-up: Michigan State and Villanova are built like college squads; North Carolina and Connecticut look more like all-star teams.

Michigan State and Villanova attained their elite status by mining local and nearby talent. Those schools’ rosters include 22 of 28 players (79%) either from in-state or from neighboring states.
Villanova boasts two players from Pennsylvania and another six from New York, New Jersey and Maryland. Michigan State is even more home grown with nine Michiganders and five from Ohio, Minnesota and Wisconsin. In other words their teams look something like the university’s student bodies, in geography, if not in ability or height.

UConn and North Carolina are built differently. Just 16 of 33 players (48%) on their rosters are from in-state or neighboring states. Connecticut has star players from Alabama and Tanzania (Stanley Robinson and Hasheem Thabeet). Carolina imports its stars from Missouri and New York (Tyler Hansborough and Danny Green). Its roster does have six in-state players, but they are all bench warmers. Connecticut at least has A.J. Price and Jeff Adrien from nearby New York and Massachusetts.

It’s certainly true that the huge success enjoyed by North Carolina and Connecticut in the past has enabled them to recruit far and wide. And its no coincidence that these teams are number one seeds and are favored to make it to the finals. But wouldn’t be nice if being from a place, whether Michigan or Philadelphia, was actually reflected by the players. North Carolina has its state on its jersey, but its players are bussed in from far and wide.

Here are the rosters for the Final Four Teams:

NO NAME POS WT CLASS HOMETOWN
2 Donnell Beverly G 190 Sophomore Hawthorne, CA distant state
10 Johnnie Bird G 165 Senior Fort Bragg, NC distant state
11 Jerome Dyson G 190 Junior Potomac, MD distant state
21 Stanley Robinson F 210 Junior Birmingham, AL distant state
30 Scottie Haralson G 215 Freshman Jackson, MS distant state
32 Jonathan Mandeldove C 240 Junior Stone Mountain, GA distant state
33 Gavin Edwards F 234 Junior Gilbert, AZ distant state
34 Hasheem Thabeet C 263 Junior Dar Es Salaam, distant state
55 Kyle Bailey G 170 Sophomore Lancaster, NH distant state
13 Alex Hornat F 205 Junior South Windsor, CT in-state
24 Craig Austrie G 176 Senior Stamford, CT in-state
40 Jim Veronick F 200 Senior Durham, CT in-state
44 John Lindner F 265 Senior Cheshire, CT in-state
4 Jeff Adrien F 243 Senior Brookline, MA neighboring state
12 A.J. Price G 181 Senior Amityville, NY neighboring state
15 Kemba Walker G 172 Freshman Bronx, NY neighboring state


MICHIGAN STATE

0 Idong Ibok C 260 Senior Lagos, Nigeria Distant state
3 Chris Allen G 205 Sophomore Lawrenceville, GA distant state
1 Kalin Lucas G 180 Sophomore Sterling Heights, MI in-state
13 Austin Thornton G 210 Freshman Sand Lake, MI in-state
14 Goran Suton C 245 Senior Lansing, MI in-state
15 Durrell Summers G 195 Sophomore Detroit, MI in-state
20 Mike Kebler G 200 Sophomore Okemos, MI in-state
23 Draymond Green F 235 Freshman Saginaw, MI in-state
25 Jon Crandell F 225 Junior Rochester, MI in-state
40 Tom Herzog C 240 Sophomore Flint, MI in-state
41 Marquise Gray F 235 Senior Flint, MI in-state
2 Raymar Morgan F 225 Junior Canton, OH neighboring state
5 Travis Walton G 190 Senior Lima, OH neighboring state
10 Delvon Roe F 225 Freshman Euclid, OH neighboring state
22 Isaiah Dahlman G 200 Junior Braham, MN neighboring state
34 Korie Lucious G 170 Freshman Milwaukee, WI neighboring state


NORTH CAROLINA
4 Bobby Frasor G 210 Senior Blue Island, IL distant state
5 Ty Lawson G 195 Junior Clinton, MD distant state
11 Larry Drew II G 180 Freshman Encino, CA distant state
14 Danny Green G-F 210 Senior North Babylon, NY distant state
21 Deon Thompson F 245 Junior Torrance, CA distant state
22 Wayne Ellington G 200 Junior Wynnewood, PA distant state
44 Tyler Zeller F 220 Freshman Washington, IN distant state
50 Tyler Hansbrough F 250 Senior Poplar Bluff, MO distant state
2 Marc Campbell G 175 Junior Wilmington, NC in-state
13 Will Graves G-F 245 Sophomore Greensboro, NC in-state
15 J.B. Tanner G 185 Senior Hendersonville, NC in-state
24 Justin Watts G 205 Freshman Durham, NC in-state
30 Jack Wooten G 190 Senior Burlington, NC in-state
40 Mike Copeland F 235 Senior Winston-Salem, NC in-state
1 Marcus Ginyard G-F 220 Senior Alexandria, VA neighboring state
32 Ed Davis F 215 Freshman Richmond, VA neighboring state
35 Patrick Moody F 195 Senior Asheville, NC neighboring state



VILLANOVA
1 Scottie Reynolds G 195 Junior Herndon, VA distant state
4 Jason Colenda G 205 Junior Fairfax, VA distant state
23 Russell Wooten F 210 Junior Chula Vista, CA distant state
42 Frank Tchuisi F 215 Senior Douala, Cameroon distant state
15 Reggie Redding G 205 Junior Philadelphia, PA in-state
20 Shane Clark F 205 Senior Philadelphia, PA in-state
0 Antonio Pena F 235 Sophomore Brooklyn, NY neighboring state
10 Corey Fisher G 185 Sophomore Bronx, NY neighboring state
21 Maurice Sutton F-C 215 Freshman Upper Marlboro, MD neighboring state
22 Dwayne Anderson G-F 215 Senior Silver Spring, MD neighboring state
24 Corey Stokes G 195 Sophomore Bayonne, NJ neighboring state
33 Dante Cunningham F 230 Senior Silver Spring, MD neighboring state

Barack Obama and the College Football Playoffs

Barack Obama said on "60 Minutes" that he knows of no serious fan of college football who is against a playoff system. Well, I suppose we've never met, but a playoff would ruin college football and would not even add fairness.

The way the system works now, the only way a team can assure itself a shot at the national championship is to win all its games. Lose one, a team may still have a chance. Lose two: no chance. This system means that every game is critical, including the games early in the year. In the NFL, by contrast, a team can lose its first game and its second, and few more, and still make the playoffs and win the Super Bowl. In other words, every team has four or five games it can easily afford to lose.

In the college game as it stands, every week is do or die. It's as if the entire season were the playoffs. Sure a team one-loss teams like USC or Florida can argue it is better now than undefeated Texas Tech or Alabama. But if USC is so good, it should not have lost to Oregon State this year or Stanford last year. But when every team knows it has to win every week, then the entire season is like a playoff. And that's what makes every game exciting-- unlike the pros.

Also, why is it more important-- and more a sign of quality-- to win the last week of the season as compared to the first. An inferior team can get lucky or have a good day and win the playoffs, especially when it's a one game playoff. A team that wins every week (or every week but one) is not just lucky, it's good and it has earned its championship.

Is Africa a continent or a country? Discuss

Here is Sarah Palin defending herself in today's Times:

'I remember having a discussion with a couple of debate preppers,' she said. 'So if it came from one of those debate preppers, you know, that’s curious. But having a discussion about Nafta — not, "Oh my goodness, I don’t know who is a part of Nafta."'

'So, no, I think that if there are allegations based on questions or comments that I made in debate prep about Nafta, and about the continent versus the country when we talk about Africa there, then those were taken out of context,' Ms. Palin said. 'And that’s cruel and it’s mean-spirited, it’s immature, it’s unprofessional, and those guys are jerks, if they came away with it taking things out of context and then tried to spread something on national news. It is not fair and not right.'

If our culture, even our political culture, were not so celebrity obsessed, no one would even be discussing whether Palin might be able to "rehabilitate herself" or whether seh might someday be ready for national office. Any adult who needs a debate prepper to discuss "the continent versus the country when we talk about Africa there" would otherwise be ruled out.

Whether or not she asked for the clothes or kept the clothes, whether or not she was a diva, Palin's idea that she, despite her ignorance, might be somehow qualified for high office bepeaks a sense of entitlement that's off the charts.

Fortunately, Palin seems to be cementing her status as a national joke. Her real goal, not actually denied, seems to be a talk show gig. But she may even be too dumb for that.

The Real Media Bias: Closer than You Think

Anyone who's ever watched a football game on television (or any othe sport) should be familiar with announcers who keep pointing out the path by which the losing team can come back. The Cowboys may be down 15 points with five minutes left but stay tuned because they only need two scores plus a two-point conversion to tie. Not only is a comeback a good story, it keeps the eyeballs on the ads.

So it goes with debate and campaign coverage. As I watched the debate last night, I though Obama clearly won. And he's way ahead in the race. But everyone on CNN was saying that it was McCain's best night, that he was the aggressor, yada, yada, yada, even if it may not have been a game changer-- at least until the polls showed that American saw Obama winniing big. When David Gergen said that McCain is really out of options, the other folks on st laughed because Gergen is really not supposed to say that.

The media's real bias is not left or right, it's to hype the story. Nothing in the news is as important as it seems to be when you are watching it. (Also true of life, by the way.) Thus all campaign coverage must be viewed with the knowledge that the TV networks want -- need -- viewers to think this is stlll anyone's game.