JUNE
19, 2005 --
The
New York Times, June 18, quoted Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld, a Yale
Management School associate dean,
as saying that the guilty verdicts (in New York State Supreme Court of L. Dennis
Kozlowski, former chief of Tyco, and Mark H. Swartz, former chief financial officer,
on a number of criminal counts including
grand larceny and conspiracy) "will help C.E.O's take public positions of
moral
integrity as the judicial systgem stands behind them."
LPR is confused.
Absent court rulings,
C.E.O's have no moral compass? It is not that difficult to comprehend. Just
follow
the advice in Federalist No. 57: do not seek the "ambitious sacrifice
of the many to the aggrandizement of the few." And follow the rules you
guys demand
others obey.
To borrow a phrase from Ross Perot: LPR
believes "it is as simple as that."
LPR notes that credit for the Tyco verdicts goes, in part, to Manhattan D.A.
Robert Morgentha, presently in the middle of a primary fight to win another
term. A prominent member of the criminal defense
bar -- previously pictured in LPR --Lawrence S. Goldman, Esq. -- and friend
of this writer since college, recently was criticized in media outlets for
supporting the Manhattan D.A. candidacy of former
State Judge Leslie Crocker Snyder. Mr. Goldman is chairman of the Commission
on Judicial Conduct.
Is there a proscription to the chair of the Commission on Judicial Conduct
barring him from taking a political stand in a district attorney race? LPR
just raises
the question. Allowing that the answer might be covered by this observation
I first heard from my college con law professor, in a different context: "It
all depends whose ox is gored."
LPR takes no position on the Morgenthau-Snyder race -- not being a resident
in New York County and not -- at least I should have been removed from the
list years -- a Democratic voter.
LPR did attend the impressive Snyder breakfast -- mentioned here in April,
at the invitation of Mr. Goldman -- proceeding to take photos of the event
and of a sub sequent event.
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LPR would, however,
be pleased to take photos of Mr. Morgenthau.
And if the major complaint against the
incumbent is his age, hasn't he already noted that he is younger than Mike Wallace,
whose interview of Judge
Snyder was shown, in part, at the breakfast? And if not, why not?
Preceding by some months to this campaign was a few hours of research that this
writer did for Mr. Goldman. And of course, some forty-five years ago, I recall
giving Mr. Goldman a ride from college (all right -- Brandeis U.) to a subway
station
on 161st Street, across from the really original Yankee Stadium, leaving Mr.
Goldman and perhaps others to fend for themselves to get to Penn Station (the
original of that, too), to make the trip home to Philadelphia.
And thus, but for this mention of attacks on Larry Goldman -- a Federalist 57
person if there ever was one -- opposed to personal aggrandizement on the
sacrifice of others and standing "in communion of interests and sympathy
of sentiments" with all of us, it wouldn't have occurred to this writer
that the end
of Yankee Stadium is comparable to the obscenity of the end of Penn Station.
Now -- all the media folks going after Larry
Goldman -- how about taking time to look at the property tax manipulation that
brought new owners to Dayton Seaside in Queens. LPR is fairly certain that many
NYC political insiders know about that travesty and how it was accomplished.
So long as the major media ignore Dayton Seaside, the observation in Federalist
10 remains valid -- property taxes will be used by powerful people for unjust
purpose. And we continue to have government of, by and for the insiders.
Speaking about insiders:
LPR hopes Mayor Bloomberg and Mayor Dinkins had a pleasant trip to Accra, Ghana,
June 17, to present the case of NYC2012 to the General Assembly of the Association
of National Olympic Committees of Africa. Decision day for the site of the 2012
Olympics is July 6.
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