“Time to settle Syosset mall debate”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, January 8, 2012 It’s been 17 years. Shouldn’t that be long enough? Long enough to decide whether developer Bill Taubman can build his upscale Mall at Oyster Bay in Syosset. Long enough to decide whether a small but fierce knot of neighborhood opponents will succeed…
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“In Iowa, it’s still any Republican’s game”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, January 1, 2012 No one can tell you now who will win the Iowa caucuses Tuesday. The polls can’t. The pundits can’t. I certainly can’t. But even I know this much: The first official test of the Republican candidates for president has been one head-spinning,…
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“LI’s economic recovery is in our hands”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, December 24, 2011 Fuel oil is south of $4 a gallon. The average 30-year mortgage is well below 4 percent. New unemployment applications fell last week to their lowest level in more than three years. But everybody’s still feeling squeezed. That’s the thing…
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“A knee-jerk reaction to ‘Tebowing’”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, December 18, 2011 Of all the boneheaded stunts teenagers are capable of, why crack down on “Tebowing”? If you don’t know the term, you should by now. From Facebook and YouTube to random campuses across America, young people are striking the same prayerful one-knee pose that…
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“When borrowing goes bad”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, December 11, 2011 What’s another half-billion among friends? With Nassau County proposing to borrow a fresh $450 million to pay for certain expenses, perhaps it’s time for a brief budget-theory review. Wait. Stick with me here. I know budgets can be boring. And budgetary theory sounds even…
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“LI can take a joke – when it’s a good one”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, December 4, 2011 John McCain wasn’t the first comedian — amateur or professional — to make Long Island the butt of the joke. Didn’t a whole generation of stand-ups dine out on Matzo-Pizza and Buttafuoco? Where would the American sitcom be…
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“SAT cheating scandal goes beyond courtroom”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, November 27, 2011 When it comes to the widening SAT cheating scandal, the law may be the easy part – far easier than confronting all the academic fallout. Can the cheating be proven? Was it a crime? Have prosecutors fingered the right kids? Answer those…
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“Black Friday sales bringing holiday jeer”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, November 20, 2011 Who will put the brakes on Black Friday? Not the stores. They like starting the holiday rush with a pedal-to-the-metal race for bargains. Not the shoppers, either. If last year’s lines are any indication, the earlier the better for them. And this…
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“More college grads living with parents as student loan debt rises”, Ellis Henican Column, Newsday, November 13, 2011 Two recent reports from the government weren’t connected but ought to be: According to the Census Bureau, more and more 20- and 30-somethings are still living with Mom and Dad on Long Island. And student-loan debt keeps rising…
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The priest-sex parallels are getting harder and harder to ignore. A revered figure is suspected of abusing children. As the victims pile up and the evidence mounts, the institution responds abysmally. Instead of protecting the vulnerable and calling the cops, people in power shield themselves and look the other way. Only years later,…
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