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Though we never liked the idea of the Suffolk County legislature killing off a reform of legislative district reapportionment, they went ahead and did it. Now they’ve put out maps that the legislature itself drew, instead of waiting for a nonpartisan commission to draw them. You should take a look and see what they do to your community.

The maps do honor a commitment by Presiding Officer...

Computers can do lots of scary things; someday they may even be smart enough to find jobs for all the people whose work they can take on. Meanwhile the latest accomplishment of these binary beasts is music. A professor in London has found a way to feed some noise into a computer and, using feedback from students, get the device to compose something you could stand to listen to--essentially, some...

This release just arrived from the press office of Nassau County Legislator David Denenberg. And we thought Nassau County's fiscal emergency was the story of the day.

ICE CREAM SHORTAGE TO AFFECT OVER 10,000 LONG ISLAND

RESIDENTS ON FIRST DAY OF SUMMER

NEW YORK – Nassau County Legislator David Denenberg will join Good Humor officials and civic and community leaders at a press conference,...

Former Gov. David A. Paterson lauded Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Monday for getting key legislation passed in Albany, and Cuomo jokingly revealed the secret of his success:

The exchange:

“All of your predecessors, whether they admit it or not, are silently roaring approval or we’re all scratching our heads to figure out how you’ve done this,” Paterson said to Cuomo on the former governor’s...

There’s no comparison to the thrill of being at a live baseball game. But for some families, this rite of summer is difficult for reasons most of us couldn’t imagine. It’s just too stimulating.

Last week, the New York Mets surveyed around 1,000 fans on their experiences at Citi Field, asking about topics like the scoreboard, music and — the addition of a quiet zone.

What the Mets forgot...

The struggle over layoffs is likely to continue on Tuesday morning at the Suffolk County Legislature in Riverhead. Former County Executive Steve Levy proposed nearly 470 layoffs. Since he took office in January, County Executive Steve Bellone has trimmed that number to 315, and more recently, to about 270. But the shouting isn’t over.

At Tuesday’s general meeting of the legislature there’s...

By early afternoon Monday, the reported deal to make teacher evaluations public in New York has gone from done to doubtful as teachers unions, Senate Republicans, Assembly Democrats and Gov. Andrew Cuomo jockey for position. Cuomo is pushing for easier access to more information for more people than the unions and the legislative leaders want. Now, with Monday evening's deadline to print bills for...

A parent fears nothing more than burying a child. But if that child leaves behind private student loans, bankruptcy might become the next worry.

Francisco Reynoso lost his son, Freddy, in a car accident four months after the young man graduated from Boston’s Berklee School of Music in 2008. Not long after Freddy was buried, the debt collectors came calling — and calling.

Reynoso, a gardener...

There’s no doubt that Islip Supervisor Tom Croci has the right to choose the person he wants to run Long Island MacArthur Airport, a hugely important asset for the town. But there’s also no doubt that he has taken a significant risk in dismissing the airport’s commissioner, Teresa Rizzuto. Croci now owns the future of the airport completely, for better or worse.

Though he didn’t quite come...

I see that the gimlet-eyed bond police at Moody's Investors Service downgraded Spain's debt rating Wednesday night, leaving it just one grade above junk status. This was no doubt the result of some extraordinary sleuthing. I'm guessing that Moody's consulted a web site or two -- perhaps even a newspaper -- before taking this bold step.

In its press release, Moody's says its "decision...