Viewsday
Analysis, discussion and opinions by members of Newsday's editorial board.
Rita Ciolli
Rita Ciolli began working for Newsday 40 years ago as a summer intern. During her senior year at Fordham University, the Bronx native worked full time covering Hempstead town. After graduating from Georgetown University Law Center in 1977, she spent a decade in the Washington bureau assigned to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Justice Department and the FBI. After a long stint as a media and technology reporter, Ciolli covered religion before joining the editorial board in 2005. She became editor of the opinion section in November 2007 and has expanded its commentary and letters sections both in print and online.
Up on the Board: School budgets, restructuring LIPA
The editorial board is skipping its usual morning meeting today, so that we can leave the office early to attend an awards ceremony in Manhattan tonight. The Society of Silurians, an old and prestigious club of veteran journalists, chose our editorials on superstorm Sandy for first place in the category of editorial writing and commentary.
For tomorrow, we’ll be commenting on the school budget...
Read more »McKinstry: Yonkers bickering is no way to represent the city
Photo credit: John Goff
There was a turncoat, an Oscar award and a vote so confusing that politicians were left scratching their heads -- even after several intermissions.
The Yonkers City Council held a special meeting on electoral redistricting Monday that no lawmakers should be proud of -- that is if they actually know what happened.
In fact, the four-hour carnival ended with no resolution. It was a pathetic...
Read more »Up on the Board: Twister in Oklahoma, Apple's tax dodge, and White House spying on reporters
Photo credit: AP
The editorial board is concerned about the tornado in Oklahoma that has killed, by the latest estimate, 24 people, and injured and displaced hundreds more. This part of the planet seems to have more than its share of disaster – maybe something it has in common with New York, after our experience with the World Trade Center attacks and superstorm Sandy.
Also, we’re infuriated that Apple seems...
Read more »Cartoon: Herding New York's Assembly Democrats
Mark Wilson is a New York political cartoonist and illustrator who lives in the Adirondacks. He publishes under the pen name Marquil.
MORE CARTOONS: Mark Wilson's cartoon gallery
Up on the Board: Hofstra student dead amid questions, anti-gay attacks in NYC
Photo credit: Howard Schnapp
With the tragic death of Hofstra student Andrea Rebello on Friday, the editorial board is raising questions about how this happened. Did the Nassau County police officer who responded follow procedure? We realize these are difficult decisions in the heat of the moment. But why did he enter the house alone instead of waiting for backup? And, is an investigation by Nassau District Attorney Kathleen...
Read more »Up on the Board: City newsstands, Yonkers tolls, and Tom Croci's leave from Islip
Photo credit: handout
The editorial board is saddened by the terrible story coming out of Hofstra University today. We're watching to see what more information surfaces about the shooting.
Today, we’re working on an editorial about New York City newsstands, which are seeking to lift a price cap on what they sell. Currently, all of their offerings, except for printed material, must cost no more than $5. We support...
Read more »Up on the Board: IRS and political spending, safer clothing factories
As President Barack Obama fires Steven T. Miller as the head of the IRS, the editorial board believes that the agency must continue to clean house. IRS agents searched for “tea party” and “patriot” in the names of organizations to target audits. The agency wanted to determine if their tax exempt, nonprofit status was authentic – or if they were in fact supporting political campaigns. Accusations...
Read more »Bessent: Some actual good news about the deficit
Photo credit: TMS illustration by Michael Osbun
Remember all the recent caterwauling in Washington about trillion dollar plus budget deficits? Never mind. The latest estimate puts this year’s deficit — the difference between what comes in and what goes out — at $642 billion. That’s half what it was four years ago and $200 billion less than was projected just three months ago. So, what happened? The economy got off the mat and began growing. That...
Read more »Up on the Board: Vito Lopez cleared, blood-alcohol limits, and fair trade clothing
Photo credit: Bryan Pace
The editorial board is interested in two reports released today about Assemblyman Vito Lopez and the charges of sexual harassment chargebrought against him. Staten Island DA Dan Donavan cleared him of criminal charges but pointed to the Albany cover-up as the problem. Later the J-COPE the ethics board revealed that the powerful Brooklyn Democrat, with an authorization by Assembly Speaker Shelly...
Read more »Up on the Board: AP phone records, school taxes, and clothing retailers' disclosure
Photo credit: Getty Images
The editorial board is outraged by revelations that federal prosecutors secretly obtained records of calls for more than 20 telephone lines belonging to the Associated Press and its journalists, including their cellphones and home phones. There may be an issue of national security here, but at the moment, there are too many unanswered questions to make that judgment. Such as, were all other avenues...
Read more »
