Oct. 21, 2010 By Christian Murray
Last week when Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan (D) and John K. Wilson (R) faced off at the United 40s Civic Association’s debate in Woodside, many attendees anticipated a heated discussion as the two candidates vie for the District 37 Assembly seat.
Instead it was a very civil affair, where Wilson provided the audience with an account of his background and why he is a Republican. “Stop the [government] spending and reduce taxes,” was his mantra, and “allow individuals to hire people once again.”
Meanwhile, Nolan discussed her deep roots in the community and her legislative accomplishments. She talked about how she had fought for the prevailing wage as the chairwoman of the labor committee; and how she was able to push for the concrete to be fixed on the No. 7 train, while chairwoman of the mass transit committee.
These two candidates seek the assembly seat that covers most of Sunnyside. While Congressman Joe Crowley, who represents a portion of Sunnyside, spoke at the event, his rival Kenneth Reynolds (R) was unable to attend.
Wilson, who hails from Memphis, Tenn., told the audience that he is an actor who has been on Broadway three times and has even been in a soap opera. “I’ve played small parts in big films and big parts in small firms,” he said. And, like most actors, he tends bar while auditioning for parts.
“I’m not a politician,” Wilson said. “I’m just passionate about the neighborhood and that is why I’ve decided to run.” Wilson has lived in Sunnyside for the past 7 years with his wife.
“I was a lifetime Democrat, but I noticed things I didn’t like,” Wilson said. “The party is aligning itself with the Working Families Party and is moving far too much to the left.”
“Limited government is what promotes liberty, self reliance, personal responsibility and entrepreneurship,” he said. “It allows businesses to grow–when they are taxed less.”
Nolan, meanwhile, has lived in Western Queens for most of her life, and is married with a seventh grader. She said she wants to continue to serve in the assembly and thanked her constituents for supporting her over the years.
Nolan was proud of her time helping workers as a member of the labor committee and being instrumental in prodding the government to repair the concrete on the No. 7 line.
However, she discussed how she has formed a formidable partnership with councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, Assemblyman Mike Gianaris (favorite for a NYS Senate seat) and the local congressmen.
She said the partnership bore fruit earlier this month when the group was able to close a proposed adult club [Sin City] in Long Island City. Furthermore, when Gianaris wanted to pass a bill requiring schools to notify parents if bed bugs are discovered on the premises — she was able to help get the bill passed as chair of the education committee.
“It’s about collaboration and listening,” Nolan said. “That creates real life solutions for people.”
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11 Comments
Next election we need new blood in office.
Why? Most of the one that are in office are not so effective anymore.
That’s is way I would like to urge the readers of the Sunnyside Post to help elect new people into office come next November.
The Woodisde Herald is in business mostly due to political ads.
Same faces same people on it every week.
Is that a way to run a newspaper and printing business.
The paper has been suffering lost of readerships and ad revenues from local merchants in the area.
M. Matthews
I fail to see how funding headstart reduces welfare, prison building, and court costs in the future? There is no strong positive correlation between these two issues.
Rather, it has been the disastrous work of Robert Moses- another republican- that is still contributing to the welfare, court, and prison problems new york continues to face today. Do you think that a “headstart type” program can reduce the welfare count in say a community like the southbronx or queensbridge?Give me a break!
Wilson speaks about liberty, self reliance, personal responsibility and entrepeneurship…not once did anyone hear him bring up one good idea about helping businesses and small start ups in the community.
As for Nolan? I had friends and relatives voting for this career politico simply because they shook her hands or she visited their high school 14 years ago. can you believe this nonsense ? Has she ever held a real-world job besides being a politician? Oh she fixed the concrete at the 7 train and stoped a jiggle joint from opening.
Is the bar we set for our politicians this low?
Its a shame that this is the best sunnyside can offer.
When I use words like “self-reliance, personal-responsibility, entrepreneurship,” and “liberty,” I don’t intend for them to be code-words to indicate that I would like to destroy necessary social services; they simply mean what they mean. I believe these are virtues to admire and aspire to.
I don’t advocate cruelty, and, in fact, because I believe in spending public funds wisely, I am very much in favor of investing public funds on children early–through Head Start-type programs–because it is so much less expensive than to build prisons, fund welfare, and over-burden the legal system later. Besides, it is just the right thing to do. We need to decide, as a society, just what it is that we value–and fund those things–because our government dollars are limited now, and will be dwindling soon. Personally, I value children, our elderly, and the truly needy more than the convenience of public sector unions.
Incidentally, sometimes “work-safety laws” are an impediment to liberty and entrepreneurship, as well as safety itself: at a very important downtown construction site, workers are required to wear safety googles at all times. Sounds prudent, doesn’t it? But, one of my future constituents, a worker there, told me that, when wearing those thing at ALL times, vision is impaired. He says the practice has caused several serious injuries; and, he believes it is a matter of time before someone loses their life. He says that no worker would ever not wear the googles when working in a situation that called for it; but, he wished common sense would prevail. He further explained that the insurance company has determined that eye injuries are the greatest single threat to their financial health; the other injuries caused by wearing the goggles at all times–and presumably any fatalities–are cheaper for them to pay-out on.
Sometimes, things that sound like a good idea are made to sound good in order to convince the public that an action that is good for a particular group’s bottom line is also in the public interest; in reality, it may not be.
I was disappointed – but not surprised – that Marge Markey didn’t show up. She hasn’t been visible in her district for the 20 years she has been in office, while her challenger Tony Nunziato has been volunteering his time on key neighborhood issues during that time as a civic leader.
Highlight of the event was Republican congressional challenger Ryan Brumberg making Carolyn Maloney look like an out of touch party hack all night.
Thanks to the United 40’s for rounding up most of the area’s candidates.
“Limited government is what promotes liberty, self reliance, personal responsibility and entrepreneurship”
Right, coming from a citizen of the world’s sole remaining empire.
And those pesky minimum wage, child labor, and workplace safety laws have done so much to destroy liberty and entrepreneurship.
@michael collins
Take your straw man arguments and ad hominem attacks elsewhere. I never suggested those things.
I have no problem with them at all. My issue is with right-wing ideologues who assume that dismantling all government services and relying upon the unfettered workings of the marketplace is a rational, sustainable, or human political policy.
Perhaps you would do well to move to Cuba yourself. They have a higher literacy rate than the US and subsidized health care, so it would probably be easy for you to find a tutor to help you with the gaps in your education and an affordable therapist for dealing with those paranoid delusions you seem to keep having and sharing on this site.
@michael collins
Clearly you have a problem with such things as liberty, self reliance, personal responsibility and entrepeneurship. Last time I checked, these were considered good things, at least with people who possessed common sense, decency and economic literacy.
Move to Cuba, you’ll be happier there.
“Limited government is what promotes liberty, self reliance, personal responsibility and entrepreneurship” or variants thereof have been the same warmed-over party talking points dragged out by Republicans since Ronald Reagan. So, no.
I was very impressed with the challengers such as Wilson. They spoke from the heart as opposed to just reciting party talking points over and over.