shall investigations "dedicated to rooting out corruption among public officials in Albany" ensue?

"The Governor also refused to compromise when it came to cleaning up Albany and dealing with public corruption scandals. He proposed a tough anti-corruption and reform agenda in Albany and gave the legislature a simple choice: Pass the legislation or face an investigative commission dedicated to rooting out corruption among public officials in Albany."

The legislation didn't pass, so the investigations will immediately ensue, right? Or was Governor Cuomo lying?

As for the "investigative commission," clearly that can't be JCOPE, as it is not "an investigative commission dedicated to rooting out corruption among public officials in Albany".

the off-key stylings of UAlbany's "Clay Aken"

Who is Clarence L. "Clay" "Aken" McNeill, the UAlbany judicial administrator and head of the SUNY-wide judicial administrators group, the man that UAlbany College of Arts and Sciences Associate Dean and Distinguished Professor of History John Monfasani has assessed in writing to be an "incompetent"?

Former President of the State University of New York at Albany's Phi Beta Sigma's Mu Iota Sigma chapter, Clarence L. McNeill:

"Clarence McNeill." Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated, Mu Iota Sigma Chapter - Albany New York. http://www.angelfire.com/ny5/phibetasigma/Akin.html

"Clarence McNeill, president of the fraternity’s Mu Iota Sigma chapter" "Slade honored." UAlbany Update 25(14). April 11, 2002. University at Albany.http://www.albany.edu/pr/updates/apr11/tablecampus.htm

"Clay Aken" is the judicial administrator for the University at Albany. He signs his name something like "^ yMcNyl" with those printed letters connected by doodles at their tops - not properly a signature at all, really:

As the angelfire.com webpage states, "Brother Clarence McNeill joined the ranks of Phi Beta Sigma on June 30, 1999. He became interested in joining Sigma after speaking with two of it's [sic] member [sic], Brother Charles Rogers, and Brother Ekwo [sic] King. Both men were doing great things at the University of Albany, and Clarence wanted to be a part of it,. Clarence has served in a variety of leadership positions in Residential Life, and currently serves as the Director of Judicial Services [sic]."

"Brother Clarence serves as the Director of Judicial Affairs at SUNY Albany [sic]." http://www.angelfire.com/ny5/phibetasigma/Pictures.html

He actually was NOT the Director at the time that those pages were written (the latter is dated 2003). He was the Associate Director from 2003-2005, and became the director thereafter. Nothing like a bit of resumé inflation to help advance one's career.

His surname is sometimes spelled with one L at the end, sometimes two. Despite his having allegedly earned his degrees at the University at Albany, where he now works, different pages make different claims about what those degrees are:

BS Business Administration

MS Education Administration

CAS in progress [at that time]

"Degree: B.S. Business Administration, M.S. Education Administration, pursuing CAS" URL: http://www.angelfire.com/ny5/phibetasigma/Akin.html. Accessed: 2012-08-01. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/69bPXhT1n )

BA Education Administration

MA Education Administration

CAS Education Administration

"B.A — 95', M.A — 97' & C.A.S — 03' in Education Administration here at the University." URL: http://www.albany.edu/studentsuccess/clarence-mcneil.shtml . Accessed: 2012-08-01. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/69bPhCWKJ )

Note also above that the apostrophes are on the wrong side of the abbreviated years: 95' rather than '95.

BA Africana Studies

(MA or MS?) Education Administration & Policy Studies

CAS Education Administration & Policy Studies

"He earned his B.A in Africana Studies in 1995, Master's in Education Administration & Policy Studies in 1997 and his Certificate of Advanced Study in the same discipline."

URL: http://www.albany.edu/studentconduct/staff.shtml . Accessed: 2012-08-01. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/69bPqNp53 )

http://www.albany.edu/studentconduct/staff.shtml has since migrated to http://www.albany.edu/studentconduct/staff.php but the inconsistencies regarding degrees and the spelling of his surname have been retained.

There's been yet another new webpage created making still further different claims about McNeill/McNeil's degrees. There's a "Clarence McNeill '95, '07" in one of the outermost rings on the left of the graphic displaying the names of alumni encircling the globe at http://www.albany.edu/ (image at http://www.albany.edu/hpfiles/homepage_banner_alumni.jpg ) It would be somewhat surprising if two men named Clarence McNeill graduated from UAlbany in 1995, but I suppose it's possible. I don't think the names and graduation dates are fictitious; Leroy Van Riper (third ring away from globe on right) really did graduate from UAlbany in 1970, for example: http://www.albany.edu/alumni/Minutes.htm and Stacy Wendroff (second circle) really graduated in 1993: http://www.albany.edu/alumni/council_of_classes.html If that entry represents the same person as McNeill/McNeil, what degree did he supposedly earn in 2007 from the University at Albany?

The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights sent me a letter about McNeill/McNeil. Evidently when McNeill/McNeil had e-mailed me a "warning" that I "need to forget about Prof. Barberich" that I'd reported to him for academic dishonesty, faculty ethics violations, sexual harassment, and retaliation, McNeill/McNeil had in fact known that the activity I was engaged in by reporting that professor was protected and that retaliation is prohibited. As such, McNeill/McNeil had to have known that intimidating and threatening me in writing was perhaps not such a good idea.

With respect to McNeill/McNeil's fraternity ties (with UAlbany being a school where there's been at least one hazing death, which was excused as a consensual accidental electrocution/drowning and not an act of hazing), what is the intersection of McNeil's fraternity and judicial systems like elsewhere? There's some indications of what the answer might be:

"incidents that are handled entirely by a school and not by criminal courts usually end in punishments that fall far short of jail time. Or, according to Eileen Stevens, the judicial board uses privacy concerns as an excuse for keeping the details of the punishment of student hazers from ever reaching the public. For example, the University of Georgia's judicial panel found members of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity guilty in the hazing of a school football player, Roderick Perrymond, in a secret session, and refused to divulge to the press which individuals were punished. Perrymond, twenty-one, had been hospitalized with bruised buttocks and broken blood vessels. He charged that three fraternity members—one the chapter adviser—had paddled him more than seventy times" (Wrongs of Passage 33-34).

Wrongs of Passage also mentions that the President of Phi Beta Sigma admitted his own involvement in hazing:

"A few national fraternity reformers, such as [...] former Phi Beta Sigma national president Charles Wright (now deceased), have disclosed to undergraduates their own former involvement in hazing, stressing that it caused people a great deal of pain" (Nuwer 2001, 47-48).

and that a member had been "found murdered in his car" in 1998 at the University of South Florida.

Nuwer, Hank. Wrongs of Passage: Fraternities, Sororities, Hazing, and Binge Drinking. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2001.

Phi Beta Sigma members at St. John's University were accused of allegedly beating a fraternity pledge to the extent that he went temporarily blind, had kidney failure, and urinated blood. If an article reprinted online http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/archive/index.php/t-59590.html quotes the original correctly, "Because the defendants are not charged with hazing, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail, Justice Daniel Lewis has barred attorneys from using that term during the trial. Instead, the attorneys may use initiation or pledging. Lewis himself is a member of the same fraternity". What business would a member of the fraternity have judging a case involving hazing done by members of his fraternity?

Unsurprisingly, the "Honorable" Judge Lewis found the members of his fraternity "innocent":

Shifrel, Scott. "3 Cleared In Hazing." N.Y. Daily News. December 14, 2004. http://articles.nydailynews.com/2004-12-14/news/18269085_1_paddling-co-defendants-hazing-ritual

UAlbany's chapter of that fraternity, Mu Iota Sigma seems to have had a bit of a fascistic fetish well beyond the fasces in the organization's emblem, judging from their "line names": http://www.albany.edu/~pbs/chapter.html (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/6EBXvphuI ) "Wolf Pack", "Stormtrooper", "Evil Horde", "Turbulence", "Trauma", "Shockwave", "11 Ways to Die"? I'm not terribly familiar with fraternities, but I looked up what "line names" are. The Greenwood Encyclopedia of African American Folklore states, "Each line is given a line name that characterizes the entire line." McNeill's "Line/Designation" was "Apocalypse #1", the number evidently indicating he was first in those lines of identically-dressed men, marching around campus silently and expressionlessly in straight N/S and E/W lines but never in diagonals or curves (historically, with canes). What does it mean that the character of "Clay Aken" and that of his fraternity brothers, was one of "Apocalypse"?

It's one thing to study WWII history, or to watch horror movies, or whatever. To actually adopt fascist terminology and march around silently and expressionlessly, lacking individuality, like some kind of paramilitary group is kind of… puzzling? I never saw any men doing that while I was there, though, just a sorority doing the same, which was still a bit alienating to see. Why not join the real military or just be themselves?

"Clarence McNeill, Vice President of Judicial Affairs, states that the University does not violate student rights because when a complaint is filed there is process to determine whether or not the complaint is legitimate." http://thefire.org/article/6325.html

One of those things FIRE got wrong and has yet to fix....

McNeill, a bully, had the gall to sign an anti-bullying petition:

"I was bullied and witnessed bullying while growing up. I know how much of a negative impact bullying can have on a person's self-esteem and their ability to treat others with respect."

http://www.change.org/petitions/uabeyondbullying

When I'd been at the university, some women employed there confided that they were afraid to report bullying and sexual harassment by professors there. They saw my experience as confirmation of their fears. McNeill is one of the many people at UAlbany whose job appears to be the intimidation of victims and witnesses so that UAlbany can look on paper like a far safer, more enlightened campus than it really is. If what he wrote online is the truth, when he bullies students (possibly faculty and staff as well?) he knows just how much he's damaging people. His belief that victims of bullying tend not to treat others with respect is peculiar - perhaps he's projecting?

"McNeill is an incompetent; Barberich an outrage; and Alterriba a negligent chair." - Associate Dean John Monfasani

John Monfasani, Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, UAlbany:

From: "Monfasani, John"

Subject: RE: OCR Case No. 02-12-2157 [SUNY at Albany University]: no "cease and desist order"?

Date: March 26, 2013 10:42:45 PM EDT

To: Christopher Philippo

Chris,

OCR looked for a way out for itself. But the letter could still be useful. On the sexual harassment complaint and any of your other complaints was there ever a hearing by a UAlbany committee? My impression from what you have provided is that you were railroaded by officials with the closest thing to a hearing being the meeting you had with [Jeanette] Altaribba and [Michael W.] Barberich in the former’s office.

John

John Monfasani

Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences

Distinguished Professor, History Department

The University at Albany, State University of New York

1400 Washington Avenue

Albany, New York 12222

E-mail excerpts:

On Jun 26, 2012, at 1:54 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

I'm on the Senate Excecutive Committee this coming year. Perhaps, there is something that can be done in respect to profs and administrators.

On Jul 11, 2012, at 5:36 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

All the procedural contradictions you lay out are troubling and your suspicions about their fear of Cleary are plausible, but what really interests me is why are they are so intent on protecting [Michael W.] Barberich, who sounds like disgraceful prof. Let's meet at the Starbucks across from Sears after I get back. I'll contact you after the 26th.

On Jul 11, 2012, at 10:17 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

Wasn't fun, I can tell you that, and, yes, I've paid a price since then. But more when we talk. J

On Jul 14, 2012, at 7:27 AM, John Monfasani wrote:

The real culprit in the tale is [Michael W.] Barberich. I wonder if they'll acknowledge that.

On Jul 29, 2012, at 9:36 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

Nobody in Com. is in a position to tell if there is a cease/desist order in effect. I'll be going into UA tomorrow after being away for almost two months. In the next few weeks, I'll see what I can find out. Sit tight for a while.

On Jul 30, 2012, at 3:41 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

In essence, wittingly and unwittingly, they're all covering for Barberich and then McNeill.

On Aug 1, 2012, at 10:52 AM, John Monfasani wrote:

The faculty as a whole was hostile to Division I for many reasons, one being the corruption you document in your email. I doubt things will change with a new prez. The problem is that there's so much academic corruption apart from athletics, your case being a good example.

On Aug 1, 2012, at 10:59 AM, John Monfasani wrote:

I'm passing this link and the one in the subsequent email on to where it might have some effect.

On Aug 1, 2012, at 12:54 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

Sad. Yes, Communications is one of the depts. I view as a real problem. There are others, but the only way things will turn around is if we have an administration that once them to turn around.

On Aug 1, 2012, at 5:59 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

Yes, I'm sure I have the resolution in my Roberts file. I was the accuser while Kim, Lubensky, and Range were strong supporters in the Senate. Eventually, in the late spring of 2002 there was a general assembly of faculty et al. where the administr. (Hitchcock, Santiago, and forget who else) were at a table in front and I and Kim iterated our accusations and demanded answers which were not forthcoming, a most embarrassing moment for that crew. But somehow Santiago landed on his feet playing the minority card and snagging the Milwaukee job. Even Hitchcock landed well, when forced out by SUNY Central, getting the presidency of Queens College in Ontario, but that ended badly when the faculty and students eventually united in calling for her resignation. The real tragedy is that the lower administration which they appointed hung on there and continued their culture of corruption and mediocrity. We never had the house-cleaning needed to change the intellectual and moral climate here.

On Aug 1, 2012, at 11:05 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

They don't want to deal with what is clearly a screw up on their part. [Clarence L. "Clay"] McNeill is an incompetent; [Michael W.] Barberich an outrage; and [Jeanette] Alterriba a negligent chair.

On Aug 3, 2012, at 8:26 AM, John Monfasani wrote:

I hope you force the whole school to take the oath -- for the first time! When classes start, I'll ask the new members of history if they had to sign any such thing.

On Aug 3, 2012, at 10:17 AM, John Monfasani wrote:

Everybody complains about the Microsoft takeover of our email, but to no avail at the moment. UA's interest in student groups is just for show save in the case of those whose agitation or even existence might be useful to some profs or administrators for ideological, political, or some other reason.

On Aug 5, 2012, at 6:30 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

Send a reply so that I know that this address work. It goes through a Verizon server.

On Aug 5, 2012, at 7:32 PM, John Monfasani wrote:

Glad you can now send me material without fear of UA looking at it. [Clarence L.] McNeill is absurd. He seems to think he can abrogate the 1st amendment of the Constitution for everyone on campus in communicating with you or you with them. I shall be talking to people this week and next. I'm not sanguine about the US D. of Ed., but perhaps you'll get lucky and chance upon someone with ideals and dedication to take up your complaint.

From: John Monfasani

Subject: Re: FOI-L listserv

Date: August 6, 2012 3:56:19 PM EDT

To: "Christopher K. Philippo"

Chris,

Actually, I would welcome them challenging me about you. I think I could turn this into a cause célèbre, which would be mightily embarrassing to them for the very reasons you give and cause them to throw in the towel.

John

From: John Monfasani

Subject: Re: FOI-L listserv

Date: August 8, 2012 2:41:14 PM EDT

To: Christopher Philippo

Chris,

Strange happenings at UA. To my total surprise, I have been offered the position of associate dean of CAS, and I accepted when Dean Wulfert made it clear that she was on the same page with me on improving the scholarly quality of the place. Now this actually means that I have less liberty of action in speaking publicly about you and daring [Clarence L.] McNeill to do something about it. On the other hand, behind the scenes I am better positioned to ask questions, perhaps get answers, and steer people in the right direction. I'm in harness 1 September on. So it will be early fall before I can seriously start nosing about.

John

"Wasn't fun, I can tell you that, and, yes, I've paid a price since then." Yeah.

So it goes.

"Hypocrisy is the greatest luxury (raise the double standard)"

Another hilarious e-mail from Governor Cuomo, one dated July 22, 2013 10:10 PM:

"Under the Governor’s leadership, there were also extraordinary achievements this session that added to the growing reputation of New York State as the progressive capital of the nation, including: [...] Nationally-recognized education reform continuing our work to create a world-class education system that prepares our next generation for the future."

At least he admits that New York doesn't yet have "a world-class education system that prepares our next generation for the future": that much was honest.

Where does New York have a "growing reputation [...] as the progressive capital of the nation"? Who would be so foolish as to believe it?

The most incredible part:

"The Governor also refused to compromise when it came to cleaning up Albany and dealing with public corruption scandals. He proposed a tough anti-corruption and reform agenda in Albany and gave the legislature a simple choice: Pass the legislation or face an investigative commission dedicated to rooting out corruption among public officials in Albany. This commission would determine the key weaknesses in existing law and propose reforms to address those weaknesses in such areas as elections, campaign finance, and the abuse of public office or public funds for personal gain."

Give me a break. Corrupt police, Inspector General, Attorney General, JCOPE, legislature, top court, etc. How about having everyone face an investigative commission dedicated to rooting out corruption among public officials in Albany regardless of whether the legislation is passed or not? That seems unlikely to ever happen under Cuomo (or any governor elected in New York of any party).

"For two and a half years, the Governor has been working to bring efficiency and integrity to Albany, and to create a government that offers the promise of a prosperous future for all."

If only.

RPI: regarding police integrity (or lack thereof)

The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's President Shirley Ann Jackson is evidently one of the highest-paid university presidents around:

Waldman, Scott. "A six-figure salary hike for Jackson; 2009-2010 pay puts RPI president's earnings at $2.3M." Albany Times Union. October 16, 2012. http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/A-six-figure-salary-hike-for-Jackson-3951348.php

In spite of that, in 2010 when it had been time for RPI to hire a new director of public safety, they went with the head of the State University of New York (SUNY)'s police operations, an odd choice given that SUNY's police operations are known to be...not so good, shall we say?:

"Johnson served as assistant vice chancellor for University Police for the State University of New York (SUNY) for the past eight years. In that capacity, he was responsible for the coordination of university police operations for the State University of New York campuses across the state. Under the direction of the chancellor and the SUNY Board of Trustees, he coordinated policies, procedures, hiring, and operational standards for each police department within the SUNY system. He was the primary contact for university police chiefs, community college directors of public safety, and the police and security unions, and he represented the university on law enforcement and safety legislation among external constituents. Prior to that statewide assignment with SUNY, Johnson served as the director of the State University of New York Police Academy."

"Director of Public Safety Named." Inside Rensselaer 4(12). August 27, 2010. http://www.rpi.edu/about/inside/issue/v4n12/safety.html

RPI later hired Roger Johnson's replacement at SUNY, David Schindler, as RPI's Associate Director of the Department of Public Safety to serve under Johnson, despite SUNY police operations under Schindler having continued to be just as bad, if not worse, than they had been under Johnson.

James Lyman, Executive Director of Council 82 for the New York State Law Enforcement Officers Union had stated:

"there are police chiefs in SUNY who are not mandating policer [sic] officers, certified, whatever. We have police chiefs that refuse to voluntarily give up their fingerprints"

(108) [bold emphasis added] http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20testimony%20pt.%202.PDF

Peter Barry, Vice President and Legislative Director of New York State University Police Officers Union, Local 1792 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, AFSCME, Council 82 and AFL-CIO stated:

"decentralized structure promotes erroneous crime reporting and record keeping. One possible cause for this is that SUNY police chiefs serve at the pleasure of the campus president, thus are motivated to keep crime stats down by any means. [...] SUNY can no longer afford to staff, or overstaff, a body which is subject to inefficiencies, manipulation, cronyism, ill motivation and mismanagement"

(127-128) [bold emphasis added] http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SUNY%20Testimony%20pt.%203.PDF

UAlbany police should have only had one sexual offender registry, but instead they had two different, separate ones simultaneously online, both of them misinforming the public for years:

• Sexual Offender Registry #1 "© 2009 University at Albany"

"There are currently three (4) [sic] registered sex offenders enrolled or working at the University. The following Information has been released:" was followed by a list of six (6) offenders. Accessed: October 19, 2012 Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/6BXAjbUOP Accessed: February 19, 2013 Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/6EZ55k2vF (it still read © 2009 at that time)

• Sexual Offender Registry #2 No date (probably circa 2007-2008)

"There are currently two (2) registered sex offenders enrolled at the University. The following Information has been released:" was followed by a list of three (3) offenders. Accessed: October 19, 2012 Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/6BXAsiiOT http://police.albany.edu/2ColPage.asp?PageSName=SOR2 now redirects to UPD's homepage

There was an audit by the NYS Comptroller's Office in 2007 with a follow-up in 2009 http://osc.state.ny.us/audits/allaudits/093009/07s121.htm which found a number of problems, but it evidently failed to take note of the mismanagement of the sexual offender registry. The Registry gets referenced in the Clery Act Report http://police.albany.edu/ASR.pdf on page 53, the claim being there that it was being maintained - when clearly (the above archives) it was not being maintained properly. At least part of page 53 was not written for the report but was instead copied and pasted from the website: "The DCJS Sex Offender Registry site may be found on the web (See the link to the right)" (there's no link to the right in the PDF).

The Comptroller's Office thanked me for informing them of the non-compliance, but took no action on it as far as I know. I was informed on October 22, 2012, "We have provided the information you supplied with your email to staff in our State Government Accountability for their consideration with respect to future audit planning." The Registry continued to be dated 2009 until sometime after my last archive on February 19, 2013 when it was updated to 2013.

One would think Ms. Jackson is not paid $2.3 million plus in order to hire men of Johnson and Schindler's "quality" (unless she is paid so much for that very reason, which raises a whole different set of questions). Instead, one would presume she is paid so much to guarantee nothing of that sort ever happens, a task at which she has consistently failed. Perhaps the problem is that she's paid so much that there's no money left to hire anyone to lead RPI's public safety department except for SUNY's rejects?

NY is Open for Funny Business (a decidedly humorless JJOKE)

"EFT is a simple acupressure technique that is showing promise for its ability to calm the part of the brain that becomes over-aroused or frozen during a traumatic event. It involves tapping on the Chinese meridian system of the body and a series of eye movements. Once the individual learns the technique, he or she is then able to regulate his or her own mind/body system to eliminate the flashbacks, nightmares and terror that can plague them after a traumatic event [...] This study is being funded in part by the Association of Comprehensive Energy Psychology [ http://www.energypsych.org ] and the Global Gateway Foundation [ http://www.globalgatewayfoundation.org ]."

"UAlbany's School of Social Welfare seeks participants for pilot study" http://troyrecord.com/articles/2012/08/25/news/doc5038773a824fd264199412.txt

"Showing promise" is presumably what the school's press release claimed. Possibly the article also ought to have read, "he or she is then *allegedly* able," or why do the study at all if they're claiming they already know it works?

I didn't see a person's name anywhere on the Global Gateway Foundation (GGF) website, which is unusual. On YouTube, a Dr. Donny Epstein http://www.donaldepstein.com is promoting the GGF. He evidently believes in "checking in with your body's vibrations and allowing your internal rhythms to instruct, enliven and heal you" and that you can create a "magical spine" through "healing waves."

"Emotional Freedom Technique" (EFT) http://www.skepdic.com/eft.html is a lot like Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) AKA Reprocessing Therapy http://www.skepdic.com/emdr.html

R. T. Carroll (Skepdic.com) wrote of EFT creator Gary Craig, in part, "He'll sell you his own course on DVD for a mere $150. One of the bonuses you'll get from Craig is nearly two hours of Stanford scientist, Dr. William A. Tiller, describing numerous experiments regarding intention, including 'actual photographs taken with the lens cap still on the camera.' (This is an old trick, made popular by Chicago bellhop Ted Serios in the 1960s, though he didn't use a camera with the lens cap on as Uri Geller did.) Says Craig of Tiller's cap-on photos: 'No fooling. This can only be done, of course, if something is at work besides normal physics. Our intention is far more pervasive and powerful than we think. It just needs to be cultivated.'"

Dr. Gaudino and Dr. Herbert have written, in part:

"Craig extends his tapping therapy far beyond the realm of mental health, reporting testimonials from individuals who claim to have successfully used EFT to treat everything from autism to warts and various other medical problems with positive results. In the latest developments, Craig has reported on the positive effects of 'surrogate tapping,' in which therapists tap on themselves to treat the problems of others."

http://www.csicop.org/si/show/can_we_really_tap_our_problems_away_a_critical_analysis_of_thought_field_th/

*tap* *tap* "Anybody home?"

I'm afraid to ask: how/why did UAlbany decide to do the study, and how much money is involved in the study? Has any tuition money or taxpayer money been used in any way, or will any be used? To what extent is the study being paid for by ACEP and GGF? Did UAlbany staff have to pay to get certified in EFT by ACEP?

UAlbany Foundation Board of Directors President George Randolph Hearst III creates "William Randolph Hearst Endowed Scholarship Fund for Master's Degree Social Workers in Aging" and presents it University at Albany's School of Social Welfare Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson.

UAlbany Foundation gives University at Albany's School of Social Welfare Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson an award: "Philanthropists I. Norman and Micki Massry, and UAlbany Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson Named University Citizen Laureates" http://www.albany.edu/news/30742.php?WT.source=home&WT.svl=headline

The Times Union then covers SSW Dean receiving the award without mentioning the President of the UAlbany Foundation Board of Directors is Times Union's publisher Hearst http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/Philanthropists-UAlbany-dean-honored-by-3207259.php http://blog.timesunion.com/business/ualbany-foundation-names-laureate-award-recipients-for-2012/52931/

Hearst's Albany Times Union does fluff piece on SSW's Emotional Freedom Technique "study" of heart attack survivors 55 and over: http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/New-therapy-taps-into-emotions-3948351.php

SSW in turn brags about the fluff piece in the Albany Times Union: https://www.facebook.com/UAlbanySchoolOfSocialWelfareEftStudy

As the carny saying goes,

"Where it stops, nobody knows..."

Con Con Center Con

"Editorial: Albany can do way better." Albany Times Union. June 11, 2013. http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/Editorial-Albany-can-do-way-better-4594115.php

"Albany can do way better" applies to a lot of things: it could be a slogan for the city.

The site proposed for a convention center or CDPHP looks, from the photo, like Liberty Park—Albany's oldest park: "Liberty Park." Albany (NY) History. March 26, 2010. http://albanynyhistory.blogspot.com/2010/03/liberty-park.html

"Albany can do way better" applies to plans for developing Liberty Park. Don't develop it.

Aside from the question as to whether the area needs a convention center, whether it would be profitable, etc.: is the crowded downtown area really a good idea? Is a convention center just like any other convention center a good idea?

Overlooking downtown Albany is an abandoned Regency Inn (formerly Howard Johnsons) and the abandoned historic Doane Stuart School campus. Demolish the Regency Inn, build a convention center and towering hotel there with a unique view of downtown Albany and (if angled north and south of the Port of Albany) views of the Hudson River. Restore the entire Doane Stuart School campus for additional convention center facilities and accommodations. Lots of parking space available, and it's right near the Thruway and 787.

Shuttles could be run to Albany, but how dull! The center would be enhanced by something more unusual: a gondola to a tower in Albany near the Empire State Plaza. A choice between going to a convention center with a gondola and one without would be an easy one. Connecting to the Rensselaer Rail Station might be desirable too: a tunnel, possibly?

Politicians and law enforcement with more integrity in Albany would also be likely to make Albany a more desirable convention center destination.

Perhaps they're outlandish ideas, but otherwise Albany would seem to be risking being just another city with just another convention center - perhaps just another failed convention center. If Albany can do not just a little better but way better, then why not actually do way better for once?