The haves and have-mores dinner (Al Smith dinner) on Thursday

[Democrats_win]

That's what George W. Bush called it in 2000:
"This is an impressive crowd. The haves and the have-mores. Some people call you the elite. I call you my base"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_E._Smith_Memorial_Foundation_Dinner

It is supposed to be a good natured roast for the candidates as Hillary and Trump will attend. It raises money for Catholic charities.

[femmocrat]

3. Does anyone know if it will be on TV?

Last edited Tue Oct 18, 2016, 07:57 PM - Edit history (1)

Thank you!

[forest444]

5. Al Smith. The unhappy warrior.

This was the last real right-winger to be nominated by Democrats. Smith spent the rest of his life basically being a putz, an upper-class Archie Bunker who bitched about FDR and the New Deal to anyone who'd listen. He drank himself to death, and was soon forgotten.

Except by the Roy Cohn of the Catholic Church, Cardinal Spellman - who felt the need the memorialize his fellow fascist with these namesake dinners.

That said, as a roast this should be a very good event indeed for Hillary - what with all the material she has to work with.

[Cooley Hurd]

9. ...and Smith practically created Robert Moses

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Moses#Criticism

Criticism

Moses's critics claim that he preferred automobiles to people. They point out that he displaced hundreds of thousands of residents in New York City, destroying traditional neighborhoods by building expressways through them. That contributed to the ruin of the South Bronx and the amusement parks of Coney Island, caused the departure of the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants Major League baseball teams, and precipitated the decline of public transport due to disinvestment and neglect.[6] His building of expressways hindered the proposed expansion of the New York City Subway from the 1930s well into the 1960s, because the parkways and expressways that were built served, at least to some extent, the purpose of the planned subway lines; the 1968 Program for Action, which was never completed, was hoped to counter this.[6] Some claim he precluded the use of public transit that would have allowed non-car-owners to enjoy the elaborate recreation facilities he built, but close associates of Moses claimed that they could keep African Americans from using pools in white neighborhoods by making the water too cold.[41][6]

He was also criticized in "The Power Broker" for starting large projects well beyond funding approved by the New York State legislature with the knowledge they would eventually pay for the rest to avoid looking like they didn't review the project properly (a tactic known as fait accompli) and for using political power to benefit cronies including a case where he secretly shifted the Northern State Parkway large distances to avoid impinging on the estates of the rich, while telling owners of the family farms who lost land (and sometimes their livelihood) that it was based on "engineering considerations."[6] In that book, other criticisms included that Moses lied about officials that opposed him to get them removed, for example by calling them communists during the Red Scare and that he fought against schools and other public needs in favor of his preference for parks.[6]

[forest444]

12. Fascinating segway. Thank you, Cooley Hurd.

I'm probably not as knowledgeable on the subject of Robert Moses as you are; but I remember reading, years ago in school, that while Moses very hard-assed advocacy for eminent domain (and this was before class action lawsuits), was equaled only by his inveterate racism.

Moses famously attempted to restrict New York's black citizens from access to municipal beaches; when that failed, he imposed a 35¢ entry fee - a tidy sum for most working-class residents during the Great Depression (more than many folks made hourly at the time, as you know). To be fair, it was a very different era; but nevertheless.

His roughshod ways went pretty much unchecked until, in 1930, his favorite project - the Northern State Parkway, east of Queens - was almost scuttled when it was discovered he had rerouted the project to suit his cousin, the owner of Wheatley Hills County Club.

The man made a $10,000 contribution to the NY State Parks Commission - directed, of course, by Robert Moses (and this was in 1930 dollars). Roosevelt, to his credit, resisted considerable temptation to fire the abrasive Bob Moses because he respected him professionally.

Even so, Moses' disregard for the people affected by his freeway viaducts would probably disqualify from most urban planning commissions these days. Numerous cities that adopted his urban model of raised freeway viaducts after World War II are now trying to demolish them where they can.

My favorite example is in Seoul, South Korea, whose mayor recently razed a downtown section of the infamous Cheonggyecheon Expressway - thus going from this:



To this:

[BobbyDrake]

10. Is it too late to get Seth Meyers to host it?