The NY government’s ‘fix’ is in

As we head into 2014, Gov. Cuomo's Commission to Investigate Public Corruption (aka, the Moreland Act Commission) will be continuing its roving investigations into the state Legislature. If its achievements this year are any indication, New Yorkers can expect it to produce little but proposals lacking in imagination, a desire to force taxpayers to pay for the crimes of their elected representatives and contempt for the First Amendment.

The governor convened the commission after his package of ethics reforms failed. Much of its work so far has been to list the illnesses to be treated by the governor's already brewed cure.

Some of what the commission is targeting is uncontroversial, such as eliminating conflicts of interest among legislators and restricting them from directing public money to phony nonprofits.

Unfortunately, the commission and the governor are not stopping there. Common-sense legislation to fight graft is not the main goal of the governor's allies, who hail largely from campaign-finance "reform" organizations. These groups see private campaign spending — that is, participation in the political process — as the real problem, and the commission will spend the next year urging new laws to stop as much of it as possible.

Thus, actual corruption will remain the commission's secondary concern; its foremost agenda item will be the "problems" in New York's campaign-finance system. This, despite the fact that of the 19 scandals that gave rise to the commission, only one concerned campaign contributions.

The commission is now pushing tired "solutions" urged by pro-regulation forces across the country: lowering the amount of money one may contribute to a candidate; increasing public dissemination of the names and addresses of those who dare participate in politics; creating another agency filled with unelected bureaucrats to prosecute peaceful political activity; and pre-emptively showering politicians with taxpayer funds supposedly to make them resistant to bribes.

Of course, those in power could stop corruption by not being corrupt. This is apparently too much to expect, however. Instead, the people must pay by sacrificing their free-speech rights and their money.

There is little evidence to support the efficacy of any of the campaign-finance proposals the commission and the governor will be pushing, however. Contribution limits do little to increase public confidence in government, disclosure drives everyday citizens from politics because they do not wish to have their political beliefs (as well as their names and addresses) broadcast across the world and unelected, unaccountable bureaucracies regulating speech will often target those opposed to the establishment.

Worse yet is so-called "public financing," which is the policy for which we can expect the commission and the governor to push hardest.

Of course, New York City has publicly financed campaigns now, but it hasn't stopped corruption. Instead, this policy will force taxpayers to subsidize the campaigns of the very politicians the commission claims are destroying public trust. It is like someone who has embezzled from a private company getting a bonus.

The commission also does not talk much about the cost of subsidizing politicians but has assured us that, though New York City is the most expensive media market in America, the price "is likely to be very small."

Even if this were true, public financing does almost nothing its proponents promise, and every dollar spent subsidizing politicians is a dollar not spent on roads or police, or returned to overburdened taxpayers.

Finally, everything the commission urges must be weighed against the First Amendment, in which it seems to have little interest. Freedom of speech is such an afterthought for the commission that it does not mention the First Amendment in its Preliminary Report (except when discussing Supreme Court cases it views as obstacles to its agenda).

If the governor and the commission get everything they want in the coming year, it would not stop corruption, because the commission is targeting a symptom — the wrongdoing itself — instead of the disease, which is an intrusive and massive state government. When state government metastasizes to the size of New York's, people will try to manipulate it to ensure that favors go to them and burdens go to others.

Until New York embraces limited government, it risks still more corruption. And no amount of restrictions on free speech or wasting of taxpayer money on welfare for politicians will fix that.

Bill Maurer is an executive director with the Institute for Justice in Arlington, Va.

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Manhattan federal court changes rules on judge-shopping

Some folks wait until after Christmas to do their shopping, knowing the big savings come after the holiday. But if you are a defendant shopping for a friendly federal judge — or a federal judge shopping for a preferred litigant — the sales may already be over.

That's thanks to sensible new reforms announced this week by the chief judge for Manhattans's federal court, Loretta Preska. These new rules are designed to make the assignment of federal judges to cases more random and transparent.

The rules are part of the fallout from the handling of the stop-and-frisk case Floyd v. City of New York by Judge Shira Scheindlin. Now, cases are supposed to be assigned at random. But Floyd avoided the usual process and went straight to Judge Scheindlin because the plaintiffs had filed it — on the judge's advice — as "related" to a previous case she heard. The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, which later took the case away from her, said the way it had arrived in her court raised reasonable doubts about the appearance of impartiality.

Under the new rules, parties must file a written statement that "clearly and succinctly" explains why they believe their case is related to a similar suit. The other side can file an objection.

And while the judge to whom the application is being made will decide whether to accept it, any claim of relatedness will automatically be reviewed by the court's three-judge assignment committee. If the committee rules the case is not related, it will be randomly assigned to another judge.

All welcome and prudent reforms. Pity we had to wait until after Judge Scheindlin did her damage.

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Time to improve People’s paper quality

Time Inc. CEO Joe Ripp has pulled back the curtain on one area where he expects the nation's biggest magazine publisher to spend more money in the coming year: paper People, the company's No. 1 money maker, will return to a heavier grade of paper just in time for the Oscars issue that goes on sale March 7, with a cover date of March 17.

People Publisher Karen Kovacs said "it is a significant investment — in the millions."

One industry source estimated it will cost anywhere from $1 million to $5 million for People to make the shift. It is not changing paper stock, which will remain a matte finish, but is going to a heavier grade or stock of paper.

This year, People posted 3,110.86 ad pages on the year, up about 1 percent from the year- earlier tally of 3,082.13 ad pages, according to Media Industry Newsletter.

It comes at a time when the other big source of revenue for weekly celebrity-oriented magazines — newsstand sales — has been reeling, for People and most other publishers in the category.

The calculus about moving People back to heavier stock now — with newsstand sales slumping and unlikely to recover from its five-year tailspin — is to keep advertisers happy.

"Increasing the paper stock demonstrates the company's commitment to improving the quality of product, which in turn should result in greater consumer and advertising experiences," said Robin Steinberg, executive vice president, director publishing investment and activation at ad-buying agency Mediavest Worldwide, Early this year, Media Ink reported that all the weekly magazines at the company were moved to a razor-thin matte-finish paper known in the industry as 29 lb. groundwood coated supercalendered-plus paper.

Sources said that the company received few complaints from readers over the switch from the heavier stock, but advertisers were not happy about the move, which permitted more "bleed through" and less resolution of ad colors.

Fortune kept its better grade of paper when the switch was made on the weeklies, and the monthlies traditionally printed on heavier-stock glossy paper.

So far, none of the other weeklies at Time Inc. are getting the People upgrade — but you can be sure the results will be closely monitored by the other publishers in-house.

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Ray Kelly reveals little about possible book deal

NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly was toasted by Vanity Fair contributing editor Jim Kelly at the Kelly Gang's final gathering with Ray as the reigning police commissioner on Dec. 20 at the Four Seasons.

Of course, Media Ink was more concerned with which publishing house was going to land the book deal once he leaves office next week.

As luck would have it, the high powered Washington DC-based literary attorney Bob Barnett, who has been retained by Ray Kelly, was having lunch at a nearby table with one of Penguin's top editors, Adrian Zackheim, who heads the publisher's business imprint Portfolio.

Barnett, of course, has commanded megadeals for everyone from Bill and Hilary Clinton to George W. Bush and Sarah Palin.

Barnett and Zackheim both stopped by to schmooze with the commish, but Ray was revealing little about any book.

He said he has not decided on whether it will be a memoir style or a management/leadership type book. "There is no book yet," said Commissioner Kelly.

He said he will be discussing it all with Barnett — but after he leaves office.

"I'm a babe in the woods on this," he said. "That's why I'm talking with these guys."

As the longest-serving police commissioner in New York City history with a national profile, the commissioner's book is expected to draw intense bidding among publishing.

But it could be a few months before an outline is finalized and publishers get meetings to discuss what some insiders are predicting will be a seven-figure deal.

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Time for a website redo

Whither the Time.com redesign? The website redo was initially expected to be out around "the fall" and then it was expected in November. Now, with December almost gone, CapitalNY was saying the new target is January.

Time.com Managing Editor Edward Felsenthal hinted it could take a bit longer.

"I'd expect it in the next three to six weeks," he told Media Ink on Thursday.

Time Managing Editor Nancy Gibbs, who succeeded Rick Stengel as the top Time editor in September, is trying to give the digital team a higher profile, aware that there was grumbling in the digital ranks about second-class status under her predecessor.

One of her first moves after her appointment was to reschedule the Time.com news meeting into the same sessions where the weekly print edition is planned.

Back in mid-November, Gibbs told Media Ink that she expected the website to relaunch "in the next couple of weeks," but even then seemed to suggest it was a moveable feast.

"At various times, it had different dates attached to it," she said, "but I'm not terribly focused on a fixed date."

She did say, "We want to have it customized geographically, and we want it to be bigger, broader and more global."

The outside design firm is Big Human, which has done projects such as the travel site Jetsetter, but counts Time.com as its first 24/7 news site.

And the project is getting more complicated, as Ripp wants to see more video available on the site.

Felsenthal, who has hired about 30 people in advance of the redesign, said that it "will have a template for multimedia products" and that the redesign will probably be rolled out in three phases.

Native advertising — content that is paid for by advertisers and made to mimic the journalistic content — will be part of the redesign as well, although the site is already running some of the long-form ads.

While Time.com traffic is growing, general news is a brutally competitive category and Time is still a long way from being able to crack the top 10 news sites.

With just under 19 million users checking it out on all platforms in the US in October according to comScore, Time.com set a new site record.

Felsenthal said that Omniture, which tracks international visitors, puts the traffic at 40.5 million for the month of December — another site record.

The Time.com redesign is one of at least three big moves that are believed to be on tap for early in the new year by Time Inc.

Sports Illustrated, which reclaimed control of the business side of its website from Turner Sports Network, is expected to unveil its redesign early next year as well.

And, of course, Fortune is facing the end of its joint venture with CNNMoney on May 31, so the business mag will have to relaunch under its own brand by June 1.

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American kidnapped by al Qaeda asks for help from US in video

ISLAMABAD — A 72-year-old American development worker who was kidnapped in Pakistan by al Qaeda more than two years ago appealed to President Obama in a video released Thursday to negotiate his release, saying he feels "totally abandoned and forgotten."

The video of Warren Weinstein was the first since two videos released in September 2012. Weinstein, the country director in Pakistan for J.E. Austin Associates, a U.S.-based firm that advises a range of Pakistani business and government sectors, was abducted from his house in the eastern city of Lahore in August 2011.

In the video sent Thursday to reporters in Pakistan including The Associated Press, Weinstein called on the U.S. government to negotiate his release.

"Nine years ago I came to Pakistan to help my government, and I did so at a time when most Americans would not come here, and now when I need my government it seems that I have been totally abandoned and forgotten," Weinstein said during the 13-minute video. "And so I again appeal to you to instruct your appropriate officials to negotiate my release."

The video and an accompanying letter purported to be from Weinstein was emailed anonymously to reporters in Pakistan. The video was labeled "As-Sahab," which is al Qaeda's media wing, but its authenticity could not be independently verified. The letter was dated Oct. 3, 2013 and in the video Weinstein said he had been in captivity for two years.

In the video, Weinstein wore a grey track suit jacket and what appeared to be a black knit hat on his head. His face was partially covered with a beard.

Al Qaeda has said Weinstein would be released if the U.S. halted airstrikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen and also demanded the release of all al Qaeda and Taliban suspects around the world.

The White House has called for Weinstein's immediate release but has said it won't negotiate with al Qaeda.

The videos last year showed Weinstein appealing for help from the Jewish community and Israel's prime minister.

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Unexpected TV gifts from 2013

Terry Crews ("Brooklyn Nine-Nine") as Sgt. Jeffords

Out of all the so-so to abysmal comedies launched this season, the Andy Samberg police laugher improbably has managed to hang around Mama's DVR, and it struck gold with the high-strung but sweet detective whom Mama previously only knew as The Old Spice Guy. When he's not avoiding his bully brother-in-law, he's hilariously screaming about the dangers of SUVs ("They roll! THEY ROLL!"). He is the most unexpected comedy gift.

"The Good Wife" revival

Proof that you can't keep a good woman — or a quality network drama — down. The Julianna Margulies vehicle made us forget all about last season's forgettable real-estate struggles and instead blew up the dynamics of this lawyer drama in a fashion not seen since the uprising at McKenzie/Brackman on "L.A. Law."

I like cannibals?

If you had told Mama that a TV series about the 1990s movie icon Hannibal Lecter would be one of her favorites of 2013, she would have told you to swallow your own tongue. But thanks in large part to creepily delicious Mads Mikkelsen, Mama can't wait to sink her teeth into Season 2.

Tatiana Maslany of "Orphan Black"

The star of the BBC America series, which tells the story of loner Sarah discovering she's a clone with identical counterparts strewn across her city, was quite the find. Pulling off multiple characters — all with their own unique personalities and often accents — is a tall order, but this Canadian newcomer proved that she was more than up for the challenge.

"Dallas' " farewell to J.R. Ewing

It's unlikely the revival of the 1980s blockbuster family drama will ever measure up to the original, but the TNT series did produce a fitting farewell to the irascible J.R. Ewing, played by legend Larry Hagman, who died in November 2012. Besides the trip down memory lane with J.R.'s assorted exes and foes, the series used his death to launch a story that honored his legacy: Who really did shoot — and kill — J.R.?

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Former Knick Marbury throws support behind Woodson

Stephon Marbury wasn't chanting "Fire Woodson'' on Christmas. Seated in the fourth row behind the Knicks bench Wednesday, the former Knick and Coney Islander gave his support for coach Mike Woodson, who once replaced Marbury's nemesis, Mike D'Antoni.

Marbury was in town rehabbing his left knee after tearing his meniscus for Beijing in a Chinese Basketball Association game three weeks ago.

"They have a pretty good coach — a straight shooter,'' Marbury told The Post at halftime of the Knicks' 29-point loss to the Thunder. "He's not a B.S. type of coach. Players respect him. When you have that at the helm, it makes it easier, but it can't fall all on Melo [Carmelo Anthony].''

Marbury, who is returning to China on Thursday, came to the game with his son, Stephon Jr., who is a big Thunder fan.

"I told him we were going to the Garden for the circus,'' Marbury cracked, referring to the Knicks turmoil he knows all too well. "He said he wanted to watch basketball.''

Marbury, whom the Knicks bought out five years ago after he feuded with D'Antoni, said there's still plenty of time for the team to turn it around.

"This team has more talent with Amar'e [Stoudemire] and Melo and they have to figure it out when they're healthy,'' Marbury said. "All they have to do is get into the playoffs, and the Garden atmosphere will carry them through.''

Marbury recently a signed long-term deal with Beijing and said there's no chance he'll play in the NBA again.

It was his first time home for Christmas in five years. A few fans came up to him and kidded him that they wished he'd suit up in the second half.

"I love it in China,'' said Marbury, who had a statue erected of him in front of the basketball arena in Beijing after the club won the title three years ago. "Living and playing in New York made me think globally.''

Marbury, who has homes in Westchester County, Los Angeles and Beijing, calls himself "tri-coastal'' and expects to return to action in three weeks.

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Woodson is still holding out hope for injured starting point guard Raymond Felton, who strained his groin Monday in Orlando. Woodson said Felton will undergo more tests Thursday to figure out a timetable, but said it's still possible the guard would only miss one to two weeks. … Metta World Peace missed his third straight game with a sore left knee as he awaits blood-spinning therapy Thursday. … Point guard Beno Udrih, who has been defensive of his recent play, was asked about Woodson. "Maybe the message hasn't come across or we aren't hearing the right things,'' Udrih said.

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NYPD Daily Crime blotter

Brooklyn

A young mom was assaulted as she walked with her 7-year-old daughter in Midwood, cops said.

The suspect (right) approached the 33-year-old woman on East 12th Street near Elm Avenue at 2:45 p.m. Saturday and punched her in the back of the head, according to police.

She fell on her hands and knees and suffered minor injuries, cops said.

The child was not harmed.

Police released this sketch of the man, who was last seen wearing a green jacket, black wool cap and jeans.

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A man was struck and badly hurt in a hit-and-run moments after getting off a city bus, authorities said.

The victim had just stepped off the bus at Third Avenue and Bay Ridge Avenue at 9 a.m. Wednesday when he was hit by another vehicle, which zoomed away, cops said.

The man was taken in critical condition to Lutheran Hospital, where his condition was later upgraded to stable.

An investigation is ongoing, police said.

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A boozed-up MTA mechanic plowed into two parked cars in Borough Park and kept going before cops arrested him nearby, authorities said.

Emmanuel Raymond was driving on East Ninth Street at Cortelyou Road when he lost control of his vehicle, hit the cars and took off, police said.

Cops found the 49-year-old MTA employee a few blocks away, on East 14th St. near Avenue I, where he was arrested.

Raymond, who was off-duty at the time of the incident, was charged with leaving the scene of an accident, DWI and refusal to take a ­Breathalyzer test, according to police.

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A man was fatally shot in front of his Coney Island home, cops said.

Yaquin English was on Bayview Avenue in the Gravesend Houses at about 7 p.m. Tuesday when the gunman squeezed off multiple rounds, striking him in the torso.

English was pronounced dead at the scene.

No arrests had been made as of Wednesday evening.

The Bronx

A 16-year-old boy was shot in the chest in Melrose, but is expected to survive, cops said.

The victim was standing on East 156 Street near Concourse Village East at around 1:45 a.m. Wednesday when the assailant opened fire and fled, according to police.

The teen suffered a gunshot wound to the upper left chest and was rushed to Lincoln Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition with a wound that was not considered to be life-threatening.

No arrests had been made as of Wednesday evening.

Queens

Cops have arrested a 23-year-old man who they say fatally stabbed a co-worker in an Elmhurst Restaurant last weekend.

The victim, Furman Herrera-Martinez, was in Taco Veloz on Roosevelt Avenue near Junction Boulevard at around 5:50 a.m. Saturday Dec. 21, when Abel Galdino, 23, knifed him in the chest and arms after a verbal dispute over a woman, according to police.

Herrera-Martinez was rushed to Elmhurst Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Galdino has been charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon, cops said.

He has one prior arrest, for possession of a forged instrument, for allegedly using a fake identification card.

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A man was shot yesterday afternoon in the Rockaways, police said.

The victim was on Beach 54th Street in the Arverne section when he was wounded.

He went on his home to St, John's Hospital in Far Rockaway, where he was treated for non-life threatening injuries, police said.

The relationship, if any, between the victim and his shooter was unclear, police said.

Staten Island

A 24-year-old restaurant worker was nabbed in Bloomfield for driving drunk, according to cops.

Agustin Montez-Esponza had just left a party when he was caught swerving in a 2003 Nissan on the Goethals Bridge at around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday morning, Port Authority cops said.

Officers followed Montez-Esponza into New Jersey, where he was arrested.

He allegedly admitted to drinking several beers at a party before he started heading back to his home in Freehold, NJ.

He was charged with DWI.

Furthermore, he was driving without a license and the car was unregistered, police said.

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A man was shot by a gunman in Dongan Hills, cops said.

The victim was standing outside the Berry Houses on Richmond Road near Dongan Hills Avenue at around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday when the assailant opened fire and fled.

The victim was rushed to Staten Island University North, where he was treated for a wound that was not considered to be life-threatening, authorities said.

No arrests had been made as of Wednesday evening.

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UPS, FedEx shipping problems delay gifts past Christmas

Santa's sleigh didn't make it in time for Christmas for some this year due to shipping problems at UPS and FedEx.

The delays were blamed on poor weather earlier this week in parts of the country as well as overloaded systems. The holiday shopping period this year was shorter than usual, more buying was done online and Americans' tendency to wait until the last possible second to shop probably didn't help either.

Neither company said how many packages were delayed but noted it was a small share of overall holiday shipments. While the bulk of consumers' holiday spending remains at physical stores, shopping online is increasingly popular and outstripping spending growth in stores at the mall.

The problems appear to have affected many parts of the country. The Associated Press spoke to people in Alabama, California, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia who didn't receive presents in time for Christmas.

Many were left with little or no time to make alternative plans.

Jeff Cormier and his Dallas family were among those who ordered gifts that didn't arrive.

He had three separate UPS packages – including two for which he paid extra for expedited shipping – delayed.

"I've had to apologize to three different people when I thought I had everything wrapped up and good to go way before," Cormier said.

He and his wife are celebrating their baby daughter's first Christmas and flew in his grandmother from Ohio to join them. Her gift, a customized iPhone cover with a photo of her new great-granddaughter, didn't come in time for Christmas.

"My wife and I had our presents to open. Our daughter had her presents to open. And my grandma, she didn't have anything to open," Cormier said.

"We apologize that our customers did not receive their packages on Christmas," said Natalie Godwin, a spokeswoman for United Parcel Service Inc.

Godwin said snow and ice in the Midwest last week and an ice storm that hit Dallas two-and-a-half weeks ago were partially to blame. She also said the volume of packages shipped exceeded the capacity of UPS but would not share the number of packages shipped or what the company's maximum capacity is.

UPS did not make pickups or deliveries Wednesday. Extra workers were being brought in Wednesday night to the company's hub in Louisville, Ky., to sort packages for Thursday and Friday delivery, according to Godwin.

Godwin said "UPS will honor its peak shipments commitments" to customers who used its air delivery service. Those shipping by ground have no guarantee past Dec. 11. Godwin said she didn't know if customers would receive refunds.

However, some FedEx customers are able to pick up packages Christmas Day at their local FedEx Express centers.

"We're sorry that there could be delays and we're contacting affected customers who have shipments available for pickup," said Scott Fiedler, a spokesman for FedEx Corp.

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, FedEx handled 275 million shipments, according to Fiedler. Those that were not delivered in time, he said, "would be very few."

Three people told The Associated Press that when they tracked their packages online, FedEx said deliveries to their homes were attempted but failed because "the business was closed." During follow-up calls with customer service, they said they learned that the local depot was overwhelmed and didn't attempt delivery.

On Sunday, Eric Swanson ordered a doll for his daughter and a sweater for his wife through Amazon.com and one of its affiliated sites. As an Amazon Prime customer, there was a promise of two-day delivery, getting the gifts to his Carmichael, Calif. home just in time for Christmas. One was shipped via UPS, the other FedEx.

"I thought it would happen," Swanson said. Online tracking tools said the packages would arrive by 8 p.m. Tuesday. Neither did.

Amazon.com has been notifying some customers affected by the UPS delays that it will refund any shipping charges and is giving them a $20 credit toward a future purchase.

Amazon spokeswoman Mary Osako said the company processed orders and got them to its shippers "on time for holiday delivery" and is now "reviewing the performance of the delivery carriers."

While some customers may get money back, they might think twice about ordering online next year.

"My wife understands but my 5-year-old daughter … I think we're going to let it be a surprise when it comes," Swanson said. "Next time, if I need to get a gift and cut it that close, I will just have to enter the fray and go to the mall."

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