Who owns your property?

Do you own your property, or is it on loan from the government? Do you decide what to do with your property, or do you need permission from the government? Can the government say, “I want your property. Get out. I‘ll pay you.”? Can the government say, “Don’t do this or that on your property, and don’t allow others to do it”? As Borough President, I will fight for a live-and-let-live approach to private property.

Brooklyn is the poorest borough

According to the New York State Department of Labor, Brooklyn has the lowest average weekly wage of the five boroughs. Small business, the economic backbone of Brooklyn, is hurting under the oppressive fees, fines, and taxes imposed by City Hall. As Borough President, I will fight to make Brooklyn exempt from all the laws and regulations that strangle small business. To bring manufacturing back to Brooklyn, I will fight to make all of Brooklyn an Empowerment Zone or a free-trade zone like the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

Brooklynites are tough

We don’t need no nannies in City Hall or Borough Hall telling us how to behave. We don’t need no mother hens telling us where they will “allow” us to drink, smoke, or dance. As Borough President, I will fight to make Brooklyn exempt from the worst of the current nanny-state abuses. Brooklynites will not be treated like children.

Save Brooklynites hundreds of millions in taxes

Just two of my ideas alone will save the next mayor between one and two billion dollars off the next budget. Brooklynites should get tax reductions in the form of reduced rates of sales tax, reduced real-estate taxes, and elimination of harassing sanitation fines. First, I will oppose wasting any taxpayer money building sports facilities in Brooklyn. That will save the next mayor almost one billion dollars right there. Second, my plan to improve public education will save taxpayer money, improve learning, improve parent and student satisfaction, and reduce overcrowding. Read more...

Other issues:
Safer neighborhoods; politer cops
Fix Brooklyn's streets and roads and keep them fixed
Housing
Commuter vans
Licensing
Drugs
City services inferior in the outer boroughs
End the smoking ban in Brooklyn bars
Wal-Mart

See Gary Popkin on the Phyliss Taliaferro Show (program begins about 2 minutes into clip) ( http://tinyurl.com/doh7k ).
See Gary Popkin's presentation in the Video Voter Guide. 300K ; 56K .
See Gary Popkin on Hardfire ( http://tinyurl.com/cmsqp ).
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