Western New York State of Mind Archives - Page 15 of 16

A New Metric for Elected Officials

By Chris Carosa on November 23, 2010

Quick, off the top of your head, what is the fourth (soon to be third) largest city in New York State? I’ll give you a hint. It’s not Syracuse.

G. Scott Thomas wrote a story (“Buffalo slips to 70th in city population,” Business First, November 22, 2010) that both concisely states the problem and suggests the single most important metric we should hold elected officials accountable for.

But first, the story, and how it defines the problem.

Some, as the Business First article intimates, say Buffalo hit its highpoint in 1900 when it ranked as the 8^th largest city in the nation. This figure, however, misleads. The nation had not yet quite filled itself out and some of the western cities were just getting started. These western cities had natural growth advantages and one could argue the 1900 ranking placed Buffalo too high.

The more accurate apex would be July 1951, when Fortune magazine featured “Made Continue Reading “A New Metric for Elected Officials”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Buffalo, politics, population, Rochester, Western New York

Throwback Bills Fans – What’s it Mean?

By Chris Carosa on November 17, 2010

A funny thing happened on the way to the Bills game this past weekend. Actually two funny things, which, in of itself, was a funny thing. Not once, but twice, while ambling on down the New York State Thruway, we saw a car pull over and a well-padded passenger disembark to visit some nearby woodlands, soon to be wetlands.

I hadn’t seen this scene in quite some time. At first, I wondered what would cause an obviously well working auto to suddenly yank itself to the shoulder of the road. After another slug of my Snapple, a thought popped into my head.

How far had these “relievers” been traveling? How much did they have to drink? Was there any doubt they were going to the game?

Once we got to the game – and despite the repeatedly failed attempts by the Bills to Continue Reading “Throwback Bills Fans – What’s it Mean?”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Buffalo Bills

New York Governor’s Race: A Corleone Election

By Chris Carosa on October 18, 2010

OK, I just watched the debate. Rather, I just listened to the debate. Here’s what I’m convinced of: With all due respect to the minor party candidates, it’s pretty clear the matter of who will serve as New York State’s next governor comes down to a choice of these two characters:

Sonny Corleone
– or –
Michael Corleone

I guess that would make the sum total of all the candidates Fredo “You’re dead to me” Corleone.

But about the two main characters, the metaphor is so juicy we’ve got to wonder if Coppola isn’t in the wings writing the script. On one hand there’s the crude hot-headed thug whose wild passion constantly gets him in trouble but, in the end, probably will Continue Reading “New York Governor’s Race: A Corleone Election”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Corleone, Godfather, New York, politics

Misleading Headline? Baseless Buffalo Bills Bashing? Or Both?

By Chris Carosa on September 20, 2010

With friends like these, who needs enemies? It’s bad enough we find our region at the butt end of many late night comics’ monologues, but why does the local media have to gratuitously chime in, too?

Did you see the article “Buffalo Bills struggle to make dent on national TV map” in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle in Sunday, September 19^th? Placed on the cover of the sports section, it featured a map of the continental United States. The country, bathed in red, was speckled with smaller splotches of various other colors. A beautiful graphic, you would think the D&C would have been proud to have included it in the on-line version of the article. Alas, they didn’t and the article suffers.

But this isn’t about vivid art in a hometown newspaper. This is about the reckless Continue Reading “Misleading Headline? Baseless Buffalo Bills Bashing? Or Both?”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Buffalo Bills, Democrat and Chronicle, NFL, Rochester, Western New York

Surprise! Buffalo Bills Score in Nielsen’s New NFL Ratings

By Chris Carosa on September 14, 2010

When you look for smart business reporting, you look to the Wall Street Journal. Likely to have been Sergeant Friday’s (“just the facts, ma’am”) favorite newspaper, the WSJ sets aside all numbers and focuses squarely on cold, hard numbers. So, when this truly national paper of record offers a story (“Dallas Cowboys Are NFL’s Most Popular Team,” Wall Street Journal, September 9, 2010) spelling out how all 32 NFL teams rank in terms of popularity, you can be sure of one thing – no one gets extra points for rabid enthusiasm. It’s all about the bottom-line. And, unlike Forbes, this bottom-line is more than just money, it’s eyeballs. For the first time ever, Neilsen – of the famous TV ratings – ranks the NFL teams by incorporating both TV coverage and internet buzz.

So, where do you figure the Buffalo Bills – perhaps currently the worst team in the NFL – fall in this survey? It shouldn’t shock you Ralph Wilson’s team doesn’t find itself in the Continue Reading “Surprise! Buffalo Bills Score in Nielsen’s New NFL Ratings”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Bills, Buffalo, Buffalo Bills, Greater Western New York, NFL, Western New York

Has the NFL Provided the Answer to Promoting the Greater Western New York Region?

By Chris Carosa on September 4, 2010

I had lunch with a marketing and advertising professional in Buffalo the other day. When I told him about my crazy idea to promote the greater Western New York region, he told me it was crazy. I expected that. What he told me next I didn’t expect. Yet, I can see why it happened.

A couple of decades or so ago, some members of the Buffalo-Niagara community decided to join forces to promote their two communities. They initial suggested to do so under the banner “Western New York” since the local media commonly used that term to describe the area of Erie and Niagara counties (and sometimes even Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties). The grand poobahs of marketing gathered together and rejected the notion. “Everyone knows Continue Reading “Has the NFL Provided the Answer to Promoting the Greater Western New York Region?”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Buffalo, Buffalo Bills, NFL, Niagara, Western New York

Is Social Media the Key to a Better Government, a Better New York and a Better Western New York?

By Chris Carosa on August 24, 2010

I’ve been meaning to write this for a while – maybe years – but I’ve been too afraid. I’ve been too afraid people would see the idea as crazy. I’ve been too afraid people would fail to believe the problem exists. I’ve been too afraid people would read politics instead of common sense. In a phrase, I’ve been too afraid.

And, I admit, I’m still a little afraid. With today’s culture in the noose of political correctness, it seems any misplaced modifier has the power to send one to ruin. Ruin, I am told, is not a very good place to visit, let alone live in. Perhaps it’s because it rains there every day.

Whatever the case, on the whole, I’d rather be in Philadelphia. Well, maybe not the City of Brotherly Love, for it has become the City of the Blogger Levy. According to the Continue Reading “Is Social Media the Key to a Better Government, a Better New York and a Better Western New York?”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, It's a Nerd's World, Western New York State of Mind Tagged business, idea, politics, Western New York

What Popular Fast Food Item was Invented In Western New York?

By Chris Carosa on August 18, 2010

Here’s a quick question: What popular fast food was invented right here in Western New York? Think you know the answer? I’ll give you a hint – it’s not chicken wings. OK, smarty-pants, with apologies to Frank and Teresa, “chicken wings” is a correct answer, but too obvious and not the correct answer. I’ll give you another hint – it was invented at the Erie County Fair in the mid-1880’s. If you know Western New York, then you may think you already know the answer. If you’re not sure, you’ll have to read on.

On Friday afternoon, I had the pleasure of making my annual visit to “America’s Fair” – the Erie County Fair in Hamburg, New York. I can tell you stories about the Fair dating from my youthful days when I helped my grandparents hawk slices from the family’s pizza stand, but I’ll save that for later. Suffice it to say, all I ever needed to know in life I learned while working in my grandfather’s pizza Continue Reading “What Popular Fast Food Item was Invented In Western New York?”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged erie county fair, hamburg, Pizza Stand, Western New York

Can You Find the Hidden Gems in the Greater Western New York Region?

By Chris Carosa on August 11, 2010

What hidden gems lay undiscovered within the boundaries of the greater Western New York region?

We’re in the process of collecting the best resources on the web, and we’re looking for your suggestions! Got a pointer to a cool blog or an informative forum? Send us a tip using the form on this site: GreaterWesternNewYork.com.

Stay tuned as we unveil this new site celebrating all there is to love about Western New York State. We’ll be covering art, commerce, cuisine, history, sports, real estate, nature … you name it. We’re looking for both links and potential contributors and people who can help realize the vision. I’ll have my business be one of the sponsors, so we won’t have Continue Reading “Can You Find the Hidden Gems in the Greater Western New York Region?”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged hidden gems, Western New York

Bring Back Crispy M&M’s®!

By Chris Carosa on July 19, 2010

They disappeared without much fanfare in 2005. I barely noticed it, but, then again, I don’t often buy M&M’s®. When I did, I usually did it only to fill treat bowls for the holidays. But Crispy M&M’s® Crispy remained my favorite of the brand. You’d think they might have been the favorite of the manufacturer, since, according to the Wikipedia entry (as of July 18, 2010), they brought in more profit than any other M&M® variety (caveat emptor, Wikipedia contains no reference for this “fact”).

Just in time for Christmas – is that why I first noticed them? – Crispy M&M’s® came into being in December 1998, the company’s first new flavor since 1954, when it introduced Peanut M&M’s®. Most folks, though, probably remember the debut of the paranoid “Orange” character in an ad that Continue Reading “Bring Back Crispy M&M’s®!”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged erie county fair, Hamburg Fair