New York City is cracking down on the brazen theft of tons of goods that occurs right out in public, practically on a schedule. The Department of Sanitation noticed that the volume of recyclable paper it was collecting was down 2% from the previous year - and in parts of Manhattan's East Side, the decline in paper pick-ups was 25%. That prompted an investigation that found that out of state unlicensed haulers were sneaking into......

While the jury is still out on whether Mayor Bloomberg's improvements to the public school system have really worked, he, along with City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and School Chancellor Joel Klein, announced new initiatives to help middle schools improve academic performance and provide better resources for students, parents, and teachers alike - plus $5 million to fund them. The money will go to the 50 lowest-performing middle schools, so they can staff up with......

Representative Anthony Weiner released a report, along with City Councilman Michael McMahon of Staten Island, that shows the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost NYC taxpayers over $57 million. How? Weiner's press release explains what many people probably don't realize:Typically, when city employees are called up for active duty, they forfeit their regular paychecks, and take their new paychecks from the military. Under most circumstances, this amounts to taking a pay cut. To honor......

Beware of that cute stray cat you see in Staten Island - the borough is facing a a "frightening" spread of rabies. The Staten Island Advance reports that City Councilman Michael McMahon wants to convene an emergency task force made up of the health department and NYPD, as "23 raccoons, three skunks and three cats have been found with rabies" since April. A West Brighton man who found a stray kitten and brought it to......