Posted by Leonard Steinberg on January 20th, 2014.

Was I the only one who noticed two extraordinary ironies this past week?

1)  Mayor de Blasio was completely silent as New York real estate taxes on condominiums were raised almost TWICE the amount of single family townhouses? A TALE OF TWO OWNERSHIPS? A $ 1,36million 644sf new condominium at 245 West 14th Street (not exactly a prestige block) pays $ 10,872/year in real estate taxes…..Mayor de Blasio’s 3,000sf $ 1,4m townhouse in Park Slope pays about $ 2,600/year…..that’s ONE QUARTER of a 644sf apartment…..it may be legal, but is it moral? I am not tormenting Mayor de Blasio to pay more, I just want to know why a 644sf apartment pays FOUR TIMES what he pays?

2) Mr. Putin described in detail how the Russian government will be monitoring EVERY SINGLE e-mail and telephone call during the Olympics after many months of decrying the outrageous Snowden-exposed U.S.A NSA activities that he felt were just so horrible, horrible, horrible!