Yes, There Is A Long Island Idea Factory. . .

. . .But Will It Qualify For Tax Credits In Nassau County's Empire Zone

Surfing the web for Long Island blogs can be a dizzying experience. Actually finding one, and fathoming its meaning, can be downright mind-boggling (or is that, "mind-blogging?").

We stumbled upon The Long Island Idea Factory (we were looking for a pretzel factory), the brain child of local attorney and former Town of Oyster Bay Councilman, Louis G. Savinetti, Esq.

If you can get beyond the flow charts (what do all those concentric circles mean, anyway?) and the techno-talk, there's some great stuff in there. [A nice article by Jerry Kremer, for instance, on too much -- and too costly -- government.]

If we are grasping the thrust of the blog, the idea is that we Long Islanders need a commonality of communication, not only to endure, but to thrive.

The downside here is an apparent failure to communmicate -- or at least to communicate effectively in terms that your average Long Islander (with reading skills of a 6th grader, and analytical ability comparable to that of a frozen pea -- apologies to frozen peas, wherever they may be) -- can comprehend.

What the heck is a "semantic web?" Are we anti-semantic in not knowing this? Suddenly, we feel as though we've inadvertently walked in on a combined advanced metaphysics/geothermal conduction class being taught in ancient Aramaic by a computer geek.

As with any message you are trying to convey, if you want it to stick, KISS -- Keep It Simple, Stupid!

We're all for creating greater governmental efficiencies and bi-county commission projects, but when you need to consult a rocket scientist -- or worse, a lawyer -- to have an inkling of what is going on, your message (as significant as it may be) is lost.

The goal for all of the blogs out there -- and we will limit this to New York blogs concerning themselves (in reality or the abstract) with quality of life issues -- should be to enlighten, perhaps to entertain, and always to educate.

The light, as they say, is lost, if it is hidden under a bushel.

Now, it could be that the Long Island Idea Factory (do they have a variance for that?) blog ain't fer us ordinary folk. It may be a primer for Long Island's IT professionals, or those enamoured with charts and diagrams enough to make your head spin. [Why is it that, in all of these charts, the "general public" is so far removed from the center of things? Then again, so is "government!"]

Dig deep -- you almost have to here -- and you will find the blogger's treatise on Oyster Bay 2000 [the crux of which is still a part of today's dialogue]. Trouble is, you make us dig too deep -- taxing the brain of the already overtaxed Long Islander.

A Long Island Idea Factory may well be an idea whose time has come. Indeed, in one incarnation or another, it will have to be if we, as Long Islanders, are to overcome and triumph as a community. Those ideas, however lofty and ideal, go for naught if they are buried in metalabeling, brushed with hyperlocalism, and scattered into cyberspace.

So keep those ideas coming. Just present them to us in a way we can all understand!
- - -
Louis G. Savinetti presently serves as Commissioner of Human Resources for the Town of Oyster Bay.