Islamophobia

Proving again that he is a friend to all minorities, Carl Paladino launched a TV spot last week claiming that if elected, he’d use eminent domain (with dubious legality) to stop construction of an Islamic cultural center near Ground Zero. Keep it classy, Carl.

Rookie Paydays

The Buffalo Bills’ annual protracted negotiations with their first-round pick finally came to an end on Aug. 6 with the 5-year, $25 million signing of running back C.J. Spiller. Here’s hoping his career doesn’t resemble that of the Bills’ other young millionaires.

"Special" Cookies

Five Grand Island boaters were taken to ECMC on Aug. 7 after suffering allergic reactions from eating pot-laced cookies. The space cookies were sent to the police lab for testing where they likely disappeared before any answers could be found.

Cat Food

When Buffalo police pulled over Gary Korkuc, 51, of Cheektowaga during an Aug. 8 traffic stop they discovered Korkuc’s cat “marinating” in a cage with salt, chilis, and oil. Korkuc allegedly planned to eat his cat because it was “mean to him.”

Swedish Offerings

ECHD chairman Jordan Levy claimed on Aug. 9 that the Scandinavian mega-retailer IKEA was among a list of 10 potential “anchors” to replace Bass Pro at Canal Side. If you thought the installation instructions were tough on the last tenant, just wait.

Billions of gallons of untreated sewage dumped into the Great Lakes by five Rust Belt cities­—including Buffalo—every year. This is the equivalent of how much water flows over Niagara Falls every 15 hours. The study, released by the Healing Our Waters Coalition on Aug. 10, cites cash strapped cities and their poor infrastructure for allowing sewers to overflow and pollute the lakes. They estimate the cost of fixing the problem at $23.3 billion and $500 locally.