Holiday visitors to NYC are reminded to take a horse and carriage ride through Central Park. This is the best way that you can support this predominantly Irish profession. (And, it's possible to negotiate the price.) NYC Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio again threatens this 100+ year old tradition. Union drivers invited de Blasio to visit the three West side stables he publicly condemned. But, the Mayor never showed up. What's next for de Blasio's? Bread pretzel stands? Hot chestnut street sellers? He isn't after the rapper, street acrobats in City Hall Park who pressure onlookers to make "donations" hour after hour each weekday. More on the horse and carriage issue, from Irish Central below. Barb ----------------------- New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has gotten back on the horse, so to speak, and is once again spearheading a charge against the horse and carriage trade in Central Park. Last week the mayor announced a plan to reduce the number of horse carriages from the current level of 230 by two-thirds. The plan also calls for the horses to be stabled in Central Park instead of where they currently reside on the far West Side of Manhattan, so they can avoid traffic on city streets. De Blasio heavily courted the anti-horse carriage lobby during his run for mayor in 2013, and promised to eliminate the traditionally Irish industry on “day one” of his mayoralty. The lobby, led by main group NYCLASS, donated heavily to de Blasio’s campaign, and has consistently called on the mayor to make good on his promise. Eliminating the much-loved horse and carriage trade, however, has proven politically thorny and unpopular with the public. A bill to quash the horses and offer jobless carriage drivers a license to operate green taxis outside of Manhattan was introduced in the City Council last December but was never acted on because a majority of members have not signaled support. Continued here> http://www.irishcentral.com/news/irishvoice/New-Yorks-horse-and-carriage-drivers-nix-Bill-de-Blasios-new-plans-VIDEOS.html