Thanks to the NY State government’s inability to pass a budget (plus a petulant, impotent governor), 55 State parks and historic sites are closed. This action is saving an astounding $11 million dollars (or about on tenth of one percent of our current deficit). That doesn’t figure all the lost revenue for entrance and usage fees, of course, so the “savings” are quite a bit less (according to this, for every million “saved” $350,000 in revenue is lost, making that $11 million more like $7.15 million). It isn’t so much about the money, though; closing parks makes everybody’s quality of life a little bit crappier. Good work, guys. And might I add, you all suck.

Speaking of sucking, some good news (supposedly) from the site of the former Deep Horizon offshore drilling platform, as BP has managed to shove a mile long tube into the drill hole, and is sucking up some of the spewing oil. No idea how much they’re managing to suck up, and the oil that’s already out there appears to have entered the major current that will bring it through the Florida Keys and up the East Coast. Sweet.

Speaking of sweet, Bernie Kerik is scheduled to begin his four-year stint in the slammer today (unless he tries to make a break for it) for lying to Bush Administration officials trying to vet him in advance of his nomination to be Secretary of Homeland Security. It is, of course, a total miscarriage of justice (at least according to Bernie).

“Words cannot express my disappointment in the prosecutors and the judge’s behavior, and his sentence that followed,” Kerik wrote on his blog Sunday.

“I have repeatedly expressed remorse for what I may have done, however, unlike many, I can’t remain silent in the face of what I believe has been a gross injustice, which I pray will be remedied by an appellate court.”

Hey, he said he was sorry. What the hell more do you want? And all he did was lie a little, right?

Kerik, 54, pleaded guilty in November to tax fraud and six other felonies. He has been under house arrest in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, since then.

Oh, house arrest. For tax fraud and six other felonies. I bet Bernie was a big advocate of house arrest and a kinder, gentler Criminal Justice system when he was NYC police commissioner.