Toxic Sediment

The US Army Corps of Engineers began a massive cleanup of the Buffalo River on Sept. 2, part of a plan to clean 43 of the most toxic hot spots on the Great Lakes. When completed, over 600,000 cubic yards (or roughly six courics) of sludge will have been dredged from the river bottom.

Freedom of Facebook

In the first ever ruling of its kind, a judge ruled on Sept. 2 that the nonprofit Hispanics United of Buffalo unlawfully fired five employees for posting negative comments about working conditions on their Facebook pages. That’s right, social networkers:total immunity to rip that ass of a boss you have.

Yoko Goal-No

Though ever elusive with details about his personal life, Sabres goalie Ryan Miller allegedly tied the knot with sort-of actress and total hottie Noureen DeWulf on Sept. 3 at a private ceremony on the West Coast. You heard it first here, folks: Let the Ryan Miller to the LA Kings rumors begin.

Barrier Breakers

The Buffalo Bills released tackle Ed Wang—subject of an Artvoice cover story last year and an unending number of oh-so-clever puns—on Sept. 3, putting a halt to his career as the first full-blooded Chinese player in the NFL. It’s not like we predicted stardom for the kid or anything, but disappointing nonetheless.

Karma

Just days after he criticized Mark Croce’s pleas for funding to rehab the ailing Statler Towers, “Mad” Carl Paladino was slapped by a Buffalo housing judge on Sept. 6 with an order to make repairs to the derelict Greystone Building down-town. T-minus five minutes before he comes crying for his own slice of public aid.

Difference in millions of dollars between estimates a city-hired accountant and the Canisius business school dean ($4.1 million) of lost pay and pension benefits for 13 white Buffalo firefighters passed over for promotion. The ongoing lawsuit stems from civil service exam scores that were tossed out due to poor minority performance.