One could get really snarky....but it is way too easy and therefore not so amusing.

Yeah, I had him pegged as a Guns N Roses fan...

Merritt told Sam, "Don't you cry," because even though we might be in for a "November rain," the new stadium will have covered grandstands--so much luxury it will feel like a real "Paradise city." Sam replied that while it will take some "Patience," he expects the deed to get done. Take it easy, "Sweet Child O' Mine," he cautioned Merritt.

I think Adams promised Paulson he'd deliver this Paradise City, even if it means using Chinese Democracy.

One other Merritt friends of note:

* John Canzano. Should journalists be "friending" their subjects? Their facebook relationship might well be professional--but it looks fishy.

So weird. Not that opportunistic, predatory personalities should habitually and relentlessly feign personable friendliness, but that absolutely flat shallow taste should always be part of the equation. Guns N Roses? Really? Is it really that bad? I don't know, that is surprising. Guns N Roses?

What is surprising, at least to me, is that a mayor who aspires to put his city on the "international stage" would be a friend on the Facebook page of someone the mayor is supposedly negotiating with at arm's length for a project requiring public funding.

I thought this had to be a Photoshop job, done for a cheap laugh. Now I am sad.

"Friending" someone on facebook shows that one has a personal connection with another outside of professional arenas. This means there is a relationship between Paulson and Adams outside of City Hall that could be unduly influencing favoritism within the Mayor's office and providing Paulson with special treatment.

That's called Cronyism and is not only unethical, it is potentially illegal.

If Sam was smart he'd recuse himself from any further votes on the MLS issue given his "friendship" with Paulson.

Perhaps too much is being read into this--some people use facebook for professional contacts; the website doesn't distinguish different types of relationships (other than allowing users to specify who their spouse or SO is). Everyone else is a "friend".

But still... smells just a tad fishy.

I was going to say much the same thing--many politicians really just accept anyone who sends them a friend request. (Many politicians, in fact, don't ever read the Facebook pages that "they" run.) For example, I'm "friends" with Barack Obama, though I don't think he really knows who I am. It's just a modern networking/fundraising tool that they are adapting to use for their own purposes.

Dave J - You may be on Barack Obama's Facebook page, but is he on yours?

Funny, when you go to Merrit's face book Creepy's best friend WW is to the left of Creepy.

I wonder if Mrs. Paulson shares Merrit's affection for Creepy.

It's all so enchanting.

I don't see WW when I click.

OK, so Sam has a Facebook account and is Merritt's friend. Sam's page would be more interesting since he probably uses it to troll.

"Poke Sam." Ick.

Pokemayor? Sounds like a Japanese cartoon.

Do you know how to make a Bojito? You pour sugar and fresh mint into a bathroom sink and crush a 17 year old boy against the counter. Add ice, stir, and ENJOY!