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I'm kind of surprised that NYC publishes its own paper of record.

Both its population and its budget exceed those of most US states and most countries - "most" being a literal majority and not an exaggeration.

Does that make it less surprising? Publishing such a paper is routine for national governments around the world, as well as US states.

Indeed, and the city probably has open government laws requiring it to publish all of its business. For a town above a certain size, self-publishing may simply be the most economical route. In my little town, they just include a section of public notices in the local paper every week.

Yeah, not only do the city and state have applicable open government laws, this paper ranges in size from 16 pages to 100 according to the article. (The current edition is 36 pages.)

Combining those facts with the small number of copies that are still physically printed - nowadays it's mostly read for free online - doing it themselves is the only plausible option.

And a police force that likewise rivals militaries both in size and equipment.

Absolutely. NYPD has more employees than the FBI, and lots of powerful capabilities.

https://www.salon.com/2012/09/28/nine_terrifying_facts_about...

(And that link doesn't even account for any changes in the ~6.5 years since it was published...)

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