Carl Paladino is not a bad guy... and I say this as a social progressive. A friend of mine knows him very VERY well personally. The reality is, the guy isn't a politician. He's not polished, he's rough around the edges, and he doesn't speak in sound bites given to him by his PR people. He says what's on his mind, not what he thinks people want to hear just to get their vote. He is a businessman, and yes, he's gotten some great government contracts, but he's gotten them because he's consistently been a low bidder for projects and is just good at what he does. The man is self-made and painfully honest -- often to his detriment.
The media loves to make him seem like a buffoon, because they only pick up the bits and pieces that will make for good ratings. Fiscally, he's got some great ideas and he wouldn't be beholden to special interests. Socially, yeah, he's a bit ass backward.
What it'll come down to is what's important to people... vote for a candidate that may really shake things up in Albany because he's not part of the establishment, and may be the first shot at actually fixing what has been a very broken system for a very long time, even though you may not agree with him on social issues; or vote for the candidate who is just another cog in the Albany machine because he's in line with your positions socially?
I can honestly say I'm not really sure who I'll vote for come November.