I’ll Start A Fire When It Comes To Equal Rights

When I minored in Women’s Studies in college, I thought I was in the right place and that my intellectual appetite would be satisfied after taking numerous courses that proved to be liberating. However, after reading hundreds of books on how women are considered the “weaker sex” and how our sociological history hasn’t benefited us the way we wanted, it seems like we’ve come a long way… but we STILL face too many challenges in society.

LIFT HEAVY MEN – THAT'S WHAT!

I’m all for equal rights and being treated with the same professional respect as men. However, I’m not going to ignore the facts that there are some jobs suited for a man that a woman – no matter what her physical or mental shape may be – is qualified to handle.

I’ve covered lots of fires over the past decade while reporting for the Canarsie Courier. One of the worst fires I witnessed was last February – when FDNY officials had to violently bust windows out of a two-family home on Conklin Avenue to ventilate the building and access all the rooms. Every firefighter carried what look like over a ton of gear and the ferociousness they demonstrated while walking into the blazing building seemed effortless.

I honestly can’t say I’ve ever seen a female fighter respond to the scene of a fire. When I think about what it takes to barrel through possibly heavy, water-logged debris in the midst of a fire and lift a 160 pound person to safety, I DON’T think about a woman carrying out the rescue efforts.

Sometimes, admitting you’re weak is your biggest strength. Therefore, when the FDNY began discussions on testing methods which reportedly keep women from joining the department, my first thought was: Are women physically strong enough to carry out the demands that come with being a firefighter?

Let’s get real! You want to fight for equal rights and have the same opportunities as men but when the Fire Department calls for you to undergo rigorous drills that include raising a ladder up a wall while wearing an oxygen tank, you might rethink your career path.

How many women in the community really want to be firefighters? Some might say the FDNY is using discriminatory means of recruiting employees. When I read in the NY Daily News that Queens Democrat Elizabeth Crowley, chairwoman of the Committee on Fire and Criminal Justice Services said, “It is time we break down any barriers that still exist for women to become New York City firefighters.”

I don’t think they should change the test to accommodate women! Even a woman who fulfills the basic physical requirements of being a firefighter will have to accept their challenges. Could most women – even they’re six feet tall and work out – lift someone twice their weight while carrying apparatus on their backs?

Don’t take this the wrong way ladies, but if you expect to start a family and take maternity leave from the FDNY – you’re NOT proving you’re equal to man, who can remain on the job and report to duty every day as long as he’s physically capable. The Fire Department shouldn’t lower its standards or tests just to give more women a chance, thus increasing overall enrollment.

Furthermore, I think it’s a sign of weakness that women only want to have the doors open to them because a certain career or field or lacks an outstanding female population. Big deal! If men are the ones primarily applying for any job – it’s our responsibility to show just as much interest in that field – whether it’s in construction, electrical work or even home improvement. Any of you ladies out there own your own contracting business where YOU crawl underneath homes and line up ladders along roofs to string wires? I don’t see too many women taking jobs where their physical endurance is put to the test.

Sometimes, women are their own worst enemies when it comes to complaining about their rights – and then when it comes to which jobs they truly wouldn’t apply for because they’re…women! We can’t deny that our physical differences (the fact that we’re more likely to suffer from osteoporosis and the fact that menopause ruins our post-menstrual years in life) often keep us from carrying out everyday tasks.

I wouldn’t want to be put to the test, physically knowing that I can’t meet the challenges put forth by the FDNY – even well into my early 50s when my body starts going through Mother Nature’s next round of changes!

I DO think women should join their local CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) programs. Knowing CPR, disaster preparedness and basic life-saving skills as a first responder are beneficial to all genders – whether you have the physical abilities or not.

There are some physically demanding jobs that women just don’t want and I don’t think they’re cut out for. Feminists, activists and protesters can make all the noise they want about “inequality”…or they can fill out an FDNY application, grab a 70 pound ladder and climb the walls with tons of weights and an oxygen tank on their back. That’ll show them to fire back!

Unpublished as of 12-23-15

I’ll Be Canarsie’s Fortune Teller – Or Realist – For 2015

Last year, I predicted that a slew of incidents would take place in 2014 (“More Of The Same In 2014 – Don’t Say You Weren’t Warned,” December 26, 2013). The influx of car accidents, group homes, more shootings “with no casualties,” and increased beautification projects that go virtually unrecognized were visible in my “fortune telling” crystal ball in 2014. 

It’s interesting when people say Canarsie’s getting worse – but I content that matters are going to stay the same and that residents are going to be even more angry with no real civic outlet.

So what’s more of the “worst” we’re going to see in 2015? Last year the Canarsie Courier covered reoccurring issues that didn’t get resolved. Who can we thank for this? Good question!

 

More Secrets And A Lot Of: “Nothing’s Going On”: What happened down the block from you that all those cops and fire trucks showed up? Why was that house cordoned off for 12 hours – yet once the caution tape was removed, you’d never know something happened? It’s no mystery – well, actually it IS a mystery – why we sometimes have no information on an incident that happened in our community. We’ve gotta “hear it through the grapevine,” our neighbors or hope that someone official knows someone who knows someone who can give us an idea if our safety’s been compromised. As the press, I’m offended when we’re kept in the dark about happenings in our community. How could the press reassure residents that the 50 cars they saw cordoning off your block turned out to be “nothing”?  Even if “nothing” happened, wouldn’t it be great if someone informed us of that fact? Guess some secrets are better left untold…

 Timmmmmmberrrr!!!: Yep, there’s no doubt in my mind that even more trees in the community will be chopped up, sawed down and nothing but a disgusting stump will be left behind. I predict that we’ll get hundreds of phone calls by the end of 2015 about contractors going out on a limb to wipe out rotted and centuries old trees. Let’s get real – is it really REALLY a big deal when the city finally decides to cut a tree down? Fine, the tree was “dangerous” and a hazard to nearby homes…Thanks to former Mayor Mike Bloomberg, MORE trees are being planted every day to make this fine city “greener.” If the Courier is still around in 100 years, we’ll get more calls about those very trees being removed. No offense to all you tree huggers, but Mother Nature’s beauties have to come down some time – and it’s usually not the most shocking news going on out there!...

More Housing Nightmares: In the almost 11 years I’ve been reporting, I’ve never covered so many stories on so many horrible looking apartments in New York City Housing. It’s only within the last year that we’ve gotten an overwhelming amount of calls about leaks, mold, bugs and other conditions you’d think you’d find in an apartment in a Third World country. Doesn’t NYCHA read the headlines – namely ours when they make the feeds? Don’t they care that they’re slowing killing their tenants, who are mostly low-income residents that deserve the same rights as middle class renters?

Dumping: In 2014, it seems like we covered more dumping stories than most years. With people taking their bulk refuse or passersby trashing their crap at Rockaway Parkway near the westbound entrance to the Belt Parkway, dumping is a never ending battle. I predict we’re going to see more overflowing and inappropriate use of trash receptacles along Avenue L, Rockaway Parkway and Flatlands Avenue. Whoever you are – STOP DUMPING ON US! If you live in Canarsie and just don’t have the patients for the Sanitation Department to pick up your trash…TOO BAD! I’ve never seen so many Canarsie streets randomly chosen for dumping. We’re not just talking about weeded areas or people using construction sites their personal landfill. We’re talking about trash on private properties and near city parks where volunteers spend hours trying to tidy up. I think more illegal dumping signs need to be posted for violators and that fines should be raised.

No matter what stories we run over and over, we’re curious what’s gonna irk everyone and NOT change our headlines. Come on, let’s clean up 2015!

To be published in 1-1-15 edition of Canarsie Courier

Come On! Interview ME About A Movie That’s Not A Culture Shock!

  Unless a film strikes me as rare and out of this world – and one that won’t make a statement by seeing it on a simple television – I refuse to go to a movie theater. I don’t even remember the last time I went to see a movie in a theater. There’s too much hype over the whole theater “experience” and the price of sitting in a popcorn and butter-strewn cushioned seat is unacceptable no matter what movie you’re dying to see.

Honestly, even if the movie “The Interview” was regarded the way most politically incorrect films are viewed in America, I still wouldn’t see it! If this is just another American movie that has potential to promote terrorism or a presidential assassination, why is everyone so obsessed with what will happen if it’s released to the masses?

There are a few movies I thoroughly enjoyed. I didn’t go to a theater to see them, but they promoted homegrown terrorism and gives people all sorts of ideas on how to infiltrate our government and potentially wipe out OUR OWN president! The catch? Some of the terrorist-like characters – well most – are AMERICANS!

Ever see 2009’s “The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3”? I remember feeling anxious while watching this movie, which stars John Travolta and Denzel Washington. We’re ALL scared that our subway system will be hijacked by terrorists – that someone from a Third World country is plotting to destroy our mass transit system. However, here’s a movie that says: “You don’t have to be from Al Qaeda to jeopardize our entire city’s train system.”

Another movie that advertises the ease of accessing high profile buildings is “Man On A Ledge,” released in 2012. This is a typical movie about a high-stakes diamond heist that’s carried out while an ex-con (an American, mind you) threatens to jump from a Manhattan hotel roof. Hey – let’s send a message to thieves and terrorists that they can cause a mass distraction and diversion if they want to carry out a crime in another location in our city!

Sure, “The Interview” is one of the few “controversial” films getting media attention because it’s about Americans who plan to assassinate a dictator – North Korea's Kim Jong Un – a move most critics feel will cause retaliation and threats to our country. I just don’t understand why Sony decided not to release the 112-minute film when we’ve got TONS of other movies where our own citizens play characters who inadvertently give terrorist ideas on how to carry out a crime!

One of my favorite movies is “Contraband,” which stars Mark Wahlberg as a former smuggler who gets back in the treacherous game to save his brother from a drug lord. It’s an edge-of-your-seat film that demonstrates how contraband is ever-so-carefully hidden in large cargo on a barge traveling from one country to another. Is this the kind of movie we should be releasing? Why aren’t we raving over films which clearly teach terrorists that, if they’re clever and fast enough, they could smuggle tons of explosives, money and drugs on any cargo and get away with it!

I know the movies probably exaggerate the scenario – and that Homeland Security would say, “That’s just a movie – it’s not that easy in real life.” Well, “The Interview” is just a movie too! And if it’s JUST a movie, why are we afraid of repercussions or terrorist acts that the Feds swear they’ve been preventing since 9-11??

It also irks me that Americans can produce movies about our own president being assassinated – and no one really hesitated after their release. “Death Of A President,” released in 2006, was noted as “controversial,” as it depicted the fictional assassination of President George W. Bush. Some thought that it could “inspire a real assassination.”

How many films have been released in the past 100 years that could possibly “inspire” any number of horrific incidents? We’re going to start worrying NOW that our First Amendment rights – and our right to be entertained – will be threatened?

So, they ask, how would we like to see a movie produced by another country about our president being killed? If WE can produce movies about our president being killed, isn’t it a tad hypocritical? It’s okay for US to kill our own president in a violent film, but it’s not okay for another nation to do so?

When you watch documentaries about politicians in America who were assassinated, it’s usually seen as an “inside job” that was plotted for months and years – by another American! What’s more, you hear about the CIA and the Feds hiding the administration-involved murder or homicide.

If you ask me, we’re not demonstrating that we’re a country whose colors don’t run. Our movie industry is BASED on the shock value and impact of film directors, writers and producers. Our movies are known to provoke violent thoughts – whether it’s Americans carrying out a crime or preventing terrorist acts that mimic real life incidents. If you want to argue that it's the wrong time of year - Christmas Day – to release this kind of movie - that's another cop out reason to cow down to "threats" that our government is supposed to protect us from.

Go ahead, Sony, cancel the movie and cause an uproar over Seth Rogan’s typical Hollywood performance…I’ll be among the thousands of people yawning and moving on to the next film that they have no interest in seeing.

Want even more in-your-face insight? Check out my blog at http://dtellingitlikeitis.blogspot.com/, where you’ll find past “Telling It Like It Is” columns as well as new and unpublished works. Feedback is welcome!

There’s Nothing Like An Inebriated Santa To Keep Spirits Bright!

 Remember when you were a kid and you left cookies and milk for Santa Claus by the Christmas tree? Okay, that’s not something I ever did, but I always wondered – what if Santa makes a ruckus and wakes everyone up? What if he trips over your stuff? What if he had a little too much eggnog and now he’s fumbling all over the place? There’s gonna be food everywhere!

Keep drinking - but not in one of our bars Santa!

Believing in Santa Claus isn’t just about the spirit of Christmas and the warmth of giving – it’s about believing in someone who represents classiness, respect and generosity. Santa is also the epitome of a child’s ideal Christmas – after sitting on his big red velvet-draped lap and perhaps after yanking his snowy white beard, they put in a request that will hopefully get fulfilled – that’s if they were “nice” and not “naughty.”

Hence, it’s unnatural for children to see Santa Claus inebriated – right? Well, if it were up to the crazies who take part in the ever-so-popular SantaCon, kids everywhere will really know what happens to Jolly Old Saint Nick after he’s been partying all night.

Hey – wait – how is Santa supposed to take care of all his Christmas matters if he’s getting ripped at a sports bar in Bushwick?

SantaCon looks like one of those crazy traditions that gives party animals an excuse to get hammered while dressing up for the holidays. Nothing says “Merry Christmas” like vomit and violence! While I don’t think those who participate in SantaCon should necessarily be banned from bars, I do think bar and restaurant owners have a right to prevent riots and drunken outbursts by posting signs that SantaCon members aren’t welcomed.  

Who’s going to take responsibility if and when things get out of hand? When bar owners have to call the police because someone won’t leave after last call…or when someone passes out and gets violently ill…Should a business owner have to be on guard because they know a herd of party animals is ready to bring the kind of attention that college kids attract during a crazy frat house get together?

I contend that it doesn’t matter what a group of people is wearing – be it Santa suits, Halloween costumes, or their own unique party attire…An unruly crowd is an unruly crowd! In Canarsie and surrounding areas, when you have a crowd that gets out of control and a shooting or stabbing occurs, sometimes the establishment will close or their liquor license doesn’t get renewed because of all the violence that takes place and because of all the complaints received from members of the community.

Maybe bars owners trying escape the reign of Santa’s celebration should have simply closed their business altogether so a legal advisor wouldn’t claim the ban as – what –“celebrationally unconstitutional?” or a “celebration discrimination?”

Not for nuthin,’ but it sounds like too many bad incidents have happened over the years that led to bar owners not wanting thousands of swanky Santa-suit-wearing drunkards on their property. In my opinin, they have every right to turn away drunkards who could cause damage and run amok.

The same way businesses have a “no shirt, no shoes, no business” rule, implemented 356 days of the year, why can’t establishments implemeny a “no drunken Santa” rule?

Perhaps SantaCon celebrants have considered renting a hall just for themselves where they’re not infringing on the safety of the general public. There’s no guarantee that a brawl won’t break out at the catered affair, but at least they’ll only have themselves to answer to!

Santa’s got a lot of people on his list who have been naughty this year – but there are better ways of keeping the North Pole warm and merry than dousing your liver with booze and getting rowdy and wrecked. Happy Sober Santa celebrating!

(For 12-18-14 edition of Canarsie Courier)

NYPD “Puppets” Are Going To Be On Display For A Long Time

Lights, camera, ACTION!

After all of the riots going on all over the country following news that two white police officers won’t be convicted of killing two black men in our country, the public won’t stop asking: how can we improve relations between cops and the community? 

In New York, we’re going to try equipping our cops with small body cameras to capture those special moments when police feel like whipping their guns out to shoot someone who allegedly “poses a clear threat” to their lives. These cameras, which will be placed on police officers working in some of the city’s most crime ridden precincts, will also capture the moments before, during and after an officer makes any “unethical” moves that will be challenged by the public and civil rights leaders.

I have a feeling this is going to be one of those columns where I pose endless rhetorical questions that not too many people can directly answer. However, there are a lot of unanswered questions that will leave protesters unsettled – leading to MORE outrage and MORE arrests by police officers. This is a revolving door society – and whatever police departments across the country decide to do to tame racial tensions between police and civilians, in my opinion, will never work.

How can we ease tensions between civilians and police? How can we improve interactions between cops and residents so that there is less violence and tragedy?

From what I observe in our community, police officers are not trained to truly interact with the community. I don’t count shoving people away from police lines and telling them they’re “interfering with police activity” as interacting. I don’t count “we can’t tell you anything…just back off” as interacting.

After cops graduate from the Academy, what are they taught about enforcing the law while simultaneously developing a rapport with residents? Are they just puppets being controlled by heads of the department to end someone’s life if they see fit? Are we ever going to have police officers THEMSELVES talk to the community? Do we have any NYPD sessions in our community where the very cops who patrol our streets talk to people in an open forum? If there has been, the Canarsie Courier doesn’t know about it. It seems like police officers don’t have to answer to the public, only their “higher ups” and “bigwigs” such as Community Affairs and youth officers can say a few words to the public.

How about the way teenagers view police? Parents, during interviews with the media, claim they’ve “had talks with their children about their chances of being stopped and questioned by a police officer because of factors such as their race.” Are any police officers – and not ones who are retired from the force – going to speak with the public? They’re not supposed to. Why?

What is the NYPD doing – DOING – action-wise to improve their reputation among residents? Fortunately, that question DOES have answer. Last week Mayor de Blasio said the NYPD is going to retrain officers and “improve the dynamic” between police and the community. They’re going to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to teach cops to respond in a less violent manner. So they won’t use the “excessive force” that was demonstrated on Eric Garner.

Aren’t police officers’ reputations already stained?

Aren’t there so many cases where the police department simply can’t save their image – such as the “accidental” shooting at the Pink Houses in East New York which left a 28-year-old unarmed man dead for literally NO reason?

Let’s get real! You can retrain them – re-wire them…re-string them…They’re still going to listen to the puppeteer! Be it good ole Mr. Bratton, de Blasio himself, their captains, deputy inspectors, or the sergeants and lieutenants they work with at their assigned precincts. The cops themselves, who patrol the streets aren’t going to engage in conversation with the public to change their reputation. Right???

It also doesn’t sound like police will want to get to know people in the neighborhoods which they patrol. During many civic meetings I’ve been to, people complain about the horrible “attitude” cops have – and the lack of courteousness received from them in general.  From a civilians’ standpoint, it looks as if police aren’t allowed to be personable with people – they’re not allowed to talk to civilians in a… civil manner!

We’re not asking cops to make friends with everyone they come across. We're not asking them to give up their “I’m tougher and better than you” demeanor – although that would help!

The foundation of a good relationship – of any kind – is communication, and there’s little of that when it comes to police and residents. Yes, their job is to enforce the law and keep order, but the disrespect communities have for police officers is growing and causing more disorder.

I might be offering a petty and simple-minded idea that will never play a role in law enforcement – where officers are friendly to youths and professionally greeted those whom they protect. Let’s see if “reform” really makes police officer New York’s finest!

(Unpublished as of 11-5-14)

It’s A Bloody Shame…But THAT’S What’s Going On!

Images of bloodied bodies on the ground...Lives taken by heartless and ruthless tyrants who used meat cleavers to butcher the innocent. Images of the bloody meat cleaver – and blood smeared on the floor – flash before your eyes.

This isn't a scene from one of the Canarsie Courier's front pages…and this isn't the description of a murder that took place in our small, “quaint” community. These are the images shown by The Daily News following the horrific attack in a Jerusalem synagogue after Palestinian terrorists attacked four rabbis and a police officer. Three of the rabbis were Amercians.

If you haven't seen the crimson images of religious books swimming in puddles of blood or lifeless bodies lying in the synagogue after the attack, you might want to shield your eyes – THIS is what's going on in the world!

We've gotten a lot of slack recently for featuring bloody photos and dead bodies on our front page. Whether you choose to not buy the paper or you want to put on rose-colored glasses and deny that violence exists in our community, think about the fact that the media has a job to do – deliver the truth!

Some want to cover up the violence and say, “This doesn't happen in my community.” They don't want to accept that the images we publish are proof that irrational people with weapons (even their car can be considered a weapon) takes so many lives. On the flip side, when the Canarsie Courier doesn’t publish updates on certain crimes, we get complaints that there’s “nothing in the paper” about what happened right on their block!

How about the rabbis in Jerusalem? We know that terrorist attacks often take place in this region... We know that the violence will never end because there are “irrational” terrorists who don’t care about anything but their religious mission. Our community, in many ways, is just like theirs – riddled with the same irrational people who feel shooting or killing someone is justified due to a vendetta. What separates local incidents from violence that takes place in other countries is that religious violence and terrorism is often aimed at a group of people and their beliefs – whereas as a shooting here in Canarsie is a so-called “personal” battle that thugs take into their own hands.

Let’s get real! No matter what community you're living in, no matter what country you live in, images of violence will follow you! Not everything in life is about sunshine, trees and award ceremonies. There's something about a gruesome scene – there's something about the moment right after a brutal murder took place – that piques people's interest!

Okay…You can NOT look at the news and stay in the closet for the rest of your life. You can turn off the TV or pop a copy of “The Sound Of Music” into your DVD player.

But you're never going to escape reality.

The frightening images that were published after the 9/11 attacks were more than gruesome. I'm not just talking about photos or videos of the buildings coming down. I'm referring to photos of city workers covered in blood from the attacks….The graphic photos of bodies being pulled from the rubble…Don’t look!

Did you shield your eyes when they published photos of the victims from the Boston Marathon bombing? That town is someone's “small, quiet community” which was marred by violence – and if you saw photos of runners' limbs blown off, the blood bath that followed was probably one of the most goory scenes displayed by the media in recent years.

The Daily News didn't hesitate to put the blood and guts of both acts of violence on their front pages. This is their job – to show the public what's out there and to show us the cruel world we're living in, big city or small town.

Another reason violence needs to be published is because it changes how our city responds to tragedy. For example, outrage at the attacks in Jerusalem reached New York City a few hours after the slayings. Jewish houses of worship were placed under tight security and the attack provoked even more protests among spiritual leaders.

Want to know the most disturbing part of covering local violence? When a murder takes place in our community and we're “outraged” – what do we do? Do you see herds (and I mean hundreds of residents) taking the streets on THE SAME DAY? When a car accident happens at a corner and it's splattered on our front page, who's standing at that street or road picketing and protesting for better traffic enforcement? NO ONE!

If you’re outraged at the violence – like many communities are when someone “innocent” is killed – why not organize an epic social movement? What are you afraid of?

In our community, the 69th Precinct Clergy Council shows its presence at least once a month where crimes have occurred – and the number of participants who come out to show their support and outrage are dwindling. Where are the people who don’t like to see violence? They make all this noise, but, when push comes to shove, they’re nowhere to be seen…

I'll be honest, I couldn't take my eyes off of those Daily News images – riddled with gore, dead bodies and senselessness. But I accepted that violence is part of every community, in every country. Logging off the computer and not seeing the photos would be a lot easier. However, I'd rather be a realist than live in a fantasy world where everything is perfect.

(Unpublished as of 11-19-2014)

It’s Gonna Be A Slow Road To Preventing Accidents In The City

Motorists who didn’t bother adhering to the old 30 mph speed limit are probably laughing at city officials. “I’ll go however fast I need to go – what’s lowering the speed by a few numbers gonna do?”

Those who read my column earlier this year know that I refer to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s initiative as “Zero Vision” rather than “Vision Zero” because a lot of residents won’t follow rules of the road no matter what “vision” is put in front of us.

Okay – maybe we should give this new speed limit thing a try. It’s only been in effect for a few weeks – sometimes it takes a while for people to follow rules and become accustomed to a new law or regulation, right? Maybe drivers who clearly went way over the speed limit to begin with will notice these 25 mph signs all over the city and think about the preventative measures officials are trying to take to save their lives, right?

NOT LIKEY!

We can’t lie about all the car accidents we’ve seen in the community. Drivers trying to beat the light and blowing through stop signs…Pedestrians walking into the middle of the street while traffic is zooming by…Drivers cutting each other off or jumping the curb because they were “swerving to avoid another car"….

Let’s get real! There are plenty of accidents and casualties that aren’t a result of speeding.  Careless drivers and pedestrians who don’t follow the rules of the road are two factors the city has no control over. Hence, officials have “Zero Vision” for the city, in my opinion.

Another reason I don’t think lowering the speed limit will work – ever – is because the city has so many residents and visitors from different walks of life who practice different driving habits. You’ve got drivers from New Jersey who can make a right turn on a red light – something that’s illegal in New York. You’ve got new residents from the Caribbean, and other islands, who are first learning the rules of the road in the city. Then, of course, you’ve got drivers who just don't care and attempt that illegal U-turn when oncoming traffic is clearly approaching too closely – or that motorcyclist who speeds up on  Remsen Avenue or Rockaway Parkway – trying to beat a driver making a turn onto another avenue.

I don’t think de Blasio and Company truly investigated the causes of most accidents in the city that weren’t a result of speeding. Sure, there’s an entire report on what “Zero Vision” plans to address – including stronger enforcement and driver and pedestrian education. The city’s also going to “implement safety engineering improvements”…Wow, sounds like a complicated term – and a lot of work!

If you’ve read about the reported difference in the survival rate of accident victims– in light of decreasing the speed limit – it seems silly to realistically think that you have a better chance of surviving in the event that ANY moving object plows into you. I’ve been to communities all over the city where pedestrians and drivers are practicing bad road rules – or NO rules at all!

It’s not going to “take time” for residents to get used to and adhere to the new speed limit. And I don’t think, in time, that we’ll see fewer accidents as a result of “Zero Vision” being implemented. In the past few weeks there were numerous fatalities and injuries that were simply a result of drivers not following basic road rules.

On November 13th, six people were reportedly injured after a car – traveling in the wrong direction on the FDR Drive – slammed into two other cars. Going in the wrong direction??? The Daily News reported that the car was heading south on the northbound side of the freeway. WHY? Didn’t this driver account for the fact that they were going the wrong way? Isn’t following traffic – in the designated lane – going in the RIGHT direction – a fundamental driving concept? 
What's great about some careless drivers is that they often get away with illegal moves without a causing an accident. Dangerous drivers take a chance that no one's going to get hurt or killed. Sadly, that one time they thought they could pull off that vehicular "stunt" they've ended their life or someone else's.

It’s not about getting people used to new rules – or enforcing rules that are probably obvious to anyone with common sense, which isn’t so common! “Zero Vision” will only work if everyone living and visiting the city MAKES it work by being conscious of how their driving habits can end or ruin others' lives! 

Just keep track of how many accidents take place within the next few months – and your mind will be racing, like those speeding cars, for a better solution.

(Unpublished as of 11/13/14)

Schools Ain’t What They Used To Be

When I was assigned to cover the story of Public School 114 being in danger of closing, I was taken back even though I didn’t attend the elementary school. If there’s not something seriously wrong with the oldest school in Canarsie closing, I don’t know what is!

Locally, I attended public schools 276 and 115, then Isaac Bildersee Intermediate School 68. It’s ironic that while attending these fine Canarsie schools, I don’t recall politicians or anyone else ever contributing money to reconstruct a new library, gymnasium, computer room or other creative learning resource in those buildings. So it surprised me even more to realize that P.S. 114, a school which had just received a newly renovated computer lab and library in the past four years, is in danger of closing. 

How could it be that these schools weren’t in danger of closing when I was young when there were NO resources?

Our computer classes were repetitious, low-quality lessons on how to use the home keys (which I never do now, anyway) and play games on floppy disks. In P.S. 276 and P.S. 115, the librarian would throw 10 books at a table of 6 students and we’d attack the pile like piranhas who haven’t eaten in a week. Even though Bildersee Junior High School used to have separate boys and girls’ locker rooms so we could put our things away, ten classes piled into the gym and we stood around doing nothing for 40 minutes. Girls walked around and gossiped and boys might have played basketball or chased each other around. There was no order and we all got the same grade based on doing nothing. And the teachers did nothing as well.

Yet, a fine school like P.S. 114, whose staff at some point in time developed meaningful curriculum and programs which made students work and learn, is crumbling. While politicians now put a lot of money into local schools to make them look more modern and better than when I attended, the schools seem to be doing worse than ever.

For example, every local school now has Multi- Cultural week celebrations where students cook, dance and incorporate different countries into their studies.

The closest we had to multi-cultural acknowledgement 15 years ago was taking a foreign language by force, not choice. We sat at our desks just learning words without stepping outside the classroom to actually research the language or background of what we were speaking. Students did exceptionally well all the time– and why shouldn’t they have, they were doing the minimal of sitting there repeating verbs and nouns in Spanish, Italian and French.

Yes, the demographics and dedicated school staves have changed in Canarsie and perhaps the language barrier is often a problem for some students who can’t, for whatever reason, succeed with the new technology and resources. It seems unfair that students are having their educational values threatened by the Department of Education, as well as unqualified principals and teachers, when they have so much more than some of us did when I attended local schools. 

http://www.canarsiecourier.com/news/2010-12-02/Guest_Column/Schools_Aint_What_They_Used_To_Be.html 

Some Not Taking Advantage Of FREE Health Screenings

For the first time in a long time, a recent story I reported on for the Canarsie Courier hit home in more ways than one.

A faithful advertiser, First MedCare Inc., is offering – with no strings attached – free breast, cervical and colon cancer screenings for those 40 and over who are uninsured, underinsured and even those who are undocumented.

You would think hundreds are lining up or calling the facility to get tested – the screenings are FREE and people usually don’t respond to anything unless it’s for something free. But when I interviewed the staff at First MedCare Inc., I was saddened to find out that, for whatever reason, my fellow Canarsiens are not taking advantage of this important program.  

When my father passed away last year of esophageal cancer and I learned that my grandmother passed away of stomach cancer, I panicked – and wished that I had health insurance to get screened for a variety of cancers. I also overhear people in Canarsie speaking about an acquaintance or family member who has succumbed to cancer.

Yes, some Canarsiens still seem to either fear finding out something may be wrong, they simply don’t want to know, or there may be some religious reason for choosing not to be screened. If you’re one of the many who refuse to make an appointment – maybe because you “don’t have time” or you’re going to leave it to fate and find out about your health when it’s too late, you’re only slighting yourself and not thinking of the hundreds of residents who fit the criteria and want to be screened, but they’re too young.

While screening is highly recommended for those over 40 and 50 because of the increased health risk factors later in life, younger people, such as myself, who are uninsured or underinsured, aren’t typically eligible for the program. Fortunately, I was told that I am eligible since cancer runs in my family and I was relieved to know that I can make an appointment to get screened based on being a high-risk case.

It was suggested by one of the First MedCare Inc. staff that a program like this would probably flourish in another community. I question why that is, if we’re an active community that can complain about various quality of life issues – why aren’t we as equally concerned about our own health and wellbeing?

Free screenings, which don’t seem to be highly attended, are also offered year-round by elected officials. The survival of cancer screening programs depends on Canarsiens’ participation. It just doesn’t seem logical that something good and FREE is not being taken advantage of. It’s as simple as one visit and can save your life. 

http://www.canarsiecourier.com/news/2011-05-05/Guest_Column/Some_Not_Taking_Advantage_Of_FREE_Health_Screening.html 

Rezoning And Overdevelopment Aren’t Always Good For A Community

I don’t take the same route to work every day. However, when I pass the same block a few days in a row, I see the same empty lot where a one-family house once stood and a boarded-up vacant property screams: “Here comes a four-family home!”
Thanks to City Councilman Lew Fidler, Canarsie is presently undergoing the city’s largest rezoning project to preserve the character of our community. Huge, multiple family dwellings cannot be built on property previously zoned for one- and two-family houses. Rezoning will hopefully deter developers from turning our “small-town” into an overcrowded place where everyone is literally on top of each other.

However, when you look in the classified sections of local newspapers, hundreds of residents are trying to rent rooms and illegal basement apartments. This is normally a positive thing for most neighborhoods, but not when zoning laws are overlooked.
If you recently purchased a two-family house in Canarsie and the basement was never renovated or furnished, the house was most likely always occupied by just two families. But when you decide to turn that basement into a habitable, though illegal, apartment and you rent it, it’s then occupied by three families! And if one of those three families rents a room or two in a new apartment — the residence becomes a four family home.
You can rezone, reconstruct and reorganize Canarsie however you’d like — but those who already live here in one- and two-family homes are bringing more people into the community and into their homes — illegally — and we don’t even suspect it’s taking place.


I agree that some of those gigantic condominiums look obtrusive and out of place in the middle of a block lined with the cute bungalows that have existed in our community for over a century.
My question to those objecting to more housing in Canarsie is: Would you rather the bungalow be bought by an absentee landlord, who illegally rents the rooms and a basement to a “family?” If each of the illegal occupants in that bungalow has a car, they are, in turn, crowding our streets, producing additional garbage and possibly endangering their neighbors with fire hazards.
There was a legal six-story house in The Bronx that caught fire on July 17, 2008, in which three children were injured. The incident left more than 200 people homeless and officials claimed the house was apparently not suited for so many residents.

Who’s to say that this can’t happen in a small twofamily home in Canarsie where all the rooms are unknowingly occupied/rented by people using portable heaters, air conditioners and other potentially hazardous devices? Will those landlords and homeowners ever obtain a Certificate of Occupancy from the Fire Department?

Yes, we’ve successfully fought for rezoning while many empty pits of land remain surrounded by planks of wood. But the next time you walk down a street in Canarsie — ask yourself how many people really live in that century-old single-family home.
Who knows, one day you might pass by a house and see an excessive number of people exiting like clowns emerging from a tiny car in a circus.
Those are the people who are a potential danger to you, your neighbors and our community.

http://www.canarsiecourier.com/news/2011-01-13/Letters|Opinion/OpEd.html

Who Really Loses If Walmart Is Banned In Brooklyn?

When I was 18 years old, a student at Brooklyn College and living in Canarsie, I got a job in Manhattan, working in a small “Mom and Pop” stationery store. It was annoying to have to get up early on weekends to travel outside my community for minimum wage job — it was $5.50 an hour then — that didn’t provide any benefits. We were only allowed a half hour lunch break and on the holidays we got no breaks at all.

For four years I worked at this “sweatshop”-like retail store, wishing there were more big businesses in and around Canarsie, so I wouldn’t have to commute for a job with a company that offered little to its employees. But, in order to finance my education and pursue a journalism career, I endured the hours and years of underappreciated labor.

Thinking back, it would have been great if Gateway Mall had existed in 1999 — I could have worked at one of those stores, which would have made things so much easier. It would have given me options for a decent part-time job that was, at least, closer to home.

When I read about the possibility of a Wal-Mart opening in a new Gateway shopping center, I realized that people have a right to object to the superstore — which may take away business from other area businesses.

Objections to a Walmart in Brooklyn, and other boroughs, has also stemmed from the company’s lack of care, treatment and benefits for workers.

If this is the case, why wasn’t the “Mom and Pop” shop I worked in for four grueling years brought down and protested against? We never picketed when we worked eight straight hours without a break during the busy seasons. I recently also learned that high school students, who say they are just grateful to have a job, work for my previous employer.

Of the few small, privately owned businesses still in existence in our community, I’m sure there are companies and retail stores that don’t treat their employees fairly. Some might not offer health care and only pay the new minimum wage.

Why don’t politicians start attacking those small businesses — like our beloved 99 cents stores and mini-marts — where workers sweep or shovel outside in all weather conditions, stock shelves and lift heavy parcels just to make a small salary so they can survive in this rocky economy? Employees obviously took those jobs accepting their responsibilities and work conditions.

It seems that small businesses manage to remain open because the demand is still here— and I don’t think the existence of a big box store like Walmart will change reality: if you just want a roll of toilet paper, a carton of milk, or a loaf of bread at 8 o’clock at night, you’re NOT going to travel all the way to Walmart at Gateway — you’ll probably head to one of the stores on Flatlands Avenue, Avenue L or Rockaway Parkway!

In addition, there isn’t as much retail competition in Canarsie now as there was years ago. Stores like Telco and Sona’s Gift Shop closed when their leases expired and rents were raised too high for the owners, who decided not to renew them even though residents still loved their convenience.

I’m sure there will be plenty more negative attention drawn to the issue of Walmart in Brooklyn. But with the lack of so many retail shops to work in and shop locally, who is really losing out on this modernday big box store proposal? 

http://www.canarsiecourier.com/news/2011-02-17/Guest_Column/Who_Really_Loses_If_Walmart_Is_Banned_In_Brooklyn.html