Worried About Crime? Don't Cry, Now There's Citywide Wi-Fi!

Another big round of applause to our very own Mayor Bill de Blasio – always thinking of the commoners, who are so much like his family: diverse, city-loving individuals who just want to enjoy living the best quality of life there is.

C'mon! Are we really living the best quality of life? 

Better answer that call from Dante at the new Wi-Fi booth!

Are you really happy with our magnificent Mayor who keeps adding holidays to the school year so your kids have numerous days off and you don't know what to do with them? Are you loving this Mayor who recently shared a video on his Facebook page of the Sanitation Department hauling fresh produce into a garbage truck from a storefront business so they can crack down on owners placing fruit for sale more than four feet from their establishment? Don'cha just love the fact that he's soon going to enforce a law that requires residents recycle food in those God awful brown compost bins? YUCK!

It's the little things that make de Blasio so productive and...loveable? Yes?? I think NOT!

While he's trying to keep us tech-savvy (allowing us to pay for parking at Muni-Meters with a cell phone app) I think he needs to focus on making the city safer instead of more 'hip'. De Boss Blasio (a new nickname I couldn't resist coining) recently rolled out LinkNYC kiosks, which transforms defunct phone booths into wi-fi hot spots where you can charge your cell phone, make calls and connect to the internet. How nice!

Yeah...Very nice – and in my opinion - very dangerous!

The Mayor, and the lackeys he recruited to put this fine plan in to action, promised the public that personal information would not be compromised while using facilitating these randomly placed kiosks, which will be operated and maintained by an agency called CityBridge - and not the city itself.

Yeah, very nice...NOT...

Let's get real! Think outside the telephone booth box on this one. There's already enough cellphone and gadget theft, pickpocketers and violent criminals who target people all over the streets. As the NYPD notes, crime maybe “down” but if you knew how many people were robbed, harassed and victimized in the city – as the news connotes – standing in some kiosk and sending an e-mail or waiting for your phone to charge in the middle of the street is NOT the safest idea in the world!

Come on! Y'all can't wait until you get home to check your Facebook or your e-mail, so you have to use a gadget in a phone booth that could possibly result in someone looking over your shoulder to steal your personal info and target you for theft? When those phone booths were in service, the telephone companies already ripped you off for a few quarters to make a simple local call to your friends and family!

The New York Post noted that the new free wi-fi service would be available at 7,500 abandoned phone booths and help those who need free internet access on the streets. Yes, the fact that it would help tourists navigate the web on their phones without worrying about roaming charges is great....Wait..What the hell did they do years ago when there was no wi-fi or “hot spots” in public?

De Blasio, I think, is introducing this technology at the worst possible time. We're dealing with an increase in the homeless population - both on the streets and in the subways. Assaults on trains and buses is also on the rise. A bus driver was attacked in East Flatbush by what looked like a mentally disturbed individual and a few weeks ago, a woman narrowly escaped a homeless man who tried to push her onto the tracks in Downtown Brooklyn. Sure, officials tracked these bad guys down after the attack – but in both cases, the NYPD REFUSED to take him off the streets permanently even though reports stated these crazy men were in and out of mental institutions all the time and were simply slapped with a slew of minor offenses over the years. 

Yes! Let the monsters roam our subways and streets but keep the technology going so we can call the police in hopes that they move the bad guys along in the system and continue to commit cowardly acts. Great!

There's also much talk about making the underground wi-fi and tech-friendly too – so soon you'll be able to hear your fellow straphangers' conversations - even if you don't want to - before their cell phones are ripped from their hands. Great!

Every plan has it's positives and negatives – and sometimes one stipulation prevents or helps the other. Yeah, more wi-fi and cellphone access means you can immediately report a crime or call someone in the event of an emergency - ideally, that's the best use for this technological breakthrough. However, getting a handle on the problems and the dangerous people – and not just letting the emotionally disturbed roam in public – should be a priority instead.

Whether or not Dante will enjoy the new wi-fi booths is anyone's guess, but maybe he should use one of these technological advances to give his father a wake up call on what the city truly needs.  

The NYPD May Be Sleeping On The Job And Blaming Commuters!

And so another crazy round of ideas has seeped its way into NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton's mind. Following the rash of attacks in the subway system over the past few months, Bratton proposed to wake up New Yorkers the old-fashioned way – you know, the way parents did with their children before alarm clocks became prevalent. His plan is to get police officers to wake up sleeping straphangers because, after all, it's our fault we're attacked, robbed and taken advantage of when riding the rails.

Don't snooze! ©NYDAILYNEWS

This wake-up call is not only the most ridiculous idea I've ever heard, it's also a proposal that doesn't seem to have been thought out too thoroughly.

When I spoke to Canarsien and head of the Guardian Angels Curtis Sliwa last week, he spoke about Bratton's outlandish tactics to crack down on crime in the subway, which is tantamount to what we experienced back in the 1980s. Okay, it's not THAT bad, but when you have innocent riders getting slashed in the face or you have a man sitting across from you who's exposing himself, it's not exactly the most secure feeling to know you're surrounded by some unsavory individuals.

According to Sliwa, transit police don't even ride on trains any more – so where and how is Bratton introducing the hundreds of officers who will patrol every train during the city's rush hours? If they can't afford to provide that security to commuters already, where are these nagging officers going to come from?

If a cop is going to pace any given train and wake someone up, how will they do it? A light tap? A generous push? A shove on the shoulder? And where does it cross the line from the city trying to keep the sleeping straphangers 'safe' and harassing someone who has over an hour commute and needs a little shut eye to function? Hey, there are some heavy sleepers out there! If it takes a good shaking for an officer to wake someone up, that's just a waste of time!

Let's get real! We've all fallen asleep on the train and at the same time, we're all afraid of being victims when we have to ride the rails. I just think a cop waking someone up is a little too hands-on – especially if the train is packed with people who can witness and record a crime going down.

Instead of worrying about waking people up, cops should be back on patrol and following teens or disturbed individuals who look like they're up to no good. There is also a difference between police truly being concerned about commuters and getting the bad guys. Which of the napping nobodies is a dangerous bum and which is a man who just worked the nigh shift and needs some zzzzs?

Instead of being concerned about who's sleeping, police should be following and keeping a watch on the thugs who are on the train in the wee hours of the morning. If the criminals saw them on the train all the time, I'm sure they'd be less apt to commit a crime knowing they'll be caught in a matter of minutes.

What if a cop is waking someone up – or trying to – and the commuter gets into an argument with the cop and the situation escalates? Not only is this a chance for the officer to arrest the person for disorderly conduct or interfering with police activity, if the sleeping person wakes up irate and argumentative, it could lead to an officer getting assaulted and the commuter getting into trouble rather than the hoodlum waiting on the next platform who's equipped with a box cutter and a firearm.

Yes, alerting someone who's all alone on a train car in the middle of the night is a good idea in theory. But, as Sliwa said, some of the proposals put forth by Bratton are out of touch with what train riders really need.

I've been on the 'L' train plenty of times after midnight – from when I was 20 years old and hanging out after work – up until last year when I came home late from a social gathering. I didn't feel like I was in danger and knew that there were a couple of ways I could make my ride safer: stay in the front car with the operator should an emergency occur or ride in the middle cars where the conductor is stationed.

Did you know that YOU, as a straphanger, can prevent yourself from being a victim? Maybe the NYPD should invest in sponsoring community-based courses on safe traveling. When was the last time a transit officer made a presentation at a community meeting about the most frequent forms of crime they've witnessed while on patrol? Maybe hosting special sessions for residents and teaching them tricks on how to avoid being a victim, how to de-escalate a situation when police aren't there is a good practice! Police can't be everywhere! The same way the city hosts civilian training courses that put them in the same situations as police, the city should have transit awareness courses for those moments when they feel they're in danger and no one is around.

Instead of plastering silly quality of life posters all over the trains where advertisements are also on display, spend more money on bringing safety tactics to our communities! Does Bratton not want commuters to be able to protect themselves and fend off a possible attacker? Hey – let's have transit cops actually conduct drills with our community boards, members of CERT (Community Emergency Response Teams) and residents in an underground station. Show us what to do if someone is following us in an empty corridor. Show us where to keep our valuables in case we DO fall asleep and some pickpocketing criminal tries to take advantage.

If we're going to be blamed for the rise in crime, at least equip us with the street smarts and tools we need to NOT be victims! It seems like with senseless violence comes senseless solutions. Thanks for snoozing on an effective way to protect our city Bratton! Wake me up when the insanity is over...

More Silence Following An Police-Related Incident That Would Have Otherwise Gone Viral

Whenever a law-breaking citizen dies in police custody, there is usually no shortage of headlines all over the feeds. Then, there is no shortage of protests, lawsuits and angry crowds coming out to stand up against police brutality and unethical practices.

Keep ya mouth shut!

The Freddie Gray and Sandra Bland cases are just two examples of how law enforcement failed to keep a prisoner from dying while in custody. There was no shortage of headlines about how these cases impacted their corresponding communities. There was no shortage of analyzing why and how their deaths happened after they were apprehended.

Gray, who was arrested for allegedly carrying a switchblade, died from a spinal injury incurred as he was being transported to a prison by Baltimore police. Bland was arrested after being initially being pulled over for traffic violation – but the situation escalated and she was subsequently taken to jail where she hung herself with a garbage bag. How did the police allow these not-so-upstanding citizens to die on their watch?

One case I'm waiting to hear go viral is the local incident where 28-year-old Serge Duthley was arrested for drunk driving following a car accident and, while being held in a cell at the 69th Precinct station, he reportedly choked himself to death with his t-shirt. Is this just another “typical” case of a suspect dying in police custody? I’m sure his family is outraged…I’m sure people here have read the story and are preaching about how “bad” things are…

But where are the protests in our community? Where's the growing Wikipedia page filled with “history” on this story? Okay, so Duthley wasn't exactly trying to escape police custody and driving drunk – as common as it is – is NOT something that residents are going to look passed in this instance.

However, it's odd to me that certain cases make national headlines and cause a nationwide stir, whereas others – like those happening in our small community - go unnoticed. It's as if no one cares! Not that it would help, but crowds have not thus far picketed in front of our precinct. No one has called for local legislation that would protect those in custody from ending or losing their lives as a result of an arrest. Or maybe that legislation is in the works and we're just sitting back and waiting for its debut?

Sure, we can say we care even less when the “bad guy” dies while they're being taken to prison or while they're in prison. I'm sure it's very common for suicides to occur – perhaps the criminal is depressed and feels they're better off somehow taking their own life or hurting themselves instead of going through the legal process.

I'm still curious as to why our small community is so silent after a man was allowed to commit suicide while in a holding cell. Of course, someone has to be held responsible, right? Will his family sue? Will the fact that he was drunk and inebriated play any part in the NYPD defending its own case? Did the arresting officers step away from the cell long enough for Duthley to asphyxiate himself?

There are no groups coming out to march against police misconduct on our streets. As of this week, no one has stirred things up and no one has seemingly cared enough to question the fate of the arresting officers and what part they played in Duthley's death.

Let's get real! We can all chalk it up to “no one cares” - just like I chalked it up to “no one cared” last year when the rape suspect who attacked two women on Canarsie streets remained on the loose. There are no signs of outrage, no demands for “justice” and no crowds hungry for and end to the violence.

If you wonder why Canarsie is left behind...if you wonder why we don't get recognized and why it's become “worse” in our community, it could be because Canarsie streets sound like deserted roads along an abandoned highway. No one makes a sound and whoever passes through is a victim of their own circumstance, and those who do try to create change struggle to get the support needed to make the community livable and safe (hey - whatever happened to the gun buyback program Canarsie was supposed host last year???).

By staying off the “radar” we seem to have very little chance of being heard and making history as a powerful community. I’m not saying we have to have to carry on and be rowdy in the streets and I’m not implying that every incident that happens in Canarsie be blown out of proportion.

Just ask yourself why communities in other boroughs and states come together to stand for something while we quietly let history write itself. The squeaky wheel may get the oil, but we’re letting ourselves get rusty and we have no one else to blame but ourselves…

Suck It Up Sweetheart – Our City Needs Some Serious Upgrades!

Residents really have a knack for complaining about repairs that need to be completed in our community. There's no shortage of wanting every street repaved, wanting every block to have some accident deterrent signage installed and every waterfront community protected from storms. We can't certainly have it all!

This sums it up, right?

We're also our worst enemies! When an announcement is made that something WILL be done to improve our community – that blocks will be closed off for days/weeks, or that major construction to BETTER our lives will be underway, we THEN complain that the inconvenience is too much to tolerate.

Really? So move out of one of the most heavily trafficked and facilitated city in the country!

Now that residents have begged the city and state to safeguard us and our infrastructure from deteriorating, it's only fitting that some of our requests be examined and that some course of action take place NOW! Since one of those plans of action includes the “L” train undergoing some critical repairs after Hurricane Sandy, we don't have a choice when it comes to a dent being put in our lives in order for conditions to improve in our city.

If all you're gonna do is complain NOW that we're screwed because the “L” will not be running underground due to these needed repairs for a couple of years, what happened to your city spirit? What happened to “We're New Yorkers, we're tough and we can get through anything!” Suddenly, our rough exterior of being able to make it in tumultuous times has been ground into the sand.

Suck it up New Yorkers!

Before the announcement was made that our precious “L” train would be shut down between Manhattan and Brooklyn – possibly starting next year – who knows what the conditions were that the MTA found. Perhaps the construction is long overdue and making the line more resilient is something that we have no choice but to endure. Yes, there's ALWAYS problems on the “L” line – but if you've taken other trains in the city, maybe you'll understand why.

From my experience, the “L” runs more frequently than almost ANY train in the city – every five minutes there is a train on your average weekday. The reason I believe so many trains can run at a time is because of the massive construction that the “L” has undergone over the years. Weekends are always horrible traveling on the “L” because we don't know if it's going to be replaced somewhere with a shuttle bus.

I get it!! Ya'll tired of the constant inconveniences! But you'd better suck it up! The “city that never sleeps” has so many transportation modes into the city! You can get on a bus in East New York that takes you to Broadway Junction and get two other trains (the A and C) to get into the city. Here in Canarsie, you can also get to the city by taking a bus to another train in the western parts of Brooklyn.

You don't like a little detour? You have to leave a little earlier so that our “L” line can be made stronger and more substantial? SUCK IT UP! I get it, you've been spoiled being able to take one train into the city and you don't like knowing everything is off kilt because alternate routes aren't the greatest. Well, is it going to be great when a catastrophe takes place and the Canarsie Connector collapses one day because the MTA refused to go to such drastic lengths to make repairs??

Let's get real! We're not the only ones suffering! The “N” train isn't making various stops in Bay Ridge for quite some time. Do you really think our community is being segregated because of ridership demographics? SUCK IT UP! No matter who you are or what community you live in, a disaster will impact your infrastructure and you should feel lucky that repairs are being completed.

While I do feel bad for residents in other communities like Bushwick and Williamsburg – since they have no other trains that can accommodate their commute – there will always be infrastructure improvements that will toss our schedule out of whack.

Whenever Gov. Andrew Cuomo addresses the media and says “We're New Yorkers, we can overcome anything,” (and other similar rhetorical statements) we should roll our eyes and say, NO, we can't overcome anything – that's why we're afraid to take detours and we're completely frazzled by a change in the way we travel!

How do you think people who travel in suburbs feel about their daily commutes – some of those trains on Metro-North, Long Island Rail Road and New Jersey Transit ONLY arrive every 20 – 30 minutes! They’ve  adjusted their lives so they can make that one train and get to their destination on time.

If you’d rather continue traveling on an antiquated system and riding on a line where underground repairs go incomplete, protest all you want. Don’t complain when improvements have to be made and money doesn’t go into making our transit system better than it was before.