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"Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status."
- Laurance J. Peter
Good Wednesday Morning,
Thanks again to all who told me about the guy that comes to your house and fixes your broken stuff. You were right, he was expensive. And you were also right, he was reliable.
Once the Lake Carmel Park District's meeting was over yesterday evening, the tape turned off, the board retired and the Town Supervisor had mad her way home, the room was turned over to the Stop Patterson Crossing Committee who had rented the space to talk about the latest developments within their concern. Paul Spiegel, Janet Castiner, Lori Kemp and Edie Keasbey all spoke one after the other and each on a different aspect of the proposal.
The crowd of about 50 people, mystified at how this vast project has seen such smooth sailing through various Patterson boards, asked questions and gave their opinions with the most direct concern regarding the respiratory health effects of nearby blasting and the possibility of property and well damage. These concerns, they insist, have not been adequately addressed.
Apparently their hands are tied and there's not much that can be done right now other than, as Mr. Spiegel correctly noted, write the Patterson Planning Board voicing their concerns about the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). In it, he says, the developer uses too many phrases such as "could" and "might" leaving vast areas of that document open to vague interpretation. Though the process appears complete and Mr. Camarda seemingly has all the approvals he needs to begin clear-cutting and blasting, questioning the vagueness of some of his responses should open some eyes and perhaps cause pause on the part of the Planning Board, especially as they review that town's new blasting codes. It is unclear whether the new codes would apply to the effects of blasting on residents living in adjoining towns. For those who are not aware, Patterson Crossing, though within the municipal boundary of the Town of Patterson, immediately adjoins residents in the Town of Kent.
All in all though, the meeting was pretty good, the community seemed well energized and a fair amount of important and meaningful information was passed from speaker to listener and back again.
There was one sour note however. At one point early in the meeting, Robert Buckley, an associate of Paul Camarda's, entered the space only to be met by the Gooselady who vociferously ordered the man to leave the room, harassing him verbally until he did, telling him he wasn't welcome. But there were others in the room from away and they were not asked to leave and we didn't know their points of view on this project. Mr. Buckely's response to his harasser on his way out was on point: "For someone who talks about freedom of speech all the time on television, this is pretty rude." And from any point of view, it was. This was a widely advertised, non-governmental community meeting and as such, anyone and everyone should have been allowed to be there regardless of their point of view.
If you're one who enjoys the wonders of the night sky, the bright object in the south and east just after sunset is the planet Jupiter, now at its closest approach to our planet for this year. With even a small pair of binoculars you should be able to witness the dance of her four major moons as they circle our solar system's largest planet.
Kent musician John Arrucci brings his, "Music From The Caribbean", to the Mahopac Library on Wednesday, July 23rd at 7PM. Joining John will be Alan Bates on steel Drum and Jerome Harris on guitar. Admission is free.
The next time you fill up at the pump and curse ExxonMobil or Shell, don't fret all that much about what you're paying and be happy you don't live in Sierra Leone where the price of a gallon of gasoline is $18.43. Prices in Europe are more manageable where Turkey leads the pack at $10.14 and the lowest posted price is in France at $8.06 a gallon. Canadians are paying $5.49 a gallon and if you happen to live in Australia you'll shell out $5.06 - a bargain!
If you're anywhere near Peekskill Hollow Road in Putnam Valley this afternoon from 3PM until dusk, stop in at the Farmer's Market at Tompkins Corners. Tell them PlanPutnam sent you! You'll be glad you did.
Here's your energy savings tip for the day:
9. WASH IN COLD OR WARM (From 50 Ways to Help the Planet)
If all the households in the U.S. switched from hot-hot cycle to warm-cold, we could save the energy comparable to 100,000 barrels of oil a day.
And, here's your truly cool website of the day:
WDCS (office safe)
And now, the News:
- Fairness committee reviews Ball mailer
- State to repave 3 roads in Putnam for $4.2M
- Greenburgh man, 54, found dead in Kent
- Coalition to lobby for health-care reform
- Golisano Aims Millions at N.Y. Legislative Races
- Large Solar Energy Array Set for G.M. in Spain
- Sex Really Does Get Better With Age (Just Ask A 70 Year Old)
Fairness committee reviews Ball mailer By Michael Risinit
The Journal News • July 9, 2008
HARTSDALE - Assemblyman Greg Ball's campaign manager last night refused to name names when asked about a political mailer stating that Ball's opponent, Republican John Degnan, is "being backed by the powerful and corrupt interests that want to unseat Greg Ball."
Stephanie Sarnoff, chair of the Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee, questioned manager Matt Neuringer, who is also Ball's legislative aide. The independent committee advocates for fair campaigning. It was holding a hearing on a dozen complaints filed by Degnan about Ball's mailer. The text of the mailer attacks Degnan on illegal-immigration issues. Among them was the reference to the alleged supporters.
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"You're doing coulda, shoulda, woulda," Sarnoff told him. "You claim powerful and corrupt interests want to unseat Greg Ball. Who are the corrupt influences, individuals, interests at work?"
Neuringer said "it (wasn't) appropriate to bring those issues to the forefront" now and that they soon would be forthcoming. He took issue with Degnan's complaints right away. Degnan's first grievance faulted Ball, R-Patterson, for saying he was named Legislator of the Year by the National Rifle Association when it was the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, an affiliate, that gave the honor. The state group, Neuringer asserted, is "certainly 110 percent an NRA organization."
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State to repave 3 roads in Putnam for $4.2M Barbara Livingston Nackman
The Journal News
Portions of three state roads in Putnam County will be resurfaced as part of a $4.2 million project.
The rehabilitation work is set to begin shortly and will continue through November, state officials announced yesterday.
One small portion of the work in Carmel will take place during nighttime hours affecting some homeowners.
Roadways involved are sections of routes 6N and 403 and the Taconic State Parkway that go through Carmel, Philipstown and Putnam Valley. Some roads in Dutchess and Columbia counties, routes 22 and 55 and the Taconic State Parkway, are also part of the project.
The contract was awarded to A. Calarusso & Son Inc. of Hudson, N.Y., and is part of the state's regular maintenance of its roadways.
Construction on a roughly 1-mile stretch along Route 6N between Route 6 and Baldwin Place Road will involve nighttime work to minimize disruption to motorists, state spokeswoman Sandra Jobson said.
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Greenburgh man, 54, found dead in Kent Rebecca Baker and Rob Marchant
The Journal News
LAKE CARMEL - A Hartsdale father of two has been found dead in Lake Carmel, two days after he was reported missing in Greenburgh.
Police in Kent found 54-year-old Cary Sandberg floating face down in Lake Carmel on Monday night after a boater saw the body and called police.
Kent police said there appeared to be no evidence of foul play involved in Sandberg's death but could not say if the death was an accident or not.
"Nothing has been ruled out," Kent police Lt. Alex Divernieri said yesterday. "Suicide is a possibility."
Sandberg, a teacher in New Rochelle, was reported to have gone missing on Saturday.
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Coalition to lobby for health-care reform Tue Jul 8, 2008 2:17pm EDT
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A coalition of unions, think tanks and other groups launched an advertising campaign on Tuesday saying they want to ensure that health-care reform tops the U.S. political agenda after the November elections.
The group, Health Care for America Now, said it had the backing of 100 labor groups, community organizations, medical groups and activists.
The non-profit group is headquartered on Washington's K Street, known for its high-powered lobbyists, and said it was immediately starting a $1.5 million advertising campaign on television, newspapers and online, with an eventual spending goal of $40 million.
"This is the human rights movement of our time," said Jeff Blum, executive director of USAction, a non-profit that campaigns for strengthening of Medicare, Social Security and other entitlements.
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Golisano Aims Millions at N.Y. Legislative Races By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE
Published: July 9, 2008
ALBANY — Tom Golisano, the unpredictable Rochester businessman with deep pockets and never-ending political ambition, brought fresh drama to a chaotic election year on Tuesday with his announcement that he would pour at least $5 million into the state’s legislative races.
That is about 10 times what the average Senate candidate spends in an election, and slightly more than all the money held in the Republican Party’s statewide campaign accounts.
His aim, Mr. Golisano said at a news conference, was to throw a scare into — and maybe even replace — Albany’s political elite. He certainly drew their attention.
“Those elected officials on either side of the aisle who are not focused on Tom’s issues should be focused on them now,” said Assemblyman Bill Reilich, a Rochester-area Republican. “He puts his money behind his beliefs, and people definitely take him seriously.”
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Large Solar Energy Array Set for G.M. in Spain By MATTHEW L. WALD
A Michigan company, Energy Conversion Devices, plans to announce Tuesday that it is providing the solar electric system for what it says will be the world’s largest rooftop array, on a General Motors assembly plant in Zaragoza, Spain. The project will be 12 megawatts, a huge number in a field where most arrays are measured in kilowatts, units 1,000 times smaller.
The project will use solar devices manufactured in rolls, like carpet runners. Installation will be completed this fall, according to the company, which is based in Rochester Hills, Mich. Energy Conversion will supply the equipment to Veolia Environment and Clairvoyant Energy, which will lease the rooftop space from G.M. and own and operate the installation, which will be two million square feet.
Spain has become a center of solar installations because it offers generous subsidies, 0.42 euro a kilowatt-hour (66 cents). That is about five times the average cost of a kilowatt hour to residential customers in the United States. The Spanish government is considering a reduction in the subsidy for installations after September.
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Sex Really Does Get Better With Age (Just Ask A 70 Year Old) ScienceDaily (July 9, 2008) — An increasing number of 70 year olds are having good sex and more often, and women in this age group are particularly satisfied with their sex lives, according to a study published on the British Medical Journal website.
Knowledge about sexual behaviour in older people (70 year olds) is limited and mainly focuses on sexual problems, less is known about "normal" sexual behaviour in this age group.
Nils Beckman and colleagues from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, studied attitudes to sex in later life among four representative population samples of 70 year olds in Sweden, who they interviewed in 1971-2, 1976-7, 1992-3, and 2000-1. In total, over 1 500 people aged 70 years were interviewed about different aspects of their sex lives including sexual dysfunctions, marital satisfaction and sexual activity.
The authors found that over the thirty year period the number of 70 year olds of both sexes reporting sexual intercourse increased: married men from 52% to 68%, married women from 38% to 56%, unmarried men from 30% to 54%, and unmarried women from 0.8% to 12%.
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