Westchester Guardian

PRESORTED STANDARD PERMIT #3036 WHITE PLAINS NY

Vol. V No. IX

Westchester’s Most Influential Weekly

Redistricting

By Carlos Gonzalez Page13

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Mainstreaming Radical Islam Page 11

Weir Only Human Page 12

Tensions Flare Page 7

Under Scrutiny Page 15

Marriage Act Page 9

Too Young or Too Old

Page 16

Striking Out the Babe Page 15

Senate Democrats Push to Co-sponsor Redistricting Bill Protests to Spread Page 17

westchesterguardian.com

Page 2

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

The Westchester Guardian

Of Significance Community..................................................................................3 Economic Development..............................................................4 Government.................................................................................5 Investigation.................................................................................8 Law...............................................................................................9 Lecture Series.............................................................................10 Life..............................................................................................10 OPED........................................................................................11 Politics.........................................................................................14 Showprep....................................................................................15 Sports..........................................................................................15 Theatre........................................................................................16 Trend Alert.................................................................................17 Truth and Justice........................................................................18 Legal Notices..............................................................................19

Westchester’s Most Influential Weekly

Guardian News Corp.

P.O. Box 8 New Rochelle, New York 10801 Sam Zherka , Publisher & President publisher@westchesterguardian.com Hezi Aris, Editor-in-Chief & Vice President whyteditor@gmail.com Advertising: (914) 632-2540 News and Photos: (914) 562-0834 Fax: (914) 633-0806 Published online every Monday Print edition distributed Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday Graphic Design: Watterson Studios, Inc. wattersonstudios.com

westchesterguardian.com

COMMUNITY

News & Notes from Northern Westchester

By Mark Jeffers

The big news this week was the mega NBA trade with Carmelo Anthony coming to the NY Knicks to hopefully help them win a title. He signed a $65 million, three year deal. My insider sources say Carmelo may buy a home up here in northern Westchester, so he can hang out with the likes of the Clintons, Martha Stewart, Richard Gere… and me… hey, we could car pool together into the city... maybe not, the train would be easier.

Cablevision assert their fourth quarter net revenue jumped 45%, yet I’m still paying more for the service and almost missed the World Series last year over their battle with Fox. Go figure…

Looking for something to do this weekend?

Here is your chance to shop for great bargains while supporting a great cause! The Wellness Day Committee at Fox Lane High School invites everyone to visit their fifth annual Tag Sale. You are sure to find treasures, including household goods, clothing, costume jewelry, bikes, books, toys and much more. New this year - a gold buyer! Bring your broken necklaces, bracelets, and stray earring to the tag sale and get cash on the spot! All of the fun takes place in the large cafeteria at Fox Lane HS on Route 172 in Bedford on Saturday, March 5, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, and Sunday, March 6, from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm.

So, have you seen the new McDonalds’s on Route 117 in Bedford Hills? It seems to stick out like a Las Vegas casino - never saw art deco golden arches before. I hear the oatmeal served in the morning is mmm, mmm good.

Here’s an event that should get us thinking “Spring,” the annual Golf Show at

the Westchester County Center on March 12 and 13… they have free lessons, which I know I could use; discounts on green fees, and merchandise. And my favorite radio show, “The Clubhouse,” and our “gang” will broadcast live from Westchester County Center from 10am – 12 Noon on Saturday, March 12.

Congratulations to Chappaqua’s own Mike Nicholson, as he now swims for Bucknell, and was named the Patriot League Male Swimmer of the Week.

In another sad sign of the times… Borders bookstores have filed for bankruptcy protection and will close 200 of the company’s 642 stores.

Our local Borders in Mount Kisco dodged this bullet and will remain open. I’m heading down there right now for a book and a large latte…

St. Patrick’s School in Bedford will hold “Spring into Art,” a fundraiser on April 1. The evening will feature music and works of local artists. I need to report anything with the word “Spring” in the title. For more information, call 914-234-7914.

Here’s a really cool place, The Benefit Shop in Bedford Hills, where you can check out collectibles and antiques with proceeds benefiting local non-profits.

I’m getting hungry just writing about this event…it’s the Hudson Valley Restaurant week, March 14-27, visit www.hudsonvalleyrestaurantweek.com for more information.

John Jay’s all-time wins leader in grappling and Section 1 runner-up Mark Swertfager was among the 12 wrestlers announced as wild cards for the state wrestling championships.

Continued on page 3

RADIO

New York Assemblyman Steve Katz On the Level with Narog and Aris New Rochelle, NY -- New York State Assemblyman Steve Katz is Richard Narog’s and Hezi Aris’ guest this Tuesday, March 1st, from 10 - 11 a.m., on WVOX-1460 AM on your radio dial and worldwide on www.WVOX.com.

New York State Assemblyman Mike Spano is our guest on March 8th. Bronxville Mayor Mary C. Marvin and Bronxville Village Manager Harold Porr III are our guests later in the month.

Listeners and readers are invited to send a question to WHYTeditor@gmail.com for possible use prior to any shows’ airing and even during the course of an interview.

Wednesday mornings at 8:37 am when he and Bob Marrone discuss issues on the Good Morning Westchester radio program hosted by Bob Marrone.

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 3

community

Junior League of Westchester on the Sound Seeking Donations, Volunteers

By Bary Alyssa Johnson

The Junior League of Westchester on the Sound ( JLWOS) recently announced three initiatives, two of which are aimed at helping local youth and the third, the League’s 60th anniversary celebration.

The two teen-based projects include a Prom Dress Drive for underprivileged students and the opening of the application process for the “Margaret Manley Community Service Scholarship.”

The 2011 Prom Dress Drive is a 1st annual event spearheaded by JLWOS in partnership with donatemydress.org. The Drive is seeking donations, including dresses and tuxedos, from residents within the County of Westchester.

The Dress Drive is slated to go down the week of March 7th – 14th. Residents can drop off items at the Golden Shoestring, a store owned by JLWOS and located at 149 Larchmont Avenue, in Larchmont, New

News & Notes from Northern Westchester Continued from page 2 The first event of the Friends of John Jay Lecture series will take place on March 4 with Annette GordonReed presenting “Andrew Johnson,” her new biography on the president who took over for the assassinated President Lincoln. You can contact the Friends at 914-232-8119.

My wife and I attended the annual John McLaughlin Memorial Ice Hockey game with rivals John Jay and Fox Lane squaring off. The Foxes were short handed due to illness, and John Jay dominated the game, winning 13-6.

The crowd was great and expressed the enthusiasm ice hockey has in the area.

The game honors the man who started Fox Lane’s hockey program back in 1999 and the McLaughlin family still have close ties to the Fox Lane program.

More “News & Notes” next week.

Mark Jeffers’ “News & Notes” column takes a a look at the happenings in the northern part of the county…

York. For people who aren’t able to make it to the Golden Shoestring in person, members of the JLWOS participating in this Drive are offering to go out to donors’ homes within the community to pick up donations Tiffany Smith, chair of the Golden Shoestring, says the idea for the event came to the JLWOS when a member was watching the Hollywood Blockbuster 27 Dresses.

“I’m sitting on about ten bridesmaids dresses, and I have two sisters who are also, and there’s thirty dresses already,” Smith told The Westchester Guardian in an interview. “These dresses can be very helpful; they may be some girl’s dream dress and by donating them we can make those dreams come true.”

A number of celebrity sponsors are affiliated with donatemydress.org, including Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian. Ms. Kardashian has promised to donate 750 pairs of shoes to the Organization once her online shoe company – shoedazzle.com – reaches 60,000 fans on Facebook.

For further inquiry into this initiative, direct e-mail to promdress10538@gmail. com.

Moving on, JLWOS announced that it has begun accepting applications for its Margaret Manley Community Service Scholarship for students attending high school in Port Chester, Rye, Rye Brook, Harrison, Mamaroneck, Larchmont, and New Rochelle. To be eligible, the student must have plans to enroll as a full-time student at an accredited college during the 2011-2012 school year.

“This is a need-based scholarship,” Dana Diersen-Buehrer, President of JLWOS told The Westchester Guardian in an interview. “It’s for volunteer service that these students have demonstrated above and beyond service requirements from their high school.”

Students interested in applying for the $4,000 scholarship can visit the League’s Web site at www.jlwos.org. The deadline for the application process is March 15th.

Fast forward to June 10th, and that is the date for the JLWOS 60th anniversary celebration, dubbed “Mambo & Mojitos,” to be held at the Larchmont Yacht Club.

The JLWOS is asking local residents to help them celebrate by raising money for

community projects and grant programs.

For additional information on this event, you can direct e-mail to Amanda Schlumberger at amanda.schlumberger@ gmail.com .

The JLWOS is an all-female organization committed to promoting volunteerism and improving the local community through effective action and leadership of trained individuals. The League’s purpose is solely charitable and educational, according to its Web site.

Junior League first started in Manhattan in 1901, with its Westchester

on the Sound chapter opening in 1950.

Membership is open to women, aged 21 and up.

To become a member, you must first go through a provisional training program to learn skills to volunteer and to learn about various community projects and tools and systems of the Junior League. Once you pass the course, you become an active member. Membership meetings are once a month, aside from other events including galas and fundraisers. For more information on membership, visit www.jlwos.org.

“We’re a committee of women dedicated to volunteering,” Diersen-Buehrer said. “We’re women making a difference in the lives of women and children.”

Photo by and courtesy of Bary Alyssa Johnson.

Local resident Bary Alyssa Johnson covers Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Rye, and Rye Brook, as well as the evolving world of electronics and technology.

RiveRview CouRt APARtMeNtS 47 RiveRdale ave., YonkeRs, nY

1 & 2 BR apaRtments at a GReat pRice!

1 BR staRtinG at $1075 • 2 BRs staRtinG at $1300

914.798.9410

• High-Rise Building and Views of the Hudson and Historical Yonkers • Nearby Public Transportation, Shopping/Restaurants, the Hudson River and only 15 min. away from NYC TTY # 800.662.1200 • Fitness Center On-Site Riverview Court • 24 Hours Access Control Patrol Does Not Discriminate • Large State of the Art Laundry Room On The Basis • 24 Hr. Maintenance Of Disability.

• On-Site Management • Reasonably-Priced Indoor Parking On-Site, with Controlled Access • Resident Lounge 15 min.

• Business Center FRom nYc • Beautiful Courtyard in the center of the complex via with well-appointed landscape areas metRo noRth!

Page 4

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

New Rochelle Denies Downsized Echo Bay Approval for Public Benefit

By Peggy Godfrey

A new downsized plan for Echo Bay Development in New Rochelle is facing serious scrutiny. Councilman Richard St. Paul has stipulated the “principles of democracy” far outweigh the $100,000 allocated by Forest City Residential to evaluate the plans to develop Echo Bay. In his view the public should have been allowed to comment on the revised plan before it was approved.

His motion to table the Council vote until the plan could be presented to the public failed 4-3 along party lines with Mayor Noam Bramson casting the deciding vote.

Development Commissioner Michael Freimuth suggested prior to the vote that Forest City Residential be given a year to undertake a cost / benefit analysis of the new proposal which is a reduction of its original scope. Forest City Residential’s representative, Abe Naparstek, emphasized the company wants to “figure out how to make it happen” as a true public/ private project citing five principles. (1)

There is a reduction in infrastructure in the project. (2) Underground parking would be eliminated, significantly reducing costs.

(3) With no final number in mind, density and the number of residential and retail units would be reduced. (4) The project would be developed in phases, thereby eliminating the need for a plan for the entire area. Forest City Residential’s focus would be on the parcels the City owns.

(5) The approach to the Armory will be rethought, and the company will work with the City and “stakeholders to find uses for it.”

The questions from Council members were wide ranging and comprehensive.

Councilman Jared Rice was interested in how many jobs would be created; whether the buildings would be LEED certified, and whether they would be willing to work with the City on the uses of the Armory. Council member Marianne Sussman wanted to know about access to the waterfront and the central benefits of the project. When she asked about open space, she was told the key would

be to designate enough open space on the waterfront. Councilman Albert Tarantino wanted to know what guarantees Forest City Residential would give to the city that they would indeed move beyond the first phase to phases two and three.. Naparstek response was that no one could predict the future. When the space needed for surface parking was brought up, Naparstek suggested “shared parking” could be created because “renters drive away during the day.” Then Mayor Bramson commented, “If Council is ultimately dissatisfied” it would not support the project. With no public access to the waterfront he was “not going to support” this project.

Without hesitation Councilman Lou Trangucci asked about the removal of underground parking and the reduction of open space, but Naparstek countered some parking would be on the first floor of the residences. When IDA tax abatements were mentioned Naparstek replied that to receive an 7% to 8% return on the project, tax abatements were needed. Trangucci wanted to know if they would guarantee sales tax revenue to the City if their projections were inaccurate, adding the City’s costs to move the City Yard for this developer is $35 million and he wanted to know who would be left picking up the tab? City Manager Chuck Strome added there was a site designated for the City Yard; that is unless the Council believes “it is no longer viable.”

Bramson noted the cost of $25 million was set for the City Yard, but until the bonds are sold, the final and exact cost could not yet be determined.

According to Strome, the range for costs would always be a rough estimate developed by the Commissioner of Public Works and a consultant. He said the selected Beechwood site was not the only site previously identified. According to Trangucci, the old study was not going to work and he has a dozen unanswered questions, such as “What is the true cost of cleanup?”

Councilman St. Paul continued that this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) had not been divulged or presented to the public. Despite Naparstek’s statement that he would meet with three neighborhood groups and

the Save Our Armory Committee, St. Paul wanted to hear about the $100,000 Forest City Residential would commit to this revised project. When Councilman Tarantino asked if a full analysis could be made with that amount of money, Naparstek concluded he was not authorized to spend more. Commissioner Freimuth added he was going to focus on the economic questions. Mayor Bramson, after further discussion said this was the most commented upon project of any project since he has been mayor. Tarantino warned if there was not enough money allocated, he would not vote for this project in the future. As soon as St. Paul’s motion to table the vote until March failed, the Council approved the new Echo Bay MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Councilmen St. Paul and Trangucci voting against it.

After the meeting, Jim Murphy, a concerned veteran and New Rochelle resident, said this is now another year when the Armory will not be restored and rehabilitated. The deed transferring the Armory from New York State to the City of New Rochelle required the City to maintain the building which New Rochelle has failed to abide. Instead it allowed damage to occur during the last 12 years the City has owned the building The Co-chair of the Save Our Armory Group, Peter Parente, said he was not privy to the details of the revised project, but he stressed there was no public presentation. He was happy they were saving the Armory because “we want the entire Armory to be saved.” Phase one of the new plan would only use the City’s land. Forest City Residential has not made any investment in this project.

I didn’t like the way the Council meeting was run. The MOU expired and this is a new MOU. Questions were not answered.

There was no reason for anyone to support this project. The Save Our Armory Committee (a New Rochelle group and a New Rochelle developer) previously sent a letter signed by Ron Tocci to City Manager Strome, Mayor Bramson and the City Council membership asking to be heard. We had asked to have the proposal considered before, rather than after the vote.

Peggy Godfrey is a freelance writer, and a former educator.

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 5

GOVERNMENT

Assemblyman Latimer on Representing Westchester County

By Bary Alyssa Johnson

Assemblyman George Latimer recently hosted a community budget meeting, to which he invited residents of Westchester County to speak on the State budget, which was released on February 1st and is to be legally adopted by April 1st.

This is Latimer’s 7th year hosting such a meeting in order to allow residents to express their opinions on the ever controversial topic of the budget.

According to Latimer, people came and spoke from many communities both in and out of his district, including residents of Port Chester, Rye Brook, Rye, Larchmont, Mamaroneck, New Rochelle, Harrison, Peekskill, and White Plains.

“This year was the biggest turnout of speakers over any prior year,” Latimer told The Westchester Guardian in an interview.

“Over eighty people attended and fortyseven people spoke.”

The two most talked-about aspects of the budget were cuts to school aid and the 2 percent tax cap. Many elected officials also attended and spoke to the crowd, including Rye Mayor Doug French and Port Chester Mayor Dennis Pilla.

“People spoke of individual issues all over the ballpark,” Latimer said.

Following the meeting, which remained public until February 25th, Latimer says he will take all of the comments heard and summarize them into a memo. This memo will then be distributed to the State Assembly’s Ways & Means Committee, which is the committee responsible for the budget.

Beyond that, all issues that were raised will become part of the budgetary review.

“We’re still about five weeks away from adopting the budget,” Latimer said.

“We’re going to have to look at a lot of issues between now and then.”

The next step is that the Governor will consider all of the issues and make amendments to the budget, where he may modify it, or make corrections and/or changes. Meanwhile, the State Assembly will be busy up in Albany, participating in budget hearings that all of the legislators will take part.

“When you hold a public hearing the purpose is to listen to the public,” Latimer

said. “I wanted to hear what people had to say, how they feel and why they feel the way they do.”

While Latimer admits that the economy is in a difficult place, countrywide, he says Westchester County has more affluence so residents aren’t in as bad shape as in other parts of the state or country. He does acknowledge that there is a certain percentage of people in the County with economic frustration, leading to tense moments and public agitation.

“I’m still an overall optimistic person,” Latimer said. “We have problems, we make intelligent decisions and we work through them.”

Besides budget hearings, Latimer looks to the population of his 91st District for solutions to other problems by way of his quarterly “Coffee Talks” with Legislator Judy Myers. These two politicians gather at locations in Rye and Mamaroneck to hear from local residents

on any issue of concern. These are open gathers, not lectures, and the dynamic duo pick up the tab for coffee and bagels, as well.

“You hear that all politicians don’t care, don’t get it, live in their own world, and maybe we do,” Latimer said. “But I try to see how people feel about all of the issues… it’s part of trying to have a truly open government.”

In response to the issues brought to his attention, Latimer has recently filed 45-50 bills and says he has many more things that he is working on.

Among the bills he has introduced and sponsored: a bill to enact the New York State flood mitigation grant act, which would appropriate $5 million to the Department of Environmental Conservation. Other bills that Latimer has sponsored include a bill to direct the New York State Thruway Authority to discontinue the New Rochelle toll plaza on the New England side of I-95; a bill

to establish the Green Jobs Workforce Subcommittee to provide training, education and a green jobs corps; and a bill that would prohibit the State from purchasing paper products that are non-recyclable.

Other interesting bills that Latimer has co-sponsored, but were first introduced by Assemblyman Felix Ortiz of District 51, include: a bill that would prohibit writing, sending or reading text messages while driving. Also introduced, a bill that directs the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation to establish rules and regulations to reduce high levels of global warming emissions and to track and monitor these levels.

Aside from being a State Assemblyman, Latimer also serves on many committees and subcommittees of various interests. He is the Chair of the Subcommittee on Catastrophic National Disasters.

Also, he is a standing member in the following: Committee of Environmental Conservation, Committee on Governmental Operations, Committee on Insurance, Committee on Labor, Committee on Local Governments, Committee on Transportation and Subcommittee on Oversight of Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBEs).

This is Latimer’s 4th term in office as an Assemblyman representing District 91, which includes Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Rye, Rye Brook, Port Chester and ½ of New Rochelle. He is a 3rd generation Westchester native; a Scorpio, born and publically educated in Mt. Vernon.

He holds degrees from both Fordham University and New York University. He currently lives with his family in Rye, NY. Local resident Bary Alyssa Johnson covers Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Rye, and Rye Brook, as well as the evolving world of electronics and technology.

Page 6

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

GOVERNMENT

Tarrytown Village Board Slams The Westchester Guardian

By Nancy King

As we get ready to go to press with this week’s edition of The Westchester Guardian, we’ve become aware that the paper was central to a contentious board meeting on Tuesday, February 22, 2011.

It all revolved over a series of articles revealed The Westchester Guardian that highlighted the villages’ handling of the investigation into the deaths of two village employees, a sexual harassment suit, the removal of a harbor master, and the removal of dedicated trees. In a televised board meeting, members of the board criticized The Westchester Guardian, its reporting and of course questioned where we had received the reams of documents needed to be read in order to write the articles.

The Westchester Guardian is a champion of free speech. We therefore recognize the board having every right to

voice their collective opinions concerning coverage of those incidents. It is no secret that we obtained those documents from a resident who was more than happy to share them with us. What we found to be the most disturbing were not those documents but the information that a party who was integral in the PESH investigation has been taking copies of The Westchester Guardian and removing them from the lobby of The Greenburgh Town Hall where he is employed. Unfortunately it appears there are still individuals who are unaware that The Westchester Guardian had a similar case go before the Federal Court this past fall. The case involved DPW workers removing the blue boxes that contain our paper and hauling them to the city dump. These circumstanced were allegedly ordered by the Mayor of Yonkers, and carried out by the DPW

Commissioner and his workers.

As a Federal Judge ruled, the First Amendment rights of The Westchester Guardian had indeed been violated and further awarded 16 employees of The Westchester Publisher an $8 million judgment.

The lawsuit was underwritten by Publisher Sam Zherka, whereas the beneficiaries of the judgment are the employees.

Obstructing the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States is serious stuff. Throwing away newspapers obstructs the rights of others and prevents them from forming their own opinions.

One seriously hopes that this will never happen again and that the individual involved won’t be trashing this paper when it is delivered to The Greenberg Town Hall this week.

As we go to press, we are awaiting a copy of the DVD of that February 22nd Board Meeting and we will link to the paper so that the public may view it and form their own opinions. And while we’re talking about American’s right to free speech, signs have popped up all over Tarrytown that read “Save Tarrytown.”

To be honest, it was rather shocking to see that sign, but, it only indicates how fractured this village has become.

Peekskill Council Suffers Silent Protest

By Abby Luby

Last week members of Peekskill’s Common Council sat through uncomfortable silences before speakers poised at the podium during the public comment session. This powerful form of protest came from people expressing their discontent with what they claim is racism in town government.

For the last eight months a coalition of local civil rights organizations have packed town hall to openly accuse the town of racism and discrimination in the Department of Public Works and in public housing. The protests have primarily been spearheaded by Darrell Davis of the Peekskill Committee for Justice. Initiating the silent protest was Beth Holden of Cortlandt who stated her name and then remained silent for about a minute.

“Are you making a statement?” asked Peekskill Mayor Mary Foster. After another brief pause, Holden countered by comparing the town’s “silence” to what she referred to as the town’s irresponsiveness to complaints about racism and discrimination.

“I find it extremely interesting that I’ve

not even been here for one minute and there’s been a great deal of difficulty faced with my silence,” said Holden. “I have to imagine what it is like for the citizens of Peekskill and residents of Bohlman Towers and city employees who have been coming to you repeatedly for over a year with concerns and complaints, to have been met with silence. If less than a minute is intolerable for you, can you imagine how it feels for someone to be dealing with this kind of response for six to twelve months?”

Jim Adler of the Cortlandt-Peekskill Anti-Racism Collaborative briefly remained silent before he commented.

“Silence is the worse form of emotional abuse,” he said. Adler proceeded to read passages from texts that referenced the “N” word. He summed up by accusing the town for treating African Americans as if they “weren’t really here.”

The silent protest came on the heels of a Black History Month ceremony just prior to the council meeting where a packed town hall came together to recognize prominent Peekskill African Americans. When the meeting resumed, Davis referenced Black History Month as

Darrell Davis, far right, addresses the Peekskill Common Council.

he addressed the council.

“I celebrate Black History year round.

Black people have a legacy of struggles.”

Davis talked about the 1921 Tulsa Race Riots in Oklahoma where prominent African American businessmen in Tulsa’s Greenwood neighborhood, known as “Black Wall Street,” were gunned down while entire neighborhoods and businesses were razed by fire. The horrific day was instigated by the alleged assault of a white woman by a black man.

Davis jabbed his comments to a stolidfaced council. “We packed the house two weeks ago and we can do that whenever we

need to. We can march, we can picket. I’m giving you fair warning.”

Coming to the council’s defense was Ted Bitters, Peekskill resident and owner of the BeanRunner Café. Bitters praised the council for working their part-time council jobs for what he defined as “basically volunteer jobs.”

“You are elected officials and I voted for you. You should be respected not demonized. We don’t do that to one another.”

Ambling up to the podium with the aid of a cane was 77 year old Thomas Tinsely, who for 45 years has lived at Continued on page 7

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 7

GOVERNMENT

Peekskill Council Suffers Silent Protest Continued from page 6 Dunbar Heights, public housing owned and run by the housing authority. The raspy toned Tinsely lambasted Davis.

“He doesn’t have any respect and he doesn’t even live here. He walks around here as if he’s king. I don’t even think he votes.” Tinsely’s comments elicited jeers from some in the audience.

On the council’s agenda was an update on the proposed ordinance that would allow tattoo salons to open in

downtown Peekskill. Peekskill planner Jeremy Doxee told council members that the planning commission had shifted from their original position to impose certain restrictions on the tattoo studios and who now feel that tattoo businesses are over regulated. Under the new ordinance, salons will have to be out of the public view and therefore the commission felt they should be allowed to be on the same side of the street as parks, churches and schools – a key issue that has been

debated frequently. Planners also recommended that the parlors be allowed on the ground floor.

Doxee read letters the city received as part of the “Tattoo Studios” public hearing. Some Peekskill residents encouraged the town to move ahead claiming that tattoo saloons are now a part of mainstream American and are overregulated. Others urged the city to delay the ordinance and to ultimately require prospective tattoo salon owners to obtain proper licenses that address medical waste.

Critics said tattoo parlors were associated

Tensions Flare at Ossining Town Board Meeting

By Pete Tripodi

At an Ossining Town Board Meeting Tuesday, February 22, 2011, tensions flared as auto body business owners let the board know where they stand on the proposed zoning changes to their businesses. From 2002-2004 a Comprehensive Plan was conducted by Frederick P. Clark & Assoc. The plan recommended the adoption of legislation and various new local laws to be passed.

One of the laws recommended would strike automotive use establishments from being designated a permitted business use to a non-conforming use.

My strong voice against this proposed law was again stirred. I said, “Last night was a great night for democracy, Local business owners let this board know where they stand in reference to this anti-business, anti-tax revenue law being considered by the board. These business owners worked all their lives to make these businesses successful so that one day they can pass them down to their children. These businesses are the essence of our country’s spirit; they give jobs to local residents, and help alleviate the tax burden from residential home owners. This law would make it illegal for these businesses to expand. This law would make it illegal for these businesses to rebuild in the event of a fire or natural disaster.”

The business owners echoed my comments throughout that evening.

When pressed by a local auto body owner as to her opinion on the law, Supervisor Catherine Borgia stated she didn’t have an

opinion. To this, I responded Wednesday, February 23, 2011, stating, “The very fact that the Supervisor does not have an opinion in this matter shows the incompetence of elected officials not reading the laws consultants and others push them to pass. This Comprehensive Plan is a cookie cutter document not exclusive to Ossining yet cites issues from public meetings that were never mentioned by the public. I researched the documents from these public meetings, and note that not even once was it mentioned to make these businesses non-conforming.

No individual from within our community mentioned their want to get rid of these establishments. This is out of line,

anti-business, and could potentially make our financial situation worse.”

I suggested that the plan I presented before the Town Board fits Ossining best.

“We move our Town Supervisor’s office (for which we pay rent), the Building Department office (for which we pay rent), and the Tax Receiver’s office (for which we pay rent) into our $320,000/ yr vacant building that we own. By doing this, we bring people to North State Road. These people include those who will visit the Supervisor’s office, those who will file paperwork or permits with the Building Department, and finally, those who will come pay their taxes to the Tax Receiver. By the Tax Receiver’s

with criminal activity and urged the city to have a special committee to oversee the new ordinance. The public hearing for Tattoo Studios was then closed. The Council will review the public testimony and recommendations of other city agencies. They will either amend the draft law or revise it. If revised, the city would set a date for a new public hearing.

Abby Luby is a Westchester based, freelance journalist who writes about current, local news, environmental issues, art entertainment and food.

office being located there and the large amounts of money received on a daily basis by the office, a bank would be a much needed asset. There is currently no bank on North State Road. A bank would be able to service and sustain itself from the Tax Receiver’s office alone. In addition to that, other businesses on the road would use this bank. After doing this, the town could offer a tax incentive to a big box store for them to move in, attracting other businesses to locate on the road and new development would occur. This is the Comprehensive Plan we need.”

For more information contact: Peter Tripodi (914) 774-0373 Peter Tripodi is Ossining Town Councilman.

Learn more at www.PeterTripodi.com

Page 8

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

GOVERNMENT

Lowey Announces Federal Grants for Westchester Fire Departments Washington, DC -- Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) last week announced the White Plains Fire Bureau and Tarrytown Fire Department will receive federal grants for equipment and training, helping to keep Westchester County communities safe.

“First responders serve their communities by responding to emergencies and helping those in need of assistance,” said Congresswoman Lowey. “It is our responsibility to ensure they have the equipment and training they need to help keep us – and themselves – safe. I am pleased the Department of Homeland Security is addressing these needs in White Plains and Tarrytown.”

Lowey is a senior member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, where she has strongly advocated initiatives to support local fire departments.

The White Plains Fire Bureau will use the funding to purchase thermal imaging cameras for use while battling blazes.

The cameras allow firefighters to find victims and reconnect with each other if they become separated in a smoke-filled environment.

White Plains Public Safety Commissioner David Chong said, “We thank the Congresswoman for her help in securing this grant which will provide the fire department with necessary, modern technology to help us fight fires and locate possible victims.”

Tarrytown Mayor Drew Fixell said, “On behalf of the Village of Tarrytown, I wish to thank Congresswoman Lowey for her assistance in securing this support for our hard-working volunteer fire department. In times like these, when local governments are finding it increasingly

difficult to maintain and enhance essential, life-protecting services such as these, it’s impossible to overstate how important this grant is to our department and our community. Its impact will be felt throughout the department, allowing us to upgrade a wide-range of missioncritical equipment, as well as to enhance training. I would also like to thank our Fire Chief, Pete Saracelli, our grantwriter Martin Schneider and our Village Administrator, Michael Blau, for all the work they did in obtaining this grant.”

The Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program, which is administered by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Grants and Training in coordination with the U.S. Fire Administration, awards grants directly to fire departments and EMS agencies. Funds may be used to increase the effectiveness of

Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY)

firefighting operations, firefighter health and safety programs, emergency medical service programs, fire prevention and safety programs, and to purchase new fire equipment.

INVESTIGATION

Highway and Yorktown Under Scrutiny

By Abby Luby

The Town of Yorktown is being audited by the New York State Comptroller. The ongoing investigation started in May, 2010, and was prompted by a series of allegations against Highway Superintendent Eric DiBartolo.

“We are still conducting the audit of the town and the highway department figures in the audit,” said Bill Reynolds, spokesman for the NYS Comptroller’s office. “We look at risk assessment, financial operations and internal controls. We are hoping to complete the investigation

by May, 2011.”

Allegations that led to the state investigation included DiBartolo’s alleged use of town equipment and employees for personal projects, illegal purchase and sale of vehicles and equipment, and questionable practices in contractor bids and political favors. Audits by the state comptroller typically check for misuse of funds and conflicts of interest.

Yorktown Supervisor Susan Siegel

declined to comment. “I speak for both myself and Dave Rambo, the Director of the Yorktown Water Department. While this is under investigation, we cannot comment.”

Rambo succeeded DiBartolo who was overseeing the Water District as Director of Labor Operations from 2007 to 2009, a position he held concurrent to being highway superintendent. Rambo criticized the handling of Water District funds in his March 18, 2010 report to the town when he referenced expenditures made under DiBartolo’s watch: “Money set aside in the 2007 and 2008 budget to replace the [water] meters was instead spent on trucks.” Rambo’s report also stated that the 2010 budget “ ...had insufficient funds in critical line items and inconsistencies with allocated money.”

Witnesses allege that DiBartolo made purchases for the town with funds from the Water District, a district that generates their own funds from selling water to other areas such as Somers and Cortlandt.

“He was taking water district money

and spending it on town projects,” said Ed Noonan, a Yorktown retiree who worked for the town for 27 years as acting water superintendent and assistant town engineer. “He also took trucks and sold them to the town for pennies on the dollar and bought new equipment with water district money.”

Noonan came forward to alert the town a few years ago. “They [the town] just looked the other way because it seemed DiBartolo was doing a good job.”

Noonan also sent letters to the editor of the North County News alleging DiBartolo had misappropriated funds while heading up the Water District, but the letters were never published Noonan said.

A current town employee, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions, said highway department workers were frequently seen fixing one or more of DiBartolo’s personal cars “at the shop in the town garage.”

The same employee said it was common for workers to be “thanked” with comp time, written on time sheets as “VC,” which meant “a free day off.”

Corroborating this information is retired forewoman Gayle Chase who worked with DiBartolo when he headed up the Water District.

“We had a water main break and it took us about eight to nine hours to fix it,” Chase recalled. “When we finished, Eric [DiBartolo] said we had done an amazing job and he would reward us with some days off. That’s how he gets these guys not to talk when he does favors for them or for others. To me it was all illegal,” emphasized Ms Chase.

Local politicians seem to have a blind spot when it comes to the comptroller’s investigation. Jim Martorano, town board member for over 19 years, said he wasn’t even aware that the state was investigating the town or DiBartolo. “Why would I know about this?” he asked. Similarly, Westchester County Board Legislator Mike Kaplowitz whose district includes Yorktown, said he was unaware of the investigation.

Another town employee who also asked to remain anonymous remembered when several co-workers helped DiBartola rebuild his parent’s former house on Westview Drive about eight years ago and that it was “done on town time.” The unspoken rule was not to anger DiBartolo if it could be helped.

“Sometimes he comes across personal and friendly, but if you criticize him or if you’ve Continued on page 9

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 9

INVESTIGATION

Highway and Yorktown Under Scrutiny Continued from page 8 done something he doesn’t like, you’re going to pay – there’ll be repercussions.”

The employee also said co-workers helped connect a resident’s house to the sewer line, a job home owners usually pay a private contractor to do. The hook-up, done with town employees, was allegedly a political favor and took place with a

council member on site.

When attempting to reach DiBartolo himself, his secretary quickly said “He has no comment!”

Another questionable transaction was in 2009 when the town was alerted about the removal of contaminated soil from town property by a company owned

by DiBartolo’s late brother. The job had not been put to bid because it has been

said that DiBartolo had designated the situation an emergency. In a previous interview with The Westchester Guardian* DiBartolo claimed the job was authorized.

Questions arose about the actual need for the job that cost the town $73,000.

The State Comptroller will issue a report when the investigation is complete, said Reynolds. “In general, it has been our practice that if we have findings that suggest criminal wrongdoing we contact either the local law enforcement or the

Attorney General.” * The catalyst behind this investigative report, also penned by Abby Luby, was first revealed in The Westchester Guardian in the February 17, 2011, edition under the title From Salt Wars to Slander, and found on page 19.

Abby Luby is a Westchester based, freelance journalist who writes about current, local news, environmental issues, art entertainment and food.

LAW

Defense of Marriage Act Proves Indefensible

By Larry M. Elkin

President Obama, who is a former constitutional scholar, and his chief legal beagle had a belated but welcome epiphany yesterday: A president is not obliged to defend an indefensible law, and the Defense of Marriage Act is indefensible.

In other words, just what I wrote in June 2009, after Obama and his Justice Department offered offensive justifications, including long-ago incestuous and adolescent marriages, for the federal government’s refusal to recognize today’s same-sex adult marriages that are valid under state or foreign law. When the gay community responded with outrage, Obama’s minions asserted that an executive must defend any legislation on the books, no matter how clearly it violates citizens’ rights, until the legislation is struck down by the courts.

I can’t take credit for the continuing legal education of the president and Attorney General Eric Holder. The change of heart is doubtless due to a string of stinging lower-court reversals and a sense that the political tides are turning as Americans increasingly realize that samesex marriage is here to stay, and that it has not brought an end to civilization as we know it.

Who woulda thunk it?

Holder announced the presidential change of heart in a letter to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. Holder said the executive branch has determined that Section 3 of the 1996 legislation, which prevents any federal recognition of samesex marriage, violates the Constitution’s

equal protection clause.

Not long ago, Boehner and most fellow Republicans would have denounced Holder’s letter, along with the very idea of same-sex marriage. But Republicans too can see which way the political and legal winds are blowing. Sidestepping the issue of whether DOMA was ever a reasonable law – which it was not – Boehner spokesman Michael Steele offered the following reply: “While Americans want Washington to focus on creating jobs and cutting spending, the president will have to explain why he thinks now is the appropriate time to stir up a controversial issue that sharply divides the nation.”

The idea that the economy has to recover before the government recognizes Americans’ civil rights is just as nonsensical as the idea that the institution of marriage needs a “defense” against gay couples that want to participate in it. But at least it isn’t as hateful. Maybe that’s progress, too.

From the day it was signed into law by President Bill Clinton, a self-proclaimed friend of gay Americans, the Defense of Marriage Act was an irrational act of legislative spite directed at a politically unpopular minority. The polite legal word for hate is “animus,” and this is the word that Holder’s letter used to describe the law’s motivations. It is also one of the words U.S. District Judge Joseph L. Tauro used when he declared DOMA unconstitutional last July.

The executive branch’s new position will affect at least two more cases currently pending that involve DOMA. Pedersen v.

OPM, a case in Connecticut, concerns the denial of marriage-related protections for federal benefits such as Family Medical

Leave Act benefits and federal laws relating to state pension plans. In New York, Windsor v. United States centers on the federal government’s refusal to recognize a couple’s marriage for federal estate tax purposes. Holder advised Boehner that “[…] the President has instructed the [ Justice] Department not to defend the statute in Windsor and Pedersen, now pending in the Southern District of New York and the District of Connecticut. I concur in this determination.”

By refusing to defend the legislation, the administration will be all but asking the courts to strike it down.

Though the courts are moving faster than politicians or the public, there is a growing consensus across our society that sexual orientation is a private matter that ought not to involve the government.

From the Supreme Court’s 2003 decision in Lawrence v. Texas (which overturned laws against consensual adult homosexual conduct) to U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker declaring California’s Proposition 8 unconstitutional last August, we have made a great deal of progress in a relatively short time. Legislation to repeal the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy was finally enacted in December, after that policy also was struck down in the courts. But the policy remains in effect until after military leaders certify that it will not damage the armed forces’ readiness, effectiveness, unit cohesion, recruiting and retention. At that point, a 60-day waiting period begins before the policy is officially scrapped.

Though I think the ultimate acceptance of same-sex marriage is inevitable, it still remains to be seen whether that will happen sooner rather than later. Even

with the administration’s change of heart, I expect the Supreme Court will eventually weigh in on whether the federal government must recognize same-sex unions. At the same time, another line of cases will eventually develop over a separate section of DOMA, which purports to give states the power not to recognize other states’ same-sex marriages. If these marriages are not vindicated in the courts, we will have to wait until politicians feel it is safe to stop discriminating.

The president, for one, isn’t there yet, because he isn’t sure what it will cost him.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said yesterday that Obama is still “grappling” with his own stance on gay marriage, but has always seen DOMA as “unnecessary and unfair.” As Boehner’s spokesman observed, it’s a controversial issue, and taking a strong stance could put the president on shaky political ground.

While it would be nice for Obama to come down firmly on the side of fairness and equal rights for everyone, it isn’t necessary. What is necessary is for the U.S. government to recognize and respect the marriages that all Americans, and foreigners too, decide to form. Yesterday’s announcement does not get us all the way there, but it brings us closer.

Larry M. Elkin, CPA, CFP®, president of Palisades Hudson Financial Group a fee-only financial planning firm headquartered in Scarsdale, NY. The firm offers estate planning, insurance consulting, trust planning, crossborder planning, business valuation, family office and business management, executive financial planning, and tax services. Its sister firm, Palisades Hudson Asset Management, is an independent investment advisor with about $950 million under management. Branch offices are in Atlanta and Ft. Lauderdale. Web site: www.palisadeshudson. com.

Page 10

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

LECTURE SERIES

Brides, Bohemians, and Booze Historical Perspectives

March roars in like a lion at BartowPell Mansion Museum with its annual Winter Lecture Series, this year focusing on Brides, Bohemians, and Booze: Historical Perspectives. The Thursday evening talks all take place at 7 p.m. in the mansion’s glorious Greek Revival double parlor and are followed by an author meetand-greet, booksigning, and reception.

The series begins Thursday, March 3, at 7 p.m. with author Carol Wallace discussing her book All Dressed in White: The Irresistible Rise of the American Wedding (Penguin Books, 2004). This keenly observed social history of the ritual, industry, and subculture that is the American wedding is—like all Ms. Wallace’s historical work—both enlightening and very entertaining.

Carol Wallace has written 22 books, both nonfiction and fiction. In 2010 she participated in BPMM’s Winter Lecture Series with a talk on To Marry an English Lord, Or How Anglomania Really Got Started. Her latest work of fiction is a historical novel called Leaving Van Gogh, coming out in April 2011 from Spiegel & Grau.

Brides are followed by bohemians on Thursday, March 10, at 7 p.m. with a presentation by Andrea Barnet on her fascinating book All-Night Party: The Women of Bohemian Greenwich Village and Harlem, 1913–1930 (Algonquin Books, 2004). Kurt Andersen called Barnet’s All-Night Party, a nonfiction finalist for the 2004 Lambda Literary awards, “tasty, thoughtful scholarship and storytelling.”

Ms. Barnet is a regular reviewer for the New York Times Book Review and a contributor on arts and culture to a variety of magazines including Smithsonian Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, and Architectural Record. She is currently working on a biography of the poet Amy Clampitt.

Capping off the series on Thursday, March 17 is author Michael Lerner discussing Dry Manhattan: Prohibition in New York City (Harvard University Press, 2007). The 18th Amendment to the Constitution prohibited the manufacture, transportation, and sale of alcohol

around the country. Intended to usher in a healthier, more moral and efficient society, proponents argued that it was needed nowhere more than in New York City— and nowhere did it fail more spectacularly.

Dry Manhattan is the only full history of the city during one of the stranger eras in the country’s history.

Michael Lerner, Ph.D., is the Principal of Bard High School Early College, a partnership between Bard College and the New York City Department of Education. He speaks frequently on New York City history and is working on a new project about the East Village and Lower East Side of Manhattan since the 1970s.

Registration for the lectures is requested: 718.885.1461 or info@bpmm. org. Cost: $10 adults; $7 seniors and students; members free.

Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum is located at 895 Shore Road, Pelham Bay Park, Bronx, New York. To reach us by public transportation, take the #6 Lexington Avenue Local subway to Pelham Bay Park station, followed by the Westchester Bee-Line #45 bus direct to

the mansion gate. For driving directions, please visit www.bpmm.org.

Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum is owned by the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, operated by the Bartow-Pell Conservancy, and a member of the Historic House Trust of New York City. This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, celebrating 50 years of building strong, creative communities in New York State’s 62 counties. Support also comes from the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, New York City Councilman James Vacca, New York State Assemblyman Michael Benedetto, New York State Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, New York State Senator Jeffrey Klein, Congressman Joseph Crowley, Con Edison, and Toyota.

LIFE

Too Young or Too Old?

By Alisa Singer

I never had a Bat Mitzvah. This set me apart from many of my classmates – third graders enticed to suffer through years of Hebrew school by the promise of a big, splashy party at the end. But as an intensely shy ten-year-old, I was horrified by the prospect of a gala featuring me as the guest of honor, preceded by a solo performance before family, friends and congregants at which I would be required to chant in an ancient language while a rabbi looked over my shoulder, shaking his head mournfully.

So when my mother gave me the choice of Hebrew school or ballet class, I opted

for group recitals in tights and tutus as the lesser of two evils.

Some 40 years later I was confronted with yet another Jewish tradition which, like the Bat Mitzvah, also involved reciting strange words from an ancient language.

Only this time the words were Chinese, not Hebrew, and instead of standing on a podium in a synagogue reading from right to left, you sat in a friend’s kitchen or living room and passed small square tiles to the right, then over, then twice to the

left, over, back to the right again and once more across.

For reasons that seem to escape everyone, it has come to be expected that some time around middle-age every Jewish woman will, like her mother before her, begin spending several afternoons a week sitting around a table with three other women hunched over racks of tiles, calling out peculiar phrases like: “three crack; north; seven bam, soap, flower, green dragon, …”. (This is all very mysterious. And why Jewish women in particular? I’ve yet to hear a convincing explanation.) In any event, my mother had decided my time had come: “You should learn now,” she said, implicitly adding the words “while you’re mind is still functioning”. And though I accepted the fact that I would someday become one Continued on page 11

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 11

LIFE

Too Young or Too Old? Continued from page 10 of the “ladies that play”, my first instinct was to resist.

Part of my reluctance was the fear, universal among women, of finally actually becoming my mother. It made me uncomfortable to think that we could be “into” the same thing. I preferred to indulge the illusion that I was too young to be a Mah Jongg player. I recalled scenes from my childhood when I would peek at my mother playing Maj with her friends.

It seemed to me that even back then they were old, though in all likelihood they were a decade or so younger than I am now. However, I noted with some relief that my mom and her friends had recently begun to make the transition to Canasta. This card game of the rummy ilk apparently marks the next step in the progression of aging of the American Jewish female. (Who knew?)

But it wasn’t only my mother who was urging me on –- obeying a call of nature audible only to women of a certain age, my contemporaries were flocking to the game in droves. (Talk about a biological clock!) I soon found myself at a table with three of my grade school friends; one of

whom, Marsha, had been playing for several years and was to be our teacher.

With the equanimity born of many years educating pre-schoolers, Marsha carefully explained the intricate rules of Mah Jongg as we stared back at her with bleary eyes.

It did not take long before her professional patience began to wane: “No”, she would moan, holding her head in her hands, “for the last time, you can never, ever use a joker to make a pair!”

To her credit, Marsha suffered through our lessons until we had succeeded in learning the rudiments of the game. Then, like an exhausted parent relieved to finally remove the training wheels from the bicycle, she gave us a shove and let go. Having discharged her teaching duties Marsha bowed out, claiming schedule conflicts whenever we tried to plan a game. So, for our fourth player we resorted to a “dummy” whom we named “Robert”. Robert turned out to be not only a perfect fourth, but also as close to a perfect man as any of us had ever encountered – always willing and available to play (even though he never won), neither bitchy nor critical, and even good for passing an occasional joker.

And so we three middle-aged gradeschool buddies took up Mah Jongg in earnest. At first I feared we would lapse

back into the snarky habits of middleschool – that sitting down at a table to play a game would summon up competitive, mean girl feelings of the kind we used to experience playing Monopoly, Sorry, or The Barbie Game. But our better, or at least more practical, natures prevailed, because none of us wanted to start hunting for three new players. We were quickly becoming addicted to the game. The irony for me was that the first Jewish tradition I could fully embrace turned out to be Chinese.

I can see Mah Jongg, and its salutary combination of mental and social activity, filling many otherwise empty afternoons as we sail into senescence. But like anything else, you shouldn’t overdo it. Doctors in China diagnosed a woman with a dangerous blood clot - the result of remaining planted at the Maj table for eight hours straight. The Chinese medical journal named the syndrome “Mah Jongg-related deep-vein thrombosis.”

I’ll take my chances. Besides, it’s suddenly become cool to play Mah Jongg: According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, with the nostalgia craze prompted by Mad Men, Mah Jongg (at one point in the early part of the 20th century, the most popular game in the country) is making a big comeback.

Women in their 20’s and 30’s are setting up tables in the backs of Manhattan bars, sipping appletinis and munching on endamame as they rack their tiles.

Which means my fears about being too young to play Maj were way off the mark - it turns out, I’m actually too old!

A recent brunch with my long lost friend Marsha confirmed as much. When I accused her of cruelly abandoning her former students she denied it: “It wasn’t that”, she said. “It’s just that I don’t play much Maj anymore. I’ve moved on to Canasta.”

I’m definitely too young for Canasta.

Republic with a Euro-style secularsocialist utopia. Hard-line Islamists seek to destroy us outright and supplant our government with a global Islamic State.

Exhibit A, of course, is the “Muslim Brotherhood” – a worldwide Islamofascist organization heartily embraced in recent weeks by the mainstream media and

the larger “progressive” movement. The Brotherhood, in its own words, seeks to “destroy” our “Western civilization from within…so that it is eliminated and God’s religion (Islam) is made victorious over all other religions.”

Illustration by and courtesy of Alisa Singer.

Alisa Singer’s humorous essays have appeared in a variety of print and online newspapers and magazines across the country and in Canada. She is the author of various gift books designed to entertain and amuse baby boomers. Her newest book, “When a Girl Goes From Bobby Sox to Compression Stockings…She Gets a Little Cranky,” is available at www.Lulu.com. You can learn more about her work by visiting her website: www.AlisaSinger.com or by contacting her at ASingerAuthor@gmail.com.

OPED

Mainstreaming Radical Islam

By J. Matt Barber

The term “useful idiot” is believed to have been coined by Vladimir Lenin.

It originally described liberal Communist sympathizers in Western nations who, as the Soviet leader explained, would “sell us (Soviet Russia) the rope with which we will hang them (the West).”

Today’s useful idiots are a swath from that same politically correct cloth.

They comprise: secular “progressives” (to include the liberal media); pinko anarchists and other Berkeley-types; President Obama and his motley stable of cracked czars and policy advisors; and the majority of Democrats in Congress.

Only the role of “internationalvillain-bent-on-world-domination” has changed. We’ve gone from the Soviet

hammer and sickle to the Islamic crescent moon and star.

Abraham Lincoln once said: “America will never be destroyed from the outside.

If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.”

I submit that our own useful idiots on the American left represent every bit the threat to both this great Republic and her unalienable freedoms as do the Muslim extremists with whom they play footsy.

Liberals are the naïve, codependent enablers of a global Islamofascist movement bent on taking-down the “Great Satan” and his “Zionist” ally, Israel.

Although their long-term goals differ significantly, militant “progressives” and radical Islamists have a common midrange vision: The left seeks to “repeal and replace,” if you will, our Constitutional

Continued on page 12

Page 12

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

OPED

Mainstreaming Radical Islam Continued from page 11 Frank Gaffney’s Center for Security Policy explains the group’s objective concisely: “The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt in 1928. Its express purpose was two-fold: (1) to implement Shariah worldwide, and (2) to re-establish the global Islamic State (caliphate).”

Although the Muslim Brotherhood, Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations certainly represent a sizeable menace, I think there remains a more subtle, yet equally ominous threat to our way of life.

I recently received an email from the National Muslim Law Students Association promoting an upcoming conference at Penn Law on February 26.

As I began to read, my jaw dropped.

The conference is titled: “Constructive Roles for Islamic Law in Western Society.”

“Constructive roles?” I thought. “For Shariah law?” I read further. As it turns out, Asifa Quraishi, a University of Wisconsin law professor and founding member of the National Association of Muslim Lawyers, is to speak.

Among other things, Quraishi has advocated incorporating Shariah law, through “local Muslim tribunals,” into the US judiciary.

In a paper headlined: “No Altars: A Survey of Islamic Family Law in the United States,” she wrote: “The attitude of the US courts to the rise of these tribunals is yet unknown, but there is indication that some judges would welcome the existence of reliable arbiters of Islamic family law issues, and may even be undertaking their own consultation from Muslim authorities in the interim.”

This begs the question: Which parts

of Shariah do we incorporate? The provision that renders women chattel to be beaten or killed with impunity? Or how about the death penalty for homosexuals?

What about the part offering the choice between conversion to Islam, enslavement or death?

Keep in mind, Quraishi is no fly-bynight radical. She was actually tapped by the Obama administration to accompany Hillary Clinton at last year’s U.N. Commission on the Status of Women.

This is frog in the pot kind of stuff.

Whereas violent Islamic terrorists might prefer to take-out toady with a suicide bomber, more “moderate” Islamists appear to favor bringing down Western civilization from within by turning up the heat ever-so-slowly. And they’re using liberal academia and our own constitutional freedoms to do it.

This mainstreaming of radical Islam, to include Shariah law, has prompted

lawmakers in Oklahoma to pass – and 13 other states to introduce – laws blocking consideration of Shariah by judges on the bench. Not a bad idea when you consider that five of nine US Supreme Court Justices have admitted weighing international law while ruling on cases.

Yes, the useful idiots will, no doubt, call me an intolerant “Islamophobe” for questioning the irrefutable desire, shared

by Muslims of many stripes, to impose global caliphate upon the international “infidel” collective.

That’s because they’re idiots.

Indeed, if the American left has its way, we may just “tolerate” ourselves right out of existence.

slowly from his quivering prey to the 2 revolvers only a few feet away. “I caught him with my wife!” he snarled, making another jab with the 8-inch serrated blade.

His terrified hostage sustained another wound as he tried to ward off the blow.

“He was supposed to be my friend!” the attacker hissed through clenched teeth. “I caught them in my bed! He was coming over here when I left for work!” he yelled, twisting his face to an ugly scowl. With each acid-laced utterance he did a little more damage to the alleged lothario who continued begging for his life, unwilling to turn toward us for fear of a fatal wound from his antagonist.

As we grasped a situation the woman had not prepared us for, we could see that the victim, although covered in blood, didn’t appear to have any life-threatening wounds. Yet, that could change in seconds if the knife-wielder wanted him dead. “Okay, you punished him enough,” I said, trying to cajole the outraged husband into giving it up. “I feel sorry for what happened, but I can’t let you cut him anymore,” I added, cocking my weapon and moving closer. He looked down at the object of his hatred and raised the dripping dagger again. “Don’t!” I warned, beginning to squeeze the trigger.

“If you make me kill you, he wins,” I said, trying some street psychology. “As a husband, I can understand how you feel, but as a cop, I swear I’ll shoot you if I have

to.” He stared at my eyes for a few seconds before tossing the knife in the sink. The victim was transported to a hospital and the attacker was arrested. When we put him in a holding cell in our office, the other detectives, who had been listening to the radio transmissions, asked if he was the guy who caught his friend in bed with his wife.

When we told them he was, they broke out in a round of applause. “Way to go, my man!” one of them said. “Can I get you something to drink?” said another. Yeah, I know; cops can be very cynical.

Matt Barber (jmattbarber@comcast.net) is an attorney concentrating in constitutional law. He serves as Vice President of Liberty Counsel Action. Facebook/jmattbarber / Twitter/@jmattbarber (This information is provided for identification purposes only.)

WEIR ONLY HUMAN

A Million Stories in the Naked City

By Bob Weir

One bright, clear morning in New York, my partner and I picked up a couple of containers of coffee and were driving toward a street in Queens Village to work surveillance on a suspected drug supply house. Before we had our second sip of the ebony-colored stimulant, a cry for help interrupted the serenity.

We tossed the steaming liquid out the window and I hit the gas, reaching the next corner in a matter of seconds. As I turned the unmarked unit onto the cross street, we were shocked to see a naked women in her late 20’s running along the street and screaming for help. As we jumped out of the car to approach her, she ran toward us and grabbed my partner in a bear hug.

“Are you the police?” she cried hysterically. “Yes, ma‘am” my partner replied, taking her by the shoulders and holding her at arms length as both of us tried to adjust to the incongruity of the situation.

“What happened?” I asked, wishing I had a jacket or something to cover her while we inquired. “My husband!” she screamed.

“He’s killing him! Please help him!”

We put her in the rear seat of the sedan and drove about 2 blocks to the house she had just run from. It was difficult to

understand exactly what we were about to face, because she continued to murmur incoherently. When we pulled up to the location, she refused to leave the car. “No!” she yelled. “I’m not goin’ back in there.

He’s gone crazy…..he’s killing him.” We ran to the entrance to the one-story home, and, noticing the door was wide open, drew our weapons and took positions on each side. We could hear the faint voice of a man pleading with someone. “Don’t kill me, please,” the man was repeating between the anguished sounds of inflicted pain. Moving toward the voice, we made our way into the kitchen, where we came upon a man with a large bloody knife, standing over a naked man on his knees.

There were splashes of red liquid dotting the surrounding area and the victim had several open wounds from his face to his midsection. His hands were crisscrossed with slash marks as he tried to ward off more thrusts from his attacker. With each stabbing attempt, he would grab the blade, only to have his tormenter pull it back violently, tearing deeper into the palms and fingers of his cowering victim.

“Police, drop the knife!” I ordered, as we aimed our weapons at the middle of his chest. The man’s rage-filled eyes moved

Bob Weir is a veteran of 20 years with the New York Police Dept. (NYPD), ten of which were performed in plainclothes undercover assignments. During his early years with NYPD, Bob earned a Bachelor of Science degree, cum laude from New York Institute of Technology.

He retired as a sergeant after supervising patrol in Midtown Manhattan, the busiest precinct in the country.He would eventually move to Flower Mound, Texas, where he began a writing career that started about 12 years ago having his first book published in 1999. Bob went on to write and publish a total of seven novels, “Murder in Black and White,” “City to Die For,” “Powers that Be,” “Ruthie’s Kids,” “Deadly to Love,” “Short Stories of Life and Death,” and “Out of Sight,” are available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, Books-amillion, and other major online book sellers.

He also became a syndicated columnist under the title “Weir Only Human”.

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 13

ALBANY CORRESPONDENT

Senate Democrats Push to Co-sponsor Redistricting Bill

By Carlos Gonzalez

Albany, NY -- Senate Democrats are pushing back against what they describe as the Republican majority’s attempt to bury Governor Cuomo’s redistricting bill in committee by manipulating the chamber’s rules into preventing senators from co-sponsorship.

The Redistricting Reform Act of 2011 would establish a nonpartisan commission to redraw state and congressional district lines and end gerrrymandering tactics. The bill has picked up support from good government groups, such as the New York Public Interest Research Group and NY Uprising, a non-partisan and independent coalition of advocates formed by the Honorable Edward Koch, former New York City Mayor.

Unlike the Assembly, where Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver sponsored the bill and referred it to the Assembly Committee on Government Operations, Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos (R-Long Island) opted to refer the bill to the Senate Standing Committee on Rules without any sponsorship.

Democrats say that by introducing Governor Cuomo’s program bill into Rules without a sponsor or co-sponsors creates an illusion that no one in the Senate is supporting the bill, and they feel it is reminiscent of the days of former GOP Majority Leader Joseph L. Brunocontrolled years, whereby Bruno withheld sponsors, hand-picked other sponsors, and limited co-sponsorships.

The Senate GOP stated that the bill had been introduced as being “sponsored” by the Rules Committee itself.

They stated the legislation was not open to co-sponsorship according to the chamber’s rules pointing to a provision of Senate Rule VI as essentially invalidating all co-sponsorships on bills introduced by the Rules Committee itself.

Having co-sponsors to a bill is superfluous to the process in the sense that it has no procedural effect as to whether that bill makes it to the floor for a vote or not. Multiple co-sponsors, especially comprised of bi-partisan support, can and often does place greater political strength behind a bill, thus moving the legislation forward with greater gravitas.

The question about co-sponsorship surfaced late Wednesday when several Democrats learned their written requests to be listed on Cuomo’s bill were denied by the Republican Majority Counsel’s office.

The maneuver sparked Deputy Minority Leader Neil Breslin (D-Albany) to hold a press conference, whereas he hand delivered “buck slips,” historical Albany slang for a document members must sign allowing such member to “buck” onto a bill as a co-sponsor to the Republican Conference’s Revision office .

Twenty-six Democrats, including three members of the newly formed Independent Democratic Conference submitted “buck slips.”

Senator Breslin stated that all 62 members of the Senate should have the opportunity to co-sponsor and move Cuomo’s bill, as was done when Democrats were in the majority. Though Breslin didn’t cite legislation, bi-partisan co-sponsorship happened twice with former Governor David Paterson’s FMAP funding bill, and the Energize NY bill.

“The message I’m sending is ‘open up government,’” said Senator Breslin.

“How people vote can only be done by an independent body. If it’s placed with Republicans or Democrats, they’re going to favor a plan that benefits them. If it’s done independently, the voters can feel comfortable that its being done in a fair way.”

“All of the Republicans signed onto wanting independent redistricting,” continued Senator Breslin. “Now we have a bill and they have somewhat of an amnesia.”

Is White Plains Ready to Bring Back Joe Delfino?

By Nancy King

What a week it’s been in White Plains.

First, Adam Bradley decided to step down on Friday. In itself, it was a shocker, it also brought forth so many questions?

Did he step down due to initial findings by the Ethics Committee or did it have something to do with a pre-sentencing meeting with Judge Susan Capeci ? We may never know the real reason for Adam Bradley’s abrupt departure as Mayor of the City of White Plains, but we do know that there will be jockeying for position

to line up for a chance to be the mayor that will rival the line up at the Kentucky Derby.

As of now Tom Roach has taken over as Acting Mayor of the City of White Plains. However there must be a special election held within sixty days.

By Monday, February 21st, sources advised The Westchester Guardian that the White Plains Democratic Committee had already interviewed three potential candidates to run for the office of

mayor. The candidates interviewed were Mssrs Roach and Boykin, and County Legislator Bill Ryan. While Mr Roach was made acting interim mayor by virtue of his position as Common Council President, possessing nine years experience on the Common Council, one has to wonder if has the intestinal fortitude for the job. When he launched his campaign against Bob Castelli for the office of NYS Assmblyman, he was frequently absent from the affairs of governance of the city.

Skelos’ spokesman Scott Reif noted that there were several other redistricting plans under consideration, and that Skelos remains committed to reform, although his immediate focus was on the completion of the state budget.

Reif also pointed out that Senate Democrats introduced nearly 500 bills last year with the Rules Committee as sponsor.

“It’s nothing unique. Nothing new,” said Reif.

However, of the estimated 500 bills submitted by the Rules Committee without a sponsor and under the direction of then Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson, only 22 passed the Senate in 2010 - not an encouraging sign for any bill submitted to Rules without a sponsor. Also, there were no incidents on any member of the GOP attempting to “buck slip” legislation and being denied by Democrats.

Blair Horner of the New York Public Interest Research Group said it’s rare to see bills sponsored solely by the Rules Committee so early in the year, especially since only seven bills were introduced prior to April of 2010.

“It means this is an effort to protect the Senate Republicans and undermine the bill,” said Horner.

Regardless of Democratic efforts, we have just confirmed at time of print that the “buck slip” requests submitted by Senator Neil Breslin have all been denied.

Share your thoughts with me by directing email to carlgonz1@gmail.com.

It seems Mr Roach is conflicted, White Plains Mayor, New York State Assembly.

He has 60 days to prove his worth.

Councilman Benjamin Boykin has expressed interest in leading the city.

Boykin who has served on the Common cCouncil since 2000 has also been a member of the White Plains School District’s School Board having served from 1992 until 1999. At a time when it is rumored that the White Plains School District is laying off fifty teachers and fifty teaching assistants to close a $10 million budget gap, his educational credentials weigh heavy with clout. Boykin in the role of Mayor could be beneficial to Continued on page 14

Page 14

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

The Westchester Guardian

POLITICS

Is White Plains Ready to Bring Back Joe Delfino?

Continued from page 13 explaining to residents the intricacies of how to create a school budget. He would also have the distinction of being White Plains first African American mayor.

Finally, we have William “Bill Boss” Ryan. Bill Ryan is a county legislator representing District 5, which serves the constituents of White Plains and Scarsdale. The longest sitting county legislator, Ryan narrowly won re-election over his opponent, restaurant owner Bob Hyland. The fact that he narrowly missed being shown the door by the voters may have been a huge wake up call for Ryan. It was clear that in November 2009, people were weary of reading about the ongoing shenanigans of his assistant Gary Kriss.

Mr. Ryan discounted that as we were sinking deeply into a two-year plus recession; taxpayers were losing patience with his support of a staff member who had stolen tens of thousands of dollars from

taxpayers to follow his own folly of being a writer. Most elected officials think the vox populi are stupid but in this case, the same vox populi expressed just how unhappy they were with Mr. Ryan. While Mr. Ryan made it back to the 8th floor by the skin of his teeth, he did lose his beloved chairmanship (and hefty stipend) to fellow Democrat Ken Jenkins.

This isn’t the first time that Ryan has had a go at running for mayor. In 2001 he was recommended by members of the White Plains Democratic Party for nomination. However, the committee ended up nominating Robert Greer.

This time around, with the chairmanship stipend gone, and Kenny Jenkins steering this ship, you can be sure that Bill Ryan is going to do his very best to secure the nomination. I don’t envy Tom Caruso and his nominating committee.

But who is waiting in the wings for the Republican Party? There really is no

other candidate suited for this position than the Honorable Joe Delfino, former Mayor of White Plain. Dubbed America’s Favorite Mayor, Delfino led the city for more than a decade. During that time the city nurtured and implemented the City Center, The Ritz Carlton, and revitalized nightlife along the Mamaroneck Avenue ribbon. Joe Delfino awakened a city that was on the fast track to no where by selling the possibilities of just how good it would be for businesses to come to White Plains. And you know what; his strategy worked. Joe Delfino is the consummate salesman and that just might be what White Plains needs at the moment.

There is a new ShopRite in White Plains now. Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Raymour and Flanigan will be opening soon. Still, that doesn’t fill the void of at least nine vacant stores on Mamaroneck Avenue. White Plains needs a salesman at the helm to sell the idea that White Plains is a great place to do business.

Others question the validity of

bringing back Mayor Joe. He is now 78 years old and one must wonder if he is up to the challenge of leading a city that has gone through its darkest year in history.

There are still contracts to be settled and the question of to what to do with the Safer grant. East Post Road needs to be cleaned up and developed, and there is still fallout over the sale of the Ridgeway Country Club to the French American School of New York. Delfino would also have to deal with a Democratic Common Council that can be at times, seemingly uncooperative. Still there isn’t anyone else even on the Republican Party’s horizon that would be worth running.

Special elections are becoming all too common here in Westchester County and the committees must nominate a candidate by March 10 if they are to meet the April 16th or 26th deadline. The confusion and chaos of musical politicians didn’t end on February 18th when Adam Bradley resigned, quite the contrary, its just beginning.

Seeking the Office of Mayor of Mount Vernon

By Maureen Walker

I have decided to seek the Democratic nomination for Mayor of Mount Vernon at the upcoming primary elections to be held on September 13, 2011.

As the Mount Vernon City Comptroller, I have made the resources of the Comptroller’s Office readily accessible to all residents and businesses.

I have also brought efficiency, effectiveness, and responsiveness to my office resulting in an extended and unprecedented period of financial stability to the City of Mount Vernon. However this financial stability has, unfortunately, not translated into the advancement of our city and its residents from a quality of life perspective. It appears that our city is the victim of partisan politics which has resulted in a leadership vacuum and a decline in our quality of life.

The City of Mount Vernon is now standing at the crossroads between crisis and hope, between economic decline and advancement

opportunities, between past failures and future prosperity. We must make wise choices if we are to steer our city out of the dangerous riptide it has been led into. Restoring pride in our city, providing our residents with the services they deserve and continuing to place people above politics will be my primary objectives.

Mount Vernon needs bold, innovative and capable leadership. Leaders who are not influenced by special interest groups; leaders who are not afraid to make the tough decisions needed; leaders who will place the best interest of the city above politics. I represent that leadership. I am duly qualified and experienced and possess the independence, strength and know-how to chart our city into a brighter tomorrow. I am asking our residents to join me and together we can make our city government more professional, more efficient, more responsive and more accessible to our residents and businesses.

Maureen Walker is the Mount Vernon Comptroller.

She holds CPA, MBA, LETTERS TO THE EDITOR and BSc (Hons.)

Please submit your Letter to the Editor electronically, that is by credentials. directing email to WHYTeditor@gmail.com Please confine your writing to between 350 and 500 words. Your name, address, and telephone contact is requested for verification purpose only. A Letter to the Editor will be accepted at the editor’s discretion when space permits. A maximum of one submission per month may be accepted.

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 15

SHOW PREP

Return of the Prodigal Agnostic, But Not Quite

By Bob Marrone

One recent morning, after spending the night before watching a DVD about the Negro Baseball League, and not long after I had completed a biography of Andrew Jackson, I awakened to a moral dilemma.

How do I reconcile my deep affection for my country with the realities of slavery, Jim Crow and near genocide of the American Indian. How could I explain to a black man who might say he had no business joining the military that had only relatively recently gave him equal status, that he should do it for his country. Or how should I answer those that would try and invalidate the very idea of America by insisting that Europeans stole this nation.

It is a human weakness, I think, to simplify the world by thinking in terms of black and white, right or wrong, or good and bad. We often transfer this toxic mentality to persons and institutions. A liar once is a lair always. An adulterer forfeits his or her moral life entire for the single act, or set of acts. The thief must, always, remain, a thief. Like a stain on a white table cloth we use the spot removers of rationalization

and denial to pretend. The Devil made us do it! That guy deserved it! Everybody does it. The cloth must stay perfectly white.

Down south many Americans have yet to come to grips with losing a war on which they were on the wrong moral side.

All the pontifications of state’s rights, northern aggression and the success of their agrarian economy pall before the truth of institutional forced labor, broken homes and broken hearts, or the lynching and voting rights scams that followed. While it is, I guess, a necessary evil to keep peace in the American family, I cannot get my head around the college dorms, statues or street corners named after Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest. The gifted Calvary commander is famous for having summarily shot black Union troops I the back of the head for the crime of being a different color.

His high water mark was Fort Pillow. You can look it up. His encore performance was as the first Imperial Wizard of the Klux Klux Clan; a hero he.

Our treatment of the Indians makes slavery look alike a fraternity hazing. The next time you are out on the street count how many Indians you see. In my lifetime

the only Indians I have ever seen in person were Canadian hockey players, Other than those few on the reservations, the genocide was successful.

All this, and my own weaknesses as a human being, entered my mind that morning, filling me with self loathing. Yet I could not let go of my love of country.

It hurt! My country and I are not perfect.

That’s when it came back to me.

In a flash, I was back in high school in the class of Brother Carmine, a six foot six, hulk of a man who played football and baseball with Joe Torre. He was so strong that he once swatted the desk out of his way to get at a disrespectful student rather than walk around it. His best sport, though, was Jesus.

From the trinity to the lessons of forgiveness he got it and I got it. Over the years, though, life intervened… not intellectually mind you… but emotionally, spiritually, if you will. I just didn’t “get it” any more. Now, I saw and felt it again. Christ’s purpose, his ministry, was what I had been searching for.

How can we accept ourselves as individuals or as a nation, if we do not love our very weaknesses, accept them, come to terms with them, forgive them, and even love

them as an immutable part of who we are.

To deny or rationalize our transgressions, or worse not to acknowledge and forgive ourselves and, more importantly, others, is to live a life of neuroses, imbalance and duplicity.

I could accept my country on those terms…I could even accept and love myself, a person who has tried and failed so many times to do the right thing.

Now I am not born again. I honestly don’t know if Jesus was divine, I just don’t know.

I have been wrestling in recent years, since the births of my grandchildren, about weather or not there is something more after this life. My love for these children is so powerful that I would easily trade my life for theirs. Their divine spark and innocence seems to come from someplace not of this world. So I hope. I hope for them and I hope for me.

As for Jesus, I do believe that he loved people and understood, perhaps, better than anyone who has ever lived, what it meant to be human. I needed that back… we need that back.

Listen to Good Morning Westchester with Bob Marrone from 6-9 a.m., from Monday through Friday. Direct email to Bob Marrone at Bob@ WVOX.com, and visiting the BobMarrone. com website.

SPORTS

The Girl Who Struck Out the Babe

By Albert Caamano

Spring season was making itself known on the New York Yankees. The promise for the upcoming season that lay before the winning team was starting to take shape in each players’ mind, as it gave pause for some to reflect on author Jean L.S. Patrick’s telling of Jackie Mitchell, “The Girl Who Struck Out Babe Ruth.”

CAAMANO: How did the concept of writing about Jackie Mitchell’s story come to mind?

PATRICK: As I was reading “Winning Ways,” written by Sue Macy, I saw the photograph of a girl on a pitcher’s mound. Underneath, there was a short caption that explained that on April 2, 1931, teenager Jackie Mitchell struck out New York Yankee great Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig at a pre-season exhibition game in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I was immediately captivated by learning more

of her story; piqued by the photo. Unfortunately, the book didn’t offer any more than the caption. However, it gave me the springboard for my research which eventually allowed me to write the book “The Girl Who Struck Out Babe Ruth.”

CAAMANO: Can you give us some insight of Jackie Mitchell?

PATRICK: Jackie was an incredible athlete. She also had parents, among others within her circle of acquaintences who believed in her. When she was a girl growing up in Memphis, her neighbor was Dazzy Vance (a minor leaguer at the time) who taught her how to throw and to make the ball move. Supposedly, he also taught her how to throw a “drop pitch.” At the age of sixteen, she played

with an all-women’s team in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Once, When she was playing against a� men’s semipro team, she struck out 9 men in a single game... and people started to notice her. At age 17, she attended a “baseball school” in Atlanta, Georgia, that served to train future major and minor league players.

She displayed her uncanny knack for outguessing the batters at the school. Joe Engel of the Chattanooga Lookouts recognized her athletic talent and understood her ability to gain a lot of publicity for herself and baseball. In March 1931, Jackie signed a contract with the Chattanooga Lookouts to play for the entire season.

CAAMANO: Were you able to get in touch with any of her family? How did you research the story?

PATRICK: Jackie didn’t have any

children. However, I was able to talk to David Jenkins, a sportswriter from Chattanooga, among others who knew her when she was alive. Jenkins was able to give me insight about her character and personality. Also, I was able to view the newsreel that was filmed on the day of the strikeouts. I also read several newspaper accounts of her story -- not just about the strikeout, but about the days leading up to the game.

CAAMANO: Why was she an important part of baseball history?

PATRICK: She was by no means the only woman who was playing baseball at that time. In fact, the 1920s were a very active time for women baseball players.

However, the opportunity to pitch against a major league team, and the top players, put her into the national spotlight. As a result, she brought visibility to the talent of women in the game. To this day, her story reminds people that baseball is not only a sport for men.

CAAMANO: How did she get good enough to pitch at the level where she

Page 16

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

SPORTS

The Girl Who Struck Out the Babe played?

PATRICK: Joe Mitchell, Jackie’s father, played what was considered the equivalent of minor-league baseball at the early part of the century. He was the one who taught her to play and continually encouraged her.

CAAMANO: There was some controversy involving the game she pitched against the Babe and Lou Gehrig. What did that involve?

PATRICK: There are some who believed that Chattanooga Lookout talent scout Joe Engel paid Babe Ruth to strike out.

This theory doesn’t hold much water -- Babe was earning plenty of money in those days, possibly more than the president! He also had no kind things to say about women in baseball; I don’t believe he would choose to strike out on purpose.

Likely, Babe Ruth was caught off guard.

Jackie Mitchell was a better baseball pitcher than he expected. She, as he, were both left-handed. Also, The Babe likely struggled with her off-speed pitches.

Whatever the rationale to explain it all, box scores don’t lie.

CAAMANO: Were there any people involved in baseball that opposed women playing the sport?

PATRICK: Some people , including

Kennesaw Mountain Landis, American jurist, federal judge, and first organized baseball commissioner, were concerned that it was only a publicity stunt and that such stunts should not be permitted in professional baseball. There were others, such as Babe Ruth, who did not believe that women should be part of the game.

CAAMANO: Rumor has it Baseball Commissioner Landid banned her from playing professional baseball, basically ending her career. Is this true?

PATRICK: According to most historians, Baseball Commissioner Landis voided her contract. The exact details are not known.

In any case, this was the only game she played for the Chattanooga Lookouts.

Although this may have prevented her from playing organized baseball, both major and / or minor leagues, it did not end her career. She played with other semi-pro men’s teams and also played in some exhibition games. In the 1930s, she earned a living by playing for the House of David, a men’s barnstorming team. She traveled and played for them for five years.

CAAMANO: There isn’t much told about her life after the game. What as her

life after that day?PATRICK: At first, she was flooded with mail from all over the country. After her ballplaying days were over, she led a quiet life. In fact, most people forgot about her. Her story was resurrected in the 1980s, and she was honored at an Atlanta Braves’ game. However, she died relatively unknown. Occasionally, I hear from people who knew her during the latter part of her life who describe her as a kind person. Jackie Mitchell died in 1987.

CAAMANO: In writing Ms Mitchell’s story, did you receive any negative opposition about the story?

PATRICK: Not really... Although I did encounter a librarian during my research who tried to correct me. “Boys play baseball,” she said. “Girls play softball.” I just smiled. Girls and women have been playing baseball since the 1860s!

CAAMANO: Using your experience as a reference point, do you think women have gotten ahead in sports or are they still ill suffering ill will from many of the men who govern professional teams?

PATRICK: Certainly, women are doing much more than in previous years in many different sports. For example, women’s hockey is part of the Olympics;

females are allowed to run in the Boston marathon, etc. However, the opportunities for women to compete, and earn a living in professional sports are limited when compared to opportunities afforded men. Regarding baseball, girls are encouraged to play softball when they are young, rather than baseball. Even if girls start out playing baseball, they usually move to softball (a different game). I suppose it makes sense because of college scholarships. However, I’d still like to see more women and girls playing baseball. There are women’s baseball teams and small leagues in the U.S. and Canada, and in other parts of the world, but overall, people are not aware of them.

CAAMANO: What are you working on and what are your future plans?

PATRICK: I continue to visit schools, talking with students about writing, history, and the story of Jackie Mitchell.

I’m also working on another book about women’s baseball. For more information, people can visit my website: www.jeanpatrick.com Albert Caamano has coached ice hockey for 15 plus years to include recruiting young players in preparation for college, prep schools and tournaments, and also worked Goalie camps and clinics with former Olympic coaches and college players. Direct email to:SportswriterCaamano@gmail.com.

hapless petty clerk, who slowly sinks into dementia.

He has overheard a conversation between Sophia’s dog, Medji, and another dog, Fifi, whose correspondence (really the dirty paper lining of Medji’s basket) he manages to steal, and from which he learns that Sophia is about to marry a gentleman of the Imperial bedchamber, which further unhinges him. He has visions of Sophia visiting him—once even for a brief dance—but even her visions run from him.

Rush gives a masterly, perhaps even memorable, performance, with enormous attention to every minutia. Even the red roosterish wig is brilliant: a showily pirouetting forelock up front, then baldness, finally a ring of hair, encircling temples and occiput like an audience in support of that prima donna forelock. His walk is an unholy marriage of mincing and strutting, and his speech, when not a complacent mutter, something like a poetry recitation in an idiot school. He is particularly funny reading aloud one of Fifi’s love letters,

interspersing canine lyricism with barks of human disgust.

And so it goes until Poprischchin reads in a paper about a Spanish interregnum, with the throne vacant, and decides that he himself is Ferdinand VIII, King of Spain, in exiled hiding. Alas, his throne room is an insane asylum, with his head shaved, and his body denuded down to a jockstrap, a scarecrow even to a fellow inmate, Tatiana.

Incidentally, Yael Stone gives staunch support as solicitous Tuovi, mostly spouting Finnish; Sophia, a doll-like creature in virginal white; and Tatiana, a cowering madwoman and fellow lost soul.

Catherine Martin’s scarlet brick walls and spindly furnishings are well judged, as is Tess Schofield’s costuming, particularly effective when our hero converts his militarystyle coat into a rattily trailing, would-be royal cape, while he rattles around in deluded majesty. All through, the two versatile musicians in a stage box chime in with Alan John’s variously instrumented music, frequently lapsing into demented squeals and squawks.

Only Mark Shelton’s lighting fails when,

EYE ON THEATRE

Of Madness and Marriage

By John Simon

Nikolai Gogol’s The Diary of a Madman (1835) is a story that three young men 22 years ago adapted into an evening’s entertainment for Sydney’s Belvoir Theater. The English playwright David Holman, the Australian director Neil Armfield, and his fellow Australian, the actor Geoffrey Rush, had themselves a ball, which they have now brought to the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Harvey Theater for a stay through March 12th. Nice that they did, but I could easily have waited another decade or two.

It is the story of Aksentii Ivanovich Poprishchin, a 42-year-old, lowly clerk of the ninth grade in Tsarist Russia’s civil service, living in a filthy St. Petersburg garret apartment, railing against the

world around him, and dreaming vainglorious dreams about his future. He keeps a crotchetily meticulous diary, and gets an evening soup from his landlady’s Finnish servant, Tuovi. In exchange, he gives her some dubious Russian lessons.

Poprishchin rants against his departmental supervisor, Mikhailov, but is proud of sharpening the quills for his revered departmental director, on whose daughter Sophia he has a hopeless crush. It is all a satire on the Byzantine bureaucracy, as well as mockery of the pretentious but

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

The Westchester Guardian

Page 17

EYE ON THEATRE

Of Madness and Marriage bent on dramatic shadow effects, it becomes manifestly illogical.

Truly absurd, though, is the curtain call in which, for minutes on end, Rush and Stone leap about like goosed springboks to the groundlings’ fatuous delight. They, and especially Rush, deserve recognition for putting in arduous work, though how artistically valid the whole thing is remains a wide open question.

Brooklyn Academy of Music, Harvey Theater 651 Fulton Street, Brooklyn Tickets; 718-636-4182 or online PatronServices@bam.org The Westchester Broadway Theatre is presenting the charming musical I Do! I Do! (1966), based on Jan de Hartog’s no less charming comedy, The Fourposter (1951). It is a two-hander for the married couple Michael and Agnes, going from their awkward wedding night to the melancholy day when, elderly and their children grown and gone, they leave their house and fourposter after five, mostly happy decades, some typical minor crises notwithstanding.

The book and lyrics by Tom Jones , and music by Harvey Schmidt (best known for The Fantasticks, though this score strikes me as superior) comprise any number of endearing numbers, my favorites being “What Is a Woman?”, “The Honeymoon Is Over,” “I Love My Wife,” “It’s a Well-known

Review and Washington Post. He has written profiles for Vogue, Town and Country, Departures and Connoisseur and produced 17 books of collected writings. Mr. Simon holds a PhD from Harvard University in Comparative Literature and has taught at MIT, Harvard University, Bard College and Marymount Manhattan College. To learn more, visit the JohnSimon-Uncensored. com website.

Fact,” “Flaming Agnes” and the title song.

In the original production, Mary Martin and Robert Preston gave indelible performances, although Karen Ziemba and David Garrison, in a 1996 revival, also proved their mettle. Here the couple is winningly portrayed by deliciously sung and acted Lauri Landry and pompously fussy but lovable Mark Zimmerman, and they do very smartly indeed what with Richard Sabellico’s compelling direction and choreography, and Jeff Biering’s assured musical direction. Steve Loftus’s set, Donald Bierly’s costumes, and Andrew Gmoser’s lighting also contribute handsomely.

Although the entire action is confined to the eponymous fourposter and its immediate vicinity, the incidents and implications reach out effortlessly and evocatively to anyone who is, or ever was, a husband, a wife, or just a lover of good theater.

Photos by and courtesy of John Vecchiolla.

K@:B<KÛGI@:<JÛ@E:CL;< 8Û:FDGC<K<ÛD<8CÛ¬ÛJ?FN

Westchester Broadway Theatre

4%.$%2 s $%,)'(4&5, 2%&2%3().' s &5..9

I Broadway Plaza, Elmsford, N.Y. Through March 20 914-592-2222 or online www.BroadwayTheatre.com John Simon has written for over 50 years on theatre, film, literature, music and fine arts for the Hudson Review, New Leader, New Criterion, National Review, New York Magazine, Opera News, Weekly Standard, Broadway.com and Bloomberg News. He reviews books for the New York Times Book

5)306() ."3$)

01&/4 ."3$)

7ESTCHESTER "ROADWAY 4HEATRE 'ROUP 7"4?THEATRE ."5*/&& &7&/*/( 4)08

!5342!,)!.¬"%%¬'%%3¬s¬2)#+9¬.%,3/.¬2%-%-"%2%$ 3./7¬7()4%¬s¬"!,,2//-¬$!.#%30/24¬s¬3)-0,9¬$)!-/.$¬

TREND ALERT

Anti-Gov’t Protests to Spread - What’s Next?

By Gerald Celente

Kingston, NY -- February 24, 2011 -- It is a matter of record! The spate of seething, youth-inspired Middle East uprisings that are toppling governments, reshaping the geopolitical landscape and roiling world markets blindsided the world’s intelligence community were all predicted by the Trends Journal, specifically, its publisher and author Gerald Celente.

Not the CIA, Joint Chiefs of Staff or National Security Council saw it coming.

Mossad and MI5 missed it! None of the mainstream media’s star-studded stable of scholars, experts and think-tank policy wonks were thinking ahead.

But what was breaking news to them was yesterday’s news for Trends Journal

readers. In the summer 2010 issue, we wrote: What’s happening in Greece will spread worldwide as economies decline.

There are no organizations behind this response, it’s a public response. This is a 21st century rendition of ‘Workers of the World unite’ … Initially the strikes, riots and protests by unions, student groups, the unemployed, pensioners, and the outraged were sloughed off as predictable (but short-lived and ineffectual) responses that would either peter out on their own or be stomped down by the police …

The unofficial reality was that, as Gerald Celente has repeatedly warned: “When people lose everything and have nothing left to lose, they lose it.”

By the Autumn of 2010, our

Globanomic methodology pointed to socioeconomic conditions rapidly deteriorating to such an extent that we warned readers of an imminent explosion: “Off With Their Heads 2.0” read our headline, capturing the revolutionary impulse of people who could no longer ignore the toll financial hardship was taking on their lives.

We subsequently identified the role the social media (a megatrend-inwaiting) would play in tipping the balance of political power and breaking the grip of government control. In December 2011, just days before the world tuned into Tunisia, we released our “Top Trends of 2011.” Among them was “Journalism 2.0” which, we predicted, would put an arsenal of digital/Internet weapons into the hands of virtually every citizen via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. Deployed by youthful revolutionaries around the world, they would bypass corporate/government media, outwit intelligence agencies,

outflank the military and police and rally the populace into the streets and onto the barricades. (See, “Journalism 2.0.” Trends Journal, Winter 2011).

As we wrote before Tunisia and Egypt erupted, the outbreaks would go global and the reasons behind the unrest would be more about bread and butter issues than politics. As economies decline, unemployment rises, taxes are raised and services cut – while those at the top get richer and most everyone else gets poorer – revolutions will continue to spread.

But that’s not the way it’s being represented by the same people who didn’t see it coming. The media, pundits and politicians have misrepresented the historic geopolitical events that have occupied the news since the onset of the New Year. Virtually overnight, the revolutions have been glorified as courageous fights for freedom and liberty by democracy-hungry-masses.

But it is not hunger for democracy that drives them. Democracy, autocracy,

Page 18

The Westchester Guardian

theocracy, monarchy – right, center, left – it is mostly a gut issue…an empty gut issue. When the money stops flowing down to the man in the street, the blood starts flowing in the streets. It’s a simple equation. A few at the top have too much, and too many others have too little.

What’s Next: In response to the current Middle East uprisings, gold has broken above $1400 an ounce and Brent Crude climbed to $111 a barrel. There is no end in sight to market volatility. As the violence escalates and expands, the fallout

will be felt around the world.

From the onset of the financial crisis that began in August 2007, and through the ensuing Panic of ’08, Washington, the Federal Reserve and central banks have managed to forestall a Great Depressiongrade meltdown by way of a variety of multi-trillion dollar rescue packages, bailouts and stimulus programs. For three years the programs were able to induce an illusory and superficial recovery that, barring a major external geopolitical jolt, might have continued to run its course

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

until the inevitable denouement.

But now the jolt felt around the world is in the process of shattering the recovery illusion. Whether deliberately (as calculated policy) or as fallout from fear-based denial, the pieces are not being put together. The current unrest is not confined to the Middle East and North Africa, and as we had forecast, it will spread to Europe and other parts of the world. The more volatile and widespread the insurrections, the greater the probability that some combination of

events (e.g., oil shock, terror attack, cyber wars and regional wars) will crash already fragile economies, and roil sound ones.

Be Prepared: Conditions are spinning out of control. Trends Journal Publisher, Gerald Celente, continues to decipher and translate the trends. Learn more by directing inquiry through Zeke West, Media Relations, zwest@trendsresearch. com, or by calling 845.331.3500, ext. 1.

into focus by way of cross examination the notion that the trial was not about whether a crime had been committed, but rather who committed it. “You cannot say who inflicted the wounds?” Astrid replied, “No.” “You cannot state if it was an African American or Caucasian who inflicted the wounds, can you?” Again she replied “No.” “Is it fair to say you can’t tell if it was one person or multiple people?” Once again she responded negatively. Perrone, attempting to rehabilitate his witness, asked, “Are you ever able to tell how many people perpetrated a crime?” She answered, “No.” He further asked, “Are you ever able to tell who committed the crime?”

Astrid replied, “No.” Dr. Hunter, a veterinarian who had examined the body of Harris’ dog, was then called to the stand. In his “confession,” Days stated that he had kicked the dog. Harris testified that she found no evidence of external trauma to the dog.

The prosecution then rested, and the defense began putting on its case. The defense called Sandra Thomas to the stand.

In the “confession,” Days claimed that Thomas was outside the Harris home in her car, went up to the house walking in on him seeing him full of blood and said, “You are a butcher, you sliced and diced her,” and that he then accompanied her to an abortion clinic. Thomas testified that the only time they went to an abortion clinic together was sometime between 1985 and 1986, fully ten years prior to the Harris/Ramcharam.

Judge Adam Seiden was the next witness called by the defense. In his “confession,” Days stated that he slept at his Mother’s house after dropping off Thomas at the clinic. Yet he had no access to the house at that time because, as Judge Seiden testified, he had prepared a lease for Stella Days, Selwyn’s mother, in the fall of 1996, for her to rent the house to tenant Mark Moore.

He had a receipt and business record, which assisted his memory and corroborated his story. On cross examination, Assistant

District Attorney O’Connor asked, “Despite the lease that you prepared, you don’t have personal knowledge of the comings and goings, or whether Mark Moore ever took up residence there?” Seiden, making a face, replied, “Of course not.”

TRUTH AND JUSTICE

SelwynByDays Round 3, Week Three Jeff Deskovic Mounting Evidence of Innocence

FBI Fingerprint analyst Fosher testified that a latent fingerprint “of value” was found in the door frame did not match Days, nor did one found on a roll of tape used to wrap a bag around Ramcharam’s head.

There had been prior testimony that a Caucasian hair was found on the victim’s sock, no DNA materials were recovered at the scene that matched defendant Days.

The testimony of Magistrate Ramona McIver, now deceased, was read into the record via a reenactment, having previously been given in 2009 in front of Judge Jeffrey Cohen.

The magistrate stated that Selwyn Days and his mother were in her office in November 21, 1996, in North Carolina, because the mother was filing a complaint against Selwyn’s then girlfriend for allegedly verbally threatening her the day before.

The judge also had court records of the complaint which assisted her memory. She further stated that Selwyn was in her office “all the time,” was in and out every other day, and all throughout the month prior to the 21st in November. Asked whether she noticed any cuts or bruises on him, she replied “No.” She was further asked, “Did he look nervous?” She replied, “No.” Crossexamined by the prosecutor on this point, the judge was asked, “No way you could tell without absolute certainty that he was there the 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th?” She replied, “I could not.” The judge then added, “The whole month of November he was in and out of my office.”

In other testimony from the judge, she stated that Days, “would give you the shirt off of his back,” referring to a time when the judge had a medical condition requiring her

to drink a lot of water, and Days without being asked brought her a large container of water. She also added , “He had some mental issues.”

The Prosecution then called Dr. Astrid to the stand to testify about Harris’ and Ramcharan’s injuries. Astrid herself had not examined the victim’s in 1996. In fact, they had been examined and autopsied by former Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Luis Roh, who testified at both prior trials.

Despite her prior lack of involvement, in an unusual move, was allowed to testify based upon Roh’s notes and her observation of several photos. Ordinarily, the Medical Examiner who personally viewed the body and authored the notes would be the one testifying. However, Dr. Roh went into retirement immediately upon learning of a civil action brought by a Westchester exoneree alleging that he engaged in fraud by fabricating results designed to benefit the prosecution in a rape/murder case tried in 1990. No doubt wishing to avoid bringing a vulnerable witness before the jury, the prosecution opted to have Dr. Astrid testify instead, and for reasons that are unclear, the defense did not object.

Assistant District Attorney Perry Perrone handled her direct examination, as she outlined at length the stab wounds both victims had, at times supplemented by ghastly photos. Focusing on the time of death, she stated based on rigor mortis science, the victims had been dead for two to three days before the bodies had been discovered.

Seeking to overcome any possible prejudicial impact by the introduction of the photos, and any undue elevation of the importance of her testimony generally, Glenn Garber attempted to bring back

Analysis The defense team, by means of external evidence, continued to try to show that the confession is false by disproving various elements of it. Firstly, although Days said that he had kicked the dog, there was no evidence of that. Secondly, although Days said that he washed blood off of his hands in the sink, tests revealed that there was no blood in the sink. Thirdly, his statements regarding Thomas are also demonstrably untrue. Would she really have wanted him to accompany her to an abortion clinic covered in blood and after catching him stabbing the victims? Would she not have been frightened of him afterwards, and/or called authorities to report what she saw? Yet none of those things happened. If the Eastchester Police truly believed this element of Days’ confession implicating Thomas, would they not have been compelled to pursue her for failure to notify them of the crime? On this basis alone, it should be clear to anyone objective that the confession is false and the Eastchester Police knew it.

It would seem impossible that a man of Selwyn Days’ brain damaged capabilities could have committed the crimes and not leave a trace behind.

It is unimaginable that the prosecution, with a straight face, continues to use a confession that is clearly false, particularly in light of the fact that Westchester District Attorney Janet DiFiore is a co-chair of Chief Judge Lippman’s panel studying wrongful convictions, and given her familiarity with false confessions.

Jeffrey M. Deskovic is a Criminal Justice Advocate and Exoneree. To learn more, wist his website: www.JeffreyDeskovicSpeaks.org.

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

Page 19

LEGAL NOTICES SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS Index No.: 4189-10 Date of Filing: July 13, 2010 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF Westchester Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Trustee under Pooling and Servicing Agreement dated as of February 1, 2003 Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors Trust Mortgage Loan Asset-Backed Certificates, Series 2003-WMC1, Plaintiff, -againstEILEEN MYERS A/K/A EILEEN MEYERS A/K/A EILEEN LIERMAN; CONSOLIDATED EDISON COMPANY OF NEW YORK, INC.; DELIA LOPEZ, if living, or if either or all be dead, their wives, husbands, heirs-at-law, next of kin, distributees, executors, administrators, assignees, lienors and generally all persons having or claiming under, by or through said DELIA LOPEZ, by purchase, inheritance, lien or otherwise, of any right, title or interest in and to the premises described in the complaint herein, and the respective husbands, wives, widow or widowers of them, if any, all of whose names are unknown to plaintiff; ERIC M. FAYER; JEMAB FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP A/K/A JEMAE FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP; LEHRMAN, KRONIC AND LEHRMAN, LLP; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; PETERBUILT ELECTRIC, INC.; SAIDEL AND SAIDEL, P.C. C/O TRAUB LIEBERMAN, STRAUSS AND SHREWSBERR; TONY FELICIO; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA; “JOHN DOES” and “JANE DOES”, said names being fictitious, parties intended being possible tenants or occupants of premises, and corporations, other entities or persons who claim, or may claim, a lien against the premises, Defendants.

TO THE ABOVE-NAMED DEFENDANTS: YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the complaint is not served with this summons, to serve a Notice of Appearance on the Plaintiff’s attorney(s) within twenty (20) days after the service of this summons, exclusive of the day of service, where service is made by delivery upon you personally within the State, or within thirty (30) days after completion of service where service is made in any other manner, and in case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint.

NOTICE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME

If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home.

Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property.

Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action.

YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. YOU ARE HEREBY PUT ON NOTICE THAT WE ARE ATTEMPTING TO COLLECT A DEBT, AND ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. TO THE ABOVE-NAMED DEFENDANTS: The foregoing summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an Order of the Honorable Orazio R. Bellantoni of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, signed on January 25, 2011, and filed with supporting papers in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Westchester, State of New York.

The object of this action is to foreclose a mortgage upon the premises described below, executed by EILEEN MYERS A/K/A EILEEN MEYERS A/K/A EILEEN LIERMAN to Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as Nominee for WMC Mortgage Corporation in the principal amount of $138,400.00, which mortgage was recorded in Westchester County, State of New York, on December 26, 2002, as Control No. 423430737. Said mortgage was thereafter assigned to the Plaintiff by assignment of mortgage recorded October 8, 2009 as Control No. 49266057.

Said premises being known as and by 1430 MAIN ST, PEEKSKILL, NY 10566.

Date: April 22, 2010 Batavia, New York Laura Strauss, Esq. ROSICKI, ROSICKI & ASSOCIATES, P.C. Attorneys for Plaintiff Batavia Office 26 Harvester Avenue Batavia, NY 14020 585.815.0288

Treat Dog Hotels, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 1/19/2011. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to Melissa Horowitz C/O: ESCC 84 Business Park Dr Ste 115 Armonk, NY 10504.

Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of a Limited Liability Company (LLC): Name: APPLESTAR HOME INSPECTIONS LLC, Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 12/16/2010 Office Location: Westchester County, SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: C/O APPLESTAR HOME INSPECTIONS LLC, 38 Douglas Avenue, Yonkers, NY 10703. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose. Latest date upon Which LLC is to dissolve: No specific date.

2HB Holdings LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 9/29/2010. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC 59 Calton Rd. New Rochelle, NY, 10804. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Icartridge LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 2/7/2011.

Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC P.O. Box 333 Hartsdale, NY 10530. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Common Area Maintenance Solutions LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 2/14/2011.

Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to C/O United States Corporation Agents, Inc. 7014 13th Ave Ste 202 Brooklyn, NY 11228.

Purpose: Any lawful activity. Registered Agent: United States Corporation Agents, Inc. 7014 13th Ave Ste 202 Brooklyn, NY 11228 Glowspa LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 12/2/2010.

Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC 38 B Parker Ave. Stamford, CT 06906.

Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Page 20

The Westchester Guardian

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011

www.westchesterguardian.com