I’m not usually one to swoon over local government, but the latest initiatives from the Offices of City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer are awfully attractive.

In Honor of the Wintry Wind Gusts Today - Image by Crafternoon

This week Quinn introduced a program entitled, “FoodWorks New York.”  According to the press release, “Outside of the U.S. military, New York City is the largest institutional buyer of food in the country.  The Department of Education alone serves over 860,000 meals a day.”

It turns out that the Dept. of Ed. is setting up an increasing number of salad bars in the schools.  Great news — but all the romaine lettuce comes from Maryland and California.  They would buy the lettuce in New York state, however, there are no facilities for washing, cutting, and packing it in our region.  As a result, we’re carting this produce around the country before it gets to New York lunches.  The FoodWorks program aims to fix these broken links in the local supply chain.  In The Case of the Well-Traveled Romaine, the city has plenty of empty industrial space that could house the needed processing facility.

To learn more and read about the five goals of FoodWorks New York, please find the press release here.

The next object of my admiration is the The NYC Sustainable Food Charter created by the Office of Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer.  It has been enthusiastically circulated in preparation for the NYC Food and Climate Summit tomorrow.  It means a lot to me to live in a place that sets these priorities for its people.  I’m looking forward to the gathering of the NYC tribes at the Summit.  The Food Charter has set our agenda.

In an effort to inform those of you looking to this blog in its most initial stages, I have decided to “reblog” the writing of one of WFPA’s own, Gabbie. On her blog site, http://locavores-rex.com/, Gabbie has done a wonderful job of summarizing this initiatiive and the impact its advocates hope to soon see.  Note, an update of yesterday’s meeting will be posted and circulated tomorrow. Now, please enjoy…

A study conducted by Mayor Bloomberg’s Food Policy Task force in 2008 found that many neighborhoods around NYC are underserved by grocery stores. The residents of these  areas, which have since been identified as ” food deserts” , are forced to shop at convenience stores and fast food restaurants. As you would imagine, there are very few nutritious options at these establishments which are stocked primarily with processed foods. The resulting lack of fresh affordable food in these neighborhoods has been linked to higher rates of chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Over the past ten years the number of super markets has decreased by one third and the diabetes rate has doubled in New York City.

To address this problem the City has established the Food Retail Expansion to Support Health (FRESH) Food Stores Program. The initiative provides zoning and tax incentives for investors interested in establishing or retaining grocery stores in  food deserts in Harlem, South Bronx, Central Brooklyn, and Jamaica, Queens. The program is also open to business owners who want to renovate existing stores by adding retail space and refrigeration units for fresh produce and developers who want to lease their property to grocery store operators.

Community and labor advocates have successfully lobbied city council members and the mayor to ensure that all of the new stores accept EBT & WIC (food stamp) benefits, seek community input, and provide information on business practices. Information about business practices and employee and community relationships will be posted online before the NYC Industrial Development Agency decides whether the store should be subsidized or not to create transparency and accountability. In addition, Many of the community boards in areas that FRESH will be affecting passed resolutions to ensure that stores provide good jobs with living wages and health benefits. After all, what is the point of offering fresh food if the people living and working  in the neighborhood you are targeting can’t even afford to buy it?

On December 7th The New School hosted a celebration of the  FRESH  initiative which will be voted on by the city council on December 9. Speakers at the event included Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn; Dan Barber, owner of Blue Hill Restaurant; Peggy Shepherd from the West Harlem Environmental Action Group; Bruce Both from UFC Local 1500 representing supermarket workers across the city; and Bob Lewis of the Department of Agriculture and Markets and founder of Greenmarket.

Although a great start to tackling the health disparities between low and high income groups in New York, this project is not the panacea it appears to be.  As Dan Barber noted, to “get people cooking more is not only key, its compelling.” Its all well and good to bring fresh produce to a neighborhood but if people are not cooking with it, it will not have any impact on the resident’s health. The fact of the matter is that a lot of Americans eat junk food because it is cheap and simple and easy to prepare. Many people lack the time, interest, or knowledge required to cook and prepare fresh ingredients. To make this program a real success, free cooking classes and nutrition programs should be provided in targeted neighborhoods to create interest in cooking and to teach people how to integrate fresh food into their diets.

Also, this program does not include any standards to gaurantee that the produce available will be of high quality. I know from experience living in Brooklyn that just because there is a grocery store offering  produce for sale in your neighborhood that does not mean it is fresh. It is not unusual to find many of the fruits and vegetables at my local Associated Supermarket covered with mold or wilting. As a graduate student I have the luxury of time on my side and can spend an extra 15 minutes walking to the next grocery store over. However, if I were a working parent, I may not be able to take this extra time out of my day and might just do the easier thing and just go straight for the cheaper canned and processed food. Obviously relying on grocery stores to police themselves does not always work and if this program is truly going to get customers to eat and buy more fresh produce it should ensure that the quality of those fruits and vegetables is high enough to entice them. – Gabbie, Locavores-Rex

]]> http://animalblawg.wordpress.com/2009/12/08/nyc-city-council-speaker-to-unveil-citywide-food-policy/ Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:43:57 +0000 David http://animalblawg.wordpress.com/2009/12/08/nyc-city-council-speaker-to-unveil-citywide-food-policy/

David Cassuto

Creating an urban food policy for the nation’s largest city is an opportunity to accomplish something of genuine import.  The key word here is “opportunity.”  The proof will be in the pudding, as they say…

I love Christine Quinn, and this breaks my heart.

Quinn is currently the Speaker of the New York City Council – and is one of the most powerful women in NYC.

She’s the woman who boycotted the city’s Saint Patrick’s Day parade because gays can’t march and told Columbia University to withdraw it’s invitation to Iran’s President, Mahoud Ahmadinejad.

In the clip below Quinn shows some true emotion about New York voting down marriage equality. Marriage is personal and denying a couple that ability hurts. I don’t get how people don’t understand the fundamental pain votes like this cause.

Another moving, and more personal, speech out of New York.  New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn answers a question about why marriage equality fails and reminds us of the impact in her life.

A remarkably powerful answer from New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn when asked about her feelings on New York’s State Legislature voting on marriage equality today.  Governor Paterson has done a lot to push this issue forward.  More to come on New York’s efforts soon.

Just my opinion:

Mayor Bloomberg is very proud of his putting#311, this public service, into practice. On Saturday evening Oct 17 at 9:30 pm I was out walking my neighbor’s dog. I saw a SUV park at the pump on my street (NY # DEK-4732 Buick Enclave). He was an orthodox man and I said he was parking at a pump and he told me where to go. I watched from my window if this was a short stay but he was there for 2 hours.

I tried to call #311 and heard all the announcements and pushed my button for English and for a complaint not a noise or heat and sat there listening that there might be increased activity and to please wait. Then after 9 minutes a machine told me to call back tomorrow. Well that does not work for a complaint number that is supposed to be 24 hours. I then called the several numbers I have for the 17th precinct and as always no one ever picks up a phone.

I was also alerted by #311 announcement that it might take 8 hours for the police to answer a noise complaint. Well if you are living through an agonizing loud party that is a very long time to suffer.

I then called #911 and explained it all, succinctly and she hung up on me after telling me to call #311. How frustrating these quality of life issues have become.Our city misses opportunities to earn money by punishing law offenders, our gov’t personal is not doing their jobs and our politicians are so busy that they never pay attention to their constituents. I would have like Christine Quinn to write me a note instead of walking in a gay march. On another issue I have written to my local govt and political rep’s and have not even received an acknowledgment letter. The only person I received an answer from about my issue was by Mrs Diaz in the Public Advocate’s office.

Since most of my local politicians are up fop reelection all have called for donations as I have given previously and I will not give to anyone that can not answer an issue by a contributor and constituent. I don’t know how we are going to keep these guys working at the jobs they are elected to do and honest?

One thing I was quite happy about this week that Senator Liz Krueger came out to get Monserrat out of the Senate. That took courage and she seems to be the only senator to go on the record.

From yournabe.com:

Queens leaders and Council Speaker Christine Quinn (at podium) denounce a College Point hate crime during which a 49-year-old gay man was brutally beaten last weekend. Photos courtesy of William Alatriste/DCPI

Last week’s brutal beating of an openly gay College Point man has sent shockwaves through the community and led to the arrest of two men from the community who have been charged with hate crimes.

Jack Price, 49, who is openly gay, was attacked around 4:30 a.m. last Thursday as he walked home from picking up cigarettes at a 24-hour deli on College Point Boulevard at 18th Avenue, police said. Two men approached Price and began making anti-gay remarks before repeatedly kicking and punching him, police said.

Price managed to make it to his home, where he called police, and was then transported to Flushing’s New York Hospital Queens. He was listed in critical condition at the hospital, where he was being treated for a fractured jaw and ribs as well as a lacerated spleen, police said.

Daniel Aleman, 26, of 18-04 College Point Blvd., and Daniel Rodriguez, 21, of 5-02 115th St. in College Point, have been arrested and charged with assault as a hate crime and robbery in the incident, a spokeswoman for Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said. If convicted, they could face up to 15 years in prison, she said.

Rodriguez was arrested Tuesday night in Norfolk, Virginia and waived his right to extradition, the spokeswoman said. He will appear in court Thursday.

Price’s neighbors described him as a kindly man who is always quick to help community residents in need.

“He always cooked a lot of food on the holidays and opened his doors for anyone who wanted to eat,” said Lilian Pesce, a former neighbor. “He’s a very nice person and didn’t deserve this. College Point is a safe place, but it’s not a good thing when a person can’t be safe because they are gay or black or Hispanic.”

A neighbor of Price who wanted to remain anonymous said she was mortified by the incident and that Price was targeted by his attackers because of his sexual orientation.

“These are very bad people who left him for dead,” the neighbor said. “This is disgusting what they did to him. He’s gay and this is a hate crime… it’s a gang, it’s a gang, it’s a gang. He didn’t bother anybody. If you need help, he’s always there for you.”

The neighbor said Price acted as a neighborhood handyman as well as a superintendent for several buildings.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan), who is openly gay, and Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing) joined Council contenders Jimmy Van Bramer, Danny Dromm and Kevin Kim as well as a number of leaders from the city’s LGBT community at Booth Memorial Monday to denounce the attack.

“When someone is attacked for being who they are, and for being proud of who they are, there is no other explanation for that attack than hatred and bigotry,” said Quinn.

Dromm, a gay activist from Jackson Heights as well as a Democratic district leader, said the incident was the fourth time in 19 years a Queens man was nearly beaten to death for being gay.

“Once again, in Queens, a gay man has been brutally beaten simply because of who he is,” Dromm said. “This is deplorable. All righteous people — gay and non-gay — must speak out loudly against hate crimes because it is the only way to combat this type of violence.”

From the New York Times:

Officials Condemn Beating of Gay Man in Queens

William Alatriste/City Council The City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, at lectern, condemned the attack.

Updated, 9:26 p.m. | A beating last week that left a gay man in Queens hospitalized, in fair but stable condition, has prompted condemnation by local leaders. A 26-year-old man was arrested in the attack.

Led by the City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, a Manhattan Democrat who is openly gay, city and state officials gathered in front of Booth Memorial Hospital on Monday to denounce the attack, which they called a hate crime.  

The victim, Jack Price, 49, had left a deli after buying cigarettes in College Point, Queens, early Friday morning when he received a number of antigay comments and was attacked. He is in fair condition, according to a hospital spokeswoman, and police said he is undergoing treatment for a fractured jaw, rib fractures and a lacerated spleen.

Daniel Aleman, 26, was arrested over the weekend and faces two charges: assault and aggravated assault as a hate crime. Police said they were looking for a second suspect, Daniel Rodriguez, 21, on Monday evening.

The news “smacked particularly hard,” said Ms. Quinn, who had just come back to New York after joining gay rights supporters on Sunday in the National Equality March on Washington.

“You grow tired of doing these press conferences,” said Ms. Quinn. She added that “crimes like this are very sad” and that “these two hateful, ignorant individuals represent a minority of New Yorkers.”

Council member John C. Liu of Queens, who is the Democratic candidate for city comptroller, called for witnesses to step up to help authorities solve this “absolutely atrocious” crime.

The number of violent cases involving gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender victims is climbing, according to the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, which tracks such cases.

This is not the first time a gay-related hate crime has unfolded in Queens. In 2001, Edgar Garzon was attacked outside of a gay club in Jackson Heights, Queens, and died from his injuries. Near the same location in 1990, another man, Julio Rivera, was killed “because he was gay,” as one of the defendants in the case later said.

Sarah Wheaton contributed reporting.

Updated

It was much stated during the NY City Council term limits hearings that one reason to limit New York City elected officials’ terms is that incumbents are re-elected 98% of the time.

Apparently; however, if you cross the voters on term limits (and perhaps other things), you may not be.

And so the big news of the morning is that Alan Gerson did indeed lose the Democratic primary held yesterday in District 1 (which covers Washington Square Park) to Margaret Chin. (In the district, people didn’t expect him to win but he was the incumbent so you had to wonder…)

From today’s New York Times’ story, “Voters Reject 3 Council Members Backing Longer Term Limits:”

At least three veteran City Council members were ousted by angry voters Tuesday, the greatest repudiation of incumbents in a generation. All three had voted last year to change term limits, allowing them to run again.

Until Tuesday, council members were more likely to lose their seats by being convicted of a felony than by being defeated in an election. Voters more than evened those odds. They rejected Alan J. Gerson of Manhattan, Kendall Stewart of Brooklyn and Helen Sears of Queens in a rare rebuff to incumbency.

Also:

This was the voters’ first opportunity to register their disapproval, and a record number of candidates took advantage of the backlash by mounting challenges in the primary.

The groundswell may be a bad sign for Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who was instrumental in persuading the Council to grant the extension so that he, too, could seek a third term.

I think voters had issues with Alan Gerson other than term limits and this tipped the scale.  Under a stronger City Council member, what transpired at Washington Square Park would never have happened and would have played out much differently.  Under wishy washy Alan Gerson, Mayor Bloomberg’s Administration persevered in their quest to change the nature of the Park, repeatedly ignoring and bypassing Washington Square Park users and community input. This was done hand-in-hand with City Council Speaker Christine Quinn.  (It’s time for her to go too.)  No word yet on #’s for District 3, Quinn’s district (tho’ Quinn prevailed against Yetta Kurland and Maria Passannante-Derr) but the Times did say in this article:  “Even Christine C. Quinn, the Council speaker, barely mustered a majority against two challengers.”

The general election, including the offices of Mayor, City Council, Public Advocate, and Comptroller, will be held on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009.

There are many things I would have liked to have covered over the summer here on the Washington Square Park Blog, but, alas, could not … such as:

*the unnecessary and cruel killing of the resident Canadian geese (and Mayor Bloomberg’s role in it) rounded up from many parks across New York City;

*the Mayor’s re-election campaign for that third term and his spending on it – many interesting articles on this;

*NY City Council Speaker Christine Quinn who has some spirited challengers for her re-election campaign as City Council Member in Yetta Kurland and Maria Passannente- Derr, and who, uh, won’t commit to support the Democratic candidate for Mayor (which is code for … how can she not support Mayor Michael Bloomberg with whom she has a co-dependent relationship …? they need each other at this point. The other option being discussed is that she just won’t take a position on endorsement vs. backing him.) and Council Member Alan Gerson also running for re-election (and, whose name, last I checked, didn’t make it on the primary ballot because of an error on his petitions)*;

*The High Line Park opening ;

*The sad demise of many Central Park trees because of an intense storm a couple of weeks ago.  (There were some interesting comments in articles from NYC Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe who, on the one hand, has such an attachment to trees, but, on the other, is so quick to chop them down if he has some fancy design plan in mind that might raise his profile…)

I had to focus a bit less on this blog and a bit more on some other life things so these things were not covered here on the blog.

And what about Washington Square Park…?

I will definitely write when I find out more about plans for Phase II – which unfortunately, to date, the Parks Department Press Department has been less than forthcoming about.  What DID that accepted bid come in at for Phase II? Rumor is work will begin around mid-September. I still strongly believe the work should be done in two parts so that the Eastern side of the park and the Southwestern portion are not unnecessarily gated off all at once, closed to all.

Next blog post Wednesday, September 9th!  See you then!

** Check back for this post to be Updated later this week because I’ll try to add other links and sources for you to find out more about all of the above. **

* To read more about Alan Gerson and Christine Quinn’s roles in the redesign of Washington Square Park, scroll down to Categories on the right sidebar and click “Gerson-Quinn.”

Will New York City recognize the importance of “Bohemia” in societies, including its own?

In a July ‘08 Vanity Fair article titled “Last Call, Bohemia”, Christopher Hitchens observes how London, Paris and San Francisco – renowned for neighborhoods which foster climates of creativity and culture, havens for “the artists, exiles and misfits” — have “learned” and adopted a hands off policy towards building un-affordable, big box monstrosities in these areas.

What will it take for real-estate-obsessed New York City to do the same?

Hitchens’ focuses on these havens as places for people who “regenerate the culture.”  He targets the St. Vincents/Rudin Management “plan” to remake a large swath of the West Village for “luxury housing” and a new medical building as exactly the type development that should be stopped. He explores what it means not just the Village, but for the City at large.

Hitchens writes:

It isn’t possible to quantify the extent to which society and culture are indebted to Bohemia. In every age in every successful country, it has been important that at least a small part of the cityscape is not dominated by bankers, developers, chain stores, generic restaurants, and railway terminals.

This little quarter should instead be the preserve of—in no special order—insomniacs and restaurants and bars that never close; bibliophiles and the little stores and stalls that cater to them; alcoholics and addicts and deviants and the proprietors who understand them; aspirant painters and musicians and the modest studios that can accommodate them; ladies of easy virtue and the men who require them; misfits and poets from foreign shores and exiles from remote and cruel dictatorships. Though it should be no disadvantage to be young in such a quartier, the atmosphere should not by any means discourage the veteran.

In her 1961 classic The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs argued for the need for “the old” amidst “the new.”  She wrote:

To be sure, city areas with flourishing diversity sprout strange and unpredictable uses and scenes. But this is not a drawback of diversity. This is the point, or part of it. That this should happen is in keeping with one of the missions of cities.

Under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, there is the homogenization factor going on in our city… certainly our bland Mayor doesn’t get that “mission” that Jacobs refers to.  And our NY City Council, led by Speaker Christine Quinn, just falls in line with her friend and benefactor, thereby eliminating any protection or preservation of the unique in our city.

The City’s redesign plans for Washington Square Park further illustrate no understanding or acknowledgment (perhaps, indeed purposefully) of the “strange” (Jacobs’ term for something worth preserving) or the unique, bohemia or diversity.  The design, by landscape designer George Vellonakis, seems to purposefully gloss over – almost sneers at – what made the Park unique.

Instead of Mayor Mike’s emphasis on protecting Wall Street, real estate interests and tourism, wouldn’t we like to live in a place where the historical buildings throughout the West and East Village that NYU has subsumed would be off limits to being altered … forever? 

Hitchens concludes:

Those who don’t live in such threatened districts nonetheless have a stake in this quarrel and some skin in this game, because on the day when everywhere looks like everywhere else we shall all be very much impoverished, and not only that but-more impoverishingly still-we will be unable to express or even understand or depict what we have lost.

***********************************************

*This is a revised and edited version of a post first published on June 18th, 2008.*

Photo: Ed Yourdon

A guest writer for this week: Bob Johnson.

_____

Ms. B.S. Herself!

Tuesday night I attended a Barnes and Noble author event: Andrea Batista Schlesinger on her new book,The Death of “Why”? I attended for two reasons: one, because Christine Quinn was introducing the author at the event and, two, to hear more about this new author’s work (I actually was very intrigued by the book’s description, I was even thinking about buying a copy.)

In Quinn’s introductory remarks, I was surprised to hear that Quinn said that she is a strong supporter of encouraging everyone to ask critical questions (even questions posed to her). I was especially surprised about Quinn’s revelation because I have been trying to ask for Quinn’s help for more than three years (more on that in my next post).

After Ms. B.S. finished talking about the importance of asking questions and the dearth of intellectual curiosity in our country. Ms. B.S. selected me to ask the first question. I had a question that pertained to Ms. B.S.’s talk, my experience with Quinn as well as Ms. B.S.’s book.

I carefully framed my question to make it relevant to the evening. Thepublicity for the event noted — in big, bold letters — that the event was “with Christine Quinn, Speaker of the New York City Council.” So, a question opening with a remark about Quinn certainly was germain (and Michael and Tito, for that matter!).

I began my question with, “I am so sad that Christine left because one of the reasons I came was to ask her why she refuses to help the disabled…” Here’s a video of me asking the question (and you may be able to watch it on CSPAN Books if they don’t edit it out):

After Ms. B.S. dismissed the question that she would not allow me to ask, several others in attendance spoke up to my defense and asked Ms. B.S. that why, if she is a proponent of asking questions, would she dismiss my question before I could even ask the question. Her response “His question was irrelevant.”

Ms. B.S. is the executive director of the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy (although currently on leave). From their YouTube channel:

The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy is a non-partisan, non-profit think tank generating the ideas that fuel the progressive movement. From releasing nationally recognized studies of our increasingly fragile middle class to showcasing progressive policies that have worked to advance social and economic justice, DMI has been on the leading edge of the public policy debate.

Kinda makes you go, “hmm,” doesn’t it?

After Ms. B.S. spoke, she barreled her way towards me and asked me, ”Do you really think it was appropriate to ask a question about Christine Quinn and not about my book?”

My response: “Absolutely. You didn’t even let me ask my question. But right now my question is ‘How can anyone ask someone like you a question when you refuse to listen to the question itself?’”

Ms. B.S. walked away in a huff.

While she was signing one copy of her book, I rudely interrupted her to give her my flier (stay tuned for details in my next posting) and asked if she could get the flier to Quinn. She snarled at me, pushed the flier onto the floor and barked “Why don’t you get it to her yourself!?”

The police asked me to leave as I thought to myself, “And you work to advance social and economic justice? No, no, no, silly Bob, Ms. B.S. is interested in one thing: her book.*”

For someone who had just finished talking about the importance of asking questions and the importance of intellectual curiousity, I would have expected something more than petulance. Perhaps what she meant by “intellectual curiousity” was “intellectual curiosity of a turnip.” [Turnips: please do not be offended. Mea culpa.]

Hypocrites come in many colors: red, blue, white, black. The Drum Major Institute has a wonderful mission. Perhaps Ms. B.S. should reacquaint herself with it. Her book is about the importance of questions. Perhaps she should read it.

As my friend Josh said, “For someone who wrote a book about addressing a symptom to a larger problem — not listening — she’s only perpetuating the problem by not listening herself. Here’s a clue: people don’t ask questions for fear of being shut down. Batista is my case in point.”

And, by the way, be sure to tune in to the broadcast of the evening’s event on CSPAN’s BookTV to find out how a hypocrite answers a question. I’ll give you a hint:  ”I don’t know” was one of her favorite responses.

Love,

Bob

P.S. I learned early Wednesday morning that Ms. B.S. is working for the Bloomberg re-election campaign. If you do not know, Mayor Michael Bloomberg (and Christine Quinn) both ignored the voice of the people of New York City regarding term limits. Ms. B.S. is for the people? Give me a break! At least now I know why she is so rude: she works for Bloomberg. I can finally get some sleep…

*Ms. B.S. is not just interested in selling her book, she’s interested in a political career with the people who do not give a hoot about democracy! You live up to your name, Ms. B.S.! If I had known on Tuesday night that Ms. B.S. was in bed with Quinn (to whom Ms. B.S. gave a big embrace and kiss) and Bloomberg, I would have addressed the relevance of my question when she confronted me with its appropriateness. I’m so glad that I didn’t contribute money to my new hypocrite friend’s coffer. I think I’ll buy a copy of “The Company of Wolves” instead.

Andrea Batista Schlesinger

Tuesday night I attended a Barnes and Noble author event: Andrea Batista Schlesinger on her new book, The Death of “Why”? I attended for two reasons: one, because Christine Quinn was introducing the author at the event and, two, to hear more about this new author’s work (I actually was very intrigued by the book’s description, I was even thinking about buying a copy.)

In Quinn’s introductory remarks, I was surprised to hear that Quinn said that she is a strong supporter of encouraging everyone to ask critical questions (even questions posed to her). I was especially surprised about Quinn’s revelation because I have been trying to ask for Quinn’s help for more than three years (more on that in my next post).

After Ms. B.S. finished talking about the importance of asking questions and the dearth of intellectual curiosity in our country. Ms. B.S. selected me to ask the first question. I had a question that pertained to Ms. B.S.’s talk, my experience with Quinn as well as Ms. B.S.’s book.

I carefully framed my question to make it relevant to the evening. The publicity for the event noted — in big, bold letters — that the event was “with Christine Quinn, Speaker of the New York City Council.” So, a question opening with a remark about Quinn certainly was germain (and Michael and Tito, for that matter!).

I began my question with, “I am so sad that Christine left because one of the reasons I came was to ask her why she refuses to help the disabled…” Here’s a video of me asking the question (and you may be able to watch it on CSPAN Books if they don’t edit it out):

After Ms. B.S. dismissed the question that she would not allow me to ask, several others in attendance spoke up to my defense and asked Ms. B.S. that why, if she is a proponent of asking questions, would she dismiss my question before I could even ask the question. Her response “His question was irrelevant.”

Ms. B.S. is the executive director of the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy (although currently on leave). From their YouTube channel:

The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy is a non-partisan, non-profit think tank generating the ideas that fuel the progressive movement. From releasing nationally recognized studies of our increasingly fragile middle class to showcasing progressive policies that have worked to advance social and economic justice, DMI has been on the leading edge of the public policy debate.

Kinda makes you go, “hmm,” doesn’t it?

After Ms. B.S. spoke, she barreled her way towards me and asked me, ”Do you really think it was appropriate to ask a question about Christine Quinn and not about my book?”

My response: “Absolutely. You didn’t even let me ask my question. But right now my question is ‘How can anyone ask someone like you a question when you refuse to listen to the question itself?’”

Ms. B.S. walked away in a huff.

While she was signing one copy of her book, I rudely interrupted her to give her my flier (stay tuned for details in my next posting) and asked if she could get the flier to Quinn. She snarled at me, pushed the flier onto the floor and barked “Why don’t you get it to her yourself!?”

The police asked me to leave as I thought to myself, “And you work to advance social and economic justice? No, no, no, silly Bob, Ms. B.S. is interested in one thing: her book.*”

For someone who had just finished talking about the importance of asking questions and the importance of intellectual curiousity, I would have expected something more than petulance. Perhaps what she meant by “intellectual curiousity” was “intellectual curiosity of a turnip.” [Turnips: please do not be offended. Mea culpa.]

Hypocrites come in many colors: red, blue, white, black. The Drum Major Institute has a wonderful mission. Perhaps Ms. B.S. should reacquaint herself with it. Her book is about the importance of questions. Perhaps she should read it.

As my friend Josh said, “For someone who wrote a book about addressing a symptom to a larger problem — not listening — she’s only perpetuating the problem by not listening herself. Here’s a clue: people don’t ask questions for fear of being shut down. Batista is my case in point.”

And, by the way, be sure to tune in to the broadcast of the evening’s event on CSPAN’s BookTV to find out how a hypocrite answers a question. I’ll give you a hint:  ”I don’t know” was one of her favorite responses.

Love,

Bob

P.S. I learned early Wednesday morning that Ms. B.S. is working for the Bloomberg re-election campaign. If you do not know, Mayor Michael Bloomberg (and Christine Quinn) both ignored the voice of the people of New York City regarding term limits. Ms. B.S. is for the people? Give me a break! At least now I know why she is so rude: she works for Bloomberg. I can finally get some sleep…

*Ms. B.S. is not just interested in selling her book, she’s interested in a political career with the people who do not give a hoot about democracy! You live up to your name, Ms. B.S.! If I had known on Tuesday night that Ms. B.S. was in bed with Quinn (to whom Ms. B.S. gave a big embrace and kiss) and Bloomberg, I would have addressed the relevance of my question when she confronted me with its appropriateness. I’m so glad that I didn’t contribute money to my new hypocrite friend’s coffer. I think I’ll buy a copy of “The Company of Wolves” instead.

Yetta Kurland Supporters at the 2009 NYC Pride Parade. Photo by Gdany

Yetta Kurland at the 2009 Dyke March NYC Photo by jamie nyc

Kurland, a lawyer, is running for city council in the 3rd district against Christine Quinn.

YettaKurland.com

You can get involved at: http://www.myyetta.com/

Background on why Quinn Needs to Go:

Christine Quinn: Behind the Smile

Please note this video was not created by or endorsed by Yetta Kurland.

Where is the investigation into Quinn’s Slush Funds???

Yetta Kurland – Restore Integrity To The New York  City Council

There are very profound theological arguments one can make in defense of traditional marriage, but one can also make largely secular, common sense arguments as well. The Catholic Bishops of New York’s gay marriage statement is a brief and logical statement on why gay marriage is so radical and unprecedented.

The Bishops begin:

“We face today the prospect of a law in New York which would radically change the timeless institution of marriage. As pastors of citizens from every corner of our great state, we stand unified in our strong opposition to such a drastic measure.”

It really is drastic. What is more fundamental than marriage, family and children? Not much, yet gay activists want to turn human civilization upside down in a heartbeat, and if you resist, you are somehow a bigot. Politicians like Christine Quinn use gay marriage in New York as a tool to gain acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle and also to silence Christians.

The Bishops continue:

“Throughout history, different cultures have had different customs regarding marriage. But the one constant has been the conviction that marriage is the union of a man and a woman in an enduring bond, ordered for the procreation and stable rearing of children.”

Well done. The Bishops define marriage for people, which is the lifelong bond between a man and a woman that is open to life; this echoes the great teaching of Pope Paul VI in his 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae, which reminded Catholics that birth control is illicit, because it denies the procreative aspect of marriage.

The Bishops  point out that although they oppose gay marriage in New York for religious reasons (they are Catholic Bishops after all), they remind people that one doesn’t need to be Catholic, however, to appreciate that traditional marriage is really the only game in town:

“Our opposition to this bill is based not only on Catholic teaching regarding human sexuality and the Sacrament of Marriage. Just as importantly, it is based on reason, sound public policy, and plain common sense…”

Finally we touch upon the role of the state. And indeed, the state has a compelling interest in marriage, for stable marriages create stable families, which then lend a solid foundation to society. Two homosexual men living together with an adopted child, for example, is not a marriage or a family and the state can’t pretend otherwise.

The Bishops address the above point:

“The State has a compelling legal interest in promoting marriage between men and women in order to create stable families and provide for the safety, health and well being of children. The state has no such compelling legal interest in recognizing a relationship between two people of the same sex.”

The Catholic Church has spoken. And faithful Catholics know that when the Catholic Church speaks, Jesus Christ speaks.

The Catechism reminds us that the Bishops are the present day descendants of the Apostles, and as such, are Christ’s representatives on Earth. The Catholic people must give their assent to their teaching:

938 “The Bishops, established by the Holy Spirit, succeed the apostles. They are ‘the visible source and foundation of unity in their own particular Churches’”(LG 23).

The Bishops urged Catholics in New York to contact their representatives and let them know their opposition to the proposed law.