Kissing the Ring

Brooklyn DA Charlie Hynes, a guest at Brooklyn Democratic boss and state Assemblymember Vito Lopez’s annual Ridgewood-Bushwick Senior Center picnic this month, praised Lopez, whose corporate alter-ego, Ridgewood-Bushwick Senior Citizens Council, is under federal investigation, as "a good guy."

Well, he's good at staying in power, anyway.

Any Brooklyn pol who wants to matter is expected to show up at Vito's annual picnic. That's why potential mayoral candidate and former city Comptroller Billy Thompson, and state Assemblymember David Weprin, who's running for Anthony Weiner’s House seat, were there to kiss the ring.

But Hynes?

Ridgewood-Bushwick, during its 40-year existence, has pulled down millions in taxpayer dollars from state and city contracts, Lopez member items and earmarks from Lopez cronies on the City Council -- many of them at the picnic.

Those earmarks are the source of the six-figure salaries paid to Lopez's girlfriend and his campaign treasurer for running a nonprofit that, according to the New York Post, rates among the 20 worst of 440 Department of Aging vendors -- a rating so low the Lopez front is barred from bidding on contracts to run 10 new senior centers.

Good to know we're getting our money's worth.

The article from the New York Post.

Free ASPCA Webinar on Forming a 501(c)(3) Corporation

Animal rescue groups, unincorporated shelters or foster networks, and those interested in starting a spay/neuter program are invited to watch a free ASPCA webinar titled Forming a 501(c)(3), on Thursday August 4th, from 3 PM to 4:00 PM.

Presenter Beverly Jones, ASPCA Vice President and Corporate Counsel, will review the requirements for becoming a 501(c)(3) organization, including incorporation and application for 501(c)(3) (tax exempt) status, the necessary steps to take post-incorporation, the benefits of having 501(c)(3) status, and how to maintain it.  Also discussed will be document disclosure, corporate governance, and unrelated business income.

This webinar is pre-approved for Certified Animal Welfare Administrator (CAWA) continuing education (CE).

Register here.

Fall Classes at The Art Room

With summer winding down and the school year approaching, The Art Room, a childrens' fine arts studio school at 8710 Third Avenue in Bay Ridge, has announced its fall 2011 class schedule.

Regular classes will be scheduled from Monday through Friday (click right), with weekends reserved for art birthday parties and private classes (by appointment).

If you'd like to register your child for a class this fall, it's suggested you do so ASAP, since classes fill up quickly.

Registration is on a rolling basis.

Call Leigh or Mary at (347) 560-6572, email them at theartroomnyc@gmail.com,  or stop by the studio to pick up a schedule and reserve a spot this fall.

Returning students who still have class credits should call to confirm class times.

Weekend drop-in classes are a possibility during August. Check in with the school for updates.

An article about the Art Room in today's Brooklyn Edition of the Daily News.

MoveOn at Michael Grimm's Office on Tuesday

The Democrats say it's the Republicans and the Republicans say it's the Democrats, blah, blah blah. No matter whose fault you think it is: the American economy is being driven off a cliff.

It's time for all of us to let all of them -- our elected representatives -- know how we feel about the disturbing political games they're playing with our money and our lives.

At Noon on Tuesday, at Congressional Representative Michael Grimm's Staten Island office on the second floor at 265 New Dorp Lane in Staten Island -- whether or not there's a debt ceiling deal in place -- activist organization Move On will stage an action to protest the Republican plan to spare the super-rich and tax-dodging corporations at our expense.

The message to "Mr. Jobs"?  Stop playing dangerous political games with our lives and our money.

Register for the event here.

For some insights into why default is OK with Michael Grimm's Tea Party backers, read here. The GOP is hoping financial chaos will leverage bigger budget cuts. [Alternet.]

Gentile's New Bill Would Certify "Green" Businesses

Legislation introduced last week by local City Council Member Vinny Gentile would establish a local "green" certification process for small businesses that implement eco-friendly practices.

The aim of the legislation is to eliminate confusion about what "green" means by creating a simple, reliable certification that will let consumers quickly identify qualified "green" businesses through official signage.

If passed, the bill would partner the city Department of Small Business Services with the Department of Consumer Affairs and the Department of Environmental Protection to create standards businesses would have to meet in order to be certified "green" by the city.  Those businesses would be issued a certificate to display where customers could see it.

Green business practices not only save money on expenses like utility bills, but can give owners a competitive edge, Gentile said.  And consumers increasingly want to do business with environmentally-responsible merchants.

Help Sean Casey Build a New Shelter

Sean Casey Animal Rescue, which shelters and finds homes for all kinds of animals, is one of the city's most successful rescue groups. 

The 30-year-old Casey, whose dedication to animals has been lifelong, employs six people and commands a "small army" of volunteer rescuers.

For the past several years, his organization has operated a retail adoption center in Kensington, Brooklyn credited with finding homes for more than 2,000 dogs and cats.

Casey has plans to open a second shelter in Sunset Park, a 5,000 sq. ft. full-service facility with spacious dog runs and hi-rise kitty condos, which would enable his organization to save another 2,500 animals a year.

The Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals calls the planned shelter, which would relieve Brooklyn's overburdened Animal Care and Control Center in East New York, "sorely needed".

But construction is stalled at the halfway point, due to the recession and the cancellation of a planned Discovery Channel "Construction Intervention" makeover.

At a recent benefit, Casey raised $15,000 for the project, but his organization still needs an estimated $185,000 to complete it.

You're welcome to make a donation to the shelter fund at: www.nyanimalrescue.org.

To find out more about Sean Casey Animal Rescue, or to adopt an animal, email amy.sacks2@gmail.com

The article from the Daily News.

Night Out Against Crime at Shore Road Park

On Tuesday, August 2 from 6 to 9 PM, cops and the community will come together for National Night Out, a family-friendly festival featuring bar-b-que, music by Disco Unlimited and fun for everyone, at Shore Road Park at 79th Street in Bay Ridge.

The 28-year-old annual event, which takes place in communities across the country, is sponsored locally by the 68th Precinct Community Council.

The NYPD will be on hand to give demonstrations, hand out awards and distribute information -- along with various local civic organizations.

The event provides an informal opportunity to meet local police and elected officials.

One of the objectives of the event is to build trust and communication between police and the community in order to better fight crime.

For more information on National Night Out, call the 68th Precinct at (718) 439-4211.

You can also get crime prevention tips from NYPD officer Susan Porcello on Aug. 9 at the corner of 13th Avenue and 80th Street from Noon to 6 PM, and on August 15 at the corner of 86th Street and Fourth Avenue from 10 AM to 6 PM.

For more information, call the 68th Precinct’s crime prevention office at (718) 439-3455.

The article from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

Joseph Milazzo Show Opens at 3JP

Six months' worth of paintings brought back from New Orleans by Bay Ridge artist Joseph Milazzo will be shown at the Three Jolly Pigeons bar, at 6802 Third Avenue at 68th Street in Bay Ridge, beginning August 6.   

The show, featuring an 11-piece series titled Crescent City Diary, will open at 3 PM on August 6.  The after-party will begin at 9 PM.

The opening party will channel the spirit of the New Orleans that Milazzo discovered.

Deliberately avoiding the tourist scenes, the artist gravitated toward what moved him:  a drunken man sitting on his porch with his dog, an old woman watching the Mardis Gras, a manic tambourine player, the serene bayou.

The number at 3JP is 718-745-9350.

The article from the Brooklyn Paper.

Fourth Avenue Post Office (Again) Threatened with Closure

Due to continued losses, the U.S. Postal Service is considering closing five Brooklyn branches as part of 3,700 possible closings nationwide.

Sunset, at 6102 Fifth Avenue in Sunset Park, and Ovington, at 6803 Fourth Avenue in North Bay Ridge, are among the five.

According to the USPS website, customers are increasingly doing business online, by smart phone or at stores, which will doom many of the Post Office's 32,000 branches.

I almost never use Fourth Avenue branch because it's usually not open when I'm around, but I think that for a lot of older people in this end of Bay Ridge, the post office is a regular destination, with postal workers they know and have done business with for years -- so it has a social aspect too.

Maybe younger people are doing their postal business online now, but I doubt that the older customers who use the Fourth Avenue branch have made that transition, or that they could easily make the trek to the Fort Hamilton branch a couple of miles away.

If you want the post office to stay open, there's a number, 1-800-ASK-USPS, you can call and leave a message -- for what it's worth.

The article from L Magazine.

Tour BoCoCa with Francis Marrone

On Saturday, July 30, at 11:00 AM, architectural historian and author Francis Marrone will lead a Municipal Art Society-sponsored walking tour of the Brooklyn district inelegantly dubbed "BoCoCa": Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens.

The tour will cover Carroll Gardens—a name given to the neighborhood in the 1960s. The "Ca" in BoCoCa boasts a miniscule historic district featuring brownstones set behind deep front gardens, notable Greek Revival and Romanesque Revival survivors, and a rich and colorful history.

The cost of the tour is $15 ($10 for MAS members).

Call 212-935-2075 to reserve a spot.

The meeting point will be provided when you register.

Kids Yoga Camp in Bay Ridge

Yoga in Bay Ridge, at 9016 4th Avenue, will host a Kids Yoga Camp this summer Monday, August 29 through Thursday September 1 from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM daily.

It's a great way to prepare for the new school year.

The cost is $45 per day or $160 for all 4 days.

To register, call Julie Raimondo at 917-968-1941 or Bobby Boles at 347-420-1272.

Julie, the camp instructor, is a Certified YogaRocks! Kids teacher.

Yoga can help children by lowering stress and anxiety and increasing attention span, physical strength, self esteem and confidence.

In an hour-long daily session, kids will learn calming breathing techniques and stretching exercises.  Class will be supplemented with crafts, games and stories teaching kids how yoga can become a part of their daily lives.

Kids are asked to bring a peanut-free lunch, and a healthy snack will be provided.

For more information about the camp, email YOGAINBAYRIDGE@AOL.COM.

You can also find Yoga in Bay Ridge on facebook.

Don't Eat the Fish

Harlem's North River Wastewater Treatment Plant, which according to the city's Department of Environmental Protection processes some 120 million gallons of wastewater a day, dumped hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage into the Hudson River last week in the aftermath of a four-alarm fire.

In Brooklyn, the waste plume drifted toward the Gravesend Bay side of Seagate, causing the city Health Department to close Seagate Beach and several Staten Island beaches due to concerns about bacteria count.

Parts of the Hudson, the East and Harlem rivers were also declared unfit for swimming, canoeing, kayaking or any activity that involves going in the water.

The DOH has advised fishers -- which I think would include those on the 69th Street Pier and along the Shore Road Promenade in Bay Ridge -- not to eat what they catch.

The article from WNYC.

Overflow from the city's old storm sewers ends up in the city's waterways after rainstorms [DNA Info.]

Related news from State Senator Adriano Espaillat.

Rooftop Presents NY Premiere of "Fake It So Real" at Crown Vic

Rooftop Films will present the New York premiere of Robert Greene's documentary film Fake It So Real, followed by a battle royale featuring wrestlers from the film, on Thursday, July 28, in the backyard at Crown Vic, 60 South 2nd Street in Brooklyn. (Take the L to Bedford, the G to Metropolitan, or the M to Marcy. The venue is at the corner of South 2nd and Wythe.)

Filmed in runup to a big show, Fake It So Real is a headfirst dive into the indie pro wrestling scene. Following a ragtag group of North Carolina wrestlers, the filmmaker is there to watch the collision between their over-the-top theatrics in the ring and the realities of their working-class Southern lives.

After the screening, the subjects of the film will be on deck to provide an example, complete with blood and sweat, of their craft, and to answer questions along with filmmaker Robert Greene.

7:30 PM Doors Open
8:00 PM Live Music
8:30 PM Film Begins
10:00 PM Q and A with filmmaker Robert Greene and subjects of the film
10:30 PM Live Wrestling Battle Royale, featuring subjects from the film
11:00 PM After-party at the Crown Vic.

More information at: http://rooftopfilms.com/2011/schedule/fake-it-so-real/

Also at Crown Vic this coming weekend:

• Friday, July 29, the popular Animation Block Party opens. 

• Saturday, July 30, the Kill Screen Video Game Festival, which attempts to answer the question “Why do we play video games?”.  The answer will be explored through short films and live independent video game play.

Biking the Verrazano

I've thought so many times since I've lived in Bay Ridge about how great it would be to be able to ride my bike over the Verrazano Bridge to Staten Island.

According to the Bay Ridge Eagle, the Verrazano was originally designed by master engineer Othmar Ammann to include two pedestrian walkways, one on either side of the bridge between the upper and lower levels.

But not surprisingly, the city's infamously car-centric transportation commissioner, Robert Moses, eliminated the walkways when the bridge was built.

The bridge was completed in 1964.

In the 1990s, advocacy organizations including Transportation Alternatives, and thousands of Bay Ridge residents, campaigned to create walkways allowing for foot and bicycle traffic over the Verrazano.

The tragedy of 9/11 broke the momentum, but since then, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and local staffer Martin Brennan, both avid bikers, have joined the local effort to renew the campaign.

Look for petitions for the "Verrazano Lifeway" at this year's Third Avenue Festival on October 2.

Expanding access to the Verrazano is also one of the ideas that are part of the By the City for the City urban design competition going on now.

Architects, designers, artists, and urbanists are invited to contribute ideas for An Atlas of Possibility for the Future of New York, an exhibition and book launch at the first-ever Urban Design Week festival, September 15-20.

MoveOn at Michael Grimm's Office on Tuesday

As the Republican House of Representatives steers the American economy into default, rather than consider raising the taxes of the richest people and the most profitable corporations in America;  as John Boehner leaves the bargaining table, even after President Obama has sold out his base by offering the Republicans a debt-ceiling deal involving trillions in cuts -- even to Medicare and Social Security; activist organization MoveOn will pay a visit to the office of local Republican Congressional Representative, Michael Grimm.

You are invited to join MoveOn members at a "drop-in" at Grimm's Dyker Heights office at 7308 13th Avenue, on Tuesday, July 26, at Noon.

The message? Pretty basic: "Don't destroy the American Dream."

If, like so many other constituents, you find Rep. Grimm's position on the debt ceiling, well, unconscionable, you're welcome to join the group.

From Russell Brand's Eulogy for Amy Winehouse

"All addicts, regardless of the substance or their social status share a consistent and obvious symptom; they're not quite present when you talk to them. They communicate to you through a barely discernible but un-ignorable veil. Whether a homeless smack head troubling you for 50p for a cup of tea or a coked-up, pinstriped exec foaming off about his ‘speedboat' there is a toxic aura that prevents connection. They have about them the air of elsewhere, that they're looking through you to somewhere else they'd rather be. And of course they are. The priority of any addict is to anaesthetise the pain of living; to ease the passage of the day with some purchased relief."

Here's the whole thing, from the Guardian.

Bee and Sunflower

DEC's Hydrofracking Statement Toothless

As part of the New York Water Rangers Campaign, Environmental Advocates of New York has reviewed the 1,095 page revised Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (SGEIS), released this month by the State's Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).

The SGEIS is the state's only roadmap to the use of the drilling method known as hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking or "fracking") to extract methane from the Marcellus Shale formation in the Catskill Park, the Delaware River Watershed and the Southern Tier, outlining the process by which fracking would be permitted.

According to EANY, the draft statement would not adequately protect the state's water or public health.

The DEC is expected to complete a revised draft for public comment and review in August. EANY is asking the DEC to expand the public comment period for the revised draft from 60 days -- a month shorter than the public comment period for the first draft of the SGEIS -- to at least 180 days.

Governor Cuomo has said he believes that fracking can be done safely in New York.  If so, EANY said, he needs to put some teeth in the SGEIS before drilling goes forward. New Yorkers want the DEC to demonstrate that fracking can be done safely before it begins.

If New York State gets fracking wrong, it will become another Pennsylvania, where the drilling industry has overrun flaccid government regulation, leaving private citizens to seek their own legal recourse. New York was supposed to have been smarter than to put short-term gas profits ahead of clean water and public health, but apparently not, given Cuomo's fracking stance.

EANY noted the following flaws in the DEC draft:

• Toxic and carcinogenic chemicals are allowed in fracking fluid. Just telling New Yorkers the names of the toxic chemicals in fracking fluid doesn't protect them from negative health impacts.
• Fracking wastewater is not categorized as hazardous waste, which, by law, it is, meaning that fracking wastewater could be dumped into local sewage treatment facilities. The DEC has admitted that sewage treatment plants were not designed to handle hazardous waste.  Dumping fracking wastewater into facilities not designed to handle hazardous wastes poses grave risks to clean water and public health.
• Fracking wastewater could directly pollute drinking water supplies. The SGEIS does not consistently provide for buffers and setbacks from aquifers and wells, and buffers and setbacks can sometimes be waived.
• Some fracking restrictions will sunset -- expire -- in the future. Areas of the state that look like they're off-limits to gas drilling won't be in the future.  And provisions for protective buffers are no more than site-specific individual environmental reviews, not buffers as such.
• The DEC failed to analyze the public health impacts of fracking, despite fracking-related air and water pollution having had serious health effects downwind and downstream -- especially for children and the elderly.
• The DEC, pushed by Gov. Cuomo, plans to start issuing fracking permits while the formal rulemaking process is still going on, which would apparently mean that drillers would be unleashed before the comment period is over.
• The state's fracking environmental impact review process is split between the DEC and the New York Public Service Commission, meaning lowered accountability.
• While the New York City and Syracuse watersheds are off-limits to drilling, critical water supply infrastructure would be unprotected. The proposed buffer around New York City's drinking water infrastructure is not a formal ban, only a "review" process. In any case, the "buffer zone" is too small to protect the aging infrastructure that supplies the city's drinking water.
• The state DEC is on life-support.  Deep budget and staff cuts have left the agency gutted.  It doesn't have the resources to properly enforce fracking regulations, even if they were effective. The DEC would be forced to cut corners on reviews and fast-track permits.

The New York Water Rangers campaign is supported by a network of organizations working to protect New York's water and public health, including Catskill Mountainkeeper, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Earthjustice, EARTHWORKS Oil and Gas Accountability Project, Environmental Advocates of New York, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Riverkeeper.

Visit www.CleanWaterNotDirtyDrilling.org to learn more.

Right Wing Christian Terrorist Kills 91 in Oslo

Right-wing pundits are struggling to spin the news that 32-year-old Norwegian national Anders Behring Breivik, a right-wing Christian blogger and admirer of Islamophobic rabble-rousers Daniel Pipes and Pamela Geller, is under arrest for killing a reported 91 people in the bombing of a government office building in Oslo and the shooting of 84 teenaged campers on nearby Utoya island. (The Utoya body count has since been adjusted downward.)

Breivik, an opponent of "multiculturalism", blogged as the Islamophobic "Fjiordman", guest blogged on Geller's Atlas Shugs, and also guested on the Islamophobic Gates of Vienna and Jihad Watch.   

Breivik's translated posts reflect his extreme nationalism and the desire to establish a Euro version of the American Tea Party movement.  

He advocated a "crusade" against the spread of Islam and the decimation of "Cultural Marxism".   

The murders were a political statement. Norway's Progress Party, of which Breivik was once a member, opposes immigration. The Labour Party, whose youth camp Breivik attacked, supports immigration. He apparently sought a high body count to maximize "ideological impact".

Posing as a farmer, the World of Warcraft gamer bought 6 tons of fertilizer to build bombs. [Daily News.], using a "McVeigh"-type bomb made of fertilizer and diesel fuel to blow up the Norwegian prime minister's office in Oslo.

Breivik arrived on Utoya Island armed and wearing a police uniform, beckoning his young victims in Norwegian to "come to him".

He may have had one or more accomplices.

Coverage from CNN.

More about Daniel Pipes.

More about Pamela Geller.

Anti-Fracking Rally at Cuomo's Manhattan Office

Food and Water Watch, part of the statewide movement against the environmentally destructive gas drilling process called hydrofracking or "fracking" will host a rally at Governor Cuomo's Manhattan office at Noon on Tuesday, July 26 calling on Cuomo to reverse his precipitous decision to allow the practice in 85% of the state's Marcellus Shale Outcrop.

As a temporary ban imposed by the State Legislature expired this month, Cuomo opened the state to the drilling industry, despite growing evidence that the environmental and public health risks fracking poses basically cannot be mitigated.  Once you frack -- once the water and the land have been poisoned -- you can't go back.

Those who can't make the rally are urged to call, email and write to the governor calling on him to put the safety of our water and air over oil and gas industry profits.

Sign up for the event here.

Boehner Stops Talking to Obama, Runs to Senate

Unable to squeeze enough spending cuts out of President Obama, House Speaker John Boehner has stopped talking to the president and run to the Senate for a debt ceiling fix.

What is Boehner likely to get there?  If he can get a deal, it will be limited and short term.  Senate Democrats are against big spending cuts and in favor of tax increases.  They may do a short-term deal to increase in the debt ceiling -- so the U.S. government won't default on its debts, tank its credit rating, bankrupt state and local governments and threaten the world's economy -- but Boehner can expect little more.

There's a meeting at the White House tomorrow morning involving all the players in the debt ceiling crisis. If that doesn't push the envelope  -- if it looks like the U.S. is heading into default -- either complete or partial -- expect Wall Street to step in.

In fact, Wall Street might leverage a deal by giving both Republicans and Democrats cover for deeper spending cuts and bigger tax increases.

The post from The Hill.

Hotter Tomorrow

Tomorrow's heat index is 110 degrees.

The heat advisory in New York City will be in affect through Sunday.

You'll need to take extra precautions to keep yourself, your child, your elder and your pet cool until the heat breaks.

The best way to avoid heat exhaustion and heat stroke is to just chill out:  What ever it is, put it off, if you can.  Stay inside with the AC on.  If you have to go outside, try to put off the trip until after sundown or in early morning.

Other than for walks, leave the dog at home. Dogs are very susceptible to heat stroke.  Even with shade and water available, I don't think it's safe right now to leave a dog tied outdoors for any time period.

Hydration is critical.  Make sure to drink, and provide, plenty of water. 

Your vehicle can quickly become a deathtrap in the heat.  It takes only 5 minutes for the temperature to reach 120 degrees inside your car, even with the windows open, so if you have to transport a child, a pet or an elderly person in your car this weekend, leave the AC on for them at all times.

If your car doesn't have AC, best put off the trip.

If you don't have AC at home, or if you have an elderly neighbor or friend without AC, click here to locate the nearest cooling center in Bay Ridge on NYC.Gov. And if you can, help your elderly friend get to the center.

More from Reuters.

Talkin' to You, Bag Boy

Gentile Demands New York Kids Be Removed from Judge Rotenberg School

Facing criminal charges stemming from an incident in 2007 when two special-needs teens were administered nearly 100 electroshocks over a 3-hour period, Matthew Israel, 77-year-old founder of the controversial Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Massachusetts, has resigned in disgrace.

In the wake of Israel's indictment, Bay Ridge Council Member Vinny Gentile has called on the New York State Education Department and the New York State Board of Regents to remove all New York students from the center.

About 100 of the center's 250 residents come from New York.

Israel’s tactics, which medical and mental health professionals have for years called savage and barbaric, have killed six kids and caused countless injuries at the 40-year-old facility, but Massachusetts continues to license the center as a special-needs school.

The center, which houses all types of special needs kids, from severely autistic to emotionally disturbed, subjects them to often grotesque and painful behavior modification therapy techniques. Up until the late 1980s, kids were spanked, sprayed in the face with water or forced to inhale ammonia. Students are still starved or subjected to painful, skin-searing 60-volt electric shocks.

Gentile called the center's techniques a "gross violation of the most fundamental standards of ethical and humane treatment of people with disabilities."

Gentile sponsored “Billy’s Law” which requires the Department of Education to provide the City Council with bi-annual reports monitoring all out-of-state residential facilities housing New York State children for special education purposes.

McCartney's "The Love We Make" Debuts on 9/10

The Love We Make, a documentary film about Paul McCartney's experiences in New York City in the aftermath of  the September 11 disaster, will debut the day before the 10th anniversary of  9/11 on U.S. cable network Showtime.

The film chronicles McCartney's personal journey through the city in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks and the preparation for his benefit concert six weeks after the towers fell. 

McCartney's plane was grounded on the tarmac the morning of September 11, 2001 when the hijacked planes flew into the Twin Towers. He came back to the city and helped organize the "Concert for New York City." 

The Love We Make, shot in black and white, features footage of McCartney's rehearsals for the concert, clips of him talking with people on the city streets, and backstage footage of David Bowie, Mick Jagger, former President Bill Clinton, Leonardo DiCaprio and others.

Directed by legendary documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles (Gimme Shelter, Grey Gardens), The Love We Make is part of a slew TV specials and books marking the 10th anniversary of September 11.

The article from Yahoo News.

Traffic Tech

Traffic congestion is not only a source of major anxiety for everyone who uses city streets, it burns costly fossil fuels and generates carbon emissions -- wasting an estimated $115 billion a year in fuel and time -- and threatens our increasingly fragile environment.

Complete solutions usually involve widening highways and facilitating public transit, but those solutions require bond measures and major construction-related inconvenience.

Government Technology Magazine, looking for quicker, cheaper solutions, sampled a number of IT fixes for traffic congestion government CIOs are trying out across the country.

From HOV to HOT

As we've noticed, carpool lanes tend to be empty.  An increasingly popular option is to let single drivers use those lanes, which are converted from high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes -- for a price.

The trick is to set the price low enough that drivers will buy in, but high enough to keep down the number of drivers who do. HOT lane charges are typically based on mileage, which is tracked by a transponder in the car based on entry and exit, and accordingly charged to the driver's account.

Although HOT lanes tend to be used at the state level, local transit agencies in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego have them too.  L.A. Metro recently won a $210.6 million federal grant for a congestion pilot program using HOT lanes on patches of Interstate.

Metro hopes that HOT lanes will increase capacity and accelerate traffic in regular lanes. A survey in nearby Orange County showed that express lanes reduced users' travel times by 30 to 45 minutes.

HOT lanes work best relieving congestion in regular lanes:  drivers won’t pay to use HOT lanes if traffic is moving normally.

HOT lanes generate between $45 million and $50 million in annual revenue for the Office of California Transportation. Mocked as "Lexus Lanes", they have also generated controversy based on the assumption that only high-income drivers use them.  In fact, they are used across the income spectrum, mostly on special occasions when drivers are in a real hurry to get somewhere.

But HOT lanes were only a partial solution to congestion -- as part of a comprehensive package including public transit and carpooling.

Circling the Block, Endlessly

The city of San Francisco is targeting another major traffic headache: finding parking. According to a UCLA report, as much as 74% of traffic in downtown urban areas is caused by drivers circling the block, looking for a parking spot.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority has launched SFPark, an iPhone app that pulls in sensor data from 7,000 street-metered parking spots and 12,250 parking garage spaces to provide realtime readouts on where the openings are.  Giving drivers this information keeps them from wasting time circling the block and snarling trafffic. They still have to get to the spot first, of course.

San Francisco's parking initiative is also using variable pricing -- assigning different prices to credit-card readable parking meters in each neighborhood -- to reduce parking times. Parking will be free in more remote areas.

If the SFMTA gets its fluid pricing plan right, a certain percentage of parking in any given area will always be available -- at a price. Those who don't want to pay the price have to exercise other options:  parking in a more remote spot or using other transportation.

The pricing model is based on a rational, testable goal -- maintaining a parking occupancy rate of 60 to 85%, rather than the spasmodic pricing model typically used.

Greenlighting

Portland, Oregon may be a model for cities looking to better manage increasing traffic congestion. Since 2004, the Portland Bureau of Transportation has managed to avoid being overwhelmed by traffic congestion, despite its growing population, through its automated Signal Timing Enhancement Program.

The system tracks the number of cars at roughly 250 city intersections throughout the day, to determine how long green lights should last in order to clear traffic fastest at each intersection.

Green light durations used to be preset and had to be manually adjusted.  Automating the process and moving it to the Internet has kept traffic in pace with the city’s population growth, using standard traffic prediction formulas to determine the effect on the system of population growth.

Because preventing traffic slowdowns limited the city's carbon emissions, Portland got a carbon offset broker, Climate Trust, to assess its carbon offsets, and scored a $100,000 credit by selling them off, which more than covered the costs of the upgrade.

Extended green lights alleviate congestion. For instance, a fire truck speeding down a street with wired intersections connected to the system emits a signal telling the light to stay green, so the truck doesn't have to slow down as drivers try to get out of its way.

The article from GovTech.

Perfetto Sentenced

Community Newspaper Group/Thomas Tracy

Bay Ridge politico Ralph Perfetto, former Democratic District Leader in the 60th AD, has been sentenced by State Supreme Court Justice Alexander Jeong to 70 hours of community service after being convicted by a jury for impersonating a lawyer.

Jeong likened Perfetto's actions -- signing a notice of appearance and addressing the judge on behalf of his cousin at an arraignment several years ago -- to performing surgery without a medical degree.

Prosecutor Om Kakani, calling Perfetto's crime "an attack on the heart of the legal system", wanted 300 hours.

Perfetto, who wears many hats, including that of private investigator, appeared at the arraignment in 2008.  Although an investigation was opened that year, the case wasn't prosecuted until 2010, when, as Perfetto faced Kevin Peter Carroll in a bitter contest for Democratic District Leader, Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes tossed it to Staten Island DA Dan Donovan.

Donovan ADA Kakani prosecuted the Brooklyn native and longtime fixture of local Democratic politics with a zealotry bordering on the absurd.

At least Kakani asked that the 77-year-old Perfetto be spared having to pick up roadside trash.

The article from the Brooklyn Paper.

Canny Brothers Band Opens for Andy Cooney at MCU Park

Brooklyn's Canny Brothers Band will open for Irish-American tenor Andy Cooney at the first Irish music concert at MCU Stadium (home of the Brooklyn Cyclones) in Coney Island, Brooklyn, on the field on Sunday, July 24 at 7 PM.

Tickets are $35 and include a bonus ticket for a box seat at the Cyclones game on August 2. 

To buy tickets, call 718-507-TIXX, log onto BrooklynCyclones.com, stop by the box office at MCU Park, or click this link.

Here's the website for the Canny Brothers Band.

Will Marty and Mini-Marty Tag-Team the Borough Presidency?

If Carlo Scissura, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz's protege, runs for his boss's job next term, Markowitz will be his biggest supporter.

Scissura, Markowitz's chief of staff since 2008 and a staff member for about eight years, looks to succeed the term-limited Markowitz in 2012.

The two men appear to have boundless regard for one another.

An attorney, Scissura describes himself as Markowitz's "consiglieri", an unfortunate choice of words, I think, given the ethically-challenged Scissura's decision to represent Markowitz at the closing on his new house in 2009.

The city's Conflict of Interest Board fined both men for the violation this year.

Scissura's run for office before, losing a City Council primary in 2001 for a seat then-city council member Marty Golden won.

Passing up a run for Golden's State Senate seat in 2012, Scissura has moved in on the BP job now that Deputy Borough President Yvonne Graham has stepped aside and City Council Member Dominic Recchia is pursuing the city Comptroller's job.

Not the skilled campaigner Markowitz is, Scissura, named as one of New York’s 20 most powerful unelected officials, nevertheless has deep connections in city government.

Bradley Tusk, who ran Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s campaign in 2009, thinks Scissura's experience -- and Markowitz's endorsement -- make Scissura, despite a lack of name recognition, a viable candidate for the borough presidency.

The post from City Hall News.

Graffiti Cat

Chinatown? Sunset Park or Flushing?

According to the Asian-American Federation's analysis of new 2010 census data, Sunset Park and Flushing are the city's new Chinatowns.

Manhattan's Chinatown has become a neighborhood of old people, as Manhattan rents drive new immigrants to Brooklyn and Queens.

The Chinese population of Sunset Park soared by 71%, and New York City's by 33%, over a ten year period. The Chinese are the city's biggest Asian group.

Once they get more established, Brooklyn's Chinese are moving on from Sunset Park to Bensonhurst, Gravesend and Marine Park.

Also rising dramatically is Brooklyn's Pakistani population, primarily along Coney Island Avenue in Midwood, Flatbush and Brighton Beach, up by 74% percent over the past 10 years.

The article from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

Red Light, Ovington and Fourth

Click twice to see what the occupants are looking at.

Federal Judge Blocks Law Regulating CPCs

U.S. District Court judge William Pauley has blocked enforcement of Local Law 17, requiring that local "pro life" crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) tell their clients up front that they are not clinics and that their mission is to convince pregnant women not to get abortions.

According to a NARAL Pro-Choice New York undercover report, CPCs are basically fake clinics, set up near Planned Parenthood, that pose as full-service reproductive health care facilities in order to talk confused pregnant women out of having abortions.  Ultrasounds are often used as part of their "pro-life" pitch.

The judge characterized the issue as one of free speech.

NARAL, acknowledging that CPCs' have free speech rights, characterized the issue as truth in advertising, noting that deceiving pregnant women about their reproductive choices can profoundly impact their lives -- and the lives of their families.

Free speech, according to NARAL,doesn't include tricking pregnant women out of choosing abortion or the morning after pill.

More from Feminist Majority.

Retro Signage

Is Gov. Cuomo's Girlfriend a Fracking Cheerleader?

National consumer advocacy group Food and Water Watch, campaigning to ban the destructive gas drilling process hydrofracking or "fracking", has called on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to disclose his live-in girlfriend's ties to the oil and gas industry.

Letting a fracking moratorium lapse last month, Cuomo pushed New York State’s Department of Environmental Conservation to open 85% of the state's Marcellus Shale outcrop to industrial gas drilling using the controversial, high risk drilling technique blamed for a growing nationwide incidence of contaminated drinking water and threats to public health and the environment.

Amid speculation about why Cuomo suddenly pushed fracking, Food and Water Watch director Wenonah Hauter, in an open letter to the governor, cited a Wall Street Journal article disclosing that Cuomo’s girlfriend, celebrity chef Sandra Lee, addressed a conference of oil and gas executives this March.

Lee has refused to disclose the name of the group she addressed, and, because Lee and Cuomo aren't married, she has no legal obligation to identify where her money comes from, including what she earns from speaking engagements.  But, Hauter, said, with the whole country watching to see how fracking plays out in New York, the Cuomo administration needs to disclose all of its dealings with the oil and gas industry -- including those of Sandra Lee.

The source of the Wall Street Journal article, Hauter said, took down the original post in late March, substituted the word "corporate" for “petroleum” executives, and re-posted. Hauter thinks the post was revised because it drew unwanted attention from fracking opponents, and that Lee is trying to hide her ties to the oil and gas industry.

Food and Water Watch has confirmed Lee's appearance at an event at the Ritz Carlton in Naples during March.  Hauter thinks Lee may have addressed the annual shareholders convention of the National Fuel Gas Company there on March 10. 

National Fuel Gas is definitely a fracking player in New York State:  it sells and transports natural gas throughout Western New York and Pennsylvania. One day before the convention in Naples, its subsidiary, Houston-based Seneca Resources, dumped all of its oil assets in the disaster-plagued Gulf of Mexico in favor of natural gas development in New York State's Marcellus Shale.

Why, Hauter wondered, would oil and gas executives be interested in a Food Network personality, other than to gain access to the governor of the State of New York?

She sees the issue of governor's girlfriend's undisclosed speaking fees being magnified by the enormity of the fracking issue, New York State's pivotal role in the fracking debate in the U.S., and Andrew Cuomo's well-known presidential ambitions.

The post from Food and Water Watch.

More from the Daily News.

More from Capitol Confidential.

Mandevilla

Hoodlums Outside Hizzouse

About 40 demonstrators led by Color of Change.org -- and an even greater number of reporters -- showed up outside News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch’s posh Manhattan apartment building yesterday, calling for an end to FOX News’ flagrant race-baiting and a Congressional investigation of the News Corp. conglomerate.

In a speech, Rashad Robinson, Executive Director of Color of Change.org, said his organization is focused not just on the wiretapping scandal that has enveloped News Corp., but on Murdoch's ugly polical agenda, which, he said, is driving Americans apart.

Protesters' carried signs reading “Murdoch Profits From FOX News Racism” and “Race Baiting, Phone Hacking, Anything For Profit".

The group tried to present Murdoch with a petition carrying 110,000 signatures demanding the resignation of FOX news host Eric Bolling, who made tasteless racist comments about the President, but Murdoch's doorman said he wasn't "accepting packages".

In a concurrent development, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the U.S. Dept. of Justice is investigating News Corp.

The post from Alternet.

Four Borough Neighborhood Preservation Alliance Meets

The Four Borough Neighborhood Preservation Alliance will meet from 6:30-9:00 PM on Wednesday, July 27 at the Neighborhood Preservation Center, 232 East 11th Street, in the East Village.

On the agenda for the meeting is the election of officers for both the corporation and the foundation.

Here's the slate for the foundation:

Daniel McCalla, President
Michael Perlman, Vice President - Queens
Linda Eskenas, Vice President - Staten Island
Kathy Jaworski, Vice President - Brooklyn
Howard Yourow, Vice President - Bronx
Lewis Greenstein, Treasurer
Raul Rothblatt, Recording Secretary
Pat Sherwood, Assistant Recording Secretary
OPEN, Corporate Secretary

Directors (with expiration year of term):
Van Westering: until 2014
Grubler: until 2014
Guttman: 2014
Trent: 2013
Jaworski: 2013
Levine: 2013
Chatel: 2012
Kaye: 2012
Noonan: 2012

Here's the slate for the foundation:

Jim Trent, President
Linda Eskenas, Vice President - Staten Island
Jim Van Westering, Vice President - Queens
Raul Rothblatt, Vice President - Brooklyn
Howard Yourow, Vice President - Bronx
Lewis Greenstein, Treasurer
OPEN, Recording Secretary
OPEN, Assistant Recording Secretary
Mitchell Grubler, Vice President for Administration of Grants

Directors (expiration of term in parentheses):
Patricia Sherwood (until 2014)
Michael Perlman (2014)
Dan McCalla (2014)
Judith Guttman (until 2013)
Kathy Jaworski (2013)
Ed Jaworski (2013)
Hannah Bloch (until 2012)
Joy Chatel (2012)
Steve Levine (2012)
[Joe Hellman, in memorium]

For more information about Four Borough, visit the Facebook page.

New IPhone App Ups Chances of Getting CPR

California's San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District has launched a free IPhone app, called Fire Department, that notifies CPR-trained citizens in the area when there is a cardiac emergency.

The app grew out of an incident when San Ramon Valley Fire Chief Richard Price and his staff were at lunch and saw an emergency vehicle pull up right next door.  One of the men was a paramedic, Price had a defibrillator in his car, and all were CPR-trained, but they didn't know a medical emergency had happened just a few feet away.

Later, they brainstormed ways to prevent that from happening again.

Now when a cardiac arrest emergency is called in, the San Ramon Valley dispatch system notifies first responders and smartphone users who have the CPR app.

Citizens within walking distance of the emergency get a message on their smartphone telling them where assistance is needed.

Since the app was launched in January, between 300 and 500 people have downloaded it every day.

The article on GovTech.

Wallabout Historic District Designated

The city's Landmarks Preservation Commission has designated the Wallabout Historic District, a 55-building block on Vanderbilt Avenue between Park and Myrtle Avenues just south of the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

It took the LPC less than a year after the request was filed by Gary Hattem, a Wallabout property owner, to complete the designation of this unique area.

Most of the houses in Wallabout were once owned by ship's captains, pilots, ferry masters and boat builders associated with the Brooklyn Navy Yard, which dates back to 1801.

Wallabout has one of the highest concentrations of mid-19th century wooden houses in New York City, most dating from 1849 to1855.  The city banned wood construction, a fire hazard, in the late 19th century, so wooden buildings, especially adjoining, as in Wallabout, are now a rarity in the city.

Historic designation allows building owners to apply for grants from the Landmarks Preservation Commission and elsewhere to help preserve their facades.

Although the LPC will also oversee any alterations, Hattem said the block is committed to maintaining its historic character as a legacy to future generations.

The post from the New York Times Local for Fort Greene/Clinton Hill.

More from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.

Forcible Touching at the 9th Street R Station

I noticed this poster as I was passing through the 9th Street R Station over the 4th of July weekend.

At around 4 AM on May 29, the man in the photo followed the victim into a stairwell, pushed her up against a wall, put his band down the back of her pants, and grabbed her buttocks, before running out of the station.

I believe there are at least four open sexual assault cases along the R line in Southern Brooklyn. Could this be a related case?

Tom Tom Needs a Home

Tom Tom is an eartipped cat brought to Animal Care and Control from a desolate, dangerous neighborhood where he was struggling to live on the street.

After he was relocated to a feral colony, it was discovered that he's not a feral cat. He's quite tame:  a sweet, gentle creature who would make an ideal pet.

He's in a temporary foster home now, but needs to find a real home by Sunday morning, July 17.

He's about 5 years old, neutered, vaccinated, FELV- and FIV+.

If you can help, please contact Meredith at 718-921-1292 or nycferalcat@aol.com.

Not American Enough?

The Courier reports that the organizers of the Bay Ridge 4th of July Picnic turned away an offer by the Arab-American Association of New York, based in Bay Ridge, to help provide entertainment for the event, saying the group was "too ethnic".

State Sen. Marty Golden (R–Bay Ridge) and Councilman Vincent Gentile (D–Bay Ridge), among the event sponsors, and event organizer Chip Cafiero, nixed the AAANY's proposal to hire an Arab band for the event, which featured seven live rock bands.

Cafiero said that although everyone was invited to the event, he disagreed with AAANY president Linda Sarsour about the role of ethnicity in the Fourth of July, which he called a celebration of the American melting pot rather than of ethnic identity.

Cafiero said that Sarsour's group would be considered for next year's event, if it's willing to pay its way.

The picnic, at the ballfield at Shore Road and 82nd Street in Bay Ridge, drew more than 2,000 people this year, and raised money for local groups that included the 68th Precinct Community Council. 

I would welcome some musical diversity on the 4th of July -- 'cause I don't think it's necessarily true that boiling down nearly 300 years of cultural assimilation produces nothing but old rock n' roll covers.  

I think the organizers need to loosen up a bit. "American" music?  "American" is all kinds of music. 

Imagine a July 4th lineup with Celtic, Scandinavian, Mid-Eastern, Italian, Slavic, Greek and Latin bands.  The Star Spangled Banner to a Latin beat? And why not?  Mixing it up makes it fresh.

The article from the Courier.

More from the Brooklyn Paper.  Mad comments.

Free Spay/Neuter Clinic Opens in Bensonhurst

When a new ACPCA policy eliminated mobile spay and neuter clinic services in Brooklyn, people working with the feral cat population here who could not transport cats to the new facility in Queens were left with few options.

That is about to change.

Denise and Peter Szalaiko of Ferals in Peril, a local not-for-profit dedicated to feral cat welfare, with generous support from the Toby Project, FIP board member Diana Clemente, and the local community, have opened a free spay/neuter clinic in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

The Toby Project, brainchild of highly-regarded veterinarian Andrew Kaplan, is dedicated to solving the city's pet overpopulation crisis.

FIP board member Diana Clemente, president of Big Apple Car, donated both the space and the renovations for the clinic.  The Toby Project provided medical equipment and supplies.

Ferals in Peril will host a free public orientation session at the New Utrecht Public Library, 1743 86th Street in Bensonhurst, from 6-7:30 PM on Tuesday July 19, to introduce the community to the clinic and its services.

The phone at the library is 718-236-4086.

Feral cat caretakers, rescuers, TNR service providers and anyone in need of free spay/neuter services is invited to come to the July 19 orientation.

It's not a TNR certification workshop, but the session will include a “TNR 101” segment teaching the basics of TNR (trap-neuter-return), as well as clinic procedure. People who attended Ferals in Perils' “Helping Homeless Cats”, will learn new information at this session. They will also have the opportunity to meet and network with people in Bensonhurst and the surrounding area who are involved in helping homeless cats and kittens.

Visit the website at www.feralsinperil.org or www.feralfixitclub.com for more details.

The FIP/TTP Free Spay/Neuter Center opened on July 10 at 1751 Bath Avenue in Bath Beach/Bensonhurst, serving certified trappers, TNR organizations and low income individuals, beginning at 8 AM Sunday and Monday, except on holidays, BY APPOINTMENT ONLY.

The clinic can accommodate 25 cats per day and is currently serving Brooklyn, Manhattan and Staten Island.

All cats must be presented at 8 AM when the clinic opens, one cat to a trap or carrier. Ferals must be in clean, cloth-covered traps. Ferals cannot be accepted in carriers. Same-day pick-up.

For additional information or to schedule an appointment, call Peter Szalaiko @ 347-816-2899.

Arab-American Heritage Music Festival

The Seventh Annual Arab-American Heritage Music Festival will take place on Sunday, July 17 from 1-6 PM, at Prospect Park West and 15th Street in Brooklyn (F to 15th Street/Prospect Park or the B-68, B-69 or B-75 bus to Prospect Park West/9th Street.)

The event is presented by the Arab American Family Support Center, Yallah Youth of Arts and Alwan for the Arts.

Family and friends of all ages are invited to a celebration of Arab heritage featuring Arab music, culture, food, arts and crafts, face-painting, a bouncy house, henna artists, and a raffle. 

For more information, contact Brett Denning at bret@aafscny.org.

P.S.E.N.G. Scammers on 72nd Street

My 72nd Street neighbor got scammed good last Friday afternoon. 

Here's her first-hand account of the incident:

I was home from work with the flu on Friday afternoon.  At about 2 PM, I got a call from a woman who said her company contracted with the local gas company to check area heating systems for carbon monoxide problems.

She wanted to set up an appointment, and said a technician could stop by later that afternoon.

 

At about 3 PM, a young guy came to the door.  He drove a white unmarked truck. 

After he had looked at the heating system in the basement, he told me he would have to report a "12-point violation" to the gas company, and that my gas would be shut off due to an “illegally installed chimney liner”. 

The liner was installed 3 years ago by Steel River Home Maintenance Co. 

He asked to see the receipt. When I showed it to him, he told me that Steel River was in Chapter 11, with 17 lawsuits pending against it, and that if I gave him a copy of the receipt, his company would get me back the $1,800 I paid for the work.

 

Then he told me that unless I agreed to an “emergency repair” -- at the cost of  $1,400.00 -- my gas would be shut off.

When I asked for his ID, he showed me a business card  with the logo "P.S.E.N.G.".  There was no name on it, an address that turned out to be non-existent, and a fuzzy photo that didn't look like him.

I've since learned that PSENG is an oil delivery company.

I was worried about the chimney, so I agreed, and signed the work order, which had no logo, name or number.  I asked the guy to write in the name of the company and the name and phone number of his supervisor.  He wrote “NYS National” and "Kim Martin, #631-299-9336".  

Half-an-hour later, he told me the job was done. 

I gave him a check made out to P.S.E.N.G. and he left, taking a copy of the Steel River receipt with him.

 

Then I called the gas company, and they told me that they don't do business with any company called "P.S.E.N.G." -- so I stopped payment on the check. 

I tried calling the number on the receipt, but no one answered. 

The “water prevention package” on the work order turned out to consist of cementing shut the metal door to the chimney behind my furnace. 

I scooped off the wet cement and opened the door. No repair was visible inside.

On the roof, a short piece of liner had been inserted into the chimney.

On Monday, I found out the scammers had tried to cash my check.

That wasn't the end of it. When the scammers found out that the check had bounced, they began calling my neighbor, threatening to bring the police to the house to help them collect the money, and to sue her.

They demanded that she let them back into her house to remove the piece of metal sheathing they stuck into her chimney.

They called my neighbor, an older woman, "senile" for stopping payment on the $1,400 check they scammed her out of.

She has called the police, who told her they couldn't respond unless the scammers were pounding on her front door. She's called 311, which referred her to the Department of Consumer Affairs without taking her information.  She's called Consumer Affairs, which told her it can't take complaints over the phone. She's now waiting for a paper complaint form by mail -- and the scammers just keep calling.

Rainbow, Fifth Avenue

NOM Kicks off Campaign to Repeal Gay Marriage

No sooner did the New York State Senate pass the Marriage Equality Act than the conservative anti-gay marriage National Organization for Marriage (NOM) announced its campaign to repeal the law, beginning with rallies on July 24 in Albany, New York City and Rochester.

New York begins issuing marriage certificates to same-sex couples on July 23.

NOM is also going after the "traitors" -- the Republican state senators who voted for marriage equality -- accusing them of selling out the party's base, its principles, and the "timeless institution of marriage".

The organization seeks to raise $2 million to support the repeal campaign.

The post from Raw Story.

Livery Car vs. Ambulance, Fourth and 72nd

As I hove up on the intersection of 4th and 72nd on my way to the subway yesterday morning, I walked into the aftermath of what a bystander I talked to said had been a collision between a livery car and an ambulance.

The ambulance won by a knockout.

As you can see in the photo below, the crew of a second ambulance was removing the livery car driver from his vehicle on a stretcher.