Celebrating Community
Introduction “Fishes, Purple,Tiny…a “60s tale” is a somewhat anthropological snapshot of a time before the digital revolution of computers and cell phones. Today’s reader may find it hard to imagine a world with only 5 tv channels, milk deliveries, and neighbors whom you knew. People of this era would never walk while they drank coffee, they would sit with a cup […]
Book reviews have morphed in form, from formal reviews in print newspapers to online editions to informal blogs by independent writers. Now, anyone and everyone can review books — so long as they can find an audience. While the publishing industry is experiencing a boom, Americans are reading less than ever before, according to a Gallup poll from 2022. But […]
Since WWII, Germany has been the closest ally of Israel in Europe. The historical shame coming from the Holocaust crimes pushed Berlin/Bonn to support Israel in all the wars that happened with its Arab neighbors. Weapons, intelligence and diplomacy—Germany has assured them all to Tel-Aviv. Right now Germany keeps its so-called “special relationship” with Israel. Several Federated States have prohibited […]
I’ve been the CEO of Cobble Hill Lifecare, a not for profit health care organization in Brooklyn, for almost 15 years. We take care of patients in our skilled nursing facility on Henry St. and we take care of patients in their homes and I’m sure it won’t come as a surprise that most of our patients would rather receive […]
As a full time teacher, I spend a lot of time considering the question: what should teenagers be reading in 2023? In modern education speak: canon vs. choice. Increasingly, and dishearteningly, I find today’s youth aren’t reading for pleasure. I’ve noticed many of my students lack the ability to imagine worlds beyond the literal and immediate realities they inhabit. Furthermore, I’ve noticed […]
Where can you take part in a seasonal billiards tournament, practice your boxing skills, enroll your child in a free after-school program, and find a puppeteer’s workshop? Well, if you answered the “Red Hook Recreation Center,” you’re already in the know. The Center, one of eight recreation centers run by the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation in Brooklyn, is […]
It was a year of downs with slight upturns that suddenly veered into downs that seemed to bottom out, only to tumble violently downward again. – Happily, the murder rate was also trending downward, yet most citizens reported feeling unsafe as mental illness, addiction and homelessness were visible everywhere, especially on the F, D, 2, 5, B, 1 and A […]
I was working the Red Hook-Amagansett-What-Have-You news desk on a slow day, trying to recover from the year-end Star-Revue party the night before. Things had been kind of slow at Sam’s on Court Street until George threw down a wad of bills with presidential mugs I wasn’t familiar with, whereupon Louie kept those drinks coming. Being free and all, how […]
The day before election day, when a good number (at least in the context of this year) of the City’s electorate had already cast early votes, I was awakened by a call from my fellow election law practitioner, Ali Najmi, warning of a potential problem in Bay Ridge, where my client, Democrat Justin Brannan, was facing off in a closely-watched […]
Whenever I consciously try to predict something, I’m generally wrong. I think a lot of people end up being wrong, while a lot of people end up being right. That’s because I’m guessing we all are doing wishful thinking. If I were to make 2024 predictions, I’d probably say that Trump will be soundly defeated, so much so that all […]