"NO ONE'S LISTENING"

No one's listening to 13 year old Patrick Kohlmann. He's a victim of bullies in Long Island's West Islip School District. Time and time again, he and his parents have asked school officials to do something, but each time their cries were ignored.



Patrick and his parents tried to take the message to the school board, but again, they were greeted with deaf ears and blind eyes. Patrick wanted to show the school directors a 7-minute anti-bullying video he produced and then posted on Youtube, but the board decided it was too graphic. I watched it. It's not too graphic, compared to what kids watch on TV each day and quite frankly, it sends a powerful message to school administrators that it's time to wake up and smell the coffee.



I feel Patricks pain. When I was about his age, I too was bullied. Pushed down, books knocked out of your hands, slaps on the head, etc. I remember school officials telling my parents to just ignore the kids and it'll go away. It didn't. It didn't for Patrick, either. In his video, Patrick notes that in some cases, bullying results in death, either by suicide or as in the case of Columbine High school in Colorado, the deaths of many at the hands of gun toting bully victims.



In my case, I decided to fight the bully when he "called me out" one day. We met on the other side of hill behind the school after classes. My friends showed up for moral support and so did the bully's friends. We fought. He won. But, the kid walked away with a bloody nose and mouth and ever since that fight, he never picked on me again. We actually became friends. I'm not suggesting that fighting is right for everyone, but there would be no need to fight, or kill yourself or gun down the entire student population, if the administrators weren't looking the other way in the first place.



I'd like to help Patrick and his cause and you can too. Simply send the Youtube video link to your local school district. Let them see first hand how bullying affects the lives of so many young people. Do it for your kids. Do it for Patrick.

CON EDISON....."ON IT!"

My what a difference a day makes. Dozens of Con Edison crews and their equipment have descended on Carroll Gardens. They've spent four days here now, digging, probing, fixing and connecting. Their initial response was in order to get the electricity restored to several hundred customers in Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill and Carroll Gardens. Some people were without air conditioning in near 100 degree heat for 24-hours.

Con Ed says some businesses and residents affected by this outage qualify for compensation. Residents may file a claim, up to a maximum of $450, for actual losses of food spoiled due to lack of refrigeration. Receipts or photos are needed for any claim over $200.

Businesses can get compensation for losses up to $9,000 for perishable items spoiled due to lack of refrigeration. Claims must include an itemized list and proof of loss and be filed within 30 days of the date of the power outage.

You can do all of this online by going to Con Ed's website, www.coned.com, click on Customer Central, and then Claims.



Also, a new nifty feature installed on the website after the debacle in Astoria a few years ago is an interactive outage map. Go to the Customer Central tab, then click on Storm Central. It gives you a neighborhood by neighborhood breakdown of how many people are without power. Right now, several thousand people in Queens remain in the dark and it looks like the Hudson Valley was hit hard by severe thunderstorms on Tuesday night.



So back to the fix-it job. Now, four days after the power went out, Con Ed crews continue to dig. This is obviously more than a patch up job. In fact, I asked a few Con Ed guys what was going on. They now have new marching orders. Instead of patch and run, they really are "on it." One worker told me the company has spent about 1.8billion dollars so far this year on major infrastructure repairs. They plan to spend even more than that next year, he tells me. So what's happening is, once they arrive in a neighborhood to repair damage, they attempt to fix it for good. That's why an entire block of Smith street and part of Court street are being dug up. All new everything goes down in the hole.



Of course, this all creates a new problem, a major traffic jam stretching from Bergen street all the way back to near Hamilton Avenue, pretty much the entire length of Smith street. Side streets are also backing up. Add to that irate drivers who are blasting their horns, not aware that the street ahead is shutdown and there's not much they can do. What Con Edison or the city should do in cases like this is post signs blocks ahead of the problem, alerting motorists that the street is closed and that if they want, they can cut down a side street to avoid the mess. Just about every stranded driver I talked to had no clue of what was ahead. Had they, they wouldn't be honking their horns and they would have detoured around the jam.



Despite some of my previous biting remarks about Con Edison, I now believe they have learned much from their mistakes of the past. They have that cool interactive outage map online and they appear to have a new plan in place striving for a permanent and long-lasting fix to their problems.

GUNPLAY IN CARROLL GARDENS

Just when you thought you lived in a nice, upscale neighborhood, kid comes along with a gun and tries to shoot two cops. Below is from the New York Daily News.


Cops nab teen after gun jams

BY ETHAN ROUEN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, June 11th 2008, 12:15 AM

Two Brooklyn cops were thanking their lucky stars Tuesday after they nabbed a teenager who shot at them twice but whose gun jammed both times, police said.

The cops made the collar without firing a round. A retired detective had noticed the thug with the silver .380-caliber handgun walking around Carroll Gardens about 5:10 p.m. and called police, cops said.

Officers Maggie Clamp, 32, and Joseph Gonzalez, 29, responded. As they canvassed the area with the detective, they spotted the suspect about six blocks away in Red Hook, police said.



During a five-block foot chase, the 18-year-old twice turned, took aim at the officers and pulled the trigger on the semiautomatic, cops said.

"Fortunately, the gun misfired and didn't go off," said Deputy Inspector Michael Kemper of the 76th Precinct. "The job [the officers] did was phenomenal."

Without returning fire, the officers, who have both been on the force about three years, were able to tackle the suspect and take him into custody, where charges against him are expected to include attempted murder against a police officer. The young man has refused to give cops his name.

PIC OF THE WEEK: ROLLS ROYCE FOR $15,000

Now, you too, can own your very own Rolls Royce. It's a steal for just $15,000. But, then again, it's from 1972. Probably not very good on the gas milage, though. I found this gem on Degraw street near Smith in Carroll Gardens.

CON'D ED

Promises. Promises. Just last week, Con Edison promised there would be enough electricity to keep New York City running, even if there was a heat wave. So, now, just 24 hours into a heat wave, Con Edison breaks down.



Okay, this wasn't the blackout of 2003 that sent millions of Americans into darkness, nor what is an extended mess like the outage a few years later in Astoria, Queens. But, Con Edison conned us once again. As the mercury rose into the mid-90's, something failed (they won't say what) and about 300 people in Boerum Hill lost power.



Bustling restaurants, local bars and dozens of apartments went dark. Here's how Con Edison conned us. They were quoted as saying "we have sufficient power" to last through the summer. But, remember that was only half of the problem associated with the power outages of years past. The other problem, a crumbling electrical infrastructure, which, again, a few years back, Con Edison promised
to remedy. They assured us that they were spending millions of dollars (that you're paying for in rate increases) to upgrade the decaying system of switches, lines and transformers.



Hmm. That went well. So, here it is, just a day into a four-day heatwave and Con Edison has already failed us. I'm told there were other failures in Flatbush and Willamsburg. Three places. One day. I also thought New York City councilman Eric Gioia was a whiner.



There he was day in and day after the Queens blackout slamming Con Edison for negligence. Every time the lights flickered, he'd be on their case.
I thought the guy was a little over the top. I thought he was grandstanding. You know what, he knew something we now all know, we were Con'd be Con Edison.

KATRINA

The dog I met the other day was born in a world of turmoil, mud and oil. The Mastiff/Staffordshire Terrier was just a puppy, so she didn't know the pain and anguish all of the humans around her were going through. She was happy to be alive. Frolicking through the mud and muck of New Orleans, a month after the Hurricane hit. Her Mom gave birth to a pair of puppies, a girl and a boy. Their owner lost his home when Katrina hit in October. Fearful of the stories coming out of the shelters, the old man and his dogs set off to find temporary housing in the only possession they had left, a beat up car that wouldn't run. That's where this family of four lived....and it's where Joe found them.



Joe lives in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. His job took him to New Orleans, but his professional life merged into volunteer life, as he began trying to help those who couldn't help themselves. He wandered from street to street, looking to see what little he could do to help those in need. That's when he stumbled upon Leroy (not really sure of his real name). Joe had just lost his dog and vowed he'd never get another one.( My uncle Jim felt the same way) He fell in love with the girl, an all white sister of a little guy , with one of those black splotches around one of his eyes. The reality was, Joe wasn't leaving New Orleans anytime soon and an all white dog wouldn't be very practical in a town covered in mud and oil. Joe asked the homeless guy, if he'd like to give up one of his dogs so it could see a better life. $100 later, the exchange was made and Joe was sloshing through the flooded streets with a new best friend.

Sure, Joe was concerned with the all white sibling, but that wasn't really why he picked the girl. He was amazed at how obedient the little puppy was. When the owner went into the local convenience store to buy a cup of coffee, the little dog waited patiently outside, with no leash. When called, the pup would follow. When ordered to sit and lay down, she would. He was hooked. "That's the dog, I want," he said. The old man didn't want to give up the dog, but hey, $100 when you have nothing is a lot of money. He took it and parted with the happy go lucky mixed breed.



Joe says he found many people living like his new found homeless friend. They chose not to live in shelters, like the big arena where so many people suffered without basic essentials. You'd find them in card board boxes, under tents in parking lots or in this guy's case, an old car. Best Joe could tell, Leroy had no family, except for his harem of dogs. They gave the new Hobo unconditional love and companionship. I can only imagine how difficult it must have been to say goodbye to the little girl. Reality must have set in. He needed $100 dollars from the guy from New York and he was in no position to bargain.



I met this little doggy a few days ago at Angry Wades, my little Brooklyn watering hole on Smith street. I was impressed by the dogs energy, friendliness, obedience and her zeal for life. Joe tells me she still gets spooked by loud noises; doors slamming shut, horns honking, construction work and the like. But, for him, it's a minor disturbance.



As the hours went on, I realized I had never asked what he named the dog. He said, "Katrina." I was floored. Filled with emotion, I nodded in approval.
What Joe did is a true blessing and as I walked home to my empty apartment, four months after the loss of my dachshund Noodles, I couldn't help but wonder how many dogs that year , like that cute precious little dog I met, were named, Katrina.

RACING FANS ARE DRUNKS

You wouldn't know it by watching T.V., but horse racing fans are a bunch of drunks.
It was about noon the other day, before the start of the Belmont Stakes. I was on my way home from work, so I dropped in to the Blarney Rock in Manhattan for a quick one.
As I opened the door, the first thing that hit me was the din of loud voices and classic rock playing on the Jukebox. First of all, Saturdays are pretty quiet at this place and the Jukebox is rarely cranked up.



These weren't regulars. Instead, the place was packed with beautiful women wearing slinky, bright dresses and the guys were decked out in their Izod's and seersucker suits. The bartender tells me many of them got there around 8 in the morning. Four hours later and they're still hoisting their drinks, mainly beer, Screwdrivers and Bloody Mary's. One guy ordered 40 shots for his friends. The bartender was overwhelmed, but handled the scene with ease.



As I sat there quietly nursing my drink, all I could imagine was, what they would be like in another hour or two when they actually head off to the racetrack. I'm told the mint julep sipping crowd at the Kentucky Derby is also a bunch of drunks, despite their roaring 20's look wearing those flashy hats and all. Parades are the same way. How many years have you watched Philadelphia's Mummers Day parade or New York's Saint Patricks Day parade. They all look normal, until you actually attend one of the events and see for yourself what real idiots they really are.



Back to the Belmont crowd. I can only imagine what a few too many drinks did to their heads, when at the end of the race, Big Brown comes in dead last and the long shot wins the race. At least if they bet a lot on the favorite, their sorrows have been numbed.

TRAVELOGUE: A TRIP TO RUSSIA FOR $2.00

It's been quite a few years since I ventured out to Brighton Beach, America's little Odessa. I remember the aroma coming from the little Mom and Pop pastry, butcher and seafood shops under the elevated subway on Brighton Beach Avenue. This is home to 350,000 Russian immigrants, thought to be the largest Russian enclave outside of Moscow.



I decided to return and I was pleasantly surprised. It's the place to go if you don't want to travel far from home, but feel like you're in another country. Most of the signs on the shops are in Russian. Shopping here can be difficult. Although the prices are in U.S. dollars and not in Rubles, you may have a tough time identifying some of the unique produce and meats. Russians love their veal and at the local butcher shops, they sell every possible cut, including livers and brains.



Between World War II and the 1970's, immigrants from the Ukrainian port city of Odessa flocked to New York city and settled here in Brighton Beach and nearby Sheepshead Bay. It appears populated by an older generation of expatriates from the Black Sea town of Odessa. Very few people here speak English. Don't worry about the language barrier, because it adds to the ambiance of Brighton Beach.



Up on the boardwalk, you'll find elegant outdoor dining at a handful of Russian restaurants. One of these places is Tatiana's, which was advertising a $16.95 lunch special. I didn't find anything special about a lunch for nearly 17-dollars, considering it consisted of basically sausages and mashed potatoes. Venture back to Brighton Beach Avenue for a much more affordable, yet authentic meal. The people watching here is great. I don't understand why so many of these overweight, 60 and 70-something men insist on wearing bikini swimwear. But, they do and you can't help but chuckle at the sight.



If you're looking to visit, take the B or the Q train to the Brighton Beach stop and go on a little tasting tour of the neighborhood. Look for some of the popular Russian staples like Veal Orloff, Chicken Kiev, Beef Stroganoff, Borscht and a traditional cabbage soup. Brighton Beach Avenue is also lined with a variety of pastry shops selling odd looking treats like Vatrushka, a sort of cake centered around cottage cheese and sprinkled with bits of fruit. Priiatnogo appetita!

BLOGN&%$*ER!

WARNING: Some of the language below may be offensive to some of our readers. Parents, hide the children immediately!)

Talk about an angry black man! I'm constantly searching the blogosphere for interesting tidbits on Brooklyn and I stumbled across this gem of a site: "Blognigger"



"I'm a 32 year-old Software Engineer. I grew up in Manhattan, went to a ritzy private school with 95% white kids where I was the token African American black kid." (picture to the left is from his website)

Okay, fair enough. Then, he proceeds to rage over how he's a pauper living in trendy Park Slope, Brooklyn.



"Now I make $106,000 a year, and I'm a pauper in Park Slope. No, literally - we have to leave. I have two kids and my rent has just been raised to $3500 a month. I've lived here since 1999 (when 5th avenue was still a total shithole), and now I'm going to have to uproot my family and move out of Brooklyn."

Notice the anger?



"Can I ask you a fucking question? How can I be making $106,000 a year and not be able to afford to live in Brooklyn? After the neighborhood is built up with designer Peruvian cuisine and gourmet garage franchises, it's deemed officially cool. So cool that it's a viable alternative to Manhattan. Now wall street moves in - hundreds of people with quarter million dollar bonuses in '06 and '07 - so much fucking money that I don't stand a chance. They buy."

He ends his rant with this:

"Now my 2 bedroom on Garfield st. is $3500 a month, and I'm a fuckin nigger"

Jeez! Welcome to New York City, Mister Angry Black Man. About 11 years ago, I was priced out of the West Village in Manhattan and you know what I did? That's right, I moved. Now, I'm in Carroll Gardens, a neighborhood similar to trendy Park Slope. My landlord raised my rent for the first time in 11 years, about five months ago. My apartment is still about half of what the market price for this place would be. I'm grateful, but like thousands of others in that six-figure category, I'm willing to move. I'm not going to bitch about it. I'm going to do it quietly, if I ever have to relocate.



But, this story goes well beyond a black man's rant on skyrocketing housing prices. No, just about everything in this guy's Blognigger has to do with race and how the white man is keeping him down. You don't hear him complaining about other blacks who make more money than him. It's as if only whites are afforded that status. That would be like Wesley Snipes complaining how John Travolta and people like him (read white actors) have left him making considerably less money. What his $15 million dollars a year to Travolta's 38-million a year. Please.

How does one who appears to be fairly successful in his career come to the conclusion that the white man is responsible for all of our nations woes, not to mention all of his trials and tribulations. And, goodness gracious, golly gee willikers, Mister Wilson, the language! Please, take a bitter pill and grow up!

PICTURE OF THE WEEK: GEORGI

I found my namesake on the side of a truck on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, complete with a woman's near naked rear end.

RON KUBY BACK ON THE RADIO FULL-TIME

It's official, more than six months after losing his gig on WABC's Curtis and Kuby show, Ron Kuby strikes a deal to work for the liberal radio network, Air America. He begins his new afternoon show, starting next Monday. You can read the Air America news release below.

FORMER WABC N.Y. PERSONALITY RON KUBY CHOSEN HOST

OF "AMERICAN AFTERNOON" BY AIR AMERICA RADIO

Weekdays from 3-6pm ET Beginning Monday June 9



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Air America Radio (www.airamerica.com) today announced that former WABC New York morning drive host Ron Kuby has been chosen to host the 3 pm-6 pm ET show starting Monday, June 9th.


While co-host on WABC news/talk radio from 2000- 2007, Kuby's morning show consistently placed in the top ten for listeners in the highly competitive New York City market.


"We're glad to have such a highly experienced and popular radio personality such as Ron on our network," said Charlie Kireker, chairman of Air America Radio. "Considering his history of strong ratings, entertainment value and thought-provoking opinions, he will have wide appeal to audiences, affiliates and advertisers nationwide."


"I am delighted to be joining Air America's powerful voices in these challenging times," said Kuby. "We'll have the news, analysis, opinion, calls and hopefully a few things that listeners haven't thought of yet, or don't want to think about."


In addition to his accomplishments as a radio personality, Kuby is currently a guest anchor for trial coverage on TruTV's "In Session." In his spare time he is a practicing civil rights and criminal defense attorney with a long-standing commitment to social justice. For over two decades he has represented numerous controversial clients in some of the most high-profile criminal and civil rights actions in the United States. Kuby earned his J.D. from Cornell Law School in 1983 and was associated with civil rights lawyer William M. Kunstler, of Chicago 8 fame for 13 years.


About Air America Radio

Air America Radio is a national progressive talk radio network representing a smart, independent political voice with a sense of humor. Various Air America shows can be heard nationwide on 60 affiliates as well as on XM Satellite Radio and streamed on the Internet at www.airamerica.com.


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SUING FOR PEANUTS

Tehmina Haque's 4-year old son, Ryahn, is one of those kids who's allergic to peanuts. Now, she's suing American Airlines because they served peanuts on board her flight from New York to Los Angeles, even though the boy never had an allergic reaction.



Instead, her lawyer charges in the lawsuit, "For the entire flight ... plaintiff remained fearful, tense and anxious as she watched over her son's every breath and body twitch, concerned that at any moment her son could have an anaphylactic reaction while imprisoned 35,000 feet into the air,"

The woman alleges the airline promised they wouldn't serve peanuts, but they did anyhow.



American Airlines defends it's peanut policy, noting the disclaimer on the company's website: "Although we do not serve peanuts, we do serve other nut products and there may be trace elements of unspecified peanut ingredients, including peanut oils, in meal and snacks. It goes on to say, "We cannot guarantee customers will not be exposed to peanuts during flight and strongly encourage customers to take all necessary medical precautions to prepare for the possibility of exposure."



I'm no lawyer, but it seems to be, the airline covers its butt pretty well. Not only that, the kid never had a negative reaction to the peanut eating crowd around him.
He didn't twitch, he didn't break out in hives and he didn't die. They're essentially suing over the "fear factor." Does that mean I can sue because I have a fear of flying and for three-hours, I nervously sat there wondering if the plane was going to crash. Some people have a fear of clowns. Lord help us, if a guy in a clown outfit boards the plane.



These peanut people are over the top. You have choices. You don't have to fly. You don't have to take that airline. Some people are allergic to certain clothing fibers, some to colognes and perfumes, others to cats, which are often brought on board flights.

This lawsuit should be tossed out, as soon as it gets to the judge's desk.

FOR SALE: 3-STORY BRICK HOME WITH STREET LEVEL STORE. $29,000

I'm guessing the Brownstone building I'm living in is probably worth somewhere between 1.8 and 3-million dollars. I rent, so I figure if I were to buy my floor (about 1200 square feet) it would set me back about $750,000.



For that, I could buy a 7-bedroom, 7-bath mansion with 5 acres of land and a swimming pool in Atlanta! Thing is, I have no interest in living in Georgia. That said, I, like, plenty of other New Yorkers face this dilemma: rent or own.

For years, my parents have encouraged me to buy. "There must be something affordable, for you to buy, " they often say. Well, sure, in Atlanta. But, as you well know, Atlanta is not near New York and Atlanta is not like New York. It's hot and humid and people there talk with a funny accent (okay, so I live in Brooklyn and people here have a funny accent. Whats ya wanna do bout it.) I digress.



The other day I was talking to Gene, a 60-something guy from Italy. He moved here, like so many others from Europe decades ago. He had $29,000 to his name. Not bad, really. Not bad for 1976. When Gene arrived he didn't speak much English and New York was a pretty big and intimidating place. On that hot summer day in 1976, Gene got wind of a place down the block that was for sale. He was shocked at the price: $35,000. Gene didn't have that, but he did have $29,000. He talked to the owner and barked, "Cash, How much?" Some silence and a few stares later, the owner says, $29,000. Gene reaches into his pocket and pulls out a wad of bills. He buys the place.



He still lives there today. It's a three-story brick building on Court street and it comes complete with a first floor store and two stories of apartments above. When Gene bought the place, the first floor housed an old-fashioned candy shop. Today, it's some trendy clothing boutique. Upstairs, each of the two floors is split into a pair of tiny apartments. They each have their own baths, but each floor shares a kitchen, an unusual arrangement. But, hey, for $1,000 a month, that's a bargain for a young person wanting to live in a hot neighborhood.



Gene's a frugal guy. I see him at the local bar every now and then. He rarely drinks, not because he doesn't drink, but because he thinks the $5.00 beers are too expensive. He dresses in what looks like thrift store clothes and best I can tell, he doesn't own a car and doesn't have a job. He needs neither. The going rate these days for retail space on Court street ranges from about $3,000 to $6,000 a month. Let's settle for $5,000 for arguments sake. Add to that apartment income of $4,000 and Gene makes $9,000 a month on that building he bought back in 1976. In other words, he makes $108,000 a year.



Funny, in 2008, he wouldn't be able to afford to buy his own place! But, Gene is living the American dream!