Sunday, November 27, 2011

Story of Christians, Jews, Christmas, and Hanukkah


I am an Italian Gentile, raised in Brooklyn NY, in a Jewish / Italian neighborhood. In the fifties, the Christian and Jewish communities were closely connected, and shared the enthusiasm of their respective religious holidays.


My Father was a house painter; the major portion of his business was painting Jewish Schools. As I recall a Jewish School was pronounced "Shool." My Father, a Catholic, literally worked in the classrooms, together with the Rabi and his students.


My father's Christian name was Salvatore, everyone called him Sal; his Jewish customers called him Sol, which is short for Solomon. He was very proud of that! He had a strong admiration for the Jewish community!

In the Fifties, the Jewish students were taught religion, but were also trained to deal with "real Life situations," that they could encounter, when they got older. I will always remember how my father always conveyed these wonderful lessons in life, to me, knowing how valuable they were. As soon as my Father got home from work, dirty and tired, he would immediately teach me the valuable lesson in life, that he had just learned that very same afternoon, in the Jewish School.


So! an Italian Catholic, whose father was called Sol, who painted Jewish Schools for a living, and taught his son lessons from the Jewish School.


At Christmas time the Manger and the Menorah often resided at the same location in the home town of my youth, Brooklyn, NY. A Manger was set-up in front of an apartment house, and a Menorah was displayed next door. Half of my friends were Jewish! My girlfriend was Jewish! At Christmas time my Jewish friends were celebrating Hanukkah, and we all shared in the excitement and anticipation of both holidays. We were literally transformed into a family through our religious holidays!


That's the way it should be!


Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah!



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Saturday, November 26, 2011

Holiday Season Safety Tips from the 5Th Precinct

The source of the following is the November 2011 Suffolk County Police Department Newsletter:


The Suffolk County Police Department wishes everyone a safe, happy and healthy holiday season—please assist us in ensuring your safety by considering the information contained below, and by always acting in a safe and responsible manner.


Holiday Safety: The day after Thanksgiving, commonly known as ―Black Friday, has become increasingly popular during these challenging economic times as people search for better deals and discounts. Regrettably, in the excitement of seeking shopping values, thefts, accidents and tragedies often occur. Although the Suffolk County Police Department deploys extra patrols during the holiday season, it is incumbent on everyone to take basic precautions to ensure the safety and security of themselves and their possessions.


Driving Safety: Suffolk County’s roadways are increasingly crowded during the shopping season, and parking lots can be quite congested. Motorists must exercise extreme caution when driving, remaining alert and attentive, refraining from engaging in distracted driving behavior such as talking on a cell phone or texting. Many crashes occur in parking lots during the holiday season and it’s for this reason it is incumbent on all to drive at a slow speed, using caution when approaching parking lot intersections, and to remain alert for vehicles backing out of parking spaces, and pedestrians. Never park in fire zones—doing so not only creates an obstruction for emergency responders, but creates a hazardous situation for pedestrians as well. Also, never park in handicapped spaces unless you have a valid permit—fines are significant, and worse yet, you may prevent someone from using the space who truly needs it!


Shopping and Crowd Safety: Great shopping deals can mean large crowds and long lines at retail stores. The stress and anticipation of doors opening and the frustration of waiting on long lines can make others aggressive. If you see a large, unorganized crowd gathering, step back and remove yourself from the situation. No matter how significant the deals, they are not worth risking injury. If you see any hazardous behavior, such as an unorganized or disorderly crowd, call 911 and remember to remain calm at all times.


If you plan on shopping those midnight madness sales well into the night, do not shop alone! Taking along a shopping buddy will not only make your shopping experience a more enjoyable one, it will make it a safer one as well. When shopping, be sure your purse and wallet are secure on your person and closed—never leave them unattended in a shopping cart or in a dressing room.


Be sure GPS navigation devices, EZ Passes, cell phones and other electronics are not in view in your vehicle. Secure them in the glove compartment or out of sight. Nothing is more attractive to a thief than an unlocked car or a car filled with recent purchases. Be sure packages are out of view or secured in the trunk, and be sure to always keep your vehicle windows closed and doors locked.


Avoid the ATM at night. If you will be paying with cash, make your withdrawals ahead of time during daylight hours. If using an ATM at night, use one that is in a well-lit, heavily populated area and preferably indoors.


Have a game plan of where you will be shopping and an estimated time when you will arrive home, and share this information with family or friends. Carry a cell phone with you in case of emergency.


Don’t Drink and Drive This Holiday Season: Many people aren’t aware that Thanksgiving Eve has become a party night among young adults. Many college students come home for the holiday and get together with friends the evening before Thanksgiving to socialize. To ensure that everyone has fun and stays safe – NEVER DRINK AND DRIVE. Everyone who plans to celebrate away from home should designate a driver if they plan on drinking alcoholic beverages—something every parent should discuss with both their children who drive and those who don’t. The Suffolk County Police Department will be deploying extra DWI patrols this holiday season and will continue to aggressively enforce laws relating to driving under the influence. Severe penalties accompany a DWI conviction including stiff fines, jail time and seizure of your motor vehicle. If those penalties are not enough of a deterrent, remember DWI-related crashes often have devastating effects, including serious injury and loss of life.


Underage Drinking: Underage drinking is a significant problem across the nation, and Suffolk County is not immune. Suffolk County ’s Social Host Law is designed to reduce underage drinking gatherings where an adult allows minors to drink alcoholic beverages. This law applies to any adult, including parents, who knowingly allow consumption of alcohol by any person under the age of 21 at a residence that adult owns, rents or otherwise controls, and fails to take reasonable corrective action upon learning of the consumption of alcohol by minors. The Social Host Law is strictly enforced by the Suffolk County Police Department, and allows for penalties up to $1,000.


Please Note: The New York State Penal Law, Alcohol Beverage Control Law, and other state and local regulations contain numerous other ordinances that make it a crime to engage in unlawful conduct with persons under the age of 21. These statutes prohibit the sale of alcohol to persons under 21, the purchase of alcohol for someone who is under 21, the possession of alcohol by persons under 21, as well as laws pertaining to engaging in conduct that endangers the welfare of persons of a protected age


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Sunday, November 20, 2011

Issues hidden "Under the Rug"


Why do governments, businesses, and institutions, have a dismal record for reporting serious and possibly criminal issues to the authorities? Why would anyone push a serious issue under the Rug? Embarrassment and the resulting loss of stature and income for the organization, is an obvious answer. With this established, we must now consider the logistics of a management hierarchy, that exists in many organizations.


The flow of information within an organization is impeded when all levels of management play the "blame game," in an effort to stack the cards in their favor. Generally, increasingly higher levels of management, have the potential to exhibit increasingly higher levels of predatory behavior. I do not feel comfortable being locked in a cage, with a lion, when I have no means of defense!


Lower levels of management work "at the pleasure of" higher levels of management! What does this mean? In most establishments, lower management can be fired at the whim of higher management. Many of us work for organizations and businesses that can and will fire us in an instant, without notice. This is a sad and ugly fact of life; to live and work without any sense of security. So here we are, trying to support a house, a family, pay our car loan, and pay our credit cards, all under the auspices of a little gremlin in our mind that keeps reminding us that we dare not upset the boss or supervisor. In today's economic environment, the name of the game is ",do not upset your supervisor;" your entire future rests on your bosses perception of a given event.


All of the above work in conjunction with what I call the "Middle Management Corollary," which is "do not drop any problems on my desk." Why would your immediate supervisor get upset? The act of dropping a problem on you bosses desk has the effect of transferring liability to him. Your boss is now stuck with the responsibility of dropping this issue on his immediate bosses desk; that also lives by the "Middle Management Corollary." Dropping a "bomb" on your bosses desk comes with possible serious ramifications!


If an employee brings an issue to an authority outside of his company, he will be expedited upon for breaking the chain of command. He is sure to be fired! There are no laws to protect him!


A person that goes through college so that he will qualify for a management position, can be over Thirty years old before he made his first dollar. The very act of pushing a problem upstream can be a vocational death sentence; you can be fired by any one of the managers above your boss. There is a tendency to minimize the severity of a given issue when reporting it to your immediate supervisor; hoping that he will take the initiative to gather the facts. Working exclusively "at the pleasure of" management, can be a frightening and dehumanizing experience! With this in mind, how gallant could you be with a given issue, when the future of your family is at stake? The actual driving force behind the cloaking of any issue is survival. When it comes to addressing serious issues within an organization, the process of conveying information to higher levels of management, can be sketchy at best.


The ramifications of not addressing critical issues can be catastrophic; a Federal or State Review Panel is needed to protect those individuals who choose to report sensitive issues to upper management. The panel should be empowered to levy and disperse the proceeds of fines, that amount to twice the lifetime income, of a person who was unjustly fired. This panel could prevent many tragedies from ever happening. I believe that serious issues should be addressed by upper management; a clerk is not charged with this level of responsibility. It is managements responsibility to openly address serious issues, that could result in personal damage, and the ultimate collapse of a company or institution.


Before we can successfully remedy this problem, the word "survival," must be removed from the equation.


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Sunday, November 13, 2011

We could use a few of these in Patchogue!

The following life sized Three dimensional paintings are displayed in Atlantic City, NJ, along the Boardwalk. The huge paintings are used to cover an unsightly structure, and a vacant lot. 
Could this be applied to unsightly vacant stores?

How about just putting up a "fun marquee painting" oven an unsightly vacant store?

Any ideas?

(Left click any photo to make it larger!)


















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Wednesday, November 09, 2011

Update on the Joe Paterno Article:


I am not a big fan of "trial by public opinion," and believe that everyone has the right to due process of the law. I firmly believe that no accusation should be made until sufficient evidence is available for consideration.

WGAL.com has published the Grand Jury Presentment (report), on the Jerry Sandusky case. This report brings new information to light that was not available as this tragic issue unfolded. (Please read the Presentment!)

http://www.wgal.com/r/29737266/detail.html

I always try to give a person the "benefit of the doubt," because I believe that only real, hard, facts should be used when writing about an issue that could destroy someone's life.

A casual examination of the "Presentment," convinced me that Joe Paterno and others up to and including the president of Penn State, may have known more about the Sandusky crimes than I had originally surmised.

In my opinion, it appears that criminal charges may be made against all involved including Joe Paterno. A sad day for Penn State, and a sad day for the victims.


Is Joe Paterno Guilty?


Joe Paterno the famous Penn State Football coach is under fire for the actions of a coworker who worked under his supervision. Members of the press and the university, are frothing at the mouth in an attempt to force Joe to retire. Joe Paterno is indeed guilty of something but certainly not guilty of being connected or responsible for the alleged reprehensible sexual actions of his former assistant, Jerry Sandusky.

In 1998 Paterno's assistant was under investigation by the Penn State University Police. In 2002 a graduate student told Paterno that he saw Sandusky allegedly raping a 10 year old boy in the shower. This "second hand" incident report was passed on to Paterno's superior. Obviously Mr. Sandusky was already on the Radar Screen of the Police Department, and should also have been on the Radar Screen of the Penn State administration. In my opinion, because of an ongoing investigation, Joe Paterno had no other course of action than to relay this second hand report to his superior.

A critic said that Joe Paterno broke the law by not calling the police! As I see it, Mr. Paterno was not a witness, and was only provided with second hand information; hearsay, which may or may not have been accurate. In reality the original observer should have called the police.


It is not Paterno that "turned a blind eye" to sexual abuse allegations; Paterno is a sports coach! I wouldn't expect his job description to include police investigative duties! This is no way to treat a man that has done so much for Penn State! Yes, Joe Paterno is indeed guilty of something! Yes he is absolutely guilty, of not retiring sooner. Joe Paterno currently stands proud with the world on his side; that includes me!


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Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Fifth Precinct Newsletter

November 2, 2011


The following information should be of interest to those who have a stake in the Holtsville Community in general and the Seneca Middle School in particular:


•The Fifth Precinct has received two reports of a suspicious red colored Jeep approaching middle school students at school bus stops. This vehicle was observed by an area resident in the vicinity of Avenue E and Furrows Road as recently as between 9:00 AM and 9:30 AM on November 1, 2011. The driver is described as a middle aged, possibly Hispanic male. Fifth Precinct officers are conducting an investigation.


Aristides Mojica, Inspector


Commanding Officer, Fifth Precinct

********
Reminder:

The next Fifth Precinct open community meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 9, 2011 at 7:00 PM at the Fifth Precinct, 125 Waverly Avenue , Patchogue , NY .

The source of the following information is the October/November Suffolk County Police Department Newsletter:

Holiday Shopping:

With the holiday shopping season approaching, we remind you to remain aware of the potential for identity theft. Although most identity theft is committed through traditional means such as mail theft and lost or stolen wallets or purses, the increased use of credit and debit cards during the holiday shopping season can increase the risk of your personal information falling into the wrong hands.

When holiday shopping:

Minimize the impact of a lost or stolen wallet or purse by carrying only the identification and credit cards you need - leave your Social Security card and checkbook at home.

Do not leave purses, wallets or important personal information in the glove compartment of unattended cars.

Do not leave purses or handbags unattended in shopping carts.

While applying for instant credit at stores, be vigilant of the fact that a thief may be “shoulder surfing” (watching and listening) as you provide personal information to obtain the credit. This technique has been made easier by the pervasive availability of cell phone cameras.

When Internet shopping:

Consider transactions only with companies you know. Do not provide personal information, especially your Social Security number, unless you trust the person you are giving it to.

Look for the “lock” security symbol on your Internet browser page and look for “https” in the website address.

Consider using credit cards instead of debit cards for online purchases as credit card companies typically offer better fraud protection

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Tuesday, November 01, 2011

A Profound Message

Someone from our group, sent this link to me via Email; I immediately considered this quote, and its analysis by Dr Aletta, as profound and decided to share it with you.

“Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self-esteem, first make sure that you are not, in fact, just surrounded by a&&h&&&s (Expletive Deleted).” ~
William Gibson


Please read the analysis by
Doctor Aletta!
(Left click the link below)


http://explorewhatsnext.com/am-i-depressed-or-surrounded-by-holes/

Also see
http://sachem.patch.com/blog_posts/bullying-in-our-schools

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