News That Matters » Brewster

News That Matters – Friday, April 22, 2011 – Things To Do Edition

Jeff Green — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 12:36:23 +0000

“What they say and what they say are not the same thing.”

Good Friday Morning,

It was 26.4F this morning. Whose idea was that?

The United States is the 12th Happiest Country on earth. Sadly, we’re bested by 11 nations, 10 of which have national health care systems and who, due to the aforementioned, get to be happier longer as their life expectancie surpasses ours. Those 10 bastions of repressive socialist, anti-capitalist, jackbooted thug governments are, Denmark, Sweden, Canada, Australia, Finland, Venezuela, Israel, New Zealand, Netherlands, Ireland and Panama. Be lucky you don’t live in Chad as it’s the least happiest place.

For those of you who have been to the Annual Garden Parties you know my living environment here at the Asylum. I’m looking to replace it for another at a different location in or around the county. If you know of a cottage or small house like this one on open lands for rent or squatting, let me know.

Now some news:

I Will Not Pander!

Groups are stepping up to the battle of getting New York State to pass a marriage equality bill this year. One failed the New York State Senate two years ago 38-24 with Senator Leibell voting with the majority against the bill. One result was that a faux news article I wrote about the Senator has become one of the most read pages at our website (See: Leibell to Outlaw Divorce in New York State.) so I have to thank him for that.

This year the Log Cabin Republicans (whose motto is: “You don’t have to bash us, we bash ourselves!”) have signed on to help and one of three targeted Senators this year is The Senator Who Shall Not Be Named.

On December 23, 2005 he had this to say about the matter of marriage equality:

“I will not pander to an extreme Liberal agenda by supporting “Extra” rights for gays in order to be politically correct, while avoiding larger criminal issues for the protection of all of our citizens… Furthermore, I do not believe that the homosexual lifestyle should be promoted as an acceptable alternative of living in our schools and classrooms.”

But now that he’s all grown up with his eyes on higher prizes, perhaps he’ll alter his view just a little bit. And if he does vote in favor of civil rights I will give him his name back, and that’s something.

Now, the ridiculous:

Senator John Kyle recently made a firebrand floor speech in which he said that 90% of Planned Parenthood’s business was to provide abortion services. The truth is that about 3% of PP’s business is. This was a lie intentionally made on the floor of the Congress of the United States, broadcast and believed by simpletons the world over and duly recorded in the Congressional Record.

Congress protects their own even when they make incorrect statements (read: lies) and so the Congressional Record, the minutes of meetings of the House and Senate was “altered” to reflect the truth, not his lie.

See, our representatives are allowed to “edit” their entries in the official record so that there is no thread of honesty at all in government. What they say and what they say are not the same thing.

The solution is obvious: record all Congressional meetings and transcribe them word for word into the record and that’s it. What they say is what gets posted to history. And if they made a mistake, they can retract it – on the record.

And, onto the sublime…

You Want Guns With That?

With all the noise coming from The Senator Who Shall Not Be Named and the NRA about threats to gun ownership you’d think that so few Americans own guns that any laws passed regarding them would make them suddenly disappear leaving the nation at the mercy of Fijian terrorists hell-bent on raping our dogs and kicking our women. (Or is that the other way around? Nevermind.)

In any case, as of 2007 there were 88 guns per 100 residents in the United States making us the most gun totin’, nation on earth by far. We own more than 1/3 of all guns manufactured in the world and we own more small arms than any military organization in the world: including our own. And considering that in Wyoming for example, in which nearly 58% of households have guns, there must be arsenals worth stashed away clear across the nation.

So I don’t get it. If those NRA guys were as upset about laws that interfere with personal rights in general such as the War On (some) Drugs or marriage laws and the like I’d get it. If they were concerned about Constitutional protections laid out in the 4th Amendment like search and seizure laws which have gotten so out of hand it’s like living in a totalitarian regime, I’d get it. If they cared with equal verve about personal privacy in general I’d still get it. But when there are 9 guns for every 10 residents of this country I can only think it’s really about their penises.

Coming Up!

The Putnam County Arts Council has announced several new classes taught by my friend, and Lake Carmel’s own, Michael Bereznak. Here are the details:

Beginner Guitar for Adults

In this 6 week long class you will learn how to play the guitar. All beginning principles will be covered in this program including tuning, basic chords, chord progressions, and strumming. You will learn simplified versions of songs and proper technique in an encouraging environment geared for quick results and success. Bring your guitar, a folder, a positive attitude, and a sense of adventure.
6 Tuesdays ~
May 10 – June 14
10:30 am – noon
$150/$145 PAC members

Beginning Songwriting for Adults

Are you a poet who’s handy with words? Do you have a desire to communicate your thoughts, feelings, ideas, and philosophies as lyrics in a song? In this class you will learn beginning songwriting techniques including consolidating and collecting your thoughts, expressing them on paper in an effective manner, song analysis, and songwriting trends. All you need is a notebook, a pen, and your creativity!!!
6 Fridays ~
May 13 – June 17
10:30 am – noon
$150/$145 PAC members

Beginning Music Theory

Have you ever wondered why your favorite song sounds so good? Have you always wanted to learn music theory but were intimidated by the lines, spaces, dots, and numbers? Have no fear! Beginning Music Theory is here! Here you will learn the principles of general music theory that apply to all instruments in a fun yet informative environment. By studying “how music works” you will enhance your enjoyment and skills in playing, composing and listening. All you need is a folder for papers, a pen, basic playing knowledge of an instrument, and an open mind. All ages and levels of experience are welcome.
6 Sundays ~
May 8 – June 19
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
$150/$145 PAC members

Hey! Yeah you! No one in the Valley has an events listing like PlanPutnam/News That Matters, so pass this on to people you know who are not regular readers. You’ll sleep better at night, it’ll clear up your acne, your dog will have fewer fleas and the fates will smile upon your every step.

What’s Going On?

Ed note: Several events listed below are from the Hudson River Watershed Alliance’s newsletter.

This Weekend:
Into The Future
May
June
July
- July 21 – 24
  - Gathering of the Vibes

This Weekend:

Friday April 22 – Earth Day

Orange County Land Trust Launches Buck for Conservation Campaign to Raise Funds for Open Space and Farmland Protection

On Earth Day, the Orange County Land Trust will launch a new fundraising campaign Buck for Conservation, to provide much needed funds for open space and farmland protection projects throughout Orange County. Beginning Friday, April 22 patrons at nine participating restaurants in Orange County will have the option of adding an extra dollar to their bill to support land conservation efforts and the protection of Orange County farmland. Participating restaurants are Loughran’s Restaurant and Irish Pub in Salisbury Mills, Catherine’s in Goshen, three Cosimo’s Restaurants in Middletown, Newburgh and Woodbury, John’s Harvest Inn in Middletown, Landmark Inn in Warwick, Nina’s in Middletown, and Taco Hombre in Warwick. For more information, and for volunteer opportunities and ways of giving to the Orange County Land Trust, visit www.oclt.org or call (845) 343-0840. Become a fan of the Orange County Land Trust on Facebook and receive current news and events. Visit www.oclt.org for a list of participating Buck for Conservation restaurants with links to their menus and special offerings.

An Earth Day Celebration to Benefit Clearwater

We’re excited to announce Clearwater Generations: An Earth Day Celebration to Benefit Clearwater, which will be held at the Tarrytown Music Hall in Tarrytown, NY, on April 22 at 8pm.

The show will feature Pete Seeger & Tao Seeger, Peter Yarrow & Bethany Yarrow, Bernice Johnson Reagon & Toshi Reagon, and David Amram and Family. Performances by Clearwater friends and special guests including Janis Ian, Tom Paxton, Tom Chapin, Livingston Taylor, Jay Ungar & Molly Mason, Guy Davis, Rufus Cappadocia and the Power of Song, will round out this special celebration.

Clearwater’s environmental mission is about inspiring and educating the next generation, and we have applied this theme to music. Honoring tradition while looking toward the future has always been a major part of the Clearwater Festival. The Generations concert is all about classic Clearwater artists performing with and inspiring their children and grandchildren in order to carry on their legacy through song.

Tickets for the Clearwater Generations: An Earth Day Celebration concert range from $48 to $98. A limited amount of $250 tickets include premium seating, a post concert reception with the artists, as well as special Clearwater gifts. Proceeds from the concert will benefit Hudson River Sloop Clearwater

Saturday, April 23

Brewster Roadside Cleanup

7:30AM – 1PM The Village of Brewster and Town of Southeast are sponsoring a Roadside Cleanup and Litter Removal Day. More information here (PDF)

Maggie Seligman and Martin Aronchick

3:30-5:30pm (approximate times) – At Borders Books, 162 East Main Street, Mount Kisco, NY 10549 Call 914-241-8387 for more information.

An Evening with Jazz Great John Abercrombie

7:30PM – Over a career spanning more than 40 years and nearly 50 albums, John Abercrombie has established himself as one the masters of jazz guitar. Favoring unusual sounds (he played electronic mandolin on McCoy Tyner’s 1993 album 4×4) and nontraditional ensembles (recent quartet recordings have included violinist Mark Feldman). Abercrombie is a restless experimenter, working firmly in the jazz tradition while pushing the boundaries of meter and harmony.” At the BeanRunner Cafe, 201 S Division St, Peekskill, NY. Admission $10.

Bard on the Lake

8PM – The Bard comes to the shores of Lake Carmel in a Shakespeare Slam that has fortuitously become an annual event. Curated by NYC acting coach Roger Hendricks Simon and produced by Blue Horse Repertory, the cast of 30 actors, professional and students alike, work effortlessly through more than a dozen of the Bard’s plays. Scenes from Hamlet, As You Like It, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Othello, The Merchant of Venice, Julius Caesar, Romeo and Juliet and more, are woven into a neat, seamless fabric highlighting the best of the Bard and the best talents of the cast. Incredible performances by Ralph Cashen, Daniel Simon and Lora Lee Ecobelli are just a few of the standouts coming for this evening. With a brief ten-minute intermission the 90 minute performance will fly by.
This is not your textbook Shakespeare, this is something you need to see to believe that the guy had guts. People will fall in love, people will be murdered, some will be enchanted while others will break your heart. I’m telling you: if you don’t like Shakespeare this show is for you. Admission: $15.

Click here for more information and tickets.

Sunday, April 24

Easter Sunday

Into The Future

Wednesday, April 27

Putnam Business Expo

10AM – 5PM When the people who should be going to the Expo are working, so they can’t. At the Villa Barrone, where else? The Greater Mahopac-Carmel Chamber of Commerce, 953 South Lake Blvd. Mahopac, New York 10541 or call (845) 628-5553 for more information.

Thursday, April 28

Bill McKibben: The Building Movement to Tackle Climate Change

2:30PM – Join us for a special lecture by author, educator, environmentalist, and 350.org founder Bill McKibben. McKibben has been instrumental in raising awareness about global climate change. His essays have been featured in Harper’s, Orion, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times. Through 350.org McKibben helped organize a global climate change rally of unprecedented proportions, with over 5,000 demo…nstrations in 181 countries. He will discuss how people around the world – many in the poorest parts of the planet – are working to address global warming. He will also talk about how people close to home can play part in the political and practical work necessary to make a real difference. Location: Cary Institute Auditorium, located at 2801 Sharon Turnpike (Route 44) in Millbrook, New York.

Friday, April 29

Trees for Tribs: Arbor Day Celebration

9AM – 4PM Looking for a way to celebrate Arbor Day this year? Come and join the Hudson River Estuary Program as we pot-up thousands of bareroot seedlings for our “Trees for Tribs” initiative. There will be free pizza at noon. If you have any questions or you’d like to R.S.V.P., contact Laura Heil at ljheil@gw.dec.state.ny.us or 845-256-2253. Location: Hudson River Estuary Program NYSDEC Region III office in New Paltz

Vance Gilbert With Heather Maloney at the Towne Crier

8:30PM – It’s all in one seemingly impossible package: Vance Gilbert’s spellbinding live show; his deliriously virtuosic singing; his accomplished guitar style; his outrageous, edgy humor; AND the songwriting. Shawn Colvin invited Vance to be a special guest on her Fat City tour, and Vance took audiences by storm across the country: “With the voice of an angel, the wit of a devil, and the guitar playing of a god, it was enough to earn him that rarity: an encore for an opener” wrote the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in its review of a show from that tour. With one of the sharpest wits in folk music, Vance is one of the most entertaining singer-songwriters you’ll ever see. But, he can deftly change the mood of a show in an instant with a sincere delivery of one of his deep-flowing songs. So, don’t be surprised if your tears of laughter mix with tears of sorrow in a satisfying blend of yin and yang. $20 advance/ $25 door Click here for more information.

Saturday, April 30

Trees for Tribs: Arbor Day Celebration Continues

9AM – 4PM Looking for a way to celebrate Arbor Day this year? Come and join the Hudson River Estuary Program as we pot-up thousands of bareroot seedlings for our “Trees for Tribs” initiative. There will be free pizza at noon. If you have any questions or you’d like to R.S.V.P., contact Laura Heil at ljheil@gw.dec.state.ny.us or 845-256-2253. Location: Hudson River Estuary Program NYSDEC Region III office in New Paltz

Trail Maintenance with the Putnam County Land Trust

10AM – 2PM – Looking to volunteer and enjoy the great outdoors? Then join PCLT for a trail maintenance work party at our 33 acre Twin Hill Preserve. This work party will consist of trail maintenance tasks including erosion control, cutting back overgrowth encroaching on the trail system, removing debris and downed trees, weed-whacking grassy areas of the trails, invasive species removal and replacing trail markers. No experience in necessary, just bring an eagerness to work outdoors, a pair of gloves, proper footwear and water.

PCLT’s Twin Hill Preserve is located 1.1 miles north of the intersection of Route 312 and Farm-to-Market Road on the Brewster/Patterson border. Look for the newly-erected preserve sign at the entrance to a small dirt road on the west side of Farm-to-Market. Drive a short distance down the dirt road and the parking area for the preserve is on the left where the dirt road curves to the right. If you would like to join us, pleasevisit www.pclt.net or email info@pclt.net.

Meet at the Twin Hill Preserve on Farm-to-Market Road in Patterson about 1 mile north of Route 312

Gallery Talk: Anthony Huberman on Franz Erhard Walther

2PM – Dia:Beacon, Riggio Galleries, 3 Beekman Street, Beacon, NY 12508 845 440 0100 www.diaart.org

Free with museum admission. For reservations, click here.

Anthony Huberman is a curator and writer based in New York. As Chief Curator of the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, he organized exhibitions with Gedi Sibony, Lutz Bacher, Bruce Nauman, John Armleder, and Olivier Mosset, and initiated The Front Room, an ongoing series with young artists. He has worked as a curator at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris and at Sculpture Center in New York, and is currently a Visiting Professor at Hunter College.

May

Sunday, May 1

Hike to Hawk Rock

11AM – On Sunday, May 1, 2011 at 11:00 AM we’ll meet at the DEP parking area at the end of Whangtown Road. If you’re not sure where it is, you can use this map to get driving directions to the parking area and preview the hike.

If you haven’t been to Hawk Rock, you’re in for a treat. When the glaciers retreated northward at the end of the last ice age, they were carrying some really big rocks that sometimes ended up in odd positions when the ice melted. One of these so called “erratics” is Hawk Rock. Local lore has it that long ago the Native Americans named it and used the site as a meeting place. It is certainly a believable story; the setting is beautiful and it’s one impressive rock.

The Mead Farm, like the rest of this hike, is on land that was originally part of the hunting grounds for the Nochpeem tribe of native Americans, a part of the Wappinger Confederacy. After passing through various people’s hands, sometime in the 1860s Moses F. Mead purchased the eastern part of the farm where the ruins are today. The site includes a number of interesting features, including the foundations of the house, the stone portions of a cow barn and a beautiful corbelled stone chamber.

This is a moderate hike that takes about three hours including stops for lunch and to look around the farm site. If weather forces us to cancel the hike, we’ll let everyone who subscribes to our hikes list know by e-mail and post the news on kentcac.info at least an hour ahead of time. For further information feel free to contact David.

Tuesday, May 3

Marylin Elie (IPSEC) on Indian Point

7PM – A meeting with Marilyn Elie of the Indian Point Safe Energy Commission (IPSEC), to discuss what residents can do about stopping the relicensing of Indian Point. We will talk about what the disaster in Fukushima teaches us and how those lessons apply to Indian Point. Location: Meeting Room, Desmond-Fish Library, 472 Route 403 (200 ft East of Rt 9D), Garrison. This event is sponsored by Philipstown for Democracy. No charge, but contributions to cover expenses are appreciated. Questions – call 917 273-0808

Friday, May 6

The Singing Life of Birds

7PM – Bird song expert Donald Kroodsma will describe how birds communicate and why. Listen to the sounds of birds as you’ve never listened before, using their songs as a window into their minds. Location: Cary Institute’s auditorium, located at 2801 Sharon Turnpike (Route 44) in Millbrook, New York.

Saturday, May 7

Birding 101

9AM – Join the Oblong Land Conservancy and Larry Feldmen from the NY Audubon for a guided walk through prime bird habitat, including an upland cedar grove and the Great Swamp floodplain. Meet at the Slocum Mostachetti Preserve, 7/10′s miles to the west of the traffic light at the intersection of Route 22 and Pleasant Ridge Road in Wingdale. Click here for more information.

Open Auditions for New One-Act Plays

11AM – 2PM – Drawing from the talent at Tony Howarth’s Playwright’s Workshop, the director is seeking 15 actors to help realize several new one-act plays. The roles are as follows:

Mending Fences:
Samantha – 30-45
Will – 50-65

Never Too Many:
Alice – 30-40
Saul – 65+

A Cable Situation:
(Brad) (an unseen voice)
Sheila – 20-50

Blackout:
Julie – college age
Wallace – college age
Sarah – college age

Dirty Laundry: Jim – 20-30
Karen – 20-30

Late for Her Own Funeral
Joanne – 30
Dad – 60
Jeff – 30
Lou – 50

Bring a Resume to the Cultural Center on Lake Carmel, Route 52 in Kent. (It’s the old firehouse just south of the Route 311 causeway.)

Tuesday, May 10

Rain Barrel Building Workshop

7PM – Lakeside Park in Pawling. Sponsored by the Dutchess Watershed and Cornell Cooperative Extension Services.

Although we don’t often think about it, storm water can play an enormous part in the condition of our rivers, creeks, ponds, lakes, and wetlands. When it rains, this water is usually channeled into storm drains to be taken to the closest body of water. As storm water travels across the grounds’ surface as runoff, it can pick up different types of pollutants, washing them into our water bodies. You can help! Rain barrels are a great option to better manage excess storm water from your roof. The water is captured before it picks up pollutants, and it is safe to use for watering plants. A rain barrel can save gardeners up to 1,300 gallons of water during the peak summer months!

This workshop will help you learn to better manage storm water AND will help you build your own 55 gallon rain barrel to take home. Cost: $45 per person, includes cost of rain barrel. To Register: contact Angela Sullivan, 677-8223 x 114

Friday, May 13

The Last Mountain

7PM – Join us for an advanced screening of this documentary film exploring how mountaintop coal mining impacts the environment and human health. An Official Selection at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Location: Cary Institute’s auditorium, located at 2801 Sharon Turnpike (Route 44) in Millbrook, New York.

In the valleys of Appalachia, a battle is being fought over a mountain. It is a battle with severe consequences that affect every American, regardless of their social status, economic background or where they live. It is a battle that has taken many lives and continues to do so the longer it is waged. It is a battle over protecting our health and environment from the destructive power of Big Coal.

The mining and burning of coal is at the epicenter of America’s struggle to balance its energy needs with environmental concerns. Nowhere is that concern greater than in Coal River Valley, West Virginia, where a small but passionate group of ordinary citizens are trying to stop Big Coal corporations, like Massey Energy, from continuing the devastating practice of Mountain Top Removal.

David, himself, never faced a Goliath like Big Coal.

Saturday, May 14

Hiking the Road to Ruins

5PM – 7PM – Join us for a presentation with David Steinberg, author of Hiking the Road to Ruins. Steinberg will discuss twenty-two day hikes (and sometimes campouts) to old iron mines, deserted buildings, historic military leftovers and other things abandoned and available for visit by intrepid hikers. Many of the ruins are located right here in our backyard.

David Steinberg is is a life-long resident of the New York City area and has been a paid leader of hikes for fifteen years. From 1985 to 1996, he was a staff photographer and photo-feature writer for The Queens Courier, a weekly newspaper.

This event is free and open to the public. To RSVP, call the museum, 845-265-4010 or email, office@pchs-fsm.org.

Putnam County Historical Society & Foundry School Museum

63 Chestut Street

Cold Spring, NY 10516

Carmina Burana

8PM at Brewster High School. The Putnam Chorale performs CARMINA BURANA – One Performance Only – with full orchestra and accompanied by the Brewster High School Chamber Singers and the Seven Star Dancers, on MAY 14, 2011 8 pm at the Brewster High School Performing Arts Center, 50 Foggintown Road, Brewster, NY. Get more information at our web site (www.putnamchorale.org) or by calling 845-279-7265.

A collection of historic medieval songs and poems was discovered in the year 1803 at an abandoned monastery in Bavaria. This collection was found to be satirical works that had been performed by traveling goliards, disaffected clergy and clerical students, who used the works to lighten the burden of everyday life and to poke fun at the authorities of the day. In a way, the Saturday Night Live of its time!

The works make fun of church excesses and follies and mock the changing morals of the times. There are love songs and songs for drinking and gambling that celebrate Epicurus, the ancient Greek Philosopher and advocate of the blissful life. The stories are provocative and often disrespectful, but offer a common man perspective and a chance at some frivolity.

Sunday, May 15

Riverkeeper’s Annual Shad Fest

For over 20 years, Riverkeeper’s Shad Fest has been a celebration of the vast numbers of American shad that returned each year to the Hudson River to spawn. The shad run has been a welcome sign of spring, rebirth and renewal for thousands of years, since the Lenape Indians populated the Hudson’s shores. Sadly, the shad population has declined in recent years to dangerously low levels and the focus of this year’s event is on saving the American Shad and other Hudson River signature fish which are similarly at risk. Shad Fest started off as a backyard barbeque held at Bobby Kennedy Jr.’s house, and has grown every year. To be held at Boscobel House and Gardens, Route 9D in Cold Spring. Click here for more information and tickets.

Garnet Rodgers with Shawn Taylor at the Towne Crier

7:30PM – Garnet Rogers has established himself as “One of the major talents of our time.” Hailed by the Boston Globe as a “charismatic performer and singer,” Garnet is a man with a powerful physical presence –close to six and a half feet tall– with a voice to match. With his “smooth, dark baritone” (Washington Post) his incredible range, and thoughtful, dramatic phrasing, Garnet is widely considered by fans and critics alike to be one of the finest singers anywhere. His music –like the man himself– is literate, passionate, highly sensitive, and deeply purposeful. Cinematic in detail, his songs “give expression to the unspoken vocabulary of the heart” (Kitchener Waterloo Record). An optimist at heart, Garnet sings extraordinary songs about people who are not obvious heroes and of the small victories of the everyday. As memorable as his songs, his over-the-top humour and lightning-quick wit moves his audience from tears to laughter and back again. $17.50 advance/ $22.50 door. Click here for more information.

Monday, May 16

The Buddha’s 2600th Birthday Celebration

Globally – In the year 624 BC, in Kapilawaththu (Nepal) Siddhartha Gautama was born as a prince. His father was King Suddhodana and his mother was Queen Mahamaya. When he was sixteen he finished his education and he married Princess Yasodara. King Suddhodana handed over his kingdom to his son Siddhartha. They had a baby name Rahula. When king Siddhartha was 29 years old he decided to renounce lay life. Siddhartha left from his kingdom and went to several well-known teachers to study the ultimate nature of reality. But their teachings didn’t satisfy him and he set out to find his own path. Six years later he went to Bodgaya near the Neranjana River and sat under a tree.

Siddhartha’s mind was calm and relaxed. As he sat his concentration deepened and his wisdom grew brighter. In this clear and peaceful state of mind he began to examine the true nature of life. “What is the cause of suffering,” he asked himself, “and what is the path to everlasting joy?” In his mind’s eye he looked far beyond his own country, far beyond his own world. Soon the sun, planets, the stars out in space and distant galaxies of the universe all appeared to him in his meditation. He saw how everything, from the smallest speck of dust to the largest star was linked together in a constantly changing pattern: growing, decaying and growing again. Everything was related. Nothing happened without a cause and every cause had an effect on everything else.

With much equanimous joy, we would like to announce the program to commemorate the 2600th anniversary of the Buddha’s Enlightenment at the United Nations in New York.

Visit e2600.org for more information.

June

Saturday, June 4

NY/NJ Trails Conference Annual Meeting

Bear Mountain State Park: On June 4, the Trail Conference will open a wheelchair accessible section of the Appalachian Trail on the summit of Bear Mountain. For the past year, Trail Conference volunteers have been hard at work building this ADA-compliant segment of this historic and nationally celebrated long-distance trail. The trail will allow wheelchair users to enter the woods and view the Hudson River and Valley from one of the region’s most scenic spots.At 10:30 AM, we will open and dedicate the trail. Later in the day, the Trail Conference will have its Summer Meeting on the lawn below Bear Mountain. There will be food and music by the acclaimed urban bluegrass group, Two Dollar Goat.

The event is co-sponsored by Disney/ABC and the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Places. Members of the Disney team will be on hand to help.

What’s Happening When

8:00: Departure of early hike to summit of Bear Mountain from Fort Montgomery Historic Site (co-sponsored by Mid-Hudson ADK)

10:00: Morning refreshments at Trailhead of the ADA-compliant segment of the Appalachian Trail at summit of Bear Mountain

10:30: Opening ceremony and Dedication

10:45: Hike or drive down to Lawn (Options from easy to strenuous available)

12:00-varied: Lunch on the Lawn with Music by Two Dollar Goat.
Hikers arrive from a variety of trails, eat, enjoy music.

Rain or shine under tent!

1:30 (estimated): Meeting

All programs are free! Lunch: $15 donation. RSVP for lunch by sending a check or going to our donation page. Please indicate your RSVP in the comment box.

Questions, comments, or phone reservations, contact Joanne Reinhardt at jreinhardt@nynjtc.org or x26 at the office

Rain Barrel Building Workshop

10AM – Fishkill Town Hall. Sponsored by the Dutchess Watershed and Cornell Cooperative Extension Services.

Although we don’t often think about it, storm water can play an enormous part in the condition of our rivers, creeks, ponds, lakes, and wetlands. When it rains, this water is usually channeled into storm drains to be taken to the closest body of water. As storm water travels across the grounds’ surface as runoff, it can pick up different types of pollutants, washing them into our water bodies. You can help! Rain barrels are a great option to better manage excess storm water from your roof. The water is captured before it picks up pollutants, and it is safe to use for watering plants. A rain barrel can save gardeners up to 1,300 gallons of water during the peak summer months!

This workshop will help you learn to better manage storm water AND will help you build your own 55 gallon rain barrel to take home. Cost: $45 per person, includes cost of rain barrel. To Register: contact Angela Sullivan, 677-8223 x 114

Friday, June 10

Six New One-Act Plays

8PM – Six new one-act plays from Tony Howarth’s Playwright’s Workshop. Plays by Pat O’Connor, Gabby Fox and Carol Mark, directed by Tony Howarth. At the Cultural Center on Lake Carmel, Route 52 just south of the Route 311 Causeway.

Saturday, June 11

Six New One-Act Plays

8PM – Six new one-act plays from Tony Howarth’s Playwright’s Workshop. Plays by Pat O’Connor, Gabby Fox and Carol Mark, directed by Tony Howarth. At the Cultural Center on Lake Carmel, Route 52 just south of the Route 311 Causeway.

Saturday, June 18

Clearwater Revival

Croton Point Park – Pete Seeger star Drive-By Truckers star Martin Sexton star Indigo Girls, Arlo Guthrie star Josh Ritter star Jorma Kaukonen star Peter Yarrow, John Sebastian star Janis Ian star The Low Anthem, Red Horse (Lucy Kaplansky, John Gorka & Eliza Gilkyson) star The Klezmatics, Toubab Krewe star Justin Townes Earle star Chris, Smither star Joanne Shenandoah, Tom Chapin star Bernice Johnson Reagon star Dan Zanes & Elizabeth Mitchell, James McMurtry | Jay Ungar & Molly Mason | Jeffrey Broussard & The Creole Cowboys, Tao Seeger Band | Toshi Reagon & Big Lovely | Mike & Ruthy | Sarah Lee & Johnny, Bethany & Rufus’ Roots Quartet | Clayfoot Strutters | Zlatne Uste | Joe Purdy, The Nields | The Kennedys | Jen Chapin | K.J. Denhert | Zon del Barrio, Vanaver Caravan| Buskin & Batteau | Dave Douglas & Brass Ecstasy, Brooklyn Qawwali Party | Joe D’urso | Joel Plaskett, Arm-of-the-Sea Theater star The Power of Song star The Rivertown Kids, Mustard’s Retreat star Magpie star Roger the Jester star Dog on Fleas, Walkabout Clearwater Chorus star Paul Richmond star The Storycrafters, Rick Nestler star Donna Nestler star Travis Jeffrey star Margo Thunderbird, Marva Clark star Linda Richards star Eshu Bumpus star Dan Einbender, Dirty Stay Out Skifflers star Geoff Kaufman star Sarah Underhill star Peninnah Schram, Kay Olan/Ionataiewas star Mel & Vinnie star Karen Pillsworth star Gregorio Pedroza , Allan Aunapu star Jan Christensen star The New York Packet star Matt Turk star Hope Machine

July

July 21 – 24

Gathering of the Vibes

Seaside Park, Bridgeport, CT – Gathering of the Vibes, the Northeast’s acclaimed music festival destination, will “bring the magic” once again with a 4-day extravaganza of eclectic music, arts and community, July 21-24, 2011 at Connecticut’s magnificent Seaside Park. The rumor mill is swirling with artist announcements around the corner. Gathering of the Vibes promises its most spectacular and diverse lineup to date, delivering over 40 hours of music on multiple stages. Powerhouse Vibes alumni include: The Allman Brothers, Crosby Stills & Nash, Furthur with Phil Lesh & Bob Weir, James Brown, The Black Crowes, and Damian Marley and Nas, alongside breakout acts like Umphrey’s McGee, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Jackie Greene, and tri-state favorites The McLovins. The Vibes also warmly embraces new, virtually unknown artists, who may submit music for consideration through sonic bids.

News That Matters – Monday, March 28, 2011

Jeff Green — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 13:03:58 +0000

Good Monday Morning,

Geraldine Ferraro, the first woman to run for the Executive branch, died the other day at 75 years of age.

Contractor Scams:

The Dutchess County Sheriff’s office is warning residents that now spring is upon us home contractor scams are once again taking advantage of the elderly and other unsuspecting residents who are looking to make repairs to their homes after this past winter.

Here in Putnam County you have an option: you can be scammed by unscrupulous contractors or you can call Jeff Green at Taconicarts (845) 554-5119 and not only not get scammed but help support the local economy as well.

Taconicarts, being News That Matters’ most generous supporter, deserves your attention and business. Call/write today for an estimate. You’ll be happy you did.

Plug it in.

You can hate the Israeli’s all you want, but any good progressive should be looking toward that dot of multi-cultural democracy in the Middle East with some pride and wonder. An Israeli company called, “Better Place” produces electric cars with a range of 185 kilometers and has begun installing thousands of plug-in charging stations that will be in place by the end of 2011. Twenty-Seven Israeli cities will host these stations and 350 Israeli companies are signed on to use their vehicles once production ramps up.

Term Limits:

There’s discussion out there about term limits and laws about them. I oppose these things for one simple reason:

You are the ultimate arbiter of who sits in office and who does not. If you are not willing to do the work required to get someone else elected then you get the government you deserve. And if you continue to vote the same guys in over and again and they still fail you, then you can probably get disability for your brain tumor.

Why would anyone support a law that rewards lazy citizenship?

Brewsterico:

Mike Risinit writes in the Journal News that the majority of Brewster’s residents are now of Hispanic origin. But to show reason why Putnam County has the reputation it has of being a bit of a racist, bigoted place all we need do is look at the “comments” after the article like these:

SeniorVoice6:48 AM on March 28, 2011

They illegally enter our country … fly their foreign country’s flag yet are allowed to vote … work for cash as day labors and pay zero income tax … receive welfare, food stamps and Social Security benefits .. untouchable by the INS and police .. flood our schools with “anchor children” … and now the Journal News and the politicians portray them as a new part of “our” society and refer to them as undocumented citizens !
BALONEY !

Or this:

nyrox6:48 AM on March 28, 2011

Brewster can be cleaned up in less than a year. Start with the traitor landlords renting to these illegals and confiscate the houses

Or this:

sailingaway15:15 AM on March 28, 2011

BREWSTERICO.. THE NEW SLUM OF PUTNAM COUNTY!!! …and guys, the people in power let it happen and its never going away!!!

Police Budgets – A place to start cutting:

A call to police in Phoenix, Arizona over cock fighting led to a SWAT team and a tank (yes, a tank!) causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to a house and 115 chickens were “euthanized” by Sheriff’s deputies. It turns out the local PD had been working with a TV show called “Lawman” hosted by Steven Segal and this was all for his benefit. It seems to me there’s a few hundred thousand dollars worth of budget cuts right there. If not to quell massive insurrection, what are police departments doing with tanks? At least the one Putnam County has is safely parked behind a fence to prevent it from escaping.

Cut Once:

In order to generate income for the state which would amount to a one-time cash infusion of $100,000, Republicans in Minnesota are proposing the logging of their state parks. Rep Denny McNamara who is Chairman of the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Policy Finance Committee said, “This just can’t be about economics, absolutely not, but we can’t not pay attention to economics, either.” I’m willing to bet if the state just shortened the names of their committees they could save millions in printing costs alone.

Investing in Solar:

Where are US investors putting their money into solar energy projects? In India. The Indian government, desiring to grow their economy without reliance on fossil fuels of which they have precious little, have created an investment environment that is drawing attention from around the world, especially the United States. There’s $294 million worth of wrong with that but telling the US Congress is impossible. So long as Texas is part of the United States we’ll die under a smog-filled haze before we get smart.

Where’s Nan? Corporate Tax Dodging.

Last week I wrote about how Congresswoman Nan Hayworth took the side of corporate America when faced with the question of what she would do about major corporations that paid no income taxes. It seems that companies like GE, who earned $14.2 billion last year with $5.1 billion of that coming from US earnings, paid $0 in taxes. And who did Barack Obama select to head his Council on Jobs and Competitiveness? GE’s Chief Executive Jeffrey Immelt. It’s better than a fox in a hen house. And you know, now that Congress *and* the President are both in lock-step (or is that goose-step?) with the Corporations it’s only going to get worse.

Teaching Fairy Tales – On Your Dime:

According to an article in Mother Jones, during 2010-2011 seven states have proposed legislation that would require the teaching of creationism in school classrooms alongside actual science. Which states? Texas, Kentucky, (Died in Committee) Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma, (Died in Committee) New Mexico (Died in Committee) and Missouri. With all those deaths, watch for the resurrection.

WESPAC and other, similar, organizations in the United States are still involved in a boycott of all things Israeli to protest that nation’s “Apartheid” regime. (With no mention of why 800,000 Jews were exiled from Arab nations which, I’m guessing, doesn’t fit the playbill for their anti-Semitism.) Anyway, here’s a placid response:

And now, The News:

Dozens Protest Ball’s Stance on Millionaire’s Tax
Watershed group gets $450,000 in funding
DEC Urges Green Solutions For Storm Water Runoff
Brewster’s Hispanic influences evident on Main Street
Green Roofs are Changing Architecture and Planning
Sen. Johnson’s reaction to General Electric paying no taxes: Cut the corporate tax rate

Dozens Protest Ball’s Stance on Millionaire’s Tax

by Katherine Pacchiana For AOL/Patch March 27, 2011

Parents, teachers and community activists say extending the tax on the state’s top earners would save schools from massive budget cuts.

A lively crowd of four dozen parents, teachers and community activists from as far away as Albany showed up Friday afternoon at the Brewster office1 of state Sen. Greg Ball (R, C – Patterson) to protest his stance on the so-called “millionarie’s tax.”

The millionaire’s tax, which places an additional income tax surcharge on New Yorkers with personal earnings over $200,00 year, is set to expire as early as April 1. Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to let the tax expire and Ball supports the governor’s position.

Watershed group gets $450,000 in funding

POUGHKEEPSIE – The Hudson River Watershed Alliance has been awarded a $200,000 grant over four years from the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission on behalf of the Hudson River Estuary Program. The grant is matched by over $250,000 in funds and volunteer time from partner organizations.

Watershed Alliance Executive Director Barbara Kendall said her organization is aimed at providing watershed management goals.

“We are a citizen action program under the Open Space Institute and what we do is we provide technical assistance, outreach, education and support for watershed management organizations, other environmental groups, local governments, businesses, many different stakeholders in the Hudson River Valley and the focus is on tools for watershed management and protection of watershed resources,” she said.

DEC Urges Green Solutions For Storm Water Runoff

By Kevin Foley for Philipstown.info

Representatives from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) briefed Cold Spring’s Special Board for a Comprehensive Plan/Local Waterfront Revitalization Plan last week on the department’s green infrastructure initiatives and the importance of developing green alternatives to traditional methods of handling storm water runoff, particularly for Hudson River watershed communities. The meeting took place on March 24 at the Village Hall. Lacking a quorum to conduct other business, the four (of nine) Special Board members present— Chairman Michael Armstrong, Anne Impellizzeri, Marge Early and Karen Doyle—devoted the entire meeting to the DEC presentation and subsequent discussion.

Emily Vail, a watershed outreach specialist in the DEC’s Hudson River Estuary Program, explained that the program seeks to ensure clean water, protect and restore fish and wildlife habitats, provide recreation in and on the water, adapt to climate change, and conserve the scenic landscape. Created in 1987 and currently a partnership with the New York State Water Resources Institute of Cornell University, the program works with a variety of other state, federal, and local agencies, as well as with other public-private partnerships to achieve its goals, according to Vail. Storm water runoff from communities adjoining the Hudson has an enormous impact on the river’s cleanliness and the condition of wildlife habitats, said Vail. Water runoff can carry many types of polluting materials and chemicals such as heavy metals, pesticides, oil and grease, road salt, animal and human waste and other assorted trash into the river. She said the introduction of green or more natural solutions to managing storm water is an important component not only in protecting the river but also in aiding local flood prevention, slowing soil erosion and retaining storm water for reuse on lawns and gardens or for other purposes.

Brewster’s Hispanic influences evident on Main Street

By Mike Risinit for the NY Journal News

BREWSTER — Since around the midpoint of the Clinton administration, a visitor to Brewster’s Main Street could find a Mexican sweet roll almost as easily as they could get an egg on a roll.

So the fact the village, which started as a railroad depot in the mid-1800s, is now home to a majority of Hispanic residents didn’t surprise many who are part of life on that street. U.S. Census figures released last week showed Brewster had 2,390 residents in 2010, up from 2,162 in 2000, and 56 percent of them were of Hispanic.

“It’s news, but it’s not surprising because you can just stand on Main Street and see there’s a majority of Hispanics that traverse Main Street on a daily basis,” said Paul Carmona, a lawyer whose storefront office advertises his services in English and Spanish.

Green Roofs are Changing Architecture and Planning

Green roofs are not new; they have been used for thousands of years because they helped insulate, thrived in the sun instead of rotting, and other than the increased structure, they were cheap as, well, the dirt that they were planted in. Then flat roofs came in and were covered in tar and asphalt, which needed a lot of maintenance. Engineers and architects didn’t worry much about them; nobody could see them. Roofs became parking lots for equipment.

Sen. Johnson’s reaction to General Electric paying no taxes: Cut the corporate tax rate

March 27, 2011

The New York Times reported Friday that General Electric’s effective tax rate in 2010 was zero. Despite making $14.2 billion in profits, the company received $3.2 billion in tax benefits. GE is able to drive down its effective tax rate via “an aggressive strategy that mixes fierce lobbying for tax breaks and innovative accounting that enables it to concentrate its profits offshore.”

The fact that hugely profitable companies receive billions in benefits from taxpayers clearly makes the case for ending giveaways in the corporate tax code and cracking down on companies that use tax havens to shelter income overseas. However, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), when asked about GE’s zero percent tax rate today on CNBC, replied that the real problem is the U.S. corporate tax rate is too high:

We have to be concerned about what the business environment is in the U.S. here. We can’t afford to have the highest tax rate in the world…Those are individual companies. I think overall, we really can’t be looking at a corporate tax rate much higher than 25 percent because that’s the world average. So we’re sitting up there at 35 percent, that’s just the wrong signal.

News That Matters – Friday, December 3, 2010 – Things To Do Edition

Jeff Green — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 14:24:42 +0000

‘It’s hard for me to see the future at this moment but I think Jeff Green would do a fine job as County Executive in my place and I encourage you to support him.’

Good Friday Morning,

The weather report for the weekend is as typical of winter around these parts as one can get. Highs around 40 with lows in the mid-to-low 20s and mostly sunny. Trust me when I say that this is the time to take a hike in the woods. The leaves are down so you can see some distance through the trees, the rise and fall of the land, the rocky outcroppings that underlay our landscape, old foundations, ponds… the usually hidden base fabric of the Highlands.

A note of warning though: it’s still hunting season thus you either wear blaze orange and carry a police whistle or venture to discover our State Parks such as Wonder Lake in Kent/Patterson, Fahnestock in Kent/Philipstown and Putnam Valley, or Hudson Highlands State Park that runs the length of Philipstown from north to south. There’s also Donald Trump State Park at the very foot of Putnam Valley. These crisp, clear days allow good walking without too much sweat.

Wear layers. Tell someone where you’re going. Bring your camera and have some outdoors fun.

The End Of An Era

For those who have been in Iceland studying the interior of a volcano whose name no one can pronounce, it was reported in various sources yesterday that Senator Vincent Leibell is no longer a State Senator (as of today) and will not be taking office as County Executive come January 1st. That job will be held by whomever the County Legislature appoints. I’ll bet the “Democrats For Leibell” are a little red-faced this morning and if Greg Ball and Anthony Scannapieco are gloating right now, well, they kinda deserve it. What I want to know is if the Senator knew about this during the campaign. If so, there’s a real problem on top of everything else.

Anyway, I’ve volunteered for the position and though I did come in a solid third in that race I’m pretty sure they’ve got their eyes elsewhere. Off the top of my head I would hazard a guess between MEO or Sam Oliverio or Frank DelCampo, though Sam does have other full time obligations. And I’ll bet Bob Bondi, who is ‘consulting with his family’ is hoping for an extension and possibly even his sidekick, John Tully, is hoping for the appointment. My personal preference would be Dan Birmingham but I’m guessing that’s not in the offing. If they’d just give the job to Paul Camarda they could save everyone a lot time.

Vinnie is going down. Bill Hustis is going down. Bondi went down but now may be back. Charlie Williams went down. Everyone is going down but there are no happy endings. It sure is strange around here.

There’s been slight chatter about taking down road signs and “un”naming things that have the Senator’s name on them but I would use caution here: Like him or not, his political power and largesse has made much happen here that would not have happened without him and those signs are credits to his name and should remain as such. It would be foolish to erase that history as we do owe the guy the credit he deserves for the good things and the millions of pork dollars he’s brought to the county.

Petitioning Carmel

A group has begun an online petition directed at the Camarda Carmel Town Board to deny zoning changes that would permit developments such as Union Place. You can find that petition online here. The copy reads:

“We the undersigned residents of the Town of Carmel oppose any/and all zoning changes or variances requested by the applicant, related to “The Smart Growth Village” in the Town of Carmel, Putnam County, New York, referred to as “Union Place”; located on 300 acres of undeveloped land and which is comprised of a mix of uses including rental (180 units), market rate & senior housing (300 units), corporate, professional and retail space (total 1,043,600 sq ft nonresidential floor space). The project is a marked departure from the Carmel Comprehensive Plan, is zoning code non-compliant and presents a project that will eliminate the last piece of Mahopac’s historic and cultural past, named Mahopac Farm, and irrevocably change the face and landscape of the gateway to our community. “

Unemployment Benefits

Please don’t see this as partisan as it’s only a fact: If you’ve been downsized, laid off or otherwise not working and you and/or your family have been living on unemployment, thanks to Republicans in Congress your life is about to suck even worse than it does now.

Holding unemployment benefits hostage until Democrats agree to give multi-millionaires tax cuts, Republicans refuse to budge on the matter using you as pawns in their game. If you were un- or under-employed on election day and you voted for Nan Hayworth I’ll bet you’re feeling a bit like a Log Cabin Republican today. No, don’t bother writing them – they never write back.

Julian Assange

The wonderboy at Wikileaks is being sought out over an alleged rape charge in Sweden that we all thought had been killed the last time he released a bunch of information, that time about the war in Iraq and how we were doing such a fine job of dealing with the enemy and losing control of that country city by city, town by town.

In his latest foray he has caused a world-wide diplomatic embarrassment epidemic and those in power cannot abide by being told they just held a press conference with their fly’s open.

While the prospect of a car accident, small airplane crash or a fatal mugging are on the lips of embarrassed diplomats and heads of state everywhere, even US members of congress have called for his head – and his death. What amuses me most is that in one quick stroke he’s done more for freedom of information and transparent government than the ‘baggers have done in the last 18 months of their incessant campaign for… open and transparent government.

This guy should be winning awards and support from anyone who believes the workings of government should be open to all. After all, as I reported the other day, it’s become apparent that – for a change – the US comes out looking pretty good.

So what if we think Russia has become a mafia state? It’s true! and anyone will tell you so. So what if every Arab nation has encouraged the US to launch a military attack against Iran? And we learned that Iran was smuggling weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon – in Red Crescent ambulances. It’s true, no? So why the embarrassment?

If you’d like to see the full range of diplomatic cables released for yourself, and you should, visit this website which is active right now. This may change as the US Government has tried to suppress this information and does so on a daily basis. The harassment has gotten so out of hand that Senator Joe Lieberman, no friend of freedom, has introduced legislation that would make it illegal to release the name of any US intelligence source. The legislation being so broad that any journalist who reported on US diplomatic activities would come under the law thus shutting the door on truth.

Here’s an example: In a cable dated February 2009, from the Kuwaiti Interior Minister on how to deal with prisoners released from Guantanamo Bay:
Jaber told the Ambassador:  "You know better than I that we
cannot deal with these people (i.e. the GTMO detainees).  I
can't detain them.  If I take their passports, they will sue
to get them back (Note:  as happened with Al-Ajmi.  End
note.)  I can talk to you into next week about building a
rehabilitation center, but it won't happen.  We are not Saudi
Arabia; we cannot isolate these people in desert camps or
somewhere on an island.  We cannot compel them to stay.  If
they are rotten, they are rotten and the best thing to do is
get rid of them.  You picked them up in Afghanistan; you
should drop them off in Afghanistan, in the middle of the war
zone."
But Wikileaks has been cautious in that it has regularly redacted people’s (read: sources) names from the cables it’s been releasing this time around so the law makes no sense other than to pressure others.

Lastly, the rape charge. It’s clear – and it’s been clear – that Anna Ardin, the woman at the center of all this, has admitted that she’s been making the whole thing up, even to the point of deleting Tweet messages praising Julian just before she charged him. Why, then, one might ask, are European governments all in a rush to persecute Mr. Assange? That’s a silly question! Because they’re all standing around with their pants around their ankles looking as stunned as Senator Larry Craig caught in a gay porn video.

Christma-Hanu-Rama-Ka-Dona-Kwanzaa

A little holiday music from Roy Zimmerman: See the video here and yes, it’s more than safe for work.

What’s Going On?

Friday, December 3
Saturday, December 4
Sunday, December 5
Into The Future

Friday, December 3

Follow the Waters: Educational Workshop

10:00 AM – 3:30 PM You are invited to an educational workshop about laws and regulations related to water resources, designed to provide an introduction to the legal framework surrounding water in NY State. This workshop will provide an overview of selected Federal, state and local laws affecting water resources management. This information will be presented in the context of several case studies about local watersheds illustrating challenging water resources management and protection issues in the mid-Hudson region. It is designed for an audience of interested decision-makers and citizens who do not have formal legal training. The results of this workshop, including feedback from participants, will be used to guide future development of related educational programs and online resources. We will trace the flow of water through local watersheds to examine which laws and regulations apply at various points along the way. This project was made possible through financial support from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund. Space is limited. RSVP to Simon Gruber, sgruber100@verizon.net. There is no charge for this workshop. Location: New Windsor, New York

Sea2Sea Summit Winter Edition

6PM Bates Dining Room – Sarah Lawrence College – Performances, Open Mic at 7PM at the Black Squirrel. Saturday, December 4, workshops and performances beginning at 9:30AM and running all day. See http://sea2seasummit.wordpress.com/ for more information.

[Ed note: the website is impossible to read thanks to college students thinking they're cool. But, if you press CTRL-A on your keyboard the lettering and words will appear a little easier against the background.]

Greg Brown – Live at the Towne Crier

8:30PM at the Towne Crier in Pawling. It’s $40, $45 at the door assuming you can get in but I have to tell you, had I known Greg was going to be in town I would have sold the dog to get the do-re-mi for the tickets. Rarely does a performer grow so well and age so lightly as has Greg Brown. Formally best known as a frequent guest on “A Prairie Home Companion” as that show remained its sappy, stale self, Mr. Brown forayed off into a folks/blues style of performance that is a rare find. The last time Greg was in the area was in April of 2008 and here’s part of the review I wrote of that show:

At just around 9PM Greg took the stage. Yes, funky hat, red bandanna,
dark glasses, over sized pants, baggy jacket and all and from the moment
his fingers touched the guitar and the vibrations from his vocal chords
hit the electronics in the mic, the rest of the evening was magic. It
was a much better show than I had anticipated and as his set ran for
almost 2 hours, more than fulfilling.

“The blues are just bad people feeling good” – GB

For the next two hours it was story song after story song with a few
older melodies dropped in here and there but you had to pay attention
sometimes to recognize what they were for their recorded forms were
altered to a degree giving the impression that they too were in the
evening’s story song pattern. And the early folkie stuff? Now it’s all
blues. The aged standard “Good Morning Coffee”, his second number, was
interwoven with a story about waking his wife up one morning with a
fresh cup of coffee that kept us all laughing and wondering, is Iris
DeMent really that rapacious in the mornings? Pour warm water over the
beans so they don’t scald? She must be tough.

Sometimes it was hard to tell when his intro to a song ended and the
song itself began and all the while his blues guitar rang true. Brown
claims he doesn’t work from a set playlist, that it doesn’t work for him
and that all the patter was nothing but filler giving him time to decide
what to play next. True fans would have known from the way he tuned what
was coming next even, as I wrote before, if the folk was relegated to
history and the same songs reborn as the blues.

The rest can be found here.

Saturday, December 4

Santa in Peekskill

Noon – On the streets in downtown Peekskill. A Ferris Wheel for rides, a tree lighting and choral music at 4:30, Santa with live music and hot cocoa at 5:30 and the film, “It’s a Wonderful Life” at the Paramount at 8PM. See www.downtownpeekskill.com for more details.

Holiday On The Lake

Noon- 8:15PM – Carmel. Christmas stories at noon at the Reed Library, Caroling, face painting and more at Cornerstone park, at 3:30, a Christmas Concert at Drew Methodist at 5:15, parade through the Hamlet at 7PM and tree lighting at Lake Gleneida just after.

Lecture with Art Cohn

5PM Lecture with Art Cohn, the co-founder and Executive Director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. Join Putnam County Historical Society for a lecture with Art Cohn, the co-founder and Executive Director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum at Basin Harbor Vermont. Cohn’s talk will outline the significant chapters of the region’s history and illustrate what is currently known about the collection of shipwrecks in Lake Champlain and the just emerging story of shipwrecks in the Hudson River.

The Putnam County Historical Society & Foundry School Museum is located at 63 Chestnut Street in Cold Spring. Free for members and donors, and $5 for the general public. Space is limited; reservations are strongly suggested. Please call 845-265-4010 or email.

Brewster Tree Lighting and Holiday Concert

7:30PM – Holiday Concert at the United Methodist Church 83 Main Street, Brewster, NY following the tree lighting at 5PM at the Southeast Museum. Join the Putnam Chorale and a Brass Quintet in a musical celebration of the season. Carol singing for the audience. Child friendly and free. For information call 845 279-7500

Sunday, December 5

AMVETS Breakfast

9AM – Noon. A variety of breakfast foods including pancakes, grits, brownies, eggs , french toast and more. $10 for adults, $5 for kids. VFW Post 9257, 4 Fairfield Dr. Patterson

Sterling Forest Hike

Hike the entire Sterling Ridge Trail from Route 511 to 17A at fast pace, about 9 miles. Visit the fire tower with great panoramic views. Leader: Barry Skura 914-779-0936 Bskura@optonline.net

Frozendale Days

11AM – 6PM Community celebration of winter and the holiday season, with free movie at Rosendale Theatre, live music, food, origami and ornament making, puppets, library lighting, art exhibits, Santa, and much more fun for all ages! Plus the Annual Winter Gift Sale with one-of-a-kind, locally hand-made gifts including pottery, jewelry, art prints, eco-savvy fabric gift bags, knitware, hula hoops, note cards, coloring books, chair massage and gift certificates, and more! Skip the mall and support community and local art and commerce! Downtown Rosendale. Frozendale2010@gmail.com

Memorial Concert for Art Kamell

2PM – 5PM With David Amram, Pete Seeger, Congressman John Hall, Rick Nestler, David Bernz, Chris Ruhe the Howland Wolves and others! At the St. Lukes Episcopal Church gymnasium, Rte 9D, Beacon.

A Memorial concert to benefit the organizations Art Kammel loved: Doctors Without Borders, Pastors for Peace, School of the America’s Watch and the United Farmworkers. We are working on the details, the musicians’ line-up, etc. but the flyer won’t be ready till next week and I wanted you to know NOW about this very special event. So please put Sunday, Dec. 5h, 2-5 pm on your calendar and come out to enjoy great music and memories of one of the most wonderful people it has been my pleasure and privilege to know. Contribution: $20 (though no one will be turned away.) Contact Judy Allen for more information.

Forum and documentary “Gasland”

5PM – Rock Tavern, NY. A forum and documentary about with natural gas drilling process called (“fracking” or “hydrofracking”). This is a controversial topic in New York State. The State Senate has issued a temporary moratorium in New York State and the Assembly has yet to vote.

There is an optional potluck at 5:00pm, with the forum and film to follow.

Speakers at the forum represent both sides of the issue. They include Wes Gillingham, Catskill Mountainkeeper; Paul Hartman, representing Chesapeake Energy Corp.; Nadia Steinzor, Marcellus Shale Regional Organizer; Laurie Stuart, Upper Delaware UU Fellowship; and meeting chair, Michael Edelstein of Orange Environment.

“Gasland” (2010, dir Josh Fox, 107 min, http://www.GaslandTheMovie.com/ )

A prize-winning documentary exploring the health and environmental risks associated with natural gas drilling.

From the movie blurb: When “… a gas company offered Fox $100,000 to lease his family’s Pennsylvania land, he decided to educate himself on the topic of natural gas drilling. What he discovered shocked him into filming a documentary. Flammable tap water, chronically sick citizens, and contaminated air were among the ills found in communities where natural gas fracking has been occurring.”

There is limited space, so RSVPs are recommended. Contact / RSVP: Verne M. Bell at 845 569-8965, or via email address below. Cost: Free. Location: Unitarian Universalist Meeting House, 9 Vance Rd (off Rt. 207) Rock Tavern, NY 12575

Into The Future

Tuesday, December 7

PC Leg Vote on Peekskill Hollow Road

7PM – From PVRC: Well folks, this is really the final vote (approval) by the Put Co Leg on the PHR. The full leg meeting on Tuesday, Dec 7th at 7PM will see the fruition of all our hard work and victory for historic designation and protections for the PHR. The certification (of residents along PHR) of far over the requisite 50% plus road-frontage has been given to the real property department and accepted at the 11/16 physical services committee meeting, along with the thru-truck ban, which has a great chance of passing as it has gotten good support and recognition as a critical part of protecting the PHR and the residents who live along and travel on PHR. There have been several near disasters recounted by Sam Oliverio caused by huge speeding trucks over-the-line that I think brought the real danger of their presence to the other Leg members, and his continued support among others in the Leg has been important.

Please save the date and plan to attend this historic implementation of the Put Co Historic Protection Law we got passed last year re: including PHR under that law; I’m sure other roads will follow if the public works for their roads to be protected as well as PHR. Our future strength will be gauged by attendance and our resolve to continue to watch and work to protect the PHR from idiotic and wasteful attempts to make it into a high-speed “urban minor arterial” in gov-speak gibberish; it is our neighborhood road and we will not accept any other way of characterizing it or as a widened and straightened “escape” route for the Indian Point nuc plant or thru-truck by-pass.

Please try to attend, bring a friend and tell/email others about the full leg meeting date and time to be a part of this victory. Thanks.

Wednesday, December 8

Public Hearing on Incentive Zoning – Putnam Valley

6PM at Town Hall. From PVRC: The attached revised Incentive Zoning Law will be open to public discussion at Town Hall on Wednesday, December 8 at 6:00 P.M. This law will forever impact the development of the remaining large tracts of land in our town. We urge you to read the attached document and come to this meeting to comment on its content.

Saturday, December 11

Community Free Day at Dia Beacon

11AM – 4PM – On Community Free Days, residents of neighboring counties Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Ulster, and Westchester are invited to visit Dia:Beacon free of charge. Please bring a driver’s license or other government-issued ID for entry into the museum.

Programs are also open to the general public and are free with museum admission.

12:00pm
Introducing Dia:Beacon
Susan Sayre Batton, Managing Director, Dia:Beacon will discuss the transformation of Dia:Beacon from a Nabisco Box Printing factory to a museum and introduce key aspects of Dia’s renowned collection and distinctive history.

1:00-1:30pm
Guided tours and family tours
Tours will include recently reinstalled galleries dedicated to the work of John Chamberlain, Walter De Maria, Imi Knoebel, Agnes Martin, and Robert Ryman, as well as the special exhibition, Franz Erhard Walther: Work as Action.

2:00-4:00pm
Premiere screening of “New School,” a film on contemporary Hudson Valley artists, followed by a conversation with the filmmaker and featured artists Ty Marshal is a filmmaker who currently serves as the coordinator of Creative Arts Academy at the Community Folk Art Center in Syracuse, New York. Through a series of brief interviews, Marshal has profiled over twenty Hudson Valley-based artists ranging in background from emerging to established.

Axoltol

2PM – A Reading of a new play by James Sheldon by “The Two of Us” production company and directed by Thomas Gruenwald. At the Hudson Valley Academy of Performing Arts on Route 82 just east of the Taconic Parkway (Ancram, Hudson exit) in Taghkanic. Please RSVP by e-mail or phone (845-677-4446) as admission is free but there is limited seating.

Ax·o·lotl
1)   The Aztec god of lightning and regeneration who led the first humans to earth from the underworld.
2)   A species of Mexican salamander that retains its juvenile features, including gills and fins, into adulthood.
3)   A new play by James Sheldon set on a remote island in the western Pacific where ancient meets modern, loyalty meets temptation, and myth meets illusion.

Holiday Potpourri

7PM – The Holiday Show – Performances by children and adults. Ogden Nash’s Bestiary, Music of the Season In Santa’s Password bad boy Jace wants to get the Christmas he thinks he deserves, so he hacks into Santa’s list of who is naughty and nice and the results surprise him. At Arts on the Lake 640 Route 52 Lake Carmel, NY

Phil Ochs Night

7PM – Phil Ochs, born in El Paso, Texas on December 19, 1940, grew up in a non-political middle class family. He formed his political beliefs while in college and started putting them to music, eventually dropping out and heading for Greenwich Village. In 1966, after years of singing at open mikes and passing the hat, he performed a sold-out solo concert at Carnegie Hall. Most of Phi’s topical songs were very political, some humorous and some very serious. Among the best-known are: “Changes,” “There But For Fortune,” “I Ain’t Marching Anymore,” “Draft Dodger Rag,” “Small Circle of Friends.” and “When I’m Gone.”

Phil performed and traveled around the world. While in Dar Es Salaam, he was mugged and lost the top three notes of his vocal range. This event seemed to send him on a downward spiral. His last years were troubled ones. He suffered from manic depression plus an affinity for the bottle. He committed suicide on April 9, 1976 at the age of 35.

Come hear performers- John Flynn, Joe Jencks, Magpie (Greg Artzner and Terry Leonino), Nancy Tucker, and Pat Wictor as they keep alive the music of Phil Ochs.

Contact Walkabout Clearwater for more information.

Sunday, December 12

Shaupeneak or Black Creek Hike

Esopus. Hike or snowshoe, depending on weather conditions. Specific length of hike and location will vary according to group and weather conditions will range between 2-4 miles. Please e-mail Leader: Mary Trish Cina, Trishmary37@aol.com 845-339-7170 for meeting time and place.

Monday, December 13

Conference on Water Resources and the Regional Economy

The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and the Hudson River Estuary Program, in partnership with the SUNY New Paltz Center for Research, Regional Education and Outreach, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance will host a conference on Water Resources and the Regional Economy. Confirmed Speakers are Maurice Hinchey, Region 2 Administrator Judith Enck, and NYSDEC Assistant Commissioner for Water Resources James Tierney. Expected audience: Municipal staff, engineers, planners, environmental groups, and volunteers involved in green infrastructure and low impact development planning projects. For more information and regular updates visit: http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/4920.html, or email hrep@gw.dec.state.ny.us and put “Water Conference” in the subject line. Location: SUNY New Paltz, Student Union Building, Multi-Purpose Room. Fee, $35 includes lunch.

Overview: The conference will seek to create a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities confronting the Hudson Valley as we manage our water resources. It will foster a dialogue among the many partners whose engagement can help us move forward in a positive direction for the benefit of the region, its watershed and its people. We will look for opportunities to both support the economy and conserve the environment, recognizing the many ways that water contributes to human wellbeing. The conference will focus on two key questions:

1. How can our water assets and infrastructure be
part of a strategy for economic prosperity and
quality of life in the Valley?

2. What actions do we need to take to safeguard our
unique water assets so they are sustained and not
depleted?

Friday, December 17

A Christmas Carol – a New Adaptation

7:30PM – Pied Piper Children’s Theater. Staging the holiday classic for the second year in a row at the White Pond Center, the Pied Piper Players will be performing an original adaptation of “A Christmas Carol” in December, 2010. John and Bonnie Ryerson, veterans of stage and screens large and small lead a cast of local actors in this fun, fantastical romp through one of the most revered stories of the season.

John Ryerson delivers a forceful performance as Ebenezer Scrooge, the man forever changed by ghosts of his past, present and future. Seasoned actor Andrew Walters reprises his role as a pitch-perfect Bob Cratchit. Jessica Bulzacchelli, a PPYT veteran youth actor, returns as the Ghost of Christmas Past with her usual exuberance and sense of fun. Peter Alexander lends a sense of mystery and foreboding to both Jacob Marley and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come again this year. Jeff Davis also returns as the bombastic Ghost of Christmas Present, and Bonnie Ryerson rounds out the lead players as the wonderful Belinda Cratchit.

Primarily a youth ensemble company, the Pied Piper Youth Theater will treat audiences to performances by adults in this production, many of whom are parents of the young actors in the troupe.

Repeats Saturday, December 18 at 7:30PM and Sunday, December 19 at 3:00PM. Tickets are $10 adults and $5 children 10 and under. For more information or to set up an interview, please contact Bonnie Ryerson at 845-878-9780 or email Bonnie at bonnie@pipertheater.org www.pipertheater.org

Saturday, December 18

Breakneck Ridge Hike

Difficult. Hosted by Scenic Hudson. The most rigorous rocky routes up Breakneck Ridge. Please contact leader for details: Skip Doyle at info@EsopusPreservation.org. Location: Route 9D, Beacon

Gallery Talk: Larissa Harris on Andy Warhol

2PM: Andy Warhol, Shadows, 1978-79 at Dia:Beacon, Riggio Galleries, Free with admission. Larissa Harris is curator at the Queens Museum of Art, where she is developing programs to take place during and after the museum’s planned expansion, to be completed by 2012. From 2004-2008, she was associate director of the Center for Advanced Visual Studies at MIT where she worked on new projects by Michael Smith, Damon Rich/the Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP), John Malpede, and John Bell; and established new initiatives including a visiting artist series, student residency program, and a residency for Boston-area artists. She is also half of a partnership called The Steins, which produces occasional, extremely brief exhibitions in basements in the Lower East Side.

News That Matters – Wednesday, November 24, 2010 – Things To Do Edition (And the News!)

Jeff Green — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 14:43:39 +0000

“He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it.”

Day 23 of our
Annual Fund Drive

(Time is running out!)

We want to thank our supporters so far and wonder why the majority of readers are still sitting on their hands!

Perhaps it’s all the breaking news? Maybe it’s the non-partisan political reporting? I suppose it could be the listing of local events you won’t find anywhere else?

I don’t know what it is but the same people are helping out this year while the same people are not… And I know you’re reading so come on and
show your support,
your thanks or just to get
me to shut up already!

Yeah, it’s tough being the only independent media outlet here
in Putnam County but someone
has to do it and
YOU need to support it.

- Confucius

Good Wednesday Morning,

This is a mammoth issue that combines the usual PLUS the weekly Things To Do Edition.

The NYJN reports this morning that Lake Carmel resident Ruth Austin was struck and killed by a car on Holmes Road last evening. Our hearts go out to her family.

American long-term unemployment is now breaking records. 40% of the unemployed have not had work in more than 6 months. In the meantime, the House has promised not to extend unemployment benefits claiming that jobs are out there if people would just take them. And just coincidentally, US corporations marked record profits this past quarter. (See story below.)

We now know the Town of Patterson is run by tax and spend Republicans (with one disgraced Democrat) who think nothing of giving your tax dollars to Putnam County’s favorite developer for no other reason than that he’s a nice guy. And we know they voted unanimously to do just that. But is the battle over? It could be, but maybe not. Maybe there’s something you can do to make the sailing not as smooth as Paul Camarda and his political allies would like.

Today, while you’re taking a break from setting the table for tomorrow or packing the diapers for the trip to the inlaws, call William Gorton the Acting Regional Director for NYSDOT Region 8 at 845 431-5750 and calmly explain your opposition. He may send you to someone else or say there’s nothing he can do and that’s fine: your call still matters. And if he gets 20 or so over the next week… ya never know!

While we’re talking about the State DOT, if your child rides a school bus that crosses the Taconic Parkway at Pudding Street, reconstruction of that interchange will commence in the summer of 2014 and be completed by the winter of 2016.

Bill Hustis, the guy who runs the Putnam County Office of the Aging and is the director of Kent’s recreation program has been suspended from his town responsibilities for what amounts to years of negligence and bad record keeping, a move many in town say is a long time in coming. He’s suing.

In any case, it’s ugly over there these days. Bill says he may retire and run for public office which is not new(s) as his name has been tossed around for the past year as a possible candidate for Supervisor. We hear that past town justice Joe Esposito would be running and Bill Noel (the younger) has been positioning himself for the same by joining the Kent FD’s police unit to earn himself some community creds. It’s also been rumored that John Greene, a close ally of Greg Ball, and narrowly elected to the town board last year, may also consider tossing his hat into the Supervisor’s race.

Is it possible Kent is slipping back to the olden days when it was the laughing stock of the county? Based on the rumored candidates for town office, the evidence is there.

But, it’s all just rumors.

People keep getting shot in hunting accidents in the area. A few weeks back a guy out mushroom hunting was shot on Mt. Nimham, his attacker never found. This week, two men were shot in the Catskills with one able to confront his shooter the other, who was airlifted to Albany, was not.

If you go out this weekend common safety rules apply: stick to State Parks where hunting is generally not allowed and carry a whistle with you giving it a couple of ‘toots’ each time you near a rise on a trail to announce that you’re in the area. It’s safer to hike mid-day than early mornings or evenings. Wearing blaze-orange is not a bad idea and if you have your dogs with you, deck them out in the same, call them *loudly* from time to time – and keep that whistle handy.

”Building freeways in cities is like loosening your belt to deal with obesity.”

- Former Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist

National Grid, a British company who owns NYSEG among other utility companies, is seeking a rate increase of $391 million. They had originally asked for $403 million but removed some they called “misallocation of costs” because it included private school tuition for their executive’s children, transportation in slave-drawn golden chariots, and other similar expenses.

However, administrative judges hearing the case have suggested they be granted a rate increase of $99 million instead.

What are the odds that the NY Public Service Commission who has say over these things will say, “No!”? HAHAHAHH! AHAHAHa! hhahhah! Snort. Chortle. Ahem. (See story below.)

“Historians at the University of Pennsylvania announced the discovery this week of a personal diary from the late 18th century that reveals the first U.S. flag sewed by Betsy Ross was originally intended as a shirt for her flamboyant gay friend Nathaniel.” Read More

FEMA reports that for every single day this year the national security alert level has been at YELLOW (ELEVATED).

What do Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich all have in common? That’s right! They’re all either announced or rumored to be in the running for the White House in 2012. And you know, they can have it.

The Brooklyn-Queens expressway is about to undergo a renovation of sorts. The city of New York is going to make it disappear or, at the very least, disappear under a cover of “green”. On Monday, November 15th, a final meeting of interested public and public agencies accepted three proposals to do just that.

One would cover the expressway with a metal grid covered in solar cells and vines which would generate roughly $312,000 a year in electricity. Another adds wide boulevards that cover the expressway at intervals connecting neighborhoods long split apart. The last also adds crossings but not as elaborate nor wide as the former. You can read more about all this here.

If you’re a Palestinian living in Israel and you sell land to a Jew, you’re found guilty by the Palestinian Authority of conspiring with the enemy. It is illegal, according to the PA, to sell land to foreigners. If, on the other hand you’re a Palestinian living in Israel and you sell land to an Iranian, you’re cool. Go figure.

There was an interesting news report yesterday about a daily pill that can significantly reduce the risk of contracting HIV if taken every day. But that’s not the story. The story is that it would cost $35 a day here in the US but in the developing world will cost $0.40 a day. Read that again and then tell me what’s wrong with that picture.

Chuck Norris is God. Or, so some people think. Others feel differently:

Chuck Norris attempted to count to infinity. Backwards. He didn’t know where to start.
Chuck Norris fought Mr. T, Rambo, Tupac, Bruce Lee, and the pink and yellow Power Rangers and lost, then vowed never to return to the nursing home on Halloween again.
Chuck Norris once attempted round house kicking Jet Li. His leg broke when it connected with the television, then he fell and broke his hip.
Chuck Norris is trying to bring back the “fanny pack.”
Chuck Norris wears a size 2 ballet slipper.
Chuck Norris always judges a book by its cover.
Chuck Norris gave Mona Lisa her smile. It happened when she saw Chuck naked.

Source NSFW

“If you touch my junk I’ll have you arrested” - John Tyner

Hey, is that a bomb in your pocket or are you just happy to see me? If you’re flying this weekend have a good time! And when the man touches you, smile and whisper ‘sweet nothings’ in his ear and just hope he buys drinks.

In the meantime, here’s a special holiday travel message from TSA.

Drive carefully tomorrow. Drop a check in the mail or visit Paypal to support what we’re doing here and have a nice weekend.

What’s going on?
And Now, The News:

What’s going on?

Friday, November 26 – Buy Nothing Day

Hike to Wonder Lake State Park

11AM – Hike with us to see Wonder Lake and burn off some calories. The Kent CAC is sponsoring a hike to Wonder Lake on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Hikers will meet at 11:00 AM at the Wonder Lake State Park parking area on Ludingtonville Road. The trail is easy-to moderate and the hike will last about 3 hours, including a break for lunch. It’s late fall and hunting season, so wear warm, bright clothing and comfortable hiking boots. Bring lunch and a beverage.

Hopefully the weather will cooperate, but if it turns miserable we’ll have to cancel the hike. In that case, I’ll send you an e-mail and post the news on the programs page about an hour before the scheduled start. For further details contact hike leader David Ehnebuske by phone at 878-7592 or by e-mail

Saturday, November 27

PAC’s Annual Juried Craft Sale

Noon – 5PM Our 2010 Craft Showcase & Sale will be on display in our beautiful, re-built Gallery space at 521 Kennicut Hill Rd. in Mahopac. Join us for this 16th annual juried collection featuring fine crafts from 40+ regional crafts artists including pottery, jewelry, wearables, candles, soaps and lotions, ornaments and more, more, more. A limited number of framed photographs and matted prints will be available. Great gifts for everyone, you, and your dog, too!

Also featured is our 2011 Art Calendar, a great idea for everyone, so be sure to stock extras for unexpected giftees – 13 original works are featured and remind you of the Arts Council and Center all year long. Another popular gift of Art could be a one year gift membership encouraging participation in our programs and special events, while supporting the arts.

Our Craft Sale offers free parking and free admission, we accept Visa & MasterCard and best of all, you support local artists, local economy and your local art center.

Hike Overlook Mountain

Near Woodstock, NY. 1400’ elevation gain on steep but easy carriage/jeep road to a fire tower with great views of the Hudson River Valley. See the ruins of the Overlook Mountain House. Rain or snow cancels. Contact leader Brenda Harding at oreomort@aol.com or 845-565-8566.

Into the Future

Tuesday, November 30

Design and Energy Issue for Planning and Zoning Officials

7PM – 10PM Information and ideas to incorporate green design principles and technologies in new commercial and residential development. Offers continuing education credits for planning and zoning board members to help meet state requirements of 4 hours/year. Ellipse Room, Technology Center Building, Rockland Community College, 145 College Rd., Suffern. Free. Contact: Arlene Miller, Rockland Municipal Planning Federation, 845-364-3448 millera@co.rockland.ny.us

Thursday, December 2

The Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries,

7:00 PM The Atlantic: Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms, and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories. Join Simon Winchester, the author of the bestselling Krakatoa, at Cary Institute for Ecosystems Studies for an armchair expedition around the shores and the islands of the Atlantic Ocean. Winchester chronicles his journey across the vast expanse of the Atlantic to report from the places that dramatize the story of mankind’s relationship with this immense sea. Spanning from the earth’s geological origins and the age of exploration to modern pollution, his narrative is epic and awe-inspiring. Events are free and open to the public. For additional information, please contact Pamela Freeman via phone (845) 677-7600 x121. Location: Cary Institute’s Auditorium, located at 2801 Sharon Turnpike (Route 44) in Millbrook, New York.

Friday, December 3

Follow the Waters: Educational Workshop

10:00 AM – 3:30 PM You are invited to an educational workshop about laws and regulations related to water resources, designed to provide an introduction to the legal framework surrounding water in NY State. This workshop will provide an overview of selected Federal, state and local laws affecting water resources management. This information will be presented in the context of several case studies about local watersheds illustrating challenging water resources management and protection issues in the mid-Hudson region. It is designed for an audience of interested decision-makers and citizens who do not have formal legal training. The results of this workshop, including feedback from participants, will be used to guide future development of related educational programs and online resources. We will trace the flow of water through local watersheds to examine which laws and regulations apply at various points along the way. This project was made possible through financial support from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund. Space is limited. RSVP to Simon Gruber, sgruber100@verizon.net. There is no charge for this workshop. Location: New Windsor, New York

Saturday, December 4

Lecture with Art Cohn

5PM Lecture with Art Cohn, the co-founder and Executive Director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. Join Putnam County Historical Society for a lecture with Art Cohn, the co-founder and Executive Director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum at Basin Harbor Vermont. Cohn’s talk will outline the significant chapters of the region’s history and illustrate what is currently known about the collection of shipwrecks in Lake Champlain and the just emerging story of shipwrecks in the Hudson River.

The Putnam County Historical Society & Foundry School Museum is located at 63 Chestnut Street in Cold Spring. Free for members and donors, and $5 for the general public. Space is limited; reservations are strongly suggested. Please call 845-265-4010 or email.

Sunday, December 5

Sterling Forest Hike

Hike the entire Sterling Ridge Trail from Route 511 to 17A at fast pace, about 9 miles. Visit the fire tower with great panoramic views. Leader: Barry Skura 914-779-0936 Bskura@optonline.net

Memorial Concert for Art Kamell

2PM – 5PM With David Amram, Pete Seeger, David Bernz, Chris Ruhe and Howland Wolves and others yet to be confirmed. At the St. Lukes Episcopal Church gymnasium, Rte 9D, Beacon. A Memorial concert top benefit the organizations Art Kammel loved: Doctors Without Borders, Pastors for Peace, School of the America’s Watch and the United Farmworkers. We are working on the details, the musicians’ line-up, etc. but the flyer won’t be ready till next week and I wanted you to know NOW about this very special event. So please put Sunday, Dec. 5h, 2-5 pm on your calendar and come out to enjoy great music and memories of one of the most wonderful people it has been my pleasure and privilege to know. Contribution: $20 (though no one will be turned away.) Contact Judy Allen for more information.

Saturday, December 11

Phil Ochs Night

7PM – Phil Ochs, born in El Paso, Texas on December 19, 1940, grew up in a non-political middle class family. He formed his political beliefs while in college and started putting them to music, eventually dropping out and heading for Greenwich Village. In 1966, after years of singing at open mikes and passing the hat, he performed a sold-out solo concert at Carnegie Hall. Most of Phi’s topical songs were very political, some humorous and some very serious. Among the best-known are: “Changes,” “There But For Fortune,” “I Ain’t Marching Anymore,” “Draft Dodger Rag,” “Small Circle of Friends.” and “When I’m Gone.”

Phil performed and traveled around the world. While in Dar Es Salaam, he was mugged and lost the top three notes of his vocal range. This event seemed to send him on a downward spiral. His last years were troubled ones. He suffered from manic depression plus an affinity for the bottle. He committed suicide on April 9, 1976 at the age of 35.

Come hear performers- John Flynn, Joe Jencks, Magpie (Greg Artzner and Terry Leonino), Nancy Tucker, and Pat Wictor as they keep alive the music of Phil Ochs.

Contact Walkabout Clearwater for more information.

Monday, December 13

Conference on Water Resources and the Regional Economy

The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and the Hudson River Estuary Program, in partnership with the SUNY New Paltz Center for Research, Regional Education and Outreach, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance will host a conference on Water Resources and the Regional Economy. Confirmed Speakers are Maurice Hinchey, Region 2 Administrator Judith Enck, and NYSDEC Assistant Commissioner for Water Resources James Tierney. Expected audience: Municipal staff, engineers, planners, environmental groups, and volunteers involved in green infrastructure and low impact development planning projects. For more information and regular updates visit: http://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/4920.html, or email hrep@gw.dec.state.ny.us and put “Water Conference” in the subject line.
Location: SUNY New Paltz, Student Union Building, Multi-Purpose Room

Saturday, December 18

Breakneck Ridge Hike

Difficult. Hosted by Scenic Hudson. The most rigorous rocky routes up Breakneck Ridge. Please contact leader for details: Skip Doyle at info@EsopusPreservation.org. Location: Route 9D, Beacon

And Now, The News:

Brewster sophomore to march in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade

By Michael Risinit

SOUTHEAST — Thanksgiving Day will start early for Ben Bisogno, 15, a Brewster High School sophomore.

No, he’s not sliding a turkey into the oven during the pre-dawn darkness. But there is his uniform to don, his parade flag to gather and rehearsal on a Manhattan street in the wee hours of the morning before entertaining more than 50 million people.

“A little bit,” Bisogno said, when asked if he was nervous about being part of the 84th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. “I’m mostly afraid of the (school) work I’m going to have to make up.”

Bisogno is the only male student in the Brewster High School marching band’s color guard. He’s also the only student from Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties who is part of the Macy’s Great American Marching Band (and still the solo male in its color guard).

Preservationists split on Adirondack fire towers

Associated Press

KEENE, N.Y. — To some preservationists, the rusting skeleton of an abandoned fire tower atop Hurricane Mountain in the Adirondacks is a blight on the wilderness landscape, and the sound of wind moaning through its metal limbs disturbs the natural peace.

To others, the 35-foot fire tower is a beloved relic intimately connected with the history of the American wilderness. It’s also a fun place to drop your rucksack and take in the view.

The Hurricane Mountain fire tower southeast of Lake Placid and a tower on St. Regis Mountain are the only two of the dozens that once dotted the six-million acre park that do not fit today’s state land use plan.

The New York Department of Environmental Conservation recommended tearing the two towers down, labeling them a “non-conforming use.” But the Adirondack Park Agency, which enforces land-use regulations in the region, voted in October to designate a half-acre under each of the towers as “historic” — an unusual move that would allow the structures to remain.

Adirondack Architectural Heritage and other groups that lobbied hard to keep the towers in place and eventually be restored applaud the decision. But wilderness preservation groups fear it signals a weakening of APA’s commitment to uphold protective land-use rules.

Philadelphia Eagles going green with wind, solar power

The team said Thursday that it will add wind turbines, solar panels and a cogeneration plant at Lincoln Financial Field over the next year, a combination that will make the stadium self-sufficient and let the Eagles sell some power back to the electric grid.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said the plan was part of the Eagles commitment to be a socially responsible organization.

“Owning an NFL team, I think you have an opportunity to lead the way,” Lurie told The Associated Press. “It’s a public building seen across the country and, sometimes, the world.”

Under the plan, approximately 80 spiral-shaped wind turbines will be mounted on the stadium’s roof and 2,500 solar panels attached to the stadium’s facade. Together, they will contribute an estimated 30 percent to the total energy production.

Electric Rate hike a tough sell

By Larry Rulison Business Writer
ALBANY — National Grid faces a tough road to get the $361 million electric rate increase it seeks from state regulators.

The administrative law judges overseeing the case before the state Public Service Commission have recommended that the company be allowed only a $99 million increase — $262 million below what the British utility company says it needs to provide reliable service while still being able to achieve a reasonable profit.

National Grid, which serves large parts of upstate New York, including the Capital Region, says it needs to raise electric rates as it replaces large portions of the state’s aging electricity infrastructure.

National Grid spokesman Steve Brady said the company had just started to digest the nearly 200-page document known as a “recommended decision” that was released Wednesday afternoon by the PSC. The utility and other interested parties have until Dec. 8 to file a reply with the PSC.

“Certainly we’re going to be responding,” Brady said. “It’s a long process. This is one step.”

The five-member board doesn’t have to adopt the recommendation of the law judges and can vote on its own figures — or not increase rates at all — although Wednesday’s filing could be used as a starting point in internal discussions.

20,000 Excess Cancer Cases in 15 Years Near Indian Point

New Report Suggests Radiation Exposure May Be One Cause
Joseph J. Mangano MPH MBA
Radiation and Public Health Project

Cancer incidence rates in the four counties closest to the Indian Point nuclear plant have risen much more rapidly than U.S. rates since the early 1990s, according to a report released today. If trends in local rates had equaled U.S. trends, over 20,000 fewer local residents would have been diagnosed with the disease.

“Cancer incidence rates in counties closest to Indian Point was 11% below the U.S. two decades ago, but now is 7% above the U.S.” says Joseph Mangano MPH MBA. “There are reasons for this gap, and one that should be considered is continuing radioactive emissions from Indian Point.” Mangano is Executive Director of the New York-based Radiation and Public Health Project research group (RPHP), and author of the study.

Counties included in the study were Orange, Putnam, Rockland, and Westchester, where about 9,000 residents are diagnosed with cancer each year. Patterns in each county were similar, i.e. a rate below the U.S. in the early 1990s that is now above the nation.

RPHP used data from the New York State Cancer Registry (for county cancer rates) and from the National Cancer Institute (for national cancer rates). It compared cancer rates for the 5-year period 1988-92 with later 5 year periods (1993-97, 1998-02, and 2003-07).

Unexpected rises occurred for 19 of 20 major types of cancer. The greatest increase was found in the local rate of thyroid cancer, which has moved from 13% below the U.S. to 51% above. There are no known causes of thyroid cancer other than exposure to radioactive iodine, only produced in atomic bomb tests and nuclear reactor operations.

U.S. Corporate Profits Hit Record in Third Quarter

By Catherine Rampell
The nation’s workers may be struggling, but American companies just had their best quarter ever.

American businesses earned profits at an annual rate of $1.659 trillion in the third quarter, according to a Commerce Department report released Tuesday. That is the highest figure recorded since the government began keeping track over 60 years ago, at least in nominal or noninflation-adjusted terms.

The government does not adjust the numbers for inflation, in part because these corporate profits can be affected by pricing changes from all over the world and because the government does not have a price index for individual companies. The next-highest annual corporate profits level on record was in the third quarter of 2006, when they were $1.655 trillion.

Corporate profits have been doing extremely well for a while. Since their cyclical low in the fourth quarter of 2008, profits have grown for seven consecutive quarters, at some of the fastest rates in history. As a share of gross domestic product, corporate profits also have been increasing, and they now represent 11.2 percent of total output. That is the highest share since the fourth quarter of 2006, when they accounted for 11.7 percent of output.

There Will Be Blood

By Paul Krugman
Former Senator Alan Simpson is a Very Serious Person. He must be — after all, President Obama appointed him as co-chairman of a special commission on deficit reduction.

“And everyone knows that these Republicans oppose the treaty, not because of legitimate objections, but simply because it’s an Obama administration initiative; if sabotaging the president endangers the nation, so be it.”

So here’s what the very serious Mr. Simpson said on Friday: “I can’t wait for the blood bath in April. … When debt limit time comes, they’re going to look around and say, ‘What in the hell do we do now? We’ve got guys who will not approve the debt limit extension unless we give ’em a piece of meat, real meat,’ ” meaning spending cuts. “And boy, the blood bath will be extraordinary,” he continued.

Think of Mr. Simpson’s blood lust as one more piece of evidence that our nation is in much worse shape, much closer to a political breakdown, than most people realize.

Some explanation: There’s a legal limit to federal debt, which must be raised periodically if the government keeps running deficits; the limit will be reached again this spring. And since nobody, not even the hawkiest of deficit hawks, thinks the budget can be balanced immediately, the debt limit must be raised to avoid a government shutdown. But Republicans will probably try to blackmail the president into policy concessions by, in effect, holding the government hostage; they’ve done it before.

News That Matters – Monday, November 15, 2010 – The Anniversary Edition

Jeff Green — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 13:12:25 +0000

Good Monday Morning,

I have a cold. I’m in a bad mood. But it’s nothing a freshly backed loaf of banana bread (w/brown sugar, raisins and sunflower seeds) and enough orange liqueur can’t handle.

Luckily, I wrote the column below over the weekend.

And it’s not the Anniversary, but we’re close. It’s somewhere around here and so we shall celebrate today anyway!

It’s now more than a decade that News That Matters has been around in one incarnation or another.

Remember back in the olden days when we published at Yahoo and then made the move to Google and then to a comprehensive newsletter published three times a week and a website all our own?

Three websites. Four, actually.

You can find News That Matters at PlanPutnam and at Blogger and Posterous, both as “No Country For Sane Men“. And if you’re on Facebook you can find us there, too.

It’s a little crazy living in the USA right about now and with extremism coming at you from mostly right-angles like a warped isosceles triangle, and you need a source that can dissect the news and get it to you in ways you can genuinely understand. And that’s what we’re here for.

PlanPutnam/News That Matters is also this county’s premiere organizational tool and you know that to be true from the many issues and the many victories we have under our belts. I don’t need to list those successful battles for you know what they are and you know your lives are better for it – and that’s the point.

In case you have forgotten where we’ve been, here, in no particular order, are some reminders culled from the last few years:

The Thirty-Eight Billion Fee

This happens every day to thousands of people across the nation and while Bank of America is the most hideously evil of the lot, many banks play this game and billions of dollars are pulled from the economy and go to subsidize executive bonuses, stock dividends, the purchase of Congressmen and Senators, nifty automated teller machines that work so slowly you have to shave again by the time you’re done using them and which cause traffic tie-ups on Friday evenings that CBS radio reports along with, “…and it’s 40 minutes to The George.”

Chickens, Roads and Highways – A Special Report

As first proposed, the issue was one of safety but the project plans say that PHR is as safe as any other road. Then there was the idea that you’d be able to drive from Kent to Peekskill faster and yet, the accidents that have happened generally did so for people traveling way above the speed limit or tailgating. Then it was planned growth in the project area rated at 2% a year which would by 2029, create traffic and backups similar, I guess, to Route 22′s. But a quick look at a map shows that to be so wrong words cannot describe it.

The Tilly Foster Saga Continues…

What will it cost for taxpayers to cover the utility bills, heating, cooling, electricity, etc., and to maintain the walks and roads in all weather conditions vs. the amount of monies generated from sales taxes? I just don’t believe anyone could raise those kinds of funds through sales taxes alone from the Farm. So why not have a profit sharing arrangement? But that’s not in the contract. While Ann Fanizzi, the contract’s most ardent supporter, dreams that Mr. Whipple will build a bed & breakfast and turn the main lodge into full service restaurant, the county will need to foot the entirety of the utility bills and the maintenance of the roads and walkways leading to and surrounding them. I wish I had such a deal with my landlord!

What Being Sick Costs The Nation

When you are sick and on the job your productivity is down which results in a decline in efficiency. When you are sick and cannot work, especially in a job without paid sick days, the local economy is affected. And what happens when you wait until you simply cannot go on and your illness has advanced? How much money is pulled from the economy then? What of your home and family? Will Verizon or Comcast or NYSEG understand when they don’t get paid because of the cost of dealing with an illness that might have been easily treated at the beginning but that has now gotten out of control? They might. But you’ll be sending smoke signals and watching a blank TV screen by candlelight.Will your town’s tax collector say, “No problem Mrs. Smith, pay us when you can”?

Verizon’s Billing Mysteries

FCC Line Charge. This charge also is known as the Federal Subscriber Line Charge, the Federally-Ordered Subscriber Line Charge, Federal Line Cost Charge, and the FCC Subscriber Line Charge. In reality it’s the missing portion of your basic line charge mentioned above. That $8.79 fee should be, if Verizon were open and honest about their charges, $15.20. But they get to “cheat” to give you the impression your actual costs are lower and that the Fed is responsible for $6.41 of it. They’re misleading you and getting away with it.

Shooting Gazelles – Ball supports “Canned Hunting”

Yet, Assemblyman Greg Ball supports this type of hunting, claiming on the floor of the Assembly that if the New York bans the use of exotic, non-native animals from canned hunts held within the state that the next step is that the state will ban the shooting of white -tailed deer, then the state will take away everyone’s guns and finally we’ll all have chips in our backs. (see the video clip here). He also claims he represents ‘thousands of hunters in his district’ whom, one might assume, has given him their blessing to fight for this abominable practice in their name.

Contractors Ripped Off By Putnam County (NY)

In a previous issue I mentioned that a county Legislator suggested that if I had trouble paying the fee that maybe I shouldn’t be in business. Maybe he’s right. Maybe the economy sucks and those fees amount to a hardship. Or maybe no one should have to pay for the right to earn a living in Putnam County.

News That Matters: The Walkway Edition

Kudos need be sent to the organizers of this event. It’s massive scale and scope must have taken thousands of hours and untold patience. Everything ran so smoothly! Even with tens of thousands of people, thousands of cars, city buses, a dozen marching bands, scores of performers, several parades and assorted marauding clowns, trapeze artists and jugglers, (and yes, you can toss in a bevy of politicians,) there wasn’t a hitch to be seen. In fact, even the weather – which promised rain – cooperated beautifully.

Racists Rear Their Ugly Heads in Putnam Again

The misinformation contained in the copy on the website is astonishing in its one-sided shortsightedness and includes a link to an outside website where, if Mexicans were Jews, would read, “Die Juden sind ünser unglück”. No matter that the Comptroller of the State of Texas, among others of equal high position across the nation claim that undocumented workers contribute more to the system in taxes than they use, and that recent immigrants – legal and illegal – have *created* tens of thousands of new jobs, this linked website continues the same lies, mistruths and…. shit. It’s just pure White Supremacist shit.

Kent’s ‘panhandle’

Early maps show Philipstown being more recatngularish from when it was divvied up among the Philipse Family. The 1892 USGS map shows the current westernmost line of Kent, the line that runs along the Philisptown Pike (Route 301) AND the *old* town line as well. That line is missing from the 1941 map which has the current town lines in position.

Questions:

1) When did Kent acquire Hortowntown and,
2) Why?

[Ed note: this article was posted on October 3, 2006 and has still not been answered!]

Tales from the Trail

Why? Well, I added up all the possible promised blocks of votes and it turns out – at best – they represent about 15% of the voters. That’s right: the special interest groups and the armchair politicians and the folk who are in this only for the [insert turgid reference here] added together leave the remaining %85 of the voters unrepresented. But, for such a small group, they sure are organized! And Loud. And they have money.

A TEA Party on the Hill

For the past several weeks the region had been bombarded by an ever-increasing barrage of signs, snail mails, emails and robocalls announcing an event that was either a “RibFest!”, a People’s Convention, a Free BBQ or a rally for Greg Ball and Steve Katz… it all depended on which signs you saw or which advert you read or which phone call you got as they all had slightly different information and I reported on this confusion several days ago. But that didn’t seem to bother the 300 people who attended on Saturday.

Selecting an ESCO

Over half of NYSEG electricity supply customers who didn’t voice their choice last year don’t know their current supply pricing option. And while that may suck for them, it’s been great for us. We thank those customers for not having degrees in Advanced Rocket Science and praise their inability to figure out what their options are. NYSEG has always firmly believed that offering you the best choice is a simple matter of confusing the heck out of you. We are proud to continue that tradition because, face it, you have no choice!

Corporate Welfare, Putnam Style

If I were a better writer and could match the skills of even the most middling of authors, life in Putnam County would make quite excellent reading. But so few publishers would believe what I had written as genuine they’d have to place my book in the fiction section of bookstores and the fantasy section of libraries. But I can assure you that what we experience here as residents is real and genuine even though it reads – and too often feels – as if we’re living in a 1950′s Central American Banana Republic. In only a very few other places around the world, perhaps in one of those central Asian “stans” no one can pronounce, could we write about the depths of malfeasance that passes for government in our bucolic 240 square miles. If Voltaire or Shalom Aleichem were alive today even they could not have surpassed the fantastical mysteries and ironies that abound in our every day lives. Welcome to Putnam County, New York.

Controversy in Pawling? It Depends

At a meeting on July 2nd, 2008, Supervisor Coursen mentioned, after yet another round of public and pointed criticism from Mr. Carey, that the minutes from a recently held Comprehensive Plan meeting had not yet been posted to the town’s website due to a backlog on the Planning Board clerk’s desk. With the meeting continuing on, Supervisor Coursen rose from the dais to get a glass of water when Mr. Carey met her on the side and offered to come into town hall and post those minutes on his own. While that’s a nice thing to offer, what responsible entity would allow a political enemy, especially – and note this – the chair of a political party, access to a town’s website?

Pulte Homes, Adam Levy and Justice Putnam Style

Pulte Homes, Adam Levy and Justice Putnam Style: For what the Town of Carmel and Putnam County has done over the years to Lori Kemp you’d think agents from the human rights court in the Hague would descend from the heavens and arrest anyone who has ever sat on a board in that town. But that didn’t happen for too seldom do those who deserve justice get actually it.

The Great Tefillin Scare

On a short-haul flight the other day a 17 year old kid put on his tefflin to pray. A flight attendant asked what he was doing, “praying,” he replied. She notified the pilot. In the flight attendant’s description she said “…it had wires running from it and going up to his fingers,” What she didn’t know was that they go directly to God! but, I digress…

Organic means “organic”, right

It seems that to get approval as organic, Department of Agriculture rules state that 95% of a product must be organic and the balance need not be if there is no organic ingredients available, as long as they are on their approved list. Modest little organic breweries like Anheuser-Busch can’t find organic hops with ” unique flavor and aroma characteristics due to variation in essential oils” for their fine organic brews and wants an exemption. Others are appalled. “Hops are a crucial ingredient for beer. Why can’t they use organic hops?” said James A. Riddle, an organic consultant and a former chairman of the organic advisory board.

Breaking News: Putnam’s Most Out Person Accused of Autophobia

In a stunning revelation, Putnam County’s most ‘out’ political figure was accused by an alleged staffer from the Nan Hayworth campaign of making accusatory slurs against himself based on his sexual orientation.

Remember when…

From the Patterson Crossing Scoping Session: January 2005

A Walk on the new Cornwall Hill DEC property: Summer 2004

Choices for Sustainable Living Conference: November 2005

Putnam Valley Dems Election Night Celebration: November 2005

FrOGS Announces NAWCA Grant: October 2002. Dave Tobias and Mike Griffin.

Croton Watershed Meeting: October 2004

Charlie Silver – Chief Watershed Scientist, Jim Tierney – Watershed Inspector General,
Peter Lehner, Chief Environmental Attorney. All work for the State Attorney General’s Office

And some Pictures of the Day shots: (Click on them – they get bigger!)

Ice Pond

Dean Road DEP property

Bear Mt. Bridge from Anthony’s Nose

Glynwood from Fahnestock State Park

Daniel Nimham Pow Wow

Thunderstorm over eastern Putnam from Shenandoah Mt.

Bull Hill (Mt. Taurus) from Round Hill in Fahnestock Park

The Kent “Cow”

Collaborative Concepts Out door Art Exhibit at Saunders’ Farm

There more. There’s nearly eighteen-thousand articles and posts since we began and that we’ve lasted as long as we have is a testament to my insanity – and your perseverance. Let’s keep that going.

Since July 18, 2000

10637 messages at the old Yahoo site
3508 messages at Google.
3738 messages posted to PlanPutnam/News That Matters

17,883 posts/messages/comments!

You’re going to need me for the next four years.

JmG