Comparing an Islamic mosque by ground zero to a porn shop?

Update: August 15, 2010

ABC Nightly News used the same distorted logic as did the New York Times back in May and made the moral equivalence of pornography shops and strip clubs many blocks away from Ground Zero to a proposed Islamic mosque. Presumably, ABC did this to make the point that Ground Zero is not the “hallowed ground” that mosque protestors claim. Therefore, to oppose the proposed mosque based on the grounds that Ground Zero is special is hypocritical. Read below our original commentary on the flaws of that logic.

Op-Ed May 28, 2010

In what could be one of the poorest uses of logic in recent mainstream media history, the New York Times featured a column by Clyde Haberman supporting the construction of a five-story Islamic mosque near “Ground Zero” (The name for the former World Trade Center sites demolished after the Islamic terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 that killed thousands). In his column, Mr. Haberman compares the insult of an Islamic site of possible future anti-American teaching to a strip club and off-track betting shop that are already nearby ground zero.

He wrote, “No one is known to have protested the fact that three blocks from ground zero, on Murray Street off West Broadway, there is a strip joint. It prefers to call itself a gentlemen’s club. A man stood on the street corner the other day handing out free passes to willing gentlemen.”

Huh? How does a passive purveyor of porn compare to militant murdering terrorists? Pornography and incubators of mass murder are not morally equivalent.

The organizers of this unfunded mosque idea have tried to soften it up by referring to it as a cultural center. Will the mosque really be this multi-religious “cultural center” that it claims to be? Will women be allowed inside without being covered up with various forms of head shrouds? Will the acts on 9/11 and radical Islam be condemned? Of course not.

Mr. Haberman does not seem to be willing to admit publicly that the terrorists who attacked us on September 11, 2001, were all brainwashed by Islamic radicals in extremist mosques. Perhaps he is pandering to the mayor who supports the mosque. The NY Times would benefit from an acquisition by Bloomberg News.

The authorities will undoubtedly keep close tabs on this “Ground Zero mosque” if it is ever built, but critics are justified in raising concern. In contrast, no adult porn shop or off-track betting site ever produced a jihad of America-hating murderers.

Mission Accomplished

August 31, 2010

Coincidentally, on the same day President Obama gave a primetime speech to announce that all combat troops had left Iraq, BatteryPark.TV is glad to announce “Mission Accomplished” too with Project Duck. The last straggling duckling that was developing flight feathers more slowly than the others finally flew away today.

(The last duck to fly, shown here two weeks ago with wingtip feathers still growing)

Every single one of the ten ducklings that was present on May 31 when we first began reporting on the stranded ducklings survived to adulthood and flew away. This was possible only due to a collaboration of various conscientious volunteers in the community, ranging from the Parks Conservancy staff who fed them when they were smallest, to other concerned residents of Battery Park City.

The waterfall pond had zero ducks in it at 6:00 PM today. Now, it’s just the old faithful overgrown goldfish left. However, the ducks return daily, so you will still be able to see them, and more strangers from Up North will land and visit in about a month, as they did last year. There are already three stranger mallard ducks hanging out.

(Photo of mallards migrating south last year in November, gathering in the BPC pond)

August 17, 2010

The dynamics of the little Duck Utopia have been greatly altered. Four stranger adult male mallards flew into town and are hanging out in the waterfall pond during the day. They can be spotted by their slightly larger size and behavior. They do not associate in close proximity with the nine siblings that grew up in the pond. One of the adult males is also acting territorial, almost in pre-mating rituals.  The mother is not around much these days.

The young siblings seem to be learning from the new adults and are flying more often. This evening, all but two of the ducks flew the coop for the evening. One duck has had slow development of the flight feathers on her wings and another seems too small to fly with the pack.

August 11, 2010

A male duck landed in the waterfall pond today and was a bit larger than the others. It might have been one of the siblings that flew away 5 days ago. It began to lead the group around the pond and bob his head. Then suddenly, he took flight toward the Hudson taking with him one of the ducks on its first flight.

The remaining ducks took short flights but aborted them within the pond. They all hopped up to the highest rim of the pond and gazed westward. Then, suddenly again, three of them got the courage to fly away. They circled nearby over the Hudson for more than a two minutes. One returned to the pond. There are now six ducks in the pond.

August 6, 2010

One of the ten former ducklings flew out of the waterfall pond sanctuary for the first time today and went on an overnight expedition with the mother. Their behavior is to return in the morning. The rest are doing test flights the length of the pond. Unlike last year where only two ducklings survived, and only one of those had the nutrition to develop flight wings, all ten this year are doing well, thanks to the care given by the BPC Conservancy staff.

Fellow duck enthusiasts have asked some common questions and here are the answers.

Q1 Are they all females?

A: No. They will not differentiate into the colorful male plumage until next year. For now, the only distinguishing marks are the color of the bills. The males have green bills. Also, the mature males lose their colorful green plumage a month or so after the eggs hatch and develop a more protective camouflage brown color.

Q2 When will they fly?

A: Mallard ducklings can fly as soon as 50 days after hatching. Our ducks are almost 90 days old and have the fully developed wing feathers for flight. Being citified ducks, they seem to be a bit lazy and comfortable where they are.

Q3: When will they leave for good?

A: They will likely stick around in the pond until November. The mother will stay with them until next year.

Q4: Will they return next year?

A: Yes. They will likely return and nest again nearby.

The best Italian restaurant Downtown: Il Giglio

Chef/Owner Rolando Mendez gives us a tour of his Il Giglio restaurant that he started twenty years ago. He was the original chef at the famous Il Mulino. Many say that Il Giglio is a clone of Il Mulino .

Il Giglio, 81 Warren Street, (212) 571-5555

Tire Swing Park: The victim of two feuding bureaucracies

August 26^th, 2010

The new Tire Swing Park by West Thames has had as controversial of a launch as its planning stage. First, opponents of the park raised concerns over the iconic swinging tire and forced it to be removed. Then, the drainage of the rubberized surface by the kid’s waterfall was backing up and creating a pond.

As a result, the BPCA never assumed responsibility for the park from the DOT as promised on the day of the ribbon cutting.

As the two bureaucracies feuded and played “hot potato” with the troubled park, the expensively sodded playing field became the neglected child in an ugly divorce. The DOT was watering the field too much and the BPCA Parks Conservancy people did not close the grass field occasionally to protect it from overuse, as they do with adjacent grass lots in the parks.

Rector Park grass field closed for protection

Hence, 40% or so of the field is now completely dead and all mud.

Re-sodding would cost $30,000 for a private project, but likely $100,000 for a State contract. This is in addition to the $9 Million cost of building the park (that many did not want and preferred the original shaded, more natural, park with a real tire swing!)

BatteryPark.TV emailed and called the Region 11 of the New York State DOT media relations staff nearly a dozen times and received no reply. Only after contacting the Director, Phillip Eng, did we get some answers. They wrote:

From the DOT: I am writing in response to your questions regarding West Thames Park. First, my apologies for not getting back to you yesterday. As you saw from my response e-mail, I was on vacation the past week, and I was very busy catching up on other calls and e-mails.  Also, I wanted to touch base with the Route 9A project team to see if there had been any communication with you before I spoke with you.

Next, as part of my discussion with the project team, we visited the park today, and I saw that the drainage issue has been repaired. Perhaps you’ve seen the holes the team drilled in the safety surface to improve the drainage.  These holes were drilled last week, and the parents in the park told us they have been pleased with the performance of the drain since that time.  This is only a temporary measure, and we will look to do something more permanent after Labor Day, when the Parks Conservancy is expected to shut off the water features of the park for the season.

Regarding the lawn, as we have noted in the past, it was constructed to Parks Conservancy standards, and the responsibility for closing the lawn to rest the grass is theirs. We have been involved with testing of the grass and soil to determine if there are any changes that would be necessary to either the grass or soil.  We are expecting the results of those tests within the next few days, and we will be discussing the results with the Parks Conservancy and the BPC Committee of Community Board 1.

Finally, the park is already partially under the authority of the Parks Conservancy. They are already tending to the sand, cleaning and policing the park, and performing other operational functions. We will continue to work with them on construction “punch list” items, such as the lawn and the drainage, to ensure a smooth transition.

I hope this is helpful.  Please feel free to let me know if you need any additional information.

Adam Levine

The WFC Green Market

July 8, 2010

Grow NYC opened a farmers market in the south entrance of World Financial Center 2. Craig Willingham gives a brief tour.

Lilibeth Brow Salon

A tour of the Lilibeth Salon located in the Winter Garden of the WFC.

Is that one of them artsy things?

August 25, 2010

BPC has featured many interesting temporary art exhibits near the North Cove Marina. The latest one called “Weather Beacon” by Erik Guzman is quite a mystery. If the goal is to perplex, it has certainly succeed.

What is this thing? Give us your comments below.

30 seconds on the set of Friends with Benefits

July 28, 2010

30 seconds on the set of Friends with Benefits

Starring Justin Timberlake and Woody Harrrelson

Filmed at North Cove Marina

How to eliminate head injury in football

Op-Ed August 21, 2010

Serious head injury in American football is commonplace and has received national attention within the last two years. The New York Giants quarterback, Eli Manning, is sitting out a few games due to head injury. Last season, star quarterback for the Florida Gators and Heisman Trophy winner, Tim Tebow, suffered yet another concussion that was witnessed by millions of sports fans, as did Super Bowl champ Ben Roethlisberger and many others.

Bryant Gumbel of HBO’s Real Sports was an import factor in bringing this problem to the mainstream. As a result of his show and subsequent coverage in the press, the NFL was pressured to make changes. There is now a mandatory time-off for players suffering concussion, and new posters have been placed in locker rooms. The concern is extending to off-the-field injuries as well. In 2009, then Tonight Show host Conan O’Brien gave head injury more national attention with his on-air concussion.

A recent study commissioned by the NFL found an astonishingly greater prevalence of Alzheimer’s-like memory loss in ex-NFL players. Young athletes in high school or lower grades are even more vulnerable to permanent brain damage after the initial concussion than adults. In addition, there is now new credible evidence from the same scientists at Boston University that Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is caused by head injury.

Concussions are one of the dirty secrets of football. What can be done to make America’s favorite sport safer?

The cause of the vast majority of concussions in football is the lack of enforcement of the rules dictating proper tackling and blocking. The helmet is currently used as the primary ramming tool, particularly at the higher levels, when in fact the facemask and helmet should theoretically never be used in contact. It is against the rules for a defensive player to dip his head and tackle headfirst with his helmet. On the offense, a proper block should use the arms and hands as the initial point of contact, and runners should not dip down and ram headfirst. In reality, however, virtually every block on the interior line and every running play uses the facemask and helmet as battering rams.

It would be quite feasible to enforce the existing rules of football that dictate the helmet should not be used as a weapon and the quality of play as seen by the spectator would not be diminished. Running backs should run with their facemasks up at all times. If a running back were to dip his head and spear forward, it should be a 15-yard penalty and loss of down. Likewise, offensive and defensive linemen should be penalized if their helmets clash.

The ground collisions with helmeted heads that cause injury cannot be easily prevented. However, a simple enforcement of the blocking, tackling, and running rules should eliminate a significant portion of the head (and spine) injuries in football. Also, preventing the premature return of head injured players will help reduce further injury as well.

Hines Ward of the Pittsburgh Steelers can lay out some the most vicious and entertaining blocks in all of football just by using his shoulder pads. Using the helmet as a weapon is cheating, unnecessary, and should be banned.

Emeril Lagasse cuts the price on his NYC apartment by 40%

August 20, 2010

As evidence of the continued weak real estate market in NYC, TV chef Emeril Lagasse had to slash the price of his Midtown loft by 40%: from $7.6 Million to $4.6 Million. The WSJ has more.

Big decline in apartment prices

July 7^th, 2010

The WSJ is reporting today an update on apartment sales prices and number of units sold. The good news is that the number of units increased 179% yoy to 383 units (137 in April of 2009), and a 20% increase from last month. However, the bad news is that prices are way down. Compared to 2009, the selling price of apartments in Battery Park City and the Financial District had the largest drop of Manhattan: down 17%.

Red areas represent the largest price declines.

Keep in mind that 2009 was the bottom in the economic recession in NYC. Despite the ample bonuses paid out in 2010, it has not seemed to impact selling prices.

Stranded ducklings in Battery Park City

June 1, 2010

Approximately three weeks ago, two nests of duck eggs hatched in Battery Park City. According to a park ranger, one nest was in the grass of the Irish Hunger Memorial and the other one was in Tear Drop Park. Vince McGowan of the Battery Park Conservancy said that a local resident relocated the newly hatched ducklings to the waterfall pond. A park ranger confronted the person who then informed the ranger that he had a “license to handle wildlife”.

The Parks Conservancy is not feeding or caring for the ducklings. They are viewed as wildlife that can fend for itself.

The problem with the ducklings being in the pond is that humans placed them there unnaturally. The animals have no way of getting out of the pond at this age and are therefore unable to fend for themselves. Of the original 19, 10 ducklings remain.

Ducklings feed on insects and invertebrates. The small ecosystem of the pond, with fish competing for the food, is unlikely to support the ducklings as they grow into larger animals.

The video may be viewed here

July 15 update

Jackass 3D and Big Air’s Mat Hoffman: An American lunatic

August 17, 2010

The upcoming masterpiece of film called “Jackass 3D” will feature a BMX daredevil, Mat Hoffman, who has broken more bones than Evil Knievel and has suffered at least 70 concussions. He wears a shoulder harness because his arm was almost amputated.

Mr. Hoffman was right here in BPC last April for the Tribeca Film Festival. See below.

April 24, 2010

The public “drive in” movie tonight at the Tribeca Film Festival is “Big Air”. To promote it, BMX set up a half pike and has skateboarders and BMX bikers making big air.

Monarch butterflies in Wagner Park

Joke of the day

August 6, 2010

Jay Leno: Giuliani scolded his daughter after shoplifting “You go to Harvard. You don’t start stealing till you go to Wall Street”

The pretentious way to pronounce Muslim

Op-Ed August 14, 2010

The old media TV news is infamous for using pretentious odd pronunciations of common words or new words of the day. Some examples include the numerous ways to botch “Qatar” as Cutter, etc, pronouncing Pakistan as “Pawkeestan” and Taliban as “Tollyban”.

The basic word Muslim is now being changed. Watch ABC Nightly News pronounce it multiple ways in the same story.

National Night Out with Mayor Bloomberg, Commissioner Kelly, Commander Winsky

August 3, 2010

The NYPD hosted community outreach events with the focus on reducing crime. The First Precinct held their rally by the North Cove Marina. Mayor Bloomberg made a brief appearance. Police Commissioner Kelly spoke, and the new First Precinct Commanding Officer, Captain Ed Winsky, was introduced. Note the response of Mayor Bloomberg when someone asked him to run for President.

Taxi driver violent behavior on the rise in NYC

August 11, 2010

BatteryPark.TV previously reported on the rising rate of violent behavior among New York City taxi drivers. A TLC official had confirmed in April, 2010, that TLC internal databases had an increase in passenger complaints and that budget cutbacks had caused slower responses by the TLC to complaints. The taxi driver community is now aware that misconduct is being prosecuted less swiftly, according to one driver interviewed.

A case example of this problem involved a violent yellow cab driver that assaulted a passenger in Battery Park City back in July of 2009 (see video below). The incident involved a person related to BatteryPark.TV. A complaint letter was sent to the TLC and received no reply. Two more letters were sent with no reply. A telephone call to TLC administrators finally elicited a response and a hearing was scheduled approximately one year after the incident.

Last month, during the TLC hearing, the administrative lawyer dismissed the case based on a technicality without commenting on the merits of the complaint against the driver. An appeal was sent to the Deputy Commissioner of the TLC, Pansy Mullings. Ms. Mullings informed BatteryPark.TV that the TLC refused to open the case on appeal. The taxi driver is now currently still operating a vehicle and has no reprimand on his record despite video evidence of the assault and numerous other infractions made by the driver.

If you have had any similar problems with taxi drivers and have received slow or no response from the TLC, you can contact:

Pansy Mullings

Deputy Commissioner

Taxi and Limousine Commission

2455 BQE West

Woodside, NY 113377

April 23, 2010

If you seem to have noticed more whackjob taxi drivers in NYC behaving outright violently toward you, you are correct. BP.TV spoke with a representative of the TLC who confirmed that the statistics from their complaint database support the notion that violent behavior is on the rise since the TLC instituted the credit card payment option.

Cab drivers have to give a small percentage of fairs paid by credit cards to the credit card company. Offsetting this is the fact that many more business travelers will be inclined to take a yellow cab and use their company card rather than take a town car. Nevertheless, to this day, many cab drivers try to play games with customers at the end of a trip, such as not triggering the meter to stop, asking for cash, or by pretending that their meter is broken and cannot accept credit cars. Many of these drivers then become hostile or physically violent with the passengers.

BP.TV has obtained this video of a cab driver becoming violent to a passenger.

Lights out for Merrill Lynch

It’s lights out for Merrill Lynch, literally and figuratively. The tower all lit up is the new Goldman Sachs headquarters. To the left is the dark WFC 4, the old location of Merrill Lynch. Bank of America has relocated most of the Merrill employees to Midtown. Just a few years ago, WFC 4 was jammed to capacity. Reportedly Deloitte accounting is negotiating a lease to move into WFC 4.

The History of BPC by Ed Koch

October 29

Ed Koch, former Mayor of New York City and former U.S. Congressman, now partner at law firm Bryan Cave LLP, was important in the creation of Battery Park City. BPC sits on manmade land created from the bedrock excavated during the World Trade Center construction. BPC was not converted into inhabitable city land with infrastructure until the late 1970’s.

Recently, given the City’s financial woes, there is talk of ending the Battery Park City Authority, which shares revenues between the State and City, and having the City acquire all of BPC. We interviewed Mr. Koch about the history of BPC and the recent issues.