New York City Metblogs » Fern Cohen

Prayers for Natasha Richardson — Actress at Lenox Hill, Family at Bedside

Fern Cohen — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:06:58 +0000

After her accident on a beginners’ ski slope outside Montreal, actress Natasha Richardson is in
critical condition at Lenox Hill Hospital on the Upper East Side. She is surrounded by her famous family, including her husband, actor Liam Neeson, and mom actress Vanessa Redgrave.

Although rumors abound about her condition, some reports even saying she is “brain-dead” [we hope not], spokespeople will only confirm Richardson is in very critical condition, probably suffering from a traumatic brain injury. The actual extent of the injury, much less the prognosis, has not been confirmed yet.

Our prayers go out to Ms. Richardson and her family, as well as the doctors, nurses, and staff at Lenox Hill Hospital. Hopefully, a miracle will help everyone pull her through this sudden tragedy, which is proof again that every minute of life is precious.

African-Americans Needed to Save the Life of a Six-Year-OLD

Fern Cohen — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 11:51:29 +0000

Little Jazmina only has 2 months to live, at best, if she doesn’t get a bone-marrow transplant right away. Jazmina, a 6-year-old, who attends PS41 in Greenwich Village, has a rare and aggressive form of leukemia. She is adopted, so there is no access to her biological family.

All New Yorkers — but especially African-Americans — are needed for a bone marrow screening today [Saturday] at PS41 from 10am to 2pm, at 116 W. 11th Street, west of 6th Avenue in Greenwich Village. This screening will put you in the National Bone Marrow Registry, so even if you are not a match for Jazmina, you may be able to help someone in the future. And it’s completely painless; no blood, and no needles. The screening is done by a saliva swab from the inner cheek.

Possible Boycott of Israeli Food at Park Slope Food Co-Op

Fern Cohen — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 15:29:43 +0000

It will be interesting to see if the proposed boycott of Israeli products goes through at the Park Slope Food Co-Op. Read this article in CrownHeights.info for the full story. New York City’s largest and longest-established food co-op is frequented by various segments of the population, both Jewish and non-Jewish. And among Jews, shoppers run the gamut from Orthodox and Hasidic to Reform and even non-observant secular Jews.

It is not unusual for the co-op to take a political stand, reflecting the tradition of the community in which it is situated. This latest proposal would be in protest of Israel’s recent activities in Gaza.

Persimmons are one of the products from Israel sold at the Park Slope Food Co-op

A local Brooklyn rabbi believes that the proposal will not pass but, if it does, it will seriously impact the co-op’s membership.

Caroline Kennedy Out of Running for US Senate

Fern Cohen — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:32:42 +0000

Caroline Kennedy Martyna Borkowski/Wikimedia Commons

As of now it’s a mystery why Caroline Kennedy has suddenly and shockingly dropped her bid for the US Senate seat from New York, given up by Hillary Clinton upon her appointment as US Secretary of State.

The frontrunner, once again, is Andrew Cuomo, presently NY State Attorney General, and member of another political dynasty. But there are other candidates for the job, including Manhattan Representative Carolyn Maloney, and Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi. One thing is for sure: Governor Paterson has some strong candidates, and promises to announce his decision by the weekend. And I sure hope he does because without Kennedy in the equation, we can stop all the speculation — “Is she qualified/not qualified?”, and all the talk of Camelot, and the continuity of a Kennedy in the Senate, yadda yadda. New York can finally get down to business, fill the seat, and work with our new administration to BEGIN the process of fixing things

USAirways Hero Pilot– Let’s Hear it for Sully’s Maturity and Experience

Fern Cohen — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 02:20:39 +0000

The first thing that struck me when I saw the photo of Chesley Sullenberger of US Airways, the hero of yesterday’s “miracle on the Hudson”? I thought: this is a seasoned professional! In a society that values youth and tries to put older [higher-paid] employees into retirement, we should be happy that experience and maturity is obviously a valued asset at US Airways, at least for pilots. Sullenberger has been flying for 40 years, and got his training in the US Air Force. You might say he is a pilot of the “pld school”.

Ever since the deregulation of the aviation industry in 1978, airlines have been notorious cost-cutters, busting unions, and forcing employees – even pilots — to take pay cuts or early retirement. Let’s all be thankful that “Sully” was not a casualty of a cost-cutting guillotine. His cool demeanor [some passengers say he was the only one not panicking], and smooth landing were the products of his maturity and experience.

In short, let’s hear it for seasoned professionals! There are some jobs in which youth is not such an asset!

Pictures From the Edge

Fern Cohen — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 02:21:11 +0000

Next time you have time to spend, sit down and log onto Borough Edges and be ready to be totally mesmerized! Bettina Johae took 2418 digital images of the perimeter around the whole city — all 5 boroughs! From Riverside Park to Astoria/Ditmars to the Brooklyn Riviera, it’s a trip around the edges. It’s like that coffee-table book that everyone picks up and can’t put down…truly amazing!

Free Bridges — Will They Be History?

Fern Cohen — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:16:10 +0000

It was always nice to have the option– pay for the Midtown Tunnel and get to the Village or Midtown faster, or battle with 59th Street Bridge or the BQE, and the crowded Williamsburg Bridge — but save the toll. Sometimes, it was six of one and half-a-dozen of the other, because you could burn so much gas on the BQE backup that you might as well have paid the tolland sometimes the choice was clear. But you had the choice!

Now, they want to put a toll on previously-free bridges, as an alternative to raising MTA fares. When I first heard, it seemed like a plan; we should be taking more mass-transit anyway! And of course, Bloomberg now has a platform to yell at us like naughty children — on the news, he said something like “See? I had the perfect solution — congestion pricing — and you didn’t want that” Okay, Uncle Mike — we get the point. So here’s another way we can stick it to the “bridge-and-tunnel” crowd.

But here’s what I want to know: let’s say they DO work out a method to collect tolls [since toll-booths are near-impossible, they are talking about a machine that will read your license plate, and bill the driver later -- good luck!], how high do we have to raise the stakes before people WILL say “hmmm…..this is just like congestion-pricing after all. AND, congestion pricing wasn’t supposed to be in effect on the weekends anyway. Are they thinking of making the 59th St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges free on weekends? My guess is “no”.

In other words, was it the intention all along to present options to the “bridge-and-tunnel” crowd [of which I am one, by the way] that turn out to be just as bad, or even worse for private cars, than congestion pricing? And how high can the stakes go, before car-dependent suburbanites will finally load their families onto commuter railroads for their day in the city? What is the tipping point when private drivers will leave the cars home?

The Brooklyn Bridge is now free, but would charge a toll under the new proposed plan

Vote for the Best and Worst of Queens 2008

Fern Cohen — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 20:16:29 +0000

John Roleke, Queens blogger, needs your help. For all you Queens-ites, vote on the best and worst in several categories — including politics, development, neighborhoods, restaurants, sports, potholes
and other ones he wants you to come up with!
This is your chance to express your opinion!

Is LaGuardia one of the worst of Queens? photo by JeremyGoldstein/Wikimedia Commons

Health Care Now Rally and March Thursday 11/13

Fern Cohen — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 23:43:51 +0000

So now that Barack Obama has been elected President, let’s help him out and show our support for his plan of healthcare for all!

Attend HealthCare NOW’s rally and march calling for a national Single-Payer health care system. At the rally there will be a Phone-A-Thon supporting HR 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act. Let’s get it passed.

One Nation, One Plan!
Thursday, November 13, 2008
4:00PM – 5:00PM Rally
Corner 42nd & 7th Ave
5:00PM March to GHI 34th St & 9th Ave

Mr. Obama: Can We Make Broadway More Accessible for the Middle Class?

Fern Cohen — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 23:11:05 +0000

We learn that another celebrity-backed movie-morphed-into-musical is coming to town, courtesy of Dolly Parton. I’m sure ticket prices will be as splashy as the stage.
It’s a case of the chicken and the egg on Broadway these days. Are movies being recycled into splashy musicals to fill seats in the theaters, at unaffordable [to most people] prices, to pay for the high-priced movie and TV celebs and splashy sets? Or do we need the movies-made-into-splashy-musicals and celebs to fill seats, and thus have to charge exorbitant prices to pay for the splashy sets and high-price stars they have to use on Broadway in order to fill those seats.

Big money drives a Broadway production, and big money pays the bill for a night out at the theater. “Disney-fication” revived an ailing Broadway and cleaned up the Theater District, but ticket prices have gone through the roof, and I wonder what’s going to happen if tourism goes down in this crappy economy, especially from international visitors. In his effort to help the middle-class, can Mr. Obama help pass initiatives to subsidize the arts, as they do in Europe, to keep tickets reasonably priced? Or better yet, to help emerging producers, directors, composers, and writers without Disney-type bank accounts to put up original and stage fresh ideas, without such a hefty price-tag?