Fiasco

BUT FIRST Before turning to the main business of this blog, yr obdt svt ventures to share with you-all his sense of exasperation over technical problems that caused long delays and many oaths and imprecations before posting. Furthermore: BE WARNED. On October 1st, all fees related to motor vehicles will go up. Big time. Included are fees for photocopying documents (from $5 to $10), original title ($10-$50!), duplicating titles ($10-$20), mobile home title ($25-$125!), dealer issued plates ($50 per box-$125) and, well, everything else. Moreover, civil penalties for lapses in vehicle insurance go up steeply. BE THERE. A superb exhibition of photographs--"1000 Families: The Family Album of Planet Earth"--opens tonight at, and around, and near, the Brik gallery in Catskill (473 Main Street). The maker of this marvelous collection, Uwe Ommer, will be there for the 6-8 pm. opening party. The show--or as much of it as can be moved indoors--will be on view until the end of October. AND NOW... GreeneLand’s taxpayers were subjected last Tuesday week (9/13) to an exercise in futility. They funded “primary elections” (to use the conventional label), in which an overwhelming majority of registered voters could not participate. They paid for county-wide elections in which eight out of nine of the eligible voters did not participate. They paid for political contests in which the participants’ votes decided nothing. In the southernmost voting district of Cementon, four paid inspectors waited all day, as they were obliged legally to do, in case the two repeat TWO residents who were eligible to vote there chose to do so. They waited in vain. In the 5th (little red schoolhouse) voting station in Catskill, similarly, turnout among the eligibles was zero. In another district the total turnout was one. At latest count, 29,720 people were classed by registration and past participation as active GreeneLand voters. But in Tuesday’s elections, only 1024 of those individuals were eligible to participate. They included the 860 GreeneLanders who are registered adherents of the Conservative Party, the 61 county residents who adhere to the Working Families Party, and the 103 Athenians who are registered Independence Party members. To accommodate those prospective voters as mandated by State law, the Elections Commissioners (Frank DeBenedictus and Tom Burke) established 29 polling stations, each staffed by the required number of inspectors (four at each). Thus, 116 trained inspectors were on site, each paid, each duty-bound to be there all day. At the end of the day, votes at those 29 stations had been cast by 142 Conservatives, by 7 (s-e-v-e-n) WoFams, and by 14 Indies. Each vote in effect cost the taxpayers more than $80. For all intents and purposes, those voters made decisions that were devoid of consequence. They decided who would be named, on the forthcoming general election ballot, as the designated nominees of the Conservative and the Working Families parties for county judge, as the Independence Party nominee for Athens Town Supervisor, and as Conservative nominees for local offices in Athens (supervisor) and Cairo (supervisor, justice, councilman). But the names of the winners of those contests would have appeared on the general election ballot anyway; and so would the names of the losers. The contestants already had earned Republican and Democratic designations on the general election ballot (thanks to party caucus nominations that were not challenged by petitions that could have led to more primary contests). All that Tuesday’s winners gained was “second line”candidacy on behalf of a minor party. Thus, George J. Pulver Jr. already is the Republican nominee for county judge, and Eugenia M. Brennan already is the Democratic nominee. The primary election enabled Pulver to be designated also as the Conservative nominee (thanks to receiving 91 votes by registered Conservatives to Brennan’s 50), while Brennan gained the WFP nomination (by six votes to one). Consequently, Pulver’s name will appear on the general election ballot as the Republican and the Conservative nominee while Brennan’s name appears as the Democratic and the WFP nominee. In Athens, Albert Salvino won the Independence Party designation for town supervisor, by 9 votes to Richard Surrano’s 5, while Surrano won the Conservative Party nomination over Salvino by 22 votes to one. In Cairo, the primary election contests resulted in the selections of Joseph Calcavecchia as Conservative nominee for town supervisor (by 22 votes to 11 for Kathy Jurgens); of Tom Baldwin for town justice (by 8 votes to one apiece for “Mary Tarpanion” and Mike Flynn); and of Alice Tuneson and “Mary Tarpinion” for town council offices (by 10 votes apiece over 6 each for Paul Schirico and Ray Suttmeier). (Would those two Marys actually be Margaret Tarpinian?). But in none of these cases is it likely that having a second party line is crucial to a candidate’s success. Indeed, registered Conservatives and WoFams, along with Independencians, collectively are out-numbered by registered Republicans, by registered Democrats, and even by the GreeneLand voters who adhere to no party. How did such a debacle, such a waste of resources, come to pass? Don’t blame the Elections Commissioners. They did not make the laws that they faithfully executed. Indeed, they did their best, by way of the number of polling stations they established, to lighten the taxpayers’ load. And they have tried, in conjunction with their counterparts across the State, to get the legislators to amend the laws that allow such waste of resources. If you want to make a case against the Elections Commissioners, scold them for not being loud enough, nasty enough, toward the candidates and their handlers who, by choosing to compete frivolously for minor-party nominations, set in motion an elaborately pointless operation. Do blame the contestants, then--a little. They could have refrained from bidding for ‘second’ party lines on the November ballot, when they already owned major-party designations and they had no solid reason to believe that the extra line would make a crucial difference. But at the same time, they can scarcely be blamed for feeling insecure about their prospects and for responding to uncertainty by utilizing every legal device that could conceivably bring electoral advantage. Most blameworthy for our late election fiasco, really, is The System. What happened was made possible by provisions of New York State’s election laws. The offending provisions are products historically of commendable drives to (i) prevent the two major parties from having a stranglehold on general election ballots, and (ii) prevent the governing committees of those parties from running roughshod over rank-and-file members. The former value is served by rules making it fairly easy, by means of petition signatures of a prescribed number, to create what the Election Commissioners recognize as a political party (Conservative, Socialist Labor, Progressive, Reform…) whose name shall be placed on a line on the general election ballot, parallel to the names of its designated candidates for public office (candidates who also may be nominees on other parties’ lines). The second value is served by rules limiting the power of party leaders to decide who shall be their party’s designated nominee for a given office. Thus, a candidate can become the party’s nominee, identified as such on the general election ballot, by winning endorsement at an officially recognized party caucus. That is just how many candidates do become nominees. County-wide committees of Republicans and Democrats respectively endorsed Pulver and Brennan for election to county judge. But the endorsement suffices legally only if it is not effectively challenged. If another Republican had sought to become his party’s candidate for county judge, he could have challenged the endorsement of Pulver by gathering from registered GreeneLand Republicans a prescribed quota of signatures, namely 5 per cent of the.party’s enrollment. If he had done so, the Elections Board would have been obliged to conduct a county-wide Republican primary election. Contests of that sort are regular occurrences, especially when the office sought is as mighty as Congressman or Governor or Mayor of New York City. What happened in GreeneLand last Tuesday was that while there were no challenges over Republican or Democratic nominations for county judge and for local offices, there were challenges over Conservative and Working Families nominations (plus Independence Party nomination for town supervisor in Athens). The required quotas of signatures were collected, so the challenges became effective, at least to the point where the Commissioners of Elections were obliged to set up polling booths all over the county for convenience of just a few voters. Such travesties can be forestalled. They can be forestalled without bringing in bad side effects. They require changes in State law. Two approaches could be taken. (i) Raise thresholds. One approach consists simply of increasing the volume of popular support, in the form of petition signatures, that a candidate needs in order to trigger a primary election contest. The current threshold, 5 per cent of enrolled party members, is absurdly low when the prospective contest is a minor-party contest. Thus, only valid 43 signatures by registered Conservatives (860 in number) were needed in order to prompt a county-wide primary election contest for the county judge nomination. The quotas for minor parties (who registered supporters number less than 10 per cent of all registered voters, and/or whose electoral support at the last general election came to less than 10 per cent of votes cast) should be much higher. The higher requirement would not snuff out minor parties; it would only forestall publicly funded contests over minor party nominations. (ii) Eliminate party lines. Much more comprehensive, easy to do, certain of effect, and attractive financially would be the simple step of eliminating the practice of identifying, on the general election ballot,the party affiliations of candidates for public office. Thus, candidates would be grouped by office sought and would be identified only by name. Nobody is identified officially as the Republican, the Democratic or the Progressive candidate. That simple measure would be rich in economizing, simplifying consequences. When nobody is entitled to a party label on the general election ballot; public officials do not need rules governing the allocation of those precious labels. They would not need rules for deciding what procedures by party committees qualify as valid candidate-nominating procedures. They would not need to decide when there shall be primary elections. There would be no primary elections. After all, the only purpose served by those elections is to assign party labels on the general election ballot. Political parties would still exist, and indeed would thrive. But they would be private clubs. Their members are peculiarly preoccupied with public policies and public offices. They would be free to mobilize volunteers and frame programs, to recruit candidates, to make endorsements contingent on promises not to run independently if not endorsed, to marshall support for those candidates, to co-ordinate campaigns of endorsed candidates for various offices, to frame platforms, to publicize favored candidates by reference to party affiliation, and thus to tell voters which candidate for each elective office is the endorsed Republican, Democratic or Progressive candidates. But their endorsements would not be recorded on the ballot. They would be outside the purview of public authority. While elimination of party designation from general election ballots would obviate the need for primary elections, however, it would not dispose of the problem of deciding what persons are entitled to be listed on the general election ballot as candidates. And filters are needed. For good civic reasons, contestants for each office ought to be few in number, so as to bring about majority or heavy-plurality decisions without run-offs. That need is partly met now, and it could continue to be met, by rules that in effect require prospective candidates to show evidence of substantial grass-roots support and of serious intention. Evidence of support is customarily provided by endorsements on petitions. Let the required number of endorsements be substantial—10 per cent of the number of votes cast in the last election for a given office—and only a few people will be able to pass that test (a measure of electability). Meanwhile, seriousness of purpose can be evidenced by the payment of a substantial cash deposit (varying upward with rank of office, from local to State and so on). Each deposit would be returnable if the candidate wins a required percentage (10, for example) of votes cast in the election. By this dual means, weak and frivolous candidacies would be deterred, but candidacy—opportunity to appear on the ballot—would still be readily accessible. In short, elimination of party designation from the general election ballot need not prompt an undesirable profusion of candidates. It would spare us no end of trouble and expense. And it happens to be a thoroughly conventional thing to do. Far from being a radical step into the unknown, it would mark a return to pre-20th century elections in America, and it would bring us into line with standard practice in most of the English-speaking world.

Maul Overhaul?

For Daily Mail watchers, last Sunday’s paper (9/4) was unusual. On the masthead, parallel to the name of publisher Roger F. Coleman, appeared a new name, Theresa Hyland, with a new title, Executive Editor. The title and its placement put the newcomer above Raymond Pignone, Editor. Ms Hyland’s arrival was not hailed by a profiling news story. It was signaled by means of a by-lined story in which the Executive Editor describes changes in D M formatting, item location, and offerings. Page 2A will henceforth cover “entertainment” with a different focus (theater, celebrities, music, movies…) each day; obituaries go to page 3A. There will be additional comics and puzzles, plus a Sunday full-page fiction story. In short, the reformed Daily Mail will carry even more canned (syndicated, wire-service) material. There will be even more of those unnecessary, over-sized, space-gobbling page headings (Around the Globe, Greene County, Living Today, Technology, Taste, Books, Columns, Neighbors, Seniors, Business, Schools, Sports, Opinion as well as Page Two). Conspicuously absent from Ms Hyland’s article was evidence of plans to increase the puny supply of local material. Also absent was evidence of determination to decrease the incidence verbal pratfalls, such as “lack of rain has been the single most complaint of the summer” (Dick Nelson, 8/28) and Ms Hyland’s own “In addition to the ‘Family Time Crossword’ puzzle, another addition for the kids is a feature titled ‘Tell Me a Story’.” Indeed, in a picture caption in yesterday’s Maul, a sentence containing two misspellings (“delapidated,” “rehabiliation”) was followed immediately by a challenging concept: “positive asset.” RIP Van Winkle was “the quintessential hippie, the one who made a success of failure by tuning in, turning on, and dropping out.” That’s just one of many incisive comments voiced by ace Saugerties writer John Thorn in issues of hudsonriverbracketed.blogspot.com. And even his nonsense is stimulating. For example, Mr Thorn goes on to say that “By making Rip literally a good-for-nothing [author Washington Irving] created a role model not only for a distant counterculture [Woodstock] but also for art—which, like play, may have no purpose but itself or it becomes no longer itself.” Activities do not have purposes. They may serve various purposes, and art and play serve many. DEMOCRATS’ CONTEST. Barbara Van Kuren, who has been Chair of GreeneLand’s feeble Democratic Party for about as long as anybody can remember, is retiring from that office, and at least two would-be successors have come forward. They are Tom Poelker, long-time Vice Chairman of county Democrats as well as Chairman of the Windham Democratic Committee, and Diane Louis, who chairs the New Baltimore Democratic Committee. Both have circulated candidacy-avowing letters to Democrats who are eligible to attend the County Committee’s reorganization meeting on September 28th. Mr Poelker claims preferment on the basis of natural successor status, along with the vision of a “favorable time for change” in the party’s fortunes and a resolve to “re-energize and rebuild.” Ms Louis complains of “back room” dealings in connection with the choice of successor, cites local success (electing a County legislator against a Republican incumbent!, winning Town contests), and calls for “new leadership with a winning record and a winning attitude.” Catskill’s party leader, Marie Grecco, tells Seeing Greene that both candidates are “fine persons who have worked very hard for the party.” ANALYSED: the blood of 61 GreeneLanders, at a bargain price, thanks to a program called AMBA Wellness that was carried out recently in Catskill’s new Senior Center under local sponsorship of the Lioness Club. The price of $36 for a wide range of tests was, according to Seeing Greene’s consulting physician, “lower than what I can get for myself.” The work was done by reputable Quest Diagnostics of Pittsburgh PA. Only requirement for participation is permission from one’s own physicians, to whom (as well as to the patients) results are mailed. There’s a possibility that another day of testing for GreeneLanders will be scheduled later this year. For information telephone 1 800 234-8888 (=Annual Multiphasic Blood Analysis, of West Amherst NY) or(518) 943-4992 (=Lioness President Joan Young). BUSTED, by State Police and then by Catskill Village Police, for allegedly trying to get Oxycontin from three pharmacies by way of forged prescriptions: Ashley M. Apjohn, 23, of Five Mile Woods Road. At one pharmacy, according to the police report, Ms Apjohn offered a “prescription” that was dated one day later than day of presentation. THE “PEP” in PEP Painting is not a claim about energy. It’s acronymic for Paul, Eileen & Paul Rosenblatt. The latter, Paul Jr, is a Catskill Village police officer and prospective State Trooper. And the senior Paul used to be plump. Not any more. CORRIGENDA. Diane and Amanda Collier are partners in, not just contractors for, Just Leave It To Us ([518]678-5875), whose cleaning/provisioning/servicing business is not confined to weekenders. Serendipity is at 65 West Bridge St, not 45. Our sloppy copy editor allowed “…tipster Anonymous tipster...” to get by. BYGONES. Fifty years ago, according to P.A. Bone in The Greenville Press, Federal agents warned farmer C. W. Van Zile not to sell his Cauterskill Road property (abutting the Thruway overpass) pending confirmation, or the obverse, of reports from airborne prospectors that the place contains uranium deposits. ***”My aunt’s thrift knew no bounds. At Christmas she saved all cards received and the next year crossed off the names of the senders and wrote her own. Considerate friends signed their greetings in pencil so she could easily erase the names and send those cards to her more discriminating list. The envelopes did not fit, of course, as she bought one size at the Five & Dime and folded the cards if necessary. One day I received a letter from her saying she was saving all the birthday cards and holiday greetings we had sent her, and was returning them for us to send her again.” --Edith Cole Silberstein, Our Lovable Eccentrics (Thomas Cole National Historic Site, 2005), ***On this date four years ago, our World Trade Center was obliterated.

Goings & Comings

GOING, GOING to auction, on the steps of the county courthouse (as the legal advertisements always put it), at 10 am. September 14th : the once-flourishing Full Gospel Tabernacle’s church property at 341 Main Street, Catskill. This after delayed action on a judgment of foreclosure dating from January 2004, and after vain attempts to sell the richly historic complex for a bit more than the outstanding debt of $450,000. So much for Pastor Jim Finn’s swaggarty bluster about needing bigger premises. $115,006.43=”approximate” amount of outstanding lien on another property (Blodgett Road in Windham) that, according to another legal ad, is to be auctioned (9/6, 10 am., by referee John Winans) on the courthouse steps. Such “approximations” seem to be standard. Auctioned yesterday was a foreclosed Hunter property (64 County Road 16) whose “approximate” amount of lien was $100,428 and 69 cents. COMING next Saturday (9/10), at 350 Main Street, from 5 pm.: opening of downtown Catskill’s sixth art gallery. On show at The M will be creations of proprietor Patrick Milbourn, consummate illustrator, portraitist, landscapist and ball striker. This newest milestone in the cultural revival of Thomas Cole’s home town will be celebrated up and down the rialto, with solidarity-affirming shows at The Brik, The Open Studio, The Arts Council gallery, and Verso. Visitors to The M may wish to (i) congratulate the host on the quality of his gallery’s floors (fixed after much unscheduled grief), and to (ii) rhapsodize over Patrick’s sophisticated use in landscape painting of sfumato, the technique devised by Leonardo Da Vinci so as to impart, by layering translucent colors, an image of scenic depth and of, well, smokiness. (For the latter, Seeing Greene’s art editor confesses a debt to the Wikipedia. OPENED, last night (9/1), at 45 West Bridge Street, Catskill: Serendipity, a “consignment boutique” that, according to a display ad in our local daily, deals in “clothing, home furnishings and Anitques.” COMPLETED at last: sale of Anne Sttewart’s former Kilt Shop, 384 Main Street, Catskill (two storefronts plus apartments), to Peter Griffin, Woodstock-based teacher and investor. For the near term, his only plan is to look for tenants. FIGHT MANNEQUINISM! That’s the call to battle posted on a billboard facing east-bound traffic on 9W approaching Rip Van Winkle bridge. Respondents who’ve not turned into plaster can check it out at fightmannequinism.org. GROWING: a service business catering to weekend GreeneLanders. It was started two years ago Sandra & Michael Smith, themselves veteran weekenders who had sought, and eventually found, reliable local people who would clean their house, stock it with provisions, otherwise get it ready just before they got up from the big city (where he’s a lawyer and she was Commissioner of Corrections). They found “ideal” help in the persons of Diane Collier and her daughter Amanda. That association gave rise to the idea for an up-scale referral business that has grown in two years from four customers to 40. It’s called Just Leave It to Us, and will soon have a web site called Noworriesjustleaveittous.com For more information: (518)678-5875 or heartsmith@aol.com. The Smiths, incidentally, were stalwart members a few years back of the Leeds-based, anti-WalMart mob called It’s Not Easy Being Greene. REVIVED? We reported back in February that a Tannersville restaurant that in former lives was the Elka Inn, Beowulf’s, and China Wok would soon be reincarnated as Black Diamonds Grill. With the departure of manager Angelo Agosto, however, that project got stalled. But owners Bernie Zahn and Kris Gilly still hope to open the place in time for ski season. Meanwhile, their ambitious makeover of the Heartbreak Hotel is on track for a Fall opening. This intelligence comes to you courtesy of tipster Anonymous tipster and of Seeing Greene’s ace Mountain correspondent (and rising thespian), Charles Neighbors. WINDHAM HISTORY. Idea of forming a Windham Historical Society has been broached by Margy Davis and friends. A meeting September 22 at Center Church (6:30 pm.) has been scheduled. The organizers could do well to seek guidance from leaders of the Greene County Historical Society (731-5490), the Mountain Top Historical Society (Justine Hommel; 589-6657), the Durham Center Museum (239-8461) and/or the Zadock Pratt Museum (239-3305; but their web site needs updating). And leaders of those organizations could offer help by calling Margy at (518) 734-3700. DIVORCED: PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as outside/independent auditors, from Greene County Bancorp, parent of The Bank of Greene County; after three fiscal years and, say the parties, no dispute over the books. RETAINED: Beard Miller Co. LP, a regional CPA firm (350 employees; seven offices in Pennsylvania, one each in Maryland and New Jersey), as the bank’s new outside auditor. JOBS. According to a report from the State Labor Department, employment in GreeneLand increased by 600 jobs, to 23,400 jobs, from last July 2004. The ranks of registered unemployed persons dwindled by 100. And the unemployment rate (percentage of people deemed to be part of work force, but jobless) dropped from 4.9 to 4.8. All of which indicates a healthy local rate of unemployment is lower than the figure for the State as a whole. But Columbia County seems to be doing better. It has a bigger work force (32,500 vs. our 23,400), has virtually the same number of unemployed (about 1200), and thus has a substantially lower unemployment rate (3.7%). Both counties are below the State-wide unemployment figure (5.2%). BUSTED, on grand larceny and other charges arising from activities as a Home Depot employee: Shpresa Elshani, 29, of Catskill. She is accused of stealing about $5700 in cash and store credit cards (a felony), of forging customers’ names on receipts, and of knowingly making false entries in the store’s data system. Following arraignment before Town Justice Peter Margolius and a jail spell in lieu of $5000 bail or $10,000 bond, she’s due to re-appear in Justice court, for likely assignment to county court, on September 15th. BUSTED on disturbing-the-peace charges earlier this month: Floyd Townsend, 57, and Melody Townsend, 16. In felicitous words of Village police officer Daniel Waer, they were committing “tumultuous behavior.” BUSTED, by State police, on suspicion of sexually harassing a 17-year-old neighbor: Durham denizen Gary--wait for it; no jumping ahead; don’t rush me; savor the moment; ready?--Stalker.

Skirling, Soaring, Scolding, Padding

First comes the skirl, then comes the sight, of 150 plaids-kilted bagpipers marching down the ski slope at Hunter Mountain. It’s an awesome start of the weekend’s International Celtic Festival, replete with caber tossing, Irish music, Celtic products. For details: 263-4223 or www.huntermtn.com. Equally special in GreeneLand this weekend will be the Great Northern Catskills Balloon Festival, in the Town Park on Route 32 in Greenville. There’s an opening ceremony at 5 o’clock today. On Saturday and Sunday, balloon launching starts at 6 (s-i-x) in the morning. The festival offers rides (helicopter as well as balloon), crafters, musicians and, at 9:15 both nights, fireworks. 966-5050 or www.greenville-ny.com. Also noteworthy this weekend: Rocking. The B-Side Band at Athens Riverfront Park from 7 pm. tonight. Paddling. Guided kayaks and canoes through RamsHorn/Livingston Sanctuary, rich in flora and fauna, Saturday afternoon, with the Audubon Society’s Larry Federman. Also on Monday. Equipment provided. 678-3248. Shopping. Farmers’ & Artisans’Market, from 9:30 am. at Catskill Point (foot of Main St, Catskill) tomorrow. Vendors, music, demonstrations. Classic Rock. Richard Street and The Temptations, at Catskill Point from 7:30 pm. Saturday. A HOCA special. Listening. Opera stars Mignon Dunn and Camille Coppola performing with artists in residence at Altamura Summer Institute, 404 Winter Clove Road, Round Top, Saturday. 622-0070 or www.altocanto.org. Gawking. Vintage cars & ‘bikes on show all of Sunday at Rielbauers Resort in Round Top. 622-9584. Mushrooming, from 9 am. Sunday at Cornell Co-operative Extension’s Agroforestry Resource Center in Acra. 622-9820 or www.cce.cornell.edu/greene. Recollecting. Home and farm life during the American Revolution elucidated by costumed Historical Society guides, at the ultra-historic Bronck house and museum, just off Route 9W in Coxsackie, from 1:30 pm. Sunday. 731-6490 or www.gchistory.com. OPENED: elegant new lodge at Hunter Mountain. It’s called the Kaatskill Mountain Club (except in Daily Mail of 8/13, where it becomes Katskill) and is being marketed as a “fractional ownership” (read: time-share) facility with hotel-like guest arrangements. An on-line advertisement for the place touts Hunter Mountain sub-literately as “the Catskill’s premier resort” and, a sentence later, as “the Catskills premier resort.” DAILY MAUL. While we’re being fussy about the literacy of putative professionals, it behooves us to memorialize the quarter-page house advertisement (DM, 8/17) that shouts ATTENTION READER’S, thereby inserting a superfluous apostrophe. And the ad’s next two lines invite us to “Get Ready for Hudson Valley Newspaper’s ‘Road Construction’ Contest!!!” thereby (since the sponsoring company is Hudson Valley Newspapers) putting an apostrophe in the wrong place. “SEAGULL” STORIES. On opening night (8/5) of the performance of Anton Chekhov’s play at Catskill Point, at the poignant moment where Nina picks up what appears to be a dead seagull, a flock of birds appeared on the Hudson, as if on cue; one broke from the flock and flew south. And at another point in the play, where Trigorin speaks of “when I hear the whistle of the train,” an Amtrak went by in the background, visible across the river. Such events, richly appreciated by the audience, served to vindicate the idea of staging the play outdoors and indoors at the Point. So did the turnout: far greater than what GreeneLand’s Tourism office had anticipated. Expect to hear more of what impresario Joseph Capone dubbed “Classics @ the Point.” ANOMALIES? Day & Holt, the GreeneLand hardware and antiques store, is run by neither a Day nor a Holt. Though started by Jeremiah Day and Samuel Holt back in 1810, it has been in the Patrick Walsh family since 1911. Bill’s Grill hasn’t been operated by a Bill for many years, although Bill Beck did open it and still owns the building. Al’s Tires is Ralph Basley’s place of business. Tony’s Luncheonette isn’t Tony Grillo’s luncheonette any more; its Rick Saparata’s. Joey’s Pizza is Laurie Berkowitz’s place. And Arthur Webster is long gone from Arthur’s Hair Studio; as of last April it had passed into the hands of Bitta Svensson (who has retained the window’s “Tan Naked Here” invitation). On the other hand, Ray Rothrock does run Ray’s Appliance; DiStefano’s Barber Shop and DiStefano’s Meat Market are run by third-generation DiStefanos; a Ritter operates Ritter’s Garage; sundry Lacys drive Lacy Ford/Lincoln/Mercury/Subaru, and hard-working Christmans do run Christman’s Windham House. Also peculiarly apt is the name Onteora, which was bestowed eponymously on the child who was born back in 1907 just as her parents reached Catskill Point aboard the cruise liner “Onteora.” Her grandson Bruce Whittaker came to be president of the Bank of Greene County. LEANING dangerously: bell tower of former Christ Presbyterian Church on Franklin Street in Catskill. That’s a major reason for the elaborate scaffolding now girding the place, as authorized at substantial expense by Jim Manfredi (distinguished Manhattan oncologist) and Mark Beard (distinguished painter). Only the birds and the resident raccoon were happy with the deteriorated, out-of-plumb tower. HOW LONG a sentence would be appropriate for somebody who attacks a drug peddler with a baseball bat? Should be shorter if the injuries are minor, or longer? What about motive? If the attacker, instead of resenting the drug racket, is demanding either delivery of his drug of choice or return of his down payment? Those questions have a bearing on a current GreeneLand case (with ace defense attorney Dennis Schlenker in one corner) that has not yet landed in court. (Who’s the smartass who asks what brand of bat was wielded?) DREAMS Dept. Some day, let’s hope, main streets of Catskill, and of Hunter & Windham & Athens & Coxsackie, will be subjects of web sites that are as attractive as that of –check it out— warrenstreet.com. BYGONES. “Aunt Florence [Vincent] was a familiar figure on Main Street…. She and her ancient Buick approached the shopping area via the steepest hill like a charging lion. She did not believe in parking meters and refused to deposit coins. When escorted to the police department because of this infraction, she complained so vehemently about their use that, in desperation, the officer would tell her to just go home. The police became so weary of the scolding they received when tickets were placed on her car, they finally allowed her to park without charge, and notices were no long put on her windshield.” That’s from Edith Cole Silberstein, in Our Lovable Eccentrics (Thomas Cole National Historic Site, 2005). It’s about the eldest of three children of her grandfather, who was Thomas Cole’s oldest son. BYWORDS. Forget world peace. Visualize using your turn signal. He who laughs last thinks slowest. For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism. Give me ambiguity or give me something else. Consciousness: That annoying time between naps.

Wild Weekend

Is there too much to do in GreeneLand? Among tonight’s special events are country music in Cairo (Angelo Canna Park, from 7 pm.), bluegrass music in Athens (Riverfront Park from 7 pm.), “The Wonderful Worlds of Divas” (a tribute to Disney by Greene Room Players, Red Barn in Hunter, from 8 pm.), and “The Seagull” at Catskill Point (from 7 pm., in the park and in the Old Warehouse). And for something altogether different, at Outreach Ministries church in Round Top (opposite the firehouse; 622-2088), from 7 pm. (and again on Saturday night), guest preacher Bree Kenyon will expound on such matters as deliverance from evil spirits, miraculous healing by music, and spiritual warfare. As for Saturday and Sunday, well: there’s the two-day “Renaissance Faire” in Cairo (jousting, , sword fights, Punch & Judy, 7-ft dragon, magic, falconry, medieval music;Angelo Canna Park again; from 10 am.; go in period costume and get an entry discount). There’s the 16-stop ArtFest stretching from Maplecrest through Windham to Jewett Center, from 10 am. both days (info at 734-5076). There’s Saturday’s Classic Cars rally in Catskill, in honor of the late Charlie Raffiani Sr. (with Main Street being closed to regular traffic most of the day). There are new exhibitions at the Greene County Council On the Arts, downstairs (“Pulp Visions”) and upstairs (James Dustin, “Brooklyn in the Catskills”) opening at 5 pm. Saturday. Over in Arkville, meanwhile, at the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development, Laura J. Bried will expose the lives of river critters (mink, otters, fishers; from 2 pm.; phone [845] 586-2611). Alternatively, there’s the 58th annual juried art exhibition at Twilight Park (from 1 pm. Saturday); as well as a “Spiritual Powers” workshop at the Peace Village Learning & Retreat Center in Haines Falls ([518]589-5000); or the wine & food & art sampler at Athens Cultural Center, from 6 pm.; and the final performance (all four acts, notwithstanding what appears in the Daily Mail), at Catskill Point, of “The Seagull.” And just for Sunday, in addition to the Renaissance Faire, GreeneLanders could attend the free concert in Riverside Park at the Gazebo in Coxsackie, or go with an Audubon Society guide on an edifying paddle through RamsHorn-Livingston Sanctuary (678-3248). BOMB SCARE? When the lights and the computers went out at the new County Office Building last Monday at mid-day, all occupants were ordered to evacuate. Which prompted some of them to prattle (while “clucking and flapping,” said a witness) about a bomb scare. CHIEF STORY. As of blog post time, Dave Darling had been offered and had not yet decided whether to accept the post of Catskill Police Chief. If the veteran State Police Investigator does accept, he’ll take on a job whose yearly salary most recently was $53,000 and change. Benefits (medical, dental, pension, uniform allowance) brought the incumbent’s effective compensation to about $72,000. Then there were overtime payments to the extent of about $8,000. Those payments went to the current Chief, Roger Masse, who also holds the job of Athens Police Chief. Meanwhile, starting salary for a Village Patrolman is $33,004. (Add 12-15 per cent to that figure for value of benefits). MOVING this weekend: Community Action of Greene County, from 2 Franklin St, Catskill (across from the Public Library and from the county jail) to 55 South Jefferson Ave., Building 1. The new place will reopen on Tuesday (8/16), says Board Chair Naomi Rubin. Among ongoing programs: domestic violence victim support, Senior Companions, Weatherization subsidies, Healthy Women Partnership, Fresh Start program for the homeless. MOVING IN? The erstwhile Community Action building is now the property of Ted and Nancy Hilscher, attorneys. And their ownership is peculiarly apt: the building is redolent with history; and Ted is one of GreeneLand’s keenest historians. MR. SUDZ = name of new/old laundromat in Catskill, successor by way of much renovation to the former EC DUZ IT ALL at 491 Main Street. Proprietors Clinton Bugg and Jeffrey Nucey, of Claverack and Hudson, bought the place in July by foreclosure, have undertaken repairs (frozen pipes, packed-in lint, leaky water heater, erratic boiler, worn pressure valves, defunct machines, flooring, “filth”) and hope to open by mid-September. Their purple & teal color scheme has evoked some negative local comments, and has prompted realization that planning commissions, zoning boards and Village Trustees currently have no legal control over color schemes of homes or businesses. The Trustees are likely in near future to gather a sample of other communities’ color-regulating statutes. GUIDED. August edition of Catskill Mountain Region Guide contains a nice feature story, “Preserving Tangible Pieces of History,”about GreeneLand’s premier care-taker of antique furniture, Mark Cooper (formerly of Sotheby’s UK and Sotheby’s NYC). Among matters of special interest addressed by author Karin Edmondson is the difference between preserving and restoring. Not covered in the story are Cooper’s penchants for motorcycling, parenting and rubbernecking. Query: Did he really say that his high-end specialization “sometimes precludes me not taking on a piece…?” THE GOOD NEWS. Interest in supporting Beattie-Powers Place has undergone a revival. The seven-acre riverside property, with its Greek Revival house (built in 1831 by Catskill’s eighth President), was bequeathed by Mary Emily Beattie to the Village in 1990 with the stipulation that it be used “for public purposes.” But use of the place has dwindled, and so has upkeep (especially since the death of Jack Sencabaugh). In 2003, the house was used for functions (a wedding, meetings, an art show, play rehearsal) for all of 15 days. Last year the usage figure was about 10 days (or fractions of days). So far this year it’s the same story. Meanwhile, yard maintenance has been declined. In short, the Place has become a virtually idle, unknown, deteriorating resource. But that could change. A recent meeting produced a new slate of officers of the volunteer group, Friends of Beattie-Powers Place: Bob Hoven, president; David King, vice-president; Barbara Weber, vice-president; Richard Philp, treasurer; Rita Landy, secretary. And plans are afoot to rewrite the Friends’ mission statement, formulate a business plan, and go on the hunt for patronage (financial and personal). AND THE BAD. That new-found enthusiasm for Beattie-Powers Place sprang most immediately from antipathy to an incipient proposal whereby part of Beattie-Powers House would be leased to GreeneLand’s Industrial Development Agency. The terms of that prospect have not been worked out in detail. Essentially the idea was, and is, that the IDA would take over exclusive use of two rooms on the ground floor plus desk space in another room, and would make those spaces suitable for office use. Tenancy would be for five years with an option to renew. Payments by the lessor would enable repairs and improvements to be made to the house and the grounds. To that extent, Village taxpayers would be relieved of a financial burden. Meanwhile, the grounds would still be open to the public, and access to the house, under Village rules presently in place, would continue. According to Sandy Mathes, IDA's executive director, opposition to this kind of arrangement, as expressed by the new Friends, has been based largely on misapprehensions. And that blindness, he suggests (and this spectator agrees), has been willful. The new Friends have spurned opportunities to acquaint themselves with the IDA’s projects, its directors, its procedures. As for Beattie-Powers House, “It’s so frustrating; I’ve offered to meet with those people, to go through to show them just what we have in mind. No response. “The existence of a revived, active Friends group can only enhance efforts to restore BPH to its original glamour,” Mathes added. “We would want to work very closely with them” in deciding what measures to take in the preservation of the house and the re-cultivation of the grounds. “I know of no use to which the place has been put in the past, or would likely be put, that would be incompatible with IDA’s occupation of part of the house.” “If it’s done right, our presence in Beattie-Powers Place would be a win-win situation. It would help us to show off the beauties of Greene County and thereby do a better job of attracting industry and jobs. It would facilitate an urgently-needed restoration. And it would enhance the use and value, for public purposes, of this historic treasure.” More on this subject in next Seeing Greene. ((The mechanical masters of this blog site will not, do not, allow indentations))

Numbers Game

125=number of seats at Historic Catskill Point, in the park and in the warehouse, for this weekend’s opening performances (Friday and Saturday nights, from 7 pm.) of the modern classic play by Anton Chekhov, “The Seagull” by carefully selected local cast. RECOMMENDED. 943-2680. (Not to the exclusion, of course, of “Catskills on Broadway” benefit—music, jokes--at Hunter Mountain, 8 pm.; 263-4908 ext. 202). 4=number of acts in “The Seagull,” all to be performed each performance night (Aug. 5 & 6, 12 & 13), notwithstanding Daily Maul Events Calendar item of Wednesday (8/3) saying “first act” will be performed Friday night, “second act” Saturday…. This was ‘corrected’ in Thursday’s and Friday’s Mauls to say “first act of four acts” and “second act of four acts….” 141,000=dollars saved by Greene County legislators by putting their general insurance out to bid. That’s according to Legislator Keith Valentine, himself an insurance expert, as reported in 8/2 Daily Mail. The accepted price was $504,124, vs. $620,000 in 2003 and $645,000 in 2004. 235,093=dollars likely to be spent by Hudson Common Council on new Fire Dept rescue truck. At recent meeting of Hudson’s Fire Committee, speakers compared this figure with $425,000 likely to be paid by Catskill Trustees for a new rescue truck. According to Catskill Fire Chief Randy Ormerod, Hudson’s version would be akin to a Ford Pinto. And Catskill’s prospective r.t. will cost a bit less than $425k. Submitted bids are now being vetted for compliance with specifications. 7500=dollars reportedly (Daily Mail, 8/1) raised for Coxsackie Rescue Squad at Coxsackie Challenge golf tournament at Catskill Golf Club last Friday (7/29), organized by Gunderpersons. 5302=dollars spent by GreeneLand Kiwanians so far this year on good local causes, mostly having to do with youngsters. That’s about half, we’re told, of what ultimately will be outlaid. And does not include the $4336 cleared from the 7/17 golf tournament in support of Catskill Community Center. 14=reputed age of GreeneLand student reputedly impregnated by a now-former school custodian. No prosecution (yet?) for the criminal acts. 18,000+ =dollars raised for Thomas Cole National Historic Site (Cedar Grove, in Catskill) at July 31 summer party. That’s a 20% gain over last year’s summer fund-raiser and it demonstrates, as Site Director Elizabeth Jacks told Seeing Greene, increase in “one of our greatest treasures: the support of this community.” …….."It was only a few years ago that this house was saved from near collapse by a caring group of people, and their love of this place clearly continues. With the funds we have raised, Cedar Grove can continue to serve as an inspiration to all those who love the landscape." ….. Following a cocktail party at the Site, graced by presence the famous artist’s great-granddaughter, Edith Cole Silverstein, 200 participants joined 20 pairs of hosts at dinner in private homes (and an art gallery) in Greene and Columbia counties. Members paid $75 apiece for the goodies; non-members paid $100 which included membership. Most of what they paid went into the treasury thanks to contributions from in-kind sponsors (Douglas Koch, Frank Racette, Ruder-Finn Inc., Brian Branigan, Patricia Decker, Michel Goldberg, Domaney Liquors of Great Barringon) and to the generosity of the hosts, who absorbed the full costs of the dinners (and libations) they served, (including, in some cases, the costs of caterers and servers). In addition, the Site’s operations and programs, devoted to the founder of the Hudson River school of landscape painting, benefited from a substantial cash contribution by Rip Van Winkle Realty. Of 20 host couples, four were Columbia County patrons, and four were veteran GreeneLanders. 90=per cent probability that Catskill’s new police chief will be Dave Darling; and that his chief deputy will be Greg Sager; and that they’ll do a great job. Darling (one of multitudinous GreeneLand Darlings), is due for mandatory (and cushy) retirement, two years hence, as Chief Investigator of local troop of State Police. He’s not ready to give up law enforcement. May never be ready. Could run for Sheriff in a few years. 85=per cent likelihood that Catskill’s Community Theater will soon be the property of PJ & Jessica Maisano, youthful New Jersey residents (and live theater fans) who will soon be GreeneLanders. 5=years elapsing between time that Florence Liberatore (a k a Mrs Damon Pouyat) took up golf and the time she first became Albany Country Club champion. (First time of many). 4.8 million=number of old tires (give or take a few thousand) that Lafarge Co. proposes to burn as fuel in its Ravena cement kiln. Yearly. Whole tires, not shredded. Lafarge is a Paris-based globe-girdling building materials company (cement, roofing, aggregates, concrete, gypsum; 77,000 people in 75 countries). It bought the plant in 2001 from Blue Circle Cement, shortly after the latter was fined $276,000 for air permit violations. Its proposal has triggered apprehensions hereabouts over toxic effects (Parkinson’s disease? Rheumatoid arthritis? Autism?) of fallout. Friends of Hudson members, led by GreeneLand’s Susan Falzon, say the Ravena plant, even without burning tires, “has long been known a one of New York’s dirtiest.” They are circulating petitions calling on Governor Pataki and other public officials to

(1) Fully address the serious, long-standing compliance problems at the Ravena plant, which State regulators have failed to act upon, before moving forward with any consideration of tire-burning at this troubled facility; (2) Require Lafarge to explain why it seeks to burn whole tires as fuel, a practice even riskier than burning shredded tires; (3) Explain why State regulators have not yet even considered the need for a test burn before moving forward on this proposal; (4) Explain why New York State regulators would encourage the incineration of tires, when the State and U.S. EPA agree that there are more beneficial forms of re-use which address the State's tire management problem; (5) At minimum, extend the comment period on this project by at least 90 days, to give the general public and scientific experts a proper opportunity to participate meaningfully in the review process.

Check it out at http://www.PetitionOnline.com/lafarge. 40=years to pass until we have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos.

Finis July

NEXT CHIEF of Catskill Village police, following August 26th retirement of Roger Masse, will be Greg Sager or Rick Jacobs, or a nearly-local alliteratively-named Mr X. If the Village Trustees stick with the Civil Service list, and if they shrug off a technical problem, they’ll pick Investigator Sager or Sergeant Jacobs, since those men are the currently active local police officers who scored highest on the last captaincy (=chief) examination. But a valid list contains at least three eligible persons. That requirement was met until two officers who had scored top marks on the latest exam--Gary Carlson and Bill DeLuca-- went into retirement, thereby officially ceasing to be on The List. But they could ask for reinstatement and then consideration, we understand. But they probably won’t. But the trustees could decide to make a discretionary appointment rather than to go strictly by the Civil Service list. That would free them from what Trustee Forest Cotton calls “outrageously” narrow constraints on selection. And if they do go down that road, we hear tell, they would give earnest consideration to an individual who is not a Village police officer but is well known indeed to law enforcement people and is super-qualified. CHIEF MASSE, meanwhile, retires after a 21-year stint in CPD uniform, during which his salary climbed to $53,000 plus overtime, plus benefits worth another 25% or more. He’ll retain his ‘other’ job--Athens police chief--and will stay in that town along with wife Janice (a pre-school director) and four children. At age 46, and in good shape, he’s not likely to rusticate. ALSO RETIRING at the end of August, after 34 years as pastor of St Patrick’s Church in Catskill, at age 76: Father John J. Murphy. According to a news item in The Daily Mail, Father Murphy will return to his family roots in Troy. For a bit more (a tiny bit) see web site http:// www.geocities.com/stpatrickschurchcatskill. SOCIAL EVENT of the GreeneLand year takes place tomorrow (Saturday) in 21 places on both sides of the Hudson. In keeping with an 1846 painting by GreeneLand’s own Thomas Cole, founder of the now-celebrated Hudson School of landscape painting, the event is called “The Cocktail and Pic-Nic.” It begins with a 5 pm. party at Cedar Grove, the Greene County Historical Society’s national historic site that once was Cole’s home and workplace (218 Spring Street, Catskill), with libations of bubbly “Kaaterskill Kir,” music on period instruments played by The Shaker Creek Trio, a superabundance of fresh flowers in the garden, the house and the studio, and tributes to guest-of-honor Edith Cole Silverstein, who is the famous artist’s great-granddaughter and is, we can attest, is still lively and witty at age 86. Then at 7 pm. the guests--more than 200 at last count-- will disperse to dinner parties, for groups ranging in size from six to 24, at 20 assigned homes in Greene and Columbia counties. There they will be wined and dined by hosts who either have done the cooking or have, at their own expense, hired caterers for the occasion. Although most of the dinner places have been assigned, some last-minute guests, we are told, can be accommodated. For each current member, the price is $75. For a non-member it’s $100, which includes a new $50 membership. The affair is the big yearly local fund-raiser for Cedar Grove, and it is being underwritten by Rip Van Winkle Realty as well as by Douglas Koch Visuals, Michel Golberg Associates, Ruder-Finn Inc., and Domaney Liquors (of Great Barrington MA). For last-minute ticket information, check out www.thomascole.org. DISTRACTIONS. First, the elderly woman drew attention to herself exclusively while looking over Unique Jewelry store items. That diversion, according to what was reported to the police enabled her elderly male companion to scoop up an estimated $6000 worth of items, after which the couple made an unhurried, unhindered, escape. Second, in the ensuing commotion involving police investigators, passers-by and neighboring merchants, a gawking motorist ran his car up the back end of another. So that’s what happened on Catskill’s Main Street yesterday. BIGGEST FIRE in Catskill in last decade destroyed buildings and equipment at waste transfer station (Route 385) on Monday night (7/25). According to fire chief Randy Ormerod (a k a chief police dispatcher Ormerod), the blaze started somewhere in the pits where trash is dumped, and it must have raged for five or six hours before being discovered. Firefighters from both sides of the Hudson, eventually more than 100 strong, answered the call for help. Some of them “gave up a whole day” for the task. They proved to be “dedicated, co-operative, and efficient.” They came in more than 15 trucks—tankers, ladder trucks, rescue trucks, engines. “And we could have used another half-dozen tankers.” Those vehicles carry 1250 to 3500 gallons of water; which they can spray on a fire, to the point of being empty, in 3 minutes. Once those tanks were empty, the trucks had to be driven a full mile to hydrants for refilling, a procedure that took about 6 minutes. Ormerod said the experience served to underscore the need for a new rescue truck (“a tool box on wheels”). Procurement has been authorized by the Village Trustees. Bids from prospective suppliers, bids likely to hover around the $400,000 mark, are to be opened Monday (8/1/05). On-site staff told Seeing Greene that the transfer station may reopen for business, at least to the extent of accepting residential trash (as distinct from big loads of construction materials) within 30 days. Meanwhile, we say there MAY be no problem with bringing recyclables-- bottles, cans, plastics, cardboard, newspapers, magazines—to the Catskill station. Repositories of those items were not affected by the fire. But to lots of questions, the current Waste Management answer is “Don’t know yet.” BOMB SCARE. Rip Van Winkle bridge was closed to traffic for at least an hour Wednesday afternoon (7/27) in consequence of an alert concerning an allegedly suspect package that allegedly was left near a girder by a motorist. Local authorities took every precaution. When the bridge reopened for traffic, toll collectors professed to have no idea why the stoppage occurred. 4600 = approximate number of dollars cleared at Kiwanis Club-organized Albert Natarnicola Memoral Tournament at Catskill Golf Club on July 17th (a rain-spattered Sunday, but for most of the round the sky was clear). That nice piece of change goes to support the Village’s Community Center. It was achieved after expenses (food, refreshments, fees) thanks to support from sponsors (especially Post Bros., Mid-Hudson Cablevision, and Ginsberg Foods) and to entry payments of $75 per player. Top team in the Scramble event (as in many others) was loaded with Lacys. SENIOR CENTER’s opening ceremony took place last Friday (7/22) in what formerly was the annex of Irving Elementary School in Catskill. It’s a neat, spacious, well appointed place, as befits the product of a $750,000 makeover. Superannuation is not an entry requirement. When Seeing Greene’s senior correspondent dropped by, there was one other visitor: a TV-watching 15-year-old boy. OAK HILL made news last week not only for a town-wide yard sale (Saturday, 7/23) but also for a feature story in the Real Estate section of The New York Times (Sunday, 7/24). “Healing Buildings and Healing Souls in the Catskills,” by Fred A. Bernstein, tells about the Twelve Tribes sect (religious community? cult? commune?) whose local adherents run Oak Hill’s only restaurant and have been pivotal in renovating downtown Coxsackie. It was a real estate story to the extent that its author focused on property dealings. It was a richer story in that it dealt with beliefs and practices of the members. There seems to be a gulf between views that have been professed by or ascribed to Tribesfolk, and what their neighbors have experienced. If we concentrate on the latter, we get a benign picture. For more ominous observations, punch in Twelve Tribes on Google. HONORED, as outstanding art major at SUNY Potsdam: GreeneLand’s Ashley M. Hopkins. (Her achievement was reported three times in the same corner of the same page of the 7/19 Daily Mail). SALES PITCH. Latest Reader’s Digest subscription-seeking circular promises laughter galore. The editor’s top, premiere, lead-off, foremost joke: Q: Why did the cowboy buy the dachshund? A: Someone told him to get a long little doggy. That’s their best?

Joy in July

THE ALARM. When the apparent disappearance of a 5-year-old boy was reported to Catskill police at 1 pm. today, the response was immediate. Within five minutes, four officers showed up at the boy’s front door. When their search of the house and the immediate neighborhood proved fruitless, they called for help. They got it. Within less than an hour, at least 50 people had been mobilized. They included not only a slew of Village police officers, but also State troopers (personally led by the district’s Chief Investigator), the County Sheriff and deputies, and volunteer firefighters. A dog team started down from Albany (nearby sniffers being already assigned to anti-terrorism duty). Because the boy’s home was near the Hudson River, boats from above (Rip Van Winkle Bridge) and below (Dutchman’s Landing) were put in the water with a view to supporting the men who were scouring the riverbank. But the dogs were recalled before arriving, the boats did not leave their berths, and the bush-beaters and door-knockers soon were recalled. Owing to a confusion of domestic signals, as it turned out (after an anxious 70 minutes),the alarm was a false one. The boy was never in danger. Meanwhile, witnesses received a demonstration of how far our designated security forces will go, and how swiftly, when it looks like they are needed. DUELING FAIRS. Talks aimed at merging GreeneLand’s venerable Youth Fair with our resurrected official County Fair have manifestly failed. The result this year is direct competition: simultaneous fairs, a few miles apart. The Youth Fair opens next Thursday (7/28) and runs through Sunday at, as usual, Angelo Canna Park in Cairo. Its emphasis is on, as you might expect, achievements of local youths, especially in agriculture and domestic arts. For information, call Anne Marie Conroy at (518) 239-6159 or e-mail greeneag@direcway.com. The County Fair (now approaching its fourth year, following a lapse of many years) starts a day earlier (Wednesday, 7/27) and also runs through Sunday. It will be held on the grounds of the Irish Cultural Centre on Route 145 in East Durham (although the leaflet circulated by the Tourism Department does not mention the ICC). For more information: www.greenetourism.com TOO MUCH INFO? GreeneLander Tony Rago voices concern, bordering on alarm, about new Google service (or feature) whereby anybody who knows your telephone number can instantly learn your home address and be given a map leading to your door. To test it, go to http://www.google.com/. Type your phone number (including area code) in the search bar, hit Enter, follow the Map link. It will probably work even if your number is not listed in the printed directory. But if you want to block Google from supplying your mapped location, click on the line above the telephone icon. SHOTS FIRED? Not exactly. What sounded recently to riverside GreeneLanders like shotgun practice on the banks of the Hudson was in fact a rhythmic series of blasts from a propane-fueled ‘cannon’ on George Brown’s Cherry Ridge Farm (at east end of Rip Van Winkle Bridge). The intention is to scare away cherry-pecking (non-paying) birds. The gadget “works a bit better than other noisemakers,” says George. He voices regret for the disturbance. ((We think it’s a cost we are happy to bear, given quality and accessibility of his produce)) NEWEST OPENING. Downtown Catskill’s fifth art gallery will have “premier opening” July 29th (Friday) at 473 Main Street. It’s called The Brik, and that orthographic innovation gives a signal, as do the fresh paint job (brick red with Yorktowne Green trim), the superb lighting, the announcement’s slogan (“A new space. A new vision”) and the character of the first exhibition. The signal is ‘We aim to be cutting edge.’ (Maybe Gallery 6 will be called the WACE, for We Are Cutting Edge). Brik’s first show will feature pictures made by three prominent denizens of the new Greenwich Village, i.e., the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn NY. The artists selected by impresario Frank Cuthbert are Sarah Barker, Jim Klein and Chuck Bowdish. And in September, with guidance from curatorial consultant Betty Stevens, Cuthbert will mount a show devoted to “Artists Influenced by Thomas Cole.” Not likely: that Friday’s show will attract what New York Times reported in another case, namely, “bearded men wearing berets and children.” SPEAKING OF BROOKLYN (or of Breuckelen, the original Dutch name, as recalled by Russell Shorto in the brilliant book An Island At the Center of the World), where would you guess is the home of Brooklyn Industries? Your guess is only half right. Though based substantially in that borough (in trendy Williamsburg, specifically), B.I. also is run out of Athens, by enterprising owners Lexy and Vahap Funk. And far from operating a sprawling heavy-industry conglomerate, they design and market--in “eclectic hipster boutiques” (New York Times)--in New York and Japan, as well as on the internet (www.brooklynindustries.com), street wear. NOISE. Too much of it from vehicles on Catskill’s Main Street? Some residents say so. Some officials and other Villagers regard the noise--especially from motorcyclists who come and who spend--as a small price to pay for the patronage. We like the position that calls for diligent enforcement of laws against disabling standard-issue ‘bike mufflers. Meantime, warning to Main Streeters: there will be lots of traffic this weekend, thanks to the big fishing tournament launched from Dutchman’s Landing. CLUB NEWS. At Windham Golf Club, plans have been drawn for construction of a new clubhouse, on site of the present one but with greatly enhanced views of the course and grand vistas. But that project is contingent on consummation of a deal ($1 million-plus) to sell big parcel of choice land (75 rolling, gently sloping acres?) above the present practice range. Meanwhile, plans are afoot at Catskill Golf Club to build a new pro shop, probably on site of the present one. BUY LOCAL? A local business man recently bought an Atlanta-Albany round-trip airline ticket from All Aboard Travel here in GreeneLand for less, he reports, than the price quoted on Expedia and Travelocity. TEACHER PAY. GreeneLander Bill Ottinger loved teaching school in Ravena but in 1980 he quit. With a Masters degree and seniority, he had reached the top of the salary ladder: $14,900. Fast forward: if he started now with an M.A., he’d be paid about $40,000 per year (consisting of about 10 months) plus benefits worth an additional 25% or more. ROLL ME OVER. How many times has Catskill Central School District’s new $35,000 John Deere tractor-mower been rolled already? by whom? Stay tuned; or turned.

The Daily Maul

Welcome to News Writing 101, where we try to identify good journalism by spotlighting bad, and we pick on live local cases. Today we concentrate on a single news story. So: what’s wrong with this opening paragraph?

Thanks to generous donations from the Greene County Bank and the family of James L. Scanlan, the Catskill Public Library and the Palenville Branch Library have purchased new children’s books for the 2005 Summer Reading Program. These books are in addition to the new books that come in on a regular monthly basis.

Ready? Cart before horse, or putting attention to cause(s) of an event ahead of identifying that event. The real news here seems to be a statement that the summer reading program at the Catskill and Palenville public libraries will be endowed with an abundance of new children’s books. (Full reading of the story suggests another version of the real news: launching of summer reading program). Editorializing. Whether the cited donations are “generous” is a value judgment not suitable for straight news. Lose the adjective. Reporting dollar amounts of donations, somewhere in the body of the story, would not be amiss. Misnomer. That donating financial institution is the Bank of Greene County (NY), not the Greene County Bank (which is located in Tennessee). Duality. Two-sentence beginnings (known among professionals as ledes) violate journalistic convention. No justification for departure is apparent here.

Now what about this article’s second paragraph?

“When we knew we had the money to spend, we delegated it immediately to children’s books. We believe you can never have enough picture books, or really, really fun and entertaining books for kids to read over the summer,” said the Library Director. “We want to keep the kids imaginations running with fresh, new and interesting materials. Summer is all about enrichment and imagination.”

Who-lessness. The quoted words are ascribed to a“Library Director” whose name is not supplied. Punkchewashun. In “…the kids imaginations” there should be an apostrophe after kids, denoting function as possessive adjective. Misnomer? Either the Director used to inapt term “delegated” (a transfer of authority) rather than, say, allocated, or the reporter mis-quoted him or her.

Paragraph 3:

The selection includes books by Judy Blume, including “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing,” more in the series “A Series of Unfortunate Events,” by Lemony Snicket, more in the popular “Magic Tree House” series, junior historical fiction titles, books by the popular children’s author Kevin Henkes, Audrey Wood, Rosemary Wells, Ezra Pound Keats, Paul Galdone, including his classic “Henny Penny,” as well as many, many others.

Garbled series. We are led to believe that we are about to be told what the selection “includes” but eventually are told that the list is not inclusive. In between we get two includings. Meanwhile, the popular children’s author Keven Henkes” seems to be six people. Alternatively, “author” should be authors. Garbled names. Surely there is no children’s author, popular or otherwise, named Ezra Pound Keats. Paragraph 4:

The new books are part of the plan to provide a great summer reading experience, including summer library events and activities, at both libraries this summer. A list of library events for children throughout the summer are available at the libraries or through the libraries’ web calendar, which can be accessed at http://catskiill.lib.ny.us. Click on “Events” to view the calendar.

Redundancy. Projected “summer reading experience” will include “summer events”—would you believe!--“this summer.” LAG, or lack of agreement, in second sentence, between subject (“list”; singular) and verb (“are available”; plural). Final paragraph:

Both the Catskill Public Library and the Palenville Branch Library are participating in the 2005 New York State Summer Reading Program, “Tune in @ Your Library.” Sign-up for the program starts Friday, June 17. Studies show that children who read and who are read to during the summer have a much easier time adjusting to school in the fall.

Somewhere in those sentences is what could have provided this story’s lede. And since it was published June 17^th, the report should have said that sign-ups commence today. Still, the blunder is minor compared with publicizing what will happen at a date prior to publication. (For example, the Daily Mail of July 15^th contains a story saying “On July 14, the Upper Hudson River Alliance ‘Social Paddle’ moves north….”

OTHERWISE. Alert reader Ray Johrlich calls our attention to news item from MidHudsonMostWanted.com, saying “The jury delivered [sic.] for about six hours before returning the [Guilty] verdict” against a soccer coach, 50 years old, who had carnal dealings with a 15-year old female player. As student of journalism, Johrlich also notes that the story lacked completeness; it did not identify the player’s position

Lively Days Ahead

FLASH. Prospect of sale of Catskill’s Community Theater--long on the market; often ‘almost’ sold--is hotter than ever. Proprietor Tom Thornton denies that a contract has been inked for the movie house (and quondam Vaudeville venue, with adjacent storefronts), but confirms that an offer has been made and rates it “the best we’ve ever had.” Prospective buyer is rumored (vs. reported, known, confirmed, etc.) to be a young New York businessman who is more than solvent. Meanwhile, and separately, we hear that Sundance Film organization could be interested in the place as a venue for screening independent films. Details to follow when/as/if ascertained.

IMMINENT MOUNTAINWARD: Mountain Culture Festival, at Catskill Mountain Foundation grounds in Hunter. Music, films, crafts, hikes, food, farm work displays, performers…. Both days from 10am.

• Amati Music Festival, devoted to “European Romantics,” at Windham Performing Arts Center, from 8 pm.

• Alps Festival, with yodeler, puppets, Schulplatter dancers, German food…, at Bavarian Manor in Purling, this weekend and next weekend. www.BavarianManor.com or (518)622-3385.

• Windham Chamber Music Festival, next Saturday night (7/16). Excellent program, including new composition by conductor Robert Manno. Reservations: 518-734-6378 or info@windhammusic.com or www.windhammusic.com

IMMINENT RIVERWARD: Athens Street Festival. 95 booths+ parade+fireworks+classic cars+music+cruises+shows. Saturday (7/9) from 10am. Check www.athensstreetfestival.com

• Fishing Tournament off Catskill Point. Sunday Qualifying event for New Jersey and Pennsylvania members of ABA (=American Bass Anglers, not American Bar Association).

• Sunday Salon at Thomas Cole’s Cedar Grove, in Catskill, with Robert M. Toole dilating on history of the grounds of the artist’s studio and home. From 2pm.

• Auction of tax-foreclosed GreeneLand properties, at Elks Lodge, 45 North Jefferson Ave, Catskill. Some land, some buildings, some wrecks. Info at www.nysauctions.com. Printed catalogue mentions 42 properties, a shrinkage (via last-minute payments) from 76, but further shrinkage has cut actual choices to 30. Check out numbers 41 (Cairo) and 63 (Tannersville) for haunted house-style quaintness. Auctioneer gets a commission from seller and from buyer. Latter is speciously called “buyer’s premium.”

MID-WAY: Irish Arts Week, July 10-15, 60 classes daily devoted to traditional Celtic music and other arts, culminating Saturday (7/16) in Irish Music Festival, at Michael J. Quill Irish Cultural and Sports Centre, E. Durham. Info at 634-2286 and/or www.east-durham.org.

VERSO is the name bestowed by Harold Hanson on downtown Catskill’s fourth art gallery. This one is distinctive—apart from stench of tobacco--for emphasis not only on pictures and sculptures but also on well-designed modern objects for use: glasses, pitchers, chairs, ware. It’s right next door, at 388 Main Street, to office of Northeast Journal of Arts and Antiques from which Harold has just retired as publisher (and founder). Verso means back of a printed page, and/or left-hand page at back of an elegantly printed book.

OPENING next Saturday (7/16), with “collaborative installation” (all hands on materials), under title “Breaking the Vicious Cycle, and Other Invocations” (I inserted the comma), featuring work of five artists, is new show at Open Studio, just up from Verso at 402 Main Street.

NEXT UP on Catskill gallery scene is festive opening July 29^th of Brick (or maybe Brik) gallery, Frank Cuthbert’s gem. And Patrick Milbourn vows that his new Main Street gallery, having been relieved of effects of buckled floorboards, will open—“certain sure”— September 10^th. Thespian duties will not daunt him. TOUTED: GreeneLander Elizabeth Stevens who, says Paul Smart in Ulster Times, “knows how to make an art scene happen.” She learned her craft by running several contemporary art galleries in New York City, applied it locally when she curated the Blakelock and Inness exhibits here at Thomas Cole’s Cedar Grove, and now is directing the “hothothot Yellow Bird Gallery…complete with hiphiphip store and roof terrace” in Newburgh. She felicitously blends technical knowledge with “the same quirky sensibility that draws us all into the Hudson Valley.”

MARTHA CHRONICLES. Her trial on multiple fraud charges (discussed earlier in Seeing Greene) evidently will take place later this year in U.S. District Court in Syracuse. Meanwhile, GreeneLand’s Martha Ivery is free on $50,000 bond and has achieved national scam celebrity. An Associated Press report on Thursday (7/7) appeared in nearly all big U.S. newspapers, as well as in smaller papers and broadcast news organs. Reporter Michael Hill’s story leads with the case of an Ohio woman who allegedly encountered all sorts of grief, and substantial expense, in the expectation of getting her story Frumpy’s Grumpy Day published by Martha. “Ivery not only ran Press-TIGE out of the sleepy [sic.]town of Catskill, N.Y.,” Hill goes on to say, “but posed as a literary agent named Kelly O'Donnell, federal prosecutors say. “Clients worked with both O'Donnell and Ivery without being told they were the same person. After the Sept. 11 attacks, Ivery told writers that O'Donnell died in the World Trade Center and O'Donnell said Ivery died in the attacks, according to A.C. Crispin, a science fiction writer who co-founded the scam-busting Writer Beware Web site....” Conducting Martha’s defense will be the formidable Richard Mott, who is better known around the Mid-Hudson for representing clients who are charged with crimes of violence. Mott succeeded here back in 1998, against tough odds, in getting “T J” Hall acquitted of a murder rap. He is currently defending Tina Brandt in a Hudson trial for burglary and murder in connection with death of Livingston fruit farmer Henry Gropp. (Also appearing for other defendants in that case are ace GreeneLand defense lawyers Dennis Schlenker and Greg Lubow). HISTORICAL SOCIETY may expand territorially so as to achieve frontage, hence greater visibility, on Route 9W in Coxsackie. It will happen if terms of deal to acquire Pet & Chow facilities are worked out.

VENDING. While regularly selling vintage hickory-shafted mashie-niblicks on eBay, GreeneLander Wayne Marquoit occasionally hawks other items, such as classic intact baseball bats (a Rogers Hornsby signature model Louisville Slugger…), a left-handed catcher’s mitt, or a model Minuteman missile (level 6; a few bucks at yard sale; $100-plus to determined collector). He did not peddle the new bicycle whose packaging included instructions concerning the bell: "The structure of this bell is not able to dismantle. Improper use of disable the bell will cause eternal damage."

Going Fourth

So how are you going to celebrate Independence Day? Back in 1820, a few bold lads from Cairo and Catskill marked the occasion by hiking to the head of Kaaterskill Falls. There, in the words of author Eric Posselt (The Rip Van Winkle Trail, 1952), they “proceeded to execute an extraordinary bit of mischief.” “From time immemorial, a great boulder weighing some 50 tons and estimated to be about 175 feet in circumference” had “rested precariously on the very lip” of the falls. “With much heaving and pushing, huffing and puffing,” our vandals “managed to topple the boulder into the mighty abyss. “The effect…was awful and sublime, the crash tremendous, exceeding the loudest thunder—the tremulous motion of the earth and the long murmuring echo rolling from point to point through the ravine gave the scene an indescribable degree of grandeur. The rock was shattered in a thousand pieces. “Toasts were then drunk and volleys of musketry fired.”

MEANWHILE REHEARSALS for “The Seagull,” the famous Anton Chekhov play to be performed in August at Catskill Point, are well under way. Veteran director (and GreeneLander) Joseph Capone, has again lined up top local talent to perform in spaces that is not a regular theater but is extraordinarily right for the story. Back in 2001, Capone staged Chekhov’s “Cherry Orchard” inside and outside Catskill’s Beattie-Powers House. This year, thanks to a $2500 grant from the GreeneLand Arts Council’s allocation from the State Arts Council’s Decentralization program, “The Seagull” will flutter inside and outside the Point’s Old Warehouse. Action unfolds on a putative Russian country estate (Catskill Point Park), with a lake (played here by the Hudson River) as backdrop. The comedy, as described by the author back in 1895, has “five tons of love in it,” with each character offering, seeking or receiving love in the wrong places. Medvedenko, the local schoolteacher, adores Masha, the estate manager’s daughter, who loves but is spurned by Konstantin Treplieff, who in addition to angst-laden playwriting loves Nina, a neighbor and aspiring actress who falls for a visitor, Trigorin, who is a renowned author and is the lover of Arkadina, who in addition to being a fading famous actress, is the mother of Konstantin and the sister of Sorin, who owns the estate and secretly loves Nina, who (remember?) loves Trigorin. There’s more. The estate manager’s wife (Paulina) loves the local physician (Dr Dorn); her husband (Shamraeff) has a hankering for Arkadina. That’s just what gets established or intimated in the first act. In the ensuing three acts, Trigorin lusts after adoring Nina, but Arkadina refuses to release him. Nina flees to the big city in quest of theatrical fame, leaving Konstantin distraught. There Nina becomes Trigorin’s mistress, bears his child (who dies), is dumped by Trigorin, tours in plays, returns to the old neighborhood. When Sorin takes ill, Arkadina returns to the country estate with retrieved lover Trigorin. Masha, meanwhile, has married Medvedenko and borne a child, but she still adores Konstantin, who still loves Nina, who has slipped back to the village and who still loves Trigorin. Having confessed that to Konstantin, she dashes off into the wintry night. Having been told that, he rips up his manuscripts, exits. Gunshot. Curtain. That much story would take three years to unfold in a television soap opera. Playing the plum role of vivacious, narcissistic Arkadina (Meryl Streep did it in Manhattan) will be Jean Walker, an off-Broadway veteran, cabaret performer, alumna of the 2001 “Cherry Orchard,” and Haines Falls resident. Existentially anguished, oedipal Konstantin will be Stephen Hansel, a Sienna College student. Talented, love-blighted Nina will be represented by Lora Lee Ecobelli of Carmel NY. Charles Neighbors of Lexington, who by day is a writer and editor, plays woebegone Sorin. David Fanning of Millbrook NY will be Trigorin. Richly represented in the production, moreover, are GreeneLand artists of distinction: Tina Chadin (Paulina), Keith Muller (Shamraeff) and Patrick Milbourn (Dr Dorn), along with set designer Kico Govantes. Catskillians Joseph Matula and Gretchen Mallory also will perform. The costume designer is Karine Mason of Chatham. Performances will be given on successive Friday and Saturday nights, August 5-6 and 12-13. To inquire about block bookings of tickets--a really good idea, club members—call 943-2680.

TRASH TALK. Village officials were more than a mite peeved at failure of Catskill school administrators (food service director Bill Muirhead, especially?) to remove trash created by their big Dutchmen’s Landing picnic last Thursday. The amount of throwaway, we understand, was far above normal, because participants spurned the organic hot dogs and got their own, ignored the 6 bushels of clams, and left behind all 150 pounds of fully roasted pig meat. Every bin was crammed full—and left that way, although the Village’s regular Music in the Park program came right on heels of the schools party.

DAFT RAFTS. Winners of last Sunday’s glorious Wacky Raft Race, from Athens to Catskill Point, were “The River Cats,” captained by our new Catskill Central Schools superintendent, Kate Farrell. According to Leigh Hornbeck of the Albany TimesUnion, the winners’ power came from the efforts of two school administrators and two teachers who “peddled a pair of tandem bicycles aboard their raft.” But in fact they were not selling; they were pedaling. And, according to usually reliable sauces, they functioned as a machine that was well oiled

FAKE LICENSES. Two clerks in Kingston’s Motor Vehicles Department office took bribes in return for issuing drivers’ licenses to people (mostly illegal aliens) who presented fake documents. This came about in consequence of an elaborate Federal and State investigation. In contrast, staff in GreeneLand’s DMV office alerted authorities to illegal applicants, thereby helping in the capture of would-be recipients of licenses based on phony documents. During April 18-24, 18 out-of-towners, suspected of offering false instruments for filing, were arrested.

DAILY MAUL. According to headline and first paragraph of a 6/27 story, crash victim Evalyn Thomas was a Catskill resident. According to sub-head and second paragraph, she lived in Leeds. And according to a 6/29 obituary, survivors of late Abbey N. Brown of Cairo “include her mother…and her [mother’s] finance.” And according to a 7/1 sports page story, “The Greene County Volunteer Fireman’s will be hosting their second annual golf tournament” on July 10^th; “The coast to enter… will be $75 per person”; “The coast” covers most everything; and reservations should be made on or before 7/1 (=on or before publication date).

NIMBY COURTHOUSE NEWS. Plaintiff’s attorney: “What is the date of your birth?” Blonde witness: “June 10^th.” “What year?” “Every year.” “And at the time of the collision, what gear were you in?” “Gucci sweats and Reeboks.”