Metroland

Ambulance chasing

An 11-year-old boy died in May after being struck by a car while riding his bike. The child laid on the street for 25 minutes until the city's contracted EMS provider, Mohawk Ambulance, finally delivered an ambulance to his aid. Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings convened a task force in response.

This task force issued its final report last week. It concludes that human error is to blame for the boy's death, and it offers the solutions to prevent such a tragedy in the future, including buying new cell phones. The child's injuries were so severe, the report ends, that he would have likely died regardless of Mohawk's actions.

Mohawk Ambulance, and its president and vice-president, Peter and James McPartlon, have made significant campaign contributions to local and statewide political campaigns and party committees since 2006. With the vast majority of the money coming from the Mohawk corporation itself, at least $35,165 has been pumped into political coffers.

From this money, according to my reading of the financial disclosures of the McPartlons and Mohawk, Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings has received at least $9,000, either donated to his Jennings 2009 (Primary Election Committee) or to his PAC, Capital City Committee.

Along with Jennings, recipients of Mohawk's contributions include Schenectady Mayor Brian Stratton, Brunswick Superintendent Phil Herrington, Assemblyman Ron Canestrari, Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, state Sen. Hugh Farley and former Sen. Joe Bruno, Troy Councilman John Brown and Watervliet Councilman Charlie Diamond.

Decisions, decisions . . .

Until Steve Jobs invents some hand-held device that allows us to be in two places at the same time, we'll have to pick and choose our Friday night recreation very carefully.

Tonight at Valentine's, our pick for Best Pop Band, Scientific Maps, celebrate the release of their new E.P. Galvanic Wizardry along with Salon Style (Gaven Richard of the Kamikaze Hearts), and Brooklyn band Swim Club.
 
Also, Casper Land, the new "creative-technology themed workshop," run by recent Brooklyn transplant and circuit bender extraordinaire Peter Edwards, throws its inaugural show with electronic duo Dewanatron.

O'Neill on Albany public schools, crime

Terry O'Neill, common council candidate in the 6th Ward, poetic gadfly and public affairs consultant weighs in on Mayor Jerry Jennings' comments in yesterday's newsfront:

Mayor Jennings states that "we wouldn't need charter schools if public schools were effective.  Charter schools play a role because a lot of parents are sending their kids to charter schools because they have lost confidence in our public schools."  I don't presume to know what parents are thinking -- one assumes about what they believe best for their kids, including, perhaps, home schooling or private, charter or religious schools -- I believe it's good to maximize their options -- but as far as whether the public schools are doing a good job, I've spent the past year and a half as a substitute teacher at Abrookin and Albany High School.  I daresay my observations about what is going on in the public schools are a bit fresher than the Mayor's.

Albany High School offers options and programs and educational materials that I was astonished to find are more varied and in many ways superior to what I enjoyed at a private boys' prep school in Connecticut in the late 1960s.  No one can say that the educational opportunity we put before the children of this city is deficient in any way.  The problem is that so many kids are incapable of taking full advantage of that opportunity.  I don't blame the school district, the teachers or the parents, as many do.  My point of view is informed, not only by my time in the school system, but by a quarter of a century of observation of the state's criminal justice policy. 

Bender (of Brighter Choice) for Jennings

In today's (redundantly headlined) newsfront, Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings tells Metroland that he thinks the city is "pretty maxed" when it comes to charter schools. 

Albany Common Councilman Corey Ellis, who is running to dislodge the 16-year incumbent, said that Jennings has never made clear what he thinks about the number of charter schools in the city or whether he supports their future expansion.

Ellis, for the record, supports a moratorium.

According to Jennings' campaign disclosure filings, Brighter Choice Foundation's executive director Christian Bender has donated $3,200 to Jennings 2009 (Primary Election Committee) since 2006. He has also donated $200 to Jennings' political action committee, Capital City Committee.

Jennings committed to LWV debate on Sept. 2

Mayor Jerry Jennings has the reputation, among his critics at least, of running away from the public when confronted. Durning the 2005 mayoral race, he didn't appear once with his opponent Archie Goodbee.

So it is notable that this time around the mayor has already appeared in a public forum with his leading opponent, Corey Ellis, and intends to meet Ellis again in a debate.

The debate is being hosted by the League of Women Voters and the Council of Albany Neighborhood Associations, and will be held on Sept. 2 at 6:30 PM at the Albany Public Library.

Upstate, (still) Wasted

AOL complied this charming list based on population decline since 2000, NY state did as "well" as Ohio.

"America's Fastest Dying Cities"

10. Birmingham, Ala. and Jackson, Miss. (tie)
 9. SYRACUSE
 8. ROCHESTER
 7. Toledo, Ohio
 6. Hialeah, Fla.
 5. Dayton, Ohio
 4. Pittsburgh, Pa.
 3. BUFFALO
 2. Cleveland, Ohio
 1. Flint, Mich.

SAW Fest Saturday

On Saturday night, Salem Art Works is hosting its 3rd annual SAW Music and Arts Festival. From 6 until the wee hours, local bands (and Metroland favorites) Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned, Railbird, Beware! The Other Head of Science, and the Mathematicians will be performing on the outdoor stage. Galleries will be open, with installations by Alexis Grabowski, Emily Gray, and the Glens Falls collective UpStart, and the sculpture park will be ripe for roaming. Best of all, admission and camping (in the sculpture park) is absolutely FREE (with a reasonable $15 suggested donation).

Shane Jones, meet Spike Jonze

Local author Shane Jones recently announced that the film rights to his novel Light Boxes has been sold to none other than director Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, countless Bjork videos, and the forthcoming adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are). The story of a small town's war against the endless month of February (read my review for more info) will be produced by Jonze and directed by Ray Tintori, a young director known for his work with the band MGMT. If Tintori's video for "Time to Pretend" is any indication, he should be able to handle Jones' kaleidoscopic plot just fine.
Time To Pretend - MGMT

NXIVM serves Metroland in $65 million suit

Uh-oh.

On July 9, Metroland was served the lawsuit that was filed March 12 with the Supreme Court of the State of New York in Niagara County, alleging, among other things, that the paper defamed the controversial company NXIVM and its founder, Keith Raniere [“We’ve Been Served—Oh Wait,” Newsfront, April 2].

NXIVM is a Capital Region-based company that offers personal and professional training seminars.

The article cited in the $65 million lawsuit, “The Stars Come Out in Troy,” was written by news editor Chet Hardin and published on March 13, 2008. The article reported that television actresses Nicki Clyne, of Battlestar Galactica, and Allison Mack of Smallville, reportedly adherents of NXIVM, were considering starting a business and had met with Troy Mayor Harry Tutunjian. In it, Hardin quoted at length longtime NXIVM critic Rick Ross.

Immigrants' rights resolution passed Albany council

The public-comment period of the Albany Common Council gave a group of more than a half dozen people, immigrants and the advocates who provide them support, the opportunity to speak out in favor of Councilwoman Barbara Smith's nonbinding immigrants' rights resolution.

The resolution, which aims to "support a welcoming and compassionate environment for immigrants and their families within our city and its institutions," would "instruct public safety personnel to refrain from asking people their immigration status. . ."

Earlier, during caucus, the resolution and its supporters, including councilmen Corey Ellis and Glen Casey among others, met limited but vehement opposition from Ward 15's Councilwoman Sandra Fox and Councilman Joseph Igoe. Igoe, who represents the 14th Ward, said that he wanted to hear from the police department before voting. Smith said that she had heard that the police weren't interested in getting involved in this legislative discussion.

More pointedly, Fox opposed the resolution, she said, because, "I don't want to turn Albany into a sanctuary city."

The resolution is simply to urge the police, Smith said, to not insert immigration status into the course of a routine police activity, such as a traffic stop. Questioning a person's status based solely on how they might look or sound, Smith said, is a form of profiling. She, along with many of the speakers, said that many legal immigrants are scared to reach out to the police for help because they worry that their status might be questioned.

Illegal immigrants, also, are left extremely vulnerable due to this fear, one advocate said.

The resolution, as introduced, included amended language calling on the federal government to step up its act in providing a fair legal framework for immigrants, as well as the clarification that it's not the goal of the council to urge immigrants to reside in the country illegally. The inclusion of this language softened Igoe's view of the resolution.

A majority of the council members wound up speaking, and speaking, in favor of the resolution, drawing from their own families' stories of immigrating to this country. (There is nothing like a well-meaning, nonbinding resolution to prompt long-winded monologues from politicians.)

The resolution passed 14 to 0 as Fox left before the vote.