I am fascinated by how language continually evolves. I came across a new term in an article in today’s NY Post about a real estate agent soliciting business from DINK - Dual Income No Kids. He was fined 20 grand by the Human Rights Commission. Having seen what my parents went through with some tenants, I side with landlords having the right to say no to whomever they please. Unfortunately, there's no guarantee things will go smoothly. Fortunately, my sister's current tenants at the old house are a dream.
On my 21st birthday in 1971, Officers Waverly Jones and Joseph Piagentini responded to a report of a domestic dispute at a Harlem housing project. They were shot multiples times by members of the Black Liberation Army, an offshoot of the Black Panthers. One of them, Herman Bell, was the QB of our team at Lafayette High School. I liked him. He had a great smile and a cannon arm. Despite not showing up for his finals in June, our coach pleaded that Herm be given passing grades so he could go to college. The last I heard before the news of the murders was that Herm was doing very well, setting records at his school. I don’t recall the name or whether it was a JC or four-year institution. It wasn't a football factory, of that I'm sure. I don’t know what happened in the time between his success and the killings, and I don’t care. He has been eligible for parole for several years and will face the board again soon. I hope he is denied. Murder is something only God, if He exists, should forgive. Behind bars, Herm has earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s, has learned to play the flute, and corresponds with homeless children. I am not moved. Five years ago he accepted a plea deal for his role in the murder of a Police Sergeant in a San Francisco station house. He should spend the rest of his days in prison, paying his debt to society, particularly to the families of the slain. Since 2012 the PBA has maintained a website that has received 850,000 letters urging commissioners not to release Bell, his cohorts, one of whom died in jail, or others responsible for the killing of 66 policeman nationwide. Liberals refer to them as political prisoners. I call them murderers.
There is good news out of Chattanooga, Tennessee, where employees of a Volkswagen factory voted against unionizing, 712 to 626. This happened despite the fact that management allowed UAW reps to freely roam the place. Such establishments are unionized in Germany. A group of workers formed a counterinsurgency and won the day. Obviously, the bailout of GM loomed large in their thinking. Kudos, gentlemen.
The forecast was for rain this afternoon, so I didn't bother setting up the book shop. It was a mistake. Although it was very wet in the area of my usual nook, I could have improvised. Instead I shoveled away the snow and ice blocking access to the sidewalk, and I tried to dig a canal along the curb on E. 13th to allow the water to get to the sewer. I got within two feet. The ice was too thick and hard for my plastic shovel, and I was concerned that I'd slip and whack the sporty BMW that has been wedged in at the corner for the past two weeks. With nowhere for the water to go, it might flood the sidewalk, and I'd have to go to the dreaded viaduct to sell books. It was so beautiful outside I hung out until one.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
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