Mt. Hope· Providence, Rhode Island

Reading of Names

Katrina Arrives in New Orleans

Today we have the reading of names, some place names, of locales caught in the terrible path of Hurricane Katrina.

In Tribute

Louisiana
Mississippi
Alabama
New Orleans
Biloxi
Gulfport
Mobile
Saucier
Slidell
Bay St. Louis
Wiggins
Perdido
Lucedale
Pass Christien
Long Beach
Bay Minette
Sandy Hook
Cat Island
Horn Island
Dauphin Island

Our thoughts, hopes and best wishes go out to all those caught up in this disaster of biblical proportions.

Posted at 11:31 AM | Community | Comments (0)

The last Week in August's Poems

Happiness

So early it's still almost dark out.
I'm near the window with coffee,
and the usual early morning stuff
that passes for thought.

When I see the boy and his friend
walking up the road
to deliver the newspaper.

They wear caps and sweaters,
and one boy has a bag over his shoulder.
They are so happy
they aren't saying anything, these boys.

I think if they could, they would take
each other's arm.
It's early in the morning,
and they are doing this thing together.

They come on, slowly.
The sky is taking on light,
though the moon still hangs pale over the water.

Such beauty that for a minute
death and ambition, even love,
doesn't enter into this.

Happiness. It comes on
unexpectedly. And goes beyond, really,
any early morning talk about it.

Raymond Carver

- -

- -

I Stop Writing the Poem

to fold the clothes. No matter who lives
or who dies, I'm still a woman.
I'll always have plenty to do.
I bring the arms of his shirt
together. Nothing can stop
our tenderness. I'll get back
to the poem. I'll get back to being
a woman. But for now
there's a shirt, a giant shirt
in my hands, and somewhere a small girl
standing next to her mother
watching to see how it's done.

Tess Gallagher

- -

- -

Raymond Carver and Tess Gallagher married, after living and working together for ten years, in June, 1988, just months before Raymond Carver died of cancer, that August, at the age of fifty. Theirs was a great love story.

Considered one of the greatest short story writers of all time, some refer to Raymond Carver as the American Chekhov. Anton Chekhov, a Russian doctor and writer, originated the modern short story in the 1880s. Raymond Carver mastered the form and after a hard drinking, hard scrabble existence, won wide recognition late in his writing life. Not widely known as a poet during his lifetime, his poems seem to have a long half-life and are beginning to be considered equal to the great, evocative fiction he wrote.

Tess Gallagher, who studied under renowned poet Theodore Roethke, earned critical acclaim for her poetry before meeting Raymond Carver, and she continues to write poetry and now, fiction. She designed and built a famous house in Washington state, where she lives and works, known as "Sky House".

Posted at 12:01 AM | The Arts | Comments (0)

Art Exhibit

Not for the literally minded

For those Drinking Bitter Brew

Original Digitally Altered Photographs

A Bitter Second Draught

Posted at 12:02 AM | The Arts | Comments (0)

Funny, Ha, Ha.

Some interesting search terms

The third in a series chroncling some interesting aspects our website statistics reveal about the use of, and the users of GCCC’s Mt. Hope Community Website and Blog (one and two appeared on 8/18 and 8/24): today’s post lists some fascinating and some humorous search terms and search strings people used -- in search engines like Google, Yahoo, and MSN, to name just a few -- to arrive at the Mt. Hope Community Website. Some searched looking for us, some found us by accident.

Look at a few of my favorites (search queries in bold):

providence rhode island pizza arrest august

(You hear about the Pizza that got busted down on Pleasant? He threw his pepperoni in the bushes.)

bad speller graffiti photo

(Since when did graffiti artists or bloggers have to know how to spell?)

school stabbings pictures at the seen of a crime

(Haven’t scene any, you?)

harry potter school providence rhode island

(Did you know the Wizard kid had a school in Providence?)

mr. rodger's neighborhood theme song

(Oh, yeah, we’ll put that up on an MP3 clip)

pothole flat hire massachusetts claim

(Our potholes are not for hire.)

street trucks concept

(I’d like to know this concept.)

rhode island abandonded boats

(We gotta do something about the abandonded boat problem in Mt. Hope!)

horrible accident

(You must mean the one on Knowles and Abbott? Who's asking?)

job descritpion for teachers

(Don’t go there!)

the potholes rhode island

(written by the same guy who wrote “the Hours” ?)

easiest driving route from baltimore to providence

(ever heard of a map? How about mapquest?)

fence rhode island

(yeah, fence it in and keep out Baltimorons who can’t find it anyway)

loitering in providence

(Why would they?)

why rhode island settled purpose

(because it was built on a bog?)

2005 e-mail address of companies in easter island
(why ask us?)

We do receive many normal, appropriate, even scholarly searches and queries by people looking for certain posts or information about Mt. Hope and Providence. I just listed some of the wackier ones that gave me pause and a laugh.

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By the Way, our Mt. Hope Community Website is closing in on our 200,000 Hit and our 10,000 Visitor.

Posted at 11:37 AM | Website | Comments (0)

Scope Internationale

GCCC becomes International Phenomenon!

If you think I'm making up tabloid headlines, think again.

It's a big old world out there, and we are welcoming visitors from all over the global village.

The following list of countries, with their flag symbols, comprise the current countries from which vistors have logged on to the Mt. Hope Community Website.

We recently added Bermuda. Welcome aboard, Bermuda.

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We welcome our first Asian country: welcome aboard, China.

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Mt. Hope welcomes Canada!

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Welcome Japan and Viet Nam, and now Singapore!

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Untied States

Sweden

Great Britain

Germany

France

Denmark

Nederlands

European Union

Australia

Bermuda

China

Canada

Japan

Viet Nam

Singapore

October: Welcome South Africa, Taiwan, and Hong Kong!

South Africa

Taiwan

Hong Kong

Columbia

Algeria

Spain

Italy

South Korea

Kuwait

Saudi Arabia

Send us your pictures when you visit from beyond our borders, you international visitors, we would love to know more about you.

John Twomey

Posted at 08:24 PM | Website | Comments (4)

Greetings & Welcome

Greetings and Welcome to All Our New Members.

Greater Camp Concerned Citizens (GCCC) picked up a number of new members over the summer, and we welcome you to our organization.

Some new members found us though this website, and some heard about us through current members.

Recruit, Members, Recruit!

Recruiting remains a GCCC organizational priority as we suscribe to the beliefs that power resides in numbers, that politics is a power struggle, and that all politics is local.

So, get out there members, talk to people in your neighborhood or wherever you meet Mt. Hopeans, tell them about GCCC, about our website, and get that $15.00 check for membership dues, and increase our membership rolls.

Anyone wishing to join can click on this link GCCC and send us your info or you can call Irene at 640-8076.

Together, we can make a better Mt. Hope.

John Twomey

Posted at 08:06 PM | GCCC | Comments (0)

Poems for this Week

Hook

I was only a young man
In those days. On that evening
The cold was so God damned
Bitter there was nothing.
Nothing. I was in trouble
With a woman, and there was nothing
There but me and dead snow.

I stood on the street corner
In Minneapolis, lashed
This way and that.
Wind rose from some pit,
Hunting me.
Another bus to Saint Paul
Would arrive in three hours,
If I was lucky.

Then the young Sioux
Loomed beside me, his scars
Were just my age.

Ain't got no bus here
A long time, he said.
You got enough money
To get home on?

What did they do
To your hand? I answered.
He raised up his hook into the terrible starlight
And slashed the wind.

Oh, that? he said.
I had a bad time with a woman. Here,
You take this.

Did you ever feel a man hold
Sixty-five cents
In a hook,
And place it
Gently
In your freezing hand?

I took it.
It wasn't the money I needed.
But I took it.

James Wright

-

-

III

In the desert
I saw a creature, naked, bestial,
Who, squatting upon the ground,
Held his heart in his hands,
And ate of it.
I said, "Is it good, friend?"
"It is bitter - bitter," he answered;
"But I like it
Because it is bitter,
And because it is my heart."

Stephan Crane

Posted at 12:01 AM | The Arts | Comments (0)

Park on Pleasant Wins!

Water Park on Pleasant Street wins "Best Water Park in the City" contest

The Pleasant Street Water park has been determined to be the best water park in the city of Providence for cleanliness and safety. The award comes with 500 dollars to spend on a celebration and the city will allow the park to stay open for an extra day this year. The final day to enjoy our award winning water park is Tuesday instead of Monday as scheduled. If you have not had the time to check out this jewel do so today congratulations to Cheryl Taylor and her staff of Mt. Hope youth for making our park the safe clean place that kids deserve.

Lisa Niebels

Posted at 06:52 PM | Community | Comments (0)

FIRE ! ! !

Tragic Fire for Family on Forest Street

Fire in the Window -- Uri Baver

Fire on Forest Street: Two Alarm Fire: On the Scene Report

At about 7:15 am, my ten-year-old daughter announced, “It smells like there is a candle burning”. I also smelled something burning; I checked all the fans and air conditioners in the house. I got to my daughters room, and through the window, I spied the fire trucks down the street near the intersection of Camp and Forest.

My son and I quickly hurried down the street to investigate. To our horror we saw a single-family home on Forest St. going up in flames. The flames were shooting out of the roof and and thick, black smoke billowed out of the second floor.

Water on the Fire -- Uri Baver

At that point, all firefighters were called out of the building. We watched as they took one fire fighter away by ambulance; we later learned that two more had been taken to Miriam hospital. Two of the fire fighters suffered electric shocks in the basement of the home, while a third sustained injuries when a wall on the second floor collapsed on him. All were said to be in good condition.

Still Smokin' but Under Control -- Uri Baver

All the residents escaped safely, but the house looked like a total loss. Neighbors reported that their smoke detectors were going off, and once they got out of their home they saw tongues of bright, orange flames shooting out the back of the burning house.

The Red Cross responded and was on scene to help with clothing and housing the occupants of the home.

At 8:00am, police and fire personnell did not know the cause of the fire nor how the fire started but will conduct an investigation.

Uri Baver

Posted at 01:20 PM | Community | Comments (1)

"Police Presence"?

Where is the "police presence"?

I own a condo in the building where the District 8 substation is and have seen LITTLE police presence in the past several weeks and NO foot patrol officers. Last summer there were plenty of officers on foot patrol. Was the reference to increased police presence in the Aug. 19 message a sarcastic piece of fiction?

Peter C.

Editors note: The above post is the opinion of the writer (Peter) and should not be mistaken for fact. Blogs are a medium for people to express their indivdual viewpoints and should not be mistaken for the viewpoint of GCCC or of the Mt. Hope Community Website.

Posted at 11:07 AM | Issues | Comments (1)

WARNING SHOTS!!!

Retards with Guns

Be Carefull Out there!

Did you ever notice a makeshift memorial in the parking lot nearly across from the District 8 Substation on Camp Street? That is where a young man from Mt. Hope's Hector family fell, murdered in a drive by shooting, several years ago. This young man died because of a gun fued between youth gangs from the South Side of Providence and from the East Side of Providence. The Mt. Hope gang calls themselves the East Side Boyz. They are few in number, but what they lack in strength they make up for in stupidity.

Mt. Hope now faces the same situation again. Gang war between these two factions accounts for the alarming number of recent shootings in Providence. Shoot, retaliate, shoot! There have been a number of shootings and a murder already! The authorities have finally taken action!

Keep your head down, don't let your kids play outside, you don't want anyone in your family to be the victim of a stray bullet.

But all you Pollyannas out there, you just put on your pretty bonnets, and go about your business as usual.

Cicilline -- Soft on Crime -- Head in the Ground

You can lay this problem right on the doorstop of the Cicilline administration. You can't be soft on crime while pandering for votes without paying the price.

Now the police react to a crisis.

But how did the situation reach crises proportion? Haven't we been crying out for law enforcement? Haven't we been begging the City to stop the open-air drug market in Mt. Hope? Is it not the same drug dealers that haunt our Mt. Hope streets who are now engaged in a deadly war game that may cost some innocent person their life?

The answer is, yes, to all of the above.

Yes, the Cicilline administration let the situation reach crises proportion!

Yes, the Cicilline administration denied that the drug mural in Billy Taylor Park is a symbol of the embedded drug culture in Mt. Hope.

Yes, the Cicilline administration functions as an enabler to the embedded drug culture in Mt. Hope, pandering to other enablers who allow the drug culture to devastate their own neighborhood for profit and for votes!

Yes, the Cicilline administration now, tacitly admits, by their increase in Police presence in Mt. Hope, that there is indeed a problem with drug crime in Mt. Hope, and that it does need addressing before people get killed or someone gets voted out of office!

Congratulations, Mayor Cicilline, why don't you bring Esserman and your entire entourage down for another walk along Camp Street tomorrow evening on another exercise in damage control.

You're getting pretty good at damage control (or at least getting a lot of practice). You need it.

Be sure you keep your head down, though.

Like the citizens of Mt. Hope must do, now that you've let the crime situation get out of control.

Be Carefull Out There!

Posted at 12:00 AM | Issues | Comments (0)

Police Respond to Mt. Hope Crime

Be on Your Best Behavior – Increased Police Presence in Mt. Hope

Sources tell us that there will be an increase in police presence in Mt. Hope beginning tonight in response to the spate of shootings, violent crime and drug related crime in Providence, including Mt. Hope.

Overtime has been authorized in order to put additional officers on the street. The partnership with the State Police will be in full swing. These teams will be evident throughout Mt. Hope.

Look for an increase in traffic enforcement and a crack down on the open air drug market that operates in Mt. Hope. The police understand that dealers use rental cars to cruise Mt. Hope and from which dealers sell drugs. Be on the lookout for dealers operating out of rentals and report them.

Speeding, failure to stop, double-parking, blocking streets, vehicle malfunctions all give the police probable cause to stop vehicles. If you are an honest citizen, be on your best driving behavior.

Gang related activity, involving Southside gangs and Eastside gangs, is partly responsible for the up tick in shots fired recently. As you know these gangs are also deeply involved in the drug business.

Now is the time to be vigilant, to be alert, to help our police department make our streets safer.

Call the police if you see any crime, and be sure to note the important details, or e-mail details to CrimeWatch.

Posted at 04:50 PM | Issues | Comments (0)

Web Site Statistics

FYI

The Mt. Hope Community website passed many statistical milestones recently, and I think it bears mentioning here on the website so our users can see how the website has grown in usage.

At one time I wished to announce our one hundred and fifty-thousandth “hit”, but it came and went without me noticing. We’re way beyond that now!

To create perspective, in February, 2005, when the website launched, we received visits from 24 people for a total of 178 visits and 2,482 hits.

In July, 2005, we hosted 1,651 visits totaling 42,942 hits.

February

Visits – 178
Hits – 2,482

July

Visits – 1,651
Hits – 42,942

To date, the Mt. Hope Community Website has hosted 8,103 visits for a total of 173,451 hits.

Yes, 173,451 hits!

Keep up the good work Mt. Hope.

There's more at the door.

More people visit our website every day.

Posted at 01:48 PM | Website | Comments (0)

Shots Fired -- Crime Watch Time

Recent Providence Journal Articles Detailing Crime / Crime Watch List

Let’s get the Crime Watch up and running. Now is the time, the community needs you, active crime watchers, to commit what time and energy you can to move our Crime Watch plans forward. Remember our goal is to have a Crime Watch sign on every Mt. Hope street.

We are compiling a Crime Watch list: locations, addresses where illegal activity is taking place, incidents, etc. etc. Contact us vie e-mail at CrimeWatch with any information about crime in Mt. Hope. If you wish to remain anonymous that is fine. Details are very important, names, addresses, streets, descriptions, etc etc.

We’ve made great progress in the last year, now is the time to consolidate our gains, get organized and follow through with our Crime Watch organization.

The ProJo has been reporting a lot of crime lately across the city.

Saturdays’ ProJo featured this little item on page A 4: Shots fired in Mt. Hope; teen injured, and the piece explained that the shots were fired at William Ellery Place, which is off of Doyle Av, and according to police the shooter was driven there, got out of the car and fired several shots at around 2pm, in the afternoon, then fled.

I’m no expert but this sounds like drug or gang related or both. A number of people were in the area and it is just dumb luck that no innocent person was killed or wounded.

Also in Saturday’s ProJo, Robber flees Stop & Shop, tells about a 3pm robbery of our local Stop & Shop.

Saturday’s ProJo featured this article also: East Side robber hits dry cleaner and Inn. The article chronicles the tale of this criminal who has committed 10 robberies and two more attempted robberies. He targets small business. One Mt. Hope business was robbed, the map shop on Main Street.

In Tuesday’s ProJo, this: Spate of shootings leaves 3 young people injured, ( for some reason they've taken the story off their site?) about two shootings in South Providence and one in Reservoir.

It also announced the robbery of the Sovereign Bank at 551 North Main Street in University Heights by a female bank robber, Sovereign Bank hit by robber. Isn’t that the 2nd bank robbery in Mt. Hope this week?

ProJo detailed a fight in a club, Man badly injured in fight at S. Providence nightclub, that mentioned names that have been in the news quite a lot lately, Mambo, a nightclub, Titin, proprietor of Mi Sueno, and Marroocco, who sold him the liquor license. In a move opposed by the police, the licensing commission transferred a liquor license to Titin from Marroco. I think I’ve seen this name in connection with Ms. Pontarelli’s reprimand by Mayor Cicilline for providing an e-mail list of names of city employees to the proprietor of Café Mediterraneo, Gianfranco Marrocco, for a Cicilline fund raiser. The name also rings a bell in relation to last week’s Dominican Festival, in which, again opposed by the police, the licensing commission allowed Café Mediterraneo, operated by Gianfranco Marrocco to remain open an extra hour when at the police’s request many clubs closed early that night. Gianfranco Marrocco ran the Cicilline fund raiser at Café Mediterraneo, and critics imply in the ProJo article that he gets favorable treatment from the City.

Moving on to Wednesday’s ProJo, Another shooting leaves 1 hurt, details a South Providence shooting and states “- the fourth shooting in Providence is less than two days.”

Thursday’s, today’s ProJo featured this: Electronics store owner robbed and assaulted, which detailed the vicious and violent beating and robbery of a small business owner as he closed up shop on Manton Av.

The good news: Cocaine arrest nets deportee, authorities say, tells of the bust of a career criminal and the infiltration of a cocaine dealing operation. Congrats Lt. Verdi! You and your guys do good work.

Crime Stats

If it’s true that crime stats are down in Providence it should make one wonder about the nature of crime stats and how they are compiled. For each crime or incident documented by the police for their crime stats, how many crimes go undocumented and not included in the crime stat report, 3 to 1, 4 to 1? It is a good question. I don’t know the answer.

You can read my post in July The Big Lie of Crime Stats to get my opinion on how stats are manipulated.

It is clear that the Providence Police have their hands full and that they are doing the best they can in many respects. Still, crime prevention, and not just reacting to crime, must be an approach incorporated into their daily techniques. Crime prevention calls for more police personnel. I firmly believe that we need more police in uniform and on the streets in each district if any of us expects to feel safe in Providence.

CRIME WATCH

Let’s get ahead of the curve, let’s get ahead of the wave, let’s get our Crime Watch running effectively.

What’s going on in your neck of the woods? E-mail, CrimeWatch .

Posted at 11:55 PM | Issues | Comments (0)

Poem of the Week

Tears of Rage

We carried you in our arms
On independence day,
And now you throw us all aside
And put us on our way.
Oh, what dear daughter, beneath the sun,
Could treat a father so,
To wait upon him hand and foot,
And always tell him no.

Tears of rage,
Tears of grief,
Why am I always the one
Who must
Be the thief?

Come to me now,
You know
We're so alone:
And life is brief.

It was all so very painless
When you went out to receive
All that false instruction,
Which we never could believe.
And now the heart is filled with gold,
As if it were a purse,
But, oh, what kind of love is this,
That goes from bad to worse.

Tears of rage,
Tears of grief,
Why am I always the one
Who must
Be the thief?

Come to me now,
You know
We're so alone:
And life is brief.

We pointed out the way to go
And scratched your name in sand,
Though you just thought that it was nothing more
Than a place for you to stand.
And I want you to know that while we waited
For you to discover that no one could be true,
That I, myself, was among the ones
Who thought it was just a childish thing to do.

Tears of rage,
Tears of grief,
Why am I always the one
Who must
Be the thief?

Come to me now,
You know
We're so alone:
And life is brief.

Bob Dylan & Richard Manuel

Posted at 11:45 PM | The Arts | Comments (0)

Public Notice in ProJo

This Notice appeared on page two of the Metro Edition of today's ProJO.

Posted at 01:12 PM | Community | Comments (1)

ProJo Calling -- Kevin's Answers

John's Letter

ProJo called me on Thursday and informed me that they will be publishing my letter about Mt. Hope in Friday’s, today’s, paper.

Kevin's questions

Kevin, in his comment, asked about the police on bikes.

The foot-patrol rides bikes now, and they personally thanked me for the input of the Mt. Hope Community Website (July 12, Good Job Dist. 8) in facilitating the department to provide the bikes and authorize bike patrols. To illustrate how committed our guys are, they paid for their own bike uniforms so that they could begin the bike patrols sooner rather than later. Think about that the next time you wish to level facile criticism of our community police. Like I sometimes do. Guilty as charged. We all need a lesson in humility sometimes.

Our District 8 police have made great headway since Lt. Schiavulli took over. But I see that the only way our District 8 police can make more headway against crime in Mt. Hope is to have more police assigned to the district or to have the narco division pay more attention to Mt. Hope. But with what’s going on in the rest of the city, I don’t think that will happen soon.

It’s crossroads time for the Cicilline administration. If they keep telling us that crime is down when all indications point the other direction, then the next election should provide us with a new mayor who will hire a new police chief. A leader can’t pander over votes. All people want to feel safe in their city. Pander at your own risk!

Kevin asked about the traffic calming device at Rochambeau & Camp.

Our Ward 3 Councilman, Kevin Jackson, allocated $660,000 to traffic calming in the Summit neighborhood. The area now known as Summit, is officially known as Hope, but the neighborhood association there pushes to be known as Summit, and my best guess is that they wish to differentiate themselves from Mt. Hope. I wonder why.

You can read the details of the Summit Traffic Calming, in ProJo.

No, I don’t think the drug dealers will move down to the new island at Rochambeau & Camp, Kevin: they have a perfectly good spot rent free, right next to where you live, where you pay good money for rent.

And, of course, another reason for them not to move, if they move to “Summit” they might get arrested!

Why can’t we get a councilman who will allocate money for Mt. Hope’s needs?

It took GCCC two years to get a $50 stop sign at Camp and Jenkins! Two years to get a broken fence fixed on Cypress! Two years to get crosswalks painted to protect our childern and elderly!

And we did it, not our councilman!

John Twomey

Posted at 12:03 AM | Community | Comments (0)

Good News Feature

strong>The Eyes Have It!

Got my Eyes on You

com

Posted at 12:02 AM | Community | Comments (0)

In Memoriam -- Two Classics

Because it was this week in 1945, that we committed two of the most horrific acts of war in history, this weeks poetry selections deal with war and with loss.

We feature the poems, Naming of Parts, by Henry Reed and One Art, by Elizabeth Bishop.

NAMING OF PARTS

To-day we have naming of parts. Yesterday,
We had daily cleaning. And to-morrow morning,
We shall have what to do after firing. But to-day,
To-day we have naming of parts. Japonica
Glistens like coral in all of the neighboring gardens,
And to-day we have naming of parts.

This is the lower sling swivel. And this
Is the upper sling swivel, whose use you will see,
When you are given your slings. And this is the piling swivel,
Which in your case you have not got. The branches
Hold in the gardens their silent, eloquent gestures,
Which in our case we have not got.

This is the safety-catch, which is always released
With an easy flick of the thumb. And please do not let me
See anyone using his finger. You can do it quite easy
If you have any strength in your thumb. The blossoms
Are fragile and motionless, never letting anyone see
Any of them using their finger.

And this you can see is the bolt. The purpose of this
Is to open the breech, as you see. We can slide it
Rapidly backwards and forwards: we call this
Easing the spring. And rapidly backwards and forwards
The early bees are assaulting and fumbling the flowers
They call it easing the Spring.

They call it easing the Spring: it is perfectly easy
If you have any strength in your thumb: like the bolt,
And the breech, and the cocking-piece, and the point of balance,
Which in our case we have not got; and the almond-blossom
Silent in all of the gardens and the bees going backwards and forwards,
For to-day we have naming of parts.

Henry Reed

Henry Reed’s poem, Naming of Parts, is the most anthologized poem of WWII. Henry, of Birmingham, England, was born in 1914, son of a master bricklayer, who was a renowned drinker and womanizer and whose other son, an illegitimate son, died in the war. Family legend had it that the Reeds were descended from the bastard son of an 18th century Earl of Dudley.

Henry Reed attended many schools as a young man and was once anointed as a mathematical genius, but he also had his first sexual, homosexual, experience when he was nineteen, and later had a tortuous affair with a boy who developed paranoia. He was asked to leave home. Henry was drafted into the army in 1941 and served in an ordinance company.

In his poem, Naming of Parts, he juxtaposes a garden landscape with the military training he is receiving, altering language and rhythm, and using irony and satire and double meanings to convey the point of the poem.

Read it again and again.

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- -

One Art

The art of losing isn't hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

Lose something every day. Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel. None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother's watch. And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three loved houses went.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones. And, vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn't a disaster.

--Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan't have lied. It's evident
the art of losing's not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster.

Elizabeth Bishop

Born in 1911, a native of Worcester, Massachusetts, her father died when she was eight months old, and her mother ended up institutionalized. She was raised by grandparents in Nova Scotia for a time then back in Worcester by her father’s wealthy parents, then with her aunt, her fourth home by age eight, which provided her with a measure of love and stability.

She attended Vasser College and took the poet Marianne Moore as her mentor. She had dalliances with men but had not yet realized that she was a lesbian.

Ms. Bishop traveled widely and lived for a time in Brazil with the love of her life, Lota Soares. She continued to write late into her life with no decline in the quality of her work. She wrote One Art in 1976, at the age of 75.

Ms. Bishop wrote One Art as a villanelle, a French form from the 15th century. Five of the six stanzas consist of three lines and the last, four lines. The end words of the first and third lines rhyme throughout the first five stanzas and the end words of the second lines of each stanza rhyme throughout the first five stanzas. However, the first line and last line of the first stanza take turns repeating as the final line of the next four stanzas, and then they are joined as the last two lines of the poem.

Ms. Bishop’s poem needs no explication: it speaks for itself.

John Twomey

Posted at 09:41 PM | The Arts | Comments (0)

13th Murder in Providence / Zoning Review

Violent Crime . . . / . . . Zoning Showdown

Our fair city recorded its 13th murder this year, 2005, and the number of shootings and stabbings stands much, much higher.

Knock on wood, we've had no murders I know of in Mt. Hope, but I shudder with an eerie feeling thinking about all the violence and all the crime taking place in the City of Providence while our leaders keep trotting out crime stats designed to show us that crime is down. Will it be just a matter of time before some innocent will get caught in the crossfire and pay with their life?

A steady supply of guns must be finding their way into Providence, for last year the police took many guns off the street in some highly publicized manuvers.

You can read about the latest shooting death here, in ProJo

Zoning Issues

Also in todays ProJo, Kathleen Crowley reports on the City Council's unanamous vote to hire consultants, experts in zoning issues, to study the proposed zoning changes that will affect all Providence neighborhoods. The Council accused the Cicilline administration of trying to rush through the zoning changes without adequate neighborhoood input.

Critics claim the zoning changes favor developers who would be able to build higher and denser in more neingborhoods, seriously altering the quality of life and the landscape in many neighborhoods.

Citizens who did participate in the process of changing the zoning regs claim that their input was ignored.

This issue is worth keeping an eye on for all who invested in the City of Providence as their home, for these changes may seriously affect your investment and your home.

Posted at 12:21 PM | Issues | Comments (0)

B'ball & Drug Deals in Billy Taylor Park

B'ball League -- who are these people?

Once again people from all over Providence converged on BTP for the b'ball league games. Most of the people in the park for these games are not from Mt. Hope.

Visitors parked up Camp Street on both sides so that it was almost unpassable.

Again, drug dealers set up shop in the park along Camp St. next to the house on the corner of Camp and Locust.

I got stopped in my car on Camp St., by the park, by two cars stopped side by side, both facing south, blocking what was left of both lanes. I had to lay on my horn strong to get them to move, or I would have sat there until they deigned to move. They were setting up a drug deal. I followed the cars around the Pleasant, Knowles, Camp quadrant and watched them consumate the deal. I wrote down their license plate numbers and a description. I watched them drop the dealer back in the park.

The descriptions: a new, grey sedan, RI plates IG 366, and a large, black suv, MA plates 41JW41.

I drove home and called in the info to the police at 272-1111 and spoke to dispatcher #83.

I gave my name, address, and phone number and explained that I was with the Mt. Hope Crime Watch and that we'd been instructed by our District 8 commander to call in information on drug dealing that we'd witnessed. I told him that he could send a car by my house and I'd be glad to point out the individual I saw doing the deal.

When I returned to the park 30 minutes later, no drug dealers were in sight.

Part of me resents having to do this kind of work. But if I want a better Mt. Hope, without drug dealers plying their trade next to my home, then this is what I have to do.

I'm not opposed to basketball games in the park, but I think it's a shame that the few ruin it for the many.

I also believe that the police owe it to Mt. Hope residents to do a better job of policing these games.

Two rookie foot patrolmen in the park will not cut it. They need patrol cars backing them up. They are overwhelmed. We need the parking situation policed, and the police need to occupy the spots where drug dealers like to set up shop.

The police should be making it inconvient for the dealers, not the dealers making life inconvient for Mt. Hope residents.

Let us all get our priorities straight.

John Twomey

Posted at 11:59 PM | Issues | Comments (1)

Another side of Mount Hope?

We Live in Mr. Rodger’s Neighborhood!

Friday’s ProJo featured a letter to the editor by Beatrice A. Parker, Another side of Mount Hope, in which Ms. Parker seemed to take umbrage with Ellen Baver’s letter published in both the ESM and ProJo, Was moving here a mistake, mayor.

Ms. Parker stated that Baver described her displeasure with Mt. Hope. I wonder if she read the same letter that I did. I don’t recall any expression of displeasure with Mt. Hope in Baver’s letter. Just an accurate description of what she experiences walking down Camp Street and what she has heard from her neighbors and from the police.

Ms. Parker goes on to describe Mt. Hope as Mr. Rodger’s neighborhood!

She celebrates our group homes for the mentally challenged and our rehab facilities!

She states that Mt. Hope homes were built as working class homes like those on Benefit Street!

She does not condone drug dealing but does condone saying good morning:

“I do not condone drug dealing, but I would also be careful about assuming that young men sitting on a porch in the summertime are automatically doing something illegal. I personally find that simply saying ‘Good morning’ to whomever I meet or pass makes us both feel more comfortable.”

So next time you pass some drug dealers, say “Good morning.” You will both feel more comfortable?

Ms. Parker holds a position on the Board of the Camp St. Ministries and states that they try to keep the sidewalk clear. Well, we’ve all noticed the improvement there since Mrs. Baver’s letter was published. Keep up the good work. It was shamefull.

Ms. Parker claims that Mt. Hope has less crime than Blackstone according to the city’s crime stats!

No comment!

I sent the following letter to the ProJo in response to Ms Parker’s well intentioned but hilarious letter:

Please, let’s get serious in Mt. Hope and not try to blame the messenger as Ms. Parker attempts to do in her August 5th letter to the Providence Journal, Another side of Mt. Hope. Many East Siders, and Mt. Hope residents especially, applauded Mrs. Baver’s July 1st letter, Was moving here a mistake, mayor, because it accurately portrayed what one experiences when walking down Camp Street from Rochambeau to Billy Taylor Park. Her letter implied a simple question, “Why is this allowed to continue in Mt. Hope?” Mrs. Baver’s letter was not an attack on Mt. Hope, it was an accurate description of what she and many of us in Mt. Hope experience. Hiding ones head in the sand will not make Mt. Hope’s problems disappear. Nor will putting on a Pollyanna hat and pretending everything is hunky-dory.

It takes little time for a Mt. Hope resident to be able to tell the difference between drug dealers and young people sitting innocently on a porch, and I’m sure Mrs. Baver can tell the difference.

Ms. Parker’s letter actually takes on the tone of a self-righteous lecture when she begins writing about home buying, saying good morning, being civil, and teaching your children respect. Such lecturing appears inappropriate here and condescending to Mrs. Baver.

The embedded Mt. Hope drug culture has long had its liberal apologists, its enablers, and Ms. Parker sounds like another one.

As for crime stats, how about counting the number of drug deals consummated every day in Mt. Hope that go unreported. That would send the crime stats for Mt. Hope through the roof. I can leave my house and witness a drug deal in Mt. Hope almost anytime of day or night. The fact remains that Mt. Hope is not a bad neighborhood, but that bad people do bad things freely here, like sell drugs and commit drug related crimes, and much of it goes unreported and undocumented.

As a Camp Street Ministries board member, Ms. Parker could be a better neighbor by insuring that the Ministries never leave donated furniture or clothes blocking the sidewalk. That should be a relativity simple improvement to accomplish. Can you imagine the outrage if a facility on Hope Street operated that way?

Let us not blame the victim, nor shame the messenger: Mrs. Baver’s truthful letter was long overdue.

John Twomey
Mt. Hope, Providence

Posted at 12:13 AM | Community | Comments (1)

Tax Raise Spin

Watch the Spinners Spin

Senator Maryellen Goodwin, D-District 1, Providence wrote a Letter to the Editor in Friday's ProJo; unfortunately, it is not included in the online issue so I cannot provide a link: Don't blame General Assembly.

In her letter she responds to the Cicilline administration's and some City councilor's spin on the Providence property tax hike.

I covered this issue in my post of July 22nd, 14% Tax Hike.

Sen. Goodwin makes a compelling case that the responsibility for the nearly 2% property tax hike for 2006, falls squarely on the Cicilline administration's shoulders, despite their attempt to spin it so that the fault for the increase lies within the state budget.

Some of her points:

The State allocated $185 million in Education Aid to Providence, an increase of $3.8 million, by far the largest increase in the state.

Total municipal aid to Providence, a wooping $269.6 million, an increase of $14.2 million, $10 million more of an increase than any other city.

Pawtucket, the recipient of the 2nd largest amount of aid, received $186 million less than Providence.

"To suggest that the Assembly is not giving adequate aid to the City of Providence is ludicrous."

Providence tax payers pay the higest car tax, a whooping $75.78 per $1,000 of a vehicle's accessed value. The Assembly exempted $500 of that tax for Providence residents and will eliminate the car tax by 2010.

The Assembly allocated another $3.3 million to Providence through aid to Distressed Communities. Isn't it interseting to know that we live in a distresed community. Is it news to you?

The point the Senator wishes to make is that the State provided substancial aid to Providence in order to offset the property tax burden, yet the City of Providence still raised our property tax, then attempted to blame the increase on the State.

Oh, the horror, the horror!

John Twomey

Posted at 09:17 PM | Issues | Comments (0)

BUSTED, SUCKER!

A Tipster Strikes

I drove up my street early Wedensday evening, intent on procurring some cold beer for a hot night, when I witnessed a drug deal being consumated at the top of my street. When I got to Camp, I thought, what the hell, I'll stop by the District 8 Substation and see if any of the guys were there.

Sure enough the Lt. and two of our foot guys were there, and I pointed out the dealer to them who was now walking down Camp with a very distinctive hat or do do rag on his head. They sauntered out the station and headed down Camp street toward the park.

Twenty minutes later, when I departed for University Heights I saw two squad cars on Camp and Pleasant and on the way home I saw the Lt. and both foot guys there with the squad cars.

I found out today that our District 8 guys made an arrest based on my detailed descritpion of the perp.

Lt. Schiavulli says that if you see someone dealing call the police, get the dispatch number, and if nothing happens in a reasonable time call back. They can't arrest anyone without probable cause and we, the citizenry, can provide that probable cause. It is important to provide a detailed and accurate description to the police.

Way to go District 8, another notch in the handle. It certainly remains a difficult task to contain the drug dealing and related crime with the current District 8 manpower. They can use all the help we can provide.

And we can appreciate all the effort they make.

Posted at 03:48 PM | Issues | Comments (0)

RE: Dealing Drugs in Billy Taylor Park

I concur that the police need to maintain a presence during all activities in the park.

Last year, I was unfortunate enough to pruchase a condo in the building that houses the District 8 police substation. It was the worst mistake of my life. Now, of course, I can't sell the condo. Who would buy it?

The three blocks of Camp Street running north from Cypress St. are the worst ones I've seen outside of South Providence. A couple of three-deckers are now undergoing renovation, which may be a positive sign. The marketing of "affordable" condos on the east side of Camp is laughable.

It's time to clean up Camp Street permanently. Foot patrols by the police daily, from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m., should be ordered immediately.

Peter C.

Posted at 11:08 AM | Issues | Comments (0)

Drug Dealing Returns to Billy Taylor Park!

Basketball Games used as a cover for drug dealers to ply their trade!

This week I witnessed drug dealing return to Camp Street and especially to Billy Taylor Park. The dealers seem to be using the basketball league games in the park as a cover to do their deals, trying to blend in with the people who are legititmately there to enjoy the games.

The dealers loiter at the edge of the Park next to the house on the corner of Camp and Locust. They move around the corner to Locust Street to complete their deals or they drive around the block, Pleasant to Knowles to Camp.

If I know it, why do the police allow it?

The first few games went without incident, but each subsequent game has brought more and more unsettling activity.

An increase in activity has also been reported on the corner of Knowles and Jenkins.

Until our District 8 police develop an understanding of these tactics the dealers will operate freely.

While the foot-patrol effectively establishes a visible police presence in Mt. Hope, I wonder at the efficacy of this type of policing to combat the type of drug dealing we are presently witnessing.

Familiarity breeds contempt. I have seen our rookie officers on the beat occaisionaly looking like deer caught in the headlights. Their lack of experience may somtimes be a hinderance in dealing with street savvy Mt. Hope drug dealers.

If you give up the element of surprise, you put yourself at a disadvantage, and I'm afraid that is what our community police are doing. You can never relax long enough to congratulate yourself here in Mt. Hope.

Whenever there is any activity in Billy Taylor Park we need a strong police presence especially during the Basketball League games.

We should not cede the streets back to the thugs and punks who deal drugs. Invite them to dinner at your house if you wish, but they are not welcome in my neighborhood.

John Twomey

Posted at 12:23 AM | Issues | Comments (0)

Poem of the Week

The Thin People

They are always with us, the thin people
Meager of dimension as the grey people

On a movie screen. They
Are unreal, we say:

It was only in a movie, it was only
In a war making evil headlines when we

Were small that they famished and
Grew so lean and would not round

Out their stalky limbs again though
peace
Plumbed the bellies of the mice

Under the meanest table.
It was during the long hunger-battle

They found their talent to persevere
In thinness, to come later,

Into our bad dreams, their menance
Not guns, not abuses,

But a thin silence.
Wrapped in flea-ridden donkey skins,

Empty of complaint, forever
Drinking vinegar from tin cups: they
wore

The insufferable nimbus of the lot-drawn
Scapegoat. But so thin,

So weedy a race could not remain in
dreams,
Could not remain outlandish victims

In the contracted country of the head
Any more than the old woman in her
mud hut could

Keep from cutting the fat meat
Out of the side of the generous moon
when it

Set foot nightly in her yard
Until her knife had pared

The moon to a rind of little light.
Now the thin people do not obliterate

Themselves as the dawn
Greyness blues, reddens, and the outline

Of the world comes clear and fills with
color,
They persist in the sunlit room: the wall-
paper

Frieze of cabbage-roses and cornflowers
pales
Under their thin-lipped smiles,

Their withering kingship.
How they prop each other up!

We own no wilderness rich and deep
enough
For stronghold against their stiff

Battalions. See, how the tree boles flatten
And lose their good browns

If the thin people simply stand in the
forest,
Making the world go thin as a wasp’s
nest

And greyer; not even moving their bones.

Sylvia Plath

Posted at 12:10 AM | Politics | Comments (0)

Important Arrests Made

District 8 news.

Mt. Hope’s District 8 policemen and women continue to do a great job of community policing. Several arrests took criminals engaged in car-breaks and drug dealing off the street in recent weeks. The percentage of reported car-break theft declined significantly immediately, and a well known junkie/dealer frequently seen on Camp Street, arrested on an outstanding warrant, will not be bothering people or plying his trade for a while. Both perpetrators violated their parole, and it is hoped that the judge rules on their parole status and gives them significant time behind bars.

District 8’s Lt. Schiavulli, keeps himself busy with his leadership duties, working with the policemen and woman of District 8, and working to improve the physical condition of the District 8 Sub-station. It looks cautiously optimistic for renovations to begin shortly. The neccessary funding, lined up through S.W.A.P., came through, and the first materials have arrived. The Police Department is attempting to negotiate a two year lease to insure that the neighborhood reaps the benefit of the renovations.

If the owner donated the facility to the City of Providence, as GCCC suggested several time to the Police Department, the Mayor, and to Councilman Jackson, it would save the taxpayer money and give District 8 a permanent home on Camp Street. Make it worthwhile to the owners financially through tax incentives on the adjoining property and the City and the Neighborhood benefit.

This is an issue made to order for GCCC and we should initiate a campaign to help the City follow this idea through to completion. It may be time to sharpen your pencils for some letter writing.

Correction on “Bold Daytime Forced Entry Attempt by Three Masked Intruders Thwarted” 7/18/05

I learned that the incident described in the above post was not actually an attempted home invasion but actually an armed robbery. (A “home invasion” is defined as a house break-in while the residents are home, while a “B & E, breaking and entering,” is defined as a house break-in when no one is home.)

Three black males, one armed, lured a pizza delivery man to the rear of the house on Locust Street and robbed him at gun point. The delivery man rang the doorbell and the resident called the police. No arrests have been made as of yet.

I make the correction because an “home invasion” is much scarier and a much more serious crime than a “b & e”. No reported “home invasions” occurred recently in Mt. Hope, and the last one involved a drug related home invasion, where drug dealers were the victims of other drug dealers.

This incident demonstrates how, in the heat of the moment, experiences and statements get skewered from what really happened, and can lead to unreasonable fear.

While it remains scary to have armed, masked men pulling armed robberies next door, it is not quite as scary as having armed men invade your house while you are home.

John Twomey

Posted at 01:55 PM | Issues | Comments (1)

Running with pigs... etc.

My last rant of the night

So in my last post I used the phrase 'if you run with pigs you're going to smell like them'. This is often the case unless of course you're the pig farmer and you care about your sty. Maybe it's a poor choice of analogy, but what the heck.

I know that associating with certain people in the neighborhood is frowned upon. Hence, I myself have been frowned upon. Frankly, I don't care. I am a good person with good intentions and I'm trying something different. We've been doing the same thing to our local drug addicts - ignoring them, calling cops, etc. These people are here to stay and we need to find a better way to address the problem. I propose that the solution is to embrace them.

One individual whom I have built a relationship with has a notorious reputation of being a theif. In fact, he will readily admit to being a theif and understands exactly why his reputation haunts him. However, he has turned into the neighborhood scapegoat. I had something stolen from me by an individual in the men's pride building. When I confronted him about it he informed me that it was the scapegoat and that he was a crack head and that I shouldn't have befriended him in the first place. I lied and told him that an investigation was taking place and that the truth would surface soon. This got his attention.

Later that afternoon an individual with my item was there at the men's pride building. He returned the item, apologized, and assured me that the men's pride rep was the culprit and that the scapegoat was not. It made me feel good.

The scapegoat was also accused of stealing a snowblower last winter. What's interesting is that he had his arm in a cast all winter and absconding with a 300 lb. machine was virtually impossible.

Is this person a crook? Probably. Is he a neighborhood scapegoat? Definitely. I'm willing to take my chances. On occasion I invite him along with one other to have dinner in my apt. We play music, surf the net, eat, and share stories. I am intrigued by these individuals. I lend one a few dollars here, a few dollars there and never expect to see the money again.

Several weeks ago I had a knock on my door. There was the scapegoat with a fist full of money, repaying his debt. He got a short term job and wanted to pay me first. I was very impressed.

Another individual needed some money. They had asked in the past but this time I demanded something in return - grass clippings for my lawn. I gave him $5 and the next morning was a bag of clippings on my doorstep. Now, everytime he wants money he asks 'do you have a job for me to do?' Never does he ask for money.

I have never had anything stolen from my apartment.

I have faith that these older, drug addicted citizens have and want to contribute something. They hate where they are and want out but have no opportunity to find it on Camp St.

I could go off on this all day but I have a 4:00 appointment. Please post your comments and concerns. I understand how this may make some uncomfortable and I want to make sure that the concerned citizens are taken care of first.

Kev Kaz

Posted at 07:38 PM | Community | Comments (2)

Engage, Embrace, Empower

My next to last rant.

So my last rant about having my car broken into has stirred up a couple memories.

Some people think I'm nuts for associating with some of the people in the neighborhood. When you run with pigs, you smell like them... maybe. Here are a few of my experiences with people in the neighborhood.

A couple weeks ago I was walking my dog north down camp. About 7 girls ages 6-20's were on a porch showering cars with rocks as they drove by. I watched for a moment before speaking up. Next thing I know, I was getting pegged with rocks. I walk around the corner and there was a cop car pulling up Cypress. I tell him what happened, he drives to the front of the house where a victim and their car was stopped, the girls ran inside. Cop gets out and essentially tells the people that there is nothing he can do about it. The people were pissed off. People leave, cop leaves.

I will not let this happen. I go to the front door, knock and slowly the kids come out one by one, youngest to oldest. Initially there was tension and harsh words exchanged. The oldest of the girls speaks up and says 'listen to what he has to say. Have some respect'. I quickly divert the conversation to my dog and to my electric scooters. As soon as they find out I'm the scooter guy things change. Now I have friends and they love the tricks my dog knows.

The same cop happens to walk by and one of the girls points at me and says 'He threatened to kill us'. Cop looks at me, keeps walking. The girl and I went back and forth for a moment, but I backed off. By the end of the night almost all of the girls had apologized. I gave them my phone number in return.

The next day I got a phone call from a mousy little voice. 'Can we try your scooters'. My response 'only if you wear a helmet'. Three of the girls meet me on camp I show them how to use it and put helmets on. The one girl whom I 'threatened to kill' was there and I asked for an apology before letting her ride. I wasn't getting one but I let her ride anyway. They took several trips around the block without any problems. I took the bikes back and to my delightful surprise the one girl says 'I'm really sorry for saying that you were going to kill us'. And then she runs away.

What did I accomplish? Not a whole heck of a lot but now this house of girls know my name and my dogs name. They know who I am and that I care about what's going on. They respect me. If they're throwing rocks and I walk down the street, they will stop. They will not throw rocks at me. I hope that they will now think twice about their actions. Yelling at them, scolding them, telling on them, only fuels their delinquency. THEY NEED TO BE EMBRACED. Get out of your homes. If you see things like this approach it with tact, not malice. Rationalize. Make them feel bad. Make them feel accountable. Do not yell and fight. It accomplishes nothing. Offer them something. I offered my scooters and my dog. Now they like to play with her in the park. They are a part of my life and I am a part of theirs now.

Kocking on that door could have been the wrong decision if someone with a weapon came out. Fortunately it was not the case. I will not live in fear, I will not hide, I will not stop. We can all solve problems that the police cannot.

Any thoughts?

Kev Kaz

Posted at 07:15 PM | Community | Comments (0)

Car Burglars on the Run

Car burglars on the run - literally

Last night around 8:00 (7/31) I stepped out to deliver materials to my friend who recommended I didn't because 'there is a strange feeling in the neighborhood tonight. I insisted that everything would be fine.

Stepping out of my door, I saw a man in my car, snooping around. At first I was in shock but quickly took action and ran towards him. He saw me and ran. His body motions and actions led me to believe that he was under the influence of a stimulant, and more importantly that I had caught him off guard and scared him. I easily cornered him in the front yard across from the community garden.

I repeated 'drop the bag and I won't do anything to you' (along with some other unmentionable words). In fact he did drop the bag in the road and said 'take it. nothing in there is yours anyway'. The bag appeared to be empty. At this point I was contemplating restraining the individual and bringing him to the police station.

However, when the chase first ensued, I noticed a car follow us on the way to the garden. while confronting the theif, the car waited around the corner. Once the bag was thrown in the road the car turned down our street, three individuals with seats way down pull up.

Now I'm like a dear in headlights and my instincts tell me to stop everything. Fortunately all they did was drive by, pick up the bag and take off. The thief jumped over the fence and took off.

Nothing was stolen from my car. I guess the Allman brothers, Billy Joel, and Bonnie Raitt weren't his favorite artists.

I'm glad things happened the way they did. Nothing was lost and I sent a message - I am not scared of you and I will hunt you down. What they want us to do is run back inside, call the police and wait. They get the goods, never get caught.

Should I be afraid? Of course. I could have been shot, stabbed, or if I engaged in a physical struggle, could have contracted a life threatening disease. One never knows.

Our neighborhood is analogous to the fight on terror. Terrorists want us to run, hide, be fearful. They win. The answer is not to avoid the subway. The answer is not to avoid terrorist hot spots. The answer is to force them to change their behavior. I feel confident that the next thief will think twice about coming into my driveway. And now that it's happened to me once, I'll be more ready next time.

Unfortunately I have a poor description of the individuals. I wasn't thinking clearly and regret not thinking rationally. The thief was mid 30s, 160 lbs, 5'11" with poor teeth. He was obviously addicted to a stimulant.

The three individuals in the car were younger, late 20s and much larger. I think they had the drug addict do the dirty work while they followed and provided support.

WE NEED EVERYONE TO GET OUT OF THEIR HOUSES!!!! Use the park. Use the grill. Use the swings. Do not live in fear. I have heard too many times that the park is a bad place and should be avoided. If this is your attitude than expect to live under these conditions indefinitely. Talking about problems, complaining about problems accomplishes nothing. Get out there. Meet your neighbors even if they are drug addicts or gangsters. Avoiding the problem is not the answer. We need to embrace the people and we need to embrace the solution. Find out what makes them tick because like me, they are not going anywhere.

Hasta la pasta!

Kevin Kazlauskas

Posted at 07:10 PM | Issues | Comments (0)

A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

strong>"Where have you gone Joe Dimaggio . . .

Manny Being Manny -- Globe photo

Red Sox Nation that is, turned its eyes to Manny, as the longest running soap opera in baseball chalked up another weekend of banner ratings.

Whew! The trading dealine is past, and the team is intact.

Manny will remain in red sox for a while, bloated contract, Manny Moments, and all, as well as the best hitter and run producer in the big leagues.

Some people will never get why baseball is such an integeral part of American culture, to those people, one can only say, "I'm sorry."

Posted at 12:05 AM | Politics | Comments (0)